Ruffles cleaned up the glass with a dustpan and brush he found in the hall closet, and mopped up the spilled liquid with a rag which he threw in the bin. Around him, the party was starting up again. Out of sight, out of mind, he thought wryly. He knew a lot of people wouldn't care less about Amy's breakdown. He shook his head.
It had been a sobering experience. All he could do was wait and ask after Amy's well being when he talked to Pixie. Retrieving a beer from an ice bucket, he popped the lid, and sat down in a chair.
===============================================
Bryan weathered the shouting without responding. Maybe venting at him would make her feel better. Then suddenly she threw herself into his arms. He managed to stop himself from being knocked onto his back foot, and held her tightly as she buried her face in his chest, sobbing. For what seemed like an age, he stood silently holding her, stroking her back.
Eventually, when her crying had died down some, he asked tenderly, "do you want to tell me what happened?"
"Pay close attention in the coming days to how Pixie and I interact. If you want to see what an outsider looks like, look no further."
What did he mean by that? Who was this guy? How did he know Pixie so well?
"Aesop, you're a prisoner of your own mind. I know how it is to take what others say to you and twist their words. To imagine they hate you more than they do, because, hell, if you feel that way, surely they do too, right?"
"Wrong."
Aesop had no idea how to react. Was this guy a mind reader? "How do you know all this? You're right on the fucking mark I mean-how? Christ I-" He had to collect his thoughts. "I..." He had a sudden burst of aggression, not at Carlos, not even directed at him, but it was there. "I fucking killed such an important person. They loved him and he..." he slowed down. "I'm pretty sure he hated me. At the end, hell at the end he was nice to me, he was good to me, maybe he was just tired of my shit but still." His voice cracked. "And I murdered him. Point blank shot him in the face." He pointed to his gun. "This was the gun I used." He then had a look of, one could say freedom on his face, as he pointed to the sheath. "And this was the knife I used to kill Rodrigo."
Aesop was driven away from his thoughts as he heard the yell of the party next door. His head sunk as he heard them having fun. "God I wanna join in. I really really do but... I'm sorry but I really don't feel like I am one of them." Usually he would force a laugh but what was the damn point. "And even if I did what would I do? Sit there and NOT drink?"
Lilith tapped the boy's cheek gently. "Well aren't you precious?" Running a hand through her hair, she placed her hands behind her head as she laid back on the pillow.
"Listening to the Maidens for sex advice is like taking English lessons from your mother."
Sprout laughed so hard he snorted, "Yeah, I reckon I drew the short straw on that one! Then again, you talk kinda funny yerself, ya' know?"
Deepening her voice, Lilith frowned. "You fuckin' what mate? I speak well proper like!"
"Christ, that's awful!" He chuckled, holding his chest as pain shot through his ribs. He didn't care. "Alright, so if you had to bone any of the Maidens... who'd it be?" He asked with a sinister grin only the ceiling could see.
"Other than you, you mean?" Lilith replied, rolling her eyes. Furrowing her brow, she thought for a moment.
"I er..." Her cheeks reddened slightly, "I ummm, Florian I guess." She quickly checked herself "But only because he's the lest ugly on the ship, it's not like I like him that way or anything." She lied.
It was obvious.
An insidious grin slowly formed on his face, "Liiiiiilyyyyyyyy," He cooed, pulling himself up into a sitting position. "I don' reckon ya' have somethin' ta' share with the class, do ya'?"
The girl's eyes widened as she realised her terrible mistake. "No! I didn't mean..." She held her hands to her burning cheeks. "No no no no no no! Wha have I done?" She muttered as embarrassment washed over her.
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Sprout bellowed, probably popping a few blood vessels as he lurched forward. Oh, did it hurt... bit it was so worth it! "LILY! LILY! I CAN'-I CAN'T!" He laughed some more. "HE'S A P-PRIEST!" More laughter. "THIS IS TOO GOOD!"
After he settled down a bit, he wiped a tear from his eye, "Lily, I'm sorry. I'm sorry!"
"I know!" She cried out, burying her face in her hands. "I WAS RAISED BY NUNS, WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS?"
He placed a hand on her back and patted it gently, "It's okay, Lily. It's okay. Like Ma' always says, 'you always want what you can't get'. Though, with Florian... I dunno." He furrowed his brow. "Somethin' tells me he'd forsake God-almighty and drop trou in a heartbeat if he saw yer tits!" More sidesplitting laughter followed.
"My bits?!" She grabbed the boy around the throat, shaking him gently. "HE'S A PRIEST! You can't just shag a priest!" She lowered her face in defeat, tears of laughter in her eyes. "Oh god." She muttered.
"I am totally going to hell."
"Wouldn' it be worth it though!?" Sprout chuckled, still clutching his throat. "You'd be such a badass! Breakin' dem vows! Sound's like my Lily!" Sprout flopped over onto his back and stared out the window. "So tell me." He snickered. "Whadda ya' like about 'im. An' before you say anythin', yes, we're havin' this conversation!"
"Really? This is fucking happening?" She clutched at her hair. "Jesus Christ." She furrowed her brow for a moment, her cheeks still glowing before a fond smile crawled on her face. "Florian is..." She twirled a strand of hair around her finger. "He's not like the other guys." She shook her head. "Oh god, I sound like a teenage girl."
Sprout stopped himself from laughing in her face. He would have to promise himself not to embarrass her any further if he was to get any more out of her, "Oh, no you don', Lily!" Yes she did. "How's he different?"
She looked up at the boy, her eyes glistening. "You're really doing this to me?" She shook her head. "You wanker." She chuckled. Diverting her gaze downward, she bit her bottom lip. "He's... intense, like, he's gentle, you can hear it in the way he speaks, you can see it in his face." She paused for a moment. "But in his eyes, there's something... more. There's a fire there." She smiled sweetly.
"I want to know what that fire means."
"Maybe it jus' means he wants ta' bone somethin'!" He chuckled. "I mean, come on, Lily. When you reckon he last got 'is rocks off?!"
Lilith looked up at the boy, a stern look on her face. For a few moments she was silent. "My god. I think you're right." She ginned. "I don't think I'd have to do much work at all."
"Yeah, you'd prolly jus' touch 'is pecker an' he'd burst then an' there!" Sprout was tearing up now. This was too good. Too sweet. The blackmail. THE BLACKMAIL! "Jus' imagine 'is confession afterwards!"
"You're a terrible person!" She spouted, pushing the boy onto his side, before picking up her pillow and smothering him.
Pixie's heart skipped a beat when she took in Amy's distressed appearance.
Amy...
"Come in."
Pixie did as she was told, stepping in close to cup the side of Amy's face, "Oh, sweetheart." She muttered.
"I-I'm sorry Pixie. I've spoiled it haven't I. My fault, I shouldn't have played. I just w-wanted them to like me, and now..."
Pixie began shushing her, "Amy, sweetie, no, it's not your fault,"She moved her hand to the back of Amy's head and pulled her in for a warm embrace. "Don' worry, baby, it's okay now. I'm here for you." She whispered in Amy's ear as they swayed side-to-side.
Amy began sobbing again, letting herself get pulled in. A moment later, she brought up her own hands and clutched at Pixie's back.
"I... I want to tell you." she whispered, fighting to speak coherently through the tears "I want to be better, b-but... you'll think I'm vile, disgusting. You won't want to touch me. You won't even want to look at me!"
Pixie shook her head, bringing one hand up across her back to squeeze her shoulder, "No, that ain't true baby, I promise. We've all done terrible thin's, Amy. Everyone in that room out there. Yer no different from any of 'em." She gave her neck a tender kiss before burying her face into Amy's shoulder once more. "Listen, Amy, there ain't nothin' you can tell me that'd change how I look at you."
She squeezed Amy tighter, "I've done it all. I've murdered, I've tortured, I've stolen. I've hurt the ones I love more times than I can count." She sighed. "I've been shot, stabbed, burned, tortured, raped an' beaten half-to-death on several occasions. After all that, if I can' look at you, how the fuck do ya' think I can look at myself?" She withdrew her head from Amy and held a hand to her chin so as to meet her gaze. "Darlin', you don' hafta tell me anythin' you don' wanna, but I'm hear if you need me. I'm hear if you need an ear. No matter what you tell me, I won' judge you. I promise."
It took Amy a minute to calm herself down, before she pushed away a little, so she could look into Pixie's face, their eyes meeting.
"Okay..." she said "okay. I-I can't tell you everything. Not yet, I'm sorry but I just can't. It was just tonight, a silly thing really, we were playing drinking games, and, well... pregnancy was mentioned."
Amy looked down again and took a deep breath. This wasn't going to be easy.
"I was thirteen, working in a brothel in Yuteni. There was a man who used to visit a lot. I... I was his favourite, or so I thought. He was a weak man, unhappily married, a drinker, but he was kind to me. He was one of the first ones who ever made me laugh.
I was so happy when the Madame called the doctor in, and he told me I was pregnant. I didn't really understand too much about the concept back then, of having and raising a child, but it always sounded like the most wonderful thing. Something that, someone like me, could ever hope for. It sounds stupid now, but I thought that if I told him, he would love me and the baby both so much, that he would take us away. I thought back then that I might be able to start again."
Her legs were shaking, and Amy had to go and sit down, closing the lid on the toilet basin, before she could continue.
"The next time he visited me, I waited until he's had two glasses of whiskey. I think that was a mistake now, maybe he wouldn't have done it otherwise. At the time, I thought that if he'd had a bit to drink, he'd be even more happy when I told him. He... he was quiet for a long time, but I thought that was fine, at first, I waited a while, while we just sat there in silence, before I asked him what we were going to do. That got his attention, but... the way he looked at me Pixie, like I was filth. I'd never seen his eyes so full of revulsion before... an-and then he hit me."
Holding her hand to her mouth, Amy chocked down another few sobs. She'd started now, she had to finish.
"Once he'd knocked me to the ground, he kept punching and kicking me, in the stomach and below, all the while saying these awful things, like how I was nothing but a dumb whore, and that I was going to ruin everything. He told me that... that the only reason he'd picked me was because he thought I was too young, that this could never happen. That was when he drew his gun. I thought he was going to kill me, but he only wanted to use the grip to beat me some more.
By the time the Madame heard my screams, and came running, th-there was so much blood. I remember him taking off just before I passed out. When I woke up, the Doctor was standing over my bed. I... I didn't need him to say anything. I could tell just by the look on his face. My baby was gone. I was a dumb whore, and whores like me were the only family I would ever have."
Burying her face in her hands, Amy couldn't bring herself to say any more.
Pixie stood before her as she told her tale. It was a good thing Amy hadn't the ability to look Pixie in the eye, for she'd have likely faltered while telling her story. About halfway through, when it was clear where it was going, Pixie had balled her hands into fists. Rage. A primal, unquenchable rage bellowed from her heart, causing her blood to boil. Though she hadn't noticed it herself, she'd dug her canine into her lower lip, causing blood to trickle down to her chin. She wanted so badly to ask the man's name, to learn of his fate and if he lived... she'd change that right quick.
Thankfully, however, she had in her enough empathy to tell how little such a gesture would be worth. It was so easy to lose yourself in such a tale. To summon forth similar memories from her own life and insert herself into Amy's shoes. No, talks of revenge meant nothing here. Not now. What Amy needed was love. She needed something that she'd never felt before. Pixie had the means to give it to her and it took every bit of strength she had to push past the grief and anger and reach out. She had to stop making everything about herself. She had to help this girl, for she was the only one who could.
Pixie knelt down and brushed Amy's hair to the side. Catching it between her fingers, Pixie held it to the side so as to see her face, and lifted her chin once more with her other hand, "No, Amy, you're wrong. You have a family now. You have yer sisters. You have the Maidens." She offered her a weak smile. "You have me." Her lips quivered as she fought to hold the smile for Amy's sake. She couldn't let her see how hard it had it her. How close to home she'd come. This wasn't about Pixie. For once, she wanted to be the one to comfort Amy. She deserved as much.
She began wiping the girl's tears away, "How 'bout we get out of this bathroom, okay?"
Amy looked up, responding to Pixie's touch, and was able to smile just a little bit, which for the current situation was practically equivalent to breaking into song.
"I-I think I need a minute or two, but then okay, when I'm not looking such a mess."
She noticed that Pixie had bitten her lip hard enough to draw blood. For a woman like her, so devoted to defending others with all her fierceness, listening to a story like that can't have been much easier than it was for Amy to tell it. Lifting up her hand, still trembling a little, Amy wiped away some of the blood as gracefully as she could, before leaning forward and kissing her softly on the lips.
"Pixie... promise me you won't blame the others. It wasn't their fault."
Pixie smiled, "Of course not, Amy. I'm sure they were jus' 'avin' some fun. Don' worry, I won' shout anyone's head off." She kissed Amy again. "You know, I'm really proud'a you fer openin' up like that, sweetheart. Yer a brave one."
"Thanks" Amy replied weakly "I hope you won't mind if that's as much opening up as I can handle for one day though."
It had helped though. Amy hadn't realised until now, but the telling of it had made her feel just a little bit lighter, or maybe that was just the alcohol again.
"You go on ahead." she told Pixie, smiling. "I'll catch you up in a few minutes."
Pixie nodded, "Okay, Amy. Jus' holler if ya' need me, I won' be far." After kissing her one last time on the forehead, Pixie got to her feet and walked out. After stepping through the door, she closed it behind her and leaned against it. Sighing heavily, she pulled the orchid out of her pocket and looked it over. It was best she save that conversation for later.
"News to ya'? Yeah, put that shit in yer fuckin' portfolio."
'Not really.' Vergil didn't look very impressed at her little tirade. Considering her gangs notoriety, and how they had just lost their ship, did she think she could hire an army of mercs cheap? What about her own crew, supply them for this? What of escape routes, entry points, things she should have if she wanted to act on her hatred. She wasn't going to share these plans in the middle of a party, of course, but she was being fucking infuriating. And if only she could FUCKING SPEAK CORRECTLY.
"Now, if there ain't any other business ya' wanna discuss I've gotta drunk ta' lull to sleep."
"Some, but drinking is more important. I could use a bottle or three myself." He sighed, looking around. He was hoping she'd just accept an offer based on reputation. She knew what they did, after all. Sadly, no one seemed to actually know who they even were.
'My arse we're famous and respected...'
"Lily gave me the same look when she first heard my voice, ya' know that? Don' worry, you'll never get over it."
"Cringing. The expressions name is cringing." Vergil smiled too, and then Bennie came in again. Fun times. They spoke for a moment, Vergil stopped paying attention, too personal for his blood. She started off,
"Hold the fort for me."
'I forgot for a second I was in a bunker full of murderous psychopaths drinking heavily, for a moment there. Funny that.'
"Women."
"Indeed. Poor you." Vergil wandered off to get a drink.
As she continued to sob in Bryan's arms, Tsubaki found herself lost in her memories; thinking back to her time with the Yamato family. She had felt this powerless, this... small, before. Only, now things were different, weren't they? She hadn't had someone to hold her back then.
"Do you want to tell me what happened?"
Wiping her tears from her face, Tsubaki shook her head, "No," She muttered. "No, this is enough." She remained in his arms, attempting to collect herself. What was she doing wasting her time sniveling like this? She was a soldier, not some pathetic little girl. She'd come so far since she'd left the Yakuza. She'd grown so strong.
No, this wasn't her at all. Withdrawing her head from Bryan's shoulder, she looked into his eyes, "Thank you, Bry--," She blinked, stupidly. "I mean, O'Laffery. Not a word of this to anyone, you got that?" She stepped back from him and dried her eyes on her sleeve. "Come on, we have a briefing to get back to."
"And even if I did what would I do? Sit there and NOT drink?"
Carlos shrugged, "It's hard to stand up against your own sins," He begun, his eyes searching to the floor. "It's hard to remain a good man when the object of your forbidden desire is dangling right in front of your face. I know the feeling, Aesop." Their eyes met once more. "But listen, they don't care that you can't drink. Only you do. They are your friends. They are your comrades. They accept and understand you, don't you see that? Don't let your self pity blind you to that fact."
Getting to his feet, he opened the door, "Come on, go out there and have some fun. If you need me to I can keep an eye on you. I'll seek Pixie on you if you try to get a sip of anything." He grinned.
Bennie cocked an eyebrow, "Punk ass." He muttered under his breath. Shrugging, Bennie wandered back over to the bar where Brock was chatting up an inebriated Cameron. "Girl, it is way too early to be this far gone!" Bennie laughed, leaning his elbow against the bar.
"Don't you know it!" Cameron shouted. "And this one's trying to get in my pants!" She claimed, pointing her thumb at Brock with a look of faux shock. "It's just past noon you fuckin' horndog!"
Brock held up his hands in surrender, "Hey, don't listen to the crazy drunk! She's just jealous 'cause we've all had our eyes on Amy!" He snickered, giving Cameron a teasing nudge.
She's seventeen.
"Oh, whatever!" Cameron shot back. "You know you'd fuck anything that breaths! Besides, it's a relief having the boys leer at someone else for a change. Me n' Lilith can finally take a fucking break!"
Brock shrugged, "Yeah, that's true. I reckon I'd love to bend her over a table an---"
"Enough," Bennie bellowed in a deep tone. "She's a fucking teenager."
Shocked, Cameron and Brock exchanged looks, "Look, Bennie I---"
Bennie stepped in closer, his stone-cold presence was all that was needed to kill Brock's words in his throat "I don't wanna hear it, Brock. You leave her alone, got it? You too, Cam." They nodded, nervously. "Tell the others the same thing. I don't want Pixie poppin' y'all's heads off 'cause you were running your mouths about her girl."
"Y-yeah, you got it, Bennie," Brock's voice faltered. For such a beefy guy, he certainly was easily intimidated. Then again, is was Bennie we're talking.
Looking to Cameron, it was clear she'd had way too much to drink. Bennie grunted, "You need to lie down, Cam. Come on," He held his arm out. "Brock, grab her a bottle of water."
Cameron giggled as she fell against him, "My very own knight in shining armor!" She cooed.
"Don't read into it, Cam." He chuckled, guiding her through the crowd and into an empty room down the hall. Laying her down on a cot, he put the water bottle down on the floor next to her. "Water's right here. Holler if you need anything, okay?"
Her eyes closed, Cameron flailed her arms about as if trying to reach for Bennie, "Nooooooo, stay with me, my knight!"
Bennie ignored her summons and continued towards the door, "You're drunk, Cam."
"Yeaaaaaaah." She admitted, rolling over onto her side. She was asleep moments later.
Bennie sported a stupid grin as he left the room, closing the door behind him. Lifting up his arm, he took a quick whiff and reared back in disgust. He was stinky, as was expect from a man who hadn't had a chance to shower in over two days. Glancing around at the thinning crowd, Bennie figured now was a good a time as ever to sneak out of the party and freshen up.
"Don't let your self pity blind you to that fact."
Aesop sighed. "I really don't want to..." his voice got quieter as he spoke.
Come on, go out there and have some fun. If you need me to I can keep an eye on you. I'll seek Pixie on you if you try to get a sip of anything."
Aesop chuckled. Not a forced one this time, but an actual laugh. "Not even a soda? C'mon man gimme a break." He smirked slightly as he walked past Carlos as he held the door open. "Um," he paused and turned to him, "I'd like to, maybe some time talk again. I've never known anyone who-who actually KNOWS what its like to be a um," his words struggled to leave his lips, "no offence to you I mean. Its just everyone either ignores me or tries to cheer me up, you can empathise what its like to be..." he sighed. "Okay a *****." He held up his hands in protest. "Not that you're a ***** I mean, you know what its like to talk to a ***** um," he gave in. "Okay yeah, sorry, I'm gonna go... sit I guess.
Thanks." He smiled on that last word as he left. He spotted Bennie in the hallway carrying Cameron into a room. Aesop laughed as Bennie walked past him. "I know what that's like." He laughed referring to her, then saw Brock re entering the party. "Oh God please tell me Brock wasn't tryin'na...?"
After Pixie had left, Amy took another long drink from the tap, letting the cold water clear her head. Then, she set about cleaning herself up. Re-doing the hair and make-up so that she might face the outside renewed.
A few minutes later, she was walking through the crowded space, focusing on putting one foot in front of the other. She would do this. No-one was judging her here, she was safe.
Amy spotted Ruffles sitting by himself, nursing a beer and looking more than a little downcast. Feeling guilty, she went over and perched herself on the chair beside him.
"Um, hello." she said furtively. "I'm sorry about before. I didn't mean to act like that."
"I'm sorry about before. I didn't mean to act like that."
Ruffles blinked. "What? No, hey, no! Shit, it's my fault for making you have a goddamn Vietnam Flashback!" He didn't know what 'Vietnam' was, but he'd read the phrase in a book once, and it seemed suitable. "I mean that sorta thing's really emotional for any woman, and I can't imagine all the shit that's come your way, I--" he was babbling and shook himself. "I'm the one who ought to apologize, alright? You were uncomfortable with that game right off, I shoulda been more careful."
"No, really, that's not necessary." Amy replied, abashed "I... I don't want everyone thinking they have to be careful around me. I have my ghosts, the same as everyone else, but you see, this whole 'family' thing that you have, it's not something I'm really used to, but I want to be a part of it. I want to be useful, and I don't want people to be afraid of having a few drinks with me.
"Any time." Carlos muttered as Aesop left the room. After he left, Carlos just kind of sat there alone for awhile. He wanted to get plastered too, but he knew it wasn't likely a very good idea. What if he slipped up? He couldn't afford to make any mistakes.
Sighing in frustration, he flopped over onto his back and stared at the ceiling for a long, long time.
Having regained her composure, Tsubaki led Bryan back to the table where Jun and Asad had been waiting patiently. After sitting back down she coughed, "Sorry about that. The pancakes did not mix well with my hangover." She lied. "Turns out O'Laffery knows a thing or two about treating such maladies." She gave him a small smirk.
While talking to a few of her Maidens nearby, Pixie overhead bits and pieces of Amy and Ruffles' conversation. Why Amy would feel so apologetic to Ruffles was beyond her. He was such an... easygoing guy.
"So, I promise you, it won't happen again."
Pixie looked over her shoulder with a sad smile. Turning back to face her men she laughed at a joke she'd failed to hear, "Yer a fuckin' riot, son!" She jeered. before turning on her heel and starting towards where Ruffles and Amy sat.
Coming up from behind Amy, she draped her arms around her and rested her jaw on the base of her neck, "You two gettin' along?" The smile on her face told Ruffles it was a rhetorical question.
"Uh, um, Margaret uh-h, Margaret Tiger---man. Yeah, Margaret Tigerman!"
'Tigerman? Seriously?' Maria thought to herself, hadn't come across that one in all of her travels. Had Miss 'Tigerman' hit her head in that collision or something? She glowed redder than a tomato that had caught the midday sun. Still, in the situation, Maria would probably be just as embarrassed herself.
"I'm uh, I'm a, uh... well, I used to be a merchant. Or, I should say, uh, I am the daughter of a merchant. My father... he was run out of town though, so I am alone now."
However, Maria could have fun with the mess Margaret had given her as an introduction. Which would be pretty evil, considering the poor girl's endearing efforts. Oh, let's face it, she was practically giving Maria ammunition. The doctor returned the big smile, though it was hard not to flash an evil grin.
"That's a really interesting surname, Mags, I wonder if there's a story behind it. And you should've said before! I'm not that good at haggling. I'm sure you'd be able to get a better deal." Maria replied.
Florian shuffled in, squeezing for space with The Gentleman as the two of them struggled to fit through the front door at the same time. Florian gave his best old man grumble, something which came far too easily to him for comfort. He could always blame his bullet wound acting up in the cold. Sure, that was it.
He didn't recognise the Bejic men there. He shouldn't have been surprised, it wasn't like everyone from Frostfall knew each other or had life among the maidens made Florian more of a stereotype?
The house was almost barren, most of it boarded up, its insides must have been ransacked long ago. How long have they been fighting? The whole street outside had looked like an old wound gone putrid. There was life here but it all felt so wrong. Like those that stayed did so only because they couldn't do anything else. The makeshift banners said that the Bejics were winning (or they had won this street) but none of it felt like any kind of victory.
The men about the house all had a similar hollow look about their sunken eyes. Some had that air of desperation that violence and hardship brought out in men as their inner beast struggled with every ounce of thought it could muster to find a way out of the hell it had found itself in. Others just looked tired. Those thoughts'll gnaw at them. I wonder which'll break first.
The Gentleman went about his meeting as the concerned parties gathered in what was once a dining room and Florian found himself a chair, sitting down with an exaggerated series of grunts and groans. He did his duty and made himself look dubious and shifty as he fake muttered translations in The Gentlemans ear.
And did not at all whisper random words and comments on who in the room was looking fat!
It only got better during a quiet moment when Florian ended up fidgeting through the massive pockets in his scraggy new coat and found a hard candy. A local brand and all! Oh this is just perfect! He smiled to himself as he went about undoing the annoyingly loud wrapper and obnoxiously shlurrping away. The dirty looks he got from the bandits made it all SO worth it.
Before Ruffles could respond to what Amy said, Pixie appeared like a bull in a china shop.
"You two gettin' along?"
"Yeah, just fine," said Ruffles sincerely, although it was clear there was no other allowed response. "Anyway Pixie, I was gonna ask about the plan, but now ain't the time, I guess." Standing up, he said, "anyway, I'mma gonna go make sure Aesop isn't drinking, or skinning a cat. Or skinning a drunk cat. Or drinking and skinning a drunk cat, [sub]or drinking and skinning a drunk cat and drinking its..."[/sub] his voice tailed off, overrode by the music as he moved further away.
Cranston returned to the apartment, bottle in hand and placed it on the kitchen counter. Hanging his jacket up on the coat rack, he made his way to Sprout's room, "I'm back." He called out, as he entered the room. Sprout and Lillith had both been sitting in bed and apeared rather bored.
"Yeah, well, it doesn't look like Maria is back yet. I'll see if I can scrounge something up for you." Looking to Lilith he smiled. "You've been cooped up here for days, Lilith. Why don't you go out and get some fresh air? I can watch Sprout for now."
Yawning, Lilith waved lazily as Chromey walked into the room. "I dunno..." She narrowed her eyes. "Dunno if the boy can stand to be away from me for that long."
Sprout laughed, "You kiddin'?! I could do without yer smelly queefs for a few hours!"
Cranston buried his face into his palm, "Christ."
Lilith raised an eyebrow, a complete look of disbelief on her face. Opening her mouth to speak, she paused, furrowing her brow as words failed her.
A perplexed look on her face, she slowly shuffled off the bed. Looking back at the boy, she tried to speak again, instead she shook her head and gestured towards the door with both hands, before making her way towards it.
"Kick his arse." She whispered as she brushed by Cranston.
"Gladly." He chuckled.
Closing the bedroom door behind her, Lilith crossed the small hallway and entered the bedroom she had been sharing with Maria. Shuffling through her backpack, she tutted. "I need to some new clothes." She muttered as she pulled out the bottle of whiskey Aesop had given her. Unscrewing the cap, she took a big swig before returning it to the back, breathing through clenched teeth as the alcohol burned her throat. "Good stuff." She giggled.
Her wardrobe was in dire peril, and the only cure was shopping. Smiling to herself, she grabbed her bag of carbon, which had significantly grown in size since Cranston had broken down their bullion stash. She put on her holster and walked over to a mirror in the corner of the room. Furrowing her brow, she grabbed a number of bobby pins off a bedside table, pinning up her hair in a number of strategic locations, before picking up Axel's red cap and plopping it on her head. There, not much, but it would make her much less recognisable at a glance. Pulling out her cigarettes, she lit up, blowing a smoke ring at her reflection, before winking. "Shopping!" She cooed, before turning on her heel and leaving the apartment for the market.
"Sorry about that. The pancakes did not mix well with my hangover. Turns out O'Laffery knows a thing or two about treating such maladies."
Asad didn't look convinced. "Uhuh..." He muttered, taking a bite out of a slice of toast. Deciding it was best to drop the issue, he coughed slightly. "So, what's next." He said chewing, before taking a swig of his coffee.
"Good day, Comrades." The Gentleman spoke kindly once the table was all filled out, Florian beginning his translation a second after. "You all know why I am here."
Beneath the grizzled, unfriendly faces all around him, the stench of fear was palpable. The recent attempt on their leaders life had made these men all the more determined not to lose sight of the priority of Vasa's safety, and yet, it had not made them forget who they were dealing with. None of them wanted to be the one who asked too much of The Gentleman, especially considering those round the table who's loyalties were split between himself and Vasa. Even so, for a face to face meeting were strict, which Florian dutifully recited to him while The Gentleman pretended not to understand what was being said.
"I must submit to a search? Fair enough. In which I must surrender my firearm? Well, I suppose. My watch, and my, really now?! You wouldn't force a poor fellow to part with his trusty pipe would you? It's an heirloom from my father you know? Oh, have it your way. Let's see... I must also give up my hat, and my... absolutely not! There are some things, comrades, that a self respecting man must never be without!"
The haggling lasted around half an hour. When the preliminary negotiations were done with, The Gentleman rose from the table, and happily bid them all good day.
"10 o'clock tonight." He repeated to Florian as they exited the house back onto the street. "Deep in Bejic territory naturally. All things considered, I think that went well. I even got them to let me bring you along."
"Oh, you scared him away." Amy remarked as Ruffles retreated, before standing up and turning to face Pixie, wrapping her arms around her waist. She smiled wickedly, pulling Pixie closer and whispering in her ear.
"If I didn't know any better, I'd think you were trying to keep me all to yourself."
"That's a really interesting surname, Mags, I wonder if there's a story behind it. And you should've said before! I'm not that good at haggling. I'm sure you'd be able to get a better deal."
"Yeah..." Elizabeth muttered as she became painfully aware of her own stupidity.
I just spent the entire morning failing to gauge the proper price of bread for Christ's sake! WHY DID I SAY 'MERCHANT' OF ALL THINGS!? STUPID! STUPID! STUPID!
"Uh, o-okay! Let's start over here!" She announced, pointing dramatically at a nearby stall. The two women marched over to vegetable stand to see the shopkeeper counting out some carbon. "Excuse me good sir, we would like to purchase so tomatoes."
The man cocked an eyebrow, his eyes focused on the money in his hand, "Uh, great, then buy them."
Elizabeth glanced at Maria, sweat already beginning to form on her brow, "O-okay then, mister." She gathered up the tomatoes and showed them to the shopkeeper. "How much for this many?"
"Five."
"Five what?" She asked, innocently.
He looked her in the eye for the first time since they'd arrived, "Five! What are you, brain dead or somethin'?"
Elizabeth's face flashed red as she broke eye-contact and looked to Maria for help. She was greeted by a cruel grin, "I, uh, five! Of course five! Yes, that's right! Haha! Silly me!" She laughed nervously as she gave the man five thick coins from the stash Maria had provided.
The man looked down in disbelief and smiled, "Yeah, that's good. Thanks Miss!"
"Have a n-nice day, Sir!" Her nervous laughter only subsided once the two women were out of earshot. Looking to Maria, she sighed, "I'm sorry, I'm actually quite bad at this."
As if nothing had happened at all, Tsubaki took a deep breath and adjusted her posture, "So, not that it matters much to you all, but our superiors are happy with our results in Frostfall. Our next assignment, it seems, is the apprehension of Lady Elizabeth Maribel." A look of displeasure shone on her face for a brief moment. "It appears she escaped the Iron Maiden during Father Austin's siege a few days ago. She was last seen in Bengeli, returning the corpse of Lady Josephine Tigereye to her family."
After taking a quick swig of her coffee, she continued, "As it turns out, someone out there does know where the young lady is and has offered to sell us the intel. We are to meet with this man in the city this afternoon. Though he says he will be alone and unarmed, we must prepare for the worst. We are going into this blind. That said," Tsubaki smirked. "We'll have plenty of backup on standby. I don't imagine anyone would try anything in our own city. Even so, be on your guard. I will be the one to meet with him and we can designate your positions when we visit the site after breakfast. Any questions?"
Sprout had been lying in bed, staring out the window in silence when Cranston entered the room, "Made you some soup."
"Thanks," Sprout whispered, not bothering to turn over and look at him.
"Come on, sit up," Cranston ordered, adjusting Sprout's pillow so he could sit up in bed and eat.
Sprout grunted in pain as he shifted his body and took the bowl when it was handed to him. Instead of eating it, however, he just stared into it.
"I thought you were hungry," Cranston asked, sitting down in the chair next to his bed. "Something wrong?"
Sprout began playing with the soup with his spoon, his eyes glued to the bowl, "You remember when Ma' beat up Lily?"
Cranston grew worried, "Yeah." He muttered.
Their eyes met. Sprout's expression was... apathetic, "You've known Ma' longer'n all the Maidens 'sides me. D-do you," He clenched his jaw. "You reckon she ever did that ta' me? You know, before the Iron Maiden. Before she became a bandit."
Cranston didn't answer right away, his jaw hanging agape, "No." Getting to his feet, he started towards the door. "I am going to get you some OJ."
"Thanks," Sprout repeated, looking out the window as Cranston left the room.
Cranston crossed into the kitchen, stopping just short of opening the refrigerator. His fingers wrapped around the handle of the fridge, he just stood there for awhile, staring into space.
"If I didn't know any better, I'd think you were trying to keep me all to yourself."
"If I could I'd unwrap you right now'n go ta' town," Pixie giggled. "Unfortunately, duty calls. Now that the party's startin' ta' die down I was gonna go take care'a Randy. I was wonderin' if..." She frowned, breaking eye-contact with Amy. It was clear she regretted what she was about to say. "I was wonderin' if ya' wanted ta' see fer yerself how we... well, I should say, how I, operate. It's one thin' ta' hear my stories an' it's somethin' else ta' see fer yerself."
She found Amy's eyes once more, "I jus' wan' you ta' know what yer gettin' yerself into."
Bennie stepped into the small bedroom he was to share with Ruffles and immediately began undressing. He unbuttoned his blue dress shirt, leaving it on the back of a nearby chair and peeled his white wife beater off, over his head. Popping off his shoes, he walked into the bathroom and started the shower. As he waited for it to warm up, he stared at himself in the mirror. Several old scars could be seen on the surface of his skin, all with their own stories.
He grunted, amused, as he looked them over. They were ac constant reminder that his suffering was nothing compared to that of Pixie's. Hers ran deeper. Much deeper. All he had to mourn was his father and the untimely end of his legacy. He hadn't been scorned by the world in the way she had, so why did he feel so shitty? Was it jealousy?
Noticing the steam building up in the small bathroom, Bennie undid his belt and let his pants fall to the floor. Kicking off his boxers, he hopped in the shower, the scolding hot water beating down on his sore, tight muscles. After running a hand over his bald head, he looked up to the shower-head, his eyes closed, and let the warm water cleanse him of the ash and dirt that had found its way into every crevice on his body.
Outstretching his arms, he leaned against the shower wall and hung his head, letting the shower run over both sides of his shoulders.
Pixie...
And there it was again. Just when he was enjoying a simple shower, she had to pop into his head again. Why? Why, couldn't he stop thinking about her? He'd been with plenty of women since they had broken up. Why was it that he couldn't connect with any of them? Not a single damn one!
She's a fuckin' kid, Pixie.
What the fuck was she thinking getting involved with that poor girl? He didn't care to think himself better than anyone, but she'd been half sane for all these years because of him. It was because of Bennie's rational and disciplined nature that Pixie hadn't flown off the handle countless times. He was her rock. He was the voice of reason in her life... for a time, anyway. What was Amy?! A fucktoy?!
No, worse than that...
Whether she was able to admit it to herself or not, Bennie knew the real reason she was so infatuated with Amy. She wanted her around because she made her feel better. Not because of her professionally refined "support", but because she was probably the only girl on the Rock who was more fucked in the head than Pixie. Knowing someone else out there is more fucked up than you can be comforting in a sense, right?
Fuck me.
Bennie sighed heavily. He didn't actually believe any of that. For all he knew, Pixie really did want to help that girl. He was just upset. Jealous, even. He'd just have to... get over it somehow. He'd have to find a way to forget about Pixie. Simple as that.
"I jus' wan' you ta' know what yer gettin' yerself into."
"Oh." said Amy, suddenly serious. Truth be told, watching a man get tortured and killed was hardly her idea of fun. Still, it would be hypocritical of her to judge Pixie for it. Amy had delivered her fair share of people to sticky ends herself. People who had hurt her, or hurt people that she had promised to protect, or else avenge. As well as this, Amy wondered how much of this was to do with Pixie wanting Amy to be fully prepared for being a Maiden, and how much was to do with Pixie not wanting to be alone with that man, after what he had done. Pixie had been there for her, when she's needed it. How could Amy refuse now.
No words were necessary. Amy simply nodded, face set, and took Pixie's hand.
"I got one," said Bryan, raising his hand briefly before stabbing his fork into some still mildly warm pancakes. "How do we know this guy can be trusted? I reckon there's half a hundred crime families, tiny nobles, information brokers and general arsewipes wanting to kiss up to ol' Dio by acting useful. Not to mention all the rumours. What cuts this chap from the pack, ma'am?"
Ruffles, of course, had gotten sidetracked trying to find Aesop. He was sat at a blackjack table, gathering increasing piles of carbon and increasing glares from the rest of the crew members crowded around the table.
"Nineteen," he said, putting his cards down with a grin. "I win again."
"That's bullshit," Kierney whined.
"Hey, I lost the last hand," Ruffles replied.
"Yeah, but you bet fuck all!"
"Come on, everyone knows that bastard counts his cards like some weird machine," blurted out someone else.
"I can neither confirm nor deny that," said Ruffles with a jovial grin as he swept the carbon into a bag. "Alright alright alright, look, Kierney. How about a different game, alright? You pick. Poker, go fish, rummy. You name it."
"Chess!" Kierney said with a smile. "Let's see how ya do when it ain't cards, Ruffles!"
"Chess is all calculations and shit. That's my thing, right?"
"Yeah," replied Kierney, his smirk widening. "But I see two boards and two chess clocks over there. You play both me and Hernandez."
several minutes later...
"Check mate," said Ruffles. "Third time in a row, man..."
"Fuck this! Fuck you!"
"Both of you, with timers... man, that's embarrassing. I'd let ya try again, but nature calls, guys." He got up. "Maybe next time, huh?"
Aesop wanted to enter the party room but he found himself hesitant to enter. He didn't want to ***** out after Carlos's pep talk. Still, a pep talk was just that, a talk. But he owed the man. Wait owed? Okay maybe not owed-no wait yeah owed. Okay not... FUCK IT! He was trying to help him, and Aesop didn't want him to feel like he had wasted his efforts. 'I went to a good school, why am I so shit with words?'
He wanted to enter so badly. Still he didn't know what to do. Maybe just chill. Play a game or two. Yeah. Yeah! Yeah he could do that! And so on he went, walking towards the party with a dumb grin plastered on his face.
But to put it mildly, Aesop's mind was a fickle *****.
He stopped, dead in his tracks as he realised something. Randy was on his own. That mother fucker had no one guarding him. Pixie was likely off drinking or having sex with Amy, and everyone else, bar Carlos and maybe Warren or that Vergil kid; who he needed to remember to thank, or maybe he had? The past 3 days had been a blur to him. Events playing out different ways in his mind, whether any of them had happened or not he needed to ask the others.
And he blamed Randy. That mother fucker had betrayed the maidens to a scumbag like Bandito Joe. Aesop laughed as he remembered Ruffles name for him. He laughed even more and licked and bit his lips as the thought of Randy alone was racing in his mind. This was it! And no one would have time to save the fucker? He'd leave him alive, kinda. He'd be missing parts but he'd be alive. Maybe this was Aesop's idea of a party? 'Maybe I'm just a sick fuck and this is what I've been missing... whats made me feel all alone this time.' He thought for a little while before he turned towards Randy's room. 'Looks like me and the Captain have more in common than I thought.' He grinned much like Silo's captor Bandito Joe as he headed towards Randy's room, though everyone knew it was a cell.
He pulled out his knife, the knife he had used to tear the Santiago family asunder. Grabbing a hold of the door handle. He slowly turned it, savouring the moment, raising his head and closing his eyes as...
It was fucking locked.
'Oh fuck you.' Aesop pulled at the door in frustration. Shaking it. 'FUCK YOOOOOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUUUUU' "C'mon c'mon!" He pulled at the door trying to get the bastard open, grunting as he did so. A fucking wooden door couldn't keep him from vengeance.
=========================================
Hannibal blushed and looked clearly embarrassed at having asked about Pixie and Miss Maribel. Stupid stupid. He kept listening to their conversation as he looked meek in his seat. Hearing about a monstrous Father Austin. He had heard the name but, not had much experience. He could be glad, very glad. Even if he didn't know it, someone such as him would be a prime target. Whether he would submit or not...
He paid more attention as Viola made their decisions for them, of which he was grateful Following someone else made things infinitely easier. He embarrassingly hurried off away from Cranston, hoping he didn't notice him as he left with Viola.
"So we wont be helping the maidens?" he asked weakly, still feeling stupid about asking after Elizabeth and Pixie.
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