[color=mediumseagreen][CENTER][h1]CHERYL LUSBY[/h1][/CENTER][/color]

[quote=Elena][i]Please hurry back home. Your mother's condition is worsening. I fear she may not make it.[/i][/quote]

[color=mediumseagreen]What a load of dragon meat.

Chery's lips pulled back into a snarl. In two quick movements, she crumpled the letter and tossed it onto the street. She didn't pause as she strode down the cobblestone path. The townfolk milled around her, giving her a wide berth as she passed. She ignored them.

The afternoon had been an entire roll of cow dung thrown in her face. First, she'd had to bury her own mother. Then, she was forced to snap the caretaker's neck. Well, not forced per se, but she'd be lying if she said it hadn't felt good. And that it was perfectly justified. Seriously, admitting to murdering the person she'd just gotten in the ground in front of a renowned bounty hunter who happened to be the murdered's daughter? A phenomenally stupid move. It was so stupid Cheryl wasn't sure if Elena's brain had decided to take a walk during the burial or just given up entirely after her misdeed. Either way, she was certainly braindead now.

The splash of orange in the sky faded to a dull grey as the sun set. Night fell and the moons, having hidden behind the sun's glory all day, shone against a canvas of stars.

She dragged a calloused hand over her face. Everything was a mess. [i]She[/i] was a mess. A very tired mess. She'd left her last job unfinished in her haste to get here and it hadn't mattered; Mum was already dead when she'd arrived. Probably had been for days. Bloody Elena. Cheryl's fingers itched to hit somebody.

A soft [i]churr[/i] broke through her thoughts. Cheryl didn't glance down at the bundle of white feathers curled around her neck, but she sighed.

'[b]I'm fine, Piper[/b],' she said. '[b]Just...there's a lot on my mind right now.[/b]'

Not to mention the number of eyeballs pointed in their direction. She hadn't been in Sonarlis in what, eight years? Almost a decade. Maybe it [i]was[/i] a decade. Time seemed to blur these days. To her, it was just one target after the other. Even so, it seemed news of her arrival had spread quickly. Everybody's body language practically screamed wariness and distrust, with maybe a little bit of fear included. Not to mention the disgust she could see in some of their eyes. She knew, without a doubt, that that last emotion was entirely reserved for the pipio pygmy on her shoulders.

Let them stare. As long as they didn't bother her, she couldn't care less what they thought.

'[/color][b]M-Miss Hunter?[/b][color=mediumseagreen]'

Of course, it would happen just as she thought that. The world seemed out to get her today. She looked down at the kid who'd stepped up to her. Her gaze flicked to the side, where a group of older boys were trying and failing to suppress their snickers. A dare, then. Her gaze returned to the kid.

When she didn't say anything, the kid continued, '[/color][b]Is-is it true that you, um, y-you steal breaths from people?[/b][color=mediumseagreen]'

'[b]Why, you wanna see it happen, kid?[/b]' Raising her arm, fingers splayed, she bared her teeth. '[b]Want me to show you?[/b]'

The kid was a stammering mess now, nothing but a melting, sweaty bunch of 'um's and 'uh's. She flicked her fingers and he flinched.

'[b]Scram.[/b]'

He did. Piper gave a little snort of laughter.

'[b]Shush, you. We've got more important things to handle than a snotty kid.[/b]' It was starting - the whispers of the common folk. Though she couldn't hear what they were saying, it was an easy guess. What a vile piece of work she was, scaring a child, using magic, owning a dragon, yadda yadda. All talk and no action since none of them would actually dare throw her out the village. That would be an amusing sight to see.

'[i]Focus.[/i]' God, she was all over the place. It was official: she needed a drink before she could sort any of this out. She glanced around, then grinned at the sight of a squat little tavern. '[/color][color=orange][i]Blackgale Inn[/i][/color][color=mediumseagreen],' its wooden sight read, swinging back and forth in the slight wind.

'[b]Perfect.[/b]'

Chatter and music drifted out from the doors and once she pushed past them, a familiar ranky smell greeted her. Her grin widened. It was this kind of bar that ended up being a funhouse by the time she left. Not today, however. She had a mission and an unfinished job. The sooner she got to the bottom of this, the sooner she could return to her target and lob his head off.

'[i]Or suffocate him[/i],' she thought with reluctance as she sat down at the bar. It had become a cool trademark of hers - Breath Stealer and all that jazz - but watching them squirm and then die without her even touching them had gotten old real fast. Snapping Elena's neck with her bare hands was a fresh breath of air. Cheryl's lips quirked at the irony of it.

'[/color][color=lightgray][i][b]It's become quiet[/b][/i][/color][color=mediumseagreen],' hummed Piper in her mind. So she'd noticed; it was hard [i]not[/i] to when the din in the tavern practically vanished the second she had stepped in.

Without turning around, she raised her hand, waving nonchalantly to the gawking patrons.

'[b]I know I'm nice to look at but there's nothing happening here. Why don't you all go back to whatever you were doing before?[/b]' At this point, Piper got up, clambering around her so that he sat on one shoulder, peering at the crowd behind her. The couple other patrons sitting at the bar shifted several inches away. Cheryl raised her eyes to the heavens as she felt the tension in the tavern spike. Nevertheless, she continued, putting her hand down. '[b]I'm sure it's more exciting than staring at my back.[/b]'

A couple beats of silence. Then, slowly, almost reluctantly, the chatter resumed, as did the music.

Piper shifted his paws on her shoulder, as if kneading her for a brief moment. '[/color][color=lightgray][i][b]So curious. There are so many of them, yet only one of me. Still they are afraid.[/b][/i][/color][color=mediumseagreen]'

'[b]Don't take all the credit, pal. I'm scary, aren't I? Hey![/b]' The last word was a bark aimed at the bartender. The old man stiffened in response, clutching the wash cloth in his hand like a lifeline.

'[/color][b]Whatever you want, it's on the house-[/b][color=mediumseagreen]' he started, but clammed up when Cheryl waved a dismissive hand at him.

'[b]If you're trying to say that I'm so poor that I can't afford a drink, just stop.[/b]'

'[/color][b]That's not-[/b][color=mediumseagreen]'

'[b]Exactly. So get me a sour-[/b]' She reached into one of her belt pouches, pulled out a silver coin, and slapped it on the countertop. '[b]-and take the money. You're running a business, man. Act like it.[/b]' The old man nodded, wide-eyed. He took the money with trembling hands, then set about making her drink.

Cheryl leaned her elbows on the countertop, the hair on her right side falling forward as she dipped her head and closed her eyes.

Mum was dead.

She wasn't quite sure how to feel about it. On one hand, she hadn't seen her in years. On the other...all those years away had been to help Mum.

No, that wasn't right. Their financial situation had stabilised years ago. The fear of Mum asking Cheryl how [i]that[/i] had happened and finding out what her daughter had been up to all these years was what had kept Cheryl away after that.

'[i]Well, now she'll never know. Good job, Cheryl.[/i]' She opened her eyes, frowning. '[i]Wait.[/i]'

The money. Their savings. For mana's sake, she'd come straight here after snapping Elena's neck and hadn't thought to check the crime scene itself. She slumped further on the counter, groaning. Piper readjusted his hold on her shoulder, wrapping a tail around the front of her neck.

'[/color][b]Sorry to, uh, interrupt, but your sour, Miss Hunter.[/b][color=mediumseagreen]' Her cheek pressed against the countertop, she watched the stained glass slide close to her face. The dark blue liquid fizzled, bubbles popping at the surface.

'[b]Yeah, thanks. And Lusby's fine.[/b]'

Well, she'd come here to sort out her mind. She had a plan. Or at least, the next step of a developing plan. So, the way she saw it, it would be waste of energy to execute it right away. Better to drink and wait for the next next step of the plan to pop in her brain.

So she raised her head, took a deep swig of her sour, gasped for air, then slammed the glass down.

'[b]Here's to you, Mum[/b],' she murmured.[/color]