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It was roughly midnight on a warm summers night, the moon was only a few nights away before being full. A tightly built town with winding, narrow streets was otherwise peaceful and settled until dawn. That is, apart from running through the streets was a half-elf woman with several guards in tow.

“Get back here thief!”

They shouted as she clambered her way up a wall and onto the rooftops. This didn’t stop her pursuers who continued to chase from the streets.

As she ran, scroll gripped tightly in hand, the half-elf quietly, between laboured breaths, was a continuous stream of expletives. This was not supposed to happen this way it was supposed to be a quick in and out job.
Still trying to shake them off she darted across the roof to the side for a few meters then back again, hoping to get the guards stuck in the winding streets below. It seemed to work for the most part.

In a split moment she spotted an open window of a building and headed straight for it. For the faction of time that they were in the air their form shifted and altered. Only the form and not the clothes, so what stood in the room was a tall, tanned human man with dark brown hair in an orange dress with red jingly sash and burnt orange foot wraps.

Cursing to themselves under their breath they hadn’t stopped to examine the room they were in, such as had the guards noticed, where’s the exit’s and most importantly was anyone in there with them?

Archer hissed to himself as the colorfully dressed man entered. This was suppose to be a challenge, but not this much of a challenge. He pulled back his hair and stepped into the moonlight that was streaming through the window. As his body entered he disappeared from visibility. The boy pulled out his knife,ready to fight. as he listened.

Archer shook his head,disapointed in himself as he willed the nearest torches to go out. The flame spluttered and went out as he breathed in,relieved that he wasn't so exhausted as to not be able to do simple things.

Archer pulled out a piece of chalk from his pack and crouched down. He scrawled a glyph in a large circle around him hoping to protect himself against any humans.

Focusing on the room around him finally he could swear there was someone in the room just a moment before. As the lights went out he reactively moved into a defensive posture and onto the balls of his feet. Looking around he couldn’t see anyone nor feel a presence for the time being. If anything the lights going out was a welcome thing. He turned back to face the window and poke his head out.
The guards had scattered and lost their target.

Turning on the spot so back faced the wall he let out a sigh of relief and slid down the wall until sat on the floor. Scroll in both hands and buried into his chest.

“Finally!”

Archer stepped out of the moonlight, his knife in hand as his body materialized. His barefoot slid across the floor with barely a noise as he readied himself for a fight. He closed his eyes,mentally preparing all of his abilities and running over all of his spells.He breathed in, holding the breath long enough to think over everything.

He breathed out again, deciding there was nothing left to do,"What're you doing on my job?" he finally asked.


((sorry I took forever, real life got...well...real.))

Noticing Archer approaching with a knife he swore in surprise then quickly covered his mouth with one hand. Standing back up it was obvious he was taller and physically stronger than the boy in front of him but that generally meant very little.

Keeping his voice low he asked "Your job!? excuse me? I ain't doing anything with your job I just finished one of my own thank you very much" He said while stuffing the scroll into his bra, freeing both hands.

"The last thing I need is lip from a moonlight-" stopping mid rant he pauses and looks over at the door.

The sound of wood creaking slowly becomes louder.

"Hello?..." from the distance someone calls out.

Side stepping away from the window and into the shadows of the room, he disappeared from sight.

"I ain't getting arrested because of you" he whispered from the darkness.

Archer gripped his knife until his knuckles went white,contemplating stabbing the man before him just because he could. He paused, or maybe should was a better word. He'd have to think on that later, for the time being he had neither the gut nor the time to be fooling with this man.

"Adults." he hissed, almost as if it was a curse word in its own right before stepping back into the moonlight. He hadn't noticed his feet still out in the darkness, and completely visible so he thought he was safe. He stood there for several breaths, trying to calm himself down. Finally he switched the dagger from his left hand to his right in an effort to get the blood flowing back to that hand.

The boy shook his head, how could someone be so stupid? The man just walked right into his job and blamed him for getting caught? Archer snorted, which probably wasn't the best of ideas since he could still be heard even if most of his body was currently invisible.

The shadewalker flailed his arms as he worked himself up, seriously who did this guy think he was? A rogue? Archer rolled his eyes as he crossed his arms, everybody knew that children made the best thieves because they fit where no one else could go, and they seemed more innocent. Although, Archer tapped his foot, a tall person would certainly come in handy reaching his current target.

A light slowly became visible through the slight gaps in the doors wooden panels. The sound of footsteps now clear that whoever was in the building with them, was passing by the other side of the door.

Creeping through the shadow to go behind the door if it opened the man watched as the boy disappeared into the moonlight. I similar trick he did with the shadows.

Looking for a way out it was either the door and face whoever was on the other side. Or there was the window, the clear option, but with the stabby boy in the way things might get ugly.

One thing was for certain, he couldn’t stay here. Ear against the wall to hear the footsteps receding. While listening they stared at the wall and finally noticed a family crest on the wall. This was home to a well known and well off family. The room seemed to be some sort of servant room.

He glanced over to the window and whispered “you were planning to rob the place weren’t you?” He smirked, not that it could be seen.

Archer rolled his eyes," No, I was working here as a servant. Yes I was planning to rob it you idiot." he hissed." So, what's the plan?" he asked as he rubbed his thumb across his chalk, the white powder slowly rubbing off onto his finger. He shook it back off.

He wasn't entirely certain what to do here, he generally did his jobs solo, and he wasn't meant for fighting, he was a rogue and rogues don't fight, they run. The only problem being he didn't feel like jumping through a window with the man right there to complicate things. What if while he ran the man stabbed him in the back? Or if he told the authorities about him just to make sure he got back to wherever he came from?

Archer growled, it was no use worrying about it, and he had a feeling that this man might need his help. He frowned, he had been thinking of the person as a man, but it wore a dress. Perhaps if they were going to fight in a dress than he would need to help him.

They snorted in amusement "Full of spit and vinegar aren't ya lad?" they commented from the shadows. However, the tone of voice had changed drastically, it was now softer, more feminine with a thicker accent.

It was obvious the lad didn't trust them so another means of exit was required. Shifting around in the darkness to the other side of the door they slowly opened it to look into the hallway. No one was there and from the stairwell were sounds of conversations and laughter.
Stepping out into the hallway and now back into view was a woman in the orange dress with slightly pointed ears and masses of wavy red hair. She slowly creeped down the hallway, making an effort to not intentionally make the wooden floors creak if possible.

More paranoid than anything else she quickly slipped into another room with no lights on. It was a small study with bookshelves lining every wall with an ornate wooden desk as the centrepiece of the room. She tiptoed her way over to the window and tried to open it but it wouldn't budge. Cursing she started to look around the desk for a key.

Archer snorted at the remark, but didn't have a retort of his own so he simply stepped into the moonlight and disappeared. He waited until the man left the room. He sighed and stepped onto the windowsill before swinging himself down to hold onto the windowsill by his fingertips.

" Adults." he cursed for the second time that night as he observed the story sized drop from the window. Archer whacked the back of his head against the wall as he tried to think of a way out of this mess. His head collided with the bricks again as he grew increasingly frustrated.

Finally, having exhausted every possible theory he could come up with Archer pulled himself back in through the window, his thin muscles straining against his weight. Finally he hauled himself over the sill and heaved a sigh of relief.

He growled, rubbing the glyph on the floor away so there wouldn't be a guard finding the glyph in the morning. He contemplated cursing again, but decided silence was most likely his best option here. Perhaps the man could distract the guards while he got away. Archer nodded, slowly easing the door open, careful not to squeak any hinges on his way out. His bare footsteps were nearly silent as he shuffled across the floor, each step slow and methodical, heel toe, heel toe, heel toe.

While going through the drawers of the desk she managed to come across a small set of keys. Not wasting any time she turned and unlocked the window.

Looking at the keys in her hand then back at the desk and around the room she paused to also assess the situation. No one could be heard so maybe there was something to gain from being here.

Opening up the locked part of the desk she found a couple of loose coins, some letters and a medium sized tome covered in some language she hadn’t seen before.

“This’ll do nicely I guess” Taking all of it and hoping out of the window.
Shuffling along the windowsill so as to not be seen when jumping down she hopped off the ledge and fell in a controlled manner. Controlled but not fully unscathed. Looking up to the other open window where she’d entered for a brief second before turning and getting out of there. Darting through the winding streets.

Archer nodded to himself, no sign of any guards here. He ran through the old brick building and found an exit. He let go of a breath he hadn't noticed he'd been holding as he lay his hands on the large oaken doors. He had made it to the exit, he was free now.

Or so he thought. As he pushed open the door he found himself face to face with several guards. A male elf of some kind on the right, a brutish half orc in the middle, and a slender human woman on the left. Archer let his head dip in frustration before he pulled back his hair and sighed. " Adults." he hissed under his breath. He decided that had become his new favorite curse word, even though it technically wasn't a curse.

The boy turned on his heel with the grace of a thief, and ran. His footsteps made small plodding noises the entire way up the hall as he planned haphazardly which windows he could jump out of and where to find a different exit. He could here the stampede of guards' boots chasing after him and could only hope that he was in the slightest bit faster than them. He gasped for air as his lungs screamed for revolt as he turned the last corner, the guards on his heels. He would've grumbled if he had the air for it as he recognized which room this was. This was where the whole mess had started. Archer closed his eyes and leaped.

There's nothing quite like falling through the night sky with nothing to catch you for a thief. The feeling of the wind whistling by your ears, the weightlessness of everything around you. It feels as if you could be there forever.

As Archer fell all he could do was close his eyes and breath it in, breath in the calm before the storm. But, he had to open his eyes to see if I could find something to break his fall. he found a short squat hut and hoped that it would support his weight. As he fell he began to angle himself towards it slightly so he would start getting closer to it. The fall wasn't going to be long enough, he wasn't going to make it. The boy bit his lop as he prepared for the inevitable snap of broken bones.

Pausing for a split second when she heard shouting followed by a crashing sound coming from the direction she just came. Must of been that lad she thought to herself before continuing to run the opposite direction.

“He’ll be alright” she muttered to herself. It didn’t look like the boys first rodeo and if it was then well, kid’s gotta learn eventually.

——————

It was a bright and sunny morning in the town’s colourful market square. Packed full of people buying, selling and conversing. Socialising with friends or doing the family shopping. One particular corner of the market held all the food stalls which flooded the whole market with everything from fresh baked goods, slow cooked meat and strong cheeses.

Enjoying a good bit of people watching and his breakfast the human male was now dressed in more appropriate attire compared to last night. Loose fitting cream pants with purple foot wraps and belt along with a sheepskin jacket on top, his hair tied into a high ponytail. All leaning towards suggesting he was a monk of some sort of order.

He made sure to get rid of the stolen money straight away and treated himself to a decent sized breakfast. A little bit of everything from each of the food vendors minus those selling fish and meat. More than a few of the pastries after sweet talking his way into getting some extras for free. The letters and book remained in his bag but knowing his buyer, they weren’t going to be awake in the mornings. Until then he was content to sit and enjoy all the market had to offer.

Archer woke up, and wished he hadn't. His head pounded and the sunlight blinded his eyes so he closed them. He gritted his teeth against the pain, doing a mental inventory of his injuries: based on the stabbing sensation when he breathed he supposed he had a broken rib, his ankle throbbed so he assumed it was broken too. He groaned.

After another several moments Archer picked himself up and hobbled his way to the market. That was the only place in this forsaken city he knew to find. He pushed his limp hair out of his face and dragged his sore foot across the cobblestones, his teeth gritted the entire fifteen minute trip. If there wasn't someone who could help him in the market he swore he would burn the place to the ground.

After finally arriving the boy found himself unsure of how he had thought he was going to find a healer. He slouched against a wall and breathed heavily for several moments. He winced as his ankle throbbed a little worse. He grumbled to himself for several moments about his stupidity before he saw someone who felt... he didn't know how to describe it but the other guy felt familiar. Archer knew he had never seen the man before,after all how many monks are there in a city this small?

Content to sit and people watch as well as eavesdropping on one or two conversations the monk sat on the edge of a small fountain in the middle of the market square.
Eventually he caught sight of another staring at him, a dark coloured heap slouched against the wall. He smirked, finished off his pastry and picked up his things to wander over.

“You made it out alive then? did you manage to get anything other than injured?” standing at least 10ft away and keeping his voice relatively low. Giving the boy an up and down look, examining the extent of the damage. Flipping open his bag he pulled out a pastry and offered it to Archer.

“I know someone who might be able to help you out” said in a genuine enough manner.

Archer's eyes widened, the man knew what had gone on last night? He was getting sloppy, he decided. A single complication and he nearly got caught by guards and was seen by a bystander. He let his eyebrows fall back where they normally sat and tried to pretend he didn't know what had gone on last night,"What'ya mean? Made it out of where? I-" He paused, trying to think of a plausible reason for his injuries,"I fell trying to ring the bell at the monastery." he hoped these people had a monastery.

The boy examined the pastry for several moments after he had accepted it. He looked it over, he sniffed it, and finally decided if the man wanted him dead poisoning him in the market square wasn't the best idea. Archer took a bite, closed his eyes, and very nearly murmured in delight, but didn't want to make a fool of himself. However, the next second his eyes snapped back open,"Really?!" he asked incredulous that a stranger he met would accuse him of thievery, and then give him a pastry and maybe some help.

The boy didn’t seem to recognise him, this was better than expected so he decided to play along instead.

“That must of been quite the vigorous bell ringing to get that badly beat up. But enthusiasm isn’t always a bad thing I guess” Waving his hand dismissively then pulled out another pastry from his bag and bit into it.

“I don’t mind helping you out, you look like you could need it. I’m not one to judge your past choices.” A weak attempt at explaining why he’d want to help the boy out.

"The name’s Mikael, nice to meet you” rubbing his hand on his pants first to make sure they weren’t covered in stick pastry before offering it to Archer.

Archer shook the man's hand, thinking for a second of hiding his name, but he decided lying to a man kind enough to help him probably wasn't very moral,"Archer." he replied. And then, hoping to further cover up his story he added to it," Yeah, the bell knocked me over and I fell from the bell tower." If lying to the man about his name wasn't moral, then why was lying about his injuries, he asked himself. He finally decided that it was only moral if it kept him out of trouble.

The boy's eyes flicked around the rest of the market square, checking for possible escapes, possible assaultants, and any other possible problems. He found that there were no dangers currently, but didn't want to risk any unusual behavior so he settled back against the wall," Alrighty, so where do we go to find this person?" He had already decided that it didn't matter what kind of excuse the man gave, as long as he didn't look to far into Archer's story while making his own.

Mikael watched the boy’s shifty gaze and assumed that he was used to living life looking over his shoulder constantly. He nodded at the further explanation of the bell and left it at that.

Looking up at the sky for a moment to check where the sun is “She’ll probably be awake by now, if not I can drag her out of bed. I was going to go see her today anyway so it’s not out of my way” Looking back down at Archer with a squinty-eyed smile.

“Can you walk? It’s about 20 minutes from here the quickest route through the streets” Looking down at the boy’s ankle.

Archer nodded, glad he wasn't going to be interrupting someone's sleep. He hated waking someone up to be his first impression. He continued nodding as Mikael explained that he was already headed that way. More good news, he wasn't interrupting the kind man's schedule either. The boy exhaled, relieved that he had not only found someone that would help him, but also that he didn't have to be rude in order to get the help he needed. He wiped his palms on his trousers and nodded, his eyes steely with determination," Yeah, I can walk." He replied as he pushed himself off the wall putting his good leg forward to keep from falling.

He smiled back at the man in apology for his apparent clumsiness and lack of balance." Hey," he said," Thank you." and for the first time in a long time, he looked to meet another's gaze.