Mougin was a rather withdrawn child. He often shunned labourous chores for exploring the nooks and crannies of the mountain. He did it so often that it was truly baffling that his parents hadn't yet taken him to task, and it was equally bewildering to his peers that he didn't simply disappear on one of his expeditions. Regardless, he had been told by the elders that his youthful truancy would lead to a weak body. He had scoffed then, but he couldn't scoff now.

Every step was a struggle. To balance, to endure, to make sure his path was straight, everything. Really, he hadn't thought this out. He might not make it up to shore, which would put a serious hamper in his plan. Miraculously the package became larger. He turned back to see the woman concentrating, hand on the metal container. A new kind of magic, it seemed. Her interference made her an accomplice, which could potentially complicate matters. But that was her perogative, and maybe she had her own way out.

If they both made it out of this in one piece, he would ask to learn her magic.

Mougin marched forward. Officer Charles had already arrived nearby, Mr. Silum in tow. How convenient. The minotaur silently stepped down the gangway, reflecting on his plan on the cusp of its execution. It utilised several things he had learned thus far from his prior experience in this city, mostly things from yesterday. From almost being stolen from he learned a few things about how crimes were identified - Officer Charles was reluctant to arrest the teenagers because he himself hadn't seen the wrongdoing. The teenagers would not admit it and Mougin himself didn't either, because the attempt was unsuccessful. He wasn't sure what a 'crime' was, but the teenagers seemed to believe it could be seen as one. So they employed deceit, and pleaded innocent. 

While had no time to check whether 'slavery' was a crime or not, Mr Silum acted like the teenagers he had met yesterday. He put on a mask of innocence, unaware that Mougin was looking at his wrongdoings. It [i]was[/i] a crime, then, or something that could be interpreted as one. If the Officer of the Law did not see the crime occur, it was difficult to prove the wrongdoing existed. If he did not see any [i]evidence[/i], he couldn't be sure of a crime. Therefore, the first step of the plan was to produce evidence.

The minotaur shrugged the metal container off his shoulder and he felt the weight of it rapidly increase as he removed the box from the woman's touch. Mougin winced in his mind; this would not be comfortable for the children. But it had to be done. He let the box fall to the ground with a loud [b]clang[/b] and the lid popped off towards Officer Charles and the group. Several children came tumbling out of the metal receptacle. Before anyone could react, Mougin took 2 confident steps forward and initiated the next step in his plan.

The Mob was an object of fear for the metal-armed man. If they could touch Mougin's home, plunder its resources, [i]take its people[/i], then they clearly had immense influence. But if that was the case then why the pretense of innocence? Why did Mr Silum fear the law? It seemed clear to him that, while The Mob was not above the Law, they had the ability to go around The Law. Even if Mougin did not commit a crime in the eyes of the Law, The Mob may press charges against him their own way. He needed to be under the protection of the Law, to protect himself from The Mob. Therefore, his second step was to perform a crime.

Mougin came to a stop in front of Officer Charles and raised a clenched fist, bringing it down on top of the officer's head in one smooth motion to thump him hard on the head. He was still unsure of what exactly constituted a crime, but he was sure that unbidden violence was one of those things. His blow was firm, to prove his seriousness, but he had tried to be gentle to his aqcuantance. 

It was really a strange coincidence that Charles would be the one at the dock tonight; if Mougin made it out of this in one piece, he would have to buy him lunch.