@Kada _____________________________________________________________________________
"Ouch!"
Flordia winced as she shifted, her whole body screaming in protest. She carefully pushed herself up, blinking the sleep from her eyes as she tried to get her bearings.
She was lying in an alleyway, the sunlight just peeking over the top of one of the buildings and onto her. She had crawled under this pile of garbage the night before to sleep, and to hide from anyone who may come by. She knew her parents and their guards were looking for her, and while it was unlikely that they'd find her in this tiny town so soon after she'd left, she wasn't stupid. It was wise to hide from everyone if you had to sleep on the street.
She heaved a sigh and slowly got to her feet, stretching as she did to not hurt her sore body even more. The garbage had been softer than the cobblestone street would have been, but the princess was used to feather beds and cushy pillows in clean rooms, not dirty alleyways.
Her clothes, while plain, were of fine make, but they were now as dirty as her skin and tangle of blonde hair, and she looked more like a street urchin than a runaway princess. No one would take notice of her, unless to possibly give her a dirty look.
The young elf headed out of the alleyway and onto the main street. It was early, and the docks were buzzing with activity. Fishermen sold their catch, collected before the sun had even risen, and sailors bustled about; loading and unloading cargo, buying supplies, and some staggering across the piers, still drunk from the previous night's revelry.
Amidst it all was Flordia. And she was alone. Completely and utterly alone.
It didn't feel as foreign as Flordia would have expected it to.
There had always been people around her in the castle -servants, ladies-in-waiting, guards, noblemen and women, tutors-, but they'd all only been there for their jobs. Had only been there to serve her, or teach her, or greet her kindly with the sole intention of her mentioning their kindness to her parents, the Kind and Queen, so they may gain favor. There had been select few that had ever been there for
her.
At least now, here in this marketplace, no one was
pretending to be her friend. They ignored her. They treated her not like a princess, but like a normal person. A commoner.
That was perhaps the happiest thought she'd had in a while.
She longed to stay here all day, but an angry fishmonger started yelling at her, telling her she was blocking his stall and scaring away all his customers.
"They won't want to buy from me if they think they're going to get their purses stolen by some dirty little street urchin?!"
Flordia bolted down the street to escape the man's angry words, and the fish heads he had started throwing at her. When she came to a walk she realized how lightheaded she was. She hadn't eaten in over a day, and the princess was used to three square meals.
Her hands immediately went to the pockets of her trousers, and a sigh of relief escaped her upon feeling their contents. The left pocket was filled with coins -the money she had stashed away in the hopes that someday she would leave the castle-, and the other with her jewelry. The jewelry was far more valuable than the coins. She didn't know how valuable, but she knew she couldn't afford to lose them. Luckily, all the pieces were there. Two earrings, a necklace, and two rings.
She could use them to get out of here. Her eyes fell upon one of the huge ships that sat in the harbor. She could use them to
sail out of here. Her parents would never expect her to do that. She could escape. Finally.
Unlike the princess, Burton had not slept on the street. He had shared a bed with a young dock worker's wife whose home he left before the sun rose and her husband came home from working overnight.
He strolled through the street, eating a hunk of cheese and some bread he had taken from the house on his way out. Burton had a spring in his step and a smile on his face despite his recent unemployment. Getting fired was always a real downer, but getting fired by being tossed off of the ship was even worse. They hadn't been able to keep him off the ship though, and he escaped the next time they had come into port.
The differences between himself and Flordia didn't stop at their sleeping accommodations. While people mostly ignored the obviously homeless little girl, people took notice of the man swaggering his way towards the docks. They pretended not to notice him or the hand he had on the pommel of his sword, practically daring anyone to mess with him.
He swept the area, turning his head more than a person normally did to compensate for his blind spot. He didn't look particularly mean or angry, but Burton carried on him a kind of dangerous confidence that bordered on hubris. Very much like his father, the 'good' Lord Crawford of Summervale, much to Burton's own chagrin.
He stopped, taking a look over the ships that were docked. Mostly merchant types and mostly full up on crewmen by the looks of it. Checking the purse tied to his elbow inside of his shirt, he guessed that he had enough to hire passage on a ship if he really wanted to. Taking one last bite of the hunk of bread in his hand to mull it over, he gave a shrug. "Why the fuck not?"
It didn't matter where the ship was going. He really couldn't care less about the destination. He just needed to get out of this area. Despite his proclivities, he didn't like being this close to Zantaric. Too many egos to butt up against his.
Flordia walked right past the large passenger vessels, knowing that even if she had enough money for passage, she couldn't afford to use up all her resources on a luxury cruise.
She passed the fishing trawlers as well, but slowed when she approached the merchant ships. Her eyes fell on a mid-sized ship that was currently being loaded up with crates and boxes. Flordia knew little of ships, but this one appeared somewhat old, but sturdy and well-cared for. Maybe they would be willing to grant passage to a runaway.
Flordia started for the ship, and noticed a man on the docks. He had an air about him that suggested he wasn't one to be messed with, and the young elf gave him a wide berth as she approached the merchant vessel.
There was a man standing by the gangplank, taking inventory of everything that was being brought aboard, parchment and quill in hand. Flordia walked up to him.
"Excuse me, sir," she said, and he looked up at her over his glasses. He immediately scowled.
"I need passage out of here," Flordia said quickly, and she hurried on as he opened his mouth to protest. "I can pay! Just tell me how much."
He narrowed his eyes at this, obviously doubtful, but he told her the price.
Flordia bit her lip. She didn't have enough coins for that, and she hadn't wanted to try using her jewelry so soon. People would be very suspicious of a young vagabond with those kinds of riches.
"I can work, to help pay?" she said, and the man scowled again.
"Money, or no passage."
Flordia sighed. She reached into her pocket and pulled out one ring. It was the plainest she had with her, but the man's eyes widened upon seeing it.
"Where did you get that?" he snapped, his tone accusatory, but his eyes did not leave the jewelry.
"It doesn't matter." Flordia slipped the ring back into her pocket. Better not let the whole dock know what she had. "But it's yours if you take me with you."
The man narrowed his eyes, his gaze flicking to her pocket before he nodded slowly. "Alright," he said. "We'll take you. Now, give me the ring and get on the ship. We leave at noon."
Flordia grinned, pulling the ring out of her pocket and handing it to the man. "Thank you, sir, I won't be any trouble!"
She ran up the gangplank, the man grumbling behind her. She was getting out of here!
Having one good eye meant that you had to learn to pay attention more closely than other people. Burton had learned this a long time ago, and he was good at noticing things. Like a distinctly small, shiny thing passing between the hands of a pretty young squirrel and the boatswain of one of the ships he had been considering.
Well that settled it then, didn't it?
He approached with all the blustering jackassery of a military officer, puffing up his chest and digging into the crook of his elbow to get at the handful of coins he assumed he would need to pay for passage. He kept his tone low enough that others on the dock hopefully couldn't hear him, "Morning, ser. I couldn't help but notice you letting that waif on board your ship. You do realize that slave trading is illegal yes? Even if she is just an urchin."
The man bristled, opening his mouth to defend himself. Burton lifted his hand to stop him. "Silas McCready, Naval Officer First Class. Regrettably retired. Couldn't very well keep up my soldiering after I went half blind."
The man interrupted now, tightening the grip on his quill in something like anxiety. "Ser I assure you, I have no intention of selling that little girl. She paid for passage, just like anyone else."
"Just like anyone else, bosun? Didn't look like a handful of coin she handed you."
The man's face fell slightly at that, and he glanced down at his pocket where he had put the ring.
"Let's see it then," Burton demanded, holding out his hand expectantly. The man hesitated, but Burton urged him on with a quick, "Come on now. I don't want to have to get the guard involved."
With the ring placed in his waiting hand, Burton quickly brought it up to his good eye and examined it thoughtfully. The craftsmanship was lovely. Possibly Serenian make? Definitely not something a street urchin could afford. Stolen? Maybe. But a girl smart enough to steal a ring this valuable shouldn't be stupid enough to try and use it for passage on a ship.
No, Burton knew this behavior quite well. He'd done something similar himself, pawning his dueling saber for traveling money when he'd run away. Clever little squirrel.
Clenching his fist around the ring, Burton pocketed it and swapped it for a slightly larger stack of coins than he knew passage cost. "I'll be taking passage on this ship, bosun. To keep that girl safe from your vile clutches. And I will be keeping this ring as evidence of your corruption." It wasn't a request, but a demand. All of the information had flown at the boatswain so quickly, he was having trouble processing. A classic grifter's trick.
Burton leaned in close, putting the stack of coins directly into the man's hand without giving him a chance to reject them. He whispered in the boatswain's ear as he passed, "Good man. I knew you'd see the error of your ways."
On the ship, Burton immediately set to looking for the blonde little waif he'd seen hand the boatswain the ring in the first place. She couldn't be that hard to find, given that she was probably the dirtiest looking person on the ship. When he did find her, Burton slowed his pace down and relaxed his shoulders. At ease. Less intimidating. The charming gentleman his father had always wanted him to be.
"Miss? I believe you dropped something."
Indeed, Flordia looked quite out of place on the ship. She had moved to one of the rails to stay out of the way of the crewmen who were bustling about on the ship, so busy with their work that they barely noticed her. She watched them, however, her wide lavender eyes taking in everything they could about her new surroundings.
She'd been on a ship before, but it had been like one of the passenger ships she'd walked right past moments before. They had been built for comfort, for the pleasure of the rich and powerful. They were not the working, breathing entity that this vessel seemed to be.
She was so enthralled with the activity around her than she did not hear the man approaching her, and jumped when she heard the voice addressing her. She turned to see who it was and her eyes widened. It was the man who had been on the docks, the one she had avoided. He still had that air about him, but now he appeared more relaxed, more approachable. . . But Flordia knew very little of the world, and perhaps her only advantage was that she knew she knew very little.
She smiled at him politely, but not too politely. "Excuse me? Dropped something, sir?"
She didn't realize how refined she sounded, how very un-street-urchin-like.
Up close like this, he could see it plainly. Her skin, while dirty from apparently sleeping outside or something, was still clearer and softer looking than any peasant. Likewise her hair, tangled mess that it was, was still cut more expertly than any commoner could afford. Little details, the kind you might not know to look for if you didn't grow up around all that bluff and bluster.
"Yes indeed, miss," Burton said, taking his hand off of his sword and slipping his other hand into his pocket. Luckily, Burton himself wasn't a very tall man and so the two of them were able to stand at just about eye level as he pulled the ring out and flashed it quickly between his fingers.
And then it vanished again, hidden within his clenched fist. His smile never wavered, seeming more pleasant rather than smug. "I didn't think a thief could be so pretty. Who'd you steal this from?"
The ring. How did he get it?
"I didn't steal it!" was her automatic response, but then again, it probably would've been anyone's, and she quickly realized that it definitely sounded like a lie. Good, she didn't want anyone, let alone this man, to know who she really was.
"I found it," she continued slowly. "And I paid that man with it for passage on this ship. Without passage I'm stuck here!"
She didn't know how this man had gotten the ring from the other man, but she didn't want to get kicked off the ship because he stole her means of passage.
"Oh you're adorable, little squirrel," Burton said, letting a bit of his usual snark take over. He looked supremely amused and slid the ring back into his pocket and and gave her an indifferent shrug.
"You're fine. The bosun won't even look at you, let alone drag you off the ship." A small, genuinely mirthful laugh passed Burton's lips as he looked back over at the gangplank, where the boatswain was very deliberately concentrating on the newest set of passengers. "You're not very good at this little orphan street thief thing though, you know?"
As Burton playfully chided Flordia, he subtly tripped a young deckhand carrying bags of provisions. The boy went sprawling and Burton, in a sudden change in demeanor, moved swiftly to help him up. He helped pick up some of the scattered fruit and hard biscuits, probably food for the crew rather than the passengers, and sent the boy on his way after a half dozen overdone apologies.
Once the boy was back to work, Burton reached into his coat and produced two oranges and biscuits, holding them for Flordia to see with a smirk. "Hungry?"
Flordia didn't like his tone, and didn't like what he said. "You're not very good at this little orphan street thing" What did he mean? Could he know who she was?
She jumped again as the deckhand fell, and the man helped him up.
Her eyes widened at the food he then offered her. "You stole that!" she hissed, but her eyes were locked onto the food as her stomach growled. "You should give it back!"
Burton snorted, biting back a laugh as he tossed one of the biscuits over the edge of the ship, where it splashed and floated useless in the sea water.
"Yeah, and? You stole that ring. Shouldn't you have given it back?"
He tossed one of the oranges into the air, catching it back in his hand. "I had a lovely breakfast. Nice rye bread and a good aged cheese. I don't really need the food right now. So I guess if I was wrong about you being hungry..."
One of the oranges followed the first biscuit over the edge and into the water with a barely audible splash. He held the remaining food in one hand, teasing Flordia with it.
Flordia let out a small, involuntary yelp as he threw the food into the water, and her stomach growled again. She crossed her arms over her chest and scowled at the man. She was starting to like him less and less every second.
"Fine," she said, eyeing what was left of the food. "You're right, I'm hungry. But I told you, I found the ring. I didn't steal it."
She looked him over again. "Who are you, anyway?"
Burton smirked and pressed the food into Flordia's hands, giving her a wink and the advice, "Better eat it quick. Don't want the crew seeing you, eh?"
Taking a step back, he gave a deep, flourishing bow that was very much a mockery of the kind given by Serenian aristocracy. Some habits were nearly impossible to break. "Burton Lamont. Fast fingers, faster tongue. And sure. You found it. Probably on someone's finger or in their pocket. Listen, little squirrel. Your secret's safe with me if only because I think it's hilarious how genuinely shitty you are at all of this."
"You do know what happens to a thief on a ship, right? They take back what you stole from your flesh, pound for pound. It'd be a shame for a pretty little thing like you to get all marred like that."
At least, that was what had happened on one of the pirate ships he'd been on when you stole from another member of the crew. But details, details.
At his words Flordia felt her stomach clench, and she shoved the food into her pocket quickly. Hopefully no one had seen. If they thought she had stolen the food, not only would they do what Burton had described -which sounded terrible-, but they would find her jewelry. They would no doubt take it from her, and she would be left with nothing.
"I'm Flordia, Flordia-!" She realized how stupid she was for saying her real name, and stumbled over the words as she continued. "Flordia Gi-Ginnera."
He definitely knew she wasn't who she was claiming to be, but she wasn't going to give him any more information than she needed to, at least not give it to him intentionally.
She had recognized his bow, and how easily it had come to him. He definitely was a shady character, perhaps he was hiding something as well?
Flordia wanted to get away from him before he caused her more trouble or made her make any more stupid mistakes, but there wasn't really anywhere to go, so the young elf turned back to the man. She stood up straighter and looked him in the eye. If she was going to be on her own, she would at least have to try to appear confident in what she was doing.
"I'm on this ship to get out of this little town and away from here," she said. "Why are you here?"
Flordia Ginerra. Probably not totally fake, with how quickly she'd come up with it. But he didn't recognize either name. It wasn't much consequence to him anyway.
"I'm here because I want to be. I decided a long time ago that I was going to do whatever I wanted, little flower." He smiled at her, subtly leaning on the railing of the ship to both better hide Flordia from the crew and also make it harder for her to leave.
"I left my last job, so I'm looking for work. I got on this ship though because I saw your fare and I was intrigued."
Flordia felt her skin crawl. Her was on this ship because of her? If she'd had disposable funds, she would have left the vessel right then and there to find another one. But, even if she'd had the money to spend, which she didn't, he would probably follow her to whatever boat she went to. If only to get on her nerves, which he seemed to like doing, and was very adept at.
Well, if they were going to be stuck on this ship for who knows how long, she may as well at least try not to make and enemy of him.
"Well, there's not much more to me than that, I'm afraid," she said. "I found the ring," she put an emphasis on the word 'found', "and I realized I could get out of this town and maybe do something with my life other than becoming a fisherman's wife. Nothing against fishermens' wives, of course."
"Nothing against them in the least," he said with a grin, eyes tea sling around her form. Burton snorted and shook his head a little. "I happen to love fisherman's wives. Fucked one last night, in fact."
"Alright though, alright. That's your story, I won't begrudge you for not wanting to deviate from it." Holding up a hand apologetically, Burton scratched at his cheek as he considered the dock below them. The ship was almost ready to leave, but he could get off anytime he wanted.
"So, you're out on your own. Awful brave of you, little squirrel. You seem like you could use a friend. And to your good fortune, my friendship is for sale. If you happened to have... found any more baubles, or money, you'll never have a better friend than me. I've been a thief, a prostitute, an assassin, a bodyguard."
Flordia grimaced slightly at his words. He obviously had no qualms about his word-choice, or any shame, for that matter.
He still didn't believe her, but she would stick to her story, for now, at least.
"I don't need any help," Flordia said quickly, almost without thinking, as he offered his services. But then she paused. Maybe he could help her. She thought of her brothers, they were out here, in the world. If she could find them, maybe they would be able to help her get a handle on living outside of a castle. After all, they had both had to make the transition, same as she was going to have to.
However, Flordia wasn't quite ready to trust this man yet, if ever. He did not seem like the trustworthy type.
"Even if I did," she continued slowly, choosing her words carefully. "We're both going to be stuck on this ship for a while, I have plenty of time to think about it."
The ship was really starting to get underway now, and Flordia couldn't help but watch in wonder as the crewmen readied the ship to sail.
"Fair enough, little squirrel. You're wrong about one thing though..."
Burton seemed to vanish from in front of Flordia, in the blink of an eye. He was gone for several seconds and then reappeared in the same spot, holding a coin purse in his hands. Down on the docks, a man in the crowd seemed to panic and shout about a thief and his missing money. Burton jingled the pouch a bit, relieving a few of the coins from inside it before tossing the rest overboard like trash.
If the man had any inkling that someone on the ship might have taken his money, it was too late by far. The boatswain's whistle called for the sailors to get the ship moving and it lurched forward at their collective command.
"I can leave this ship anytime I want. So if you're going to think about that offer of mine, you'd better hope I stay entertained."
"How about this. Pretend I'm an open book. Anything you want to know about me, you can ask. But you only get, let's say..." Burton parceled out five of the coins and offered them to her. "As many questions as you have coins. Each question you ask and pay me for, I'll answer truthfully. Or if you happen to have a request, like someone's nose broken or one of that lady's dresses," he said, nodding over to another passenger who was stuck to her husband's arm like an accessory.
"It'll be fun, yeah?"
Flordia didn't think it sounded very fun. This man was proving himself to be more and more dangerous by the second, and Flordia didn't think that he was the best person to be 'helping' someone like her. Someone with no experience in the real world.
His magic had startled the young elf, but his theft from the man on the docks only cemented Flordia's previous assumptions about him. He was dangerous, yes, but even more dangerous was his mannerisms, and Flordia did not want to get caught up in the games he seemed to enjoy playing so much.
However, it seemed she already was, and, as he obviously wasn't going to leave her alone, she was stuck with him for the time being.
"Fine," she huffed, taking the five coins from him and slipping them into her pocket. She thought for a moment. "I only have five questions, and, unless you get bored, of course, we'll be on this ship a while. So, I think I'll take some time to think of a good question."
"Fair enough, little squirrel."
Burton left Flordia alone for the rest of the day and well into the next, amusing himself primarily by teasing out which of the married couple he could convince to join him in his room before the journey ended. If Flordia was watching his antics, and he didn't know or care if she was, she would see that despite his gruff, somewhat unhinged nature he could play the affable, dashing rogue if he wanted. If he had something to gain by playing it, that was.
Some handful of hours after midday, Burton was up on the deck, staying out of the crew's way and whittling away at a block of wood with a small knife he carried on him. He was bored, but the couple was busy with other affairs and so he had to entertain himself until he could reinsert himself into their business.
In fact, Flordia had spent much of the day watching Burton and all the other people on the vessel.
Burton seemed to be very adept at tailoring his mannerisms perfectly for whoever he seemed to be interacting with at any given moment, and it was actually quite entertaining to watch him.
Flordia also watched the other people on the ship, especially the crew members as they climbed the rigging. It looked incredibly fun, and also somewhat terrifying.
Despite her interest in the happenings of the ship, Flordia's mind had been working all afternoon, trying to come up with the perfect question for Burton. She knew he loved to play games, so she needed a question he couldn't skirt around. Flordia had grown up in a castle, surrounded by people who wanted nothing more than to get one rung higher in the social ladder. She knew people who could, and would, spin a deception so convincing without even telling a lie. They used half-truths, glossed over facts, or just ignored questions altogether and answered a completely different one.
There were many ways to tell an untruth without telling a blatant lie, and Burton seemed exactly the kind of person to employ those tricks.
When she finally thought of a question, she took another hour to contemplate even asking it. And when she finally made her decision, she found Burton whittling.
"I've come up with my question," she said, pulling one of the coins out of her pocket. "Have you ever heard of Kilarhas or Faelis Gindien?"
The wording of the question was not ideal, it would be easy to twist an answer, but Flordia didn't know which of her brothers Burton was more likely to have heard of, if he had even heard of either of them. She hadn't heard from them since they had left the castle over seven years ago. For all she knew, they were living quiet lives as farmers. But Faelis had left to search for adventure, and Kilarhas had been banished for starting a war against orders. They were not the farming type.
Burton had nearly whittled the rough shape of a fish out of his block of wood by the time that Flordia came to him with her question. He regarded her with a sideways half-smile, giving her a deliberately fake-sweet, "Good afternoon, little squirrel. I haven't seen you at all today. Having fun on the ship so far?"
And then she asked her question, pulling out one of the coins he had given her. Burton's hand moved quickly, snatching the coin deftly from between her fingers and rolling it across his knuckles as he considered her question.
His smile faded as he rolled those names around in his memory, a clear sign that he did at least think he knew something. Flipping the coin in the air, he caught it and looked at it in his hand briefly.
"Never encountered either in person, but I know Kilarhas by name from some old contacts who he was a thorn in the side of. Now..."
Burton's face slid effortlessly back into his usual self-assured smirk as he rolled the coin back between his knuckles and caught it between his thumb and index finger. "Same rule applies. You can have the coin, and consequently, a question back. But then I get to ask you... why do you want to know about, I assume, a pair of related squirrels?"
Flordia thought about it for a second, then held out her hand for the coin.
"Alright," she said. "They're relations of mine, and if I could find them they might be willing to help me."
She had started to spin a story for herself over the last few hours. A history that would hep her answer any questions someone might have for her. She decided to make it close to the truth, but not quite. A story that was half true would be easier to maintain than a flat out lie.
She thought of another question, and dropped her hand before Burton could give her the coin back. "I have another question," she said. "If I were, hypothetically, to be able to hire you to help me find one of them, would you be able to?"
Burton immediately clenched his fist back around the coin as Flordia asked her next question. He was grinning now, showing his upper teeth a bit. She was playing the game. The naive fell into it so easily.
"I could, and I would. I can't guarantee how long it would take, but as long as the coin was good and steady, I'd commit myself to the task as I do anything else. On my hypothetical honor."
And so Flordia threw caution to the winds. She could hire him to help her, or she could hire some other character she came across. Someone else who she had just met, who she knew just as little about. She knew that once she got off this ship, she would be just as oblivious about the world as she was now. Looking around for someone to help her would not only be challenging, as she had no idea where to look, but she knew that the longer she was on her own, the more likely something bad was going to happen to her.
At least with Burton there would be someone there, even if he was just there for her money.
"Okay," Flordia said, standing up straight and looking Burton in the eye. "I would like to hire you, Mr. Lamont, to help me find either Faelis or Kilarhas Gindien. Whichever is easier to find, or we come across first."
Burton's grin widened into a distinctly wolfish kind of expression, his eyes practically sparkling when Flordia said that she would hire him.
"And what are you going to pay me with, little squirrel? Do you have any more baubles you found before you ran away from home?"
Standing back up fully, putting his half finished whittled fish back into one of the pockets on his coat, Burton made a half step to close the gap between the two of them.
Flordia's heart skipped a beat as he took a step forward, but she held her ground. She set her jaw and kept eye contact with him, despite the fact that she was itching to back away from that smile.
"I do have something else," she said, pointedly ignoring the 'ran away from home' bit, and she reached into her pocket, pulling out the second ring. Flordia didn't know the exact value but she knew that this one was far more valuable than the first. A small emerald sat nestled among three smaller diamonds, the stones set into the silver band.
She held it out for Burton to see. "I think that this will suffice."
It occurred to Flordia that, yes, he could just get the ring and then take off as soon as they got to port, but, then again, anyone she tried to hire could do that. She had to at least hope he would keep his word.
"It's a start," Burton said, snagging the ring and inspecting it closely. You're going to have to tell me where you actually got these one day."
Pocketing the ring, Burton straightened his coat and let his wolfish grin diminish slightly. "But first thing's first. I need to know what these squirrels look like. What they can do. Why they're traipsing all over Le'ranna. Information, basically. I can't work without it."
Flordia nodded, pursing her lips as she thought. She knew nothing of her brothers whereabouts or current professions, but she knew what they looked like, their general mannerisms, and what they had wanted when they had lived in the castle.
Flordia described both of her bothers' appearances to Burton.
"I haven't seen them in many years ," she said. "But Faelis has always been a. . . colorful character. He always talked about finding adventure, and he was always getting into trouble.
"Kilarhas was less intentionally chaotic, but he couldn't keep his nose out of something if he thought something unjust was happening. He always talked about doing good. Changing the world, I guess. They're both trained to fight, both with weapons and without. Kilarhas has magic, and Faelis was good with his knives. I don't think either of them would be able to keep a low profile. They're kind of magnets for trouble."
Burton pursed his lips, then chewed on the inside of his cheek as he considered the information that Flordia had given him. "Alright," he said finally with a nod. "Not a lot, but I can work with it. Especially if they're using their real names."
"Once we make landfall, I'll put out feelers among people who might know. But that kind of information brokering probably won't come cheap."
He grinned a bit, leaning back against the ship's railing. "Though that does beg a question for you, little squirrel. How dirty are you willing to get your hands to find your kin?"
Getting information wouldn't be cheap, he'd said. She hoped he wasn't trying to get more money from her. She didn't know how much her jewelry was worth, but she didn't want him to know that. For all she knew, that ring was way too valuable to be pawning for someone to help her find her brothers, but if Burton knew she was virtually clueless to their worth, he may try to get more from her.
Flordia frowned at his question. Getting her hands dirty? She wasn't quite sure what he meant by that.
"I'm not willing to get anyone killed, if that's what you're insinuating," the young elf said, crossing her arms over her chest. "I'm sure we can find them without hurting anybody."
"You continue to be adorable, little squirrel. Alright. Well we'll try it your way. But that means that every person we have to pay off, every inn we have to stay at, that's up to you to figure out. Or I can handle it and just add it all to my fee."
He smirked and pulled his whittled fish back out to continue working on it.
"Word of warning though. You're my employer now, so if anyone fucks with you, they're also fucking with me. And I won't tolerate anyone fucking with me."
Well, he meant business.
"I've never hired someone like you before for a job like this." It was obvious. "And while I'm sure you have a lot of experience with this sort of thing, since I don't, I think we should play it by ear, at least in the beginning. Maybe finding them will be easier than we think."
The young elf hoped so. She didn't want to get into anything too dangerous. Of course, simply leaving the castle had been dangerous, and hiring Burton seemed like it wasn't going to be the most tranquil of ventures, but she knew she was already in way over her head. She didn't want to add any more difficulties to that.
"Oh I can tell, Flordia. You're as wet behind the ears as a newborn calf and half as capable. But as long as you stick with me, you at least won't die on your way to finding your kin."
He didn't promise comfort or anything like that, because he wasn't going to ensure that. Burton had already decided, in the back of his kind, that this girl was going to toughen up whether she wanted to or not. He gave it two weeks ashore before he had to gut someone for her safety.
"Now go on. Get yourself some food and leave me alone for now. I've got better things to do than gab with you all day."
[Figured we might wanna keep up the time skip thing so we're not doing all of the interactions on day one. I can change it though if you want.]
OOC: Sounds good to me! Sorry for the late reply :P I also added below that their journey will take bit longer than a week, if that's too short or long, I can change it.
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Flordia spent the rest of the day exploring the ship, and listening in on the conversations of the other passengers and crew members.
She learned that the voyage would take a little longer than a week, and several more personal things about the other people who were on the vessel. The other passengers weren't all that rich, though there were a few that were somewhat well-off. Flordia realized how silly their problems, and her problems, sounded right after she'd heard a haggard man talking about how he had left his wife and four children to find work.
But she still was worried about what she was going to do. Finding her brothers was probably not going to be easy, and Burton made it sound like it could be quite dangerous. Needless to say, she did not sleep well that night.
----
The next morning Flordia woke early, but when she went up on deck the sailors were already up. She supposed at least a few of them had to stay up through the night.
She sat down on a large pile of rope and scanned the deck, wondering where Burton was.
As the sun rose, the ship was abuzz with activity as most of the passengers also began to stir and get ready for the day. Breakfast was being prepared for them down below, and the smells of cooking wafted up through the ship.
As for Burton, he was dead asleep until the last possible moment when a member of the crew knocked on his cabin door to wake him. He shuffled his way up to the dining area only half dressed, wearing his night shirt and belt with a dagger sheathed into it.
The other passengers gave him varying degrees of regard, with most ignoring or silently judging his disheveled appearance and the couple he had been wooing the day before just kind of staring at him in inscrutable awe. By far the most astonishing thing without the benefit of the coverage his full clothes offered was just how many scars he had. Dozens of obvious stabs, burns, and lacerations all over his arms and legs. A lifetime of violence.
Practically melting into a seat, he gestured for one of the crew serving breakfast to pour him some wine, despite how early in the day it was. Bleary-eyed as he was, he still carried that air of absolute confidence about him as he lounged and sipped his drink, watching everyone with the smuggest of smirks.
Flordia didn't find Burton until breakfast was served an hour or so after she had woken. She had eaten the food Burton had given her the day before, but she was still very hungry.
When the crew member announced that breakfast was being served below decks, Flordia was on her way before the man had even finished speaking.
She saw Burton across the table, and gasped upon seeing his scars. She assumed the man would have some, from the life he seemed to live, it wasn't unreasonable to think that he would attain such injuries, but Flordia was aghast at how many of the marks marred his skin.
She slipped into the seat next to him, much to chagrin of a well-dressed woman who had been about to to sit down.
"Good morning," the young elf said to the man. She was eyeing his scars. She very much wanted to ask him about them, but she supposed it would be very rude.
Then she remembered that she was no longer a princess. There was no reason to stand on ceremony anymore. And Burton was going to be helping her find her brothers, she may as well get to know him. The more she got to know him, the better she would be able to get a sense of what sort of man he was, and exactly how much she should trust him.
"You have a lot of scars," she stated. "Why?"
Burton hid his sneer when Flordia blocked the well to do young lady who had meant to sit with him from doing so, and instead opted to give the woman a wink and blow her a kiss. He mouthed the word 'later' before turning his attention to his new employer.
"That, my little squirrel, sounds like a coin question does it not?" He already had his hand held out expectantly as he took a long, rather uncouth sip of wine from his glass. And then he pulled it back, closing his fist without taking a coin. Leaning forward, Burton whispered conspiratorially to her.
"I don't play nice with others, Flordia. These scars are proof that of all the times someone's tried to kill me, they've failed. And I've had a lot of people try to kill me. Hazards of my lifestyle, you see."
Flordia had pulled out a coin, but when he withdrew his hand she set it on the table in front of her.
His words didn't surprise her, but they made her nervous all the same.
"Then you must be adept at avoiding death," Flordia said. "But so many have tried to kill you. That must mean there is a pretty big target on your back. If you attract unwanted attention I have little doubt you could protect yourself, but can you, or rather, will you, be able to protect me?"
She had already given him the ring as payment, there really was no turning back now, but she may as well know as much as she could about what she was getting into, and who with.
"I can protect you, aye," he said, his voice still low as he picked at the meat that had been put on his plate while they had talked. Burton tugged at his lip as if in thought and flashed a grin at Flordia. "You saw only one of my little tricks before the ship left harbor. I've got plenty up my sleeve that folks don't know about."
"And as for a target on my back," he continued with a shrug and a gesture to the crewman to refill his wine. "I've only got one, and frankly I don't have to worry about it. Bastard's long since given up on finding me. Savvy?"
That was somewhat reassuring.
"Very well," Flordia said. She slid the coin that she had placed on the table over to Burton. "Since we're talking, who was after you, and why?"
Technically that was two questions, but he could only choose to answer one, if he wanted. And Flordia didn't even know if he'd accept the coin to answer either one of the questions. When he mentioned the person who had been after him, the young elf had gotten the sense that it had been quite personal. She wondered if any of his scars were attributed to that.
Burton stared down at the coin, his one good eye dilating to focus on it while the other didn't respond at all. He clicked his tongue and drummed his fingers on the table. If he took the coin, he couldn't lie. But he also didn't have to tell her everything. Just like she wasn't telling him everything.
He put his hand over the coin and slid it off the table, keeping it closed in his fist for the time being. He chewed on a bite of food, carefully considering his words before washing it down with more wine.
"My old man, because he's a selfish cunt."
Not at all helpful, he knew. But he had no intention of letting anyone actually know who he was. The last thing he needed was his father to hear about him fucking around and deciding that he wanted to resume the chase. And besides, it was a good lesson for her.
His own father.
Flordia's own parents were looking for her, and while she didn't have the best relationship with either one of them, she didn't exactly hate them. She knew they had just been doing what they had been taught to do.
But how Burton had looked when he mentioned is father made Flordia think there was definitely a lot more anger there.
There were now so many questions she wanted to ask him, but his answer had been quite blunt. Flordia didn't think he was going to give her very much information.
The young elf knew that they both knew the other was hiding something, and this small admission by Burton gave Flordia reason to assume there was a lot more to his story than he was letting on, as there was for hers.
Flordia had started to eat, but she paused to turn back to Burton and pulled another coin out of her pocket. "Why do you do the work that you do?"
She supposed it was a valid question, and one that might give her some insight on his character if Burton chose to answer it.
He thought he could see it just behind her eyes, and it made Burton broil in anger under the surface. His casual grin fell and he leaned in close to her face, the smell of the wine on his breath close to her.
"Don't pity me. I don't need your pity and I don't want it."
Once he was sure his point was made, he sat back and cracked one of the bones from the meat he'd eaten to dig out the marrow to eat.
"Because anything I do I do because I think it'll be interesting and the pay is good. The more interesting the work, the less money I need. Price goes up the less interested I am. If I just don't give a shit, you couldn't give me a kingdom to do it. You couldn't hold a sword to my throat and make me do it. I'd drink poison first."
She had been, to some degree, correct. She had definitely learned something by asking that question. However, Flordia had been taken aback by this relatively intense display of emotion. Up until now Burton had seemed completely calm and collected.
Once he sat back in his chair, Flordia's first instinct was to not say anything at all in response, then she remembered she was no longer a princess, and no longer needed to shut her mouth all the time simply to be polite. So, she was going to snap back at him. . . when she suddenly decided not to.
Instead she composed herself and looked the man in the eye, something that was a lot harder to do than the young elf had anticipated.
"I only asked a simple question," she said, her voice calm. "And I asked it to know the answer, not to make an insinuation."
"Right," was all Burton said at first, the disbelief apparent in his voice. Then after a beat he mused, "You shouldn't have censored yourself. You can say whatever you want now. No one to tell you you're being unladylike. I prefer people to be honest with themselves."
He had grown bored of the dining room though, and Burton slid his chair back to stand up despite not being done with his food. "Come on, or don't. I want some fresh air. This place is too stuffy." He slipped a piece of bread into his hand as he headed for the door, slowing down just enough to blow a kiss at the nobleman and his wife much to the revulsion of the others they were sitting with. Pompous, worthless little shits, every one of them.
Out on the deck, Burton started crumbling up the bread that he had taken, tossing the pieces into the water at random intervals. He counted as he walked the length of the deck, committing the number of steps to memory in case he needed it later.
:O It's been over a week since I replied! I'm so sorry!
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He didn't seem to believe her, but his words about censoring herself made the young elf feel a little more sure of herself.
Flordia considered following Burton right away as he left, bu then she looked back at the food on her plate, and she remembered she was still hungry. She quickly ate the rest of her food before running back above decks.
Burton was at the rail, tossing bread into the water. Flordia walked up beside him, peering over the edge.
"Why the bread?" she asked as she saw the little crumbs floating on the water below. "Will they attract fish?"
[[You're fine. I've been behind for a bit too. No worries~]]
Burton glanced sideways at Flordia as she joined him on deck, continuing to toss the bread out into the water. "Nah. Most fish out here aren't that close to the surface. Might get a few, but little scraps of bread won't attract many."
He flashed a small grin and looked skyward for a second. "I'm gauging how far we are from land. Birds will come for the bread if we're close enough. If I can see birds diving to get the crumbs, then I know we're close enough that I could get to land without too much effort. Under an hour if we're willing to get a little wet in the process."
He turned his gaze back to his new employer, giving her a knowing smile and a wink. "You never know when you might need to make a quick escape. Better safe than sorry."
Flordia's eyes widened, and she turned her head to the sky to look for any birds that may be coming for the bread.
"How do you do it?" she asked, amazed. "What's your magic?"
She assumed it had to do with his teleportation skills that he had demonstrated when they had first met, but, while she had been to on edge to ask many questions about his magic then, she really wanted to know. At least some magic was inherent to most Corrian elves, but many elves-like Flordia- did not have much, and the young elf was interested to know exactly what sort of powers Burton had. Though she wasn't sure he would tell her.
Burton chewed on the inside of his cheek as they made their way away from the railing of the ship. He kept a mental tally of where the crewmen were above deck, so that he didn't speak too loudly and risk them overhearing him. "I'm only telling you this because it will be useful for you to know what I am capable of, for when we end up knee deep in some shit."
Not if, but when. Burton knew himself too well and had inklings about the nature of this job to lie to her about whether or not they were going to get themselves in trouble.
"I can reposition myself anywhere I can see in the time it takes a cat to twitch his whiskers, and I can turn myself as small as a mouse and back again. Both useful things for keeping you safe and keeping a low profile when we need to."
"What about you though," he asked, quirking an eyebrow over at her. "Magic something you're pretty familiar with, yeah?"
"To some degree," Flordia responded. "I know about nature magic, mostly, but a little bit about other kinds. I have some magic as well." She decided to tell him, since he had told her of his abilities. "I don't really have anything that would help in an emergency, but I can aid plants in growing, as well as be able to almost immediately identify the properties of a plant. I'm a Corrian Elf, and most of us have some sort of affinity for magic."
Flordia looked out over the water, and realized just how far she was from home.
"We can sometimes sense magic, if it's very strong or of a certain type." She looked back over at Burton. "I was born with it, though some training has helped me know how to use it. Were you born with your magic?"