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Well, he wasn't angry. Or hurt. Or... surprised? It seemed almost like he was just weary of being presented with another small, unimportant issue, as though she was just another courtier there to curry favor with her monarch. Somehow that stung almost as bad as if he had ranted and thrown things...

Viortu frowned. Scientist? Clients? Human words, foreign words- what in the world was she talking about? The Orc had heard "scientist" once before, when visiting with a human merchant by the coast, but it had been unclear what they were talking about. Something like a hunter, she thought, or...

"Then don't sit on them," Viortu advised, helping her into a reclined position so she could wash the human's knees, rubbing a thick salve that smelled of mint and grass over the scratches. "You speak our tongue well, for a human. Why did you learn it?" The young woman asked after a moment...

The hut had not been provided with furniture for the prisoner's comfort, but that was hardly surprising. Orcs were not keen on furniture at all, save for the rare chair or chest. They were a strong people, Viortu no less than most as she squatted down beside the human, balancing easily on the...

The scribbles on his notepad might as well have been the poetry of a dead civilization, for all the good seeing them did her. She had never been one for education in general, and numbers seemed to walk right back out of her head as soon as they went in. She had enlisted right after her first...

She grinned in satisfaction as the nobles filed out, her teeth a flash of white on her paint-dark face. It was satisfying to see them all retreat before her, to part like the sea before a wrathful god. She was in her element dressed like that, brave enough to face anything- even Krezbel...

There was only a second of hesitation. "This isn't the last time we'll see each other," Anna promised softly, then followed her friend's advice and took off at a sprint, ducking in between buildings until her footsteps faded into the night. Of course, she didn't run far. Not tired and sore...

The gun clattering to the floor relieved her, but still Anna scoffed at her old friend's next words. "Lucky? Smart one?" Anna asked in disbelief. "You got to grow up in comfort and safety, get a good-paying job and a normal life while I scraped by, fighting and stealing for everything I ever...

And then the gun was back. Anna blanched, then balled her fists again, angry and confused and hurt. Then she cocked it and asked a question that wouldn't have surprised Anna more if it had been asked by the mayor himself. "Who said anything about Smoke?" She asked, wondering how Viola knew her...

Next to her parents. The words weren't spoken, but Anna heard them clearly. She knew. Or, rather, she hoped. There had been no funeral, no way to know for sure if either of the graves was filled, much the less with the right body. Anna sighed and rubbed her forehead, trying to put the story in...

The emotions all roiled within her, happiness and anger, hope and remorse, joy and agony. Oh, if only these were any other circumstances! She felt like a sheep raised among the wolves. No one back home knew that her father had been with the Watch; no one that used to know her knew that she was a...

Her. Recognition struck Anna like a bullet, and when she too stepped out into the glowing moonlight it was with a stricken expression on her face, one of remembrance and regrets. Was this where she should be? Was this the life that should have been hers? Or was the Watchwoman the wrong one, and...

There were some other words after that, ceremonial invocations to the spirits to be just and fair, official recording of the name of the accused, and a hundred other boring little things that Viortu completely ignored in favor of watching the captive. Even bloodied and dirty as she was, there...

"Catching up sounds good," Anna replied absently, for lack of anything better to say. The past few minutes had passed like a blur as memories half-forgotten surfaced again, sharp enough to make her smile and then to make her sad. How things had changed! How he had changed... and yet, how similar...

The throne room was marble and stained glass, the tapestries rich and carpets richer, suits of armor and sculptures and chandeliers of beauty and value without measure. The lords and ladies milling around were all perfumed and garbed in silks and samites, smiles teasing at their lips and...

As the officer drew closer, close enough that Anna could have reached out and touched her, something familiar about her features struck the thief. A face from a dream, almost, a half-forgotten memory faded with time. "No hassle," She repeated softly, distracted, trying to place this woman. Not...

The park was the smart choice; if she needed to run a better location couldn't be asked for. Yet the thought of staying outside in the cool, damp night air was hardly appealing even without being sore from a fall. The bar, on the other hand, was far too public- she didn't want anyone to know her...

When the cuffs went away, so did her knife. It would seem that he valued their old friendship more than the current law- a priority she was happy to share. Perhaps her luck wasn't completely awful after all. "It would be best to find somewhere more... private," Anna agreed, glancing around...

She raised the knife quickly, still grimacing in pain but unwilling to say die. Giving up would feel like betraying her values, her people, everything she held dear- and then he spoke, and she glared at him. "How the..." The curse died on her lips as she took a second glance, the pieces all...

Their movement was a slow, carefully choreographed dance. At this distance they were safe, evenly matched, but a step too close or too far could end with disaster. She knew that she could not hesitate but to use her knife if he came any closer, and knew that he would surely take her down if she...