A day at market -Tag: Ariadne!

Ariadne took in a breath of the crisp winter air and felt herself shiver inside. She consoled her body with the thought that the sun was actually shining today. However the sun that warmed her also made her squint in the light as it reflected off of the snow and ice. Normally it wouldn’t bother her much to walk around the market area in the cold but she felt the added weight of another person’s marks on her person and she felt even colder due to the nerves she felt carrying around the marks.

She had been asked, or more told, to get a few things for the infirmary. They handed her a pouch full of marks and a list. She’d never been told to run errands before but at the Master Healer’s fall two days ago, he was not permitted to walk the streets in the snow. The rest of the healing staff was busy with other people who had been injured due to the weather and the few young children who had gotten a late cold. Nothing she could have said would have made them change her mind. And in a way helping out in the infirmary meant she was helping herself out in the long run.

Maybe they would continue to give her opportunities to help in that particular area of the Hold. Ariadne walked into one of the shops on the list and found the items that should be there, buying them she walked out of the shop, nearly falling on top of some boy. As soon as he had moved away from her and his pace quickened she felt the color drain from her face. The purse of marks was most definitely gone. She did not feel its weight against her waist. Watching as the boy gained speed she made the quick decision to chase after him. “Boy, stop! Please stop running!”

She was not a young boy and soon he was far ahead of her. What would she do? What could she do? Losing those marks would cost her so much more than just her employment. Her reputation of being a trustworthy person would be gone for sure. Where were the guards when you needed them, she harrumphed to herself mentally as she continued to job steadily in the direction the boy went.

The more she ran the more she grew concerned about the ice on the ground. She had to be careful not to get hurt. She should have yelled thief but she wanted to solve this without any violence. She’d even let the boy take a mark that she could replace with her own savings to keep from being in trouble herself and to keep the boy from starving. She had never felt right about carrying the marks, and now look what had happened.

Her breathing grew ragged and raspy as she drew in the cold air in hurried breaths. The boy was stopped and as she went on to approach him, fell. Her first thought when she caught up to the boy, “Alright. I’m not going to turn you in.” She spoke in a soothing tone. “Are you injured?” Ariadne thought he looked unharmed and although he was determined to lie to her she tried to ask him to supply her with the truth. “You don’t have it anymore but you gave it to someone.” She said gently.

“If they were my own marks I would not have chased you down. Those marks belong to the Master Healer, which by extension means Lord Rihan, himself. If you do not tell me who has them I might have no choice but to tell the guards you took the marks.” Before the boy could give her an answer a man came up behind her. His words were not so much important as his tone and the way the boy reacted. His voice made her hair stand on end.


She did not like this man. “I was making sure he wasn’t injured from that fall, as I do some work in the infirmary like I am today. Now I’m afraid he is going to have to come with me. First to the Healers and then he will have to go before Lord Rihan. He stole marks off of my person and gave them to someone else. He will be brought to justice. Lord Rihan will not think well of subjects who steal from his household.”

In other words, the boy would not be going off to play and she would find a way to get those marks back. Ariade hoped the man would see reason and find a way to get the marks back to her. However from his treatment of the boy she had a feeling he would be happy to let the boy be brought to justice.

Seeing that the woman spoke so freely of Lord Rihan and seeing as that she was out in service to the Master Healer of the Hold, the lead ruffian thought the better of letting her get away. Allowing her to take the boy and her story elsewhere before he had a chance to straighten her story out, would only make things more difficult for him in the long run.

"The boy is fine. I'm so sooorry to hear that you've lost the marks entrusted to you. That is certainly worrisome. Maybe together," and he acknowledged the other men who'd joined him, "we can all help you find them. I'm sure you've just dropped them somewhere."

He glanced back over at the boy with a bit of a scowl, "Go on boy. We'll help the Lady look for her lost marks."

Hesitant at first, the boy continued frowning but momentarily, had taken off again, back into the busy streets through which they'd come from.

The lead ruffian made the first move to close in on Ariadne, reaching to take her arm in his grasp. "Why don't you come with me, my Lady. Let us begin our search."



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This particular section of road was near enough to the outskirts of the market district that he was able to bring a wagon in fairly close, so that he wasn't too inconvenienced with goods delivery. Carrying crates to and from wagon to shop front, Jungi's eyes went wide as a little boy nearly crashed into him. Instead, the boy agilely spun around his legs with Jungi doing his best to hold the heavy box high, hoping the child wasn't about to hit his head on it. Flooded with relief, Jungi had barely set that crate atop the others before turning to move back across the street where he could pick up the last box for delivery.

Moments after he'd turned back around however, a woman hurried by him, seeming to be in a panic, stopping somewhere ahead of him where he overheard the boy yell out to her and then her own urgent response. Jungi left them with only casually curious sidelong glances as he continued about finishing his task.

Arms full, crossing the street again only a scant few yards away, he couldn't help but overhear a number of words that were shared between them, and by the time a group of men had joined the commotion, the trader began to take slightly more interest.

With a sigh, the back of a hand lifted to dry the sweat from his brow as Jungi straightened himself from dropping the last of his delivery to its proper destination. He was smiling as the store keeper came to greet him. "One last thing. If you could just sign here, I'll let you get back to your work."
Jungi had offered his own copy of their contract agreement for the man to sign, marking that he had received all of the items that were supposed to arrive today, coming from various holds further south. Receiving the 'X' mark signature, Jungi thanked the man and then parted ways.

Having taken only a couple of steps, he paused to focus on the group of men and the woman stopped in the street. Something didn't sit right with him about these few.

All of the men's backs were to him, but as soon as the kid tried to make his escape, Jungi grabbed him by the arm before he could pass by. The kid immediately raised his voice in protest, causing the men to all turn their attention back in his direction.

Through a mischievous smile, Jungi addressed the kid."Boy, do you know anything about the Lady's missing marks? You don't have to be afraid to tell me. I promise that you won't be in any trouble. Not even from them"

Jungi was not naive in the ways of the world, nor in how crooked men's hearts could be. His eyes had risen even as he spoke to the boy, to meet the displeased expressions of the thieves. The boy thrashed for a bit, but seeing as though Jungi only tightened his powerful grasp the more he struggled, the boy soon gave up, "Okaay, just let me go!" But Jungi held onto the boy's arm until he was quiet and still.


It was the lead ruffian's turn to speak now and distaste was evident through his tone, "What right do you have to go sticking your nose into other people's business? That boy is going to go help us find her lost marks."


Somehow, Jungi doubted that. But the man was right...Jungi didn't have his Guard Issued weaponry on him -it was all in his wagon, which was several yards away. And that was the only real way at the moment to prove he was affiliated with the Hold Guard. So, he decided not give the man any more room to speak, "I think the best way to resolve this issue, considering those marks belonged to the Master Healer, if I overheard correctly, would be to turn the matter over to the nearest Guard Station, and let them handle it. Certainly the more eyes we have to help us look, the fast we'll come by them.

"Being a trader I make regular contact with the Holder and.. will in fact be staying at his residence for the winter. If this Lady is out in service to Rihan, then we should handle this matter with all care and due scrutiny." Indeed. Jungi hadn't even bothered to speak of Rihan with his appropriate title; let that be a warning to them in show of how close he was to Rihan. If they wanted to call his bluff, so be it. Nevertheless, he recognized some semblance of doubt and fear in their eyes.


For a moment, the rough looking men all hesitated, either waiting for direction from their Lead man, or wondering if they should call his bluff or not. The lead man however, made the first move for them.

"Come on, little Lady, let's get to looking. If we wait on this lout, it will be dark and we won't be finding anything." Taking Ariadne by the arm firmly, he started to drag her away from the main street.

Catching the expression on her face, Jungi's feathers were ruffled enough to want to physically intervene. He stepped past the other men, placing himself in an undesirable position in between all of them in order to catch the lead ruffian by the wrist of that hand that held onto Ari in such an unfriendly manner. "If the lady doesn't mind, I will see to it that she is properly escorted."


The lead ruffian didn't like being told what to do though, apparently, so he jerked his arm away from Jungi, but without letting Ariadne go. Roughly pulling her along with him, "You're coming with me. Fellas. Don't let him get any further."

While the lead man started to make his get away, heading toward a connecting alley with Ariadne in tow, three others closed into and around the space between he and the Trader.


That gave Jungi pause for consideration.


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All the while, from a nearby rooftop, one of Exile Kazage's scouts was enjoying his observation of the whole scene. Their irregular interaction caught his attention, and now it looked as though things might break out into a fight.

Normally Shiranui might sit back and care less as to which side won the confrontation. He was generally more content to simply watch the show; but apparently one of the men, and the woman, were in good standing with Lord Holder Rihan...hadn't he overheard the woman say she was on an errand for the Hold's Master Healer?

Now this was an opportunity he couldn't let pass him by. Kazage would only applaud him for seeing to it that the Lord Holder's friends won out in the end. He would make sure this man and woman saw his face, and in the end, he and the other Exiles would be remembered for benefiting Telgar's House. The Exiles would need to take every opportunity they could get.


While the lead ruffian began to haul off with the woman, Shiranui prepared an iron dart in his hand and let fly. If he'd hesitated even a moment longer, the man would have been at a bad angle to attempt hitting him with any throwing implement. It certainly didn't happen every time, but this time...his timing happened to be just right.

The iron dart pierced through the icy air of winter's early evening, stabbing through the lead ruffian's right shoulder with the bite of a frozen bolt. The force he'd been hit with was enough to nearly spin the man completely around before he staggered to the ground. Of course his grip on Ariadne'd been broken as he jerked, and his arm contorted weirdly through the pain that now immobilized that extremity. Not to mention the metal bolt protruding from skin and bone. The lead ruffian howled in agony.


The other thieves spun around to see what had happened.


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Of course Jungi had no idea what had happened behind them; He feared at first that perhaps the woman Ariadne had tried to fight back or perhaps something else even more terrible had happened.

Perhaps she was now in even more grave danger!!

Without thinking, while the other thieves were distracted, Jungi reacted!

The thieves should never have taken their eyes off of him.

One of them was already tumbling to the ground, but persistent enough to get back up again, but not a second later, a single figure leaped from a nearby rooftop. The figure rolled to the ground to absorb the impact of his fall, and was swiftly back on his feet. Fearing that the newcomer was another thief, Jungi's movements landed with more serious intent, quickening to finish taking down the two opponents who were already in front of him. However, to his surprise, the long haired man who'd made his way into the fight via rooftop was now -gleefully- landing punches on the remaining thief.

Everything happened so quickly. Her eyes were pleading that the boy stay that she did not want to be alone with this man. He was obviously not a good person to be around if the boy feared him and it was quite clear that he did. Before she realized the man’s intent he had her arm in his grasp. She didn’t even think to shout or yell for help at this point. “Let me go.” She said sternly and when the man ignored her and spoke loudly of going to help her find her marks.

The boy who had left was caught by another man who was trying to help her out of her current situation verbally though it seemed the man with his hand around her arm was in no mood for anyone to tell him anything. So he continued to hold onto her as her arm burned with pain from how hard he held on. From out of nowhere it seemed someone shot the man holding her with a dart. As the man fell she was freed from his grasp but unable to move as the event unfolded around her.

Things moved quickly as the men who were in cahoots with the guy howling in pain on the ground were defeated one by one. With a sigh of relief, she went on to thank Jungi, “Thank you and to whomever shot that dart.” She smiled gratefully, “I’m Ariadne and I do work for Lord Rihan’s Master Healer some of the time. The marks really do belong to the healer. I was meant to buy thing for the infirmary with them and now I hope I’ll be able to retrieve them.”

She sighed, looking down at the man with the dart in his shoulder. “The marks will be needed when they require more things for the infirmary to treat this fellow. Do you think it would be…within the bounds of the law if I searched the man to see if has the marks?” She was concerned she didn’t want to get herself into any more trouble with anyone. Why couldn’t people just let her be lately?

A final kick to the face permanently grounded the last in the gang of thieves that continued fighting. Jungi continued to be watchful of any sudden movement from any of them, but they all were unconscious now except for the man with the dart through his shoulder; but the fight was long gone from him as well.

Straightening himself, Jungi looked to Ariadne, his dark eyes sweeping over her to make sure she did not seem to be injured anywhere.

As she introduced herself, he was straightening his clothes so that he looked presentable again. His acknowledgement of her words came in a curt, "Ah." before she continued.


“The marks will be needed when they require more things for the infirmary to treat this fellow. Do you think it would be…within the bounds of the law if I searched the man to see if has the marks?”


"You're not hurt are you? And of course. But allow me. We will find the marks on them, I'm sure. If not, I'll cover for you regarding the loss." About to step over the bodies to search through pockets on his own, Jungi's eyes went to the man who'd been hit in the shoulder, thinking to go to him first, since he'd been their ring-lead. However, that brought the helpful stranger back to his immediate attention. Quickly then, his gaze rose to that stranger who now stood over the prostrate body of the thug he'd beaten, a booted foot planted atop the man's form, arms crossed over his chest, as if to say, 'Well, wasn't that fun?'.

"Your name? I should know who I am thanking for assisting me in this situation."


Mouth drawn into a thin line with a single brow arched high, the Exile had obviously enjoyed himself thoroughly. "It is Shiranui. Since I helped you, I hope it is a name that you will remember in the future."

Having said that, the Exile took a couple of steps, crouching down to the thug leader who now had leaned himself as best he could against a wall. Shiranui reached down to the man's right pocket, fishing out the purse of marks that'd been stolen.

Standing back up, the pouch was tossed to Jungi before placing his hands on his hips in a proud manner, though his expression still showed that same amused smugness as before. Falling silent, the man offered no explanation as to how he knew where the marks had been hidden, but let Jungi make his own guesses.


Catching the purse out of the air, Jungi was looking back at the Exile curiously now, with plenty of his own questions running through his mind. Though, he spoke none of them.
While a new curiosity about the man burned in his eyes, Jungi moved to hand the marks back over to the lady present. [b]"Are these what you have been looking for?"



People began to clear from the streets as voices were raised from beyond them and a new bustle of activity could be overheard. One of the guard squads was arriving, having finally gotten word about the uproar at this end of the district.

As the Guardsmen were all coming into sight, Jungi was looking in their direction, waiting to see who was leading the squad.


At the head of the group was Toshiro, at which point Jungi gave a smug expression of his own, though it didn't take long for it to turn into a good-humoured grin. "You're late."


The Captain was already assessing the damage -the bodies rather- which lay sprawled across one half of the street, before he made his reply. "This had better not be your new habit -finishing the fight before I get here. As far as I'm aware, you don't have anyone's permission to go stealing all the fun." He smirked at that, eyes narrowing on Jungi with evident disappointment.


A little laughter echoed Jungi's humour, "Oh, but I do. Having Honourary Guard status lets me in on all the fun without having to do any of the dirty work. I'll just leave that bit to you."

Jungi was about to address Ariadne again when he noticed that Shiranui was no longer amoungst them. He glanced all about, but saw no sign of the man being about, but...glancing back into the snow and ice on the ground, it was easy for a him to read which direction he went off to even though the tracks were muddled by other activity and quickly melted away to the cobblestone of the street and nearby alleyway. The trader's trained eye followed what would have been the man's path down the alley, and there, there was a lone patch of snow...

Jungi's gaze lifted to the only source that could have produced the little pile of snow -the rooftop. It was at least ten or twelve feet up, but there were traces there, that this Shiranui character had been able to climb the wall and disappear over the rooftops again, before becoming anymore involved.

Finally turning his attention back to Ariadne, he offered, "Would you allow me to walk with you to finish purchasing what you need for the Master Healer? That way I can help you carry everything and see you back to the Hold's Infirmary safely.

"Oh!" and the trader smiled softly this time, his expression full of such charismatic warmth that it was hard for most women to resist. "and I'm Jungi."

Having offered his own introduction finally, he had hardly paused for the woman's reply before glancing back at Toshiro, who'd already ensured that each of the thugs were bound and detained. The squad was already moving them out of the streets to the nearest guard station for questioning. Turning back to Ariadne he hesitated, "Ah, my Lady, excuse me for just one moment."

The trader went to the Captain, who met his eyes, but then looked past him, to Ariadne. "The man who'd been pierced in the shoulder...can I find you later to take a closer look at the dart once it's been removed?

"Sure." Toshiro's eyes were back on Jungi, wondering about the request, but figured he would get details when it mattered, and they weren't in the middle of the Market street. "Meet me at my barracks then. After nightfall. We'll have been able to interrogate them and remove the dart to have his wound treated by then."

But the trader was disagreeing. Jungi clapped Toshiro on the shoulder, "Tomorrow. In the morning I'll be there. Hopefully I'll be escorting the Lady tonight."

“Yes, I’m alright.” She knew her arm would be black and blue in a little while and sore but a bruise was really nothing compared to what that man probably would have done if these men had not intervened. Ariadne’s eyes were fixed on the man who had been impaled by the dart. What possessed such men to use children to thieve for them? She shuddered to think of what the children thought of adults being treated such a way. No wonder the boy was afraid of her.

When Jungi addressed the strange man who had shot the thief down she wondered where he was from and why no one seemed to have any idea who he was. She remembered that he wanted them to know his name in the future. Perhaps he was someone Lord Rihan knew and trusted to look out for the people? She had no idea nor was she privy to such information. As the strange man went to search the thief for the marks, he came up with the pouch almost immediately. “Thank you. That is exactly what I’ve been looking for."

If anything they were all very helpful to her. Strange how many people stood and watched when a couple of brave and skilled men took care of things. Well the unskilled still could have assisted. No one else seemed to care. It was wrong that people were so selfish they did not get involved in the business of other people. What if that man had intended to kill her? Would they all have continued to pretend that nothing was going on? At least she knew she was not like that and that she had had help in the end.

People began to scatter at the sound of the Guard coming. She watched the interaction between Jungi and Toshiro she smiled. Friends. Soooo Toshiro did have some friends besides Rihan. “Of course you may. Jungi.” A thought seemed to have struck him that moment and he made an excuse to go and speak to Toshiro. Nodding she watched him walk over to the Captain of the Guard.

When Toshiro’s gaze landed on her she smiled and waved to him. They would not have had time to talk between Jungi and all that was going on with the thieves but she would have liked to at least say hello. Seeing as he was supposed to be listening to what Jungi was saying she thought perhaps he was trying to come and see her and did not have a chance because of the other man. She waited for Jungi to finish since he did have the marks she needed and wondered if they could get it all done fast enough to see the thief treated at the infirmary. Not that she wanted to gloat. It was nothing like that. She actually hoped he would see how what he was doing was wrong because the infirmary served the people. There was no point in stealing marks from them.

Toshiro saw Ariadne's wave, but she was right in her assumption that he was too caught up in his duty as an officer and what Jungi was saying to acknowledge her for the moment. Regardless, his eyes did not leave her, making sure that first, she was not injured terribly, and second, well...if his eyes did leave her momentarily, they returned to watching her form -of course, to make sure she was still safe!

The Captain's eyes narrowed as his left arm returned to its position of repose over the top of his sword, wondering just what Jungi was getting at when he asked about inspecting the dart more closely. Of course, the Captain hadn't seen the strange who'd helped them, but when the throwing implement had been brought to his attention, he had quickly deduced that Jungi had no use for such weapons as darts, so there must have been another? That struck him as strange at first. Judging by the angle the dart had entered the man's shoulder however, it seemed to have come from a higher vantage point. If it had been thrown from ground level, it would have entered his shoulder differently; unless the man was already on the ground when it hit.

But that didn't make sense. The man had no other telling signs that he'd been physically beaten first in order to get him on the ground. Likewise, a person wouldn't come into that close of range to beat a person and then think to -ineffectively- use a dart. Yet, it was almost as if someone had stabbed the man with it using an overhand swing, like a dagger?

But that didn't quite make sense either. Darts like that were too small to be held in the hand like a dagger for stabbing generally. Even if it was a longer dart, from a glance, it seemed as though it had entered the shoulder too deeply to have been stabbed through. Which meant it was most certainly thrown. Even as he observed Jungi managing his search for the Exile, Toshiro was about to search the rooftops for signs of activity. When he realized that Jungi was watching the other person who had been involved make his escape in his own mind, it all made sense. The trader was somewhat of a tracker, after all. And that meant that the second combatant who'd intervened in the conflict had been on the rooftops to begin with.

But why? Why would a helpful citizen run when the Guard had arrived? And to make such a strange escape when he could have simply disappeared into the crowds or into a shop somewhere. Whoever it was was dually skilled to be able to clear a wall that high with nothing to climb up on, and now, this stranger was also dually suspicious in Toshiro's mind, due to his methods. How curious...

"I'd like for you to fill me in on how a weapon like that ended up in the conflict. I'm sure I'll hear more about it from the men we detained as well, but..."

When remembering how Jungi answered him about previous plans t'nite escorting the Lady present, he took pause, pressing Jungi again,"While it's fresh in my mind, let's look at it t'nite. If you want, we can meet in the infirmary after the man's been treated." For some reason, Toshiro's tone seemed to finalize those words, and his suggestion made it possible for him to know that while Jungi was 'escorting' Ariadne as it were, he would get to be there later on to make sure Jungi wasn't pulling any funny business around her.

At that point, Toshiro was focusing so hard on the crime at hand and similarly, not realizing he was being irked by Jungi's mention of spending all evening with Ariadne, that he forgot to return Ariadne's wave or give her any kind of hello. But she was safe. That's what mattered to him right now.

He turned back to his men and waved them to wrap up their work and head back to the guard station with their arrested thieves so that the people could get back to their daily normalcy.



Of course it made sense as to why his friend would want to meet tonight to look at the dart, but somehow that reasoning seemed a bit dubious to him now. Nevertheless, Jungi turned back to Ariadne and when he'd returned to her side, bearing that same charming smile upon his features as he'd shown her before, he held out his hand with the marks to her again. "I'm sorry. I believe these are yours."

And when she'd taken them, he asked of her, "So, where is our first stop?"

Ariadne put the marks where she had them before attached at her waist. She still felt like carrying these marks might cause her more trouble than they were worth. Maybe it was that her nerves before had been proven right. It was dangerous for her to walk around with that many marks. She would from now on have another person come with her, preferably a man who would look menacing to thieves. Her hands reached for a pocket in her skirt, the list was pulled up and she read the items that were needed.

“It’s back down this way.” She said turning in the direction she had come from. “This shouldn’t take too long.” Ariadne promised. As she walked away, she cast a quick glance back at Toshiro. Her attention was quickly set back to the path in front of her. People seemed busy, walking this way and that. She had to maneuver more than once to get through the crowds.

“So are you part of the guard then? I never knew there were unofficial members.” By way of explaining why she would know anything about the Guard, she said, “My husband, Evander was a Guard too.” She hid the pain of saying it with a smile. Using the past tense was a hard thing to do, even now. Some days she woke up and half expected him to be there next to her. Reality usually came back to her a moment later.

As they worked their way through the street, she thought about this area of the Hold. Living in this part of the Hold must be difficult, she mused as she finally made it to the shop she was looking for. “Here we are.” She said, as she entered the shop. He could follow or not as he pleased. The shop owner was there and had the things the Healer had commissioned already set aside in a basket. Ariadne paid the marks and took the basket, speaking with the shopkeeper in a kind and friendly way. She seemed to get along well with most people so chores like these tended to go much more quickly for her than other people.

Finally out of the shop she took out her list again, there were only a couple of places she still needed to get to and they were nearby. “We’ve got a couple more places to go and then it’s the Infirmary. I really hope that man sees the error of his ways.” Hoping for it to be so and it actually being so were two different things. She knew that but she was ever the optimist when it came to people.

Following after Ariadne's lead, Jungi paused as she looked back, and wondered, but didn't make anything of it. Happy to follow her lead, he was still sure he knew which section of shops they were headed to, by the quick glance he'd had of her list. She was right, it shouldn't take them long.

“So are you part of the guard then? I never knew there were unofficial members.” By way of explaining why she would know anything about the Guard, she said, “My husband, Evander was a Guard too.”

Ariadne's words gave him the briefest pause. Jungi didn't assume right away that her husband was deceased. "He 'was'?... Ah. I'm sorry to hear that."[b] He figured he'd go on to answer her question to him so that the focus of their conversation at least wouldn't be on the dead. What a dreary time that would be. Uhg. What a miserable date he would be, too, to allow their conversation to go that way. No one enjoyed dwelling on grief.

[b]"I'm just an Honourary Guard. Which means I get all the special privileges without having to go to work every day so to speak." In a way, his words were true however, there was another side to that that of which he didn't feel the need to elaborate on. At any point the Lord Holder was in desperate need of it, he still had to be willing to do whatever was necessary to fulfill his part. "The tokens of my rank are locked away in a place of safe-keeping. I don't generally need them since I'm traveling so much of the time -and not always in Telgar. A veritable badge of the Guard wouldn't do me much good outside the territory. In some places, it might just cause more trouble." A somewhat restrained yet jovial laughter came from him, parting the adorable smile he'd worn.

"Anyway, my family has always been close to the Lord Holder's own -for mutual benefit. So, when we come here to winter, they have always allowed us to stay with them." Of course, such privilege didn't come without strings attached, but those were acceptable attachments to him."I guess you could say Rihan and I grew up together in a way...We've always been very close friends. Now, we are more like brothers."

Grinning a bit proudly at the thought of his friend, Jungi gave a final nod of his head in matter of fact manner. As they continued walking that steady pace, Jungi looked to her again, watching her expression.

But soon, they would be entering the shop that was their first stop, and Jungi went to open the door for her. As she went about her task, Jungi's hands clasped at the small of his back, eyes tilting every which way, making his own silent appraisal of the goods stored on each shelf. Any interest in what the store had to offer was only short lived however, and so as soon as Ari was through making her purchase, he offered to hold onto the basket of supplies for her. Leaving from the store, Jungi opened the door for Ariadne again.

"Where to next?" And as the man was smiling up at the sky just then, wondering about what time it would be, he took a deep, appreciative breath before glancing back to her. "I am getting a bit hungry. How about after the last stop, we pick up some street-vendor food to tide us over to dinner? That way we won't have to keep the Master Healer waiting. It'll be my treat."

Ariadne found herself glad of the company. She had never been reluctant to bring her husband up in conversation although it had a tendency to make things awkward. “It is what it is.” She said as she felt a lump in her throat. Swallowing as if it would help the growing tension there, she listened to what he had to say about the Guard and nodded. She wished she had those kinds of friends but she had always known her place in the world and it was not with the higher ups.

“I bet that comes in handy. You must be away a good deal since I haven’t met you before.” One of the many things Evander had been good at was making friends. Much like herself he had a gregarious side which allowed him to get along with almost anyone. Ariadne found herself smiling at his laughter, “I can only imagine. I’ve never been outside of Telgar.” And she had no real desire to leave.

With a secretive sort of smirk, “Lord Rihan must’ve been a very serious boy for someone like you to be around. You’re quite mischievous and no doubt got the pair of you into trouble on more than one occasion.” Yes, she was calling him out on being a rogue. Ari did not necessarily think that was a bad thing especially considering how jovial Jungi was. No doubt he was a breath of fresh air to the stuck up Holder brats.

Ariadne kept up a good pace and they were close to the next little shop in no time. “It’s only a little farther this way.” She indicated to the right. His next suggestion gave her pause to think for a moment. He was only being nice, she told herself and nodded. “That would be nice. I really appreciate it. I don’t have any of my own marks with me so I won’t be able to repay you till tomorrow.” Expecting that he would want repayment, she thought about how much it would cost. She normally ate in.

They were at the next shop, where again the shop keeper had things ready for her. She paid, and picked up the large bag, which held many linen cloths. It was not heavy and she was used to lugging around laundry. “One more stop and we should be on our way.”

“I bet that comes in handy. You must be away a good deal since I haven’t met you before.”

"Your assumption is not incorrect." Not offering any details on how handy being best friends with the Heir Apparent had been or what life must be like being on the road all the time for him, he left her with that answer alone. After all, he couldn't be the mysterious rogue if he let her delve too deep. She just knew enough now that he was tall, dark and handsome, had friends in high places and was multi talented. Surely that had to score him some points with the ladies -well, it usually did. At least for the purposes of his own needs.


“Lord Rihan must’ve been a very serious boy for someone like you to be around. You’re quite mischievous and no doubt got the pair of you into trouble on more than one occasion.”

As they walked, Jungi was grinning and nodding at that, his expressing becoming even more animated. "Very serious indeed. Just don't go telling the Lord Holder I happened to be the real culprit." The trader shot a wink at Ariadne. "Do you work full time with the Master Healer? Certainly you've spent a little time in Rihan's presence then, to know?"


He was glad when she accepted his offer to stop for a bite to eat. Dismissing her offer to repay him with a wave of his hand he replied firmly, but his voice was only gentle in reproach, "I told you already. It's on me." Expression altering slightly, when Jungi met her eyes there was a feigned sense of hurt there, "What kind of gentleman do you think me to be?" Obviously he was teasing her.

Perhaps the question was rhetorical, but he fell into step behind her after that, as she had reached their next destination before he could reach for the door. Following her in to the shop, he waited patiently as the shop keep brought the supplies to her that had been ordered. Just as she reached to take it and turned back for the door, he intercepted, blocking her way. If she wasn't quick, she might have run right over him, but his gentle hand was on hers where she held the bundle, the other supportive underneath of it, and with quiet insistence, Jungi was gladly obliging.

"Allow me." Even if her hand resisted, his own fingers had taken hold of hers in a brief caress. Momentarily though, his hand had worked its way into holding onto the bundle for her. The man's voice rose reassuringly, "Don't worry. I've got it. One more stop, you said?"

The revealed truth of his persona was not much of a surprise. She was usually very good with people. She laughed, “I swear I won’t tell a soul.” She thought about her next response for a moment as they walked. “I do work for the Master Healer some of the time but I did exaggerate a little when it came to them stealing the marks. I don’t really interact with Lord Rihan, in fact I’ve only seen him a few times and only briefly. I used to be in the infirmary more.” Since Evander’s death she had trouble dealing with some of the more fatal wounds. She couldn’t watch anyone die without checking out mentally. The Healers tended to only have her around for slower days and for tasks like this where she wasn’t actually in the infirmary.

Even she knew that no meal was free entirely. She was almost pessimistic sometimes when her realistic side showed itself. Keeping her own counsel on the matter, she thought about what he might want from her. If he didn’t want money it was likely companionship. Although she seemed an innocent young woman in appearance, Ariadne was not a stranger to the advances of men. Still there was no reason to ruin the good humor he was in and no point in making things uncomfortable between them as of yet. He had not done anything to offend her.

As to what kind of gentleman he was, she had to hold back a snort. Gentleman was hardly the word, though he was holding doors and carrying things for her, underneath it, she knew exactly what he was. Charming though he might be, he was used to having his way with women and that in and of itself was the opposite of gentlemanly behavior. “I’m sorry. I’m just not used to not paying for my food. I can take care of myself most of the time so I do.” She certainly wasn’t going to wait for someone else to feed her. She had her daughter to think of as well.

The shop keeper was quick, so when she headed for the door, she did not expect Jungi to be quite so insistent. His hands were faster than she was. Even if she wanted to, she could not resist. His brief caress was unexpected. Having caught her off guard, she released the sack without hesitation. “If you insist but I do carry bundles like that all of the time...” She said and led the way out of the shop; all the while wondering if perhaps they should just go straight to the infirmary and skip dinner.

Ariadne was more convinced than before that Jungi was a womanizer. He was charming and there would be nothing wrong with giving him what he wanted, she’d been married and there was no cause for her to be concerned. Somehow though, returning any sort of caress felt wrong so she tried to push such things to the back recesses of her mind. She did not want to think about why it might not feel right. It could be that she was not ready to think about anyone in that way at all.There could be more to it than that but she really was in no mood to explore her own feelings.

The quiet that had come upon her was abnormal so she set about to chat with him again, as they walked to the next destination. “Are you going to stay here for Lord Rihan’s wedding? He must be truly enchanted, as he moved the wedding to a closer date. No doubt the rumors are true that the Lady Eolyn is both kind and beautiful.” She was actually excited for the chance to celebrate. Weddings were already special but weddings between Lord Holder families were said to be the most beautiful and exquisite of anything a normal person like her would ever see.

As Ariadne told him a bit more about herself, Jungi was all ears, nodding and showing appropriate acknowledgement at certain points through her story.

Seeing as though she'd been married, Jungi had figured as much, that she would see through the more obvious 'gentlemanly ploys'. A married woman was rarely as naive as she might seem when it came to men, but that just made things more interesting. In truth, Jungi was not being a 'gentleman' toward her for the sake of his own wants or needs as much as he truly was an honest, gentlemanly sort at the core. It would indeed be much to trite and much too obvious if the 'gentleman' card was the only one he knew how to play when it came to impressing ladies. And how much fun could one get out of playing one ever so simple card every single game? If he wanted more from her, he had his own ways of getting her attention.

As far as her assumptions on what a man like he might want from her, she was correct that he always appreciated the female company, especially after months on the road.

It would have been to Jungi's delight to know that Ariadne had reacted similarly as many women did when he'd shown interest in them. Almost any woman would have done the same and begun wondering how close he wanted to get to them right away. There were conflicting emotions and that first sense of resistance. No matter who it was, women were still women and wanted to be adored by men.

But it was there that Ariadne had figured him wrong. Jungi never planned on letting emotions get involved, even if most women did. Emotions had nothing to do with filling physical needs as far as he was concerned. That's what caused most to think him heartless later on. So...that was alright, if Ari didn't want to explore those feelings, it was all the better for him for now.

Ari was again correct though in assuming that he was used to having his way with women, but opposingly, that created obstacles to forming meaningful, lasting relationships. So, in a sense, he only got what he wanted to an extent. Eventually he was going to want more from a woman; something that would never be so easily commanded. He was aware of that fact, and that's why he accepted involvement with little emotional attachment for now. In all honesty, Jungi wasn't sure he'd ever met a woman that he'd ever truly wanted to forge a deeper relationship with. Most of the women he spent a lot of time in the company of were those shallow enough to appreciate him only for his social connections and monetary worth. Again,..those were all things he was well aware of.


“If you insist but I do carry bundles like that all of the time...”

"And I'm used to carrying bigger bundles. I win. Not to mention, you wouldn't want to insult to my gentlemanly sensibilities anyway, would you?" He was winking again, enjoying teasing her a little as he fell into a light step at her side.


“Are you going to stay here for Lord Rihan’s wedding? He must be truly enchanted, as he moved the wedding to a closer date. No doubt the rumors are true that the Lady Eolyn is both kind and beautiful.”

"I haven't had a chance to visit with him since his betrothal, but I'm certain if he's moved the date up he must be head over heels for the Lady. Especially if the rumours are true." Nodding agreeably at that, he went on to assure her, "It's one wedding I'd never pass up the chance to attend. And I don't think Rihan would forgive me if I did miss it. Haha."

Just then, a booming alert came from the drum heights, calling attention to the Guard. It was an alert he only vaguely recognized from drills because of its infrequent use. That caused him to pause in his step momentarily, shooting a half-sidelong glance curiously into the sky. His wondering was more out loud to himself then, "That couldn't be because of this morning's incident we were involved in...they haven't even finished an investigation."

She was back to smiling and being jovial. There was no reason at all not to have a good time. “Well so long as you are insisting on being a gentleman.” Men were rather stubborn about such things anyway. There was no point in trying to talk him out of carrying anything. She had plenty to carry most other days, might as well take the day off from lugging things around. It would only make it easier to carry her daughter around later.

“I don’t see why anyone would want to miss it.” She said with a shrug, supposing that there might be people who would. Ariadne might be working for a small part of it but she wasn’t a kitchen drudge nor a serving one so she probably would have more work in the days leading up to and after but not on the day of. It would be the perfect occasion for her to go out and have some fun.

The suddenness of the drum cause her to jump in her own skin for just a moment. “It would be something more important than that surely. We’d better hurry. Lord Rihan and Captain Toshiro will probably have need of you. I’ve taken up too much of your time already.” They were just in front of the last place now anyway. So she did make a quick trip inside. This time what she received was quite small. She felt better carrying this herself as the bottles were fragile.

“Maybe we should skip dinner?” She said, thinking about what the drums would or even could mean. Ariadne was anxious to get back to the infirmary. There would no doubt be someone there who knew what was happening. At least she hoped someone would know. There were only so many things that could be going on at this moment.

“Maybe we should skip dinner?”

The Trader was nodding at her assessment but still upheld his offer for food later, "When we get to the Hold I'll have something brought for us if things aren't chaotic when we get there."

Since her final purchase was light, he waited at the door just outside, watching for the movements of the Guard. He saw two patrols heading toward the main Guard Hall near the Hold Proper and figured at this point there were only two men now manning any of the guard stations posted throughout the city. Most of the citizens had gone back to their business, relatively disaffected by the drums since none of them would have really any idea what the signal was for.

By the time Ariadne had come back out of the small shoppe, Jungi was getting the impression that somehow, this particular drum signal had been no drill. Jungi took Ari by the arm with one hand, giving it a little squeeze to emphasize the mounting urgency he was feeling. "Ariadne. We should go. Quickly." Saying nothing more, he waited only a couple of breaths before turning to head toward the Hold where the infirmary was located in one of the bottom level wings. Of course they would pass the Guard Hall was on the way there.

Ariadne was in as much of a hurry as Jungi was. She nodded, “If it is not too much of a hassle. Otherwise don’t worry I always get fed.” She smiled warmly. There was nothing she couldn’t do for herself and she had family who could care for her as well, when needed. After hearing the drums though, her first thought was of her daughter.

She really needed to get back to the infirmary and get things sorted before heading home. All the more reason to rush so she allowed him to pull her along with him to the infirmary. Ari remained silent until they arrived mostly because she was thinking about things that did not really concern Jungi.

When they reached the Guard Hall, her eyes found his for just a second, “I can manage the rest of the way for myself. You are probably needed here now.” Ariadne waited for him to pass her the basket and the bag.

“See you around Jungi and thank you.” She said as she walked out of the Guard Hall. All the while her eyes searching for another familiar face, he would be so much more busy now though then before. Still it would be nice to talk sometime soon. They had not had a good talk in a while, she thought and made her way down to the now bustling infirmary.

The Master Healer looked less than pleased with her when she arrived but she went to him and explained what had happened that had set her back he was understanding. She knew he would be. Although he did remark that from then onward he would send a man to collect supplies. Not because they were any better at it but he thought it might keep someone from trying to steal from him.

When she asked about the thief the Healer said he would make a full recovery, for which Ariadne was pleased. Despite his actions he hardly deserved to die. She went to work filling bottles with numbweed and redwort, trying to get the gossip out of the other drudges but none of them seemed aware of what the Drums were for. Maybe later Jungi or Toshiro would be able to supply her with the answer. She did really want to know.

When they'd reached the Guard Hall, Jungi handed over the bundles of supplies headed for the Master Healer. "Alright. Be careful."

Feeling similarly about the situation, Jungi turned to run off to the front of the lines where the Captains and other officers would presently be posted.




When Ariadne was passing by, Toshiro had already returned to the front of the guard's grounds to instruct the squads coming in from patrols, as well as those who'd been pulled away from training or other activities. While the squads gathered, Toshiro stood with arms folded over his chest visiting with Shannon, the 3rd Squad Division Captain about what they would be instructing the squads to do until Rihan's return. And then what they'd have their squads doing in the event Rihan's return took longer than expected.

In any case, each Captain having made appropriate announcements to their own Division, instruction was given and the squads were about to move out when their Heir Apparent arrived, which gave all of them pause.