OOC: Tags to
@DragonSong !
The underbelly of Uthlyn was something unspeakable and grim, but the wealthier Connlaothians of the city could not be bothered with those who were barely making means to live. Infact, they rather preferred
not to know where the beggars lived, or the swindlers did their swindling, and the less savory whores took up favors. All of this and a bed of dead roses Jack and Fiona would pass as they moved along two floors beneath the city, and creeping ever closer to the sewers.
A few vents they passed omitted rather unpleasant odors, like rotting cheese (or perhaps worse). There were also a lot of sickly people coughing around, the ground smelling like some sort of mixture of vomit and piss. And there was a lot of shifty eyed men and many missing limbs, and even on one occasion, they passed by a man who only had his left arm that remained. And he kept a small rusted bowl infront of him where two meager half-coppers rested, but nothing more.
Jack, sensing his companion was staring, grabbed Fiona's hand and pulled her along.
"Come on. It's best not to stare. Geeze, and I thought your mother would have at least taught you that."
They rounded a bend and Jack moved to crack his neck, then gestured for Fiona to stop.
"Look, just stay right here. I'm gonna make sure my place is still in tact and no squatters took over, okay?" And he sighed and moved forward, towards a tattered roofed tent and flung the sheet open. And there squawked something with large, bugging eyes and was wearing a lot of rotting metals.
"Who are you? You're in my home! No one comes to Seldon's home!" the rat-like looking man spat out, ruffling up and growing defensive as Jack sighed and grabbed a hold of the tresspasser and growled, "You're trespassing in
my house, got it? Or I'll show you why they call me Jack-in-the-Box," he went on with a cracking roll of his shoulders.
It was enough to make the ratty man piss himself as he dropped to the ground.
"Please! Do not hurt me! This home was mine and vacant for many days! It is all that I have!"
Jack grimaced and yanked the man off the ground by the scruff of his shirt.
"Looky here, pal..." And just as he was about to wail in on him with a plethora of insults, he paused a moment and grimaced. "Gods.. you're the Cheese Man!"
And unceremoniously, and without delay, Jack flung the man clean out of his house and began to clamor through it, groaning as he ran into pot after pot of moldy cheese. It was on the floor, in all the pots, drawers... there was even a large pile of it under his bed sheets! And just as Jack was going around to seek out all the smelly cheese, the 'Cheese Man' snuck back inside, and began to gather up all the cheese he could before Jack took notice and screamed,
"HEY! I THOUGHT I TOLD YOU TO GET OUT! NOW SCRAM BEFORE I GET REALLY MAD!"
And at such a threat, the man took what cheese he had...
and fled. But not before stopping a moment to yank the cheese near Fiona's feet, giving her a strange look, before he heard Jack growl another warning and he yelped and disappeared into the dark.
"Gods...!" Jack groaned, continuing to look around at his home. "This place reeks of old cheese and... oh Gods.. what did I just step in? Are these anamus beans!? UGH!" And he hopped along on one foot until he fetched up a towel and began to clean off his boot.
"Hey, wait-" Fiona sighed as, once again, Jack seemed determined to ignore her. Some commotion emanated from the house- well, if it could be called that- and her eyebrows rose steadily.
She yelped and tried to jump out of the way when the "Cheese Man" scrambled at her feet, completely taken aback.
Wrinkling her nose, she stepped warily into Jack's home. "Well. This is...lovely," she muttered, one eyebrow quirked up.
"Ugh.. I can't believe the rotten luck I've got... and of all squatters the stinky old Cheese Man decided to make home here!" he griped, and continued to root around for any more cheese or unorthodox things that might be hiding in the nook and crannies of his home.
"You street fighters sure are a creative lot when it comes to naming things," Fiona muttered sarcastically.
Cautiously inching forward, she held a hand up to her nose. "God, is that stuff everywhere?"
"Yes... yes it is.." he went on nasally, his own nose being pinched. Then he narrowed his eyes at her. "Whadya mean street fighters? Who said I fight in the streets?"
She rolled her eyes. "Forgive me. I'm sure you use some incredibly sophisticated ring or another," she muttered.
"Not really," he went on, grimacing at each rotten treasure he found. "Normally there's not even a thing to divide the fighters from the crowd."
"So...it is street fighting, then?" Fiona wheedled, wrinkling her nose at a piece of cheese she almost stepped on.
He looked at her from over his shoulder, "these look like streets to you?"
"Well, what would you call it then?" she asked, exasperated, planting her hands on her hips. "It's certainly not house fighting."
Jack rolled his eyes.
"I don't do fighting here. That's even deeper in this underbelly."
"Fine fine. As you like." Fiona waved a hand at him, bending to pick another piece of cheese out from under what appeared to be old clothes.
Jack was more or less beginning to kick things aside until he could see the tattered floor rugs underneath. Insects writhed back into places to hide when unearthed, while Jack moved on to mull over his bed.
"Not sure I can salvage these pillows after the Cheese man's been sleeping on 'em," Jack said, and began to toss them clean out of the make shift tent home.
She hovered a little awkwardly, not liking being left without a task. "What can I do?"
"I don't know. I'm exhausted. Maybe we can just sleep that off then figure out how to finish cleaning this place up. Though I'm tempted to just abandon it now." He wasn't a fan of house work, after all. If he were, he wouldn't have been living in this ratty underground tent.
"I wouldn't mind a nap," Fiona admitted. They'd had a rather long few days.
She took another look around his home. "It's not totally unsalvagable. You shouldn't give up so quickly."
"I'm too tired to even give up," he groaned, and looked around to see if any part of the place was salvageable. "I'll need to get new pillows," he went on with a sigh, and took to the driest looking part of the tented home that rested nearby a cold, shadowed wall.
"I guess here's as good as anyplace," he went on, stifling a yawn. "Just find a place and get comfy. Tomorrow, I feel... its' gonna be a long day."
She sighed and looked around for something that might be acceptable to sleep on. Jack seemed to have picked the best spot, so she gingerly sank down a bit to his left, drawing her knees up to her chest and resting her chin on them.
"G'night then..."
Jack rolled his shoulders, cracking them, then his neck. Then he stretched out his arms and cracked his hands and elbows too before settling back in and closing his eyes with a grunted, "Goodnight."
He bowed his head forward, arms folded over his chest.
And it was quiet down here, except the subtle flicker of flames from the torches that lined the halls of Uthlyn's underbelly. And the occasional scurry of rats, and the flutter of a bat; along with drunken men pissing in the halls....
Yep, other than that, it was silent as could be.
And to Jack, who was already snoring away, it was Home sweet home.
It took her awhile to get to sleep. She would have tossed and turned, but their really wasn't room for it, so she just curled into an ever tighter ball on the floor.
Finally though, she managed to doze off in odd, fitful dreams about being chased down dark corridors made of cheese by rats with fluttering wings.
And when she'd awake, she'd hear breathing. And if she were to dare open her eyes...
She'd see it wasn't her companion, but the Cheese Man, looking at her with a near rabid expression.
"Mmph." Fiona shifted in her sleep, frowning slightly. "Jack?" she mumbled sleepily, blinking her eyes open. "What the hell? You're panting like a dog-"
She caught sight of the Cheese Man and her eyes widened. She shot to her feet. "Jack!"
And that's when Jack's fist met to Cheeseman's face. The man yelped like a struck dog and scrambled back.
"What the hell are you doing here?" Jack growled while he yanked the man up by the front of his shirt. "I thought I told you to stay the hell outta my home!"
"Y-yes, I know!" the man trembled. "But my cheese.... the woman...s he sits!"
Jack's face twisted in confusion before he looked over to wehre Fiona sat and sure enough, she had ended up sleeping ontop of a rather flattened looking (but somewhat comfy) loaf of cheese.
"It's Serenian, aged twelve years!" the man pleaded. Jack rolled his eyes and stlaked over towards the tent flap and shoved the crazed man out. But when the Cheeseman scrambled to get back inside, Jack wasn't fast enough to stop him as he galloped his way to Fiona's side and began to pluck up what remains of his precious cheese he could.
Oh, eugh.
Fiona skipped back a few steps, giving a catlike hiss. Her mirrored eyes flashed warily and she started to pat herself down. "Is it on me? I feel like it's on me."
And when she did that, he noticed a big chunk on her butt and dove for it, trying to pinch it off, piece by piece.
With a shriek Fiona spun around and slapped him across the face, more on reflex than anything else. "What the hell?!"
Jack stomped back into the tent just in time to yank the pervert by his shirt collar and lift him off the ground. And while he did so, the Cheeseman was furiously trying to pocket eacha nd every crumb of cheese he could.
"Alright, that's it! I've had enough of this bull shit. I'm tossing you into the sewer falls."
At that threat, the Cheeseman shrieked.
"N-n-n-n-Not the falls!"
Jack gave him a mean shake.
"Yes. The falls." And stalked clean out of his tent home without a second thought.
Utterly bewildered, it took Fiona a moment to gather herself and scramble after them.
"Wait, where are you going?" she asked Jack, a little breathless as she struggled to fall into step with him.
"To toss this whacko into the deeper sewers," Jack said irritably, and gave the Cheeseman a smack when he started shrieking and calling out for help.
Despite herself, Fiona felt a flash of sympathy for the odd man.
"Wait." She reached out to grab Jack's arm, a confused sort of frown etched across her face. "Can't you just...kick him out? He may be mad, but..." Did he really deserve- whatever it was that obviously had him so upset?
Jack stopped and gave her a deadpan look, and moved to hoist the Cheeseman onto his shoulder's like a sack of potatoes.
"I had kicked him out, remember?"
She fisted her hands on her hips, frown deepening slightly.
"You." She addressed the Cheeseman. "You'll stay away from us from now on, yes?"
The rat looking man squeaked.
"The precious cheese! Need it all! Need it!" he pleaded, and Jack rolled his eyes.
"There's no use in talking to the demented," Jack frowned, and continued dragging the man along. "He's a lost cause."
Fiona frowned, trying to come up with something that might get through to the man as she trailed along behind them.
She was pretty much drawing a blank.
ANd he was fully determined to carry out his promise, before he halted in one hall way, and felt his hands fidget on their grip of the Cheese. Then he growled, and shoved the man away.
"Look.. just get out of here before I really do toss you into no man's land, got it?"
The Cheeseman's eyes widened as he looked between Fiona and Jack, then scrambled away, and as loudly as he could. Jack flinched at the noise and glared away from the escaping man and found his eyes resting on Fiona.
Then he looked away, glaring at a wall.
"Let's head back home," he muttered, and turned from her.
Wide eyed, Fiona started to trail after him.
"What- why did you change your mind?" she asked quietly.
Jack didn't bother to look at her.
"The day was too long." He rolled his shoulders and cracked his neck. "I'd waste too much energy if I had to keep on dragging him along. I'd rather sleep."
"Oh." She stared at his back, but didn't comment anymore beyond a murmured, "Okay."
After a few more moments of silence, she asked with a small smirk. "You think we can actually sleep on a bed this time?"
"Bed?" his face skewed as he looked at her. "In case you weren't paying attention, there's no bed in my home."
"Well." She waved her hand airily. "You know. Something that's not the floor."
He raised his brows.
"Pillows I got... Or had got.... Not sure they're not contaminated with cheese," he grumbled with a wrinkle of his nose.
Fiona sighed, rubbing the back of her neck. "Well....better than nothing, I guess," she mumbled with a sigh.
"Hey.. it's all I have alright? Sheesh," he cracked his neck again and continued to lead her back to his home. "Think you'd be grateful you're outta that place you call Home."
Granted.. she probably had a nice comfy bed to go to sleep in back there. He sneered a bit at the idea.
"Oh, I didn't mean-" Fiona sighed. "Thank you," she said quietly after a moment. "I appreciate you putting me up. Really."
He snorted.
"Just count yourself fortunate." he looked her over then away, turning to head down his 'street'.
"I bet your mother's worried off her rocker any how." And he opened the tent flap and waited for her to get in.
She bit her lip at that and ducked inside. "She probably is," she murmured, absent-mindedly reaching up to tug at a lock of hair.
Great. The guilt she'd been pushing away was starting to rise up in her face in full force.
There was that soured look on her face as she was evidently worrying now. Well good! So long as she kept her whining to herself...
Jack just went about his business, dusting off the pillows and tossing a large one at her.
"There. You can use that as your bed." And he dropped onto the other two remaining lumpy pillows and sighed.
Fiona caught the pillow clumsily, rather distracted with her thoughts. "Uh, thanks," she muttered, slowly kneeling down and flopping onto the pillow.
"Gods, I didn't realize how tired I was," she sighed, making an effort to keep her eyes open.
"Yeah well, hopefully that'll keep your mind off being home sick." He nestled into his pillows and closed his eyes, trying to do the same. "Just get some sleep. Tomorrow we might not get too much rest until the next morning."
After all, his profession didn't exactly have daylight hours....
Presuming there was any underground brawls to be had.
"What's tomorrow?" Fiona asked unthinkingly, curling onto her side and letting her eyes slide closed.
"Getting back to work," he grumbled, half asleep.
"Oh." Right, yes. She supposed that made sense. "What will I be doing then?" she asked sleepily.
"I don't know. Let's talk later. I want to sleep now."
"Oh. Okay." Fiona curled up a little tighter and made a concerted effort to go to sleep. "G'night, Jack."
Despite the state of his home, Jack was able to drift off into a much needed slumber. The pillows worked well as a bed,a nd his back felt less stiff when he awoke that morning and gave his shoulders, upper back and neck a good crack. He peered over at Fiona, who was still fast asleep before yawning and noisily rummaging through his home to see what else was still left of it- or damaged with cheese. He had begun to collect a new pile of trash and moldy cheese blocks he'd found, not seeming to care if what he was doing would wake his companion or not.
Fiona woke groggily and sat up, blinking and yawning. "Jack?" she muttered, rubbing at her eyes with a fist. "Wass goin' on?"
"Oh good, you're awake." And he began to pull at the blankets and pillows around her area, shaking out some crumbs that fluttered out like dust in her direction.
She sneezed a few times ad scrambled to her feet. "Well I certainly am now," Fiona grumbled, glowering at him.
"I think I can salvage this place," he grumbled as he continued his clumsy cleaning. "But it'll have to wait until tomorrow." He planted his hands on his hips and frowned at the mess. "I guess you can stay here and clean if you want. I gotta go down to Big Town. See if I can't get back into work."
"Wait, what?" She was suddenly much more awake. "I don't want to stay here by myself," she protested quickly without thinking. "Can't I come with you?"
He was moving towards the door and paused when he heard her. He turned around.
"What? No... I don't think so."
"Well, why not?" Fiona demanded, planting her hands on her hips and glaring.
"Huh?" He looked her over. "Whadya mean why? Cause I said so, that's why!"
Her glare intensified. "You don't own me, Jack. I can do as I like!"
She didn't actually want to go, really, but it was principle of the thing!
"Oh, please, this has nothing to do with me being sexist. You want to come along? Fine, but I was trying to save you from seeing naked men running around knocking other men's teeth out with their fists."
And he stormed away. She wouldn't follow.
Probably.
Hopefully.
Fiona fumed silently. She didn't really want to go- but if she didn't, it felt like she was letting Jack win.
Which for some reason irritated her to no end.
"Oh-" Swearing colorfully under her breath, she made her way out and started trying to follow him.
And he pretended to ignore her as he walked along, hands in his pockets as he continued to descend into a much colder part of the underbelly. And one that didn't smell too great- but was way better than the sewers he wanted to toss the Cheeseman into.
She was content to trail quietly behind him. If he was ignoring her, he wasn't outright telling her to go back.
Not much of a victory, but she'd take it.
If it was possible for this dingy, barely lit, subterranean city to look even seedier, it was definitely successful in that. Even the women looked like trollops, skanky things with clothing half falling off about as bad off as their teeth. Men, stalky, and men, bare boned, were all stalking about with some form of chaotic purpose.
And then a smacking sound was heard, grunting, the smell of sweat...
And soon Fiona would come to see what Jack had come to call 'the ring'.
"Looks like Jack's back in Big Town," Fiona might hear, the gender of the voice indistinguishable.
Fiona froze for a moment, utterly overwhelmed. Then she took a deep breath to steel herself and picked up her pace, falling into step just behind Jack.
She still didn't say anything, eyes flicking around nervously.
It was here Jack paused and turned around. Then he stalked right on up to Fiona.
"Okay, dragon-girl, you had your fun. I figure you know how to get back to my house? Cause the fun stops here."
She winced and glanced around furtively at the term "dragon-girl", then glowered at him.
Fiona pulled herself up to her full height and got right back in his face. "Fun? I thought this was work. And if you're supposed to be teaching me to make it on my own, shouldn't I learn what exactly it is you do?"
"Stop standing on your tip toes and get outta my face. You wanted to see the world? Well this ain't part of the deal." He cracked his neck. "This is the underworld."
"Which means what? It's part of the world, shouldn't I at least have the chance to learn?" She scowled and added, "And I'm not on my toes!"
He looked her over, then frowned.
"The men here would eat you alive, sweet heart. You really think this is what you'd want to see?"
She shivered a little at that, but held her ground. "I need to learn. It doesn't matter if I want to or not, the fact is I need to know everything I can if I'm gonna make it on my own."
He folded his arms over his chest.
"Well I ain't lettin' you take one more step further."
Fiona gritted her teeth and folded her arms in turn. "You're bluffing," she retorted. "You need to work, and when you do, you can't let me do anything."
"Oh, please." He went on with a roll of his eyes. "Look, doll, I can't come crawling back to BigTown with some doey-eyed, school girl from the city. This place ain't meant for your kind. IT's for guys like me and all other sorts of shady characters."
She cocked her hip. "Then tell me what to do, how to act. I can be shady, just teach me!"
Jack just stared at her. Then he grabbed her hand and began to drag her away.
"We're heading back up. I'll deal with this at another time."
"Hey, what the- hey! Jack!" She struggled a bit, trying to dig her heels in.
"What are you doing? Stop struggling!"
People began to stare.
Catching people's looks, Fiona forced herself to calm down a bit. "Why are you so against me being here?" she demanded in a whisper-shout.
"What? Whadya mean why?"
"You're treating me like a child!" Fiona retorted. "And I want to know why."
"Oh geeze, will you look at yourself for two seconds? You are a child! A child who just ran away from home!"
Her fists clenched and she gritted her teeth. "Yes, alright. I'll admit that. But I'm never going to learn if you don't give me a chance!"
"But that's just it! There's nothing here to learn! Not for a girl like you!"
"And there it is again!" She threw her hands up. "A girl like me. Is it because I'm a girl?"
Jack raised a brow. "Well yeah." Wasn't that obvious??
"So if I was a boy, we wouldn't be having this discussion?" Her wings twitched in irritation, straining against her dress.
"IF you were a boy you'd be in the army already," he told her flatly.
"You're not," she pointed out just as evenly, quirking an eyebrow.
"Yeah, I'm not. I could give two rat tails about this war."
"Regardless, there is a war. I need to know how to handle myself."
"Why? It's not like you're going to join the army now." Really, what was she thinking?
Fiona folded her arms and glowered. "Even I know that there are plenty of civilian casualties in a war like this. I have a better chance if you'd just teach me."
"Why? You've got fire breath and wings. You could just burn anyone that gets in your path."
She gave up, tossing her hands in the air again. "Fine. Whatever. You know, it is impossible to have a conversation with you!"
"Hey, it's not like I started it!"
"You- you- you-!"
She couldn't actually come up with an insult. "Gah!" Turning on her heel, Fiona started walking. "Fine. Fine. I'm going home, try not to get your face smashed in at work."
"Home?" He laughed. "That's kinda far ain't it, doll?"
Her stride stuttered as she realized her slip. "I- I meant- oh shut up." Fiona glowered over her shoulder at him. "You know what I meant."
"Good. And don't dawdle." he called after her. But some part of him felt compelled to keep an eye on her. But why should he care? Heck, he should have just let her tail like a puppy...
But he didn't want to have to deal with the men's reactions to some doe eyed girl on their turf. He cracked his neck before turning around, and began to head back towards the place he had kept her away from, telling himself not to bother to look back.
Fiona had every intention of returning to Jack's bizarre little nest.
At first.
But once she glanced back over her shoulder and realized he wasn't watching her- well, it was like she couldn't help herself. She glanced down to take stock of her dress, then shrugged. It was practically falling apart at this point anyway.
With a sigh, she ripped the top layer of her skirt off and wrapped it around her head and shoulders like a shawl. Hunching a bit to make herself smaller, she starting following Jack again, hoping this time he wouldn't notice.
Big Town seemed even slummier than he remembered. But maybe it was because only the hardy stil thrived in this lack lustre, but heavily profitable brothel of blood. War veterans and dodge drafters alike had made their home here, so he wasn't surprised to see a few new faces in the crowd. However, when he approached a rather squat, balding man with monacles, the entire crowd around him grew quiet and the man's eyes went wide.
"Jack in the Box? Is that really you?" the man laughed at the sight. "Here I thought you got a dandy job up in the light of the city with a fancy armor and fancy name."
Jack rolled his eyes and gave the man a flat smirk.
"It was more like a fancy collar, and I don't wear those."
"Ah, I see." The man's eyes were glittering. "We all knew the seedier jobs suited the likes of you. Even if some Aunt of yours wants you to be a nobleborn."
"It's not a noble's birth right she wanted for me," Jack replied with a roll of his eyes. "You know how women are. She just wanted to flaunt her wealth of influence, or some horse shit like that. But hey, I gave the old hen the benefit of the doubt. Guess she's realizing now she should have kept to the doubt."
Fiona did her best to keep Jack in sight while still remaining inconspicuous.
It seemed Jack drew the crowd's attention, which was lucky for her as she was able to worm her way in relatively unnoticed. She listened to the snippets of conversation around her, eyes widening as she realized just about everyone there seemed to know who Jack was.
Perhaps she should have just left after all...
"Look, Jensen, I know I haven't been here for a while, but I'm back and ready for any match you got."
The bespectacled man took a step back to regard the man.
"Oh, that eager to get your nose broken again are you?"
Jack rolled his eyes, and shoulders.
"No, but I am eager to get back to my old life. The one I dictated and doesn't force me to wear sweat inducing armor."
The man called Jensen only grinned.
"We got a big fight tonight. Some brute mordecai, but it's not the sort of fight you go for...."
"Oh? Whadya mean?"
"The man.. it's a do or die kinda fight. Tallis is aiming to keep him in the ring until someone breaks him, makes him bleed his last- got it?"
Jack made a face. "A fight to the death?"
Jensen snapped his fingers.
"Bingo."
Somehow Fiona had managed to edge herself close enough to catch most of the conversation. Her eyes widened and she clapped a hand over her mouth to stifle a gasp.
A fight to the death? Dear God, they couldn't be serious, could they?
"So what other fights you got? Surely there's gotta be something else goin' down in Big Town."
Jensen coughed a laugh.
"Sorry Jack, but that's it. With the way this war has been goin'.... A lot of the fights have turned this way."
Jack's face scrunched again.
"You gotta be kiddin' me."
Jensen shook his head.
"I wish I were. but don't sweat it, now that you're back.. I'm sure we can get real boxing matches before the end of the week."
Fiona bit her lip as she listened, doing her best to keep out of the way of jostling elbows and sharp remarks.
Please, just leave, she begged silently, eyes fixed on Jack's back.
Jack's face was sour.
"I'm not exactly made outta money. You sure there aren't men around who'd like a jump in the ring?" he moved to cracked his knuckles. "Shouldn't men try lining up knowing I might be a bit rusty?"
The older man shook his head.
"Rusty or not, you still have quite the reputation, and no doubt you might have learned a thing or two from your brief bought as a knight?"
Jack rolled his eyes.
"Learned? Try just having picked up some baggage." he went on with a frown.
Fiona scowled. Baggage?
"He better not be talking about me," she muttered to herself with a huff- maybe a tad louder than she'd intended.
"Baggage? Got yerself hitched now, did ya?"
Jack snorted. "Hardly."
"I know that look... it's a girl ain't it? You got her knocked up or something?"
"What? No, it ain't like that."
"Oh? It is a woman. And you're a very capable man. If she ain't knocked up... then what?"
Jack groaned.
"You wouldn't understand."
Hitched? Knocked up?
Fiona blanched a bit at the idea and shook her head rapidly, even though she knew it was a silly reaction. Dear God, she should get out of here before she did something really stupid.
She turned to try to slip through the crowd- and ran smack into a broad, rather hairy chest. Oh no...
"Oi, watch it, idjit, you-?" The man she'd run into cut off as she staggered back, her makeshift shawl slipping. He seemed surprised by something- maybe that there was a girl in this particular crowd?
Whatever it was, it elicited a very loud, "Well I'll be damned!" He reached for her arm.
Squeaking in a rather undignified manner, Fiona turned to make an escape.
But the oaf had a firm hold on her that became unbreakable as he pulled her close.
"Whatchya got that pretty face hiding under that hood for?" the large man asked, tugging to pull off the hood.
Hair tousled and face rather pale, Fiona glared up at the man. "Look, sir." She tugged her arm, testing his grip. "I- I don't wanna hurt you, so you should just let me go." She tried to sound firm, confident, and thought she managed it okay.
The man laughed.
"Don't make me laugh!" he said, his grip turning into a vice. His rough hand moved to smooth against her cheek before grabbing her chin. "You're one of them fiery ones, ain'tchya?"
Fiona squirmed, giving an instinctive shout when he grabbed her chin, but no one around them seemed to much care that she was obviously in distress.
She glared at her captor. "Oh, you have no idea," she hissed, and- without thinking- spat a small jet of flame into his face.
If no one cared to look their way before, they certainly were now as the man howled back, his face scorching from the heat. It took Jack all of two seconds to realize what just happened.
"Shit."
And soon the thug's bigger, badder friends were appearing on the scene.
Fiona was actually quite pleased with herself.
For about half a second.
Then she realized the big idiot had friends, and she blanched. Well shit. Her eyes darted around, trying to map a quick escape through the crowd.
"Little girl got some fire in her does she now?"
Another man cracked his knuckles, daring to get closer.
"We eat little mage girls for breakfast," the man went on. "Chew them up and fuck them out, bleeding them out on the flea-bottom door steps to rot."
"And it's a good thing she's not a little girl," came the familiar voice of Jack as he stepped between the towering men to grab a firm hold of Fiona's shoulder. "Cause then this could all get very awkward."
The man looked Jack over before realizing...
"You!" And slugged Jack clean across the face.
She didn't think she'd ever been so happy to see someone in her life. "Jack..."
Then the man struck him and Fiona cried out. She threw her arms out, shoving the man's chest as she attempted to put herself between Jack and his attacker.
And that's when the man turned to strike her.
A hand cracked across her face and Fiona reeled back with a cry, stumbling against Jack. Pain seemed to shoot up into her skull and she blinked, shaking her head dizzily.
And in her dizzy state she might notice a blur as Jack moved, fists aimed at the other man's face as he landed a few good punches before being punched down again.
Still reeling, Fiona attempted to lash her foot out as she felt herself going down. She managed to connect her foot with the man's knee before she fell on her rear, vision spinning.
"Fuck this. Jack you can't beat us outside of the ring!" the one sneered, and grabbed for a fistful of Fiona's hair as he pressed a blade to her throat.
Jack groaned as he pushed himself up on his hands and frowned over at the man, just as his partner moved to pull a blade against him.
"Tch. Fists are dated, fool." The man spat at the ground. "It's all blood and cut throats in Big Town now. And it looks like your return has landed you on a dead end."
"W-wait- stop!"
Fiona was frozen, the blade pressed against her throat, but she forced herself to speak up. "He- he didn't do anything. I'm the one you're mad at, he was just defending me...let Jack go, please..."
And to the surprise of them all, Jack barked out a laugh.
"Oh come on. They're made at everyone." His lips twitched when he felt the blade bite at his throat. "Man...y ou really do need to chill out.." Jack went on, the temperature around them dropping as ice cracked against the man's blade.
The thug yelped but when he retracted his hand, he couldn't release the blade, as the ice began to secure it to his skin.
At such a sight, the man holding Fiona cawed, "The mage girl plays her tricks!" And aimed to drag his dagger swiftly across her throat.
With a cry, Fiona instinctively spat another jet of fire into the air. It was enough of a distraction for her to duck away from her captor's blade. She darted forward, grabbing Jack's wrist and twisting on her heel to run into the crowd with a hissed, "Let's get out of here!"
Jack stumbled along as she pulled him.
"What?" he tried to stop her. "Woah woah woah, if you wanted to make a get away, you should have dashed the other way!" They were going deeper into Big Town now!
She stumbled, glancing around. Well, she didn't know where she was going!
"You lead then," Fiona gasped out. She glanced over her shoulder, eyes wide and panicky. "Hurry!"
Jack continued to run.
"Come on, we gotta keep going forward now," he told her, pulling her through the crowded street where odd lookng people, and odd looking things littered the underground roads.
Fiona just nodded and let him pull her along, gathering up her tatter skirt in one hand in an attempt to ease her step.
Right. Left. Then right again, the entire motion a zig-zagging blur, but eventually Jack stopped with her, out of breath and shaking his head.
"Why'd you have to go startin' a fight with those two bozo's, huh?"
"I- I didn't...start anything," Fiona panted, bending over to brace her hands on her thighs. "He grabbed me..." She shook her head as she glanced up at him.
"You- you didn't have to help me back there," she murmured quietly after a moment. "Thank you."
"Oh please, don't get me started," he went on with a roll of his eyes. "And you act as if I had a choice. Do you really think I'd just leave you to be mince meat to those two block heads? Even a man like me has some brains going on behind the brawn."
Fiona huffed and glared at him. "I was trying to be nice, but if you're going to be like that I take it back." She folded her arms and glared to the side.
After a moment, she relented, "...I'm sorry for the trouble, though..."
"Sorry? You didn't seem to be all that sorry when you didn't listen to me... Twice!"
The sneaking suspicion that he was right made her defensively angry. "Well, if you had just taken me along, I wouldn't have had to sneak after you!"
"This would have happened with or without your sneaking if you would have stayed!" Jack countered. "You're in Big Town." He shook his head. "It's a city for the rotten and those dodging the law. What else woudl you expect?"
"I don't know!" Fiona shouted back. "I don't know what to expect, because you won't explain anything! I can't do this, I can't go here, all because I'm a girl- you never said something like this would happen!"
She knew she was sort of grasping at straws, but she wasn't about to back down.
"Oh? And what did you think would happen, huh?"
"I-!"
She bit her lip. "I- I don't know. Not that! What the hell even was that- who goes around just grabbing people?" She huffed and folded her arms over her chest.
"Well, thats Big Town for ya! Men do as they please, when they please. The Grand Duke holds no laws here."
"That's barbaric," Fiona grumbled. "And the only way I have to defend myself the people here think means I deserve to be hung or something!"
She huffed and folded her arms, scowling in an effort not to burst into tears. She'd made a mistake. She couldn't make it out here on her own.
Jack sighed.
"Look... If you want me to take you back home...."
She bit her lip and glared at her feet. She knew that was the smarter option- but gods she didn't want to just give up!
"No." Fiona shook her head. "No, I- I can do this," she mumbled, trying to convince herself more than him. "I just...I'm going to need help, that's all." She sighed, running a hand through her hair, and muttered, "And I guess I'll...have to start really listening to you."
Jack folded his arm.
"Tch, start listening to me? I wish you woulda warned me from the beginning you were this stubborn! I think I've handled mules with more give then you."
She scowled and crossed her arms in turn. "You know, it would be a lot easier to listen to you if you weren't such an ass," she growled. "Might make you easier to get along with too."
And at that he simply shrugged.
"It is what it is. I didn't make a bargain with you to change my ways, and it was you suggestion to follow me before you even really knew me! What kinda person does that?"
"A desperate one!"
Fiona waved her arms expressively. "You have no idea what it's like to live your whole life behind walls, treated like glass! I was sick of it. You were my only way out, so I took it!"
"Yeah... desperate and stupid. I don't think I'd trust me or be so eager to follow after some stranger even if I were some prisoner somewhere in some cell or something."
Fiona hissed at him, the sound distinctly not human. "Until you've actually be a prisoner, I don't want to hear it," she growled.
Then, with a sigh, her shoulders slumped. She ran a hand through her rather disheveled hair. "C'mon, let's just...keep moving."
"Oh, ho, ho,goes to show how little you know of me!" Jack countered. "Who ever said I wasn't ever a prisoner?"
That gave her pause for a moment, then she blustered forward. "But someone taught you how to fight it then." She gave his fists a pointed look.
He rolled his eyes.
"You're so presumptuous. As if I shouldn't get credit for doing this all myself."
"Uhg!" She threw her hands up, glowering. "I give up. You are utterly and completely impossible!"
"Me, impossible? Who's the one being impossible here? You're the one pulling information out of your ass, not me!"
Fiona scoffed and folded her arms. "It's not just- you- uhg!" She scowled. "Fine. Whatever, you win. Let's just get out of here."
Jack grumbled and continued to lead.
"I'm taking you back... not just to my home, which is now still cheese infested," he went on, grumbling angrily. "But we're going back up." He shook his head. "Its pretty clear to me bringing you down here was a bad idea."
She blinked at him. "But- what will you do up there? Isn't this...where you live?"
"Oh please," Jack went on with a roll of his eyes. "Used to live, and now I have charge over you." He made a face at that. "Maybe we can just sleep in an alley or something," he muttered.
Fiona pulled a face as well, but she muttered petulantly, "Anything has to be better than that rank cheese-hole."
"Hey! That was once my rank hole you're mocking." His face was still bitter. "Besides trust me.." And he tossed her just one surly look. "I've had a lot worse."
"Hey, I was bitching about the cheese. Other than that, it seemed like a very nice...hole," Fiona defended herself, raising her hands peaceably.
"Yeah, sure, whatever."
And he continued to lead her out of the underground and up onto the streets of Uthlyn. It was still dark out, so he knew it was still night, but there was something rather unpleasant about the quiet that hung in the air.
It was also raining. He shivered it off and started to move.
"Figures it's raining," he grumbled.
Oh great. Just...great.
Fiona sighed and hunched her shoulders, lifting up her makeshift shawl to cover her head. After a moment of hesitation, she offered gruffly, "Here," extending one arm to sort of encompass Jack's shoulders with the fabric.
Jack didn't take it, and simply shrugged her off. He was already wet. So was she. What was she trying to accomplish?
"There might be some free space under the West Bridge," he muttered, and started to head for it.
Fiona huffed, wrapping the shawl a little tighter around herself. Well fine then, here she was trying to be nice. Sort of.
She nodded, mute, and followed after her. Her wings were starting to ache with the chill and damp, and her tail- which honestly she hadn't given much thought to until that moment, keeping it wrapped around her leg- did one of those irritated-cat-twitches that seemed to be independent of her conscious thought.
She flushed and reached back to pat her backside lightly, trying to be subtle about it.
The bridge was empty, which he found strange and silently looked around to make sure there wasn't a good reason why. He saw nothing, and he was soaked to the bone.
"Looks like we're in luck. We can sleep in the mud instead of cheese."
"Well, at least it'll smell better," Fiona sighed, picking her way after him to slip under the bridge. She gave another shiver, hunching her shoulders against the chill.
"I'd have to agree. I prefer mud and river smell to old cheese any day," he went on with a sniff, and settled into his own place with his back leaning against the bridge's stronghold.
"You should try to sleep. If tomorrow's a holiday.. it'll be a head ache trying to sleep through it."
She settled herself with her back to the bridge, careful of her wings. "Why's that?" she asked through a yawn, struggling to keep her eyes open.
"Well, for starters, we're in a city," he went on, shuffling uneasily. He was tired, but instead of making him tired, he was more fidgety.
She cocked her head at him. "I don't follow. You're going to have to give me more than that, Jack."
"Really? Do I gotta explain everything?" he whined. But he went on, sighing, and rolled his eyes. "Being in a city means there'll be people, and lots of it. Have you already forgotten all the people we say here yesterday?"
"Oh." She flushed, realizing that was a rather obvious answer. "Well I didn't- I don't know the customs," she grumbled. "Mam always just prayed at home on holy days."
He'd roll his eyes if they were open.
"Talk about being sheltered.." he grumbled.
Fiona huffed, closing her eyes. "That wasn't my fault," she mumbled, for what felt like the thousandth time. "I'm trying, alright? I really am."
"Trying? Well why don't you try to get some sleep," he grumbled, and shifted to try to get more comfortable.
She kept her mouth shut, shooting one more glare at him before she turned into her side and curled up, closing her eyes and trying to do just that.