Fire Emblem On Forums: Mortal Transgressions (IC)

[rokubiraijuu]

Ferdiad looks empathetically at Shin, then glances down at the floor and lets out a small sigh. 

 

"I understand feeling like everything is on you..."

 

"..."

 

"But what happened today rests as much on their shoulders as it may have anything to do with you. Problems are so rarely a one-way path..."

 

His smile returns somewhat, then, and he shakes his head.

 

"You needn't waste your time worrying about me. I will always do everything in my power to make sure Virtuous thrives."

[Shauntaro]

Ferdiad's words reassured Shin somewhat, he knew he wasn't the only one in pain from all this and that he didn't need to deal with all of it alone either. He picks up his head.


"..You're right."


"..I-I'll try to work towards doing better for everyone too."

Shin pauses for a bit.

"s-somehow."

Edited June 5, 2019 by Shauntaro

[Chevaleresse]

"Well, then I guess I'm taking your first time~" Justine said teasingly, glancing at Arthur coyly before chuckling and laying back. "That just means there's more for you to see." She pointed upward at a set of stars, and traced out a shape that might have been a man. "Like the Hunter, who followed his true love into the heavens themselves; legend has it that he's still searching for her. You can't see her right now, though; by the time she's visible in the night sky, he's gone to the other side of the world in search of her. Some people say it's tragic, but. . . neither of them has given up yet, so I don't think so."

[Flannelmagician]

Tabitha genuinely smiles at this.

 

"Yeah, sounds like a deal then! I'm looking forward to it. Umm just try not to die out there okay? If you end up getting yourself hurt or something I can heal you..."

 

Her smile changes from sincerer to something devious.

 

"Just don't do anything stupid, if you're stupid in battle I won't heal you alright?" 

[rokubiraijuu]

At that, Ferdiad's smile only grows warmer.

 

"Truly an admirable attitude to have. No matter how fruitless the effort may seem, it is better than those who put forth no effort at all."

 

He thinks for a moment, then seems to come up with an idea.

 

"Now that you've gotten your horse back, would you like to go for a ride with me sometime? Not far... but perhaps a day when we have a bit of leisure time. I would like to know a little more about you, if you wouldn't think it intrusive."

[Shauntaro]

It took a while for Shin to process Ferdiad's question, he had never been asked this sort of thing before so this clearly took him by surprise. It was a good surprise though, for a change.


"A-ah..! really? I-I definitely could.. I wouldn't mind at all-"

A tiny smile forms across his face.


"..I'd really like that."

Shin had more that wanted to say, but in the current moment this was all he could remember to reply with.

Edited June 5, 2019 by Shauntaro

[RedMageCole]

Just as Arthur was about to get comfortable, Justine's comment almost makes him leap up in shock, though he manages to keep himself steady as he looked toward her suddenly.

 

"E-excuse me!?" Arthur said, his heart practically pounding at the force of a hundred hooves with his face heavily flushed, before he remembered who he was talking to, trying to settle himself back down to laying down, though his flushed look remained as he looked at the stars with her.

 

"...So the stars search for each other as well..." Arthur mused to himself, while the comment still was fresh in his head, he managed to calm down and listen. The story seemed to strike a chord in him, but not necessarily one that made him sad or angry, just put him deep in thought.

[Aurorix]

Shopping List:

 

 

Baldur:
Chakram-250
Shove-250

Ferdiad:
Iron Blade-300
Steel Javalin-400

Lizaveta:
Wind-350

Reiko:
Steel Sword-400

Shin:
Iron Longbow-350

Mim:
Steel Greatbow-400

Arthur:
Wind-350

Kane:
Glue Pack-450

Convoy:
Iron Shield-750 
Dancer Ribbon- 750 

Reiko gives her Slim Sword to Justine
 

 

 

Stat Booster Usage:

 

 

Blade Ring: Mim
Dancer Ribbon: Shin
Iron Shield: Fey
 

 

[RedMageCole]

Before long, Kane calls everyone to bed (after a short and somewhat anxious search for Justine and Arthur, deciding to just shrug and come back later and put a set of blankets over them... one for each of them, of course, no co-ed sharing even when on the roof), and the embrace of sleep envelops everyone, the prisoners especially as they feel the warmth of the soft mattresses and blankets Kane put out for all of them in their rooms...

 

...

 

...The next morning, you are woken up in turn by someone knocking on the door. From behind the doors is Kane's voice, sounding... oddly a bit more amused than usual, especially considering the mornings; Kane is known among the less recent Virtuous members to not get very much sleep. He wakes all of you up with the same sentence for each of you...

 

"Up and at 'em, it's morning. Breakfast is ready in the kitchen, and please try not to get too angry with what you see."

 

Usually with a small chuckle he'll leave, but for a couple rooms he says a little more:

For Baldur, "And after breakfast, I'd like you to wait for me in your room."

For Shin, "And after breakfast, I'd like to quickly speak with you privately. Nothing bad, just wanted to suggest something."

For Mim and Lizaveta, "Oh, and Mim, was it? If you could, I'd like you to come a little quickly before Arthur wakes up, please." He says with a humorous tone.

 

Some of you with keen eyes might notice something... a little off with your rooms. Like something's... missing. It might especially be obvious for some of you... like Fey might notice quickly that her bandana is missing.

 

...

 

As you all head down, you see Simeon is sleeping in a little bit; he looks a bit dirty, presumably from working that night. As you all enter the dining room, you see Kane dishing up food for everyone, with some more organization on the chairs... wait, that's not the most notable thing. There's someone new sitting in the chairs, someone none of you have seen before; a tall, slender man with black hair that contains a single white streak of hair, in a black outfit with a blue cape. Strewn around him are some various objects; a currently in-progress makeshift guitar, a faberge egg, a ribbon, a set of two belts with knives in them... hang on, speaking of that, where are Kane's belts?... And wait, is that painting of what looks to be a younger Baldur with a lady in front of a mansion...? And that is definitely Fey's bandana, and... oh god, that's Arthur's coat. He's not going to be happy.

 

Kane looks as if he wants to laugh, but manages to keep calm and just have a smile to anyone who comes in.

 

"Don't worry, everything's all good. Hope you ex-prisoners weren't coveting the title of newest members of Virtuous, because we have a new contender for that title."

[RedMageCole]

Up on the roof, Arthur awakens with a short gasp, clutching his blanket as he looks somewhat pale. He blinks a few times, looking at his surroundings... did he really fall asleep on the roof?... Next to Justine?... Good god, he hopes nobody saw the two of them or he'd have a lot of explaining to do, especially to her sister. That comment Justine made last night about taking his first time is even less funny now. He sighs as he lays back down for a bit, trying to collect himself.

 

"Why... I thought they'd stop, why..."

[Swordstar]

Min frowned slightly at that request but decided to not question it. Following Kane downstairs, the frown deepened at the sight. 

 

"I would give that coat back, whoever you are. You clearly took it from my room but it's not mine and I don't make any promises about what the owner of it will do if he finds you with it. And I can't say I would be inclined to stop him."

 

It wasn't her place to stop him anyways. He was a prince, he could do what he wanted. Though speaking of Crimson, where was he? His couch was empty...

[Aurorix]

As Kane adds his little extra he would hear nothing but silence in return. For better or for worse the butler never came downstairs, even for breakfast. Whether this was a blessing or an omen was up for interpretation.

[ElfCollaborator]

Lenore lifts an eyebrow, eyeing the egg. She figured it was missing already, and was about to alert Kane. After all, she was pretty sure she was the only con in the house, and she wasn't about to lose people's trust by stealing things unless they sincerely irritated her. She was here to work, not show off, unless they needed something stolen.

 

Not anymore, it seemed. She seems more bemused than angry.

 

"You know, stealing from the thieves to impress 'em really only works in books. You wanna impress me, you're going to have to try a little harder, darling."

[Pyon Pyon Kyuu!~]

"Do not worry, I will return the coat and all of the belongings. And I do not mean to anger you. Allow me a moment to get to that." The man got up from his chair and gave a small courteous bow. "My name is Lysander Hale Darby a name that carries a little bit of fame, but my alias is probably more famous. In Perus anyways, I am the Marvel Thief." He place a hand behind his back and slowly waved his other hand over the stolen objects. "For quite a while now I've been in the business of stealing; not for myself but for others. This is to further my goals; one of them to make the world a better place. But no man can change the world alone, and I require allies." The Marvel Thief took a book from his coat, a wind tome. He opened it slowly making sure his actions were not seemingly hostile. From the tome a small gust of wind was released, and with his other hand Lysander grabbed hold of it. He outstretched his fist forward and opened it, revealing a small vortex of wind. "Consider these stolen items my resume; my application form. I have stolen all of your belongings using my wind magic alone, some I had to be more careful to not wake you and other were... A little easier let's say. It seems one of your companions is not in the healthiest of states right now, and I'd recommend checking in on him when you have the time. But that's despite the point, if you need further proof of my abilities I'll be happy to perform. I have observing you for a little while and I believe your ideals are similar to mine. And I pray that the day I need you, you will aid in my own needs." With his left hand he closes the tome and the wind stops. He places the tome back into his robes and locks his hands behind his back. "If you wish for me to leave, I'll leave and never return. But I do hope you say yes, and that this relationship can be a long and beneficial one. For everyone involved, and of course the people of our kingdoms."

[ElfCollaborator]

Oh. He was that guy? Lenore had heard whispers among her fellow grifters, hustlers and mountebanks about this guy, back when she worked Perus, before she met Kane. He prowled her stomping grounds, engaging in high profile thievery to improve the world, the works. A lot like Kane, really, only with a one man operation. Lenore never understood the point of some squarely identifiable alias to be known by, of course; it sounded cool, and made sure that whoever you went after knew who you were, but Lenore wasn't the type. She worked from the shadows, reinvented herself with fake names and false faces, made sure to never leave a trail of anything but frustrated men, emptied coffers and richer peasants.  With a finder's fee, of course; Lenore needed to eat, after all. An alias, a cool title, stuff like that; Lenore wasn't a fan. It was too easy to track someone down even with just an alias; after all, an aggrieved official, no matter how powerful he was, couldn't strike back against a ghost. 

 

But enough about his methods; to each his own. Long as you didn't get caught, a take was a take, whether or not you got it by fancy magic tricks or forging a painting. His motives, however were respectable....as far as he claimed, anyway. Lenore had lived in the world of grifters long enough to know that you didn't really know anyone except if they let their guard down around you. She needed to poke at him a little, see what he was really about. He could talk big and act flashy, but a good hustler did that anyway. She folds her arms and cocks an eyebrow at him.

 

"You and everyone else here are here to make the world better. What makes you so good you can waltz in here, rob us blind and welcome you with open arms?"

[Pyon Pyon Kyuu!~]

"I didn't rob you blind, everything I have taken is right here and very much still your's. I wanted to prove myself, the alternative would have been to attack but..." Lysander scratched the back of his head. "I'm not good enough to take all of you at once obviously. So this is the next best thing to show off what I can do well."

[Chevaleresse]

Justine woke up with a contented-sounding groan, despite the less than optimal sleeping conditions. She stretched, noting with dull surprise that she had a blanket on her. It must have been. . . Kane, Cecily would have chewed her ear off if she saw her sleeping up here next to a man. 

"Good morning, Arthur. . . I suppose I nodded off watching the stars." She didn't sound like she regretted it though, as she sat up, displaying a severe case of bed head. "I suppose we should get down before we miss breakfast." She lifted her arms over her head in another stretch, then laid back and kicked upward, rising to her feet in one smooth motion and sending the blanket aflutter. Before moving toward the latter, she reached a hand toward Arthur. "Shall we?"

[ElfCollaborator]

 

"I'll rephrase. We got cons, soldiers, merchants, sellswords and all sorts here; everyone's plenty good at what we do. Why you specifically? You talk the talk about wanting to make the world a better place. How were you even doing that before you showed up here?"

[Pyon Pyon Kyuu!~]

"Oh I understand. Well I guess we can start with my city in south Perus. A noble house was selling medicine at impossible prices. They would then force nobles and commoners alike to fall into depth, until they hadn't anything else to give. So I raided their stores and left the medicine to those who needed it the most." Lysander explained and smiled slightly. He had come quite a long way since those times. "I then had to flee the city so not to put my loved ones in danger, and carried out my next heists. A ship captain who would rob their passengers at sea and was protected by the local noble house. A soup kitchen that was actually a twisted noble's project; he would force hungry commoners to fight each other for scraps. A lady who used her collected taxes to create statues of herself in the lands her people farmed. The ship captain I took his boat and sank it. The noble I stole all of the food from his kitchens and gave it to the people. And the lady I stole her money and distributed... As well as take down the statue she made. These have been some of my heists, some of the biggest anyways. And all of them were a huge risk to my life. I need someone watching my back to continue good, or I fear my life will be a short one."

[RedMageCole]

Arthur looked noticeably rather nervous once Justine woke up, though he calmed down rather fast. He noticed her bedhead, but was pretty sure his was just as bad, and it pretty much was. Pulling the blanket that he finally noticed was there off of him, quietly wondering where it came from, he gave Justine his full attention.

 

"Good morning... yes, it seems I did the same. I suppose we'd better head down, then."

 

For a brief moment, Arthur almost missed the motion to take Justine's hand, almost looking somewhat confused before faintly blushing and taking her hand to head down the ladder.

[Blasbo]

Her eyes narrow at the reveal that someone's decided to audition to join their team by pilfering their belongings. She sees among them nothing that belongs to her--and good thing for him, or she would be markedly more hostile--but all the same the way he's chosen to 'try out', as it were...doesn't particularly endear him to her very well.

"Famous, really? ...I've never heard of you. I'll leave the decision to people with more authority here than me, but steal my belongings at your own risk." Just from her tone, one can tell that she's...really not joking about that.

[Chevaleresse]

Justine briefly considered teasing the man about the flush she noted, but decided that it might stray too close to a sensitive area, and held her tongue for the moment. Instead, she offered another flamboyant bow to Arthur as he descended the ladder, and took the chance to gather up the blankets before the wind caught them and swept them away. There was a definite moment where she was eyeing the distance between the roof and the ground, but she elected to refrain from any stunts this early in the morning; plus, she didn't want to risk tearing any shingles off with her theatrics (another thing that had gotten a lecture from her sister at one point. Instead, she simply folded up the blankets, tossed them onto Arthur once he was safely on the ground, then slid down herself before he could recover.

"Thank you for taking those," she said playfully, before reaching out to retrieve the blankets. 

"I'm glad we had a chance to make second first impressions, so to speak." She nodded at Arthur, then headed inside.

[RedMageCole]

Kane clears his throat as he finishes setting the table.

 

"None of you need to worry; once he submitted his... 'resume' to me and explained his motivations, I believed him fit for the job. It may have been a sudden recruitment, but I hope you can all trust my decision. He's quite an excellent mage, as you might all have guessed. I believe good will come from him being in Virtuous."

 

Kane sighs just a tad as he straightens out the tablecloth a little.

 

"But damn me for not noticing him..." Kane muttered to no one in particular.

 

---

 

Arthur briefly watches for Justine to come down, and is immediately thrown off guard when Justine throws the blankets that he neglected to fold over the edge.

 

"Ah-!"

 

Arthur gasps slightly as he goes to catch the blankets; he thankfully catches them with ease, brushing them out a little bit to try and get some of the wrinkles out. He looks somewhat amused yet, of course, a bit embarrassed from his display of surprise.

 

"N... no problem." Arthur said as he handed the blankets over. "I'm... very grateful myself."

[Pyon Pyon Kyuu!~]

"First and last time I steal your belonging. I swear upon it, on my honor"

[ElfCollaborator]

A small smirk lights up Lenore's face as she stands up, walking towards Lysander, hips sashaying as she does until she's right in front of him, hand on hip, finger on her chin.

"You should know, most people aren't inclined to believe a promise based on the honor of a confessed thief and scoundrel."

She plucks the stolen Faberge egg from the table, studying it carefully, her smirk still present.

"This egg used to be part of the collection of one of the many kings of Perus; it was among his prized possessions, so the locals say. He was....infamous....for trying to invoke the right of the lord on any girl who took his fancy, on pain of death for the family, among your usual crimes of onerous taxes and assorted crookery. This egg, along with most of his possessions and wealth, went missing over the course of two weeks, about a year ago. The pieces of art he owned were all replaced with forgeries and the coin disappeared into the streets like rainwater in the sun. He's now wandering the streets of his fief penniless, and his manor's better for it. Or....well, that's what I've heard."

She rolls the egg in her hand, her smirk taking something of a nostalgic bent.

"Long as you keep your eyes off the goods and on the prize, and as long as you're good with Kane, I think you're good in my book."

Lenore strolls back to her seat, pocketing the egg, sitting down and studying Lysander with curious, searching eyes.