Spirits of the Earth

Serendipity is, without a doubt, some of the most colorful and beautiful countryside around.  It lived, it breathed, and it goes without saying that it's full of magic.  Many Serenians were gifted with magic, and unlike those in Connlaoth...they allowed the free proliferation of such talents.  For those who had lived a little oppresed in their life, this was a breath of fresh air, to be sure.

Here, in the North-Eastern bit of the province known as Jadenshire, in a county known locally as shadowmire - but we can't express any further details at this time - it was raining.

Yes, rain.  Jadenshine is #1 in its level of fertility, it being a riverland in Serendipity and all.  So saying, when the weather deemed it so, it turned to rain.  Currently, this was not a torrential downpour, but enough to get a man wet.  Specifically, a man in black clothes with dark metal armor over his torso, wrists, and shin areas.  He was black-haired and red of eye, clearly human, but somehow...off.  Off enough to really wreck his life, in fact.  That much was in his past, but this man - Sano - had present issues, as well.  That is, indeed, why he was traveling, and currently just a bit irritated with the rain.

"It's times like this that I wish Keefe had sown a hood on this thing."

He was referring to the rather nice black mantle that his friend and mentor had given to him, which was protecting him from nine-tenths of the rain.  His head remained exposed, however, leaving him getting soaked in that area.  However, our boy has a rather decent talent: He has power over metal.  So saying, he pulled a coin from his pocket and it became a helmet to match the armor.

Now, is there a town around here or what?

This path he was on had to lead somewhere, right?

The last few months had been 'busy' for Nashya to say the least. With moving to Shadowmire, a small county in the top corner of Jadenshine, she had been constantly keeping herself aware of as much as she could reach. And today it was raining... the perfect forecast to create more shadows than normal, extending her reach within the county further than before. So just outside a small farming village Nashya stood under a tree, shielding herself the best she could from the rain falling from above whilst leaning against its trunk.

Even with the canopy above some rain managed to snake its way down, droplets of water hitting the hood of her cloak and rolling down. For the most part her long dark hair was tucked within the  grey cloak preventing it from getting wet. She probably looked quite silly... a girl standing there seeming to be just relaxing as she waited for the rain to pass. Part of this was true, and to anyone passing that is exactly what they should think. But in reality Nashya was doing so much more, her eyes closed as she concentrated on reaching shadows miles away. She was listening... watching.... waiting for anything valuable to take back to her leader.

Her eyes were everywhere within the county, all unbeknownst to anyone except those within her alliance. They had to know that was why she disappeared today, knowing the impending rain clouds would multiply her abilities ten fold at least. Demagogue would have to find another day to 'face' society... she knew Cyn would understand. "Someone is coming..." The never ending voice in her head whispered, causing her crimson eyes to snap open. "Male... dark hair...." the eerie whisper paused as if witnessing something itself remarkable. "Has ability to manipulate metal."

From the shadows cast all over from the clouds Nashya was able to see the man turn a coin into a helmet.... "He's smart" the whisper beckoned again. By now Nashya had grown used to the whisper always taunting the back of her mind, and so she hardly even reacted. "He's going to walk right past us at this rate..." The whisper in her mind growing more excited at the thought.
"Best we get going then" Nashya sighed as she finally moved her arms to tug at the edges of her hood. The last thing she needed was a distraction and so her plan was to move along into the village, to blend in with the crowd and continue with her work. However, the man was soon in her sights and she realized he was closer than she initially thought. "Just stay here... maybe he will just keep walking." And so Nashya for once agreed with the whisper in her mind, staying put under the tree hoping he would pass by without even noticing her standing there.

As with many a wanderings like this, Sano's thoughts were cast in two distinct directions.  The first was of his surroundings.  Though he was a man moving long-distance on foot, pack on his back, he was highly-aware of what was going on around him.  The sounds, the sights, and even the smells would give away something, if there was something to give, at all.  He did not have as keen a sense of things as his mentor, but he was still well-trained, and that training was not for knighthood.  It was the cunning and the clarity of an assassin.

So, his training kept him cautious, and thus he watched this rode and felt something was off...in the dark.  Sano could see in the dark, better than most.  It wasn't that his eyes saw things lighter.  They just saw into darkness and all the things within it.  This, darkness, though...  He felt that there was something there.  It reminded him of the Draconi Forest, closer to the beginning of his journey, where a half-phoenix man attacked him.  He was able to move the shadows.  This didn't feel like that, per se, because it just was the shadows at the time.  It bothered him for a minute, but he took no action because Serendipity was a magic land, and it could be throwing him off.

As for the other thing that was on his mind, that pulled him in another direction: Planning.  He was on this journey to a purpose, and that purpose was in execution.  So, without even knowing it from the start, his time with his mentor - Keefe Zarla - turned out to be very handy.  There was a creature that needed to die, and he needed help in order to carry out this undertaking.  He had gone from La'Marri to Adela, to Essyrn, to Adela again, and finally up into Serendipity.  There were some potentials, some possibilities.  Those whom he felt he needed the most, he'd call on to meet him at a time of his choosing.  He'd owe them, but it'd be worth it.

Now, at this time, Sano had a sword at his side and his helmet was one of those flip-up visor varieties, which would certainly keep the damn rain out.  He was, indeed, coming upon an area which appeared to have farmland.  That meant there were actual people around.  He spotted a village - nothing fancy, but ultimately livable - and decided to get his bearings...or at least ouf of this rain.  The possibility of both approached on the right, as he noticed a large tree with a great deal of leafy coverage, and a girl in a hooded cloak below it, mostly protected from the rain.  So!  Because of his current need, Nashya's hope that he would merely pass on by was somewhat dashed, for he now approached.

"Excuse me-"

He stopped abruptly, surprised by the echo in his helmet.  He flipped up the visor so that he could be seen and not have to talk and listen through the echo of vibrating metal.

"Okay, that was loud.  Anyway, would you happen to know the area, at all?  I'm not sure where I am or what town I might be headed for.  The most I know is that if I hit the Kilanthro Mountains, I've gone too far."

He'd never been in Serendipity before now.  Only his general knowledge of Connlaoth's borders helped him with this one fact that he knew in regards to the placement of things.

At first she wasn't sure if she should even answer him, as if her silence would just make him go about his business. "If you don't say something he is going to know you are up to something" the whisper in her mind countered, pushing her to speak up despite how badly she wanted to remain silent.

"You are in Jadenshine... more specifically the county of Shadowmire." Her answer was short and to the point, no further need for him to prod her with anymore questions. Her eyes shifted back and forth from the man to the village ahead as the whisper in her mind spoke up once more. "It's raining.... he is not just going to leave the cover of the tree because you answered his question." Just as before Nashya showed no sign of the voice in her head, but instead cleared her throat. The whisper did have a point... it was raining... there wasn't really anywhere else to go... she was stuck.

"So....." her eyes trailed towards him once more, it had been a long time since she was forced to make casual conversation with someone. "Where are you headed to?" Her voice was so unsure even the whisper in her mind was maniacally laughing at her. "Are you serious!? That was pathetic! This is is why Demagogue does all the talking!" And then she caught herself nodding in agreement with the voice, but too late after she realized sane people don't nod to themselves often.

Nashya played it off as nothing as she turned her body a bit from him, as if that would make this any better... "Just curl up in a ball on the ground while you are at it" the voice taunted as it grew louder in her mind. Nashya had half a mind to tell herself to shut it... but then that would leave her looking more insane than she probably already did.

He knew that he'd been in Jadenshine.  He'd been walking in miles and miles of it.  Had to take it slow, unlike the Draconi Forest when he avoided the phoenix-man by tossing himself via his metal armor.  There was alot of development in Serendipity, alot of people with talent here.  He needed to comb through it carefully to find what he was looking for.  And so, he'd effectively taken the long way 'round.  Still, knowing the county was helpful.  For now, he gathered his thoughts, since he had temporary refuge from he rain and all.

I suppose I could kick about the core of Serendipity before going along the outlying provinces until ending at the coast, then maybe Thanat-

There was a cough.  The woman he'd been talking to was curious about his destination.  the funny thing is, Sano took absolutely no notice of what she thought made her look crazy.  No, what she looked like to him was perhaps a bit nervous around someone who is very obviously a stranger to the area.  He'd asked for directions and admitted he had no clue where he was, in relation to other things.  It seemed perfectly understandable, at least in his mind, for her to be a little wary of him.  Sano just answered normally, having picked up on effectively natta'.

"Well, that's kinda' the problem.  It's not that I'm going anywhere, except to find some people with enough power and talent to help me out on a mission."

He then smirked and said...

"I don't suppose you know anyone really dangerous, do you?"

Funnily enough, she might.  It's just that...the answer was herself, wasn't it?

"What kind of question is that!" the whisper in her mind torted, blown away almost as much as she was by it. Once again Nashya found herself tripped up on her words, struggling to say and do the 'normal' thing.

"I guess you could say that here in Serendipity there are 'dangerous' people all over." It was funny that the first person to come to her mind wasn't herself at all, but instead another member of Golden Gear. "I don't suggest you go around asking everyone you walk up to that questin though. I fear it may draw more attention than someone like you would want."

And there she had a point. Nashya knew if he kept this up eventually he may actually end up starting rumours... rumors she didn't have time to filter out of the chatter she already listened to on a daily basis. "Perhaps it would be better if you instead said you were looking to hire." She shifted her light crimson eyes towards him before averting them once more.

"What do you need a dangerous person for anyways." From there Nashya shifted her weight against the trunk of the tree and folded her arms over her chest under her cloak. "Yes.. just like that.... act casual"

Another odd occurrence being that the voice in her head wasn't chastising her to scream from the mountaintops that she was strong. Normally that side of herself was looking for every excuse imaginable to express it, but now it seemed as if for once Nashya was in complete agreence with herself. Yet through all of her talking to the man she never really answered his question, completely and masterfully averting it.

Well...yes, Serendipity had all kinds of people.  That was without a doubt.  It was something he'd known, even in Connlaoth.  Actually, it was on his father's list of things not to become, like those terrible people in Serendipity.  Idiotic man.  Sano hoped never see him again.  If he did, he might just kill him without a word.  So anyway, the woman had suggested that he not ask the way he just did, and say that he was looking to hire people.

"Actually, that is what I've been doing.  I try to hire them."

He wasn't stupid about it, after all.  He was just...  Sometimes, he made a faux pas.  It happened.  He was human, and humans make mistakes.  Sano wasn't excessively smart, either.  He was just a guy trying to do a thing, hoping that he had the right approach and that he could get the right people to do it.  Do what?  Well, as he shifted his weight slightly, he answered that one.

"I need a bunch of people to overpower a strong vampire in Connlaoth, and I mean a real piece of work, dark powers and all.  He's sitting there, letting the Mordecai make it easy for him by weakening the magic around the country.  It's just a big feeding ground for him."

The civil war didn't help, either.  If this guy was as bad as he sounded, he could wade into combat and come out of it stronger from all the bloodshed going on.  Sano seemed irritated by the things he said, but then he looked back at he woman.

"I don't like Connlaoth.  In fact, I hate it, but I don't think they deserve that.  Besides, he hurt someone important to me.  That's more than enough reason to go off and kill 'im."

Nashya reached up and pulled the hood of her cloak down as she listened to the man explain why he was looking for someone 'strong'. And then it happened, the whisper in her head no longer able to contain itself. Except unlike before, this version of herself had managed to push its way beyond her subconscious.

"We are strong" the words flying out of her mouth at recordbreaking speed. It wasn't moreso the statement of being strong that threw Nashya off, but the way the other half of her said it. 'We' ... as in more than one. But then the voice was back in her mind, stuck behind imaginary walls Nashya had just built up in a matter of seconds. "You let your guard now... I didn't have to push so hard that time" the whisper in her head laughed, reminding her of how it was always there... even when she wasn't paying attention.

In an attempt to recover what was just said Nashya tried to add to her previous statement. "Umm... We as in Serendipity. We are strong... I am sure you will find someone here." She smiled in yet another attempt to smooth over the situation. "I think as long as you tell anyone that story they would want to help."

Nashya even wanted to help a little, but she knew she couldn't leave Shadowmire for a while. When she came here she knew she would be here for the long haul, carrying out Golden Gear's mission was her top priority. Cyn took Nashya in despite her flaws, and honestly Nashya seemed the most normal out of the entire group. For once she felt like she belonged, and she wasn't about to go messing that up chasing down some vampire with a stranger who happened to cross her path.

Before, it seemed as though the two of them were just two people idly chatting, the traveler and the local making conversation.  She had been waiting out this rain and her had been lost, basically.  She was curious about him and he had no reason to hide his mission.  So, they talked.  And then, there was something of a shift.  taking down her hood, Sano got a better look at her just as she spoke.  Between taking in her significantly-attractive look and hearing her stronger - if unexpected - words, he was quite surprised.

He blinked at her use of the word 'We', though he assumed that she was part of a group local to the area was strong, like a guild.  Closer to the mark than he knew, really, but the woman corrected herself by indicating that she was speaking for all Serenian people.  That...wasn't quite as helpful as what he thought she meant before.  If she just blatantly knew a group of people who'd like to put the hammer down on a deadly vampire's head, that would've been easy.  He'd work up the money to hire things, and he could sleep easier, knowing that the only person to ever harm Keefe was dead.

"Well, you might say that, but people have lives.  I definitely need people for whom fighting is basically a living, and definitely get some magic in there.  Maybe alot."

He found himself puzzled over the woman for a second.  Why had she been calm before, abrupt suddenly, and once more as calm as morning dew?  Had he offended her without knowing it?  Because it didn't sound like civic pride.  Sano began to think maybe he had gotten under her skin, like with Allaeya in Essyrn.  Well, he had no idea that that was basically untrue, and...he had no way to know that here either.  Ugh, what a mess.  He just couldn't seem to figure people out, sometimes.  Sano looked up at the gray sky.  Still lookin' stormy.

"I guess I'd better head inside before I catch a cold or something."

He was curious about her, because of what she'd said and how she'd said it, but you couldn't go prying based upon that alone.  It's not like he could read her like he had Allaeya, knowing that she had significant troubles on her mind.  Sano began to head for the village, for now.

April Fools... I didn't really post ^.^


P.S: I will work on getting all my posts caught up by the end of the day.

[OOC: Dang, you got me.  Okay, good to know.]

She merely smiled and nodded as the man stated he was going to head into the village before he got sick. "You creeped him out. Way to go!" At this point Nashya wasn't sure if that was the voice in her head, or her own true personal feelings.

Nashya went on about her business, expanding her reach with the help of the storm brewing overhead. So far other than the short conversation with the mysterious man her day had been uneventful... nothing really to take back to Cyn. There were of course a few different occurrences a few miles away that could have used some more looking into, but Nashya's reach was only so far.

"We are soaked. Perhaps its best we head into the village to dry off..." Again Nashya not sure if it was her own personal thoughts or that of her other half. Either way she nodded as if she were responding to someone standing right in front of her before finally leaving the cover of the tree, but not before pulling her hood back over her dark locks.

Finding solace outside of a local tavern/inn Nashya stood against the building, allowing the extended roof to keep the rain off of her better than the tree. It was here she pulled her cloak completely off revealing a simple dark grey tunic with black leggings and brown leather boots. Taking the cloak she draped it over her bag at her side as she ran her fingers through her hair in an attempt to comb it out a bit... she actually looked quite normal.

"Perhaps we could have some fun today?" the whisper in her mind beckoned, an attempt to push the boundaries of Nashya's will. "No" she answered aloud, not really paying attention on if anyone was looking at her or not. Usually in crowded places like this she did not worry about talking out loud to the voice in her head, only because people usually had other things on their mind when they passed by... for all the knew she was talking to someone standing near.

"If you keep denying me like this I am going to push through...." The voice took a long pause. ".... you know I can."

"Can we not do this right now? Cyn will not be happy if you go running crazy here. We are supposed to gather information... not create it." Her voice carried an irritated tone to say the least. Nashya hated it when her other half started threatening to surface, making it harder for her to concentrate on anything else.

Because Nashya was completely capable of perceiving what Sano and everybody in town was doing, she knew exactly where he was and what he was up to at this time, should she desire to learn these facts.  That being the case, things on his end went thusly...

He was, as he often was, going over the journey in his mind.

The more he traveled, the more he needed to go over things.  It wasn't exactly a great start, he will say that.  Maybe some potentials in Adela, though he had had to wear himself out escaping from that phoenix-man who terrorized the Draconi Forest.  He had thought that Allaeya could help, not as a dragon...but as an alchemist.  It's just that it seemed like they left on bitter terms because he found out her secret.  Of course, what he didn't know was that she had found out his little secret.  Go figure.

Well, that was enough review.  It'd been a long way and he wanted to wet his whistle on something that isn't water.  Too much water about right now, as it is.  He stepped over to the local tavern opened the door.  Some eyes hit him and some eyes didn't.  The owner behind the bar did.  She was that breed of strong and hardy woman that outpace any man under her roof, especially if they're drunk, the kind that...if you were impolite to her...you would find yourself hurting, like twisting-your-codpiece-off-and-finding-out-there-was-still-a-cod-in-it hurting.

Sano didn't wear a codpiece.  Those things were silly.  That said, the owner was rather surprised by his appearance, anyway.

"Oh, what brings you to a little old shack like this, Sir Knight?"

"Knight?"

There was a moment of confusion there, for a second, then it dawned on him.  Chestpiece,  backpiece, shoulderpads, wristguards, shinguards, helmet - the trapping of a knightly figure, if ever you saw one.  Sano shook his head.

"I'm no knight, just a guy in armor."

"Well, you might give people the wrong impression, traveling like that."

"Maybe, but the roads are dangerous, and it's raining."

A round of "No kidding!" and "Really?" hit him like a wave, followed by laughter from everyone else in the tavern.  Okay, yes, he was stating the blitheringly obvious.  Sano removed his helmet and sighed.

"Smartasses.  Gimme a drink."

Having set the mood at the bar, Sano was given a beer to get the blood in his body moving again, a warm sensation filling his body.  Someone said in another tavern that beer and ale and wine and such don't really warm the body against cold weather, but actually cool it.  He was laughed off, of course, because he was talking about it at a bar.  Of course, he was drunk, so he also didn't care.  About the time Nashya was outside the tavern, Sano would be asking if anybody knew someone for hire that'd be able to tear apart a vampire.  There were the usual boasts, but Sano's ears perked up at one of the answers from a bearded man.

"Ah, ya want ta' head west through Falial, towards Zefras, and see the Goldswiths.  Longstanding tradition of hardy swordsman in that family back to the ancient times there!"

"You're sure.  This isn't a wind-up?"

"Gods sake, man!  They're only Magistrate of the land and the mines!  Isn't that a enough?  Who IS this vamp a' yours?  Garlock The Destroyer?"

"Garlock The whatnow?"

"Hah!  Ya hear that?  The wee man doesn't even know about ole' Garlock!  He's only the darkest magus to ever walk the Earth!  Destroys whole towns!  What'd this vampire a' yours do?"

"He's bested someone I know to be supremely skilled in her arts.  Damn near killed 'er, if not for me.  If I thought it'd do me any good, I'd even take this Garlock with me."

This time, the bartender spoke up, speaking in caution as she refreshed his drink.

"You don't want anyone like that, traveller.  The man's not boasting about Garlock.  Several years ago, they say the town of Claris was laid waste in minutes, then another and another, the survivors saying it was a magus calling himself Garlock The Destroyer, tearing 'em down because people lived there.  A scary thought, him coming here.  Don't even joke about that."

"Er...sorry."

He was quiet from then on, drinking his drink as he considered that maybe...he was just not picking up on the fact that other people had problems, and that he just wanted to ram any bastard that could throw down against the vampire, regardless of the consequences.  When he thought about their worry about this Garlock, he understood.  But when he thought about Keefe's body trying to burst from the inside...

...he didn't.

Feeling at least somewhat refreshed, with his mind suitably buzzed, he finished his drink and decided to set off.  Where?  Out, he supposed.  The Inn, around town, whatever.  He opened the door and found...well, if he hadn't seen her properly back under the tree, he'd be more surprised by her appearance, but even still he was caught off-guard.

"Oh, hi there.  Took your advice.  I think it helped."

Again, he normally spoke plainly about these things, in the proper manner, but he was half-joking conversationally.  Sano began to wonder, though...  She seemed to be doing alot of hanging around and not much of anything else.  Was she a town guard or something?  Serendipity was a nation of equality, after all...

"Cyn is the only one who understands me" The whisper in her mind countered in a childish way.
"Cyn tolerates you... not understands you." Nashya torted to herself in an effort to silence the battle ensuing in her mind. She could feel her other self trying to push through despite how she warned her against it.

Her concentration though was broken by an all too familiar voice. It was that man again, and of all places he had just walked out of the tavern she had stationed herself out of. It took a moment for his words to sink into her mind, as if she had to recount what advice she had offered him only a short time ago.

Plastering on a smile Nashya pushed herself away from the wall, all an attempt to make herself seem more casual than she had before. "I am glad it helped." Her eyes then shifted to the right as if she was looking at someone walking up when in reality it was the presence of the ever annoying voice in her mind going on again. "You sound like me when you try to be nice." Rolling her eyes Nashya's patience was beginning to wear thin.

The voice in her mind was more pushy than normal, and it was beginning to take its toll on her own sanity. Before she knew it or even had a chance to process what she had done Nashya found herself yelling at no one. "Why don't you just shut up for once!" Instantaneously the reality of what she had just done hit her. She had all but forgotten about the man whom she had already had a close call with earlier that day.

"...never"

We have to wonder what the coincidence here is, just for a moment.  After all, Sano went there first.  It seemed more likely that it was Nashya's action, by coming there, that was out of place.  Well, perhaps.  However, it mattered not, at the moment.  At this time, he was having just a pleasant conversation with the woman he had mistakenly assumed was a town guard, when she began to look in a direction.  Sano glanced subtly, and listened.

That's funny.  I don't hear any footsteps.  Don't see anyone either.  Is it somebody cloaked?

Because of that look, and his prior assumption, he also assumed that someone sneaky was moving about, like maybe someone who did magic.  Fresh from a tale of Garlock The Destroyer, that worried Sano.  And then, suddenly, the woman shouted!  For a instant, he thought she might've been talking to him, but she said 'for once' and they'd only just met!  That meant...

Chance it!

His arm whipped out without warning as he flung a swift throwing knife in the direction the woman had been looking, expecting it to embed itself in an invisible target.  What he got...was a house, a rather nice-looking cottage, in fact.

"Umm...what?"

Sano blinked at this, a little confused, before turning back to her.

"Sorry, was there somebody back there...or did I just kill a house for no reason?"

Despite how mortified Nashya was for openly arguing with her inner self she couldn't help but giggle at the man's attempt to attack whatever 'threat' that could have been there. In fact the feeling of joy like this was so forgotten to her that her giggle quickly turned into a bit of a laughing fit. She did however quickly recover, but now held a more genuine smile on her face.

"If there was someone there... I am sure they are dead now." Again completely evading the question beneath. "...not dead..." her inner voice chimed in, causing her eyes to flicker again, but only for a second.

It was habit and a bad one at that. Usually how people discovered her abilities was the uncontrollable urge to look to her right when she heard the dark whisper in her mind. This was why she usually wore her cloak with the hood up, the brim of it usually covering her eyes enough from others seeing her eye movements.

"So did you find anyone for your task yet?" She was genuinely interested in this bit, not only because she felt a bit of concern for the man, but also because if there was anyone else in the area with abilities to match her own she would need to know.. so she could avoid them.

The mirth of her laugh and the embarassment of him 'killing' a house brought a smile to Sano's face and he began to chuckle, as well.  Laughter is infectious, and she was genuinely amused by the whole idea.  She had to be joking about someone being dead, because he definitely didn't hit anything but that house.  He knew the sounds, the reactions, of someone having taken a thrown dagger.  That knife would be clean, as it had flown unhindered to the house it now stuck out of.  Can't kill a house, anyway.  It was a close cousin of the gazebo.

The renewed flicker of motion in Nashya's eyes went unnoticed this time, because Sano was now focusing on the knife and reaching out with his hand.  He couldn't just leave that thing there.  Some one would complain, and he would be down one knife.  Not that any common metal object was hard to come by, with his power, but it's just a waste.  It's like when he sat down and turned bits of steel into useable coppers for payment.  He could easily shunt them back into swords and such, but it cut into his spending money.  The knife came flying back into his hand and he pocketed it, just as the woman asked him about his quest.

"Well, I may have a couple of potentials and a bit of potion support, between Essyrn and Adela, but it's not guaranteed.  The locals recommend a fighter called Goldswith.  Since it's taking me a while to get a look around for people, I've kept them in mind and promised to call on them when I'm actually ready.  They keep doing whatever it is they're doing, and I keep going until I have enough and I have the money ready."

Because if you want good help from a random bunch of people to help you take down a dangerous target, you're footing the bill...with both feet.  Now, if Nashya's group kept up o date on Falial at all, they might know that the Goldswith family did have a young successor who took jobs from people.  In any case, Sano found he was rather enjoying her company, talking about it like this.  The locals of Serendipity were certainly warm in nature.  He decided to introduce himself.

"My name is Sano Alistair.  What's yours?"

"Belvedere... Nashya Belvedere" her last name not a prominent one in Serendipity. Originating from a small farming village just outside of Arca where she grew up with her 'parents'. Of course she did carry all the features of a true Serenian with fair skin and exotically colored eyes she had always assumed her biological parents were from this land as well but never knew for sure.

"Money is a fickle thing isn't it?" Nashya knew this all too well. Before Golden Gear she was barely scraping by. Always buying, selling and trading whatever she could get her hands on for some extra coin. She had tried the merc for hire route at one point, but that only ended up in disaster. It was funny really, how she used to have such good morals. But then again... this was all before her true abilities had manifested.

Now in Golden Gear she did not have to worry like before. The funds provided for her to do what was required of her were more than enough to survive on. "If it weren't for me you would still be struggling to survive." Once again Nashya's eyes flicked to the side as she listened to the voice taunt her. She did however resist rolling her eyes in reaction to what the voice was saying. That part of her was right, she would still be doing whatever it took to survive it had not been for her darker self emerging. However... her life may also be more worth living if it were gone.

"... and it is a pleasure to meet you Sano." Nashya gave him a warm smile before bowing her head a bit in respect. She wasn't even worried about disclosing her real name to him, for in Golden Gear she was known as something different entirely...

Her name wouldn't be anymore recognizable than the Alistair family line.  The Alistairs had - due to having some oddities about them - attempted to keep quiet and out of the limelight, so to speak.  Sano's father was heavily in denial, and Sano himself would rather not be especially well-known because of him, as well.  It was one reason for why he liked the quiet life, to be fair.  Nobody bothered him about his past in La'Marri.  Nashya may not have been anymore important than he was, but she seemed very nice.  He nodded at her question of money.

"Always is.  I'll manage, once I'm ready."

He wasn't going to explain that he did technically cheat with his magic, there.  Alchemists have poured over the secret of transmutation all their lives, but the right birth and...it turns out you can transform lead into gold if you have all day with nothing to do but stare at it until it turns bright...and then pass out, but it DOES work, at least.  Sano decided that, now that he and Nashya had introduced each other, that he'd indulge in a bit of curiosity.

"So, are you a town guard or patrol for Serendipity or something?"

Her hanging around places and keeping a watchful - if darting - eye seemed to indicate this.

His question caught her off guard to say the least. "Ha ha! He thinks your a guard!" the voice in her head louder than it had been in quite some time. "Not a guard...." she paused trying to formulate the correct statement in her mind. "... I can't really talk about what it is I do. But no not a guard.."

Her answer was more honest than she had intended for it to be yet left out all the important details. No she was not a guard, but yes her actions did have a purpose. Little did this man know that he was instead talking to Nashya Belvedere... Shadowfeeder and main information retriever for Golden Gear. The eyes and ears of Serendipity, particularly this region in Jadenshine. Her job was to listen, watch, and report anything useful to Cyn. Of course that was when she was alone. When with Demagogue her job was to create the illusion that he was just as human as the next person... creating a face to fool the masses.

Nashya suddenly felt uneasy, as if her answer would lead him to probe for more questions than she was prepared to answer. If she had to fight eventually she would, as she was more than capable of defending herself. But the last thing she needed was to draw more attention to herself, wanting to keep her face as inconspicuous as possible.

Wanting to change the subject as quickly as possible she instead opted for a different conversation... again. It seemed as though the sun had decided to finally come out, leading to the rain coming to a halt from the sky and to the clouds retracting in the sky. "Have you any other plans for the day?"

Her answer seemed...perhaps...to make her a little uneasy.  She explained that she was nnot guarding or patrolling the town, but also stated that she could not talk about what it is she DID do.  It wasn't a dodge.  The sound of her voice, the look in her eyes, and the way she phrased it told him that she was being honest with her.  Clearly, he'd stumbled upon something here, and she didn't want attention drawn to it.  This was weirdly similar to his conversation with Allaeya, yet it was more of her requesting that her cnfidentiality in matters be kept, for either her sake or his sake...or both.  Nashya had been worried that he would want to pry, but in this case...he felt the tone of someone operating under people's watchful eye and needing to remain there to a purpose.  Therefore...

"I understand, and I know how you feel, so we'll leave it at that."

The small weight of the metal embedded in his mantle - set on the inside - was settled on the small of his back.  It was a small oval plate bearing the symbol of an assassin, known to all as the Ebon Knife.  Said symbol had always been that of an eye-mask, like one would find in perhaps a masquerade.  Nobody yet had associated it with the woman who had taken him from from Connlaoth and mentored him, a ferret Beastkin whose face had a natural design of such right there.  Sano's injured friend was that very assassin, and the reason he was after the vampire.  He was effectively an assassin himself, yet he moved more like a knight.  Hiding in plain sight?  Perhaps.  It was a good place to hide.  And perhaps the lady of the Golden Gear would appreciate his position, should she find out.  At any rate, she asked if he had any other plans today and Sano had to think on that.  If the woman before him was about to suggest something as an alternative to anything he may have in line, he might be inclined to join her.  As it was...

"I don't have anything planned right now, no.  This is...more the improvised part.  The most I can say for sure is that I'll need a room at the inn, perhaps some food, as I have been traveling quite a while."

Nashya listened as Sano stated he had nothing planned. "Well as for this small village you wont find many inns... I think the one they actually have.." she paused to take a step closer towards him, lowering her voice to hardly a whisper as she continued. "... has a bit of an infestation." Nashya then stepped back, her eyes looking around to see if anyone had heard what she had said. She didn't want to insult the hard working farmers of this small village, but her statement was nothing but facts.

"About an hours walk that way..." she pointed at the opposite direction Sano had arrived from ".. there is a larger settlement with many more options deeper into Shadowmire. It is where all the government buildings are." Placing a hand on the strap of her bag still flung over her shoulder she adjusted it a bit, shifting the weight of it so the strap wasn't digging into her shoulder so much. "That is actually where I live... or stay. I don't really have my 'own' place." She giggled at how silly she must sound. "I was actually waiting for the storm to pass before heading back. If you would like to walk with me you are more than welcome to."

Nashya had forgotten how nice it was to actually talk with someone without a reason. As of late all she ever conversed about were plans or information. This was a nice change of pace and reminded her of the girl she used to be. "It would be nice to have some company other than my own thoughts." She smiled again, but deep down there was more than she was letting on in that statement. "If only he knew..."

Well, he was willing to deal with a one-and-only-inn if it were the only option, but Nashya's mention of an infestation worried him.  Sano tried to think what sort she could have meant, without asking her to elaborate.  Rats, bugs, bats, rat-bats, rugrats, bug-bats, bug-bears, zubats, irrate gnomes - the list goes on.  It sounded like a groan-worthy experience...until she mentioned there being a settlement down the road that was a bit more hopeful.  Further into Shadowmire, the more important buildings resided, and there were places to stay.  Seems it was where Nashya herself was staying.  She emphasized this, pointing out that she may not have a fixed address.  Sano certainly knew that feeling, but at least this was on their own terms, right?  He smiled at her little aside, then nodded at her offer.

"Sure.  I haven't traveled 'with' anyone this whole journey."

Straightening out his pack, as it'd gotten crooked at some point in the bar, he turned to the indicated direction, starting off as she did so they could walk side-by-side.

"It's alot more pleasant around here than Connlaoth."

He smirked, then, adding...

"Weather notwithstanding.  I have to wonder, is it the people or the atmosphere?  I didn't exactly have a good picture of a good day up there, as a kid."

Nashya nodded at his story of Connloath. She personally had never been, but had heard many stories of how the war was tearing the country apart. "You will find that here a lot of us are a lot more understanding." shrugging she started walking in the direction she had pointed. This would be nice, able to talk to someone other than herself or a member of Golden Gear for more than just a few minutes.

"So tell me more about your 'mission'. That is if you don't mind my asking." She was very cordial with her request. The reason behind it being moreso that she didn't want to talk about herself on this journey. The more she talked about what she was doing she knew that meant the more her inner self would chime in. Matter of fact she had been quiet for a few minutes now, most likely bored with whatever was going on. Silently Nashya hoped that it would stay this way the entire journey... she needed the break.

Just as she had hoped the rain had stopped the clouds were only just now disappearing as well. The sun was peaking out beyond them letting its rays dry the once soaked earth. It was turning out to actually be a nice day. Nashya smiled at that, having not enjoyed the sunshine in quite some time. Her pail skin reflected it, as well as the fact she was almost squinting as her normally covered eyes tried to adjust to it.

Yeah, the day was turning out nice now.  The sun was out and soon the chill in the air would vanish.  It was a good time to be on the road with company.  She was right, of course.  Serendipity really treated his magic as more of an "Oh, neat." kind of thing, since apparently this ferro-control art - or simply 'metal magic', as Keefe put it - was pretty rare.  After all, everyone and their mother could learn elemental spells, casting fireballs and literally blowing people off of their feet.  Metallurgy in magic was alot different.

As for his mission...  Well, it couldn't hurt to talk about it in earnest.

"My mission is really a personal matter.  This vampire is a danger to anyone he comes across, but the real reason I want it dead is because of something he did.  I said I hated home and I meant it.  Before I ever showed any signs of having real magic, I was disowned and living on the streets.  The day I did was when I met my friend and mentor, Keefe.  She has my kind of power, but she's alot more advanced in it than me.  Because I was the only one she'd ever met with my ability, she allowed me to live in her house and take up some...rather grueling training."

Seriously, if she had been using real blades instead of dull metal rods, he'd've been dead a long time ago from the severity of it.  The unconscious wince - though, with a half-smile - at the thought indicated that she had been quite thorough about it.  Now, though, he looked kind of down.

"Keefe had been back in Connlaoth to handle some business when she was attacked by this vampire, and she'd been completely outclassed.  She barely made it back, and it was while fighting against an agonizing curse that was effectively torturing before killing her.  I barely managed to get her through it, almost killing her myself in the process.  When she was able to speak again, I heard the full story about the vampire."

He glared harshly now, looking Nashya's way, but obviously not pissed off at her.

"This woman made me everything I am, instead of dying in an alley somewhere.  I want this vampire so utterly dead that all power of evil and necromancy can't reach him.  I want him to never walk this Earth, even as a harmless nobody, so dead that gods of death swear at the sight of him."

He paused, letting out a breath to try and calm himself.

"...and that's my mission."

As they walked Nashya listened to Sano recount what had happened to his friend. It sounded horrible to say the least, his anger understandable at this point. "I would help if I could..." she paused as she considered what she was about to reveal to him. "... but I can't." The expression she wore was one of regret and sorrow as she spoke to him. She truly couldn't help if she wanted to, she had other obligations here.

"Your cause though does sounds truly worthy. I can't imagine anyone turning you down... well except me.. but I have to." Adjusting the strap on her bag again Nashya fell silent for a moment, the sound of her boots squishing the mud beneath them being the only thing that lingered for a moment. "Everyone I know that could help you is also tied up in the same dealings as I am. But like I said, this is Serendipity and most of us Serenian's are quite understanding of outsiders and their troubles."

Taking in a deep breath she held her head a little higher as she glared at the path in front of them. She was almost sad she had other obligations. So far Sano seemed like a nice guy, and she found it was really easy to talk to him. "I am sorry about what happened to your friend by the way." With that she lowered her head a bit, not really able to fully understand what it was like to have a friend and mentor injured like that. Nashya never really had any friends, the closest she had gotten with anyone really was Demagogue.. and they just worked together.

Of course she always wanted friends, but it was too dangerous with her other side popping in and out from time to time. She was able to control that side of herself lately better than she had in the past, but to say it was still inconvenient was an understatement. She couldn't help but wonder if without it she would even be in Golden Gear. "I thought we went over this. Without me you would still be begging for money at the docks." And with that it was back...

"Why are you pretending like you are some happy go lucky farm girl?". Furrowing her brow Nashya could not help but respond, whether Sano was listening or not.
"I'm not pretending anything." Her voice laced with agitation.
"I thought we had agreed you stay quiet and do your job and I let you stay in control." the voice countered, already beginning with her idle threats.

Rolling her eyes Nashya continued to walk, the annoyance in her eyes now evident. Why did her other half always have to do this? Was Nashya not allowed just one day of a peaceful mind? One without this side of her chiming in and ruining everything. Her eyes even began to water up a bit from the shear frustration she was feeling. "If you cry your going to look like an idiot" the voice egged her on, knowing full well which buttons to push.

Nashya continued to ignore the voice, not responding again but instead quickening her pace a bit. She had gone from a smiling girl walking with a stranger to one who looked like she would rather be any place than here.

The more Nashya talked around whatever it was that she wasn't saying, the more it sounded like she had an obligation to fulfill that she just couldn't drop at a moment's notice.  Given the fact that he had already mentioned that gathering people would take a while, her statement indicated a longterm obligation, not a simple one.  This was understandable.  Sano had his obligations, as well.  He did not reveal that he was the protege' of the Ebon Knife, effectively the Ebon Knight.  He did not say where he came from, exactly, because the people of La'Marri rather like to keep to themselves.  In fact, the only reason he mentioned Keefe by name was because it was not known to the general public, certainly not in connection to her alias.

She truly wanted to help, though.  That lifted Sano's spirits, somewhat.  He really wished that she could.  Her sympathy and understanding was the sort of thing needed for this battle.  Those with the will to fight with their heart and soul would prevale, because the enemy doesn't have any.  At that point, Sano really wanted to know what she did so that he could try and convince her employer to allow it, especially considering that he would pay anyone who was signing on, once he was ready.  He only wanted to take up their time at the appointed hour, so it seemed possible that an agreement could be reached.  After all, unless she was Serenian military, she didn't have to have year-round dedication, right?  The only thing that might've kept his tongue on the matter - other than what happened next - was that it seemed like asking about it would cause her problems with whatever task it was.

It didn't stop me from learning of a certain alchemist's dragon problem, though...

Yes, there was that, and he felt bad about it, but what could you do?  Allaeya was suffering, and he didn't like that.  This wasn't the same.  The lament was in feeling for his problem and being unable to act on it.  Sano was about to suggest that she might be able to negotiate a temporary leave with her boss herself, but Nashya suddenly looked irritated at something.  Yeah, something else was on her mind, as well, and such irony to be said in that statement[/i]...  Before he could say anything, she muttered something about 'not pretending' and then quickened her pace suddenly.  What the...?  Was it about her boss?  Did bringing up her obligation remind her of some argument?  Sano wasn't going to guess at the whole personality issue.  He's never heard of such a thing, so his mind is going to leap to other explanations.  Now, he was catching up to her, being one of excellent physical shape and endurance.

"Hey, whoa, calm down!  If your boss is working you that hard, maybe he should give you a break.  Whatever it is you do, you can't do it while he's driving you up the wall."

Nashya stopped in her tracks at the mention of her boss working her too hard. Of course that wasn't it at all, but instead the voice in her mind that never wanted to shut up. "Yeah, just calm down" the voice chimed in, mocking her further.

Once again she was rolling her eyes as well as taking in an exasperated breath. "She has not given me more than I can handle" a sense of untold duty in her tone. "But I can't just stop, especially now. There is too much at risk and too much we still have to do." Her eyes darted back and forth as she played the plan out in her mind.

"I just get easily frustrated is all...." she started walking again, but this time slower than before. "... if you only knew the circumstances I was faced with you would understand."

"I am not a circumstance... I am forever a part of you.

And then Nashya was back to ignoring it, realizing what had just happened. The voice, it tempted her again.. pushed her buttons like it always had. For a brief moment she allowed it to upset her, causing all of this unneeded duress.

Not he, she, and of course Sano would have no idea if Nashya was referring to her real boss, or the personality that was continually grating on her nerves.  He let the woman say her peace on the matter, not really having a parallel to put forth there.  Keefe was no slavedriver, figuratively or literally, so he really just didn't know the pressures Nashya could be under.

"Sounds important.  Well, I haven't exactly been through anything like that, so I really don't know what it's like.  I just know how to bear it or beat it's face in."

After all, the problems with his father were just abuse.

"Not saying you should try the latter, mind.  Maybe if there was something that was actually a threat around here, you'd relieve some tension, beating it.  Keefe told me, 'If you're feeling that worked up, you may as well find someone who fights and get it out of your system.  Fight doesn't like to leave you alone, otherwise.'."

This, of course, led to Sano getting his ass kicked, because his frustrations and the need to fight caused him to make mistakes that she took advantage of and made him look extremely foolish.  It also hurt, but big surprise, there.

Listening as he spoke Nashya found a bit of solace in his voice. Even with him not having any idea what was going on in her head he seemed to understand a bit. From the moment he said it the light in her mind was flashing. "Bear it or beat it... you can't literally beat me" her whisper noted, knowing full well that if she could she would.

"I think your onto something Sano" she stated completely ignoring the power in her mind trying to push her buttons once more. "The day is still not yet half over. We are nearly halfway to the next town. How about we take a break." Without even waiting for an answer Nashya stepped off the path, taking solace under a tree not only for the shadow it created but the shelter it provided from the now hot sun.

Sliding her bag off of her shoulder she allowed it to fall to the ground along with her cloak she had slumped over it. "Would you care to spar?" tilting her head she almost seemed a little sarcastic with her response. What would a small woman like her with no weapons to speak of be able to spar with. Well, she figured she had already oh so subtly hinted at so much about herself, what harm could it do to show him her true power.

In fact, it had been so long since she used her abilities for anything other than listening that she looked forward to letting them out. Of course, only if Sano agreed to it.

Damn right, he was onto something.  Sano smirked at the response he got there.  It was about time something he said made someone's day better.  He was starting to think he was just bad at talking to people.  So, apparently they'd made it halfway there and Nashya wanted to take a break.  She suggested it, and then executed it without really waiting for input.  Of course, said input was going to be that he didn't have a problem with it.  After all, he's been traveling all over, and the sun was eventually going to make things hot for him.  Honestly, black was an excellent color for things, but it was not the best thing for a warm day.

So, like her, he headed for the shade.  Now, he wasn't fully recovered from the fact that he'd had a little to drink, but when you consider his reaction to that uhh...house...you have to figure he's pretty accurate, even after having had a few.  Nashya, of course, knew a smattering of what he was capable of, there.  Between her shadow-spying and actually seeing some of it firsthand, plus the tale of his past, she had to know that he was a dangerous guy, in of himself.  This may be why, after a moment, she asked if they could spar.  That, and her frustrations, most likely.  Who knows?  Perhaps she'd feel better.  He had no idea what she was capable of.  Judging by the secrecy of her work, he figured that Nashya must be heavily skilled somehow.  So, he nodded at her.

"Sure.  What kind of combat do you prefer?  Hand-to-hand?  Blades?  Staves?  Magic?  Or uhh...all of it?"

He didn't assume anything about her.  The women in his life, thus far, tended to be dangerous in some way.  Or at least, the most interesting ones were.

Nashya took a moment to consider her options. She did have a few daggers in her pack that she used to use before fully understanding her abilities. However, she was never more than 'okay' at wielding them. Same with hand to hand, not really much muscle on her.. she had always been a bit on the small side physically.

"Magic" the only words the would escape her mouth before lowering her head a bit, a more sinister look now laying on her face. This was the only way she could use them, the dark creatures that powered her shadow abilities. They were just as dark and twisted as the other half of her mind and so she would have to summon a bit of that to the surface. Forever ago she would have been afraid of this, her darker self surely would have taken over. But like I said... that was so long ago.

Slowly Nashya raised her hands up from her sides, the shadow from the tree coming to life with the action. It began to twist and bend into the shape of her shadow hounds, growling and foaming at the mouth with soulless eyes. The shadow was now darker and sinister, no longer an innocent thing created from a simple tree and the sun. This was only the beginning as she pulled from the dimension of dark energy she borrowed her abilities from.

Not only were her hounds created from this simple shadow but it seemed to grow, encasing the foilage of the tree first and then extending its reach to the ground around it, the darkness now much larger than what should have been there. She was pulling only a small amount of the negative energy in this world, allowing Sano just a glimpse at what was always haunting her mind... and she hadn't even shown him her yet.

"Don't be afraid to hurt me. I can take a hit." In fact that was what she was counting on. The pain and suffering of any blow would only fuel the darkness now flowing out from around her.

She said one word - Magic - and then proceeded to make Sano worry.  No, it wasn't a case of him feeling insubstantial in terms of magic ability.  His ability was strong and he was sure of its power.  It responded to his thoughts and even instincts, so that even an unfocused desire to protect himself would become a defense.  No, what worried him was what Nashya proceeded to do after she spoke.  It wasn't the look on her face.  That didn't help matters, but it was when her power began to manifest that Sano's eyes widened.

Oh hell, not THIS again!

It was shadow magic, or a similar power over darkness.  As Nashya began to form her hounds - her very large hounds - and extend the force of shadow from the tree, Sano wisely backed up, giving himself some room to work with, since this was a magic duel and that meant you could blow yourself away, casting too close to your given target.  Sano had previously been attacked with shadow magic in a confrontation with an unreasoning half-phoenix man-thing.  He had no idea why a phoenix would have dark powers and he really didn't care.  Now, Nashya was telling him not to worry about hurting her.

"Easy for you to say.  I figured you had alot of power, but I didn't expect this."

There was another reason why he would worry, regardless of her request.  She didn't know - She would have no idea - that he was trained in the art of assassination...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Now remember, we're keeping your weapons dull, but they are weapons.  Every strike will hurt like hell, and I will NOT be going easy on you."

A simple forest clearing, daytime.  A younger Sano and Keefe stand in a small clearing, outside of La'Marri.  Sano is in ordinary day-to-day clothes.  Keefe is in her black leather assassin gear, with the hood and all.  She is a Beastkin, as stated, effectively an upright ferret-person by the same token that Gnolls are upright jackal-people.  She is slender, quick, and dangerous.  Yes, even with dull weapons.

"Doesn't 'Not going easy on me' mean 'Gonna kill you' in Keefe-talk?"

"Dead people can't feel pain anymore..."

Those words...combined with that frosty glare...made him shudder, briefly.  As per their training this time, Keefe was using only a pair of daggers and Sano had only a sword.  No creations, no powers - just skill, speed, and endurance.  The two of them began, and at first it seemed like Sano had a good handle on deflections, but Keefe stepped up her game by altering her own balance and stabbing in as he shoved aside one of her daggers.  Sano grunted and backed away as Keefe pressed forwards.

"Distraction is lethal."

He regained his edge and began to force her back with a number of swungs that would knock her hands away and probably disarm a lesser opponent if the blades connected.  Then, she blocked blocked with both daggers in a scissor position and kicked him twice in the stomach, rapidly.

"We're not just fighting with swords.  You see an opening, you take it, no hesitation."

From here, she parried the attacks he was using to put some space between them by striking against the flat of his sword, interrupting the flow of his swings with lightning speed and precision aim.  She was completely calm...until she kicked the sword right out of his hands, and then went to town on his torso!

"Strike first!  Strike always!"

In the midst of this, Sano's fist came out and wickedly pounded into her diaphragm, and then he got in a few other good shots, even one across the cheekbone that caused her to lose balance.  This would've been great if she hadn't been dealing with this stuff for years now.  She was at least five years older than him, five years ahead of him in development.  Keefe let the fall take her into a roll, which spun into her kicking his feet out from under him suddenly, and then grabbing him before he hit the ground to use great speed and momentum to thrust him into a tree!  Sano's body was blasted suddenly with pain.  He gritted his teeth and opened his eyes to find Keefe just looking at him a moment.

"I'm surprised you could take that level of punishment without passing out, much less retaliate in that condition.  I mean, you'd still be DEAD, but I guess you're improving."

"Am I gonna become...just like you when we're done with this training?"

She considered that possibility, a thoughtful expression on her face, then shook her head.

"No.  You look like the forgiving type.  I'll teach you everything I know, and that may make it harder for you not to kill when you're fighting, but you're not that ruthless, Sano.  Not if you don't want to be."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Assassins can fight, but assassins don't need to fight.  Their job is to kill.  Though...it seemed like there was more than one target here.  Were these hounds alive?  What happens when he harms one?  Only one way to find out.  Sano drew his sword, but when he did...his magic came into play.  Thus far, Nashya had only viewed a few simple tricks of his power.  What popped right out of the skin of his sword were a pair of morningstar heads...about six feet in diameter.  They were as big as a human was tall, and they flew at the darkhounds!  Might as well have been flung by a catapult, the way they were moving, trying to crush those things' faces in.

Not even flinching Nashya watched as one of the large morningstars made its way towards her shadowhands. She didn't even try to will the hound to dodge it, but instead merely shifted her eyes for a second as the large weapon impaled her hound causing a loud yelp to escape the creature before its form burst and slowly retracted back into the earth's shadow in which it came.

"Interesting..." she muttered as she flicked a wrist and sent one of her hounds towards Sano. Of course she would not allow it to take lethal action against him, but as she had told him not to be afraid to hurt her she would do the same for him. As her remaining hound hurled forwards at him Nashya flicked her other wrist and turned her head a bit in that direction as she watched yet another one of her manifestations come to life. This one was far more human-like. It had a distinguishable head but with dead white eyes. It's fingers were long and slender, as was its arms. It had an irregular posture, one that was slightly hunched over. The very essence of this manifestation was horrid, one that would place nightmares in any child's head for years to come.

It had been too long since she was able to bring herself to tap into the dimension in which she pulled these creatures. She even believed that the dimension she pulled them from was where her darker self originally manifested. She could remember when she first realized the abilities she possessed and it wasn't long after she started tapping into them that she found she was not alone in her mind anymore.

Turning her attention back towards her latest manifestation Nashya watched as it took on a sinsister personality of its own. It bore no expression as it stared at Sano with dead eyes. Maybe summoning this one was a mistake? She could feel herself growing uneasy herself as she stood next to it, this creature who was staring at Sano like its next victim. In truth, this manifestation was always the one she feared most, second to that of her own darkened soul constantly trying to get through.

These creatures - these living shadows (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GdYkIF3C7PY) - seemed to be truly alive in some capacity of he was able to burst and destroy them with his attacks.  That was good.  They seemed to require bodily stability to retain form and their place in the world.  Once Sano caused a reasonable reduction in numbers, he felt a bit more at ease, but Nashya had to be a gifted shadow mage to summon these things.  She seemed to be working on something else as the last remaining darkhound leapt at him.  Surprised, Sano changed his wrist-guard into a full tower shield and slammed back at it once it the thing impacted before trying to cut it in half with his sword.

Damn, she could really mess people up, if she wanted to.

During this time, he noticed that her capabilities weren't limited to that of the hounds.  There was a white-eyed shadow...person...thing here too now.  It was standing in a limp hunched position, looking disproportionate with the way a human body worked.  It...looked like it might, say, be able to hurl things at a speed of Hot Damn.  Sano decided to put that to the test, for now.  Since he had this shield, he could afford to risk it.  The big morningstars were retrieved by his will, flying at the thing's back - since they'd flung past before when they hit - one after the other on a collision course!

Nashya's hesitation to use this manifestation only confirmed itself as the beast moved on its own, having sensed the morningstars headed at it from behind. It didn't necessarily run but moreso crawled in a sense away at a very quick speed. Its expression remained the same as it countered the move, the eyes of the manifestation never leaving Sano's form. This was why Nashya was always so worried when she summoned this creature. It had always moved of its own free will, her control on it minimal at best.

With ease the creature maneuvered itself a fair distance away from the weapons before it began circling Sano, its long and dark fingers held in front of it like a prehistoric reptile. Still under the tree Nashya could feel the desires of the monster she had summoned, the soul desire to kill. "I think I've had enough." She spoke before lifting her head a bit, her expression worried as she waited for the creature to be pulled back to the dimension in which it came... but it didn't.

"I said I've had enough!" she yelled at the creature whose eyes were still locked on Sano like a shark stalking its pray. It's gaze did not waiver for even a moment at her demand, but instead it continued its path on encircling the man she had just met. "I'll say when I've had enough" the voice in her mind finally speaking up after many moments of silence.

"No. I am in control and I say I am done." Her voice was sharp in response to her inner self. After that there was silence in her mind and when she went to look at the creature who was disobeying her it had already begun to vanish. Nashya couldn't help but feel a sense of accomplishment at this as she believed for once her darker self was finally complying with what she wanted.

So, while he was busy with the hound, he had projected those morningstars, which of course prompted Sano to get back behind said shield so he wouldn't have to exercise his will on stopping them.  Starting the momentum of an object was easy.  Stopping it took effort.  The big spiky balls clanged heavily off of the tower shield, which was heavy and solid, thus able to withstand the things...though unwieldy when attached to one's wrist.  All this happened pretty fast, and the morningstars just sort of rolled to a stop across the road.

Meanwhile, that hooligan - whatever it was - had done him a creepy.  The way it moved, the way it always stared right at him, and its clear and dangerous intent was certainly cause for concern.  Like...alot of it.  The thing was circling him, and he was sure the thing could swipe or slam faster than he could get this heavy shield around.  Moving it around without taking his arm into consideration could effectively snap his arm right off.  Unlike with his flight to Ketra, he wasn't grabbing his torso armor with his mind, the center of his mass.  This was a bit more fragile and problematic.

Maybe if I just duck and turn the shield into flying razor-spikes-

Suddenly, he heard some shouting from Nashya, who seemed to be having some problems.  Wait...was she not in control of this tihng?  No, that couldn't be right.  Her power was clear here.  She had an excellent grasp of the shadow, judging from his own experiences.  Then what?  The creature was resisting her?  In the end, the thing vanished before his eyes, which allowed Sano to return his equipment to normal.  He called forth the two mace-heads and shrank them down into a pair of daggers, then put them on his belt.  Finally, he looked to the shadow mage, a little concerned...but keeping it civil.

"That creature didn't want to obey.  I take it the more power they have, the more rowdy they can be?"

No, he has still not twigged that there's two minds at work here.

"You could say that..." Nashya's reply once again dancing around the truth. "I summon them from another plane. One that is connected to the shadows I can control." It was always so hard to explain to someone who didn't use shadow magic how summoning worked. The manifestations were real living creatures, just ones not of this world. She could pull them from the dark world her abilities fed off of into this one, but only for a short time.

The longer they were out usually the stronger they became. However, the more humanoid one in particular was in a class all on its own. It was harder for Nashya to bend its will, almost impossible to control any movements it made. "It's been a while since I summoned that one." She felt she didn't have to explain which creature she was talking about. "Even it gives me the creeps."

"I can feel what it feels and..." she paused to calm her mind at the thought. "... it wanted to do more than just swiftly kill you."

"But enough about me. You are amazing!" Nashya's face lit up as she remembered watching him create weapons from seemingly nothing. "I have never seen someone who can do that! Only ever heard of it." Leaning down she picked up her bag from the grass and slinked it over her shoulder. "You truly have some skill Sano."

Plane?  Oh wait, he remembered now.  Someone mentioned spiritual planes and communing with spirits.  Nashya spoke of summoning these shadow-things from a place like that, some sort of world of shadows and darkness.  She was admittedly giving himthe abridged explanation, for people who wouldn't know the intricacies off-hand.  No worries.  He didn't need to know that much, just a decent grasp of things.  The shadows were alive and they sometimes resisted their summoner.  It happened, sometimes.  She admitted that that one was something of a rarity in her own summoning...and definitely creepy.

What surprised him was that she could feel its intentions, and it wanted to do things to him - things that were probably unsavory and horrible - before killing him.  That shadow realm was definitely an unpleasant place.  Very unsettling.  Fortunately, Nashya wrecked the ominous feeling with a sudden compliment.  She found his power and abilities rather impressive.  Such a earnest statement made him smile without even realizing it.  Heh, all that training...  It certainly pays to do things the hard way, sometimes.  He nodded in acknowledgement of her kind words.

"Thank you, Nashya.  It really was alot of work...and study...and pain.  Well, wasn't all bad.  Still, I can tell you're very gifted, yourself."

He now picked up his own pack from where it lay.

"At a guess, I would say you can do in shadow everything I do in metal, plus summoning, and add to that anything I missed.  Would that be about right?"

She smiled at his comment on her being gifted as well. "We know" the voice in her mind chimed in, causing yet another eyeflick from Nashya before she regained her focus. He was asking more about her abilities, all of his statement true in a sense. "Pretty much..."

Stepping out from under the tree Nashya began walking again towards the larger settlement they were originally headed towards. It was nice to take a break and not really have a specific time she had to be somewhere. She figured that by now Cyn and Demagogue had figured she took the day off to do whatever it was she wanted to. She wasn't obligated to stick around all the time, she could come and go as she pleased... but she did have work to do.

As she walked Nashya held one of her hands on the strap of her bag, trying to find something else to talk about so they were not walking in silence. "How old were you when you began training? Or better question... how old were you when you realized you could do that with metal?" There was more to her question than she was letting on.

Nashya had not realized she even had the ability to tap into shadow magic until she was at least 14 or so, even still she had no one to show her what to do. Everything Nashya knew was taught through trial and error, her biggest error still living on in her head for what seemed like an eternity... so she assumed.

Yes, he had a feeling it was something like that, and it seemed like it was a natural talent for her, as it was for him with metal.  Shadow magic was pretty frightening stuff, in the wrong hands.  Even in the right hands, it could be a problem for anyone on the receiving end.  That said, Nashya seemed like a nice enough person.  And failing that, she carried herself like a professional.  Whatever it was that she did, it wasn't short-sighted or foolish.  Someone like her would be very handy in a situation.  Such a shame she couldn't come with her, or at least be ready to help when he was finally prepared.  At least he could get to know her now.

They were moving along, once more, when Nashya posed a pair of questions.  At this, Sano smirked for a moment.  Not because she wanted to know, but because of the ease in which it would be to explain.

"They're both the same answer, more or less.  I'd been on the streets when Keefe found me, about fifteen.  I'd been moving from small town to small town to avoid trouble.  I feared the approach of Mordecai, but also of anyone who'd give me trouble.  Sometimes, I got a little, sometimes I avoided it.  I'd been cornered by a group of boys my age when I started to awaken.  Maybe it was because she'd been around, maybe not.  In any case, she scared them off and told me to calm down, or else everything metal around would explode and kill us both."

He shrugged, regarding that...

"Keefe's a bit blunt."

...but he managed a short chuckle, afterwards.

"It's the strangest thing.  She said she wanted to train me so that I could be her protege, but she's only...what?  Five years older?  Seven?  Can't tell with Beastkin.  It's been seven years since then, give or take.  For all I know, she's still in her prime and lives to be 200.  I don't know and neither does she.  I think she made it up 'cause I looked like a sadly-abused puppy and she felt bad.  Makes sense, right?"

Strangely enough, she was actually quite caring, even though she was an assassin.

Listening as Sano spoke Nashya did her best to keep her eyes locked on the road ahead. "Keefe sounds pleasant" Nashya chimed in, admiring the fact that anyone would step in and teach a child the way she did Sano. In a way Nashya envied him, wishing now she had someone do the same for her when her powers awakened.

Of course there were those that tried to push the voice in her mind into nonexistence, only to worsen her condition substantially. Everyone tried to 'fix' her instead of show her how to manage it, but no worries... she figured that out on her own for the most part.

"Or she said it because you have talent..." Nashya's voice was plain as she stated the obvious fact. Clearly Sano did not realize how good he really was. To have such a unique gift and wield it so well, it was something to be recognized for sure.

"So what do you do now? Other than go around recruiting people for your cause? Do you just wonder? Are you an adventurer? Do you work?" She knew her questions were a bit intrusive towards someone she had just met but her curious nature was overwhelming at times like these. Nashya loved to hear how people blended into society, and story being one she could possibly learn from.

At her addition to the conversation, Sano said "Sometimes." with a knowing smile.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"You're too slow!"

"Watch your balance!"

"Don't give me excuses about your human ears!  If you can't hear the blade closing in on your body, you're as good as dead!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A ruthless instructor, of course, but that was the life of an assassin.  You weren't on the knife-edge.  You were the knife-edge, or you were nothing but a common thug.  He only said "Perhaps" to the comment about talent.  He had talent, in that he was born with the ferrokinetic power, but that was about the end of it, until she showed him how to make use of it.  Metal magic was far more rigid than shadow magic.  If you make a living shadow, it's shape changes fluidly because shadows are shape-changing by nature.  Swords and shields are rigid pieces, and they want to stay that way unless coaxed to heat up substantially, which was something Sano did not know how to do, and he wasn't sure if Keefe did either.

The talent of which Nashya spoke of was that he allowed himself to be molded into a killing machine that could act on instinct to take care of a violent situation, to kill without hesitation, if he so desired.  She had given him focus, and therefore the ability to control his power.  Keefe might've been right that he would've gotten everybody killed that day, when they met, but she may have exaggerated too.  It could have happened, or - in fact - not at all.  Hard to tell now, right?  Of course, Sano thought of his own spoken theory as the truth because she definitely cared about him, no matter how many times he'd get beaten around in training.  That said, there was one other thing...

"It's been mostly the searching, but I do the odd job to keep funds going properly.  'Adventurer' would have to be what I'm recruiting for, as it's certainly a quest."

Now, he looked around for a moment, and spoke a little quieter, a little more...confidentially.

"I work, at times, 'cause producing money with my magic gets a bit tiring."

Nashya nodded as Sano disclosed information that he 'worked'. Part of her wanted to believe that by work he meant he had an honest earning job, but the other part of her knew it was probably something much darker.

"I think those of us that have to... will do whatever it takes to earn money to survive." Nashya couldn't judge Sano for what he did, it would make her a hypocrite. She had killed some before, and she did it without batting an eye. It was like when she was in 'work' mode nothing else mattered. No screams, no begging... nothing.

In an attempt to turn the conversation into something more positive Nashya plastered the best smile she could manage on her face. She even quickened her pace a bit to walk beside Sano. "We are almost there!" She then pointed out in front of them where you could see the makings of houses and buildings in the distance. However, this also meant that there time together would be coming to an end soon. This saddened Nashya, as on there short journey she had actually begun to enjoy Sano's company.

He was like a breath of fresh air, meeting someone without having to work. Honestly, this made her feel like she should take off on her own more often. It wasn't like she was needed every single day. "So..." her eyes trailed off into the distance as her smile faded. "... would you maybe like to meet up later this evening for some food? I can show you the inn I have been staying at, I think it is quite nice. If you like it I am sure you would want to get settled in a bit."

"You're getting ahead of yourself" the voice chimed in, grounding her from the cloud she was beginning to float away on. "... or if you just want to part ways once we reach the city I will understand.."

Really, she was half-right.  It could be mercenary or it could be actual odd jobs.  As a knightly sort of assassin guy, it didn't really matter to him all that much.  If he could accept the life that was his mentor's, then he could perform the life that was his mentor's.  Really, the topic didn't bother him as much.  He generally stuck to targets that deserved it, if it were to be something like that.  At any rate, Nashya pointed out that they were almost at the next town.  You could just begin to see it.

To be honest, Sano was thinking about the same thing that Nashya was - well, in part - once the town was visible.  They would be going their separate ways soon.  Nashya was good company, something he'd been kind of missing on this journey, having nothing but his own thoughts to think and problems to mull over, along the way.  He wished that she could come with him...but her work...  Whatever obligation she had...yeah.  When her question was broached, it was like a stroke of luck to him, unaware that she didn't want to go either.

"Dinner would be fine.  I'll pay, if you like.  For helping me out and such."

And because I, at least, know how to treat a lady.

So, yes, about that cloud...  Even though they would probably have to part ways, Sano still wanted to know more about Nashya.

Anxiously she awaited his answer and when he did  she smiled a bit wider, but turned her face away to hide her excitement. "I can pay for myself, it's really no problem." It wasn't like she didn't have the coin to do so. In fact she bought herself dinner every night. "Helping people isn't something I would charge for."

Within a few more minutes they were walking through the gates of the town. The hustle and bustle something she had grown used to since relocating here. "The inn is over this way" she pointed before turning on one of the streets. All around there were merchants with carts, villagers going about their daily business. Everything about this town seemed normal as it should be.

Eventually the two would walk up to a stone and wood building, a small sign hanging over the door with the words The Sparrow's Inn painted on it. Taking in a deep breath she wrapped her fingers around the door's handle. "This is it" all she spoke before pulling open the door. Inside it was quaint and homey. The bottom half of the building was like a small tavern, with patrons on the more tame side of life. This was one of the many things that drew her to this inn. It seemed here at least people had some grasp on manners.

Quickly the inn keeper approached Nashya, an older woman with a face that could scare the most wiley man into submission. "Welcome back Nashya" the woman's attention then turning towards Sano.

"This is Sano and I think he wants a room." Nashya replied.

All the innkeeper did was nod her head a bit in thanks towards Nashya, surely happy to have another paying tenant.
"I'll leave you two then. I need to go change out of these wet clothes." Nashya smiled at Sano before turning away and walking towards the staircase that led up to the hallway where her room was. She paused just before ascending the first step turning back to address Sano one more time. "I can meet you down here in an hour or so. Give you a chance to settle in."

Then Nashya was gone, disappearing behind a ledge as she walked up the stairs towards her room. After reaching the top of the stairs she walked down the hallway before stopping in front of the door to her room. Reaching down she dug through her bag to pull out the key she was provided and then unlocked the door, stepping inside shortly after.

With the door now closed behind her she dropped her bag on the floor as well as her cloak that had been laced through the handle. "Your an idiot" The voice chimed in, breaking the silence that she was growing to enjoy after the last few minutes. "I think that is a self reflecting statement" she countered, not having to hide what she wanted to say anymore.

"We don't have time for distractions" Nashya simply rolled her eyes before reaching behind her back to unlace her still damp and dirty dress after kicking off her boots. "That coming from the biggest distraction of all?" The way Nashya spoke was as if her darker self was standing right there beside her. However, he latest comeback seemed to silence the voice for now.

When the dress was finally undone it fell down to her ankles and Nashya simply stepped out of it. She then walked over towards a dress draped over a chair she had laid out to dry after washing it the other day. In truth Nashya did not own very many clothes. She never had a need for anything extravagant, so instead she opted for practicality. Her clothing was boring and plain, best for when you want to remain under the radar.

Picking up the dress she stepped into it, pulling it over her body and weaving her arms through each short sleeve. It was a knee length simple dress, nothing ornate or flashy about it. The simple tan dress almost washed out her skin, the only thing really it brought out was the dark waves of hair that fell over her shoulders and back. Walking over to her bag by the door she bent down and fished out a leather strap that she then used to tie her hair back.

All in all the process of getting changed only took about ten minutes. She still had quite some time before she was supposed to meet Sano back downstairs. Walking over to the single window in her room she stood in front of it, crossing her arms over her chest as she stared out it. Oh how normal everyone seemed... something she envied.

"As you wish."

If she preferred it that way, he didn't have a problem.  Once again, it gets to be tiring to produce money from ordinary metal.  Changing metal types in general was difficult for him.  So, walking through the gates, they came into a town that was more busy and town-like than the village they'd left.  There was a marketplace, which...he might look into if he had some immediate need.  There were government buildings, meaning that the leadership and probably plenty of guards.  Not that this was a problem for him, since he wasn't doing a 'job', but it was a point of order.

They were moving with definite purpose.  Nashya knew the area and directed him easily to the spot in question.  It was called The Sparrow's Inn and it was...pretty much what you'd expect of an inn.  The lower area had a tavern and the upper area had rooms for you to sleep it off in.  In future, a man might call it 'Tolkienesque'.  For now, though, this was the standard.

Except, it wasn't, was it?  A normal tavern would have raucous laughter and quite a bit of noise, possibly someone telling a tale very loudly and ending it with a punchline or something like 'And then, we went out to find women, and a good night was had by all, 'specially me!'.  This wasn't that kind of place.  This was a quieter drinking place, and one in which the innkeeper - yet another strong and imposing woman - knew Nashya by name.  Not surprising, considering she had been staying here a while.  The shadow mage made introductions for him, and then left him and the innkeeper to their devices.

"She is right.  I would like a room.  How long, I don't know.  A few days, at least."

He didn't know the price, but he prepared to pay.  He'd be joining Nashya later for dinner, and it would be nice to get some rest, REAL actual rest.  When was dinner generally served around here?  Just whenever, or what?

Continuing to stare out of her window for a few more minutes Nashya played out in her mind how the rest of this day could go. It had been far too long since she did something not related to work and this day was turning out to be one of the best to date. Even her inner self had managed for the most part to keep quiet during the important bits. "You could just tell him about me. For once her inner self was onto something. Sano seemed like a nice guy, but still that could not guarantee his reaction would be one of understanding.

"Perhaps I shouldn't" she said as she began to pace back and forth in her room. Even the thought of disclosing her darkest secret left her a nervous wreck. After a few minutes of pacing Nashya went to the side of her bed to sit, fiddling with her fingers as she realized how truly not normal she was. Perhaps this entire day had led her into some kind of fantasy. At one point she even thought of taking a leave from Golden Gear, only to help Sano out and return when she was done. "Stupid"

Before she knew it the rest of the time fly by and she found herself pacing back and forth. "Just tell him" her inner self probably hoping by telling him it would scare him away. To that part of her, he was nothing more than a distraction from their big plan.
"Fine!" she yelled before slipping her boots back on, grabbing her bag and storming out of her room. Quickly she made her way down the hallway and to the stairs. Descending them without a word she found herself in the tavern part of the inn, her eyes scanning the few patrons for Sano.

Things were understandably more relaxed on Sano's side...for the most part.  He didn't have another personality to wrestle with, but then again...he was still himself.  We'll take it from the top.  The innkeeper graceously accepted his money, gave him the key, and allowed him to go on up and check it out.  It was fairly simple, and he generally treated it as someone who didn't really expect to be there for long.  No clothes into dressers or anything like that.  Sano was one of those 'live out of the suitcase' fellows.

He removed his pack, his mantle, his armor, his shoes, stretched out for a bit, and fell back on the bed to relax.  Ahh, that felt good...  She was right.  He needed a good rest, maybe even a small break from the situation he'd taken upon himself to solve.  Really, Keefe had warned him not to.  The only reason she didn't stop him - apart from being physically unable to at the time - was because he was approaching the problem sensibly.  Still, he'd started this without delay, fueled by the anger over harming the one person he really cared about.

The one person?

Something that bothered him from time-to-time: He wasn't sure how to manage the feelings he had, in regards to the one...and to anyone else he might meet.  Sano didn't exactly know alot of people.  He stuck to La'Marri and had a general acquaintance with the people there, but they weren't people he knew that well.  He liked Keefe more than his own family.  Did that make her family, or something else?  And then, there were those that he got along with on this journey.  There was a definite connection here, with Nashya, or at least an understanding.

We should point out that while Sano had all of the understanding of attraction and relationship, he umm...hasn't been IN a relationship with anyone yet.  You spend years on the street and more years training under a lady assassin, you start to get mixed signals.  I mean, the most mature woman in his life would beat the shit out of him daily to hone him into a killing machine.  The main reason that a woman like Nashya would attract him, therefore, was because she was so damn deadly and beautiful.

Aaand before you know it, it's almost time to eat.  He can hear some motion and activity downstairs, which was a fair indicator that more people were showing up to eat.  Well, he did a quick change - Still dressed darkly, it being a habit of his. - before returning his boots to his feet and headed on down in just his normal clothes.  He would find, actually, that Nashya was ahead of him because he'd basically lost track of time.  He came up next to her and spoke up.

"Sorry, I guess I was more tired than I thought.  Shall we?"

Staring at the patrons coming and going with dinner rush Nashya's mind began to warp itself. She was lost in concentration not able to help herself as the shadows of the room began to tell her their secrets. She was working and didn't even realize it as she absorbed the large amount of information pouring into her mind.

It was no shock that when Sano walked up beside her and spoke that it made her jump a bit. She was so entranced that she didn't even pick up on him until it was too late. Quickly she recovered from her slight state of shock and smiled at Sano. "Well I hope you had a good rest then."

"We are not eating here though.." her eyes searched for the innkeeper who was by now giving her a stern look. She did not know why but this woman had given her the creeps from day one. She was the strong silent type and Nashya couldn't help but think she had another agenda other than the elderly innkeeper she lead everyone to believe. But still even Nashya could not deny she ran an excellent inn, and honestly there was nothing wrong with the food other than it had been what she had been eating day in and out for weeks.

Making her way through the inn Nashya found the door and opened it, turning around every few seconds to assure that Sano was following her. The place she was thinking of eating was actually only a few buildings down, not a long walk by any means. There would be nothing extravagant on the menu nor would the prices be outrageous, it was merely a change of pace in the food department.

"I assume that you will be leaving tomorrow?" Just as she had led them out of the inn she led them inside the other building which really didn't appear that different from where they were just at. She found a table and sat down fiddling with her fingers in her lap. "I know you said you were just passing through looking for people to help."

Whoops.  He thought he'd been obvious enough not to surprise her, but apparently this was not the case.  Nashya had apparently bee people-watching, by the look of it.  This wasn't a bad idea, when you thought about it.  We'll explain why in just a bit.  For now, the shadow mage explained that they weren't actually eating here.  That was unexpected, but Sano took it in stride.

"Lead the way, then."

She did so, but only after trading looks with the innkeeper.  Was there something between those two?  Or was she just displeased that they wouldn't be eating here and therefore not spending more money?  He'd let that one out itself, if it was going to.  No need to press on that, because if it happened to be the former reason, then it probably hit upon Nashya's secret work.  She seemed worried that she was going to lose him in the crowd.  Hah, not with these tracking skills.  Once outside, a question was broached.

"Not for a few days, I think.  It's a large town and, as you said, everyone in Seren is strong.  I figure I can remain and look around, let people come to me, perhaps."

People-watching, get it?  If this was essentially a regional capital - and it might be - then there could be alot of people coming in and out of it.  That's worth looking over, at the very least.

Nashya perked up a bit when Sano mentioned he wouldn't be leaving for a few days. It really would be a shame for a friendship struck as easily as theirs to be so abruptly ended. "I definitely think you are onto something there. This place is kind of busy with all sorts coming and going. I am sure you will find someone to help!" Nashya broke conversation just long enough to acknowledge the barmaiden now standing at their table.

With a short order of whatever the special was and a water Nashya dug in her bag for her coin purse in which she placed the money on the table. "Thanks" she smiled at the woman before turning her attention back to Sano.

"So tell me more about yourself Sano. Where were you born? What was your family like?"

Leaning into the table a bit she eagerly awaited an answer, yet again avoiding talking about herself. It wasn't that she was doing it on purpose at this point, but it was more of a habit. "Thought you were going to tell him" The voice finally chimed in, clearly waiting for the most inopportune moment to do so.

Instinctively Nashya's eyes flicked to the right as they always did when her inner self chimed in. She did manage to keep herself from responding to it but her demeanor did change slightly. "I can't wait until he asks more about you. I revel in the thought of you explaining that you are crazy."

Yes, it did seem like a good idea, didn't it?  The longer he stayed, the more he could get to know people, and the better grasp of how Serendipity was he would have.  It was entirely a good idea and had nothing to do with the attractive woman now sitting opposite him.  Nope, not at all!

Shut up, brain.  You're not helping.

He actually ordered whatever the special was, as well.  Thing about going places is...you don't just meet new people and see new sights.  You also take in different kinds of food and drink, things to tantalize the senses and encourage a new understanding of all that is cool in the world.  And of course, even though Serendipity and Connlaoth were similar in ways, Sano didn't really know the cuisine that well, having been on the streets and all.

The questions that followed were not...comfortable to him, as Nashya would see a bit more of a serious face now, even irritation.  Not at her, though.  It was directed at them...

"I was born in Reajh.  I can't tell you all of what's good about it because my father threw me out when I was just a boy.  I'm lucky he didn't do so sooner, or else I'd've just died.  My parents disowned me because our difference.  The Alistairs don't look normal for 'Laothian, so they worried we'd be looked down upon for being magic."

Ironically, as screwed up and denial over the matter as his father was, he was right.  Their blood DID carry magic.  Sano was a gifted...something-or-other...and he was free because he renounced the country that denied him, hated him, and abused him.  Good riddance to them.

"My parents are dead to me.  Keefe is my only family.  Those zealous hypocrites can pretty much go to hell."

To her surprise Sano dove right in telling her the awful story of his past. Quickly she placed a hand over her mouth to hide the shock of how he was treated. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you by asking." Never in a million years did she think that asking such a simple question could bring up so much angst.

"Connloath is a terrible nation" She didn't try to hide the disgust she felt for a place that left its unique citizens fighting for their lives. "I was born here in Serendipity so I am sorry to say that I cannot relate. My parents were wonderful people." she paused as she tried to decide whether or not to reveal a bit more about herself. "And by parents I mean the couple who raised me. Honestly, I don't know where I am from. I was found as an infant and they took me in as their own. They were wonderful people."

She did speak of them in past tense, letting on that they were no longer a part of this plane. A sickness had struck her home village and took them as well as many other villagers with it. "They also had no idea that I was a shadowmancer." She spoke as though they would have treated her differently which was not the case at all.

Slowly she began to edge towards the truth she had been debating about telling him all day. "Sometimes I wish I was just normal like them." She stopped staring at her hands and flicked her gaze upwards at Sano. "Do you ever feel like life would be easier if you were just normal?"

"Do you ever feel like life would be easier if you were just normal? BOOHOO!" The voice in her head was taunting her, mimicking her statement with a twisted tone. Yet Nashya ignored it, her attention fully on the man sitting across the table from her. Maybe it was silly but she had never gotten along with someone so well. All day despite how crazy she felt she had been acting he seemed to brush it off as if it were no big deal.

For the first time in what felt like forever Nashya felt like she was gaining a friend. Someone that could look past her special kind of crazy.

He'd sort of mentioned some of his past before, but...that was more of a glance, when this was the heavier blow.  Sano didn't really like the subject, but he'd rather make his anger for Connlaoth known than hide it for some reason.  It wasn't his burden to bear, not his shameto have.  The country was terrible and he wanted others to know so.  He wasn't a citizen of it and if anyone ever thought him to be so, he would be quick to correct them, as his country of birth had done nothing for him.

Sano's temper began to exhaust with Nashya's understanding, as well as her sharing some of her own past, or what she knew of it, in any case.  Apparently, she had been a foundling, which gained some of his sympathies right off because...it meant that somebody had thrown her out, as well.  At least, her stepparents had treated her well.  He wasn't sure if the 'were' in that statement meant what he thought it meant, or if she simply hadn't seen them in a while.  The tone in her voice suggested the former.  He wouldn't bring it up if she didn't want to.

The curious part was about how they - like his parents - didn't even even know she had power.  Then, her question about being normal arose, and...honestly, it took him off guard.  She could see it on his face, the sudden surprise of having been asked that.  Had he never...?

"I don't think I've ever been asked that..."

He hadn't!  It had never come up!  Sano shook his head.

"I'm sorry, my life has been such that I never thought about normal and not, except the fact that my father didn't even wait to find out first.  From there, it was just a matter of dealing with bad-to-worse, and finally going to 'better' once I met Keefe.  Never really thought about it because life was just more stable, then."

So, given that this was a new concept to him, he thought about it now.

"I guess...if I'd been born without magic and treated as such, life could have been easier...but I wouldn't have liked my family that much.  Father would've creeped me out with his ravings.  He did when I was a child, so I don't think that'd change.  Since your stepparents never even knew you had power, nothing would change to them.  I think that because you lived in Seren, they would have still been fine if they knew.  This is a much more lenient country."

And the thing is...Sano had interpretted her 'crazy' as other things because he simply had no idea that other personalities could exist, or that people talked to themselves if addled, or whatnot.  He had never encountered such a thing, so who could guess at this stage?  Even explaining it to him, he was going to need some details before he got it.  Psychology was not his strong suit...

Carefully she listened as Sano replied, stating that his life probably would not be any better without power. However, when he said her parents probably would not have had issue with her abilities she knew he was wrong. Of course if she had any other simplistic magical ability then maybe... but not shadow magic. Nashya knew her abilities stemmed from something darker within her and she wasn't quite sure her parents would have ever supported that.

"I think..." she paused to avert her eyes "...I think that I would have been better off." She was nervous again and was fiddling with her fingers again to express it. "I didn't choose to be a shadowmancer... and if I could have ignored it I would have." Nashya recalled the beginning days when she realized what she could do. She remembered the nightmares she would have of these beasts that she now knows were simply pushing through the realm she pulled them from.

She remembered watching the shadows in her room twist and contort into awful images with beady white eyes that stared at her. "In the beginning I thought I was going mad..." The entire beginning began to play out behind her eyes, all the negative things she was reliving once more.

"I would pace back and forth in my room for hours on end thinking I was simply losing my mind and that these things I was seeing were coming for me. I tried to keep it all a secret from everyone and that just made it worse... it caused it to spread in my mind like a disease."

"I would jump at the slightest of sounds and I couldn't stand the things I was seeing anymore. My life literally became a living nightmare. Suddenly these things weren't just in my room anymore, but everywhere the sun cast a shadow... and then there was nightfall."

"These things would come at me from all directions and I was helpless to them until finally one night they rooted their way in." Nashya then pointed at her head, smiling a bit hoping to lighten the eary mood she had just cast. "Turns out the type of Shadowmancer I am... the kind that taps into another place not of this world is pretty much helpless without a mentor."

"I had no idea that by letting these things in that I was quite literally... letting them in. I opened a door that has since been bolted shut in my mind. I've tried so many things to get her out and nothing works."

"... I like to think of our meeting to be something much more joyful" The voice in her mind finally piped in.

Now, it was his turn to listen intently.  What Nashya described was...similar.  It was an awakening, like he'd had, but without guidance.  Sano didn't even know if his awakening was because someone with that power was around or not.  In her case, it was apparent that nobody had been around, and nobody was there to teach her the ways.  Considering his own experiences, it sounded dangerous, to say the least.

What it was for Nashya was terrorizing, though.  He recalled the creature with the long arms that never broke eye contact.  Imagine being plagued by that over a long period of time.  That would certainly freak anyone out, and she had had to live with it, and still did.  A cold feeling settled in Sano's spine when she mentioned the night...  He thought of the phoenix-man again, thinking that if his power came from the shadows, then at night when they were everywhere...

Nowhere is safe at night when shadow magic is loosed upon the world.

Grim thinking, but essentially true, and worse when the woman all-but-confirmed it suddenly by pointing to her own head and saying that the shadows had gotten inside.  In her head?  In her mind?  But...is that even possible?  Nashya explained...  This was all in her mind, to begin with.  She opened the boundary between where the shadows lie and where the this world is with her mind, as is.  This was apparently the key point in her power.  The shadows got in...  Sano stared for a moment, looking concerned.

She'd awakened and opened a door, and without help they got in.  'She' got in.

So now, he had an understanding, of sorts.  He put it to words, then, to make sure he got it down.

"There's a shadow in your mind.  It got in before you had any control over this, and it's been there ever since."

He was taking this alot better than you would expect, mostly because it felt more important that he grasp the situation than flee from it.  He'd been an outcast all his life for something he never had control of or even knew about 'till later.  He was hardly going to panic because somebody else had been through a similar situation, but it ended worse.  Honestly, he was surprised that she was this composed herself.  Or...was that the point here?  Was this - if the narrator can ask a question - all just to explain the madness while not admitting there was madness?  Or was this really a shadow, indeed?

Nodding at Sano's assumption Nashya took in a deep breath, happy that he at least grasped the basics of her 'condition'. "You know your the first person I have outright told about it." Nashya stopped fiddling with her fingers when the server brought out their food, laying her platter in front of her, the steam still rolling off of the food.

Seems today the special was some pork with a slab of cheese and a nicely toasted bit of bread. She could already feel her stomach churning as she thought of digging right into the food, but then again Sano was here and she wasn't about to eat like an animal in front of him.

So instead she opted for picking up a utensil and slicing into the ham, plopping a bit of it into her mouth as she let the juices roll on her tongue. The utter delight written all over her face was evident as she went back in for a second bight, already knowing this pork would most likely be the best thing on the entire plate.

However she managed to sustain from stuffing any more food in her mouth for the moment. "You know Sano, I have met many people and you are the first person that I uh-" she suddenly felt lost for words. Her cheeks then flushed crimson as her deeper feelings became evident. "What I am trying to say is that you are really nice to talk to. I am happy we ran into each other today."

The way she said it was rushed, as if she had to force it out. Everthing suddenly seemed so awkward with him and she wasn't quite sure why.

Sano waited until after their food was set down before speaking again.  It was, after all, a private conversation and- Good gods, the smell was delicious!  No no, focus, Sano!  Focus!  He spoke once there was no longer a person standing near the table.

"It's alot easier to talk with someone who's been in a similar situation.  Magic has ultimately harmed us both in some way, altered us either directly or indirectly.  Who better to talk to?"

It was a fair point.  The truth was a shock to him, but...he was more concerned for her wellbring than frightened or anything else.  She had some kind of being inside of her, a thing from the shadows, or created by them, or something.  He had been thrust from his life on the hint of a possibility of having power, and the power could have potentially killed him.  In their own way, their circumstances were similar and different, but the truth of it was that they were coping with the dark patches in their lives, something they were lucky to be able to do.  Sano had received training before he could be killed, Nashya had managed to get a grip on her powers, despite something living inside her mind.

Well, enough about that.  Dinner beckoned and he was not going to leave it unattended!  With almost no delay after he had spoke, Sano had picked up the knife and fork to cut off a piece of pork and eat of it.  Sounds of clear enjoyment emanated from him which were trying to be words, but his mouth kept shut as he chewed the piece of meat.  In the interests of entertainment, we will point out that the thought in his head that those words wished to express were 'Son of a monkey's bottom, that tastes gooood...'.  It's umm...not the sort of thing he would've said in polite company, anyway.  The syllables nearly formed due to it being a moment of weakness, which he actually explained after a moment.

"I've been eating dry jerky for days.  Weeks, maybe."

So, the promise of a juicy pork and cheese was frankly a godsend, and he didn't care which god sent it.  He was slicing off a bit of cheese to have right along with the bread when Nashya spoke again.  Despite the meal before them, he DID notice the small pause and slight hurry of the speech.  Now, part of him went 'Huh, that was odd', but another part of him - the part that couldn't ignore that she was a woman - took that thought and went 'Wait, is she...?  Nah, we just met.  She wouldn't...would she?', and so on.  Once again, Sano wasn't always sure how he should feel about people, sometimes.  It wasn't unheard of for two people to just click, but...well...he wasn't going to push for that unless she was shoving, so to speak.  So, he said...

"I'm glad too, really.  Even if you're not available to help me, I think it's better that we know each other.  I feel like you're someone I can definitely trust."

"I think I can trust you to Sano"

Nashya was by no means a forward person, especially when it came to expressing feelings. By no means was she in love with Sano.. that would be ridiculous as they had just met. However, she couldn't deny the connection she felt with him. He was the first person she had ever been able to open up to and most importantly the first person to not be afraid of the things she had told him.

She felt that when he looked at her he didn't pity the poor soul that had something trapped in her mind, but instead he saw a girl who managed to overcome it the best she could. She hated it when people pitied her or tried to 'fix' her... neither of which Sano had attempted to do.

And so she tried to think the same thing when she looked at him. He wasn't just some poor fellow that had horrible circumstances presented to him. He was a guy who overcame them and made something out of them... just like her. Even now instead of grieving and wallowing in the horror that was his life he was searching for a way of vengeance. This thought alone though saddened her as she came to the realization that at some point Sano was going to have to leave... he just had to. She understood whole heartedly why but it didn't make it any easier to digest.

Putting her attention back on the food in front of her Nashya tore off a piece of the cheese and put it in her mouth, letting its flavors seep in before swallowing. She went on like this with her food for a few minutes, picking at it slowly. She didn't really know what to say, she was lost for words. Before she knew it she had eaten most of the food on her plate and found herself looking everywhere but at Sano, still unsure really of what to say.

"I want you to know that I really do wish I could help you... but I just can't leave."

Fear of her was not something that was on his mind, no.   It was a concern, something to be aware of, should something go wrong, of course.  Really, he'd be more composed in a situation, knowing the truth than not.  It was the state of an assassin-trained man like himself...which reminded him that he might have to explain that, at some point.  Except...no, that wouldn't work out.  They may have found common ground, but they weren't quite at that level yet.

Maybe after they got to know each other better, but not right now.  This point in time was sacred.  It was dinnertime, and the food was great.  He began to eat of it in earnest, no rush, really.  Just enjoying his time with her on this chance meeting.  About halfway to completion the same sobering thought hit him that it did her: He would have to move on, at some point.  He could always come back, but departures from somewhere you don't want to go...  He didn't want to leave home.  He had to.  It was nothing about principles, just getting back at the vampire for what he did.

Sometimes, I wonder if I'd join Keefe on her missions, if this hadn't happened...

Another thought on the matter, and it didn't help here.  What if something happened, and he never got back?  What if he failed?  Failure had not been considered because his plan to overpower his foe with a group of dangerous people was, at least, simple in execution.  Once he had the people, their combined talents would likely kill it.  But what if he didn't beat him?  It was a terrible thought, leaving people behind to wonder what ever became of him, possibly followed by the shocking news of his death.  Why was he thinking that now?  He was almost done, himself, when Nashya spoke to him.  He nodded to her.

"I know.  And I know it's not for me to know why, just that it is.  I understand, Nashya.  Everyone has things they must not tell, to protect what they need to do, or those important to them.  There are things I can't say either, so please don't feel bad."

Really, he felt gratified that wanted to.  It showed he was reaching people, that he could bring this together and deal with the situation, once he was ready.  Nashya couldn't help him now, but...another thought came to mind, kind of an important one.

"It just occurred to me that there's no actual guarantee that he stays only in Connlaoth, only that I know he's very interested in it.  Just to be on the safe side, it's better you know what he looks like, so you and anyone else you know can be prepared."

He described the vampire, a bald and yellow-eyed being dressed in some srt of warrior's armor, very light on his feet and quick, highly-skilled and given to wield darker magics, including blood magic.  He wanted to be sure that if ever the bastard DID come here, Nashya wouldn't be taken by surprise.

Nashya felt relieved to hear that Sano understood her dilemma. After that he went into detail describing the vampire that attacked his friend and that was taking him away. Already she hated it and he could rest assured that if it showed its face anywhere in Shadowmire she would be the first to not only know, but swiftly kill it.

"If it comes here... I will end it." Her expression was dead serious at the statement. ".. and if I cannot take care of it on my own my partner and I surely could handle it." Her partner being none other than Demagogue. He was the demon she was paired with by their leader Cyn. At first the two didn't get along so well, but now they kind of had a silent agreement. He had her back and she had his.

Since he was far more charismatic than her Dem was the face of Golden Gear, while Nashya supplied him that face in public. If he were to show his true face some may run away in fear, as a skull with no flesh could be intimidating to some. "You must tell me when you leave who I could write to should the creature show up here and I am forced to take care of it."

Whether Sano had realized it or not he had sent Nashya into full on work mode. She was already constructing in her head how Golden Gear would take care of the vampire should it show its face here. Not only that but she was already itching to get her shadows out there, listening for any sign that it could possibly by some miracle show near here. This was always Nashya's greatest quality yet also something that could ruin her. When she had a task in mind... she would do damn near anything to complete it no matter what it took.

"You are acting like an idiot right now..." her darker self chimed in causing her eyes to shift as they usually did when this happened. However, Nashya was thankful for it this time as it grounded her a bit. "I-I'm sorry. I tend to get a bit worked up about these sort of things."

Nashya then rubbed the back of her head while giving Sano an endearing smile. She realized she must have just seemed like an idiot, plotting the death of something she really knew nothing about.

He had, of course, no idea what her partner was like, but judging from her...he - or she - had to be strong, as well, for her to be sure of herself.  Serendipity was definitely the right place to come.  He should've done this earlier.  There could be hundreds of people falling over themselves to go slay a vampire in this country!  ...maybe.  He had to keep looking for them, though.  Now, when she said to him that he needed to tell her who to write to if the vampire did show up in Seren, this...presented a problem.  Sano didn't know anybody to send a message to for that purpose.  He was on the move.  He would be all over the place.  Well, there was one guy...

"About the only guy who could get word to a wanderer looking for people to hire, I think, is Akbar.  He's a shopkeeper, and I think he's got a bunch of strange connections, because he seems to operate all over the place."

He did, in fact.  Akbar physically transported himself to different shops that he owned, all across the continent.  He mantained a trade of selling whatever he could, wherever he could, and nobody knew how he did it.  Sano smiled at her apology when she realized how worked-up she was getting.

"Are you kidding?  So do I!  I'm walking the known world to find people to kill a vampire because he injured someone I know.  Believe me, I know how it looks, though it's still a bit more sane than, say, hiring for that civil war.  I don't care what happens there."

She was happy to hear that once again he did not think her crazy for acting a certain way. Time and time again Sano was impressing her, not only with his own stories.. but how he handled hers.

She was however happy that Sano had given her a way to contact him should she need to. "Akbar is it?" Nashya had already taken a mental note of the name, determined to remember it should she ever find the need to seek him out.

Pushing away her plate Nashya leaned back a bit in her chair, her stomach not able to handle any more food even if she tried. Flicking her eyes towards the door of where they were Nashya then looked back at Sano. "The sun has gone... I suppose this means we should head back to the inn?" In truth she was dead tired, having spent the majority of her morning listening to whatever secrets the shadows offered and then sparing with Sano. Not to mention that she now had a full stomach adding to the tiredness creeping over her.

"Unless you want to do something else?" She only offered the question because she didn't really want the night to end. Even if she was tired she could force herself to stay awake as long as she needed. Honestly, anything would be better than going and attempting to sleep in that room. Nightfall had always multiplied her abilities, far more than any thunderstorm. Her nights were always full of whispers and eyes in the corners... even if she knew what she was now that bit never stopped.

He nodded at the confirmation of Akbar's name.

"Yeah, I don't know how exactly he'd manage it, but I think he would."

The meal...was incredible, and now it was done.  And as Nashya remarked, night had fallen outside, meaning the hour groweth late.  And yet...  And yet, he didn't want it to end either.  Not for reasons of darkness and evil, but just for the fact that he liked being around her.  She did seem tired, and he'd been trudging around himself, of course.  They could both use sleep.  They should sleep.

And yet...

And yet, Sano found himself wondering if there was anything they could do.  He thought about it, and he eyed something that you find in plenty of taverns or inns, to be sure.  And when he saw it, he thought 'Well, why not?', and 'Hmm, maybe that could work out fine'.  So, with a smile playing on his face, the Ebon Knight sat back in his chair and offered an idea.

"How about a game of skill?  There's a game of darts over there, and a promise that I won't cheat here.  However, if you're game, we could make it interesting.  Each round, the winner gets to hear something good from the loser.  Something funny or one of the better moments in our lives.  I can think of a few to pass the time.  So can you, I'm guessing.  What do you think?"

There was far too much focus on the negative happening here.  Why not flip that over for a while?

Immediately Nashya perked up at his suggestion. "That is a fantastic idea!" Jumping up from the table she walked over to the dart board and grabbed a handful of darts, weighing them in her hands. She then set the darts down on one of the tables and extended her hand to Sano.

"No magic... no cheating... fair game." Her face was serious as she waited for him to agree. In truth even if she wanted to cheat she couldn't. Her shadow magic was of no use here. In fact, the only skill she carried that may help her in this game was that she used to carry two daggers back in the day. The were made of iron and she would use them to keep her abilities in check... all of this before she knew how to control them as she did now.

But even with past dagger experience they were no darts and she really wasn't that great at combat with them. She wouldn't let this stop her though, as far as she was going to let Sano know she was a skilled dart thrower. "I hope you are prepared to lose."

Well, it seemed like that was most certainly the ticket.  As he stood up, Nashya went and got he darts.  Upon confirming their agreement to play a fair game, Sano took her hand and shook it.  With that done, they were ready to begin.  Of course, Sano had no idea how good OR bad she might actually be.  He had actually thrown knives, himself.  Once again, though, this was darts, not knives.  The weight and skill were completely different.  Even as Nashya boasted, he smiled confidently.

"I am never ready to lose."

He actually was, what with the having stories and all, but still...  There was a small pause, then he looked from the darts to the board to her, and added.

"You go first."

Thus would begin the dart battle of the century, not with a boast, but a 'Ladies first'.

Picking up the darts Nashya smiled at Sano before taking stance the proper distance away. She was doing her very best to concentrate as she took aim. And then she threw the first dart and watched in horror as it clanked against the wall next to the target.

She was mortified to say the least as every bit of her body began to slump in shame. It didn't help matters that her inner self was laughing uncontrollably at the failure she had just displayed. She quickly recovered though with a newfound sense of determination and she took aim again only to watch this dart stick into the outer ring of the target.

Picking up the third and final dart Nashya stared at the target as if she had been missing something this entire time. It was as if she stared long enough then perhaps the secret to this silly game would reveal itself and her win would be the best comeback of all time!

Once more she took aim, this time so sure she would hit the target dead center. As if divine intervention itself came into play she threw the dart so sure it would for sure hit this time... and it did. Jumping up and down with joy she pointed at the dart that was now in the second from farthest ring from the edge.

"LOOK AT THAT!" She was feeling quite cocky now, feeling there was no way in hell Sano could best that and hit the still very open center of the target.

There was a joke around taverns, spoken by strongmen and fighters alike, that mages and wizards couldn't throw to save their lives.  Now, there was probably some truth to that, when you consider that those who study mage generally hit the books alot more than a practice range.  But even still, it was just a bit of poking of fun.  He figured that since Nashya had a decent physique that she-  Oh dear.  Yeah, her aim was just a bit off, at first, and Sano was concentrating very hard not to snerk or anything.  She was probably a decent fighter, really, just that darts weren't something she had experience with.  She seemed quite pleased with actually hitting it properly.  Sano let off a grin at her merriment, then went to get the darts for himself.

At this point...hey, let's get a general idea of what it was like to be basically a ferromancer.  He picked up the darts...and in his minds eye, his senses felt the world in three shades.  There was blackness, of things he couldn't touch with that power.  There was the cold blue, that foreign feel of metal that he did not possess.  And...there was the white hot, that sense of what his power has seeped into, ready to be controlled.  The darts were metal-tipped, and they went from cold blue to white hot in his hand, as though to say 'You ready for me, boss?'.  That which was considered 'his', he had control over.  That which was 'unowned' or 'somebody else's', he couldn't just do with what he pleased.  A neutral object, he might be able to 'coax' with effort, but if it was a sword in somebody else's hands...forget it.

At any rate, he had the darts in his hands, and in answer to the 'question' that they posed, he said 'Not today' and let them slip back into the blue.  They were not to be influenced by his power.  He willed it so, and went to the place in which he was to stand.  Now, Sano had played darts a few times, and more importantly he had some training at throwing knives.  Even still, in the case of darts, he was only okay.  For instance, he drew his first dart up and...it accidentally flung instead of flew.  It ended up sticking out of the wall, below the dartboard, at  ummm...about the area a man's crotch might be. He winced at that, with an embarassed "Oh.".

"That's...no, that's not good."

Moving on!  He aimed a bit more carefully, like he would with a knife, and...got it close to where Nashya's best shot had been, but at the upper portion of the dartboard.  that was better, but again...darts are lighter instruments.  He and Keefe never played darts.  She wasn't a poisoning kind of assassin, so the use of small and subtle delivery devices was not her thing, thus...neither was it his.  However, that said, he had some skill here, anyway, and managed to plant his final dart in an inner section.  Not a bullseye.  Not exactly close to a bullseye.  He was just further in, is all.

When his third and final dart struck more centered than hers Nashya felt a bit defeated, but not as embarrassed as she once was. Turns out the two of them were horrid at the game, and that made it seem almost fair. In an attempt to be the best sport possible she clapped her hands together at his success, even if he had just beaten her in the first round.

Not even waiting for him to ask Nashya began telling a happy memory she held as she walked up to the board to remove the darts in preparation for their next game.

"So... I was an ambitious child." Plucking the last dart from the board she continued. "My parents always told me that I shouldn't play so rough with the other children from our village... that I was a young lady and I should act more like it." Slowly she made her way towards where they were supposed to be standing to throw the darts and set them on the table, as it was Sano's turn to start since he won.

"Well one day my friends and I were playing hide and seek and I was the seeker. To make the game more interesting we decided to tie the person who was it to a chair in order to prolong the hiding process. There was no counting down, it was simple that when you got yourself untied you would go and find everyone."

"The idiot boys didn't tie up my legs. They assumed that since I was a girl that I would have enough trouble just getting my hands untied." Turning around to face Sano her story went on. "I thought I was left at an advantage, I mean who needs their hands when you can still run? So I stood up with my hands still in the chair and went to jump off of the porch like an idiot. The legs of the chair caught the porch and sent me flying face first into the gravel with my hands tied at my sides."

Nashya lifted a hand to touch the left side of her face, the skin seemingly unaltered by this memory of her past. "My parents were so mad at me. I had to stay inside for weeks while my wounds healed. Thank gods it wasn't bad enough to do any permanent damage to my face." Nashya then began to laugh as she recalled her father's expression when the village boys came back to play the next day. "It may seem like a horrible story but it isn't. It is a fond memory of my life back when everthing was still normal. My parent's were such loving people that in the end only had my best interest at heart... even if I didn't always listen."

"In fact as soon as I was healed up I was caught playing with my old friends again only because I managed to get a rash all over my legs from hiding in some poison bushes." Picking the darts up from the table she extended her hand to offer them to Sano. "You have to lose this round so that I can hear one of your stories next."

There were other rounds to win.  This just showed who it was that threw things more often.  So, when all was said and done, he had won and Nashya began to tell her story of when she was a younger girl.  Already, just when she was getting started, Sano could tell that this was going to be a good one.  He had never played hide-and-go-seek as a child - never had the chance - but he knew the basic rules of the game...except that in this case, the seeker was tied to a chair.

He was already in the mood to chuckle when he heard they didn't tie her legs.  However, the fall kind of made him wince.  Had to agree that it was a mercy that there was no lasting damage to that facevault.  It would've been a damn shame.  He nodded at her assertion that it wasn't a bad tale.  It was somewhere between funny and heartwarming, in his opinion.  Now, as for losing...

"One can but try, but I can't just throw the game.  There's a law out there that says - when you least expect it - things will go the opposite of what you were aiming for.  So, I don't wanna chance it.  This place IS called Serendipity, after all."

A good point.  Whether or not the founders of this country were doing it on purpose, one could not ignore the possibility of irony happening more often here, than anywhere else.  That having been said, Sano picked up the darts and began to throw them, one after the other.  The only difference here was that he did it a little faster, placing two of them in an outer circle and one of them about mid-range.

Playfully Nashya pouted at Sano when he said he could not just 'throw' a game. She really wanted to hear a good Sano story, and was willing to do whatever it took to make that happen. "Do it" the voice in her head chimed in, playfully just as sinister as she was in that moment. She watched as Sano threw the darts, clearly trying despite her joking request.

"All right then"

Walking up to the dart board once more she plucked the darts from the target and took a few steps back. At first she pretended that she was actually going to try, but then her eyes flickered towards the edges of the room. All in an instant all of the candles went out illuminating the area and both were found in pure darkness.

"Oh no!" her poor skill in acting evident in her tone. "The lights have gone off! How strange!"

What Sano probably could have guessed is that Nashya didn't need light to see in the dark , she had the shadows to guide her with that. And so while it was still pitch black in the room she quietly walked up to the dart board and placed two of the darts almost dead center on the board. She then walked back over to the throwing spot with a single dart in hand just in time as one of the workers began relighting all of the candles.

She was having more fun with this than she thought. It was taking every ounce of restraint she had not to fall over laughing as the light illuminated her body as it stood holding the dart as if she were taking aim. Throwing the last dart it hit the rim of the target, worse than she thought it would strike.

"Looks like I won" she said coyly leaning against one of the tables, preparing to hear a wonderful Sano childhood story. Technically she did not use her abilities to cheat at the game itself... she simply turned the lights off for a second.

"All is fair in love and war"

So, it was her turn, and she was in place.  Then...  Hey, who turned out the lights?! (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veV4EdTb344)  Somewhere, between the coincidence and the 'acting', Sano went "Hey!", but didn't do much else.  The truth is - and he wasn't going to say anything - that he could see just fine.  Yeah, one little property that he didn't really spread around that often - because he had no idea why he was that way - was...that he could see in the dark.  He saw Nashya do her thing in the commotion and tried very hard not to facepalm.

When the lights returned to normal, she had two well-placed darts - by hand - and was throwing the last one...oh, not that well, unfortunately.  So, she'd won.  Well, she 'won'...  Sano was willing to let it go.  He had a first story in mind, anyway, and he definitely thought that it was just the coolest thing ever.  So, heading over to the darts, he first explained...

"This isn't from my childhood.  I said one of the better times, and this one's more recent.  Not long after I began my journey, in fact."

He brought the darts to the table and set them down before saying...

"I can fly.  I was going through the Draconi Forest towards Adela, when I was accosted by a half-phoenix man who attacked me because I was in his territory.  I thought it was kind of stupid when I was on the actual road to Adela.  After a while, I decided it was gonna take too long to deal with him, so I thought, 'Man, I wish there was some way I could get out of here in a hurry', and...there was."

He gestured to himself, for a second.

"I was in my armor, and the thought occurred to me...why not just pick myself up and go?  Not only did this work...but it was the best thing ever.  I'd been training for years and never thought about this.  Suddenly, I was hurtling over the woods like...well, I don't have the words, but I almost went headlong into a quad of Dragonriders from the border patrol.  It was so great that I just flew all the way to Ketra, non-stop.  Exhausted myself utterly by the time I got there, but...totally worth it."

Leaning against the table a bit more Nashya listened as Sano relished her in a story of adventure. "Wait..." Pushing herself off of the table she walked over to him and looked behind him, as if she were going to find wings or something. The entire concept of it was so puzzling to her that her brain just could not process the idea.

"You flew?" One might think she did not believe him by the expression on her face, but it was just the opposite. "That is...." Furrowing her brow she walked around him one more time, as if she were missing something. "That is amazing!" Her face then lit up from the thought of soaring through the sky like a bird.

"To be so close to the warmth of the sun would simply be magnificent!" The concept of such an idea was something so fascinating to Nashya she just couldn't let it go.

Now standing in front of Sano her eyes begged for more details. "What was it like!? How far could you see!?"

Of course she wanted to play another round of darts, but she needed to know more first.

No, no!  As you can see, there are no strings or wires, special platforms, or hidden wings!   He actually flew, as in proper flight, with speed and all.  It was incredible, and Sano smiled at Nashya's equal feelings of awe towards the idea.  Flight was something that was very rare in this world.  Only those who were blessed with wings or certain kinds of magic could perform such an act.  He was very glad to be part of this select group.  The look on Nashya's face told him that she would certainly want to, as well.  For now, though, she had questions, and Sano was obliged to answer.

"At first, it was just a really big jump.  I was testing the waters, getting a feel for it.  I mean, I was picking myself up by the armor, so I had to be careful with it.  That was literally like being thrown.  After that, I hovered, picked a direction, and voom!"

Note: 'Voom' is a technical term.  It refers to sudden speed and motion, at least insofar as Monty Python is concerned.

"I dunno what it's like for birds, but I had to be in a class of my own, 'cause I didn't need to flap my arms to go.  The way I was doing it, you're just knifing through wind as it rushes past you, and I could see..."

He thought about that for a second.

"I haven't actually been on a boat, but I read somewhere that being at sea, you just keep seeing the water 'till the edge of the horizon.  That's what the Draconi Forest was like to me, at least until I spotted Ketra.  I could see everything, so long as there wasn't fog in the way.  Mountains in the distance, birds trying to get out of my ways, the dragons...  They didn't give me any trouble, by the way, since I was being chased by a thing that they'd been dealing with for years."

Apparently, the phoenix-man carried the uncanny power of the phoenix to burst into flames and be reborn from the ashes, so even if a dragon blew it up, he'd be back.  Not his problem, though, so it was of no concern.

The more Sano spoke of flying the more Nashya's eyes lit up. She was like a child being told an amazing story... one she hoped would have a magnificent ending. Eventually though he told as much as he could and Nashya was faced with having to throw the darts once more.

Picking the darts up she took her place in front of the board again, this time she was going to shoot honestly. Throwing the first dart it landed in the usual place on the outer ring of the board. Her disappointment though was contained as she figured such a thing would happen. The second dart didn't fair much better landing in a ring more inward but by no means near the center.

She was growing frustrated again and so she took that frustration out on the final dart, throwing it so hard that not only did it miss the target completely, but stuck into the wall at the edge of the board. You would think that after a few tries she would be improving, but in fact she was not. If it was possible Nashya thought she was actually getting worse!

"Well.... I shall think of a story as you beat me." Her admittance of defeat before Sano even had his first throw. It was okay though, as if she was going to be beaten by anyone she was happy it would be him. The longer she hung out with him the more the feeling in her chest grew, something abnormal she didn't quite understand.

Of course Nashya had her fair share of crushes throughout her life, all of them leading to nothing but disappointment and faded friendships. Honestly, she had completely given up on the thought of liking anyone the moment she joined Golden Gear, thinking that should take priority over everything and anyone else. But then again, no one treated her as kindly as Sano had today. It wasn't as if she was starved for companionship either, she had her fare share of suitors confess their feelings to her, only for her to subtly let them down. She knew they only wanted her for her power, or better yet the darker half that lived inside of her.

No one ever wanted 'Just Nashya'. Nashya being the girl stuck with an ability that did not suit her personality at all. She constantly wondered why she couldn't have been born with something brighter... happier. She was the flower kept in the darkness of the shadows, never able to cast the warm light she knew she still had deep down inside. This mentality alone led her to act 'bored' or 'just passing through life' as she lived day to day. What more was there to do? Not even Golden Gear would want her if she didn't have this darkness living inside of her... it was all anyone even seemed to care about. Sometimes she even wondered if she should just give in to her darker self. Let that half of her into the world while she sat dormant in the back of a mind that no longer belonged to just her.

That was until today... when for the first time in what felt like forever she was able to drop the act. It was almost impossible for her not to smile around Sano. Something about him... something about his understanding opened her up like a book that had been collecting dust on a shelf for decades. A ripped out, discarded, and useless chapter in a book she thought to already have been read many times over.

"Obviously I am just the better option." The voice slamming the book shut everytime anyone tried to open it.

It was great, telling her about this amazing thing, because it looked like Nashya didn't get very many chances to brighten her day.  Things just sort of happened, and - unless he was guessing wrong - her shadow shuffled around in her mind, distracting her.  She wouldn't have mentioned it in irritation if it were quiet, so it must've been a source of frustration.  Sort of like these darts.  It didn't seem as though her game was improving.  Surprising, really, considering that neither of them was drunk.  Well, not everybody does.  It happens.

Nashya ended up admitting defeat before he had thrown, and Sano went to pick up the darts.  He had to keep denying the connection to them that their presence in his hands offered.  It was really kind of annoying, but he had to do it.  This was a game of skill, or perhaps one in guile, considering Nashya's previous maneuver.  He doubted that she was going to repeat it, even though it was funny and worth it.  So, Sano threw...and he for one in an outer circle, one in an inner circle, and then-

"Oops."

This happens, sometimes.  Your body finds the muscle memory to repeat an action taken, and it does so, but the result is problematic because of what you were trying to do at the time.  Case in point, this dartboard.  He'd thrown two of them, and then one of them exactly the same as his second shot, causing it to hit the back of the previous dart and clatter to the floor.  Sano looked at it for a moment.

"Ummm...how do I call that?"

Technically, it was on-target.  It just couldn't assume the position on-target because it'd been occupied.  He looked to Nashya for her opinion on the matter.

Fully prepared to indulge Sano in another story of her past Nashya watched on as he threw the darts, only to in the beginning do far better in the beginning before having almost the same thing happen to him that happened to her. Except his failure wasn't due to a building frustration, but more a technical error.

She stared at the dart board for quite some time trying to figure out the best call to make.

"We will go with the two on the board compared to my two."

Honesty it was almost a dead draw, and Nashya's lack of knowledge towards this game didn't help matters.

"Uh... perhaps a draw?" She stared at the dartboard one more time before confirming her decision. "Yes a draw! So we both have to indulge the other in another good memory."

Nashya had been thinking long and hard about which memory to share next and was still drawing a blank. Of course she could keep bringing up childhood encounters that were sure to entertain any for days, but she wasn't much in the mood for that anymore. Suddenly, Nashya's entire demeanor changed as she avoided eye contact with Sano, taking in a deep breath as if she were about to jump off of a cliff or something.

"Well you see... I do have one memory that is more recent." Nervously she took a step back, creating even more space between the two as she began to fiddle with her fingers again. Her face had flushed a bit red at even thinking of disclosing the idea to him... afraid of how he may react more than anything.

"There was this day when I was working. It was cloudy and the perfect chance for me to get some extra things done." Suddenly Nashya could feel her chest tighten, as if she was on the brink of tears with nothing to cry about. "And there was this guy who when he walked up made me more afraid than I had been in a long time."

The fidgeting in her hands only intensified as she continued, her gaze still averted from Sano. "... You see I hadn't really talked to someone in quite some time. At least, not talked to someone who genuinely wanted to have a conversation with me." Releasing her own grasp on her fingers she brought a hand up to her chest, pressing it against where her heart beat rapidly underneath. "A conversation with the real me..."

"Well that guy... he made it so I had the best day I have had in a long time. And it will be a day I treasure for the rest of my life." Nashya began to open up a bit more, realizing that she had already started and stopping now would only complicate things more. "So when I am working and feel like no one really cares about me, and that I am just some pawn in a bigger game I am going to remember you Sano. Even when you are gone on your quest I am going to remember this day..."

"Thank you"

So, they were going to go with the two darts that'd made it onto the board and compare their scores with that.  And that...oh.  Well, it looked as though they were about even, there.  Okay, fair enough.  A draw, it was!  Sano didn't mind.  The game was just a way to get to know each other, and a means to unwind.  It didn't matter who won this, in the end.  So, they were both going to have to think of a good memory.

However, he'd have to put that on hold for a moment, because it looked as though Nashya had something.  Something different, by the looks of it.  She looked nervous, and her speech was a bit softer, and a bit more guarded.  A sensitive topic?  Something she was struggling to find the right words for?  At first, that was what it sounded like...but as she went on, it began to take on a familiar shape.

That familiar shape was him, Sano Alistair, and...he had no idea that he was scary.  Of course, as Nashya explained, she hadn't really dealt with people that much, not for a long time.  Her work and her life as a shadowmancer, he assumed.  The point was that she was grateful for how things turned out, how he treated her and how he made her feel better than she had in a long time.  One could only imagine what it was like.  Maybe it was akin to his own rescue.

Nashya, of course, had to be looking for reactions.  She may have averted her eyes, afraid of such reactions, but she might steal glances...and in doing so, have seen that he had gone from anticipation of a story, to kind of a 'Hey, wait a minute' look, to just surprise and...basically a mixed bag of feelings.  He was happy to have helped out, and was almost shocked or embarrassed that he'd intimidated her, and he couldn't help but notice her expression and body language.  He'd really touched upon something here.  He had to return the favor, and he had to do it right.  She'd poured her heart out to him.  It's what she deserved.

So, after a moment of calming himself, he spoke.

"You know, it's funny.  I was just reminded of something that happened, recently.  I was walking along this miserable cloudy day, full of rain, when I found a silver lining.  Just outside a village, there was this young lady standing under a tree, and I was debating asking her for help or just heading into the village.  Well, given what I had to do, I figured since you never know what you'll find till you look, I'd go ask."

This was a bit more obvious.  He wasn't even trying to disguise it.  But then, he didn't have to.

"Turns out that not only did she know the area very well, but that she was very helpful with my mission itself.  Very clever and insightful.  And if I told you the number of times I caught myself glancing at her, you'd blush.  It's really the first time I've traveled anywhere in years.  There's going to be people who surprise me."

He was trying for an honest candor here, but even Sano couldn't help but feel a little tense, throughout.  She hoped he didn't mind, but...he wasn't going to sing her praises without mentioning how beautiful she was.  He steadied himself with a sigh there, and then said.

"I'll be honest, Nashya.  Maybe you were worried about how I'd react in regards to the one inside your mind, but I didn't even know that anything was wrong.  The whole concept was completely new to me, so I assumed something else entirely.  Maybe you thought I'd freak out, but I think my background prevents that.  This is the you that you are to me.  We are what we are, even if others don't approve.  I'm glad we could meet, and I hope to meet again when I've done what I have to do."

With her gaze still averted Nashya waited in complete agony for Sano to say something... anything really. Every few minutes she would glance at Sano only to quickly trail her eyes somewhere else. She really was quite horrible at this... expressing her true feelings.

But then Sano began to talk, his story having a similar beginning as hers. He began talking about how he was walking towards a small village before seeing her. Then he went on telling her how she was clever and insightful, both compliments causing her blush to only intensify.... and this was before he even mentioned how many times he stole glances of her.

Completely clueless on what to do Nashya nervously tucked a strand of hair behind her ear before very slowly and cautiously allowing her eyes to lock on Sano once more. He talked about how he never even thought something was wrong with her despite how many times in the day she thought for sure she was acting crazy. He saw Nashya for who she really was, and not for the poor soul tormented by her own abilities. She wasn't a broken 'thing' to him, but instead a living and breathing person.

She didn't know what else to say or do in this moment, completely unsure of what the right move would be. She couldn't very well act like what she had just said didn't happen. There was no way she could even try to pick up a dart and play another round, not without putting everyone in the room at risk of getting a dart in the arse.

Nashya could feel everything just building more and more inside of her. The urge to just ran away becoming harder to ignore with each passing second. Of course this would happen... of course she would meet someone only to find out that they had to part ways sooner than she wanted them to.

"And what if you never find the vampire?" Her question was a valid one as she held her arms at her sides, fists tight with angst. "What if all today will ever be is just a memory? That day we both talk about years from now where the guy met the girl and then never saw each other again." Her whole body was shaking from the fear building in her gut, as if she was prodding at something that shouldn't be messed with. A delicate thing that was already facing utter destruction at the hands of this cruel world.

On some level, he knew what was happening here, knew that they were becoming close at an alarming rate and that they'd gotten to know each other too well not to worry about what could happen to one another.  They had opened up to each other.  They'd done it in a clever way like the two of them were just telling a story, but there it was, all laid out before them.  They'd done so because they wanted to do so, because their meeting mattered and they wanted it to matter.  That much was clear.

There was another problem, though: Their parting.  Sano wasn't leaving tomorrow and maybe not the next day, but he would be going.  He would be leaving to explore more of Serendipity to find the people he needed to conquer this savage, because it needed to be done.  But...as one who had opened up the woman before her...he knew that leaving would bring her down again, at least in part.  That was why he said he would be back.  To bring joy to someone's life and leave forever was unfair.  He had to promise there would be more to that later.  The only problem was that Nashya had a very pointed concern.

She was worried that he would not succeed.

She didn't say it as though he would fail in battle, that there was something wrong with his plan to hire a load of people who were capable and strong to help him, but that he would never find the vampire that he so desired to kill.  The thing of it was, though, this was something that Sano had an answer for.  It's just that...to explain...he would have to tell her what it was that had precipitated this.  He had to explain what it was that Keefe did.

"I already know how to lure it out.  I know what did it in the first place."[/i]

He steeled himself, knowing that while the two of them had an understanding, this might change how Nashya viewed him.  He wasn't just some sword guy.  He was the protege' of an assassin...

"Keefe drew his attention because she was killing Mordecai.  She has strong beliefs about the freedom of magic, so she regularly traveled to Connlaoth in order to find and kill them and others she didn't approve of.  The vampire attacked her because many of his powers would be unaffected by the Mordecai, so having them around made people helpless before him."

He'd been looking away, himself, but now he faced her.

"That's the trap I have planned.  Target Mordecai, and when he shows himself to try and punish me, everyone strucks without mercy...because he doesn't have any himself.  He likes having a country under his heels, so anybody threatening that will bring him into the open.  This is a plan, carefully considered.  I have all my training to thank for that.  It relies only on his greed and my preparation, and I can be sure of both."

The conversation took a more serious direction quickly. Of course Nashya didn't oppose killing Mordecai, soldiers who would kill her should they have the chance. It was a question of survival of the fittest in this case, something she could never judge someone for.

Nashya then moved on instinct towards Sano, stopping just a few feet away from him, her eyes expressing even something she did not understand. Was it worry? Was it empathy? Perhaps she would never know...

"So you would travel back to the country you hate and risk your life... all for the sake of 'maybe' drawing out a vampire?" Her words almost sounded angry, but in truth that was the opposite of what she was trying to portray. Nashya understood, or at least was trying to. She didn't have anyone she would risk all of that for, in fact the only way she would ever end up in a situation like that would be if Cyn ordered it.

Then in that moment Nashya made a decision, one she probably would receive grief for later. "Fine..." she crossed her arms over her chest, funny how confident she suddenly was. "But you have to promise me one thing. When you find him... or think you are close you will write me. You will tell me exactly where you are." Nashya had ulterior motives for this.

An ability she hardly used, but useful when she needed it was that she could transport unheard of distances as long as a shadow was within reach. In fact, she had almost forgotten about it. Even if Sano was far away she could still find him if she really needed to... but that was only if she knew where he was.

Sano honestly didn't consider it a maybe, but he nodded, just the same.  That was exactly it.  He did not care about the country, or even the people in it, not even his family.  He wanted to go in for one reason and one reason alone: The vampire.  Maybe she understood or maybe she didn't, but when someone pulls you out of hell, you're grateful, and you don't just let somebody else hurt that person.  Not by a long shot.  Even as they were growing comfortable around each other, this was something he could not simply leave by the wayside.

Now, though, he felt himself smile a little as Nashya delivered his ultimatum.

"Before we even make any plans to attack a Mordecai.  I promise."

Now, he umm...cleared his throat.

"That said...would you do me a big favor and...never tell anyone that my friend and mentor is world-class assassin, and that I am her only student?"

Oh, right.  That.  Yeah, that's...kind of important.  People don't generally approve of umm...assassins.  That's sort of an under-the-table kind of business, really.

Relief flooded her as Sano agreed to her proposal. The entire conversation then lightened up, less stressful and heated than before. Nashya even tilted her head a bit at his request, thinking it silly he even had to ask.

Holding her hand out for him to shake Nashya asked a favor of her very own. "As long as you don't tell anyone that I am a shadowmancer for Golden Gear. They don't exactly call me Nashya over there. But in the future if you ever hear someone talking about Golden Gears 'Shadowfeeder'... yeah that is me."

If Sano did shake her hand she would try not to think much of it, this was afterall just a mutual understanding the two had come to.

"So maybe we should head back to the inn? Part ways for the evening and maybe meet up around noon tomorrow?" Nashya would have to take care of a few things in the morning first. If she took more than one days absence Demagogue would probably come searching for her, the last thing she wanted right now.

But still leaving Sano seemed so unpleasant by now. She had literally been with him all day, and already she was growing accustomed to having him at her side. Even if she did go back to the inn most of her night would be spent tossing and turning as she thought of the sick curveball fate had just thrown at her.

However when he did leave... she would have to deal with that anyways.

Sano blinked at this new information.  Golden Gear?

"Never heard of them.  Seriously, never."

He's been in this country for how long?  Not very.  This, to him, was just sort of new stuff he was learning, and didn't mind keeping quiet about.  After all, he protected the identity of the Ebon Knife and the alchemist who became a dragon.  Why not 'Shadowfeeder', as well?  So yeah, he was fine with this.  Nashya mentioned that they should probably get back to the inn.  ...they both knew they didn't want to part ways, but eventually they were gonna have to have this thing called 'sleep'.

"I should probably post a bulletin to draw people in for hire.  So yeah, meeting at noon sounds fine."

Hey, you're not alone in the 'This is going to play merry havoc with your thoughts and dreams' thing there, Nashya.  Sano was pretty sure he knew where this might be headed, but he had doubts in there too, and most importantly...he didn't want to screw up what he had here.

"For now... let's keep it that way" Nashya was referring to Golden Gear by this, the group she worked for. In fact she was an original member, one of the first to step up all for one cause. In fact, maybe there was a good side to Sano leaving after only a few days. She wasn't quite ready to explain their antics just yet.

After that things fell awkward once more, both of them still having yet to part ways but knowing they both had to. "Night.." and with that Nashya gave Sano a whole hearted smile before taking off out the door back towards the inn. She knew they were both staying there, but still it would be less awkward if she could just walk in and go straight to her room. She had a new sense of determination as she walked towards the inn, not letting her eyes meet anyone else's as she quickly made her way between the two buildings.

In no time at all Nashya was holding the door to the inn with one hand while she looked over her shoulder one last time before pulling it open. The bar area had already fallen pretty silent for the evening and Nashya was happy about that, less noise to filter through later. Quickly, she ran up the steps that led towards her room and dug in her bag for the key to open the door.

Once inside Nashya probably spent hours replaying the day in her mind as she laid in the bed. She was picking through it, hoping that she would be able to remember the times Sano referred to stealing glances. Just the thought of it made her smile.

"You are an idiot. He is nothing but a distraction"

"You are nothing but a distraction."

"You are not seriously considering going to Connlaoth when he finds that vampire are you?"

"Why? I figured you out of anyone would be excited to do something more than just painting faces and eavesdropping."

"You will be distracted. If he got hurt I could see you completely losing focus."

"He won't let himself get hurt..." And with that Nashya refused to even acknowledge anything else her inner voice had to say.

Nashya awoke the next morning just before the sun was rising in the sky. She knew if she wanted to see Sano at noon she had a lot of work to do. Getting up she slipped on something a bit different than the day before.. but not entirely out of character for her. Just another maiden's dress, this one black with a dark brown belt. The hem of the dress fell right at her knees and the sleeves hung loose on her arms, exposing her shoulders to the sun. None of this would be complete though without her worn brown boots and grey cloak.

Grabbing her bag and slinging it over her shoulder Nashya was out the door, flying down the hallway and stairs as if her heels were on fire. In no time at all she was down the street headed to meet her partner and get whatever task they had been given done for the day.

It probably was for the best that he not know the fullness of details.  He only explained that Keefe was an assassin to reassure her that he had a definite plan and that he would come back.  He still kept her title - The Ebon Knife - and her location - La'Marri - out of it for her protection.  Their understanding and level of information was about equal, and it was better that way, though while Sano only had to protect the one, Nashya had the many.  Before she left, she treated him to a wonderful smile, something that would definitely stick with him for a while.

He got back to the inn after her, sort of delaying because he was trying to think of how to compose his bulletin for later.  Once he reached his room, he pulled out the key and let himself in.  Once there, he stepped over to the bed and basically fell into it, on purpose.  He too began to digest the day, thinking of this incredible woman that he'd met, that he couldn't help but admire.  She was good, alright.  And like she said of all Serenians[/i], she was strong.  Not simply in magic, but in willpower.  And towards the end of the day...well...

God dammit, Sano.  All the gods!  What are the chances that you find someone like her, someone who can understand the whole of your life and not even flinch or shrink away?  You could live a life with a woman like that, and you're going to walk away!

Since Sano didn't have an extra personality to argue with, he was just sort of beating himself up in a Keefe-like manner.

Sano, you care too damn much...

Eventually, he got exhausted, thinking at himself like that, and he didn't want to say it out-loud, so he eventually fell asleep...leading into the next day.  When he did, Nashya would have already left, unbeknownst to him.  This would not be a problem as he technically had less to do.  Getting changed into an attire that was only somewhat different to what he wore yesterday, he asked the innkeeper for a good scribe and found out that a town with government buildings had several.  He only had to pick one.  Eventually, after some discussion and haggling with one, there would be some posted bulletins out there.

Most of the morning passed by as any other, except today seemed to be going by particularly slow. Nashya and Dem had done there usual work as well as silence someone who would be problem to their cause. While Demagogue lacked flesh and muscle without the illusion she created Nashya looked a little more worse for wear than he did. The particular man they had targeted was someone who was stirring unwanted attention in their direction, so Nashya being ever vigilant quickly silenced him. He had managed however to get one hit in on her, the bruise on her jaw already fully developed by noon.

The way Nashya saw it though if that was the worst thing to happen to her today then she could live with it. After all, she was practically running back to the inn to meet Sano on time. Her sprint was interupted though as a bulletin had caught her eye posted just outside the door of the inn. She stopped to read it and smiled when her eyes scanned across his name.

"You are going to make me sick"

Rolling her eyes Nashya pulled open the door to the inn, her cloak already draped over her bag and hair partially covering the bruise on her face. She had one mission now... one thing she needed to find... and that was Sano.

Standing on her tip toes she tried to see past the other patrons of the inn, hustling past her as if she were invisible... typical response.

The day had been uhh...so-so in the case of Sano.  First of all, he had received basically no attention for a while...which was understandable, because the flyers had only been out there for a couple of hours.  And then, after a while, he had his first applicant...who was almost immediately a disappointment.  Understand, this guy was strong - physically - but he was just a brass and foolish kid.  Also, he'd brought a sword.  That was a problem.

"Look, ummm...  I respect a good sword, but the problem is that I am a good sword.  Not that I couldn't use another sword, but that sword has to be able to stand against me.  When I say strong, I mean that there will be fighting like hell to put down a guy with no quarter."

"And you don't believe I'm capable of that?"

"I think you're a tough guy and you'll make the Serenian Guard, easy.  I think I need more than that.  Here, come outside, I'll show you."

"Don't you need to get your sword first?"

"No, I've got a spoon.  It'll be fine."

They headed out in back of the inn and before the other guy could say anything about the ridiculousness of fighting with a spoon, it became a sword!  Sano grinned.

"I know some things."

So, they fought.  And without even using his magic, he managed to slip in between swings or beat his defense or knock the sword from his hands.  Obviously, it took effort because they were fighting practically in earnest, but he did it.

"You see, that's why.  You're strong and you even have some skill, but...look, you weren't even ducking properly.  You've been in fights before, right?  Aren't you worried about even getting cut?"

"I use magic to increase my durability.  I need not fear in battle."

"That's...no.  That's wrong.  You need fear.  Fear keeps you alive.  I'm sure you'll find work soon, but I can't have that in this mission.  I need commitment and waryness way more than that kind of courage."

So, he had to dismiss him and get back to doing nothing, which was not so long before noon, so he got a drink prior to that, and that is where Nashya would find him.  It would take getting around people, but she would see him at a table, spoon in hand.

One of the patrons walking past looked at Nashya with sorry eyes. For a moment she thought maybe something was wrong with her, wanting instantly to know what made her look so pitiful to the man. Then she quickly realized what it was as she brought a hand up to her cheek.

"Yes idiot... you let us get hit today. I told you he was a distraction."

That silly man probably thought Nashya to be a beaten maiden, in duress and looking for solace at an inn away from her home. The thought alone made her giggle which in turn caused the man to now look at her like she was crazy.

After a few moments Nashya was able to set her sights on Sano who was sitting at a table holding a spoon? With an amused grin she walked right up to him and pulled out a chair to sit. "I would make a joke about you stabbing someone with that thing but then again... you actually could."

Nashya was doing her very best to keep her composure. In truth the moment she had Sano in her sites her stomach had been doing backflips. Part of what she was feeling was so strange to her, something entirely different than what she was used to. For once in her life Nashya actually looked forward to the next day, only because she knew she would be seeing Sano.

From the moment they parted ways the night before he had been on her mind constantly. Not even her inner voice had a chance to really chime in, only because Nashya's thoughts were clouded by someone else.

Quick to continue the conversation and eradicate any chance for a long awkward silence between them Nashya began talking even more. "I hope your day was eventful. Did you find anyone?"

He only had the spoon because stories would circulate about it, most likely.  He didn't want the guy to be harmed by the reputation of having been beaten by a spoon, but he needed rumors to filter in about his skill so that those wanting to meet his skill were those that could.  So, he had this spoon, then.  It was one of the inn's, and he said he'd give it back, but by the time he was done here, she may want it mounted or something.

Still, he had to wonder if maybe he was pushing it a little by basically owning the guy and criticizing him for his lack of fear, though he had the power to endure damages and wounds to his body.  It was a solid enough skill, but...this vampire could do terrible things.  He needed people who were smarter than this, to respect that their quarry was super-dangerous and to be treated like he was made of poison, to be dispatched and gotten rid of as swiftly as possible.

Hah, no way am I overdoing this.  I just saved that guy's life.

It was about this time that Nashya appeared, a little different today, but otherwise still the drawer of his attention that she was.  There was...  Sano blinked.  Was that red mark from a bruise?  Idly, he wondered if she'd been in a fight.  Immediately after, he wondered just what happened to the other guy, completely unaware that this thought was entirely on the mark!  Her comment made him smile, of course, given the context OF the spoon...

"Well, now that you mention it...I was using it today."

He didn't mean that in the usual methods, just smiled and let that dangle there for a second.  True, he hadn't killed anybody, but it was still kind of funny, when you thought about it.  As she began to ask about his day, she was able to explain what happened, anyway.

"There was a guy, yeah, and he was certainly a tough swordsman, but...I couldn't take him.  And by that, I don't mean I couldn't take him, because I beat 'im in a fight with this spoon as a sword, but I couldn't take him on the mission.  He's not right."

Sano put down the spoon and turned more to face her now.

"Tell me if this makes sense to you: A man with magical endurance who doesn't fear getting wounded in battle will fall easily to a creature who loves to make wounds and drink your blood.  In a battle charge, said monster could gut him and make him his lunch very easily, right?  Which is why a healthy dose of fear and waryness is important."

Nashya dove right into conversation with Sano, listening to his concerns of the man that replied to his poster. Turns out she was right on assuming he could use that spoon to hurt someone. She was fully engulfed in listening to him explain what had transpired when in reality the moment he put down the spoon and turned himself towards her she felt like her heart was going to beat right out of her chest.

"Give me a break! You are seriously giving him those goo goo eyes all because he is talking about a spoon!"

Her eyes shifted as her inner voice chimed in, but just as most times Nashya refrained from responding in front of Sano.

Sano then asked for her input on the matter, one she was wholeheartedly ready to give. "It makes no sense." Nashya hoped Sano was prepared to hear her speak logically about plan and precision along with wariness. "If someone foolishly charged into battle thinking of nothing other than cutting down whatever was in their path then they are destined to fail. The best way to deal with something like a vampire is a well thought out plan with many outcomes discussed before even stepping onto the battlefield."

Scooting up a bit more in her chair Nashya began to grow more attached to the conversation at hand. "Not to mention you will be in Connlaoth of all places! How does someone who relies only on their abilities plan to take on a Mordecai?" Except with that statement Nashya's face fell into a grim state. She had not even thought of that...

Even Nashya knew she could not take one on, her fighting capabilities relying on her magic all together. She of course had ways to defend herself against them, but never cut one down. How was Sano supposed to do it if he couldn't create weapons at will?

He nodded as she spoke, glad to see that she got the point of the matter, right off.  The transformation of her expression, though, revealed that she had come to yet another understanding...

"You're thinking now 'How the heck is anybody else suppose to take on a Mordecai?' right now, aren't you?"

And she was right.  That was a problem, in of itself.  The people who needed to be able to deal with the vampire needed to be able to deal with the plan.  A Mordecai blocked magic over an area automatically, without concentration or incantation.  They were heavily armored and usually heavily armed, and sometimes they had soldier escort.  All of this was true, and problematic.  And all of this...Sano had considered during his travels to find people.

"This is why I've been so picky.  I do need people with magic, without a doubt.  I also need people who don't need to worry about the lack of magic.  People that travel on skill alone or have magic items that don't get affected.  I'm okay, at least, because of my training.  If Keefe can do it, so can I.  She took them on alone, and I'm going with help."

He smiled at her when he said the last part, because he knew her feelings on the matter.  She worried about his plan not working, but if it was one thing he had spent time on, it was thinking about it, how it would work and where it could fall short, and how to take care of the shortcomings, wherever they may be.  Nashya had not, by the by, told him yet that she would be transporting herself to meet him when the time came...

Part of her had forgotten that not only could Sano create weapons, but obviously use them with some skill... except darts.

She was happy to at least hear he had a plan, but then again plans were nothing until put into motion. Sano could plan out a million outcomes and still have the possibility of being bested. If it were anyone else she might have turned a blind eye, may have even egged them on to go through with it, but Sano wasn't just anyone.

"I hate this." Her voice plain as she sat back in her chair, crossing her arms over her chest. "I hate that I finally meet a person that I..." she cut herself off, realizing she was getting too comfortable talking with Sano.

"... a person that I actually enjoy being around..."

"You're an idiot" Once again Nashya ignored the voice in her mind, only flicking her gaze to the side when it spoke as she always did.

Picking up where she left off Nashya finished her statement. "... and you are just going to be leaving." And once again she had pulled them into the circle of why fate was so cruel.

"Yes Nashya... everyone leaves you. I don't blame him." Her eyes flicked to the side again.

That somber feeling of separation, after having met someone you like.  Sano hadn't even wanted to leave...well...the only place in the world he could ever call home.  But...if he hadn't, he may never have met Nashya, here in Shadowmere.  Comings and goings were a necessity, in life.  However, so too were compromises.  To Sano, it was absolutely essential that he organize a fighting force to kill the vampire.  However, ever since he'd sent off the flyers, a funny thought struck him.  In answer to Nashya's problems, he said this...

"Well, I've been thinking about that."

He picked up the spoon now, sort of nervously tapping the business end of it against the table, eyes on it instead of her for the moment.

"You see, I started this journey traveling from place to place because I'd find people who probably never leave their country, normally, people of great skill that I might coax into a mission, say.  So, I've been all around, and finally into Seren territory.  But the thing of it is, around here, trudging all over the country is the stupid way to get things done."

He picked it up now and began twirling it in his fingers as he looked at her again.

"I mean, look at this place.  You have messengers, couriers, bird messengers...  You send things out, long-distance and alot faster than foot or horse.  There's no point to that in Essyrn or Adela, but here...it's everything!  So, I'm thinking I should send a bunch of letters, like to that Goldswith guy and a bunch of towns, and save myself the trip."

This wasn't technically hard.  If he just spent some time literally making money, or even just earning it normally, he could send out letters asking for people with big talent to find him.  He stopped twirling the spoon now.  Honestly, he was gonna get attached to the damn thing.

"What do you think?"

At the very mention of him thinking about leaving Nashya fell silent, listening intently as Sano spoke. Even as he seemed intent on staring at the spoon Nashya's eyes never left him.

"Awe look! He fiddles with stupid things just like you... I hate him." Nashya's expression changed for a second as she looked almost offended.

And now she was listening again, hung up on every word as he stated traveling around was the wrong way to get things done. Where was he going with this? And then he was looking at her again.

Nodding with each statement he made Nashya was still trying to see the bigger picture. Yes, Serendipity had a great messaging system. There were so many options from birds all the way to magical means. Snapping back into focus she realized what he was saying by the end of his statement and was left speechless for a moment.

"Oh gods no. No no no no no no this is not good!" Her eyes didn't even flick this time.

Her eyes were deadset on him for a second, her emotions unreadable as she stared at him in complete disbelief. Did she really just hear him right? Did he actually just suggest staying a bit longer?

"I....I...." slowly a genuine smile crept up on her lips as what was just established registered in her mind. Keeping herself in the chair alone was a task, let alone resisting the urge to lunge forwards and hug him with every ounce of strength she carried. Thankfully though, she kept her cool.

"I would like that very much." Her cheeks were red once more as she cleared her throat, trying to make her response seem as casual as possible.

Probably more than a bit, considering that it would otherwise take him days and days to cross Serendipity and all, contrasted with the fact that it would take days to deal with all of the business of the messenger system, replies and corrospondance, getting people to come his way to measure up to a standard and making sure that they would deliver and not die.  But still, that was the general idea, yes, and Nashya seemed to encourage it.

Curious.  Had she been lost in thought, mulling it over, or had there been something more?  He loved her smile, though those of us writing will point out that - just on a point of order - the two of them would probably go careening into the ground with a breaking chair from the force of a lunge.  So, on the whole, it was probably best that that didn't happen right now.  On the whole, inner demon protests aside, this seemed to be working out.

"I'm glad you think so.  I'd've probably thought of it sooner, but we don't have that where I live, so I didn't even have any exposure to it until I came into Serendipity."

It was also a definite thing in Connlaoth, but people barely existing on the streets don't really have much reason to take note of things like that.  Sano was a bit uneducated on things like this.

"That said, here we are and it's after noon.  If you're free now, I say let's eat."

Nashya was still reeling over the fact that Sano was staying longer than she had already begun to prepare herself for. She almost didn't catch the question of if she was free to eat.

"You idiot he asked you a question..." And que the eye flick.

"Oh um.. yes I am free! I finished everything early today just so I could meet you here." She then pointed at her cheek as if to reference things may have turned out differently had she not. "I got a bit hasty." Normally when Golden Gear had to deal with a problem like they had to today Nashya was tasked with following them for a few days, getting their routine down, learning when the perfect opportunity was. Today however she was reckless, jumping right in to get the job done.

"Anything in particular you want to try? Or we could eat here if you like." Nashya could already feel the creepy in keeper staring at her back from across the room. Seriously, it was like the woman had super hearing or something.

Nervously Nashya carried on speaking a little too loudly for a private conversation. "I mean the food here is quite fantastic!" She then slowly looked over her shoulder at the older woman who pretended to be dusting a shelf, only caught for a second staring.

Sano noted the part about her cheek with a nod, understanding that there was violence in her work.  He still knew nothing about the Golden Gear, as reclusiveness was in their very nature.

"Just as long as you got him first."

From there, the suggestion of lunch seemed to carry well.  However, there appeared to be something going on about the innkeeper, who had this omnipresent uhh...presence, it seemed.  You know, the possibility of her having super-hearing was distinctly possible, given the country they were in.  Many people could have greater-than-normal senses.  Hell, Sano had one, and he wasn't even from here!  Still, Sano couldn' help but ask...

"I don't mind where we eat, but umm...do you and the innkeeper have some kind of grudge going on?  She lose a bet?  What happened here?"

He was trying to keep his voice low, but for all we know, it isn't helping.

She could act dumb and pretend she had no idea why the innkeeper always stared at her like a bad omen, but not to Sano.

"Shadowmancer..." she whispered, now conspiring herself the the woman had super hearing. "I am what makes things go bump in the night in her eyes." Nashya leaned in closer to Sano, only for the purpose of keeping her own voice low enough.

"There was an incident a few weeks back..." She didn't have to turn around again to know the woman was staring at her. She could see it without looking, all thanks to the darkness lingering in every corner. If Nashya wanted to she essentially had a complete 360 view of the room, able to see and hear anything she wanted within the confines of this building... or any other for that matter.

Then it hit her how closely she was leaning in towards Sano and she quickly sat up straight, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear as if nothing was wrong. "Actually how about we pick up some food from a stand and have a picnic on the outskirts of town? I could use the fresh air."

Not even waiting for an answer Nashya scooted the chair back, sneaking in a 'I will finish explaining later' look at Sano before reaching to grab his hand and practically drag him out of the inn.

The word 'Shadowmancer' was kind of an explanation in of itself, but Nashya didn't seem to mind elaborating.  Though, even as she did so, he could see the innkeeper watching them, which was a problem.  Even as she began to explain, Nashya must've gotten a feeling that she was watching, because she did not explain the incident in question.  Sano was, as of yet, unaware that she could sense every shadow like an extension of her senses yet, so he just figured she had good sense there.

She then abruptly suggested that they pick up food from a stand and eat outdoors, even getting up and taking him along by his hand, muttering that she'd explain in full later.  This was somewhere between funny and surprising to the young swordsman, but about the time he got up on his feet, and they were leaving, he remembered the contents of his hand and shouted "Spoon!" as he tossed it over to the innkeeper...who caught it perfectly out of the air.  This led them outside now.  It was fortunate that Sano actually had his money pouch on him, because it looked like he wasn't going back for it now.

"What kind of food do they sell out here?  This is a river territory...  There must be fish (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkjbMoj0JY4), right?"

Nashya was still laughing even after they were a safe distance from the inn. The excitement of escaping the now thought to be magical innkeeper, all the while Sano was worried about making sure to return the spoon he had taken.

Her quick walk behind more casual as the distance increased and Nashya led them towards merchant carts parked just inside the city gates. "Yes there is fish, as well as many vegetables, grains and fruits."Serendipity was a land with very fertile soil, therefore making different types of food easily acquired.

"Hey idiot..." Eye flick

"You know you still have his hand right? It's making me sick." Another eye flick

Looking down Nashya was mortified she was still practically dragging Sano towards the merchant carts. As soon as she realized it she let go, quickly placing her hands behind her back as she continued to walk. "Sorry..." She was so proud of herself now, acting so casual even though deep down she was dying inside from embarrassment.

"So you want fish right?"

"If I had a face and a hand right now... I would be smacking myself repeatedly... just for you."

So, in short, there was fish.  In fact, alot of fish.  Trout, salmon, bass - cooked in many ways and...oooh!  Bouillabaisse!  So many fishies...  Plenty of a selection to go around here, plenty to fill the man's desire to feast.  So much so, that he almost missed Nashya apologizing for...something.

"Huh?  For what?"

Clearly, he had been living in the moment, not even worried about being dragged along, possibly enjoying it.  After all, he was having fun, right?  For now, he went over to find...well, if they were going to have a picnic, then much of their food was going to have to be transportable.  Sano made that easy, by pulling out...another spoon, one that became a container for the fish stew, as he ordered some other assortments.

"Don't worry about bowls and stuff for the stew.  I'm covered."

That is, he'd provide them himself.  That was an easy feet for him.  Nashya was free to order as well, of course.

When he acted so cooley and oblivious to what she was talking about Nashya stood speechless behind him. Everything now was moving in a blur as Sano ordered his food.

"Ha!" But instead of flicking her eyes per usual Nashya stomped a foot down and tightened her fists.

"Will you shut up already!" Her voice was but a whisper as she finally responded to herself, probably not even heard as Sano continued to order things to eat.

"I will shut up the minute you get your happy ass to the vineyard where you belong. You could be getting so much work done for us right now. I am honestly growing quite tired of this little game.... keep pushing me and I will eventually push back."

Nashya didn't say anything else to her darker self, debating on whether or not to respond to the threat she was just given.

"By the way he is talking to you again. Are you even paying attention to him anymore? Or have I gotten you full attention now?"

Snapping back to reality Nashya looked at Sano who was indeed talking to her. "Oh umm... alright."

"Yeah that is just great. Pretend like you heard what he just said. So smooth..." Eye flick.

Stepping up to the the stall she chose something much more basic. "Can I have a bit of honey bread please." Something was clearly on her mind as she spoke, beginning to feel overwhelmed by the constant tug of her darker self. Not to mention how Sano didn't even realize they were holding hands up until this point.

Taking the bread she tucked it in her bag and handed the man coin to cover it, something she had plenty of. Now she was determined to act as if nothing else was on her mind and so she smiled once more at Sano, now realizing she did that a lot.

"If you keep using spoons for other things we may end up eating with our hands." She let out a halfhearted laugh before making her way towards the city gates.

She did misinterpret that he was saying he didn't know why she had to apologize when he was fine with her taking his hand, but...ah well.  Probably realize it later.  The two of them ordered food to be taken along and...it seemed like Sano really had the most stuff to lug around, but then alot of his equipment was obviously going to be metal.  You either learn to live with it or you don't do it anymore, and frankly we know which it was that he would go with.  He gave her a funny look when she mentioned the spoons.  He held up three, where you could swear he only had one.

"That will never happen."

He said so with grin.  Sano had mastered the art of duping his equipment, any equipment that he had gotten his hands on, easily.  They headed out of the city gates and back into the outdoors, full of grass and trees and things.  It was a nice day out, perfect time for a picnic.  It was only a short time before Sano discovered a wide stump that was currently being shaded by a tall tree not far off.

"That stump...looks perfect for this."

They would have shade and sun, as needed.  The grass was certainly dry enough, and all.  In fact, it would be warm now, inviting.  Someone might've actually flattened the stump carefully for such things.

Just when she thought her day could possibly be ruined by the 'thing' in her mind Sano pulled out one spoon, quickly turning it into three. Her smile was back for real this time as she began to laugh at his quirkiness. And then he grinned and it caused her heart to jump a bit. Nashya had always been so horrible at reading people, only ever to pick up on the negative and hateful intentions of others via her abilities.

In fact she would probably torture herself for days trying to analyze that smile of his. That being exactly what she had begun to do as they made their way towards the stump he picked out. "It does look perfect."

"I hope you don't mind but I fully intend on trying some of that soup you bought. So long as you promise to try this honey bread." Nashya then walked over beside the stump and took a seat in the grass. Pulling the honey bread from her bag she placed it on the stump, not even bothering to grab a knife before ripping off a small piece of it and plopping it into her mouth.

This bread happened to be her favorite. It was soft and sweet, practically melted in your mouth. The pleasure on her face in that moment could not be denied as she savored every second of the taste.

With a mouth still half full of the bread Nashya picked up the loaf and poked it in Sano's direction, her eyes begging him just to try a piece.

"Whore" Nashya was so caught off guard by the comment she practically choked on the bit still left in her mouth.

He actually DID notice her mood being put off there, for a second.  She hid it well enough, but there was an instant there where he was sure that her inner demon or whatever it was had to be talking to her.  Actually, ifhe guessed it right, it was every time she looked off somewhere while not addressing him.  Could've been alot of time, for all he knew.  He wondered what it was like to have someone in your head like that.  Maybe like always having your mother around...  No wait, he didn't even know if that was normal for mothers.  Why did he think that, then?  No matter.  So, they gathered at the stump and Nashya made an ultimatum regarding the soup he'd brought.

"I was planning on it.  Probably goes well with it."

Probably did.  Then again, if that's all she bought herself, then her faith in that bread must be unbreakable.  While Nashya was tearing at the bread, Sano had made two metal bowls appear out of Spoon #3 like it was a magic wand, and then extended it into a ladel.  Once he was serving, he felt a poke against him and Nashya clearing his throat.

"Hold on, I'm serving."

This was all in good humor, and he did pretty much as Nashya did with the bread, tearing a chunk off of it because he didn't feel like creating a knife.  Let's give the powers a break, already.  Though, he would admit...bread with honey was a damn good idea.  That was good.  How do people make these things?  He had to say something about it.

"This reminds me of something I found from an Essyrni guy who...basically forgot where he got them from.  It's the weirdest thing.  It was like a sweet roll, but with a hole in it, so you could hang 'em on a rack.  It was apparently fried and 'glaze' of sugar and honey."

"You my friend sound like a madman obsessed with sweets." She allowed for a dramatic pause. "I must try these sweet rolls that dare taste even remotely the same as my honey bread!" It was an official proclamation.

Getting settled beside the stump and preparing to eat a bit of the soup Nashya decided to finish the story she began at the inn. "So the woman at the Inn... I am pretty sure she is convinced I am a reincarnate of the devil or something."

"I actually have a permanent residence with Golden Gear. It is an outlandish house that is just too... stuffy for my taste. I started staying at the inn because it felt more like home to me. At first the innkeeper seemed to really like me... she would even ask me about my day sometimes."

"Then one morning I woke up and came down for breakfast as I usually did and she acted as if I were a ghost."

"Now we are getting to the good part." Eye Flick

"Turns out while I thought I was sleeping I really wasn't." Clearing her throat she prepared to tell Sano a small detail she had kept from him so far. "That thing in my head I told you about. Yeah.. well sometimes when I let my guard down, like when I am sleeping for instance, it can take control. And when it does it seems her sole purpose is to bring fear and hate to everyone she can."

"Seems it worked on the innkeeper now because she is either acting like she is going to kill me in my sleep, or jumps at the slightest motion I make." Nashya then stuffed another bit of bread into her mouth, chewing it with a newfound force as she waited for Sano's response. If he didn't think her crazy before... he probably would now.

"He IS mad, but he's just a shopkeeper."

Yes, a shopkeeper.  None other than the son of a son of a shopkeeper, Akbar The Third!  Sano found himself chuckling at her declaration of war against the ring-shaped sweets.

"That's a battle that I'll have to see."

Still, Nashya began her story and Sano was starting to eat.  However, he paused at even the first sentence.  This woman was no devil.  She had a literal incarnation of darkness inside her, but she herself was not it.  As the shadowmancer continued, he wondered what she meant about an outlandish house.  Exotic and different from the others?  Too rich and expensive?  He'd have to ask later.  He waited as Nashya began to get to the heart of the matter: Why the innkeeper hated her.

Strangely enough, the thought he had about the evil being the one within was spot on.  The inner shadow-thing - Nashya referred to it as a she - had woken up while she was asleep and was walking around with her body.  And when it did so, it did something to terrify the owner.  It figures, really...  It's a shadow, a thing of the night.  Why would it wander around, doing good things?  Sano had shoved in a couple spoonfuls of his meal while listening to it all.  When Nashya was done, he thought he'd get the record straight.

"So, she decided to freak out the innkeeper, and you had to either take the blame or palm it off as a misunderstanding because explaining what really happened might turn out worse."

Because how would she be able to explain?  Telling a innkeeper that you have a creature from the world of shadows inside of you would hardly exonorate you or improve matters, and this puts aside the matter of whether she'd even believe it or not.  Sano sighed now.

"Does this shadow of yours even realize that anything that happens to you, happens to her?  If that innkeeper actually went mad and killed you, you'd both be dead.  I mean, it sounds as though you're stuck with each other, and that goes both ways.  I mean, you wouldn't piss off a guy who could counter your shadowmancy with his light spells, right?"

In short, the way that Nashya had explained the other inside of her, he understood it as it was presented: Two beings under one roof, often interfering with one another.  If the shadow wouldn't or couldn't leave, the next logical step was that it had to live by house rules if it didn't want to bring the house down.  Presumably, since Nashya had lived so long, it wanted to, as well.

"Does he think I'm an idiot?" Eye flick.

"It realizes... and doesn't care." Nashya took in a defeated breath as she leaned back on her hands. "If it were up to her I would be off ruining peoples lives."

"Yep" Eye flick.

"I mean she is a manifestation from the shadow realm. The entire makeup of those things are to spread darkness, fueling off of hatred and fear." Nashya talked about it as if it should have been common knowledge. "And we are not 'stuck' together. She can leave anytime she damn well pleases... in fact I would happily watch her go."

"Never going to happen"Eye flick.

Nashya then rolled her eyes, leaning back more in the grass before plopping down entirely not really having much of an appetite anymore. "I really do wish you would just go..."

The voice in her mind fell silent, Nashya able to feel that it was refraining from speaking further. She knew it had a plan for her, if not it would have left ages ago. And then she realized she had just openly talked to her other self in front of Sano.

Shooting up from the grass she held both of her hands in front of her in an apologetic gesture. "Not you! I don't want you to go! I meant her!" Nashya looked to the right as if it were standing next to her. No longer did she worry about Sano thinking she was crazy talking to it, but instead realized he may not always know when she was addressing it. "My partner says I flick my eyes when I talk to it. That is how he can tell whether I am talking to him or her."

A recent memory then caused her to giggle a bit. "Like when you threw the knife at that house yesterday..."

Well, just between us narrators, Sano finds alot of that 'Shoot yourself in the foot' stuff to be pretty terrible, overall.  It IS an actual saying they have in Connlaoth, thanks to the invention of the cannon, and generally refers to what sort of utter moron you'd have to be to shoot yourself in the foot...with this artillary weapon.  That's neither here nor there, and now we resume the story with Sano just sighing and going "Figures." to the shadow not caring about what it does.  Naturally, he did not know as much as Nashya did about what fuels a shadow.  The hatred and fear part was certainly new.

"I expected she did that because of her personality."

Sano, meanwhile, did not mistake Nashya talking out-loud for talking to him, since she was just talking about happily watching her shadow go.  He raised his hand in a 'calm down' kind of gesture when she became agitated there.

"It's okay, I knew it that time."

Yeah, other times, he hadn't noticed anything out of the ordinary, of course.  Nashya did state that she tended to look off to the side when addressing the evil shadow.  Perhaps, in her mind's eye, that's where it was.  Still, he was only thinking NOW about times in which she'd been like that.  Like...yeah, like the house.  Sano facepalmed as she began to laugh.

"I killed an innocent house over nothing..."

This sudden melodrama (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/LargeHam) was deliberately spoken in satire.  He played it up even more as he spread his arms out and shouted at the heavens.

"Curse the skills that've made me throw first and ask questions later!"

Then, he returned to normal, after that.

"I was also drunk at the time.  Well, a little."

Relieved that Sano was able to tell Nashya plopped back down in the grass only to shoot back up seconds later as he yelled at the sky. At first she thought he was losing his damn mind but quickly realized he was joking around. The act alone caused her to burst into laughter, even after he returned to normal.

"You drunk?" Her voice immediately shifted to sarcasm. "I could never have imagined!" After all... he did throw a knife at a house.

"So Sano... I really am happy you decided to stay." Blushing Nashya looked down at the grass, plucking bits of it while creating a small pile in front of her. "It means more to me than you know."

It was true that Nashya was touched he decided to stay. While part of her was convinced it was only for the ease of communication another part hoped it was for more. With each passing second she spent with him the more 'feelings' began to blossom in her chest. She was starting to think she was losing her mind (the irony) from it.

Every single time Sano did something funny she was breaking it down in her mind trying to find some kind of hidden meaning behind it. Of course she wasn't foolish to fall in love with him, those things take time. However, she would be an idiot to if she tried to deny that there wasn't some kind of stronger connection growing.

And so, a decidedly pleasant moment of laughter was shared.  After the two of them could catch their breath, Sano had been just looking the area over when he heard Nashya thanking him for staying around, shifting his attention back to her.  You know, as much as she had a specific direction she looked in for dealing with her shadow, it seemed that she averted her gaze a number of times around him when speaking to him.

Part of him was straining to determine if it was just him, or if it was because she - admittedly - hadn't had much experience in dealing with people on the personal level.  Another part of him was trying to determine whether or not it was similar or different from the only other affection he'd ever known, and how he should feel about that.  He had a lack of experience on such matters.  Perhaps the best way to address that is just...to do so.

Sano - feeling just a hair more nervous than wary - entwined his fingers with one another.

"The thing is, Nashya...  You know I haven't had much experience outside my town, getting to know people.  I'm on this journey to find associates to kill a monster, but...I think this'll be the first time I found something more, someone to honestly connnect with.  And you were right that I shouldn't just leave that after only a couple of days."

A bond as strong as this was the reason he started this crazy journey.  He couldn't just cast another one aside like that.  It'd seem wrong to do so.

Eyes still downcast Nashya plucked another piece of grass as Sano spoke, still too nervous to look him in the eye. She knew she was plucking at more than just the grass in front of her, but also at the delicate thing growing between them. One wrong move and she could destroy the thing entirely... so delicate.

"I could say the same thing. It's just really hard for me to tell what you are thinking." Nashya was beginning to run out of blades of grass to pluck so instead opted for fidgeting her fingers in her lap, only glancing at Sano every few seconds as she grew more nervous.

"I've never had someone be as kind to me as you are. Usually I am played off as crazy after the first few moments of a conversation. Part of me is still wondering if this is still some kind of big joke." Finally she mustered enough courage to look at him, but her posture suggested she was anything but confident about any of this.

"I like you Sano... a lot." There... she said it. Despite how afraid she was she wanted to lay it out there. "And if I am understanding what you just told me I think you like me to. From the moment we actually started talking I could sense a connection." Nashya then pointed at her head. "And from the moment she started chiming in I knew it meant more to me than I thought."

Lowering her hand she then averted her gaze again, not able to help it at this point. "You make me nervous and scared yet excited and happy at the same time." The more she went on the more foolish she felt.

"You make me regret a lot of things only because it hinders what we could have." Now she was referring to her work. Nashya hadn't told anyone at Golden Gear about Sano and quite honestly was scared to death to do so. They would either try to drag him in, which she didn't want. Or they would try and get rid of her newest distraction... definately didn't want that.

He wanted to say something after her first comment, but it looked as though she wanted to say more, so he just let her go until she wanted to stop.  It...was definitely worth it.  What Nashy said started to bring clarity to the uncertainty he'd been wrestling with, in regards to her.  He knew, of course, why it was that he reacted to her differently.  The two of them were just different from whatever the rest of society considered normal.  That much was just a result of who they were.  Other people may not be able to handle this.  Those who've been through hell are just different.

The rest, though...  There was...an unknown feeling that seemed to grow in strength as Nashya spoke her feelings about him, the good and the bad.  He wasn't sure how to describe it.  He hadn't been mistaking it the whole time!  Sano had thought he was mistaking it, and all the while he himself felt exactly as she herself suspected.  When she spoke that part, he gave her a nod to confirm, just so she knew.  He found her to be unique and bright, despite the shadow resting in her mind.  That she coped with it was a sign of strength, something he could respect.  How 'tolerant' did someone have to be?  There were men who would kill for beauty like that, and it wraps itself around that of a powerful and intelligent shadowmancer.  Some people are complete and utter fools.

It was surprising to see how he invoked so many different emotions in her.  Sano had assumed it was just him having trouble nailing it down.  Happiness and excitement, fear and regret...  He knew the regret must have meant in regards to the elusive Golden Gear.  Yes, the mysterious obligations...  Something about that had an ominous feel to it, but somehow he felt that if Nashya's work were more terrible than merely killing people for various reasons, she might have told him already, just to warn him away from such things.  Her work and his quest...  Boundaries standing in their path.  That revelation, on top of all others, forced an exhale of exasperation - when that Nashya could understand him having - from his nostrils as he de-twined his fingers to lay them on his knees, his head tilted down for the moment.

"Everything you've said resonates like steel to me.  I didn't realize how close I was to the truth of the matter.  I'm glad I wasn't fooling myself."

He added a small smile the last part, but Sano was still largely in Serious Mode.

"I would have to be an idiot to take you for a joke, Nashya.  There's no way that a man who's been on the wrong end of prejudice and misunderstanding could ever see you as crazy, certainly not one who lived with an assassin, so you can put those thoughts as far from your head as possible.  I'm not an impossibly deep man.  It's not my nature to lead people along."

He now turned his head up to look at her.

"My quest is something I do for one who's done so much for me.  If not for that, I would honestly try to make a life here.  I could still after I'm done.  From what you've said about your work - or more importantly, what you haven't said - it isn't the kind of thing I want to be associated with, or at least not what you would want me to be in, for my sake.  I'm not sure how to resolve that obstacle, but as I feel the way you do, I wouldn't say no to trying."

The more Sano spoke the happier Nashya was that she had finally laid it all out there. He felt the same way she did and now they both faced certain obstacles that made things only slightly more difficult. Maybe the issue with Golden Gear wasn't as bad as she was making it out to be. Maybe by the grace of some god Cyn would understand and do nothing at all.

She didn't have anything else to say as Sano continued, telling her he wouldn't say no to trying. Slowly her smile returned, resonating into every fiber of her being. Before yesterday Nashya was living life  one day at a time. Everything was passing by in a blur as she was stuck in her own horrible world. She had convinced herself that her 'true' self would be alone forever. She was merely a pawn in a game of chess, one that inevitably would be sacrificed for the a game to be won.

The only reason she ever joined Golden Gear was because she thought it was her only option. Cyn offered a resolution to her problem that would fix everything, and worse case it gave her purpose. She couldn't really tell Sano that exact details of what she did, not yet, but she knew eventually she would have to if they were going to make this thing work. First she needed to talk to Cyn... she needed to suggest the idea of her having something outside of their little 'circle'. Yes, that was how she was going to do it. Tell Cyn a theoretical story of what things would be like if she had someone outside of Golden Gear and gauge how she acted.

If the result was negative Nashya would say nothing more and then figure something out. Yes... it was the perfect plan.

"You can't leave Golden Gear... you know that." Eye flick

"Of course I know that." Her voice was shaky as she began to talk to herself.

Her eyes then looked up to Sano and she smiled again, as if looking at him wiped away anyting negative churning inside of her. "So where do we go from here?"

Rather than feel a pawn in someone's game, Sano's life had been more like crooked Blackjack, where you have to cheat to win, and he did, in his own fashion.  Now that he was out of that, the analogy sort of falls apart, because he has alot more control of his life.  It's just that certain aspects of it confuse him.  This, though, it was all clear now, and he hoped it to remain that way.  Their obstacles were...

Well, let's put it this way: You know how a carpenter looks at his hammer and sees every problem as some kind of nail?  Sano believed that his training could get him through everything...which wasn't exactly true, because he had trouble recognizing certain things, like the difference between the affections he might've shared with Keefe, and the ones he could get here.  In Keefe's case, it might've been more familial.  He'd been uncertain, but that was because he frankly hadn't known many of the female persuasion personally.

He noticed that Nashya was talking to her shadow again.  It seemed to him that she was doing what Sano himself had been doing, which was trying to figure a way around whatever trouble the Golden Gear was.  She was alright with continuing, though, and had a question.

"Physically or metaphorically?"

He held up a hand, then, to stop her before she could comment.

"No, wait.  Lemme try both."

He put on a thoughtful face now.

"Metaphorically, we let this continue the pace it's been going and it'll probably turn out fine.  If you meant the other way, we finish lunch and then I leave that up to you, because I ended up with some quiet hobbies due to having been physicaly exhausted by training."

Meaning, of course, that Sano was well-read, by nature.

Jumping right out of the gate Sano answered her question, the answer alone causing her eyes to go wide and her face to flush a bright shade of red. She was about to say something but before she could even get her lips to part he was holding a hand up.

Even his explanation left her completely lost on what he meant. Obviously the metaphorically part was clear, but the quiet hobbies bit almost had her afraid. Why did everything have to be so confusing!? Why did her mind immediately jump to the worst possible thing when he said he had 'hobbies'!?

"Wh...What hobbies?" She was almost afraid to ask, even if it was impossible for her to be more embarrassed than she already was. Her mind was already in the gutter and at this point it seemed all hope was lost of her returning back to normalcy on her own.

Completely frustrated with herself Nashya flung herself back in the grass again, placing an arm over her eyes as she tried to further hide the embarrassment of not having any idea what he was talking about.

"Ready for me to take over?" the voice in her head teased.

"Shut up! You are not helping!"

That reaction seriously surprised him.  He was glad that he hadn't even gotten halfway to resuming lunch, because he was sure he might've inhaled something the wrong way as he watched her.  Wasn't she...jumping to conclusions a little?  Or was his wording really that bad?  He was just making a joke about his habits back home, not delivering innuendo!  This culminated in the shadow obviously having said something unwanted and Nashya telling it to shut up.  Sano leaned over so that he could see her properly past he stump.

"Can I get a word in here, maybe?"

He was trying to maintain a good humor over this.  Perhaps it wasn't helping.

"Nashya, I meant that I did alot of reading after training.  I never had that kind of relationship with Keefe."

Admittedly, since we're alluding to that, it might be strangely relaxing right after a session.  The subject matter then caught onto his mind, as well, but he wasn't just going to jump into that...

"I wouldn't be suggesting something that you might not be comfortable with right now."

"No you can't" The voice in her mind answering Sano as if he could hear it himself.

Nashya moved her arm from over her eyes just enough to peak at Sano, who was now leaning over the stump looking at her.

If death from embarrassment was possible, Nashya would have died ten times over by now. Even more so when he began explaining himself. "Ohhhh!" A sigh of relief slowly escaping after that. "You like to read.... got it." She then covered her face again, the redness never going away as now she felt silly for so much more.

"You.... are an idiot"

"I know I am" she agreed with her innerself for once.

It's not that she was a prude or anything. It was just so much for her to digest at once and of course she would jump to conclusions.

Still laying in the grass with her arm covering her eyes Nashya couldn't bring herself to remove it. In just a few moments her arm had become something of a security blanket, as if there was no way he could see her beneath it. Even worse now that it was brought up she couldn't get the subject out of her mind.

"You mind is officially in the gutter isn't it?"

"Yep" she answered plainly to herself, completely disappointed in where she allowed her thoughts to travel.

Her embarrassment was so palpable that Sano couldn't help but smile.  Whatever relationship they might be having, Sano honestly hoped that it remained a good one.  Honestly, if she did want to get closer at this point, he wasn't sure he'd be able to object.  But that was Sano actually putting his mind in the gutter, and he probably wasn't gonna vocalize that one.

"Yeah, I did that alot, since my body had been overworked and my mind was the only part that wasn't exhausted.  Not really helpful to two people."

He had to pause and watch as she was talking to her other self again.  It sounded like she was agreeing with her over something.  No idea what, of course.  He was only hearing half of the conversation.  Instead of engaging it directly, he decided on a funny quip.

"So, is the grass really that comfortable?"

Peaking past her arm once more Nashya saw that Sano was now smiling at her. Quickly, her arm covered her eyes again as this had now becoming somewhat of a game. She listened as he talked about how reading was the only thing he hadn't exhausted throughout the day. It made sense actually, she knew all too well the feeling of exhaustion while your mind still was running a mile a minute.

He then led into a question, one that caused her to move her arm just the slightest bit again so that she could see him. "The most comfortable" she giggled before moving her arm over her eyes yet again.

Slowly she moved her arm once more... yep it had become a game.

"As soft as the most expensive bed made from the most elaborate stuffing's.... I may as well be laying on a bed fit for royalty." She giggled again, clearly over elaborating the hard ground.

Covering her eyes once more she was still smiling, actually having completely forgotten about the embarrassment she threw herself into moments before.

Can one really make a game out of embarassment?  Well, if one did, it was surely to get out of it fast, because suddely Nashya seemed to be enjoying herself down there.  Now, he could see how he was provoking all those emotions.  She just didn't know what to feel or how to react.  It made sense, really.  Though, right now, the mood appeared to be 'fun, which he definitely wanted in on.

As Nashya described the softness of the ground she lay upon, it seemed only fair that he test it out, himself.  Once she had covered her eyes again, Sano moved around the stump so he could lie back on he ground next to her.  It might be that the first she heard of it was a decided 'Thump' and possibly an "Oof." on contact with said ground.  Regardless, the following report came to pass.

"I think you embellished, slightly."

Granted, it was sunny out, but this was not really all that soft at all.

She moved her arm the slightest bit to look at Sano who was not where she last saw him. Quickly she covered her eyes again only to have where he really was revealed with the thump on the ground next to her. Her smile quickly returned and she began to laugh that he actually believed her when she said the ground was so comfortable.

"I did no such thing!" she joked as she finally took her arm off of her face and instead placed it under her head. "It truly is magnificent." She nudged his side with her arm before pointing at the sky above them.

"Just picture the clouds as your cushion and the earth suddenly becomes the most welcoming feeling under your back." 

She then took her free arm and laid it over her stomach, staring at the clouds as they passed by. "I didn't mean to make things so awkward." She took in a deep breath as she continued to look at the sky above, completely mesmerized with the imagery of it.

"I tend to jump to the worst possible scenario...." she paused realizing that may have come out wrong. "Not saying that would be the worst thing ever. I just meant...." Suddenly her cheeks were red again. Taking the arm from under her head and the other from her stomach she placed her hands on her face, once again landing herself where she was just moments ago.

"Ugh! I am so awful with words sometimes"

She would find him chuckling at her commentary on the ground, then actually shutting his eyes to see if a lack of visuals could help him float.  Well...he found that he could lose his grasp of the surroundings, save for Nashya's presence, but not much more than that.  On his right, she was explaining how her mind worked, which of course caused her to trip on her words again because she was right back in the gutter.

"I know what you mean, Nashya.  You've been looking for the hidden message, even if one wasn't being made."

Really, it was something else in her life she had had to overcome, having not dealt with people - presumably - unless it was in the dealings of the Golden Gear.

"Just take your time, and if you're really not sure what I mean, just ask.  Honestly, it's fine.  I was taught to be clear with those I trust."

The cloud thing wasn't working, but it was certainly relaxing, just being out here with her, just being a pair who are lazing about in the sunshine.

So he trusted her? She smiled at that and slowly moved her hands from her face. Nashya was glad that he was beginning to understand how she worked, almost figuring out what she was doing before she even knew.

Turning on her side to face him, propping her head up Nashya blinked at him. "Okay fine. If I am ever curious I will just ask. And since you trust me I will trust you not to run away when I ask something completely crazy."

She smiled again before adjusting herself a bit, still on her side facing him. In fact this was the closest she had been to him since she met him. It was her first chance to really take him in and study his features. He really did have a delightful face and best yet his eyes were closed so she could stare at him as long as she wanted without dealing with the anxiety of looking him in the eye.

In fact, she leaned in a bit closer not even thinking of the possibility of him opening his eyes in that moment.

When she put it that way, it might put one to thinking that she was now planning to come up with a series of questions that were made to put him to the test by shunting him into awkward positions, in order to see how he responded to them.  This wasn't paranoia, though.  This was a possibility of her doing so deliberately for fun.  He could probably live with that, or even if this was not the case and that Nashya truly believed that whatever may appear in her mind was insane, even though he wouldn't believe so himself.

Of course, Sano had to wonder just what she might find herself asking that he would not be able to run away from.  This could be one helluva trial.  Still, it wasn't in his nature to back down from a challenge.  Not a pride thing, but more of a need to handle things as they come than leave them unattended.  Things like that can get worse if you don't answer them, anyway.  Sano would rather feel that he had Nashya's trust, even if it may lead to unusual times down the line.

Now, because he had been sort of racking his mind on what he might have to answer, just trying to anticipate a few points, he had failed to consider...her current silence.  Since they were both lying down, he assumed from previous movement that Nashya had taken a more comfortable position and was simply resting there.  He didn't reconsider this until he was sure that he heard the sound of her breathing...rather close by.  The possibility of his eyes opening to investigate certainly did exist, as it was only natural instinct.  Sano had a second instinct, though: Play dead.  You never expect an attack from one lying motionless and out of sorts.  He wasn't going to attack, obviously.  He lay still, eyes shut, to 'see' what she was up to.  Sudden movements might make him react, but for now, he was static.

Still staring at Sano she crept in even closer, raising a brow at his lack of movement.

"He's dead! Thank the gods!" Eye Flick

However, Nashya could see his chest still rising and falling ever slightly and dismissed the thought. Then a devilish smile crept upon her lips as she quietly lifted her free hand and hovered it over his side.

"First question....." and then she assaulted him, poking at his side in different spots over and over again. "... ticklish?"

Sitting up she continued with her assault, now having both hands to poke at him with. One was repeatedly poking at his side while with the other she reached over him and began to poke the otherside. By gods if he was ticklish she was determined to find the spot!

sigh..."I can't watch this anymore. It is unbearable."

What?

"I don't-"

That's about as far as he got before she started poking and prodding his sides.  Some of the spots barely had a reaction or no reaction at all, especially in the part where she found ribs, since there wasn't much give there.  In other spots...where there was not really bone, but soft flesh...she would find his body unvoluntarily lurching and Sano looking more like he was trying to hold in the laughter this was going to bring about.

Keep it together!  Strength is key!

However, Nashya had let loose a merciless assault, especially when she found which spots in his sides were more reactive than others and began to poke there more, as a result.  Sano appeared to hold out for a while due to sheer willpower because he began to deflate with some snerking that finally gave out into a proper fit of laughter!  By George, I think he's ticklish!  ...who's George?  Nevermind!  Oh!  It looks as though he's trying to communicate!  Hmmm...  It's a little hard to understand through the laughter and catching of one's breath, but it seems to be an inquiry on 'I get a turn when you're done, right?'.  Uh oh.

Biting her lip she concentrated all of her efforts on tickling Sano in all the right spots. At first she wasn't sure he was going to cave, his strength mirroring that of a mighty warrior. But then even that facade fell and he bursted out in laughter causing Nashya to continue with her assault.

"You are!" she laughed as her hands went up and down his sides.

But then she realized he was trying to say something. What was it? Something about a turn? She paused her assault for a second to try and understand and when she did her eyes went wide.

"I don't think so!" she yelled before quickly attempting to begin her assault again, hoping she didn't allow him enough time to gather his wits. In truth Nashya didn't even know if she was ticklish. She knew she was when she was a child, a spot behind her knee usually being the place that slayed her. But that had been so long ago she wasn't even sure if that worked anymore.

There is no hope!  All is lost!  He had failed in his righteous duty to hold off the explosion and now he was having an uncontrollable fit of laughter, thanks largely to the dark-haired woman sitting by his side, 'torturing' him.  He had attempted to get some words out, but it'd taken a great deal of effort to be understood, at that point.  The look on her face while she had paused had sent him into another short fit, but it was worth it.  Totally worth it.

Besides, he had a counter-attack to stage!  He knew nothing of her weakpoints, but he could at least try about the same area, for starters.  That was after he touched base with Point B, of course.  Oh, I beg your pardon.  Point B?  That would be the belly button.  Most people would recoil once poked there, usually in surprise.  It would - he hoped - give him an opening for his attack.  Quickly, he brought forth the poking hand to commence the operation!

The battle she thought for sure won, the prize being the everlasting victor of a battle that would be remembered for ages! However, Nashya then felt something strange on her stomach. So strange in fact it caused her to stop tickling Sano entirely as her body seized up. What was this? Why did she feel like every muscle in her body was doing flips under her skin?

The feeling alone caused her to giggle a bit before suddenly feeling like she needed to protect her stomach from him. However it was too late, the damage was already done and before she knew it she was the one on the ground laughing so hard it was hard to get a word in edgewise.

Sano seemed to be quite skilled in at this battle of tickling and Nashya clearly was taken by surprise. There was no hope of recovery as her laughter rang out and eyes began to water. She couldn't even tell him to stop with how hard she was laughing. She even made a few futile attempts to try and tickle him again, but it was useless. Every time he touched her side her hands recoiled in an attempt to protect the area he was tickling.

Curse you Sano you fiend!

He was never going to happen upon the old spot, except by accident.  Only sound tactics were going to give him any real chance of retaliation.  Fortunately, they seemed to work!  He'd managed to find an opening and bring Nashya to the ground, causing her to reel in uncontrollable laughter after Point B had collapsed.  It worked!  Dear gods, it worked!  And a wonderous sight it was to behold...

He had had to work quickly on this, because of course he was still barely in control himself and chuckling like mad by proxy of her infectious laughter.  It was, after it seemed that she had barely the strength to lift an arm, that he began to recognize her attempts to get her to stop.  This, he reasoned to be a good idea, because otherwise one of 'em was gonna rupture something.

Still recovering, himself, Sano did end his assault and collapsed on his stomach next to her, starting to catch his breath finally, in earnest.  There was still the errant snicker in the air, regardless of said efforts.  He shut his eyes and hoped that she wasn't in the mood for a RE-retaliation.  He smiled, though not from what they'd been engaged in, but rather something he thought of just that moment.  Kind of a knowing smile.

"Well...I didn't run.  Or couldn't...  you decide."

Just when she thought she couldn't take anymore Sano ceased the attack on her body. It seemed he was laughing just as hard as she was from it and so the two practically died from exhaustion when it was all over.

Sano then chimed in stating the obvious. He was right... he didn't run, but then again it wasn't really a question as more as a means to an end in battle.

Laying on her back once more she placed an arm under her head as she had done before. "Sano?" She shifted her head to the side to look at him now reeling from all of the questions she could ask him. "What is your greatest fear?"

She wasn't quite sure what prompted the question, or why she felt the need to ask it right now. Perhaps, it was one of the many that were already beginning to burn in the back of her mind. Obviously everyone had a greatest fear.. that one thing they were afraid was going to happen to them in life. Nashya knew hers, easily she could pull one fear from the many she carried and place it at the top of the imaginary list.

Most of all thought it was a chance to get to know him more. Something she could use to aid her in the process of getting to know him more than she knew herself. Honestly she wanted to know everything about him, only so she could lock him forever in her mind. She wanted it all the good, the bad and the ugly.

He had taken to resting his head on his arms so that he wouldn't have to eat grass to talk or breathe now.  Seemed reasonable enough, being not of he grazing variety.  Sano was beginning to calm down there when Nashya then asked a question that had to be the polar opposite of what he'd just been through.  His greatest fear?  He needed to think on that one for a moment. 

Externally, Nashya could see that the question took him by surprise for a moment, some confusion registering, but then the gears appeared to be turning, as it was clearly something that he'd never been asked before.  Given that it wasn't the first time Nashya had done that, this wouldn't entirely be unexpected.  Even still, he did give her an answer, knowing - of course - that her shadow would probably be licking its chops right about now.

"I've had plenty of them.  They changed, over the years."

He was going over memories in kind of a sober reflection.

"My father was the first, of course.  He's the one who gave me black hair and red eyes, which is unusual in Connlaoth.  He hated himself for being different and he hated me for not being the one to break the chain that followed in the family.  He became my fear for a while, before and after I was thrown out.  Once I realize he wasn't planning to hunt me down, though, I feared everyone giving me looks, thinking they were just going to crush me underfoot.  This went right along with Mordecai.  I was in a bad way, out there.  Fear came easy."

He turned on his side to face her, but he was still looking at the ground.

"Keefe arguably tore away all fear, as she took me right out of the country and into somewhere safe.  As harsh as she could get, I felt safe...at least until the curse almost killed her.  I don't I'll ever forget...  The blood, just..."

There was a moment, right there, where Sano's eyes unfocused and his mouth began to move wordlessly.  He was seeing the scene of him stabbing Keefe open to force the cursed blood to blast out before it could tear out and kill her, an area that almost killed her anyway, but...thank the gods she bought potions from medicine lady in La'Marri.  Sano seemed to recover there, shaking his head.

"Sorry, that's the most terrifying moment, but I guess the fear is that that bastard will finish the job, and that when I find out, he's either there waiting or left a sign saying 'You're next'.  Or maybe it's me being cursed by blood the same as Keefe was, or that others around me that I know or care about..."

He sighed, shaking his head some more.

"I'm rambling, aren't I?  I'll never have just one fear as the greatest, just alot of things that can happen alongside each other."

Shifting her head again she was now looking at the sky as Sano began to answer. It was easy to see that her question had caught him off guard, but at least this time she didn't try to find some hidden meaning in his hesitation.

As he began to speak Nashya sighed, ready to compare his fears to hers so that perhaps she could feel a little less crazy. However, quickly it seemed that would not be the case. At first he was afraid of his father, an understandable feeling after what he had told her about him. Then he dove into detail about Keefe, the woman that Nashya had now placed as someone she wished would have been in her life when she was younger.

There was no jealousy, it didn't even cross her mind as she thought of how Keefe made Sano into the man she was now laying next to. It was completely understandable how Sano felt he had to avenge her curse in some way. Turning her head back towards him Nashya saw how his eyes had changed, like he was playing something in his mind. This feeling she knew all too well... the nightmares lingering in ones thoughts.

Nashya couldn't help but feel like Sano needed something from her right there, something to ground him from the thoughts and fears rampaging through his mind. Shifting back on one of her arms to face him she watched him shake his head as if he was shoving all of those fears back into the place he kept them.

"Sano...." She was lost for words as she tried to think of something to say. Part of her now regretted asking the question, only because she could visually see it had made him feel things she never considered. Then again, if she hadn't asked then she would have never seen him as she did now.

"When you go to Connlaoth I am coming with you." She laid back again, looking up above as she revealed what she was planning to do from the start. "I was originally going to use the letter you sent me before you attacked to locate you. I can travel... a long distance if I need to." She swallowed as she thought of using the darkness that she hated so much to locate him. It was the same darkness that flooded her dreams with nightmares every time she closed her eyes. The darkness like a neverending pool of still and black water as she waded through it. "Cyn and Demagogue will understand... I think." She furrowed her brow as she played how that conversation would go over with the two.

"I will show that vampire what fear really is." And as if bringing up the subject itself even her darker self chimed in.

"We will show it what fear really is." Eye Flick

Nashya nodded to herself, yet another rare moment where both halves were in complete agreement.

"You know the same goes for you. Don't hesitate to ask me anything..."

He didn't fear fear.  He respected fear as a warning - a caution - to beware of the encrouching danger.  Fear did not drive him whimpering into a corner.  Well, maybe not since he was a boy, anyway.  As he grew older, it became his instinct for survival.  Not cowardice, cautiousness.  Sano knew when the tides were turning, when to seek higher ground, and so on.  Nashya didn't have to worry too much about him.  Just...that one moment had been easily the most-shocking and traumatizing thing in his life, and he didn't need to kill this vampire simply out of revenge.  He had to do something to make the memory stop appearing in his head.

His disowning was more like despair, or a slow death.  The vampire threatened the basis of his stability, those which he valued highly.  With Keefe, it was mostly her, though you could extend that to the people of La'Marri.  I mean, if they asked him for help, he wouldn't turn them down.  He was in their community.  That much would be fair.  It could be said that Sano didn't even have a direction to take his life, not until something essentially threatened it.  Now, it was strange, but he felt more focused about things, more cued in on how it should be in his life.  Of course, there was always a surprise from out of the blue, like...

"Wait, you're going?"

That's what she said.  This made him sit up and pay attention.  It was the first that he'd heard this.  No objections, mind you, but he did not expect that.  He knew nothing of the travel power, nor this intention, all of a sudden.  She also mentioned two people he was unfamiliar with, but given what she knew of her, she had to have been talking about Golden Gear people, the organization she was with.  Afterwhich, she told him that he too could ask anything...  He'd thought about that, but he didn't want to assume.  However, there were things that Sano wanted to know, and that included the Golden Gear.  He would've settled for that, but for two things.  First, her group may still require the secrecy, if nothing else.  And second, Nashya had asked kind of a big one, herself.  He should at least ask a big one and see where it led.  So...

"Alright.  I'll ask this, then: A number of times now, you have talked about going insane, being insane, or people thinking you're insane.  Maybe it's because I'm different, but I don't see it.  Why do you?  In Connlaoth, you'd have the devil's own time explaining, but not here.  Don't you think that you're too harsh on yourself?"

Nodding at his first question Nashya assumed the second wouldn't be as in depth as her own. She was quickly proven wrong...

"He doesn't cut corners does he?" Eye flick.

So this was what it was like to be asked something so deep. "I'm not harsh on myself... I just know what I am." Nashya didn't flinch at Sano sitting up from her earlier declaration, and now she was kind of happy he did. This way she could still comfortably lay on the grass and talk to him at the same time, not having to turn her head everytime she wanted to make eye contact with him.

"I know that I am crazy. It's as simple as that." She shrugged a bit before pulling her arm from under her head and crossing both on her stomach, her eyes still set on Sano.

"You don't see it I guess, but I know how people look at me. I know the looks and whispers when someone overhears the girl who talks to herself. Or how those that try to get to know me are thrown off by my hot and cold personality." She lifted a hand up to playfully point at him. "Just you wait until she catches me off guard. I do my best to keep her locked in here." She then averted her pointed finger to her head as she had many times before. "But sometimes she breaks through... ask the innkeeper."

"Not to mention my clearly horrid socialization skills. Do you not recall? I told you that when you first walked up to me I was so afraid. Not because you yourself were something scary to look at." She then eyed him suggestively, clearly letting it be known that he was the exact opposite of anything scary looking.

"Talking to new people scares the living daylights out of me. I am always sitting there thinking they must think I am crazy... or have some form of mental handicap because my eyes constantly flick. So now I just... I don't know." Her mood seemed to be less bright and shiny at that... clearly having upset herself. "Who wants to get to know someone like that without some kind of ulterior motive?"

Right from the get-go, the first part of her reply - the part about proclaiming herself crazy - caused him to give a look that was skeptical in the 'Come on' sense.  Calling herself that was exactly what he meant.  She seemed to do it on the basis of everybody else, when she herself knew otherwise, in truth.  Nevertheless, he did not interrupt.  He watched as Nashya continued on, telling of how people perceive her, plus the areas in which the shadow takes the reins.  Sano did manage a smirk when she mentioned his not-at-all scary nature.  Even still, it seemed like she had exactly the problem she described, to him.  Yes, other people were shit, but we all know how much their opinion (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KHJbSvidohg) is worth, right?  Once she was done, he had to answer to her question.

"Well, there are - of course - oblivious people, like me.  But aside from all that, even if other people might think differently and that you would have a hard time explaining to some of them, you know your circumstances.  You're a shadowmancer with a shadow in your mind.  Can any spell-slinging Serenian fail to understand?"

Magic goes wrong, sometimes.  Anyone who hasn't heard of that or hasn't had it happen at times isn't really a practicioner of the arts.  More of a hobby-mage, if that.

"Well, I don't think you're crazy and I never will.  People have had issues talking with people without being crazy before.  My father thought that he and I were both monsters because our family had black hair and red eyes.  The eyes, I admit, are weird.  Not for this country, but I am definitely from Connlaoth.  I may have been born with magic and, in retrospect, maybe our appearance was a sign, but I am not a monster or a blight on the community or whatever, and you're not crazy."

Sitting up to face Sano Nashya narrowed her eyes a bit when he made mention of red eyes. "I am happy you don't think I am crazy." Truly she was, more than she was letting on. Nashya really was quite fond of Sano already, the biggest draw being that he treated her normally.

He did have a point though, he was no more a monster to his country as she was crazy to him. I guess it was all who was perceiving them that made them into their greatest fears. "I personally find that those with red eyes tend to be the most beautiful." She then smiled, flipping her hair over her shoulder cockily. Here they were coming off of such a deep conversation and Nashya was already throwing jokes.

Not only did Sano have red eyes, but Nashya's bore a shade quite similar. Sometimes it depended on the lighting, other times perhaps even her mood, but her eyes were most definitely a lighter shade of red but red nonetheless. "Oh and don't even get me started on dark hair." She flipped her hair again just to make a point before extending a hand and touching his own hair. She ruffled it with her hands for a moment before giggling. "Such monsters..."

Hey, when nobody else treats you normally, and what you want is that very thing, you're oh-so-definitely gratified when somebody does.  He wasn't going to think of her as crazy.  Her life was crazy is all.  There's a difference.  Her comment about red eyes put a smile on his face as he nodded in agreement.

"Some people carry it better than others."

Jokes, eh?  Is that what we're doing?  Are we to be considered 'At play'?  Well, if they could flip back and forth from serious to not, perhaps that's what it was.  Then again, it may be that they were simply two people that could handle it, especially now when they've personally dealt with so much.  Nashya commented amusingly on black hair, giving him a sudden ruffle.

"Oh, I dunno.  If it were that bad, how could I even be born?  I assume my mother didn't mind.  I think dark hair is classy."

He thought so because it made him different.  Even though it caused him trouble, he knew he looked damn good.  Keefe would agree, but then most of her body was this color.  Nashya, he was throwing a compliment or two.  He did like the shine of her eyes and the way her hair contrasted with her as it fell about her.

Nashya's eyes were still locked on Sano as she took the sight of him in. Boy was he a sight to take in, and for some reason now she was completely entranced by him. "Yes... very classy" she joked poking at his hair again.

Taking in a deep breath Nashya then stood up, turning towards the log that still had their food on it. She walked up to it and grabbed the loaf of bread the two had been picking at before coming back to sit beside Sano. Ripping off another piece she first handed some to Sano before taking a piece of her own and plopping it into her mouth.

As the bread dissolved in her mouth she once again found herself reveling in the wondrous flavors within it. She wasn't quite sure what she was doing, other than passing time at this point. Of course she could ask Sano another serious question, but that would only lead them again into the circle of going from serious to joking around.

Not that she hated that idea, but deep down she was dying for something more. Feeling slightly defeated she placed the rest of the bread beside her on the ground, clearly done with the loaf. "It tastes better when its fresh." she added before beginning to pluck at the grass in front of her as she had done earlier.

Except this time she only did it for a few moments before lifting her gaze to meet Sano's, staring into those beautiful red eyes of his. She wasn't sure of what she wanted from him, only that she knew she wanted something.

Looking at him, this may be a point in time where Nashya experiences the feeling Sano got when he was stealing glances, except that she wasn't steeling glasses.  She was taking him in, much as she had been doing when he was lying down, earlier.  Sano wasn't merely stealing either, but definitely looking.  This may've been how 'being a real looker' got started, really.  Joking aside about how awesome Sano was - or not really joking, as the case may be - he was again surprised that somehow Nashya didn't have someone already.  The look of her face, the flow of her hair, the color of her eyes...  Gods, were people blind?

Soon, she stood up and brought the loaf of bread over from the stump, handing him a wad, which he began to partake of wordlessly as she sat down beside him.  She said it tasted better when fresh, and that was true, but good bread tended to be so, regardless of the time bought, as long as it were properly edible still.  He certainly felt so, though it seemed like Nashya was just putting that out there for its own sake.  Something had changed, right there.  That's what Sano was thinking as he chewed the bread that'd been offered to him.

She began to pull at the grass for a moment, he head lowered, which Sano took as a nervous habit.  Nashya had had moments where her nervousness around people, in dealing with a particular moment in time, had her finding something for her hands to do.  He was no mind-reader, but the aversion of her eyes seemed to always accompany it, which was a clear indicator.  He was sure that she was about to broach a serious topic.  They had had their share already, which meant that this was even harder than that

And in a way, he was right...but he was also wrong.  Nashya did not speak.  She gazed directly at him with those lovely bright-crimson eyes, staring past her dark bangs and right into his soul, perhaps.  That look was beyond words, it was a...what?  An aching?  A yearning?  The expression was all she had to convey, a pouring of emotion at him.  It had to be the most beautiful thing he had ever seen.  He remembered her words from before...  Nervous and scared, but happy and excited...  Was this where they converged for her?  It was strange, though...  He sat with this mixed bag of emotion that needed to constantly be sorted, but something as powerful as that gaze brought things into sharp focus while she seemed to have something of an uncertainty at the moment.

Sano, though...  that look put a swell in his chest as he felt the proverbial factory starting up within him.  He'd always been confused about how he should feel about certain people in his past.  He'd tried to make sense of these things in his head, but in the end, it was the heart that won out in explanations.  How had she not ended up with somebody wonderful, when here he wanted to...  Nashya might take in that he had a decided look into her that may have been wonder or may have been something like what was on her own face, perhaps.  Whatever the case, only a short time had progressed since she looked him in the eyes that he acted.

His hand came up and brushed by her bangs on the way past her cheek and to the rear of her cheekbone.  There was a subtly caress there, though what he was doing was working to tilt her head more to meet...well...his.  Namely, as this was happening, he was tilting his own down so that his lips could find hers, to press softly into a kiss, a first and experimental one to see if this was the answer that her very being sought.

As she stared Nashya could see the wheels turning in Sano's mind. "Just jump", for once an inner thought of her very own. And then... he did.

First he brushed a curled strand from her face while letting his fingers brush along her cheekbone. The action alone sent a chill up her spine and caused the hairs on her arms to stand on end. His touch alone ignited a fire under her skin, one that warmed every inch of her body. Surprisingly she wasn't nervous or even blushing when he did it. Biting her bottom lip she tilted her head at the command of his palm allowing for her lips to finally meet his in a welcomed connection between the two.

She could feel her inner self protesting against the very act but she did not care, the words all blurring into one inaudible mumble within the confines of her mind. All that mattered right now to her was Sano and nothing else.

Pulling herself back their lips parted and instantly Nashya could feel the coldness sweeping her body and it was an unwelcome feeling. She looked into his crimson eyes with a passion she had never displayed towards any other being. Never before even in her past did she feel something as deeply rooted as her feelings towards this man. So quickly he had etched his way past cascading walls of her heart. This was all new to her, a feeling of something she had never known. Nashya couldn't take her eyes off of him, no matter how much she tried she just couldn't pull them away.

Lifting her own hand Nashya placed it on the back of his neck, pulling him towards her once more so that there lips could meet again, kissing him just as she had moments ago. Again she felt her innerself protesting just before everything slipped away in a blur.

Sano would feel Nashya biting his lip this time, but not in the gentle way one would expect. It was bold, hard... enough to draw blood. She then pushed him away and stood up, not saying a word as she walked towards the stump. Without so much as a word Nashya then pushed their lunch into the grass and sat down crossing one of her legs over the other.

"You really do make me sick." Flipping a piece of hair from her face she acted annoyed with his very presence. "Listen here pretty boy. You and I have a problem and if you don't get up and leave Shadowmire right now I will make your life a living hell." Her tone was vile and rigid... nothing at all like the girl he had been talking to the entire day.

For Sano, that sensation of their contact was exhilarating, to say the least.  So, this was what love and affection felt like...what two souls meeting via emotion was like.  Nothing, not even the way he saw Keefe, was quite like this.  In truth, that was because he hadn't had any way to appreciate a proper familial bond either.  That sort of problem can lead to all sorts of difficulties.  Fortunately, this was one that was clearing itself rapidly.  The kiss did not last long, but the pull of her lips as he accepted his own said more than enough.  This was wanted, almost certainly.  It may have been unexpected, but her expression said that he was not doing wrong.

Again, their lips met, this time her own probing into the unknown, to seek out whether this was what she wanted.  With her hand pulling him in, his own had come to rest on her shoulder, and again they were joined.  This warm feeling...he wanted it to envelope them both and never let go.  It was raw joy, thumping excitement, all contained within the beat of their hearts and the locking of lips.  Part way into it, though, Sano felt a pain that could have only come from Nashya, and could have only been her teeth.  Biting?  That's new.  He hadn't been familiar with the practice to know the more pleasant sort of that action, but even still this was a bite-bite, which hurt!

Without warning, Nashya pushed away and stood up, abruptly.  Sano remained upright, but a little shocked, given what'd been happening just a moment ago.  She went over and shoved the remains of lunch right off of the stump - The waste! - and sat down on it instead.  Then, she spoke words - harshly and fiercely - that he would've never expected to hear from her, certainly not after that embrace.  She said he made her sick.

...what?  Wait...

Confusion, at first, but it began to dawn on him as she continued talking.  Her very demeaor had changed, a shift that he had neither seen coming nor been capable of preparing for, given the circumstances.  However, even with that in mind, it was so jarring that he immediately knew what he was dealing with.  Sano's eyes narrowed at her now.

"I see.  So, it's you."

He hadn't been able to imagine what it would be like to suddenly be confronted by the shadow, the being who had taken residence in Nashya's mind.  The closest he'd had to a theory was that something shadowy would happen and there it would be, but it was doing nothing of the sort.  It - She -  had simply taken the reins and begun making demands.  Sano stood up now.

"What's wrong?  Not getting enough fear and loathing in Jadenshire?"

At least it's not bat country...we hope.

"I've no more intention of abandoning her than you do."

This was a problem.  If her shadow had just been an incessant grumbler, that'd been one thing, but it seemed like Nashya's interloper wanted to take a more active role in this, namely that of creating interference.  If they fought, he couldn't injure her.  What goes for one, goes for the other.  Two personalities in one package.  He had no power to deal with that, short of persevering.  The only good thing about this was that now the shadow was putting her cards on the table, making her intentions known.  The unknown was always a problem, but now he had something to confront, at least.

The very demeanor in which this girl carried actually matched what you may think a shadowmancer should portray. She was cold, cynical... pure darkness. Even the light in Nashya's eyes seemed to be extinguished by the presence.

"You're a cocky one... that's for sure" Nashya smirked as she flicked a blade of grass off of her clothing. "You see... you being here is creating a big problem." Taking in an agitated sigh the darker version of herself continued.

"Nashya and I have plans... big plans. Plans that with you in the picture get a bit muddy." Getting up from the stump Nashya then began walking around Sano, circling him just as the shadow manifestation had done the day before.

"I can't keep her focused on the big picture if fantasies of you are playing in her head." The girl then almost looked sick as the imagery played behind her eyes. The scene itself angered her so much that Nashya flicked one of her wrists, causing a shadow cast by the stump to begin to bend and twist as it changed into the creature Nashya was so afraid of the day before.

Unlike the day before though it seemed more obedient as it took its shape, keeping its white eyes downcast while it took its place beside her. "Oh Nashya your not crazy! I don't now why you think people see you like that!" She was mocking him now, laughing at her own one-sided joke. "My daddy hated me and you hate yourself. We are soul mates!" Now she was twisting their words from earlier, trying to take Sano's own fears and use them against him.

"Its pathetic!" As she continued to pace around him the creature followed, its long dark fingers held in front of it as if it was just itching to grab her. Snapping her gaze towards him she then stopped in her tracks, the creature slowly outstretching its hands towards her. "Would hate for something awful to happen to her." She cocked her head to the side hoping Sano would get the message. "It really would be quite tragic..."

Yes, of course the shadow would think he's the problem.  Where did she get cocky?  All of his certainty in life came from an accurate assessment of what he knew he could do.  It was true that he couldn't do anything to the shadow physically, but he knew what it wanted, otherwise they wouldn't be arguing over this now.  In the annuls of his assassin training, there's more than one way to strike a target.  They both had the same weakness: Nashya.  The only question was which one of them could leverage that fact to overcome the other.

The shadow was certainly trying, but Sano was feeling more threatened by Mr. White-Eyes than her mockery and derision.  It was a cold and dispassionate killer, and creepy besides.  It had no plans, it had no motivatiosn, and it needed no one.  Because Nashya's shadow had a more humanized quality to her, she had wants and desires, both of which could be blocked.  Still, she certainly put a definite chill down his spine when she used the tall guy to threaten the body she stood inside.  There was a pause as he took in the scene, chose how he wanted to approach this.

"'Cocky', you said, when you threaten the person you live inside.  I know you don't care about her, but big plans don't happen when you harm the one you seem to need.  I think if you really felt confident, though, you'd be targeting me.  I can't harm her, so it'd be easy, right?  Except you don't know what would happen, do you?  Maybe you lose whatever hope you have of carrying out those plans."

Cocky wasn't it, neither was courageous or stupid, or even just confident or self-assured.  It was just what fit.  The shadow had seen everything, but she had said too much, herself.  She wanted something to come to fruition, but if she believed that harming either of them wouldn't ruin that, she would just kill.  It was cold, dispassionate, and very much like an assassin.  If you can win by killing instead of something overly-complicated and convoluted, why would you do the latter?

Her narcissistic smile faded when she realized her threat wasn't working. Sano had called her bluff before she even really had a chance to flaunt it. He did however pose an even better option though. His suggestion was actually quite dumb on his part... so she thought.

Narrowing her eyes she thought of her options for a moment. "Maybe you are onto something here." Giving no other indication of what she was now planning the shadow figure pulled its arms back. Instead its head slowly turned towards Sano, catching him in its sights like it had before. "I can't kill her without killing myself. I commend you on figuring out my bluff."

Crossing her arms she started pacing again around Sano, eyeing him as if to figure out the best plan of attack to send the beast on. Except, the manifestation never lurched forwards. I mean, it acted as if it wanted to but its eyes kept flicking back to Nashya as if it did not yet have permission.

Of course she wasn't going to let Sano know there was currently a power struggle going on between the two, that would be stupid. She could tell the real Nashya wasn't going to let her harm him so easily. "Useless" she mumbled before flicking her wrist again, sending the creature fading back into the shadow it came from.

"I have a better idea." Once again she was smiling as another idea crossed her mind. "I may not be able to kill her... But...." she paused before walking over to Nashya's bag. Bending down she dug through it and pulled out a small yet thick leather pouch. "She really should keep her stuff more organized. That bag is a disaster."

Maybe the only truly crazy part of Nashya was this shadow living in her mind. I mean after all who in their right mind would pause during a heated discussion to dig through a bag!?

Even holding the small pouch made her feel a bit sick. "I remember when she used to keep this strapped to her side." She laughed as she examined the leather pouch. "You may be from Connlaoth but I am sure you have heard of what Iron does to Serenians? Yes?" She then unfolded the pouch to reveal a small iron dagger. "It wont kill her.... but I would be lying if I didn't say hurting her would be quite pleasant." Then before Sano could even try to dissuade her or intervine she grabbed the dagger and dropped the pouch, burning her hand in the process.

It IS actually possible to be smart and some at the same time.  It was ironic, but Sano was kind of bluffing her into inaction himself by showing that attacking him or damaging Nashya would inevitably lead to a loss of her plans.  He'd demonstrated quick and precise thinking on the matter to close the matter, like he killed it with a knife.  In battle, Sano didn't fool around.  Some fight to fight and others fought for glory.  Sano killed in battle.  He didn't know how else to fight, most of the time.

The part that worried him and made him dip his fingers into his pants' pockets was the part where he was 'onto something' about hurting him, which had sounded like she was going to try to kill him, after all.  After a moment, the shadow decided it was pointless and de-summoned Mr. White-Eyes.  Gods save us from seeing that thing.  Of course, 'better idea' didn't exactly strike confidence in him either.  The big problem with a learned shadow was that while it wasn't a straightforward killer, it was still a killer, and it had nuances.  Those were very dangerous.

This all became a bit strange when the shadow paused to root through Nashya's stuff.  Err, why?  What was she doing, exactly?  It didn't take long for her to get to the gist of the matter.  Yes, he'd heard about that allergy.  It differed in effect from person-to-person, but cold iron most definitely affected Serenians in a harmful way.  So saying, the shadow began to harm Nashya just by holding it!  Sano acted quickly and pulled his fingers from his pocket.  The coin there became a weighted chain and the chain was reacting like a snake, striking hard to knock the dagger from her hand, as well as coil around it and place it in his free hand.  The chain then coiled around the left arm it'd been held by.

"Maybe you'd like to talk sense now.  If neither of us is leaving, you've going to have to cope with that, somehow."

If he had to and Nashya had to, he wasn't going to let the shadow off without same.

The sting from the dagger caused a pain to pulsate not only in her palm, but her entire arm. It caused her to cry out in pain the moment it was stripped from her hand. Falling to her knees she clutched at her wrist, as Sano spoke of talking sense. There was no way for him to know that by now... he was the one not making any sense. In fact none of this was but she could draw some conclusion as to what was going on. Raising her head she looked at him, her eyes lost as she saw the chain coiled around his arm.

"She's never gone that far before."

Her statement alone verifying that the darker part of herself had since gone. It had to have been the iron dagger, suppressing the magic behind the hold she had over her body. This was why Nashya had used it when she was first figuring things out. It may have hurt... but that iron dagger always seemed to put that bitch in her rightful place.

"I'm sorry" Already Nashya was feeling sorry for ruining such a special moment between them. She felt it was her fault her darker part was even able to take hold of her like that. She allowed herself to get so caught up in the moment that for a second she forgot her mind was even broken. "I'm so so so sorry."

Tears then began to well in her eyes from the frustration of it all building within her. This often happened after an episode like this. Nashya was always left to pick up the pieces of the life she tried to build that were shattered by this thing. She wasn't sad... just frustrated she let it happen.

Her tears though quickly dried as she realized it was all worth it. Sano's lips on hers caused a warmth to build in her she never knew even possible. Next time, she would just have to be more careful. Oh how she hoped their would be a next time.

Turning her attention back to her hand she continued to grasp at her wrist, too afraid to touch the now scorched skin of her palm.

It had been, admittedly, an act of instinct, whipping out a chain like that.  However, it was also effective, as it had netted him the dagger from her hand.  The only regret was that Nashya had been given pain.  Sano dfidn't know what the Serenian allergy was like, but it was certainly threatening, and that was enough.  Why did Nashya even have something like this?  The first possibility that came to mind was frankly a dark one and...Sano really hoped that it wasn't that.

His question went unanswered, as Nashya appeared to be confused for the moment.  She'd fallen to her knees and was saying she'd never gone that far...  Was Nashya herself back in control?  Sano waited for some sort of confirmation.  After all, her shadow could be a tricky one.  By the time apologies had been spoken, he was fairly sure.  Nashya's shadow was not an actor, as far as he could guess.  Her demeanor was far too different.  Such an assumption may turn out to bite him in the ass later, but he was going with it now.

At any rate, while she was worrying over her actions and the pain she had felt, Sano let the dagger drop to the ground where he was - so the shadow couldn't make a sudden resurgence and grab it from him - and came to kneel before her.  Carefully, he took a look at her hand, shaking his head and muttering "It's like a real burn".  The pain must've been great, at the time, and the lingering feeling pretty bad.  The look in his eyes and the concern on his face said everything: There would be a next time.

"She should really know better than this.  Do you need a healer for iron burns or will it be alright on its own?"

Of course it was a 'real' burn. Iron and the reactions it caused Serenians varied from person to person but usually always shared one common trait... irritation. Nashya found that Iron burned her skin as if touching a flame. A cut however posed a much greater problem and risk of infection. This though, it would heal with time.

"I'll be fine" she muttered as she looked over the burn herself. She wasn't mad at Sano, but moreso at the fact any of this had happened. "I really am sorry..."

"I'm not" the voice cackled in her head.

"What the hell is your problem!?" Her head turned to the side as she talked to the non-existant part of herself.

"I told you. He is a distraction"

Nashya merely rolled her eyes as she flicked her head away in disgust. She really was growing more angry with the situation as time passed. Here she was on the brink of starting something normal and this part of her was ruining it.

"You forget your place!" a last ditch effort to express her anger towards the darkness in her mind.

Pulling her hand from Sano she forced a smile before standing up and walking towards her bag. After a few moments of rumaging she pulled out another thick pouch like the one her darker self found earlier... and she threw it. "Don't need either of them anymore if she is going to pull stuff like that."

Going back to search through her bag she then pulled out a roll of bandage and let one end of it drop as she began to to wrap it around her palm.

Hey, it's his first time seeing this stuff.  He doesn't know.  Keefe is Serenian, but she never kept iron around the house, so it never came up.  Still, it was good that her burn wouldn't lead to any problems down the line, but before he could say anything to her apology, Nashya found herself arguing with the shadow again.  It was surprising when that happened, but not nearly as much as it would be if this occurred without him understanding why it occurred.  Nashya telling him about the shadow had made alot of things far less complicated.

That said, the thing that bugged him was that that shadow wasn't just here and causing trouble.  She spoke of plans.  Honestly, when a being of darkness talks like that and the woman forced to live with it says that said being thinks largely evil thoughts, you can't help but be concerned about what those plans are.  Sano noted Nashya throwing away another dagger, same type, a moment later.  Reaching out with his will, he made the one he'd taken come to him and change into a small coin, then he took the other one by having the chain coil around it and did same, he held the two...and concentrated, hard.

It shouldn't take long if they're small...

That said, changing metal took a greater effort of will than merely reshaping or copying them.  More of the same was easier than making something different.  By the time it was done, beads of sweat had appeared on his forehead and he needed to catch his breath, as though running for the last five minutes.  Afterwhich, he still had to reshape them.  But...when he did...  He came over to Nashya and handed her two well-balanced silver daggers.

"Waste not, want not.  Saves the cost of buying new ones, anyway."

With a now wrapped hand Nashya turned to see Sano handing her two daggers. At first she was confused. Why in gods name would he be giving them back? However as she went to reach for them she realized there was no eerie feeling coming from them as before. Without a second thought she grabbed one and held it in her other hand, completely mesmerized with the beauty of it.

"You can change the type too?" She paused to examine the dexterity and weight of the weapon (as if she really knew what she was doing). "Thank you"

Smiling again she took the other dagger and placed them both in her bag before turning back to him. Noting the sweat on his brow she took her hand and wiped it away, smiling gently at him as she wiped his sweat on her dress. In truth even if she was by no means skilled with a dagger she knew they could come in handy. Worst case she knew she could always just slash at someone should she ever have to use them and hope for the best.

By now she was acting as if what had transpired moments ago was nothing more than a bad dream. "Listen...." Nashya then swallowed hard as she knew  that even if she pretended nothing happened that it would have to be addressed sooner or later. "... I completely understand if you want to just not talk to me anymore."

Nashya believed for certain he would leave now. Who in their right mind would want to stick around knowing that part of her could pop in at any moment? Everyone else always ran and she never blamed them. So she was going to give him the option... again. She was pretty sure she already knew his answer, but still wanted to give him the chance regardless.

At her surprise and inquiry, Sano let off a smirk and said "With effort.".  It generally took alot of effort and usually a longer time, but a good way to at least shorten the time he needed was to make it a smaller item first.  He still had to exert effort to make the material change, but with a strong will, it only took a short amount of time.  Admittedly, he was doing this to impress her.  Flowers are passe'.  You want a girl to notice you, make her some new daggers.  Thank god - any god - he hadn't gone for mythril.  Probably would've knocked him out from the effort.

She DId seem pleased with the things, though he was surprised that Nashya would wipe the sweat from his brow.  However...the thing that just happened with the shadow...  It marred the occasion.  Maybe it made her regret, because the thing inside would interfere.  Her shadow was pissed about the two of them getting close.  Sano had wanted it, though, and Nashya...  Well, before she was taken over, she seemed to like it.  Right now, she looked half-worried that he would go and half-worried he would stay.  How do you answer to that?  Well, Sano tried...

"Listen, Nashya.  Your shadow may get her kicks causing trouble at the worst times, but she's also too use to getting what she wants.  Nevermind what the shadow's done or what it thinks.  Forget it for a moment and answer me honestly: What do you want?"

Well, Mr. Morden, if you have the time, I've got a list...  But in all seriousness, Sano wasn't so much as giving her an answer as putting the reins in her hands and letting her decide for herself how this is going to go.  Sano honestly wasn't sure how she would choose, but he at least knew it would be honest if she let it be so.

Did she really have to ask herself this? Up until a few minutes ago she was so sure that everything was beginning to fall into place. For once she was happy and content with the way things were going... she was excited for the future that could have been. Sano was onto something though, she had to ask herself if this was something she was willing to fight for.

Surely if she left right now it would please the darker part of her soul and probably lead to less 'breaking through' in the future. But then again how many more things was she expected to sacrifice to appease that part of her? Then there was the question of how all of this would work with Golden Gear just now placing its roots here. At some point she was going to have to explain what it was they really did to him. If she didn't he was bound to find out eventually, especially if he was staying.

It was visually clear that she was trying to think this one through. She knew what she wanted.. she really did. But part of her had to wonder what kind of future was plausible for them. One day she did plan on being rid of the horrid shadow in her mind, but who knew how long that would take? Could she really just let the first person who didn't think she was crazy just walk away?

If she could answer it alone with her eyes she did as she completely fell into the moment. In all honesty she knew the answer the moment he asked it and despite all the lingering 'what ifs' it never changed.

"I want to be happy." And that was the answer. Nashya knew she deserved to be happy and right now the thing that made her most happy was standing right in front of her.

Stepping towards him she placed a hand on his shoulder as she stood up on her toes so that her lips could meet his. Then, if he would allow it, she would place a gentle kiss upon his lips.

There were plenty of answers - or ways to answer, specifically - she could have said.  'I want to be happy' could be said to be one of the most-direct and understandable.  It didn't make specific demands, just asked that life not be shit to her.  Sano couldn't think of a time where he'd exactly asked himself that, possibly because his dark times involved him being essentially powerless and stranded, in a way.  When he had been helped, he realized that he would've given anything for better treatment, a life of his own without fearing the law or the hatred.  And in a way, he did, because he was expected to train under Keefe's strict workout, which was more than acceptable.

What would you be willing to put up with for happiness?  Some day, that shadow would be dealt with.  Not today, and not for a while, but it would be inevitable...because at some point the impasse would be reached and it would have had enough.  What Nashya needed, more than anything, was acceptance.  The shadow ridiculed them, the Golden Gear might object to them, and people might think them both crazy, but...happiness was being able to deal with that.  Sano wanted to be with her, and she felt all the better for knowing that fact.

He could see in her eyes that Nashya needed no deliberation on this.  She had made a point to consider all possibilities, but her eyes matched what her answer would be.  It made Sano feel a certain relief to find that she could be honest with herself.  You never know what years of shadow-being can do to a person.  It certainly hadn't taken away her appeal, and despite her assertions to be bad at dealing with people, Sano felt she wasn't all that bad at all.  If she had been, could she and him have really formed such a bond?

After she had given her answer, she stepped forward and used his shoulder to steady herself as she planted a kiss, one which he did allow.  As she raised herself on her toes, Sano placed a hand around her hip to both help steady her - which she'd been largely doing herself - and pull her in a little closer, making it easier for their lips to close on each other, delicately pulling before they broke contact.  Their eyes would meet, after the fact, Sano smiling as he looked her in the eyes.

"That's what I want too, so the one in your head'll just have to live with some disappointment, for a change."

This time when the two kissed Nashya took extra care of assuring her innerself stayed locked away where she belonged.

When they parted lips she merely giggled, still keeping one hand over his shoulder while the other found its place on top of his on her hip. She was happy to hear he wanted to stay, although she kind of already assumed that. Nashya liked how he saw her darker self just as she did most days... a minor annoyance. No one else had ever reacted quite like him.

For years she suffered through those trying to 'fix' her instead of embracing it. Sano didn't see her as damaged goods or broken, but instead only saw her for who she really was. This alone meant more to her than any gift he could ever craft, although the daggers were definitely a close second.

Lowering her hand from his shoulder she snaked it under one of his arms and rested her head on his collarbone, closing her eyes in the process. Yes, Sano was definitely worth whatever obstacle she may encounter later on.

Nashya would stay like this for a few moments, simply taking in the feeling of Sano pressed against her. She wouldn't admit it but the entire time her chest fluttered with excitement, yet she felt surprisingly calm otherwise. Was it just knowing someone accepted her for all of who she was? Every fault, every broken and damaged bit of her and he wanted all of it.

"Any other questions?" She pulled away laughing a bit. Whether Sano knew it or not Nashya now had him tallied for two serious questions. The first being on why she viewed herself crazy. The second though a far more personal one... What do you want? As far as she was concerned there really wasn't anything else he could throw her way.

Well, one of the things in life was that you had to take the rough with the smooth, basically.  There wasn't anything that Sano could do about the shadow that a Shadowmancer couldn't already.  Put simply, it required skills that he just didn't have, and it's at times like these that you have to ask yourself if this is truly worth it.  And really, he wasn't going to be intimidated by a shadow when he'd been through worse things, so this was definitely worth it.  The look in her eyes, the joy of her touch, the warmth of her lips...  You can't replace that.  Not when it comes from such caring.

Nashya came to rest herself against him, and Sano obliged in leaning his head to meet hers as the two of them remained in close contact.  Yes, externally, they were rather calm and quiet on this serene and sunny afternoon.  Inside, they could feel one-another's heartbeats.  They were both pumping away at quite the excited pace.  If someone'd been watching - apart from the shadow - they might find this rather heartwarming.  Eventually, they let each other go and she wanted to know if Sano had anything else to ask.  And, he did, but...he didn't want to ruin the moment.  In fact, she'd see this on his face, that 'Time and a place' were things he was wholey considering, but...  Well, maybe if he worded it right.

"Well, I feel as though I'll learn the important answers anyway if I stay around you long enough, but I think it's probably best if I do."

He looked at her carefully, with the expression of one trying to convey 'Please don't get mad at me for this', and spoke his peace.

"We've been avoiding it for a while now, but I think I should ask: What is Golden Gear about?  And what is it that your shadow wants to do?  I wouldn't even ask, but it seems like she has bigger designs than just scaring people.  Ask my anything you want, afterward.  I know this is a big one."

"Yeah Nashya, tell him what Golden Gear is about."

Well, she thought there wasn't anything else he could ask that would throw her off. She hadn't even considered the Golden Gear question. "Umm.." she struggled to find an answer for him as she nervously tucked a bit of hair behind her hair before glancing up at him.

She knew he meant no harm in asking, but then again she probably would have asked the same thing if she were in his position. She had been referencing them since yesterday, and she had made it very well known they were a concern of hers. Of course he would ask... Why wouldn't he?

Taking a seat in the grass she patted the area next to her, signalling for him to take a seat. What Sano didn't know what the depth of the question he had asked. Yep, probably would be best if he were sitting down for this one.

"I can't tell you everything and I need you to trust that I will tell you everything you need to know." Nervously she fiddled with her fingers, something Sano had already picked up on as a sign she was anxious. "We are... well we are all a bunch of misfits I guess."

"My partner Demagogue and I run a winery in order to provide funds. It's all a sham though... a means to an end." She had already said too much, but yet not enough. "Demagogue is an elder demon who I provide a face for. Quite literally I create the illusion of flesh and face for him so that others are not spooked by his true appearance. I also provide intel for all the happenings in Shadowmire to our boss."

"I can't go into detail what exactly it is we are doing other than that. As much as I wish I could I just can't... there is too much at stake." Nashya wasn't referring to their lives being at stake although that was a possibility. Cyn, her boss, was a time mage who could change the timeline of any object she chose... including Nashya's mind. That was the deal they had struck, Nashya would help and in turn when it was all said and done she would have a shadow free mind. Taken back to a time before it was able to root itself in and stopped.

"I still find it humorous you think that will work" Eye Flick.

"As far as the plan my shadow has in mind I don't even know." She shrugged at her innability to answer that question further. The shadow may have been many things but unfortunately stupid wasn't one of them. At least in this case it wasn't. From the very beginning it had manged to keep its 'end game' a secret.

He knew that he was asking alot.  That's why he said so up-front.  At least she didn't get mad for bringing the subject up, as he thought she might.  Nevertheless, it didn't make it any easier for her.  It was evident on her face, and in how she bade him to sit down with her.  Touchy subjects could be like that, he guessed.   He hadn't quite had this kind of success when talking to Alaeya back in Essyrn...about her alchemic problem.  Sano nodded and just said "Go on" after Nashya spoke her proviso about telling him mostly what he needed to know, which was largely what he wanted.  Eventually, Golden Gear was going to sit up and take notice of things.  He wanted to be prepared for that, in the same sense that knowing about her shadow had significantly softened the blow when that came to pass.

When she felt nervous about calling themselves Misfits, Sano did not really understand, at first.  He was effectively an assassin, sole student to another - and more infamous - assassin.  As she went on, though, it sounded like they were into quietly manipulating certain things beneath other people's notice.  To what end, she couldn't say because it would jeopardize whatever they were doing.  This was understandable, considering Sano had never spoken directly about where he lived, even though he'd said a number of things that others would find disreputable or even terrifying.  As for the shadow, she couldn't really divulge anything at all.  While it had let slip to Sano that it HAD plans and that it needed Nashya for them - something Sano himself might've not done, in the same way he was protecting Keefe and home from invastion - it had never spoken details.  He nodded at all of this.

"Well, if anyone asks, you can honestly tell them that I'm no champion for justice looking to get in the way.  Not unless it harms something I truly care about."

She'd know what he meant, of course.  Now, he put on a smirk and sais...

"Okay, go on.  There's gotta be something you've been holding back on asking.  Go ahead.  You earned it."

It was no suprise that Sano took it so well. With each confession he seemed to take it with stride. Clearly, he had been faced with tougher ultimatums than Nashya's in life. All of this of course led up to a question of her own building up. And when he gave her to opportunity to ask it who would she be to say no?

"You said Keefe found you and helped you. I understand she is a very important part of your growing up and also a very important part of your life..." Pausing briefly she looked at Sano with assuming eyes. But, this was not the time nor place to think about how close Sano and Keefe could have been.

"Who exactly is Keefe other than your mentor? What does she do?" Keefe was the last bit of the puzzle that was Sano. He had brought her up so many times as the reason behind finding this vampire... this she understood. But even Nashya could sense there was something else about her. In her experience people didn't usually take interest in someone as gifted as he was unless they were trained to see that potential.

(sorry for the shortness)

[OOC: Ah, no worries.  It's a big question.]

This wasn't unexpected.  Keefe was so important in his life that it was hard to imagine him ever having survived without her.  Not because of the circumstances that allowed them to meet, but because the life that had been set out for him was as crushingly hopeless as it could possibly get.  This wasn't so much an eembarassing topic or even so much a sensitive one, since he mentioned her a bunch of times already, but...it was deep.  Well, why not?  It's a nice day.  Story time.

"When I first met Keefe, I didn't get her either.  I'd never seen anything like her before and hadn't really spoken to anyone - let alone a woman - in years.  If there is a more perfect example of being out of my depth, I haven't seen it.  She came out of nowhere, knocked everybody out, and proceeded to tell me if I didn't calm down that everyone would die because of my power.  Confused does not even begin to explain my feelings.  I was curious and grateful...and yet scared.  She was an assassin and she wasn't even human."

He remembered that time, trying to get a handle on the moment, but Keefe remaining on the upper hand   It wasn't that she'd been trying to be mysterious, just so direct that it was off-putting.

"I've mentioned already, things like that about her.  The thing is, when she's not being that way, she's been very nice and completely unwilling to talk about herself and her work.  I had to pretty much accept that she'd go out and kill people, and then come home after a few days to just get back to what she was doing, like it was nothing.  That night she came back from the vampire attack was the only time she spoke directly about those things, like she'd been protecting me from having to worry about it."

And in a way, it worked.  She'd always come back and he had never imagined her not coming back.  It was probably what drove her to make it back home so desperately, that he needed to know what befell her instead of never seeing her again.

"But still, the truth is that she can do a great deal.  With Ferromancy, anything involving metal is easy, and she's actually world-class at needle-and-thread.  That mantle of mine?  Her doing.  Sometimes, I think she wants to just do simple jobs around town and be happy, but she can't be that way because she hates people who ruin it for everyone else."

He'd said alot, but by the look of things, he was trying to figure out how to say what else he knew, what else he thought.  It took him a bit of thinking to word it out in his head, then...

"I've always been unsure about how I feel about her.  We're close.  Let's not deny that.  After beating me in training, she'd comfort me, encourage me, and not simply like a teacher.  She cared.  I think...  Well...  Okay, while she was out, I'd been...you know...curious.  She didn't lock her room and she didn't tell me not to, so naturally one day I was in her room...  I think someone took Keefe in when she was younger, because there was a drawing - a good one - of this old woman, reminded me of someone's grandmother.  I think Keefe and I are both alike.  We're both strays, trying to be something more."

Nashya simply listened as Sano began explaining Keefe to her. It seemed she was many things to Sano, the most important being the person who saved him from himself.

"So Keefe seems like someone who doesn't let many people in. She must have seen something special in you from the get go."

Smiling she then playfully pushed at Sano's shoulder " And I am sure she cared about you plenty. If she didn't I don't think she would have invested so much time in you."

As she had already thought many times when Sano spoke of Keef, Nashya was almost jealous. She would have given anything to have someone there to save her from herself. Even more she was already enchanted with this woman for stepping in and helping him. It probably took a lot for her to take someone in, especially if she was as guarded about her personal life as Sano let on.

"I would love to meet her some day.... to thank her for what she did for you."

There was no doubt that Keefe cared about him to some extent.  It always made Sano feel better, knowing that there was somebody out looking for him.  Wasn't this mission just a way to return the favor?  At any rate, the day was wearing on, somewhat.  They had to get back to what they were doing.  It was nice that they could meet up like this, but the truth is, they needed to focus on other things.  The move into Connlaoth wouldn't happen if he didn't get more people to follow him, and Golden Gear still obviously needed Nashya for their work.  Her abilities were crucial, it seemed.

Days would pass.  A week, even.  Sano had sent out a number of flyers to different parts of Serendipity, starting with that place where that Goldswith person was suppose to live.  He had to be fairly subtle.  In fact, it was basically the same flyer that he had put around this town, but sent out by messenger bird.  The problem?  Well...while he had received a few hopeful replies, there were a buncha' nopes and responses from people who didn't really seem...the type.  One thing that bothered him for a while was that he didn't get a reply from that Goldswith chap, but then...he didn't know that that person was headed directly here already...

It was the seventh day when he awoke, unaware that she had checked in last night and was in the room next door.  Sano got up to greet the day, hopefully with breakfast...

It had been a week since the day Nashya and Sano solidified the relationship between them. Unfortunately, only a few days after that were spent together as Nashya was pulled away to handle some 'business'. The entire time she was away though she often found herself daydreaming of the man with dark hair and crimson eyes.

Nashya and her partner were called away to deal with some business happenings regarding the winery the two of them ran. Of course, wherever Demagogue had to be so was Nashya. There was no way he could 'face' the public eye without her. The entire time she was away her darker self kept rather quiet, not really chiming in much at all as of late. This happened from time to time where it seemed to 'fade' for an undecided amount of time.

She had arrived very late in the night at the inn and despite how much she wanted to she withheld from knocking on his door. It took a great deal of restraint not to do so, but Nashya knew it would be best to wait until morning. So instead she opted for taking to her room without bothering him.

Rising with the sun Nashya was quick to get up and dressed for the day. It was suprising she managed to not forget anything as she hastily threw open her door while in the process of strapping on one of her boots. She hoped that he would still be in his room, and so she took the few steps over to his door and lifted a hand to knock.

"Housekeeping" she muttered, half laughing as she tried to disguise her voice from behind the door. When and if Sano finally did open the door he would find Nashya standing with an excited smile on her face.

Sano's room was a bit of a mess, so the coincidental mention of housekeeping would actually be a godsend.  Let us look around the room for a bit: Because he had sent out flyers, received messages, sent out replies, and so on...there were a sizable amount of papers, some of whom were ripped or torn, others with spilled ink, and a fair few crumpled-up pages from various people whose answers ranged from being unhelpful in some way to outright telling him 'Nope!' (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gvdf5n-zI14)

He was, admittedly, feeling a little tired or groggy or something right now, because of all this.  Sano was dressed in casual clothes, which included one of his rare white shirts.  He did not expect what actually happened here.  Upon hearing the 'housekeeper', he opened the door - not quite registering that it was Nashya yet - and immediately responded to the offer to clean.

"Thank all kinds of gods your here.  I'm afraid I made a mess of things that a simple wastebin will never properly solve.  I need sustenance, so you have the room.  Please don't hurt me for making the mess."

Meanwhile, a woman in shirt and pants with brown hair walked by with a yawn, getting behind Nashya with a "Pardon me." so she could go get the very thing Sano sought: Breakfast.

He was a sight for sore eyes to say the least as Nashya practically melted at seeing him. She actually found it quite adorable that he failed to see it was her standing in the doorway and not actually a housekeeper. As she looked past him and into the room though she could definitely see why he had hoped she was one. His room was a mess with papers everywhere!

Bringing her focus back to him she then noted that he was wearing white. It was unusual to see him in such a color and honestly she found it quite refreshing. Being so captivated with the sight of him she hardly even reacted to the woman who walked behind her but still managed to give an apologetic nod for being in the way.

Oh the possibilities that presented themselves here as she contemplated how best to address the situation. She could easily keep up the charade but even Sano would have to eventually look up and see it was her.

"I missed you" she muttered before reaching out and grabbing his arm. "Breakfast?"

It took a second for his brain to get started up properly.  Uhh, coffee and tea were downstairs, you see.  However, as Nashya started to speak again and grab his arm, he did sort of a cold reboot as he saw that lovely face.  For a brief second, he wondered what happened to the housekeeper, but umm...wait.  Oh, that was her!  ...dammit...  He hoped there was a REAL housekeeper here.  That said, his achey-breaky brain was glad to see her there and he put on a small smile.

"I'm sure I mentioned a deep desire for some.  Please, lead the way, but don't drag too hard.  I might trip and I'm pretty sure there's some stairs involved."

He was half-joking, but also half-uncoordinated.  Nevertheless, Nashya would be leading him to water, so to speak, where he would be willing to drink.  Several other people - workers, people with hangovers, and some guests - were already here.  The woman from before was enjoying some tea with her morning meal already.

The main room of the inn was busy indeed with several other patrons coming down for their morning meal. Not a single one of them mattered though as Nashya only focused on Sano. "Sit here" she said as she pulled at a chair for him and then took off. Even she could see he was quite exhausted despite her own chipper attitude.

So now she had a new mission... coffee.

Walking up to the innkeeper she was greeted with a half hearted smile. She knew the woman was probably sad to see her return but at least not stupid enough to turn away a paying customer. "Coffee please" she smiled as she slipped the woman some coin. It only took a few minutes for her to return with two full cups of the blackened liquid, the steam indicating it was freshly brewed.

Setting one of the cups in front of Sano a welcomed 'thump' should have snapped his attention to it should he still be a bit dazed. "I assume by the state of your room you have been busy." Nashya quickly took a seat next to him with her own cup of liquid ecstasy and took a cautious sip. The coffee here really was quite magnificent, the aroma alone known to linger for hours past the first morning meal.

"Anyone good turn up yet?"

With her elbows rested on the table she held the cup close to her lips as she awaited an answer. The few days she had been gone left her wondering so much about what transpired. Perhaps Sano would have good news of new prospects or leads on the vampire's wearabouts.

Operation: Blessed Brew began in earnest as soon as Sano was seated at a chair.  His part in the plan was not to fall back asleep, an act which was not that hard when you consider that he woke up on his own.  Sadly, the problem was that he was sort of filled with the work of the past few days, looking over people who had sent him corrospondance, leaving him a bit frazzled.  Sano only snapped to attention when the cup was placed before him.  First, his nose twitched, and then his eyes came to rest upon he black hole of infinity that was the cup of black coffee.  Afterwhich, he picked it up and began to sip deeply the bitter nectar, his only reply to Nashya's question of being busy with an "Mmm".

His response to the second part was a bit more glib.

"Ah hah hah hah hah hah..."

Thud.  Sano thumped his head on the table, next to his coffee, which he held steady and balanced despite all this.  The words that she heard next - while more articulate and focused - were slightly muffled by his current - and rather amusing - position.

"Alot of the ones that I'd felt were hopeful were either busy or turned me down, and I got alot of people who would be eaten alive that I can't take because they'd get eaten alive."

He raised his head.

"The worst part is that some of them haven't even responded.  Hoping that's a good sign, but I dunno."

His frustration was evident when he thumped his head on the table. Sitting back a bit Nashya watched on amused as Sano went through the stages of grief. "Awe... it will be okay" she stated while reaching out a comforting hand on his shoulder. He really did look quite sad in this state, muffled voice and all as he spoke into the old wood.

When he raised his head she withdrew her hand and tilted her head at him. "Maybe it is a good thing like you said." She then went to take another sip of her coffee as she looked around the room. "Give it a few weeks. I am sure plenty more will show up."

Look at her being the optimist for once.

"I mean... there are so many out there just itching at the chance to take on a vampire." This was no lie though. As long as Nashya could remember she had met plenty of people who were determined to exercise their abilities. Heck, even she was kind of looking forward to using her own in a battle.

With a new sense of determination she almost slammed the cup back on the table. "How about when we finish our coffee we go back up to your room and look over some of the applicants together? If we are lucky we can at least sort them into some kind of system of yes and no. Not to mention your room could use the purging."

Innocently she lifted the cup back up to her lips taking yet another sip. "I have faith we can slay that monster together."

... of course she was referring to the paper monster building an army in his room.

Depression really wasn't the word for this.  Now, frustration...  Aye, there's the one we're lookin' for!  Sano rubbed his head as soon as he raised it again, taking in more coffee for good measure.  Such things were often able to make connections in the brain and ignore pain from the stimulation involved up there.  Besides, he hadn't hit his head that hard.  It was mostly for effect.  Nashya was taking the optimistic approach on this, which was reasonable.  He was, after all, sending out alot of letters for a simple band of deadly warriors.

"You're probably right.  I should really be more patient with this.  I'm just a little burnt out from the reading.  The one thing, though, is that I've only informed the responders about the vampire.  I don't want the information to get out all over the place so that it finds its way in his hands."

A fair point, one that was only countered suddenly by Nashya's desire to stand up to that paper-oppressive room and slay that paper tiger...dragon...thing.  Uhh, keep drinking, Sano.  You're not quite awake yet.  He had to chuckle, though.

"My room could use a bonfire, and I could use food to go with this powerful brew.  Do we have time or does it wait for no man?"

She found herself taking another sip the moment Sano asked if his room waited for no man resulting in her choking on the drink. Covering her mouth she was part laughing part dying at the hilarious comment. As soon as she was able to compose herself she responded.

"It can wait."

Nashya then looked for the inn keeper and signalled her over by raising a hand. Of course it was no suprise the elderly woman narrowed her eyes before making her way over. "She still hates me I see...." her voice barely a whisper as she set her cup back down on the table.

"Sweet porridge please." Yet again Nashya gave the woman an endearing smile after placing her order, hoping that maybe one day she would forgive whatever it was her darker self had done. Today was not this day as the old hag huffed and turned towards Sano.

Despite the growing divide between herself and the old woman Nashya did happen to be a big fan of her sweet porridge. It was sweet with sugar butter and milk, hardly a suitable dish for breakfast. But still being the lover of sweet things that she was she found it irresistible almost every morning and you could bet she would be going to get some honey bread later in the day as well.

With all things aside and the woman gone hearing whatever Sano wanted Nashya fell a bit more serious. "Did you miss me?" Her smile was genuine as it expressed how much she had missed him in turn. But Sano didn't need to know that he was practically all she thought of while she was away.

Whoops!  Timing, Sano!  Timing!  Now is not the time to make people choke.  Actually, there's never a time for that.  As she said, though, it could wait.  Unfortunately, signalling the innkeeper brought a sort of scowl, which showed that Nashya still had her ire.  While she had still managed to get an order down - and Sano had ordered some meat and cheese and grits - it was obvious that that bad blood wasn't going to go away easily.  Once she was away, the question came.

"What?  When I had all these letters to keep me company?"

He paused to take a sip of his cup.

"Of course I missed you."

At least he was in good humor over all of this.  Then...

"You know, I just remembered, there was this alchemist that I met in Essyrn that I'd hoped to get some decent potions from.  More than healing, but like something we could use against him.  No promises, of course, but I think I should check and see if there's any progress."

Nashya appeared to take interest in the alchemist from Essyrn but in reality she was feeling something much different. In fact, mentally she had already slammed her face into the table ten times over. Of course she cared about Sano and his mission at hand, but then again she also cared about him.

She had been gone for three days... three days where the two had no idea if the other was even all right and the first thing he thought talk about was work. Get it together Sano! Nashya may have been the one to prompt the discussion by simply asking 'find anyone yet' but she never would have even asked if she knew that was all they were going to talk about.

I mean, they were two people with feelings. Very new feelings that they were still trying to figure out or at least that was what Nashya thought. Oh gods, what if Sano had realized while she was away that he didn't actually have feelings for her? The thought alone caused Nashya's face to flush white as it dawned on her.

Of course it all made sense now.

"Hey..." her voice meek as she tapped the sides of her cup with her fingers. "I completely forgot but I think Demagogue had mentioned needing to do something at the winery this morning." Of course she was lying but at this point if she stayed she risked falling deeper into the pit of dispair she had already begun to dig for herself. "You go ahead and eat and I will meet up with you later." Clearly there was something wrong with her but she was doing her best to hide any negative emotion with a fake smile.

Standing up from her chair she dug in her coin purse and laid plenty on the table to not only pay for her food but his as well. It really was no problem as Nashya was supplied with as much funds needed to keep her comfortable while she worked... Cyn really was a generous boss. She didn't even care that she was leaving before eating her sweet porridge and honestly it was the last thing on her mind.

From there even if Sano said something Nashya didn't hear it. She was too busy repeating over and over in her mind to at least keep it together until she got out the door. The moment she did close the door behind her though her entire demeanor changed into that of a defeated soul. "So stupid..." she muttered to herself as she stood outside of the inn.

"I must admit you are pretty stupid." And there she was.. making her grand entrance at the most inopportune time.

"You don't have to tell me twice."

"Then again I think he may be more stupid than you. I mean.. what kind of guy puts off having a girl in his room! You were practically giving him the invitation of a lifetime!"

Nashya's face flushed red as she thought about it. Of course that was not her intention at all but now that it was being brought up she just couldn't get it out of her mind.

While it WAS true that Nashya had gotten him onto the topic - with her enthusiasm, no less - there is the fact that Sano just doesn't think right, sometimes.  Neverminding the whole 'It's morning' thing.  He just didn't have experience with this, and he had some faith in Nashya's abilities to keep alright.  It would take him a while to realize that this kind of thinking was exactly why he was so shock that Keefe had been injured.  All that he knew of either of their strengths and abilities had put him under the impression that - barring harsh circumstances - they could come out of things alright.

It was still kind of his fault, though.  He hadn't reckoned on Nashya's mental state, forgotten that she could jump to certain conclusions and not even second-guess.  When she made her excuses to leave, the way she said it made him stop and look, and that made him worry.  Because to him, it was sudden and unexpected, especially after all that enthusiasm from before.  He saw her go and just sort of stared, trying to process that.  Fortunately, while he was at a bit of a loss there, someone else wasn't.  That someone was the brown-haired woman, who'd been eating breakfast and was now approaching his table.

"Nice girl."

"Yeah..."

"Friend of yours?"

"Yes."

"Close friend?"

Pause...  She seemed to be angling at something here.

"...why?"

"Because it looked and sounded like you said something wrong, and then she needed to be somewhere else, all of a sudden."

"What?  She-  Wait, weren't you across the room?  How did you figure all that?"

"Good eyes, good ears.  I think you should go."

"Uhh, yeah.  Thanks."

She watched him go, shaking her head.

"Guess I'm gonna be waiting a while..."

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

The door opened and Nashya would feel a hand on her shoulder.  Being a Shadowmancer who was completely aware of her surroundings, she would know that it was him.  On the other hand, if she were heavily-distracted by her own issues, she might not know.  We leave that one up to the gods.  Suffice to say, Sano looked her in the eye and said...

"Nashya, we need to talk.  I know that I handled that wrong, and I'm sorry.  I'm still new at this.  I could never forgive myself if I ended up pushing you away."

Jumping to conclusions at times like this had always been one of Nashya's biggest faults. It's actually quite funny because in any other situation such as battle she was so great at remaining cool and collected. Perhaps it had something to do with her confidence. At least she knew when facing certain foe she had the gall to know what would work and what wouldn't. Then again the art of conversation was no duel and Sano was no foe.

Now as she stood outside of the inn she was beating herself up even worse than before. "Why why why..." is all she could manage to get out as she tried to sort out what exactly it was she had just done. Of course she knew Sano cared about her yet in the heat of the moment she had once again jumped to the worst possible outcome.

Even worse she now had to find something to do while she pretended to be at the winery all day! Oh the mess she had managed to land herself in, and on her first day back no less!

Her little woe me party lasted for a whole of only a few minutes before it was interupted by Sano grabbing her shoulder. At first she honestly had no idea it was him having been too distracted to even begin to understand what was going on around her right now. When she did turn around though the initial shock followed by the complete horror in her expression would be evident.

Worse for wear being that he started off with the three worst words anyone could ever start a statement off with. 'We need to talk.' And there she was jumping to conclusions again, practically turning to jelly under his hand until he continued on. Sano had practically taken the words right out of her own mouth by stating he was still new at this. Was he really feeling exactly like her right now?

Nashya lifted a hand to cover her mouth but not in shock. It was actually quite the opposite as she let out the faintest of laughs. "I was about to come back in and say the same thing." Lowering her hand she then began to fiddle with her fingers as she often did when she was searching for the right words. "I jumped to the worst possible conclusion and I am sorry."

Slowly she let her eyes meet his as the shame of the entire situation began to hit her. "When I woke up this morning I was so excited to see you and it felt like you just didn't share that same feeling."

The look on her face, at first, had been like she'd just seen a ghost!  Or...something.  Perhaps it was deserved, since Serious Sano had a serious face like you wouldn't believe, and that he was basically an assassin didn't help either.  Still, her reaction thankfully progressed from that, as she suddenly...laughed.  She began to explain the fullness of her concerns.  It made sense.  He'd been conversational, which was alright for normal situations, but didn't exactly stand out when you're with someone you care about.  Sano sighed at this.

"Yeah...that was my fault.  I'm sure you've done this in Golden Gear, guarding your reactions so that people can't read you easily.  I wasn't doing that on-purpose.  The truth is that I was a little too readable for Keefe's liking when we trained, so she had me figure out how to internalize."

He clasped her shoulders, looking her in the eyes with real emotion, open honest about this and smiling.

"I am overjoyed that you're back.  The words 'breath of fresh air' come to mind, given the work I've been doing.  I'm just something of a weird ebb and flow, sometimes."

He had indeed been looking forward to her return.  Just that the hours blended in with one another and he lost track of time, and then she came by when he wasn't even prepared and...  All this makes sense, right?

Of course he would be trained to speak without letting his true feelings show. How could Nashya be so stupid as to forget he was an assassin!? She did the same thing with Golden Gear and his insinuation of it was dead on. If anything she felt like even more of a fool than before as the pieces slowly came together.

However when Sano held both of her shoulders it snapped her out of the mental hurricane she was currently experiencing. The way he looked at her seemed to ground her in a way, even bringing up a slight blush to her cheeks as he called her a breath of fresh air.

"Well I guess if you are willing to put up with my crazy then I can learn to understand yours." Her statement was spoken as a joke but in all reality it was far from it. Nashya truly did want to learn to read Sano better so that she may never push him away just as she had a few moments ago. He had already put up with so much from her that even a minor infraction like this was nothing more than a bump in the road.

Nashya's stomach then made a very strange gurgle which caused her cheeks to flush even more red than before. In truth she was starving and the thought of a nice hot bowl of sweet porridge only made it worse. Another reason she thought herself an idiot as she had walked away from a perfectly decent meal.

He smiled at her statement, but he also said...

"I still say you're not crazy.  Maybe Akbar from that little shop is crazy, but uhh..."

Sano was interrupted by what Joseph Heller would coin as 'Another country heard from' in Catch-22.  He looked down at the stomach attempting to communicate with these foolish humans as he let Nashya go.  After a few seconds, he looked back to her face, clearly having not expected such a reaction there.

"Maybe we could talk and eat, like in a breakfast sort of setting.  I think that would be a good idea."

He indicated the direction of the table with his thumb and held the door open for her.  Yes, let's get back to sustenance, that thing they really needed right now.

Utterly mortified from the sound her body had just made Nashya could only bring herself to nod as he held the door for her.

Walking up to the table she took the same seat she had before except this time there was a large bowl of sweet porridge sitting there. The old woman must have served it while the were outside. How awkward would that have been if they never came back until later? At the very least Nashya would have had to deal with even more hateful stares.

Even her coffee was still sitting there which was a welcoming sight as she sat back in the chair and lifted the mug to her lips. It was only slightly cold, but still warm enough to awaken her soul as it was intended to from the beginning.

She then set the cup down and pulled the bowl towards her in angst. The anticipation completely worth it as she put the first spoonfull of it into her mouth and the flavors melted harmoniously. An audible "mmmm" came from her as she took in a second and then third spoonful, each one as glorious as the first.

As if hunger alone was the reason for her earlier crazy moment Nashya felt herself becoming more herself with each bite. Then an idea struck her that led to a smile creeping up on her lips. Oh yes, she was going to do the unthinkable as she scooped her spoon into the porridge and then quickly glanced at Sano.

In an assault as deadly as a swordstrike Nashya flicked her spoon causing some of the gooey magic to fly in Sano's direction, an aerial assault there was no way he could defend himself from.

The two of them got back to their table and their meals, unaware that the brunette across the room was smiling to herself and thinking 'That's more like it'.  Sano resumed eating and drinking,  Sano noticed what Nashya was eating and seemed to be scrutinizing it somewhat.

"I've always preferred solid food, myself."

He probably shouldn't have said that.  For all we know, this was what began the act of war there was destined to occur.  The woman nearby him had prepared her spoon, after a moment, and fired a porridge projectile at him all of a sudden.  He was defenseless...or was he?  No, not true!  He had a fork!  The fork suddenly became a hand-fan, one made of metal, and blocked the splat...though it hit his hand!  Once he looked out from behind that, he gave Nashya such a stare as the fan returned to being a fork.  Then, he used it to fling some grits at her!

Nashya watched on as Sano transformed his fork into a hand fan and blocked the attack. Foiled again! With a new sense of determination she went in for another scoop of porridge before she was completely taken out by grits hitting her arm.

She paused, staring at the food as it made its way down her arm and onto the table. This small battle had now clearly formed into something much darker... this was war. What Sano did not know though was that Nashya was a dirty player. After all she never once said she followed the right side of morality when it came to battle.

Not able to flash her abilities like him without giving the poor innkeeper a heart attack Nashya opted for a measure much more subtle. Clearly flinging porridge at him wasn't enough of a strike to show she meant business and so she opted for something that would crush him far more than slimy sweetness.

She had to concentrate at this one as her eyes locked onto his coffee mug. It wasn't the liquid that she was trying to focus on though, but more the darkness between the bottom of the cup and the table. The way she looked at it was like she was trying to find something only to smile when she finally did.

Looking back at Sano she rested an elbow on the table followed by her head on her palm as she winked at him. This of course was a distraction to what she was really up to. Flicking her wrist under the table his coffee cup flipped over as if it had been bumped. Raising a brow she watched as the precious black liquid made its way towards the edge of the table and to his lap.

Yes, ummm...  Well...to be fair, he was indeed amply distracted.  He fully-expected her to do something highly visible.  Instead, the unexpected happened, and a heaping helping of blackness poured onto his lap. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOyxlqP5hDQ)  Fortunately, it was no longer piping hot, thanks to their brief excursion outside and the time spent in the interim.  The bad news is that coffee in lap was still coffee in lap, and the expression on his face changed to appropriately measure the 'Oh dear' quality of this occurrance as he looked down.

"What the f-  Oh, that's not good.  I swear this has never happened before."

There was a moment of staring at this, admittedly, before looking back at Nashya.

"That really isn't fair.  I'm not really built for hijinx, you know."

Yeah, 90% of his skills and abilities are meant to maim and kill!  It's not fair, using one of the areas he's not so easily able to avail himself in!

Chuckling she covered her mouth at his expression towards the coffee. He really was just too adorable for words sometimes. However, war was never a time for laughing and so Nashya moved on to phase two of her strike.

"What are you talking about? I did nothing..." Of course she couldn't keep a straight face to save her life right now but still she tried to create the illusion that she took no part in the coffee incident.

"I think you just got a little distracted and hit it yourself." With that Nashya picked up her spoon and took another bite of her porridge. "You know I thought someone as skilled as yourself could manage a mere coffee mug."

By now her bowl was practically empty as she pushed it away. No longer did her stomach growl in hunger or did she feel any kind of uncertainty of their relationship. Breakfast seemed to mend more than a growling stomach in this case. The only thing she seemed to have left was a bit of coffee in her own mug and as an act of peace she slid it over to Sano.

"Here... you can have the rest of mine."

"I'm pretty sure I DO know how to manage a cup in the morning, Nashya."

He said this in a voice that clearly stated 'You're not fooling anyone, you know'.  Fortunately, he'd been nearly done eating, as well, so when she pushed over her peace offering, Sano decided not to do anything harmful with it, though it was certainly possible for him to do so.

"Thanks."

He drank, and Nashya would feel the light poke-poke action of the butt-end of a utensil - a fork, in fact - against her shoulder, her other shoulder, the small of her back, and other fairly-innocent places.  Sano smirked after a bit of this.

"It's only fair.  I'll have to clean my pants."

Ah yes, the heartfelt and amusing vision of Sano grumbling as he washed a pair of pants.

Letting out an "Mhmm" Nashya eyed Sano with a grin still plastered on her face. Clearly she had won this war and she knew it. Or at least she thought she did until she felt a light poke at her shoulder.

Turning her head she saw the fork levitating near her and immediately knew she was in for trouble. The fork itself had managed to poke at her over and over again causing a mixture of giggling and blushing on her part. How was she supposed to fight a utensil!?

Sano then mentioned something of having to clean his pants and Nashya still felt she had partially won, despite the fork now poking at the small of her back. "Don't you..." she paused as the fork poked her side. "... don't you have an extra pair?"

She had had enough of the fork's assault and grabbed it in mid air before holding onto it for dear life, expecting in some way for it to retaliate. How silly she must have looked battling a fork...

Continuing on with her statement Nashya tried her best to remain serious despite the fun they were just having. "You could just give the dirty pair to miss grumpy pants over there..." Nashya pointed at the innkeeper who was STILL glaring at her. "...she will launder them for you."

She grabbed the fork and all was well, for a moment.  Then, she asked her question and Sano willed the handle of the form to extend so that it was still able to poke her, here and there.

"Yes, I do carry spare clothes.  You never know when something is going to happen to the ones you're wearing, after all."

And yes, the battle against the form DID look silly.  Maybe not as funny as the chuckle-worthy comment of calling the innkeeper a grumpypants, but there we are.  Sano laughed.  Still, the prospect of having had clothes laundered by someone who really knew what they were doing appealed to him.

"I think I probably will do that, once I've changed.  Can't ask someone to take care of this with a wet lap.  It really looks and sounds wrong."

So very wrong...  So, if 'hostilities' would cease for a moment, he can go and handle this..wardrobe malfunction.

"What the-" The battle began once more as Nashya found herself out maneuvering a fork that changed shape. Still she tried to keep up with the conversation besides the evil taking place in her hands. Finally she admitted defeat, releasing the fork to go and do whatever Sano willed it to.

Holding her hands up she signalled defeat. "I concede" she laughed as she stood up in her chair. "Go change your pants, I will wait for you down here." Of course she would have loved to follow him back up to his room, if not for the simple reason of tackling the paper monster no doubt plotting his death in there. But then her face flushed red as the thought of other things crossed her mind.

Suddenly the playful mood between them shifted to something more and Nashya found herself twiddling her fingers once more. Again, she was unable to look him in the eyes but not because she was assuming things, but because she had allowed her mind to fall so far into the gutter there seemed no hope of escape.

Quickly she sat back down in the chair and reached reached across the table for her coffee mug. Then like a lunatic she stood back up, clearly out of sorts as she gripped the cup in her hands. "I'll just go get some more coffee..."

Well, he didn't really want the fork to do anything, a least nothing specific.  Once Nashya gave up, he just let it go and it clattered harmlessly down onto the table.  They could probably move on from this.  Yeah...  Uhh, would it be wrong for Sano to have been hitting that gutter too, and at the same time as her?  It was just sort of a feeling, but it was only natural for him to think so, being with such a lovely - if mischievous - woman.

Taking her suggestion, Sano headed on upstairs to replace his pants, the brown-haired lady having noted the little complicated and - again - figured that she was going to be waiting a while to speak to the guy.  As for Nashya's impulsive coffee-getting, it seemed to be a bit of an over-reaction, a bit, don't you think?  It's not like she was thinking anything illegal there, after all.  Sano would return after she had gotten the coffee, having re-pants'd himself, or...however you want to put that.  He took a seat down beside her now with a smile.

"Please be gentle with me, in regards to coffee, okay?"

When Nashya walked up to the innkeeper to ask for another cup of coffee she was glared at once more. Jeez, what would it take for this woman to realize that Nashya had no plans of stealing or soul or whatever it was she assumed. Instead of saying anything (as if she ever would) she merely shrugged and walked back over to the table, now holding a cup of coffee she really didn't even need.

"You seeing what I'm seeing?"Eye flick and minor nod.

In no time at all Sano seemed to come back downstairs, however he would notice that Nashya was acting a bit more off than usual. More like on the first day when he met her and she was standing under the tree. Her stature was straighter and her focus seeming to be on point. From the outside she appeared to be staring off into nothingness while holding the hot cup of coffee to her lips. However, on the inside she was in the darkness. Wading the waters of the shadow realm as eyes watched from every dark corner in the room.

Whether it be from under the tables or the corners where light did not touch Nashya had a clear visual on everything going on within the inn. Every conversation within reach, every movement and muscle flinch caught as she observed what was going on. If not an even bigger indicator to Sano that something was off Nashya did not smile or even avert her gaze as he sat down. It was as if her body was nothing but a shell and her mind was somewhere else.

Eventually though she did come back, the light in her eyes and the concern on her face proving it. "Don't look" she whispered as she took another sip from the cup, clearly a cover at this point. Was she even taking any liquid in when holding it like that?

"The woman with brown hair has been watching you from the moment you got up." Nashya paused as if she were looking in a two way mirror when in reality she was simply directing a little more attention from the shadows. It was almost like her eyes were there... but they were somewhere else at the same time.

"She is looking again..."

When Sano returned, he was maintaining a good mood.  However, Nashya was not.  She was either being cold, distant, or - even stranger - nothing...which was a bit disconcerting.  Her mind was clearly somewhere else, and that's not a metaphor or proverb.  He could see that the girl was practically miles away, or at least not in her body, smehow.  That began to worry him, since the whole shadow thing could always cause such a problem, but then her awareness seemed to return and...huh?

"Okay, I'm not looking.  Why am I not looking?"

He kept focused on the table, in fact, as Nashya began to explain.  The woman from before?

"You mean the one from across the room that's been there, eating breakfast, drinking tea, and reading a book since before we started breakfast?  Yeah, I did notice."

She also set him straight on matters of Nashya, but he was keeping that one to himself.

"I don't this one's after us for some reason.  We could probably ask, or we could probably just ignore this and go upstairs, if you like."

With shadows still focused on watching the brown haired woman Nashya narrowed her own eyes as a reflex. Sano though did not seem near as concerned with her as Nashya did.

"Yes, let's go upstairs."  Without another word Nashya stood from her chair leaving the cup on the table. After all the paper monster in Sano's room was probably declaring itself a free country at this point.

As she made her way to the stairs never once did she let her eyes trail to the woman she was now so suspicious of, but that didn't mean she wasn't watching her. It was probably best Sano didn't mention the woman helping him out either. Only for the simple fact that would have shown her how much attention the woman had actually been placing on them. Not to mention she would have been mortified knowing someone else had seen her little self proclaimed crazy moment.

Once upstairs Nashya waited by Sano's door for him to unlock it fully prepared for whatever assault the paper monster may have been ready with. Already she had made herself forget about what had just happened on the lower level of the inn and was sorting out battle plans of a different variety. First she would alphabetize, then categorize and finally prioritize.

This monster stood no chance.

We, the fighting citizens of Papertopia SCOFF at your witticisms!  The revolution will not be televised!  It shall be signed in triplicate and notorized locally!  Viva La Revolution!  Viva La Confetti Nations!

.....

ANYWAY!  Sano was not concerned because he found no evidence of malice from this random person, whereas any malice from Nashya's shadow was s blatant that it could not be missed.  When that much was considered, it could hardly be conceivable that this person whom he has never before met would innately have anything against him.

At any rate, Sano opened the door to his room and...well...paper was all over the place.  Some were crumbled, some returned to their envelopes in varying levels of being 'in', and some were just laying around.  They were everywhere, like Triffids or Martian Weeds, except this was no sci-fi.  This was just disorganization.  Sano let her come in and shut the door.

"Here, there be dragons.  And if not, I shall go find one to burn it all up."

It almost looked worse than the first time she had seen it. Before the only view she had was from the doorway and so there was no way to really see how much of a mess all of this truly was. "Dear Gods...." she muttered as she stepped in and then reached down to pull a letter from under her boot.

Immediately she began working, scooping up handfuls of papers and straightening them so at least they kind of looked organized. It seemed there was no end in sight to the mess as she continued her assault on the paper army.

"I assume these are all a no then?" she asked as she started picking up the crumbled papers next. Some of them she could see some of the scribbles from potential candidates and before she knew it she was reading more than she was organizing.

"This one says he can kill a demon with one hand." she laughed before picking up another paper. "Oh and this one says that he knows nothing of fear." Nashya took it upon herself to not only recrumple but also rip that one.

"They don't even know what you want them for and they are flaunting their clearly exaggerated skills." She then began to laugh as she picked up another letter. "This one wants to know if you are eligible for marriage."

That letter caused her to loose it as she held her arms over her stomach from the pain of laughing so much. Tears even began to well in her eyes as she tried to imagine what more of the letters said. "No wonder you were so out of it this morning!"

Yes, truly a daunting task.  Only in modern times can so much paper be wasted so easily.  Sano bent over to move some of the letters around, giving her somewhat of a hand, though he was less sure where to begin.  You see, knowing what they all are makes it even harder.  Still, were they all a 'NO'?

"Oh no.  Some of them are a 'yes', as in they're fine with coming, but they're a 'no' because they wouldn't be any good.  All the good ones I'vee heard from who aren't full of it weren't interested or are busy."

Nashya began to look over some of them and understand what was wrong with this picture.  She then mentioned one that apparently proposed him for marriage and Sano actually looked at her and said "What the fuck?" before taking it and reading it with disbelief.

"'My dear sweet lad, I have never before received such flowery and complimentary language from a gentleman caller, so as to formulate a proposal in quest form-'  What the hell IS this?  Who thinks like that?"

He let it drop, astonished, even as his guest was laughing her ass off.

"I think I was half-asleep when that one came.  C'mon, help me get rid of these and we'll see if a response came from that Goldswith chap.  I didn't finish them all yet."

It was even more funny when Sano read the letter aloud. Even he seemed to be thrown off by its contents. Eventually though Nashya was able to regain her wits and started sorting through the letters again, this time only glancing at the sender so as not to throw herself into another fit.

It seemed to take forever to get all of the letters somewhat organized and stacked neatly however Sano helping sped things up a bit. None of the letters though were from the Goldswith person he referred to. "Maybe I missed it" she stated as she began thumbing through the pile again.

Yet despite searching again she could not find a response letter from Goldswith. "I don't think he has responded yet" she said scratching the back of her head. "Perhaps he was caught up? Or maybe he is on his way right now to respond in person?" Once again Nashya was trying to be the optimist in this situation.

Standing among the piles of now sorted letters Nashya felt quite proud of what she had just accomplished. Through paper cuts and ink smudges she persevered just as the strongest of warriors! In truth she had plenty of experience with this as she often found herself sorting paperwork at the winery. It may have all been a means to coin for other purposes but it was still a business all the same.

Stepping back she found the bed pushing at the back of her knees and so she sat on it. "Tomorrow morning I can come back to help sort the new ones you get today. This way maybe we can keep it manageable so that it doesn't get this bad again." The fact the she was alone with Sano in his room, and the door closed no less, had not dawned on her yet. If it had she surely would have been acting quite differently.

Well, after the two of them did a great deal of work (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tyZFDV272mg), the wholey-disorganized paper trail was decidedly less-so, with an abundance of it to be blatently gotten rid of, anyway.  After going through it all, though, they seemed to be bereft of any letter bearing the name of Goldswith?  Perhaps Sir Goldswith was delayed, or even on the way here?

"It's possible, though I'm surprised that some of these people haven't messaged ahead.  It'd certainly be quicker."

Funnily enough, Sano had completely forgotten about the woman who had a room right next to his and was downstairs.  If he hadn't, he might have considered the possibility that she was one of his responders.  At any rate, the Great Paper Battle of Shadowmere was done for the day, though Nashya pledged that she would help with the next wave, should it rear its ugly head.  She sat on the bed and Sano - not thinking that she should be reacting funnily to the fact that she was alone and in private with him - took to sitting down next to her, and lying back, so he was on the bed, width-wise.

"Maybe I should open them downstairs, so I can immediately shove them into the fireplace.  anyway, thanks for the help.  We should do anything else besides look at letters now, if you please."

Laughing at his comment of throwing the letters directly into the fireplace Nashya laid back in the bed as well, clearly just as burnt out as he was. "I couldn't agree more" she sighed before turning her head towards him.

"I can think of something... in fact many things. But those all involve moving from this bed."

Rolling more on her side she stared at Sano smiling. Of course there were other things she could think of that didn't involve moving from the bed at all, but none of those she would ever be brave enough to admit.

Still on her side she extended a hand and poked his cheek while giggling. "I really missed you. Everything else just seemed so... unimportant while I was gone." She was doing her best here to have a moment with Sano. One where they put all the play fighting aside and really got down to how they were truly feeling.

"I don't know why but when you're around everything just seems better." Her face fell softer at the admission. "Makes me question if what I do is even worth it anymore."

To be honest, Sano could think of things that did involve the bed too, and didn't, naturally.  He wasn't going to voice the former, though, because that might shock Nashya into a fugue state for a while, and we can't have that.  So saying, he did a prolonged blink right before he got poked.  That, of course, got his attention.  He looked up at her lovely features as she spoke, her voice noticably going more delicate.  He now straightened up to sit beside her.

"Well, it's because your job treats you like a job, and people that don't know you will keep you at arm's length.  I closed the distance because...well...I wanted to."

He wanted to be able to test he waters and give things a try.  They weren't entirely safe, but he was prepared.  Wasn't it worth it?  Well, he certainly felt so.  Nashya likely did, as well.

"I can't really tell you the worth of what you do for Golden Gear.  That much is entirely up to you.  I know I like being around you, though.  That part, I know is worth it."

When Sano sat up Nashya rolled back to her back so that she could still see him. He spoke the truth in regards to how Golden Gear treated her most days. Sometimes even she wondered if Cyn remembered that Nashya wasn't some emotionless non-sleep needing husk. His comment though on closing the distance because he wanted to caused Nashya to smile.

Taking one of her hands she placed it on his lap. Their future was unknown but as for right now Nashya knew she was in the right place. Sano was meant to be in her life and she knew it. Without him she would still be living day to day, or better yet not living but going through the motions.

Now instead of waking up and heading straight to the winery Nashya woke up thinking of Sano. And while she was at the winery or some gathering with Demagogue she wasn't thinking of how long until it was over because she was bored, but instead how long until she got to see him again. And then when she went to sleep it was no longer nightmares of the life she had been living but instead dreams of the future she could have.

Whether Sano knew it or not he had saved Nashya from herself as it was only a matter of time before she gave into the darkness in her head. There was no purpose to fight it before and now there was. And that purpose was sitting in the bed next to her.

Biting her lip she moved her hand to his shirt in an attempt to pull him down to her. If he complied she would then plant a soft kiss on his lips. The first kiss the two had shared since she left days ago.

Having Nashya lie back as Sano straightened up was like a changing of the guard...for places that actually had such ceremonies.  It was strange to say so, but in meeting this woman, Sano had managed to sort out alot of his chaotic and disorganized thoughts and feelings, those things that had left him cluttered in the brain and thinking only about this mission, when he had plenty of room to consider better ways of dealing with it and other things he could be focused on.  He now had something to think of besides the waypoints towards a goal, but a motivation to move past them, to clear out what needed to be done and remain by her side, much like they were now.

Like right now...  Now, as he looked down at her, their eyes meeting and their hearts probably beating a little faster.  Sano felt her tug on his shirt, trying to pull him down.  He did not resist being pulled towards that dark-haired beauty.  Desire, facination, and attraction is a funny thing.  You become attracted to someone, and then you have to go off for a few days without that person.  Does not the desire to see that person multiply?  Most certainly, yes.  More to the point, it becomes far stronger when at close proximity, and definitely while in contact.  The body just goes 'Oh yes, this is what I want', and there you have it.

This goes double for reactions.  Sano would feel that warm press and pull of their lips, the two of them working in unison in a joyous experience.  His hands, which initially started at her shoulders to steady himself, would start to work their way around her back so that he could her hold her in a close embrace.  This was love.  It had to be.  What else could it be, that they wanted to see and spend time with each other so much?  Nothing but that.

When Sano wrapped his arm around her to pull her in closer Nashya took her own hand and wrapped it around his back while the other still pulled him by his shirt. The was all she wanted right now, to feel the warmth of his body against her own.... nothing more nothing less. It was as if when she was in his arms nothing else mattered or compared to the feeling in her chest. What was this anyways? This feeling of longing and wanting more each time he even looked her way or spoke her name.

She knew and she hoped he did to. But she wouldn't say it... not yet. Even if she did feel this desire deep down to proclaim her everlasting devotion to him she knew anything could happen at any moment. God forbid it did, but Nashya couldn't help think that way nonetheless.

Eventually the kiss would have to end and the two would have to breathe... afterall they were human. But the moment Nashya pulled away she wanted to go back to suffocate at the mercy of his lips. It would be a worthy death... but not today. So instead she would settle for keeping her one arm around his back while the other still grasped at his shirt. Even if they weren't kissing anymore she just couldn't let go. She had already sacrificed too much by releasing her lips and she didn't feel like giving up any more.

"Sano..." her words falling as she honestly couldn't bring herself to say what she so deeply wanted to. He had to know though, if not by the look in her eyes then by the ferocity in her grip on him. She plead with her eyes for him to know what she felt and further more what she wanted. She wanted to never let go and to never feel the emptiness of being alone again. She wanted to always be here just like this, holding him as if it were the last time she would ever see him again.

Ah, yes...  The necessity of air.  The expression of one's love can most-definitely be taxing on the breathing faculty.  Shame, really.  You take hold of a beautiful woman (or a strapping young man),  and a few minutes later...the phrase 'But by that time, my lungs were aching for air' comes to mind.  Their kiss was intoxicating, addictive, and most-desirable.  Yes, they wouldn't want to stop, but as stated...you have to.  Their lips parted and the two of them caught their breath, still looking into each other's eyes, still in each other's arms...and neither one of them wanting to be anywhere else but here.

All those years alone, he knew his life improved as soon as he had someone there, someone to help him and that he could rely upon.  That was only a friend, perhaps even the only one in this world he would call family.  But this was something deeper, even than a possible familial bond.  Such raw emotion, such pure attraction.  Her voice speaking his name utterly melted his heart, her eyes made him feel true focus as she believed whole-heartedly in him, and her warmth made him feel wanted, welcome.  Exhaling gently from his nose, he whispered into her ear.

"Nashya...as long as you want me to, I'll be there...  I love you..."

Guys say alot of things, sometimes, but Sano Alistair is actually a terrible liar.  If he said a thing, he fully intended to keep to it.  He didn't just want her as part of this mission.  He wanted her to be part of his life mission, as in living the rest of his life, making his future happen.

Turns out she didn't have to say it. Sano uttered the three words that had been lingering at the tip of her tongue along with a statement of always being there should she want him. For a few moments she just sat there in his arms staring into those beautiful crimson eyes of his. For someone who had not always had the best luck this man had turned it all around. In a matter of only a week he had shown her there was still a life for her when everything was done.

"I will always want you" she whispered before burying her face in his neck. Even his smell enchanted her in ways words could not describe. She could sit like this forever if it were possible.

Sano had proven to Nashya that sometimes people did actually stay and maybe, just maybe she wasn't as crazy as she thought. Before he found her there were walls and scars she thought would never go away. He opened her up which was something she thought impossible until he came. He had climbed those walls and healed those scars in such a way that almost made Nashya feel like a different person.

Now she could see a future and could see the light at the end of the road. There was hope for her and that hope was holding her just as tightly as she was him. She was perfectly content with just laying there holding him never letting go. He had caused her to fall for him so fast and yet she wasn't scared in the slightest of it.

"I love you too" taking in another breath she went back to nuzzling her nose in his neck. "And I will also be at your side for as long as you will have me" another whisper before placing a gentle kiss on his ear.

Nestled as they were, it wasn't likely that she'd say something unencouraging at this point in time - even though her shadow could always try - but it was still good to hear it in her voice, to know that her feelings in true.  As she sank her head to his neck, he rested his head against hers and she would feel the caress of his fingers at her upper-back, collarbone, and neck, massaging gently through her hair.  To hold and to be held by someone you love had to be the greatest joy.

Well, there was the other thing, but that's just a given.

There was a smile and a barely-held-in laugh as she nuzzled his neck like that.  Nashya may share her body with a shadow that definitely did not like him, but she could definitely deliver in the unexpectedly pleasant.  Once she'd kissed him on his ear, he'd turn his head so they were basically nose-to-nose, so his smile was broad like the horizon and she could see that he was thoroughly relaxed.

"Let's take the day off.  I don't want to be needed right now, save for the one."

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Meanwhile, downstairs, the inkeeper had asked the still-waiting brunette what she was waiting for.

"Well, I got a job offer from this man, but I think I made him busy for a while."

What was that? Did his muscles just tense up a bit at the nuzzling of her nose on his neck? An evil grin appeared on her lips for a mere second as she locked away the reaction in her mind. She was going to remember this for battles to come.

The moment he turned his head to her with that adorable smile on his face again Nashya melted. Seriously, that adorable smile of his was going to get her in some serious trouble one day. "I could not agree with you more" she giggled before shifting herself so that her nose would barely touch his. "The only person who really needs you right now is me anyways."

Closing the last bit of distance she pecked at his lips again before continuing. "Anything else is just not as important" she giggled again at her joke. Of course she knew that Sano needed to review applicants for his mission, but she was feeling quite selfish and honestly didn't feel like sharing him in this moment.

Bringing a hand up she ran her fingers through his short black hair before stopping at the nape of his neck. She found herself eagerly staring into those handsome eyes of his, lost in the red hues and mystery behind them as well as internally begging for him to just jump... again.

It maybe a simple jest, but they were gonna take it seriously, to an extent.  You don't interrupt that sort of thing, not unless you really want to be eaten alive.  After all, he hadn't really taken an honest-to-goodness break until now.  Downtime was not the same as break time.  This...was a definite pursuit of something independent of the mission, and frankly...he was better for it.  She had that look in her eye now, the yearning one that he could not resist.  They were in each other's arms, feeling each other's heartbeats and about as physically close as humanly possible.  There was no escape here, and none wanted.  Sano shut his eyes as he found her lips once more, the two of them spiraling down into deeper passion with one another.

Yeah, they were gonna be a while.