First Impressions [DragonSong]

[Arocraes]

"Oh I just fell" he joked as he slouched over to a nearby chair, plopping down with fatigue. "Why, were you worried?" he teased.

[DragonSong]

"Mildly concerned," Tara corrected. "And what did you fall on, half the city guard?" She arched an eyebrow.

[Arocraes]

Arocraes began rubbing his left shoulder. He must have moved awkwardly when the captain struck him, he usually never got this sore.

"Mhm" he replied with a cheeky grin. 

[DragonSong]

"Mhm?" Tara repeated. She shook her head. "Well, whatever you did, as long as we're not jumped by guards again I don't care. We should be out of the city by sundown, right?"

[Arocraes]

"Key word is should" he replied. It's unlikely that the guards would simply keel over after what transpired. They'll be back, he was sure of it.

"Do you have my bag with you?" he asked referring to the black iron.

[DragonSong]

She nodded, gesturing for him to follow and making her way back to the table she'd been sitting at. "Here." She nudged the bag she'd stashed under the table with her foot.

[Arocraes]

Arocraes hoisted the bag over his shoulder, wincing in pain.

"We should head for the harbor. It would be strange if the ship has not been docked yet." he said decisively.

[DragonSong]

"Yeah, we should." She nodded, watching him carefully. "You should let me take a look at you when we have a minute," Tara murmured as she started toward the door. She was by no means a great healer, but she knew the basics.

[Arocraes]

"You don't need to be so formal when checking me out" he joked with a light smile, hoping she would think he's in fine condition.

Arocraes walked with her to the harbor. There were suspicious glances every now and then as he carried the heavy bag, but to the townfolk it wasn't something completely out of the ordinary. The guards, however, they were his main concern.

Upon reaching the harbor, he eyed the ever scruffy and rugged Captain Duval, the corrupted captain who's ship he was on that headed for Cerenis. He propped himself up with a cane, and didn't appear to notice Arocraes. Best not complicate things Arocraes thought as he tried to stay out of the captain's line of sight. He'd deal with him at a later time, right now he and Tara needed to get away from Cerenis.

Arocraes stepped in line, waiting to talk to a crewman of the ship headed for Thanatos.

[DragonSong]

Tara rolled her eyes and scoffed, letting him know she was thoroughly unimpressed. She was smiling a bit though, albeit wary as they made their way to the docks.

She eyed the captain with no small amount of distrust. "You sure this is safe?"

[Arocraes]

"Nope" he said, not trying to sugarcoat words or to reassure her. He continued looking forward, waiting for the line to shorten. Once they were finally facing the crewman, the sailor introduced himself.

"Aye there, name's Jordi" he said with a charming, sweet tinge in his voice. "First mate of the Corpus. What can I do you for?"

This was the vessel Arocraes had been waiting to board for a few days, and he was glad that it appeared safe and welcome. "We're trying to get to Thanatos" he said as he pulled out a pouch with just the right amount of coins for the both of them to board.

Jordi took the money and nodded at a fellow sailor, who brought another along with him to grab Arocraes' bag and store it on the ship. "We'll be leaving tomorrow morning. You two lovebirds can board, my mate will show you to your room."

"We're not--" Arocraes tried to explain before he was jostled out of the line and found himself walking with a sailor to their room. He sighed. So far so smooth I guess he thought as he looked at Tara, and then to Captain Duval in the distance who still had not noticed Arocraes' presence.

[DragonSong]

When Arocraes started to protest that they weren't a couple, Tara elbowed him gently. "Less suspicious for a man and a woman to be traveling together if they're involved," she said quietly as they boarded the ship. "Just go with it for now, alright?"

[Arocraes]

"Alright, but don't pretend like you're not all giddy inside" he retorted as they followed the sailor into a tiny room with one bed, a desk, chair, and a dresser. The decorations were limited, as there was a single green rug in the middle of the room and two paintings with chipped frames hanging on adjacent sides of the far wall.

"Make yourself at home" the gentle sailor said with a smile as he walked out.

[DragonSong]

Tara nodded and smiled, waving to the sailor. When he was gone, she elbowed her companion again, a little harder this time.

"I'm warning you now- you try to pull something, and I will cut off a vital part of your anatomy in your sleep, m'kay?" she said brightly, batting her eyes at him before she crossed to drop her pack onto the bed.

[Arocraes]

"Don't flatter yourself" he said as he rolled his eyes and rubbed where she elbowed him. "I'm going to head up top and have a look at the ship for a bit." He walked out of the room and towards the deck of the ship.

[DragonSong]

"Keep an eye out," Tara called after him. "I don't like this." She'd never liked feelin trapped, and if something went south on this ship they really had very few escape options.

[Arocraes]

"Mhm" he replied coldly. On the deck of the ship were multiple sailors getting ready to set sail. The captain, presumably, was barking orders as his men diligently obeyed.

"Long time no see, boy" a heavy voice suddenly, softly said to Arocraes. He quickly turned around to find none other than Captain Duval. Arocraes clutched the grip of his katana, ready to slice the captain open should he try something. "Relax" he continued, "I can deal with you later. The guard captain however, he seems pretty mad about ya." Of course they would be friends Arocraes thought.

[DragonSong]

Though she by no means trusted their surroundings, Tara was perfectly willing to get some rest when she could. She flopped onto the bed with a sharp exhale, staring blankly at the ceiling.

[Arocraes]

"So what are you going to do, tell him I'm here?" Arocraes questioned angrily.

"Relax, boy" Captain Duval replied as he pulled out a cigar. "I could if I wanted to. But I don't want to. At the moment at least." He lit up the cigar, took a puff and blew it into Arocraes' face. "I'm more interested in that girl you brought here. Take me to her."

Arocraes was ready to gut the man like a fish. However, the captain had the upper hand in this situation. "Very well." Arocraes headed for the room that Tara was in, while Captain Duval softly chuckled in a smug manner that infuriated Arocraes.

[DragonSong]

Arocraes had a very distinct tread, and Tara recognized it as he approached. He had someone with him.

On alert but wanting to play it off, she just cracked an eye open and twisted on the bed as they came in. "Problem, lads?"