A Chance Encounter

[Ivory]

Kathryn nodded slightly.  It would be dark soon...and, well, her parents were going to be livid enough as it stood.  They would be beside themselves if she waltzed in after dark...

"I suppose so," she answered mildly.  "Is the way down as interesting as the way up?"  She hoped -- a bit -- that it was.  After all, jumping from tree to tree was a lot different than just climbing down a ladder!

[visualspice]

Dekka was already working at the same contraption as before, assembling it with a few clinks on his wrist. He stretched his arm out, wriggling his fingers before clenching it into a fist and jerking on the belts, making sure it was secure.
Turning to her, he smiled broadly and put an arm around her.
"I don't think I'd have it any other fucking way." and he said it so charmingly.

Then the hook shot exploded, the claw racing towards the ground, and pelted it, clinging to a root and giving a good tug to make sure it was secure, he carried the woman with him as the rope began to retract...

and swiftly they flew, their bodies rushing through the air, following the feed of rope until Dekka shifted himself, boots well forward, women secured at his side, wind fluttering through their hair as they made a landing, crouched into his place as he set her gently upon the ground.

He then moved forward, placed a boot upon the root, and with a strong heft, unhooked his devise and began putting the thing away.
"You look a little flush, darling, did you like the ride?" he teased, giving her a smirk as he made quick work to dissemble the equipment-
His movements over it were so quick and natural, considering all devices on him he had used so many times that the actions were as fluid as breathing.

"So," he paused now, studying her from where he stood. "Amy.." he thought the name over before turning away from her and looking towards the forests. It was more evident the world was growing dark.  "So which way would be home?" He turned back to her, raising a brow as he smirked.
"I can't very fucking well have you just traipse on out of here unless I know precisely where you're going." His eyes remained hooked upon her as solid as his hook shot, arms folded over his chest. "You know, I've got a reputation, and location, to protect. Perhaps if you just tell me where you're going, I can make this a bit easier on us both."
His grin widened a bit more devilishly. She might be another thief, but she'd be a fool if she'd think he'd just let her walk out of here as simply as she had walked in.

[Ivory]

"The ride, the wine..."  She answered, laughing at his observation.  It would certainly be a night to remember!

She watched him pull in the line, intrigued and wondering where the man had come by such a contraption.  Of course, she had no idea if it was a common item for the working class...  Perhaps it had a use other than fleeing local guards?

Her smirk was smug as she turned her back on him to approach the soldier she had shot.  He had fallen on his back, and his eyes now stared sightlessly at the canopy overhead.  Crouching down beside him, she was somewhat relieved to find she didn't recognize him.  She still felt, just a bit, guilty...but, then, that was an emotion she would reserve for later.

Fishing out her knife, she sliced off a button.  The ornate, bronze button fell into her hand, and she studied the crest on it a moment before rising to her feet.  It was a mark of his loyalty -- her father's crest.  It would join the other button in the bottom of her drawer when she got home...

"It isn't far," she said, then whistled softly.  Her horse answered obediently, trotting over from his place by the stream.  He would be well-rested now, giving her the ability to race back to her clothes...  Turning to him again, she added with a grin.  "But I'm not going to tell you where it is.  I won't have people whispering about the strange men I've invited into my room.  That sort of thing could damage a girl's reputation."

[visualspice]

"Ah, but you see, you're not the only one with a reputation." his smiled a bit darker as he approached her.
"Now, we can do this two civil ways in our parting. Either you let me lead you somewhere blind folded, and you fumble back to your own where abouts on your lonesome, or..." Dekka's smile widened across his face.
"I bound you up like a fucking pig and drag you back to where you ought to be with no further questions on the matter. You see, I don't particularly like when my territory is found out.  You have no idea what it will cost me in the end so.."
here, he untied a clothe kerchief from around his neck and held it out between them.

"Consider wearing this and I'll escort you to some place, far.. far away from here on more pleasant terms. Or.."
Here, he planted a hand firmly on his belt, the light just catching the intricate buttons and brass holsters adorning it.
"Well, I'd rather not have us end this night on a sour note, but.." He shrugged, his eyes sparkling, never leaving hers.  "It's all part of the fucking game. A thief is a thief, after all."

[Ivory]

Kathryn laughed -- that full, rich laugh of hers again -- and she plucked the handkerchief neatly from his hand.  "In the stories, it's always the women who give the men their handkerchiefs as a favor.  Not the other way around."

With the grace of an experienced rider, she swung herself up onto the bay's back.  She looked down at him with a smirk, and then he disappeared from her view as she dropped the blindfold over her eyes.  Once it was snugly tied, she said, "I'll keep this on for a little while if it makes you feel better.  Don't forget to cover up my trail -- and that of the guards, if you don't want to be found."

She lifted up the corner of the kerchief and winked at him.  "But I think I'll show myself home."

The horse lurched forward suddenly, breaking into the wild gallop almost immediately.  Kathryn's laugh was lost in the thunder of hooves -- doing this blindfolded was something she had never done before...

[visualspice]

Dekka was smiling as smug as a kitten who got into the cream...
He always liked those that followed his rules...

Until she broke it.

His face fell as the horse tore off into the woods, anger poisoning him as he spewed out every curse word he knew at her..
but as her form disappeared through the woods, he couldn't help but laugh himself, his own laughter echoing through the woods around him.

So was this the sort of game they'd play? Well then, he'd have to pay her back next time, (if there ever was a next time) with the elusive 'Amy'.




----------------



Several weeks had past, and rain had made the forests undesirable for travel. With swampy trails and flooded grass plains, it was soggy at beast to keep traveling on foot.  Though he had been running for a while now, with no real direction than to keep the guards hot off his trail, Dekka traveled further and further into the more remote areas of the forest until he felt the guardsman have long abandoned pursuit; or were more notably lost.


He couldn't help it this time. The target was far too easy, and as he paused beneath the canopy of a tall tree, he stared down at the ring that was stolen.  It held a familiar crest, then he recalled why it felt familiar to him.

That girl..
those guards.
he smirked at the memory, then noticed something off in the distance.
A fog was rolling in, and nearly shrouded the small, abandoned shack beneath it's milky white depths.  But he had keener eyes than most, and smirked as he advanced. His eyes were quick to survey the area.  He made extra checks around the place, and when feeling it was sufficiently safe, he moved to open the door and stepped inside.


Rain was pouring in from a gaping hole in the ceiling, flooding the floor, even some gushed out when the door was opened.

"So much for keeping dry," he commented to himself and peered inside. It looked even worse for wear than his own home- one he had to pick clean because a certain woman had shown up. This one...
he thought over taking up this new location as he studied the area...
then noticed a smell... neared the stove and opened the iron bars to reveal...
the smoldering coals within.

Someone had been here. And they had been here recently.


OOC: Added to my last post to transition the thread forward, time wise :3

Let me know if this works, vries!

[Ivory]

Kathryn had been surprised to learn that her father hadn't sent the guardsmen after her -- nor had her mother, the captain of the guard, or anyone else that she could identify without blatantly asking and giving herself away.  It was a near miss, and it left her nervous.  Besides, she had had enough adventure to keep her satisfied for a short while.

For several weeks, she behaved as a proper young lady.  She attended Mass regularly.  She spent her free time with her needles.  But, as always, the calling to leave, to explore and find trouble, soon was back.

With no way to determine how her plan had been compromised the last time she had gone into the forest, Kathryn took a few extra precautions.  By the time she reached the shack, clouds had rolled in to hide the sun.  She felt confident, however, that she could go for a short ride and make it back before the storm set in.

She was wrong.

The fine mist -- which, in truth, she had enjoyed -- soon turned into a icy rain that chilled the young noblewoman to her very bones.  The makeshift stable -- really, more of a dilapidated lean-to -- was dry enough to house her horse.  The bay went immediately to the small cache of dried hay, while Kathryn turned her attention to the house.

Maybe the stove would still be lit...

With that warming thought, she very nearly missed the muddy boot print just inside the front door.  Maybe, she thought, it would be some traveler searching -- innocently enough -- for shelter.  Nevertheless, she moved silently down the narrow hall to peer into the one room that made up the entire shack...

...And, immediately, she freed her knife.

"Hello again, Dekka.  Change your mind about those stories?"

[visualspice]

His hand had just sealed around the handle of a cooking pan, and the moment he heard creeping foot steps behind him-

Well, he *would* have spun around, but she was quick to speak..
And that voice..

Spinning around, and knowing she'd have a knife, he pointed the dangerous cooking pan at her.
"You should be careful. I might have the fucking nerve to beat your head in with this pan."
His smile widened, twitching almost upon his lips as he eyed her up-
Both were sopping wet, the rain having made their hair frizzy and disagreeable, his own making rivulets down his face and body and having plastered his clothing against his skin.

He eyed her knife, then the rest of her body, before his eyes met to hers again.

"Stories? Or shall we duel with blades? Or in my case, how long do you think it'd fucking take me to disarm you and cook you up on your stove?"

Yes, he'd be cautious with this one.. after all..

"You do realize the offense you've pulled against me." He put out his hand. "I want my fucking handkerchief back." And gestured. "And you to drop your knife." he said, keeping himself armored with the pan as he twirled it. "You don't know just who you're messing with." And his eyes were filled with mirth.


Who else would he expect to find himself lost in the rain with but her?

Oh, how fate was twisted indeed!

[Ivory]

His grin was infectious.  While she would still be cautious, she had already survived an encounter with this man once -- in part thanks to him -- and so she could only laugh at his threat.  "I have a better idea, fire mage.  Why don't you heat up the stove, and we'll cook this rabbit up instead."  Lifting up the small sack she carried, she tossed it neatly across the floor.  It landed at his feet neatly, and she smirked at him.

"Sadly, I no longer have your handkerchief."  At least, she had it nowhere she could fetch it for him.  It was safely tucked away in her drawer, with the rest of her mementos.  "You should know I kept it on for at least five minutes.  I did tell you I would."

Gesturing to the man with her knife, she said, "Now, are you going to stand there all day, or do you want something to eat?"

[visualspice]

Dekka's lips twitched, then he lowered the pan.
"Well, I suppose after we wait out the rain, we can go get it." he stated simply, eyed her up again then finally set the pan aside.  He stared down at the rabbit and had to chuckle, then up at the hole in the ceiling.

"Nice place you got here." he looked around, then back to her as he retrieved the rabbit from the floor. He opened the sack and shook his head, looking at her then down at the rabbit.

"A woman of skills, I like that." he moved over to the stove, snapped his fingers and it began to glow with the heat of fire. He moved his hand back, shaking it as the fire went out before stepping back and watched the fire crackle and come to life. "You know we'll need some more kindling that isn't wet." He searched the area, then looked back to her.

"So, I suppose it's your turn to share some stories, eh?" He got to his knees, eyes still to her as he drew out a knife, and began preparing the rabbit.

[Ivory]

"I'll go get some," she promised, watching him a moment as he set to work.  She usually didn't have company for these little meals...  It was nice to have someone else to do the work for her...which was a bit odd, considering most ladies of her rank wouldn't know where to begin preparing a rabbit.  Still, after a moment, she disappeared outside and returned a moment later with a small pile of wood from the barn.  It wasn't much, but it would serve.

"I told you," she said with a slight smile as she dumped the wood next to the stove.  "I don't really have any stories."  She glanced skyward.  "And I did tell you, too, that my roof leaked."  Flooded was maybe a better term.  Well, that side of the shack was pretty much uninhabitable anyway.  She opened up the stove door, beginning to stack the wood inside.

"You know, I haven't told anyone about you or where you live.  So why are you here instead of cozy and dry in front of your own fire?"  She closed the door with a smirk.  "Not that I mind the company."

[visualspice]

"One of us has to do some thieving," he remarked, smiling up at her as he cut up the rabbit.
"So we roasting it whole or do you want to fry up some pieces," he said, licking at the sticky blood on his thumb nail as he looked at her.

"And sure you've got a story to tell." he flashed her his pearly whites. "We've all got a fucking story now, don't we?" He looked down at the bloodied rabbit. "I'm sure you've even got one wrapped up inside your little head about how you out ran this rabbit to catch it."
He kept his lips and smile smart, his eyes glowing subtly as he stared at her before raising himself off the ground.
He wiped at a scratch on his forehead, his damned hair and the rain had been tickling it, and the back of his hand was the only thing not coated in the sticky blood.

"And whose to say I trust you didn't tell your fucking horse all about me?" he said, gesturing towards where the horse was probably parked outside in the rain.

[Ivory]

"Nothing that impressive," she shared with a laugh.  "I always fry it.  That's what the pan is for you've taken a liking to."  Kathryn indicated the pan with a grin, then turned to go to the other side of the room.  She neatly avoided the leak -- mostly -- then returned a small bunch of wild onions and carrots.  "Here," she said, offering the garnishes out to him expectantly.  For some reason, this was more entertaining than watching servants do the work...

"My horse would have been more interested if you'd had some apples to share with him, I think," she answered, scooting backwards to sit on the counter, where she could watch him work.  A story...  She really didn't have much in the way of stories that she could share.  She had the same problem when talking to her so-called friends -- daughters of dukes and nobles themselves.

"I suppose I could tell you about the time I killed a great beast..."  She began, teasing.  "It had two heads and scales, and it walked on two legs like a man.  It even had a sword.  But it was no match for me."

[visualspice]

Dekka looked down at the pan, smirked and flipped it a few times before setting it ontop of the stove.  It would heat up in on time, and he took this moment to slice up the rabbit, tossing slivers onto the pan, then worked at the onions and carrots while listening to her over his shoulder.

"Monsters are afraid of fire, you know," he told her nonchalantly. "Well, at least most are from my experience.  Many things run from it.  Monsters.... guardsman," he turned to peer over his shoulder. "....Women who don't know their place."

"Too bad you don't have magic of your own."

Or did she? Though, why all the fuss over his talents from earlier?

[Ivory]

"Oh," she said, grinning in response.  "I think I get the picture.  Too bad you're stuck with me, isn't it?"  She settled back against the wall, comfortable, in spite of her soaked clothes and questionable company.

"Mm," she murmured thoughtfully.  "That would be something, wouldn't it?"  What would she do with magic if she had it?  She could name a few things...

...Of course, she'd probably be killed shortly after...

"How did you find out you had magic?"

[visualspice]

"You might as well ask me how I found out I had a dick," he smirked over at her and pondered over the question. "You're a woman. How did you know when you became a woman? I'm sure blood between your legs didn't seem normal when it happened."

He continued to poke at the meat, flipping it once the bottom side began turning a golden brown as he tossed about the vegetables in the bubbling fat as they sizzled and popped and filled the air with sweet aromas.

"I suppose it's not as simple as that to those... without it," Dekka shrugged. "Fire is wild, hot and quick to spread. I think I found my first sparks either out of anger or love." He kept his smile, knife poking at the vegetables and meat.  "The power and emotions seem to go hand in hand in raw occasions." He peered over at her, studying her.  "I can't say the same for other magics. If i have them, I wouldn't know. But if you need to start a fire.."
He cupped a hand towards her, a flame brewing in the palm.

[Ivory]

Kathryn's face turned crimson at the statement.  That was...incredibly insensitive.  And vivid.  She struggled to keep a straight face, although her hands curled around the edges of the counter.  Really!  Of all the things to say!

Choosing not to respond to him -- on that account, at least -- she offered him a smile.  "I see."  Quite the story.  Quite the comparison.  And she was still blushing!

Willing her cheeks to return to their usual pale color, she jumped down from the counter and paced a few meters away from him.  To give herself something else to think about, she began to unpin her hair, then shake out the braids.  "Do you always cook dinner for people who steal from you?" she wondered curiously, risking a glance over her shoulder as she tried to lighten the mood again.

[visualspice]

He closed his fist around the flame, it extinguishing as he turned back to the meat, prodding it with his knife before he licked at the grease on his fingers.
"Only on rare occasion," Dekka answered. "Do you like your rabbit rare?" he asked, turning to her and offering her a piece of juicy, steaming rabbit meat at the end of his cooking blade.  "I tend to like a little blood in mine, but I know others that like it dry as bone."

[Ivory]

"I'm sure that's fine," she answered, relieved he wasn't pressing the point home.  She took a minute more to shake out her hair.  It was a shade darker now that it was wet than it normally would be, but, even in this dim lighting, the strawberry hue was apparent.

"Thank you," Kathryn said with an angelic smile, accepted the proffered plate.  "I wish I had some wine to offer you."  She glanced around the small room.  "Or even a table and chairs..."  Well, this was a bit embarrassing...  She was, apparently, a terrible hostess...

With a light shrug, she sat down on the floor, near enough to the stove so that she hoped her hair -- and clothes -- would dry out a bit.  "So, why were you in my neck of the woods anyway?"

[visualspice]

"Thieving." he said simply, eating the rest of the food from the pan- not that he had a choice, there was only a solitaire plate in the place and a dirty cup. He looked down at it, blew out the spider web and set it out int he rain where it began to collect water.

"No need, the water will come to us." he smirked, gesturing to the cup. "Magic." he teased. "But too bad I don't have the power to turn water into wine." He rubbed his chin at the thought.
Shaking the thought away, he eyed her up, liking the looks of her with wild, untamed hair. His own, at least, was only wild about this face, in frayed, frizzled, curling bangs that hung down to his chin.  He wore the rest of his hair in a braid, particularly for this reason. It kept his hair nice. It wasn't in the way. It was acceptable.

And he looked damned fucking good with it.

He remained standing beside the stove, since the place was mostly flooded, except a few dry spots- 'Amy' having found one of them.

"I suppose you're going to ask me 'what' I thieved?" he asked, then shoved some carrots and rabbit into his mouth, chewing with hi mouth full and smacking his lips as he licked and sucked the juices off his fingers.  Forks- who needed them?