Silas had parted company from the King and his family to experience Illytia by himself. He was more comfortable this way, and despite the nature of his birth, he sometimes found it best to avoid the upper echelons of society. Sure, he was raised around and was a royal himself, but he found it easier to relate to the commoners on some occasions. A by-product of the time he had spent attached to his military unit back in Lyncaea.

He wandered into the streets, viewing the wares and food up for sale at the festival outside the temple. He had a bit to himself, and as usual, he was generous by overpaying the commoners who plied their trade. It was good to see that the Colchian people were in high spirits.

The streets were open and quite free, and thus he continued to wander down the avenue while giving some face time to the residents of Illytia. He wasn’t too far from the temple but he spotted a resting tent of some kind. It definitely was for nobles, seeing as how everyone else avoided it.

Silas made his way to the said tent and shielded himself from the dying rays of the sun. He took a goblet and felt the fine metalwork press against his fingers. He inspected the goblet, admiring the design and the skilled hands that forged a simplistic piece of metal into a piece of art. Silas proceeded to pour himself a serving of water, then took a taste of it. It was a wondrous blend of citrus with the crisp freshness of water. Something he definitely needed after a few hours' ride to Illytia.

He enjoyed his little goblet of water for a moment, then stepped out to continue on. It hadn’t been long since he parted company with his family, so he sought to continue his parade around town.

That was until he was approached by a woman.

The woman bowed to him in a quick fashion, and he returned the gesture by simply nodding his head. ”Greetings,” he gave her a smile. When the woman went on about how she was feeling under the weather and that she was basically left alone, Silas pitied her a little bit. This was no place for someone unwell to be left unattended. The woman looked like she couldn’t fend for herself, and the chivalrous side of him took over.

“No, it wouldn't be too much, lead the way” he informed her.

“Do you live nearby?” he queried, while following her lead, walking slow to make sure she was doing fine and not on the verge of collapsing.

Then, he stopped, “Actually, would you like to go by horseback instead?” he asked her, leering his body towards the temple’s stables. “It’d be much quicker.”

Aea deflected Kaia’s refusal and spun her around before hastening her with the prospect of somebody else accosting him first. It was a trick she’d learned from Cassero. People weren’t consciously aware of the small shot of adrenaline such a small word as ‘hurry’ could induce, but it was usually enough to turn a no into a yes.

Besides, it was Kaia’s job to do the face thing. She was the one who was blessed with beauty, Aea was not. Aea was the one blessed with good ideas, Kaia was not. They had their strengths, they had their roles, so there was no sense in fighting it now of all times.

As her blonde cousin approached the rich man, Aea casually wove through the foot traffic and arrived across the aisle just behind Kaia. She busied herself with casual browsing at the table before her. She might have become distracted by the pretty quartz cup on sale had she not been focused on important matters.

In order to better know what timeframe she was working with, she needed to know what the man might offer Kaia to entertain her. Men did that in the stories, so they surely did it in the real world. Oh, beautiful lady, might I buy you some refreshment. Or perhaps a stroll around the garden. How about dueling somebody to the death in your honor?

Ridiculous, really. She supposed that was the nature of man. He tried so hard to be separate from beast that he took pride in the complexity of his mating ritual; the more ridiculous, the less beastly he was. It would be a much easier and true thing if he simply asked his intended partner if she would be interested in perhaps bending over for a moment. Then again, if charming someone was anything like serenading people to tears, it was probably quite fun as well. She might try her hand at it one day, for she was sure she would be proficient. Words came quickly and easily when she was focused and prepared, it was when she was caught off guard that they fled her.

She expected Kaia to already be skilled in this area as well. Since she was, in fact, beautiful, then it should not be a problem to match her ascetic charm to charm of character. Based upon her cousin’s words, however, Aea had assumed incorrectly. She did not have to look at Kaia to hear the blonde stumble through the most ridiculous offer she could have possibly drummed up.

“Your grace,” Kaia said breathlessly, “I beg your pardon. I fear I feel most unwell, but my husband is not nearby. I’m afraid to venture into the quiet streets on my own.”

Aea put down the plate she was inspecting and looked at the back of Kaia’s head. Your grace? Fuck’s sake, that was laying it on thick.

“Would it be too much to ask for his grace to accompany me to my door?”

Gods above and below, what was that? What man, what person, would drop everything to accompany Kaia into the city when she gave him no reason to do so? Fear was no reason. People did not do favors for others out of empathy, they did it when there was something in it for them, and Kaia had given no indication that there was, in fact, anything in it for him. Just the satisfaction of doing something kind. Had Kaia lost her damned mind?

Aea had been staring at the back of her cousin’s head strangely, and so she acted for the benefit of those who might be watching. She had to abort this mission, else Kaia would find herself on the wrong end of strangulation. While Aea would not normally strike up a conversation with a stranger so casually, the boundaries of discomfort and second-guesses abruptly vanished when there was a task to complete. That, and she did not think anything could take away her fortitude and conviction after having conquered such an incredible fear as she had only minutes past.

She slowly approached her cousin, ready to apologize and make some excuse about a wager or a duty, but to her utter surprise, the man smiled. “No, it wouldn't be too much, lead the way.”

“Thank you, your grace. Thank you.”

What the fuck? Was this man stupid, or was he especially ensured that no harm would come to him? If he was spectacular in combat, they would simply have to go for the kill quickly, and if he was stupid, all the better. Aea blinked away her surprise, cleared it away, and thought no more on it, opting to do as she needed to do and question everything later. The trick to the hunt was to banish thought swiftly and allow muscle to rule movement.

She followed them at a sedate and casual pace, keeping her ear peeled for their conversation. Kaia had done well with emphasizing her unwellness, so at least the man wouldn’t be wheeling her around the festival to ply her with amusements in the hopes of lifting her feet above her ears.

“Do you live nearby?” He stopped suddenly. “Actually, would you like to go by horseback instead? It’d be much quicker.”

A horse. My, Aea really did pick the best targets. This man must be rich beyond imagination. It was good information to have, and it was a good thing Kaia wouldn’t actually accept such an offer, for that would make Aea’s job a good deal more difficult and completely ruin both plans A, D, and G. Aea was ready to keep moving past them to run ahead and engineer a set-up, but then she realized that Kaia was not shaking her head, trembling at the prospect, or flat out saying no.

She wouldn't.

“You are so kind, your grace.”

She did.

What!? Why did Kaia say that? Why was she deviating from the plan? Deviating from the plan was the number one thing one did not do, and sure, Aea had deviated from Dasmo’s plan, but that was different. She was the plan-maker, Kaia was not. One aimed Kaia and released her, one did not let Kaia strategize. Did Kaia’s beauty and ego finally addle her mind? Last time Kaia deviated from the plan, they almost got stolen by slavers—Aea almost got stolen by slavers. Did she not learn enough from that mistake? Aea scowled under her epiblema. Fuck’s sake. Fine. She would fix this.

As Kaia and the man made their way toward Gods knew where, Aea jogged past them toward the end of the field. It was not far, but every second counted. She couldn’t very well beat a bloody horse in a race. And what the fuck was that bait? I don't feel well, please walk me home. That was so suspicious! Why single him out among the many when he was clearly too wealthy to bother? Didn’t matter that it worked, that man was clearly as mad as Kaia. It would not work again. Aea would need to teach her cousin to speak, apparently, which was ironic considering speaking was Kaia's job by virtue of being beautiful. It is simply what attractive people were supposed to do.

Aea passed through the gates they entered and took a sharp turn, the grass morphing into stone streets. She stopped, ripped a petal from her flower, spit on it, then pressed it hard to the stone with her foot. A wind would not move it if the horse came quickly enough.

Fuck. None of the plans accounted for a damned horse. This was terrible. How was she supposed to...fuck! Fuck Kaia for putting this pressure on the situation. It would have been so easy if the man was walking, but no, Kaia had to ride a damned horse. Fuck her right in the ass. Okay, plan...the man would have to get off the horse to help Kaia down. Despite Kaia making this one huge glaring mistake, surely she would have the good sense to request he follow her to her home...yes, her home. Inside of it. Where there would be much less of a chance of getting caught. Yes. Perfect.

Aea kept pressing flower petals into the stone, far enough apart that it would not be obvious, but consistent enough that Kaia would catch them. There was a raven’s cry behind her distantly and Aea stopped long enough to hear the faint clop of hooves. At least they were walking. Thank Gods for you, Agogos.

The streets were utterly deserted from the field to the residential section, but she went deeper into the city regardless. It would be far too easy for someone who lived close to the festival to come back home for a respite. There was a small, quaint stone house set on the corner of a short row. A crude, worn bow leaned unstrung outside the door, covered in white flowers, as was the almost-empty quiver next to it.

She dropped the red flower in front of the door and crouched before it. Most doors, Gatheron said, could not lock. But there was a trick for those that did. Aea pushed the door and it opened just enough for her to peek through the frame’s slit. It did not look like a wooden block. She glanced up and saw the small hole in the door, another equally small one below it. She would not be happy if she had to kick it in or go through the equally difficult windows.

The pack over her shoulders was suddenly on the ground, her hands rifling through the contents until she found what she was looking for. Her bronze tweezers, which she’d lifted off one of the travelers they accosted, had come in handy many a time, though those times had seen her picking apart a heart rather than a lock.

She did not want to damage them, but if they pulled this off, they would have enough money to buy a hundred tweezers if she so desired. It was just a small sacrifice in the name of profit and, therefore, survival. Aea took a deep breath, grabbed both ends, then spread the apparatus open until it snapped. She twisted both ends into almost-perfect ninety-degree angles and worked them both into the holes. It took some maneuvering and a will of iron not to throw everything aside and start cursing and kicking at the door, but eventually, the lock slid aside. Victory.

The horse’s hooves clipped nerve-wrackingly close now, vibrating through the silence as if it were the only noise in existence. Aea tossed her broken tweezers into her bag, slid it over her shoulder, grabbed the flower-covered bow and quiver, and slipped into the house before quietly closing the door behind her. Kaia better not miss that flower, or she would see a wrath from Aea never before witnessed.

It was dim inside the building, but not too dark. Aea’s eyes were quick to land on everything that could be near enough to grab. There was a bench next to the door, a small desk against the wall with an oil lamp set upon it, a square floor pit of dead or dying embers in the middle of the room, and what looked to be a tiny kitchen at the other end. There was an open door frame to the side, most likely the bedroom, but there wasn’t much in the way of instruments, which meant that there was nothing for the man to suddenly grab and bludgeon them with. Not that he would get that far to begin with.

Had Aea not been so focused, she might have noticed that this was the first house she’d ever been inside. As it was, her sole concern had nothing to do with novelties and everything to do with living to see their profits.

She yanked one of the spare outfits from her bag and ripped into the material, shedding several strips from the bolt of cloth without worrying that she was ruining one of her few garments. After shoving them in her bag, she left it against the food preparation area before she tore the flowers from the bow and quiver, leaving the weapons beside the bag. She assumed Kaia would be walking ahead of the man. If not, she would need yet more contingencies, but those were not any issue. Aea scurried across the room and pressed herself to the wall behind the door.

The sharp clap of hooves halted right outside the house. Aea withdrew her dagger from her cleavage. They may not have been a desirable size like Kaia’s, but there was something to be said about having an abundant chest and being able to hide multiple things. She turned the dagger between her dexterous digits and heeled her sandals to leave her feet bare. She learned today that she was a nervous wreck in polite company, but here, she was home. Calm, ready, and collected, Aea was finally able to settle comfortably in her own skin once more. She bent her knees slightly, then straightened them, limbering and loosening the cold energy that came with the promise of a hunt. She licked her lips under her epiblema when she thought of how much food they would have. She quite liked that pretty bracer, as well.