| abstract | - The sack twitched once. A small part was pulled inward, forming a dimple. Someone who'd been passing by the back of the Gallow's End might have heard sounds of cloth tearing between small, sharp teeth. But no one walked by. The dimple relaxed and two small fingers poked out of the hole, followed by two more from the other hand. A sharp tug and the hole became a tear. Several more urgent tugs and the tear was wide enough for the small form inside to slip out of the sack and into the shadows. A moment later the latch of a window on the second floor of the inn flipped up. The window swung open on hinges that creaked in protest. The room belonged to someone staying at the inn, possibly for a while now. There were clothes half-packed in a large backpack and the bed looked slept in but unmade. There was water in the washbasin. The skinny girl appeared as she splashed water on her face. She grabbed an old washcloth and dunked it in the basin, leaning over to scrub her face. A stranger might have been nauseated to watch her wash out her eyesockets as well but the intensity of her movements showed how important the cleasing was to her. When she was satisfied, she rinsed her mouth and spat on the floor, then lifted the washbasin and poured the water over her face and hair, slowly lowering her head to let it wash down her neck and back. She dropped the empty basin absently, not noticing as it cracked in half on the floor. She padded over to the pack, leaving little wet footprints along the dusty floor. Shivering, she fumbled with the packstrings and tore the top open. Her expression intent, she started pulling out blankets and supplies, dropping them carelessly on the ground as she searched. Presently, she found what she was looking for. Krelle pulled out a silk shirt. It looked like it wouldn't be too big for her - except the sleeves were much too long. She found a knife as well, in one of the pockets, and a belt and a pair of soft cotton pants. A few moments later and Krelle was dressed in a sleeveless silk vest, tucked into pants that were too large but cutoff just below the knee. The knife was stuck in her new belt. Giving a last rummage in the bag, she paused as she saw cheesecloth. With a small whine she pulled the little package out and unwrapped it quickly. She wasn't sure how long it had been since she'd eaten but she'd never tasted cheese so delicious, not even when she'd been high on messah. It was an indication of how tired and distracted she was that she didn't hear the soft footsteps outside the door. Krelle spun around as the door opened and the elf who was staying there entered. They stared at each other in surprise for half an instant before Krelle did the sensible thing and vanished. Half a piece of cheese fell to the floor where she'd been standing. Brain-rot was definitely a spreading epidemic among the Forsaken he'd decided. After trying to explain to the last random animated corpse that there wasn't any sense in expecting him to 'Beware the living!' he'd decided to retreat for the night. As he climbed the stairs he keyed on the comm channel subtly, speaking softly so he wouldn't be overheard over the chatter of the common room. "Hey Red, are all Forsaken brain-addled or just the ones I keep meetin'?" The trolls voice came loud and clear over the bit in his ear. "Heh. Dat's whatchoo get fer 'angin' out in Brill, Shisou. Renee tryin' ta sell joo last weeks chowdah again?" "If only I could be so fortunate... Any idea how long I've got to wait 'round here?" He reached the top of the stairs and turned around the bannister to head towards the room he'd rented. It was Room 8 right? "Ah dunno, Shi. We no be havin' anneh news yet." "What's this package supposed to look like anyway? 'less you're plannin' on it coming with a sign it ain't like I'm gonna know it on sight." He was getting a bit annoyed at the lack of information he was given, but it wasn't as if they didn't have reason to be skittish. "Ah dunno... mebbe nothin be happenin... We all be waitin' on news from dem sindies, now dat Nerrok's back 'ome." Shisou grumbled about boredom and decaying things as he passed the doors in the hall. "'ow's the Boss doin'? Still snoozin'?" "Jah, last ah 'eard. Karet' be watchin' im." Shisou swung to his right, flinging open the door to the room and blinked as he was greeted by a scene. Had that been a girl? Yeah, he hadn't imagined it... Sharp elven eyes slid over the room. Cloths littered on the floor. Broken water bowl on the floor. Water seeping into the wood and discarded textiles along the floor... He leaned backwards and looked at the number on the door jamb... 9. A fortuitous grain in the wood made it look like an 8 at first glance though. He frowned and stood back up straight. "Hey, sorry 'bout bargin' in." "D'you work here..?" He crained his neck up, looking up in the rafters and remembering the words of ol' Cel: They never look up. There was no way this wasn't someone being somewhere that someone would disagree with them being. His eyes landed on a pale, frail form perched on a rafter several yards above the floor. He couldn't make her out too well up there, but she wasn't elven or orcish, and no little human girl would make it all the way to Brill. "Nah, I'm a courier. Just here waitin' on a package. You alright?" "Not really," she murmurs. She seemed to catch herself and perked up a bit, canting her head to one side as she looks at him. "I'm a courier too. Got a bit ambushed, along the road." Shisou nodded casually. Inviting himself in he closed the door behind him with a kick and walked across the room to plop down on the mattress. The cloths scattering the bedding were obviously too large for the girl... perhaps an orc? "Yeah, ya gotta be careful about that. All sorts a hoodlums out there." He could see her rub her forehead. Maybe she was sick? "Why're you sittin?" He gave her an odd sort of look, quickly becoming convinced that the whole of the Forsaken race was afflicted with brain-rot. "Cause it's better 'n standin'" he stated as if it should be obvious. Sure, he hadn't been able to see the cloths all that clearly from the door, but mostly he'd wanted to sit down. "Why're ya up there?" She shifted her perch, sitting on the rafter rather than crouching on it and dangled her feet in the air. Looking at the skin tone he could tell she was definitely Forsaken. "Cause it's safe. I didn't know who you were, see? No one checks the rafters." Her voice sounded a little... annoyed, perhaps? "If you wanna chat, c'n we go to your room? S'messy here." "Ain't got one. And ya shouldn't complain about a mess ya made." He rubbed his goatee for a minute. "You know, it'd seem to be a bit safer on the ground than up where you can fall and hurt yourself..." She suddenly brought her feet back up into the shadowed confines of the roofing. He could hear her suspicion in her voice. "Who're you?" "I'm Jack. Who're you?" There was a pause for awhile and Shisou started looking around the room again. After a few moments there was a girlish giggle and she said. "I'm tired, but my friends call me Lucky." Shisou shot a foxish grin up into the shadows. He was starting to have fun with this. "Nothin' to worry about here. I'm just a courier, and even if I wasn't, you're just a kid, right?" "Yer in my room, courier." Yep, suspicion still there. He couldn't help but grin wider. "Oh?" "Are you laughin' at me, Jack?" "'course not Lucky." The girl started muttering in that sloppy sounding tongue the Forsaken used. Could you still call it a tongue when half the people talking it didn't have a tongue? He forgot the musing as he spotted the hunk of cheese on the floor by his foot. He snatched it up, brushed it off, and inspected it for nasties. "About time.." He'd taken a bite out of it before the girl could respond. Respond she did however as she sputtered "Hey that's mine!" Shisou shrugged. "No more than it is mine. I'm hungry, alright?" The girl slipped down from her shadowy perch, landing a few feet away from his as he was getting ready to take another bite. Sharp turquoise eyes inspected her, seeing the wet hair and grossly unfitting clothes. And of course, the empty eye sockets. He couldn't see her left hand but he was certainly willing to bet it held a weapon from the look on her face. "Give. Back. My. Chesse." "I'll make ya a deal, Little Lucky. You tell me what you're really doin' here and I'll not only give ya this cheese but some silver for some actual cloths. You'll get pinched in a flash dressed like that." He wasn't really that interested, but the girl had managed to pique his curiosity. Who went rifling through stranger's rooms, stealing a shower and bad cloths? "Why d'you give a shit? I stole that cheese, it's mine. Give it back." Her empty sockets narrowed at him. So naturally, he took another bite out of the cheese. "And I stole it again, turnabout's fair right?" He kept his eyes on her, watching her carefully while he held the cheese out to be seen easily. She mostly just stood there and steamed. "Eh? Deal or no? I'm gettin' bored and this offer won't last forever." She snarled and brought her left hand out to show a cheap dagger. Looked sharp enough though, and there was dried blood on the back of her hand. Had she murdered someone and was trying to hide? "If you take another bite of what's mine, Jack, I'm going to cut out all of your teeth," she promised with every hint of sincerity. She stalked closer to him, shifting the crude knife into her right hand and tucking her left hand back behind her back. Why was that? What did she have to hide? He watched her casually with an expressionless face. When she was nearly within arms reach he shrugged and frowns. "Oh well. I ain't got no interest in fightin' a kid. Don't blame me when you get knicked though." He lofted the half-chunk of cheese to the littlest zombie and watched carefully. The left hand shot out, snatching the cheese from the air while the right hand held the dagger steadily. As she pushed the cheese into her mouth he had clear view of it. She was missing her pinky finger on that hand. His eyebrow raised as his curiosity fired up again. He decided to take a gamble, casting through his memory of hearing Big Boss speak the Cant and having Red translate. He thought he had it pretty figured so far and had been waiting for a suitably entertaining time to reveal that he didn't really need Red's translations any longer. He found the word he was searching for just as she finished gorging the cheese. " Returned?" His suspicions were confirmed as she jerked her head up to look at him, eye-less sockets wide in response. "We've been lookin' for ya." He grinned his foxy grin. Krelle nodded and held out her left hand. "I'd figured. Pass me your com?" He tapped the bud in his ear to engage the general communications channel and couldn't help the grin in his voice. "Ya'll guys get ready..." "Just - ... Just give it over." Shisou plucked the bud out of his ear and tossed it to the littlest forsaken. "Sure thing, Little Lucky." Krelle caught it easily and put it in her ear. She hesitated for an instant, uncertain, then grinned and keyed the comm. "Well I got bored with being kidnapped and came back," she drawled casually. "Did you all miss me?"
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