[h3]Alice and Dalious[/h3] After the madness that was the castle raid and brutalizing so many already dead bodies one would think that Alice Leon would have been a tad more affected. After all, she used to make her living by blowing the brains out of people who she was paid to kill; hacking a dead-not-dead body apart fell into that category of one in the same. The only real way one could tell something was bothering the woman was the hard set in her brows and her hand constantly on the handle of one of her holstered pistols. The normally conversive woman simply kept to herself and eyed as many people as she could manage from her position towards the back of the group. One such person caught her attention, that of Dalious. She seldom spoke with the man but his constant moving around the group caused her to suspect something was off about the man. Even when they stopped at the Inn she kept a side eye on the man, still clad in her gear and with her rifle box still strapped to her back. Alice would have much prefered to have the weapon out and ready but that would cause too much fear in those that passed their group. She’d picked a spot towards the back of the Inn where she sipped on a non alcoholic drink and observed all of those in the group; including the very pretty barmaid who seemed to give quite the look to Cyril. A knowing smirk came across her lips as she watched the others before falling back onto Dalious as he consumed copious amounts of booze while somehow still kept pretty damn good aim. She gave a slight smile and nod to a sleepy looking Stark who followed the woman, Kasumi, upwards to the rooms. [i]’Poor girl…[/i] She thought to herself as she remembered the scene of Stark and Marco arriving to the Queen’s quarters shaken and covered in blood. It was almost as bad when Stark had registered that Alice was covered in blood with a sword in her hand. She pushed the thought away with a sad sigh before watching the ever suspicious Dalious again. Somewhere in the back of her mind she made a note to show him what a real sharp shot was like but that would be another time, for now she simply left her spot and quietly followed the man out the backdoor of the bar with total disregard of how that might actually look to anyone who may have noticed. [color=steelblue]“Blood rains down from an angry sky, my cock rages on! My cock rages on!” [/color] Dalious sang aloud as he pissed all over the outer walls of the tavern. When he finished attempting to write his name in the stone, he realized that he had been followed. Keeping his face toward the wall he instead began to hum the same tune in a softer tone. [color=steelblue] “If you have come to slit my throat, I’m afraid you will be sadly disappointed,” [/color] he said, putting his manhood back into his pants. [color=steelblue] “For I am in my prime.” [/color] Dalious turned toward the follower while reaching for his sheathed katana, but it was not there. [color=steelblue] “Where’s my damned sword?” [/color] He then noticed the follower was one of his own company, Alice, which made a whole lot more sense suddenly. He had nearly forgotten that they were amongst allies, at least so Cyril claimed, and he had no reasons not to trust his prince. [color=steelblue] “The hell, woman?” [/color] he said. [color=steelblue] “A little common courtesy? If our positions were swapped, I’d be meeting the hangman by dawn. What is your purpose?”[/color] Alice had taken to leaning her back against a wall with her face pointed towards the other while she gave him a moment of privacy. However, when he addressed her she turned her green eyes on him with a stony expression and her arms crossed under her ample chest. “I looked away Dalious, it’s not something I’d care to gawk at on a drunken man anyways.” She took a few steps closer to him with no fear. “I simply followed you to figure out why Prince Serio would allow a drunkard into his group of Sentinels.” Alice dropped her hands and looked over the man with a slight frown, “Moreover I want to know what is bothering you. You are drinking harder than any of the others and have been acting skittish since we began this journey.” [color=steelblue] “The prince is a clever lad,” [/color] he replied. [color=steelblue] “He clearly knows talent, when he crosses paths with it. Besides, he saved my life. I repaid the debt by following him into the arena. You were there, yet on the opposite side. I would be questioning your admittance, rather, short stuff.” [/color] He couldn’t help but to check out the woman’s rack once she lowered her arms. Next to magic, it was his second weakness. It took him a moment of slurring words together until he remembered what the next part of the topic was. [color=steelblue] “And as for my behavior, in my defense, I’m quite always drinking harder than any of these others, such is my way,” [/color] he started again. [color=steelblue] “It is you, not drinking at all that brings me to worry. We must fill that empty hand with some mead. Then, perhaps, you will come to realize, that all is well.” [/color] Dalious tried to avoid the truth, as he was under a magical oath to not speak of what happened, of what was on his mind. He was fearful that Alice would use her womanly curves as a cruel weapon to get him to talk, which would result in him breaking the oath. He wasn’t even sure what would happen to him had he done so, but he did know something most definitely would happen. The woman clenched her jaw again as she was being ogled, resisting every urge not to un-holster the guns strapped to her chest. Instead, she withdrew one of her guns from her thigh holster and began to toy with it as she turned it over and over in her hands, “My loyalty is understandably in question; the prince is the one who allowed me to join your little group when I saw that something concerning The Divine Paladin, The Prince of Barcea, and a handful of Gifted were traveling together and heading to a warmer place. Since then he keeps saying that I and my companion, Stark- the water mage with the long silver hair, have been apart of his Sentinels. Don’t get me wrong it’s a cool name but I’m more of a contracted Sentinel. When the time comes I will leave and continue at what I do best.” She re-holstered the weapon with a smooth ease before leaning her shoulder against the wall once again, “And I will be paid to do unsavory thing. Simple.” Alice almost smirked at the drunken man as he mentioned mead, “How about this. If you out aim me then I will drop this topic and have a drink with you.” She took a few steps towards him with a coy little smirk, “And if I win you sober up and answer my questions, yeah?” She batted her long lashes at him as she looked up at him. If she was correct on her assumption this man was just a hormonal beast who could be all too easily intimidated without her even having to use her magics. If worst came to worst and he tried to tell someone she was pumping him for information she could simply shoot him and be done with it. “How about it Dalious? Wanna show me what you’re really made of?” Her words were dripping with implication;may as well lay it on heavy so he could grasp the situation. [color=steelblue] “Sounds a deal by me,” [/color] he agreed and laughed. He picked up his empty pint cup and spun it a few times trying to mimic her, only to drop it seconds later. [color=steelblue] “That’s just my game.”[/color] Dalious reached to his chest plate and pulled out one of his throwing knives from the armor and gave Alice a wink, in his mind there was no possible way he could lose to a woman. [color=steelblue] “Ladies first.” [/color] He took a few stumbled steps over to her side, waiting for her to reveal the target. [color=steelblue] “I’m actually no sentinel, by the way. I just drink alongside them, fight along side them. When the time comes, I will go my own way as well. We’re not so far off, you and I. You, the mercenary who gets coin from chasing others. Me, the pirate that takes what he wants. Now, we see who has the better aim!”[/color] She smirked like the devil as he accepted her proposal. “Good with your hands I see?” Sarcasm was clearly evident in her words and in her actions as she glanced down at the fallen pint. Her gaze changed to the alley surroundings itself before narrowing on a box sitting on top of several other boxes. “There, first round. Hit the small box on the top of the others. Like this~” Alice plucked the throwing knife out of his hand, still looking at him with a smirk, and throwing it smoothly at the box-hitting it perfectly. [color=steelblue] “Hey!” [/color] he grumbled as she took the knife. He watched as she directed it to the target with ease. [color=steelblue] “Not bad, for a woman.” [/color] He readied himself next, pulling out the next small knife and aiming toward the box. Unfortunately for himself, he saw two small boxes rather than the one, his daze of booze taking hold of his eyes. He squinted until he was sure there was actually only one box, then threw the blade at it. It barely struck, just hitting the bottom right edge. Not a perfect shot by any means, but enough to get the job done. “Impressive...for a drunk pirate.” She lightly mused aloud as she glanced around for another target. “Hm, how about…” Alice held the word for a moment longer before finding another target-a slat of rotted wood leaning against the far wall. She moved with ease to remove the two throwing blades and use on to score the wood in a sizable ‘X’. “Think you can hit that Pirate?” [color=steelblue] “Did you not hear me before, lass?” [/color] he said, blowing the hair out of his face. [color=steelblue] “I’m in my prime.”[/color] He took one of the knives and twirled it between his fingers, then tossed it at the target, missing it entirely. The blade clinked against the wall behind the wood and dropped to the floor. [color=steelblue] “Son of a…”[/color] He yelled and kicked the air, only holding himself from going further because he was not alone. He then put his back to the wall to watch Alice throw, crossing his arms and setting a foot back to further brace himself. He gave out a sigh, realizing that this girl was to good to miss, he could already tell of her talent from her first throw. Granted, she was sober. It was about time he started sobering up anyway, as he was now seeing double of everything. [color=steelblue] “Do you like it?” [/color] he asked. [color=steelblue] “Being a hired gun?” [/color] It was a thought he had often questioned of himself, from time to time, usually when he was toward the end of being drunk. He had thought about giving up piracy, and becoming someone important, someone working with the prince. It was something that always lingered in his thoughts, though now was the first time he could see it becoming a possibility. Alice had been toying with the knife between her fingers for a long moment while her eyes rolled in their sockets and her teeth flashed in a smile at the man’s confident words and less than confident actions. “In your prime you say?” She glanced at him sideways with her smirk only growing. Her body turned just a few degrees and her arm cocked back for the throw. She hadn’t really been expecting the question to fall from his lips as her arm snapped forward to released the blade. It hit the target just a bit above where the lines intersected. She kept still and silent for a moment before glancing at him with that same smile, “It’s all I know how to do. It’s good money and it’s great for someone who doesn’t have a home.” She casually shrugged before turning on the heel of her boot to remove the blades from the board. “Why?” she handed him back his blade, “Thinking about taking it up once you get a bit better with your aim?” [color=steelblue] “I’m more of a hack and slash type,” [/color] he said. [color=steelblue] “What I’ve learned from throwing knives comes from throwing spears all my life. Besides, I’m thinking more political. Someone working with the prince. I aim to get rich. Now, what questions do you have for me? I will speak as true as I can, so no need for any magics. Though I must warn you, I know nothing.” [/color] Alice couldn’t help but look at the man with a curious look, tilting her head to the side while listening to him. Such an odd man indeed. “So a pirate is trying to get his land legs and try his hand at politics for the Prince of Barcea?” She nodded as she turned a blade over and over in her hand before holding it out to him- handle first. “I hardly think that the Prince would bring someone into his group who knows nothing. It’s clear you can handle yourself, that much was clearly stated during the arena battles. However, I had to wonder what your intentions of being here were. Yet, it seems you’ve answered them. I suspect there is far more to that story but who am I to pry about something kept close to the vest.” The shorter woman laced her fingers behind her back while taking a step back from him, “I was planning on using my magic to it’s fullest ability but I’m actually pretty pleased with this conversation.” [color=steelblue] “Damn it, woman!” [/color] he said. [color=steelblue] “How am I to know you weren’t using your magic on me this whole time! Your womanly, curvy, magic! I said I aim to get rich, whatever the means. True I know nothing of politics, however I’m sure there is something useful I can do. Something that makes me very, very rich! It’s not my intentions to use the prince, it’s just a stupid dream I’ve had for some time. Well, the get rich part anyway. Now I need another drink, and since you cheated with magic, I think I shall have one. I think you should do the same.” [/color] A brow arched as Dalious spoke, her arms crossing over her chest once more. She remained there a moment before dropping her arms and taking those few short steps towards him with her hand snaking out and grabbing him by the collar of the shirt and dragging his far taller self down to her five foot three inch stature. “For the record, Dalious, my magic…” Her second hand pointed towards her green eyes that seemed to flash in the darkened alley, “Is right here. The rest is all natural.” Alice released the man with a polite smile before turning and calling back to him, “Come on Mister Pirate Politician, let’s get you another drink before you start spouting off about becoming an Emperor or something.”