[Flashback] The Art of Hunting Human Boys (Giph)

[Renalee]

Ren’s hold on her dagger tightened and she brought it closer to the boy’s left leg, which ankle she still held. With only one swift movement she could cut through his calf, destroying some muscle and his achilles tendon. The pain would get him down quickly enough and he might never be able to walk on the leg again. At best he’d be out of the thievery business for at least two Seasons. It would be justice. Luckily for the kid the Kelvic didn’t know or care much about justice. “Get off then,” she offered amiably enough and slowly released the hold she had on his leg. “I’m warning you, just one attempt to keep climbing that wall and I promise I’ll show you just how high I can jump and how quick I can work this dagger into some part of your body.” Ren took a step back, prepared to follow through with her threat, if the human gave her a reason. It wouldn’t really feel bad at all to take her frustration with Ravok and all its citizens on this one child.

[Giph]

“Yeah yeah yeah.” Giph scoffed as he slowly made his way back down the wall, keeping a firm eye on her dagger. “Don't get your britches in a knot, I'm coming down already. Besides we both know you rather don't stab me if you don't have to. Since we both know the guards don't like people who let bodies lay around. Especially is the one who does that hasn't been registered.” He honestly diddn't know if she was registered or not, but most residents here knew how to keep their money hidden at least. Then again she could just be daft in the brain or have no clue about things like that. “So I'm guessing you want the purse back.” giph's mind finally came up with a slight plan, it was a bit of a stretch, but it should work, if the other one was pretty daft or bad at picking up lies. “Unfortunately for you, I got already rid of the purse at the first chance.” He smirked at the woman before him.

[Renalee]

“Did you get rid of it before or after you were running for your life as if a puma was after you?” Ren allowed herself a smile at her own private joke. “I’m not that fussed about the purse, but I’d like the gold that was inside of it back. And if you’re a smart little thief you’ll give it back before I show you just how good I am at hiding bodies.” Technically the Kelvic had never had to get rid of a carcass. She had never had to kill a human either and it wasn’t all that hard to hide rabbits or deers. They usually fit rather nicely in her belly. “Now hand it over, boy.” The blonde looked down at the shorter male with a serious expression. This was all well and fun, but she had a wilderness to return to. Ren moved the wrist of the hand that held the dagger and let Syna’s light reflect off the blade. She was not above using her height advantage or any other physical advantage she might have over the human to get what was hers to begin with. He was cornered between her and the wall and there was no getting out of this.

[Giph]

Giph ground his teeth together at the remark at his small stature and the fact the woman misinterpreted getting rid of the purse as only getting rid of the purse alone. Not throwing both purse and contents away in these alley's for later retrieval. “Hand over what? Like I said, I got rid of your purse while you where chasing me you deaf broad.” Giph said with a scowl. “With the coins in it, was going to retrieve them later when I lost you.” Giph couldn't help cursing the blasted wall, if that one hadn't been build there he wouldn't even be in this situation. When the woman angled her blade to let the light reflect he couldn't help but get a bit nervous, why hadn't he never learned how to fight at close quarters. Any knowledge about that would have been very handy. As his gaze was pulled to the woman's blade he couldn't help notice the still fresh bruises that had formed on her wrists. Every ravokian knew what those meant. Those kind of bruises where left behind by chains and manacles. So either this woman was an escaped slave or an escaped criminal. That or somebody who just got released, but with her behavior he doubted that. Seeing as most people probably wouldn't survive the pit anyway. She probably was a slave. “Besides, don't you already have big enough troubles without threatening a citizen of ravok? Being an escaped slave and all.” Giph stared straight at her, trying to hide the nervousness he felt and not doing a very good job at it. “Why don't I say where the heck I threw it away and you leave me alone after that. Then you got your money back and we don't need to see each other anymore.”

[Renalee]

“We both know you didn’t throw the purse away. You just don’t know that I know for certain.” Ren was getting pretty impatient by now with the little thief’s lies. Humans were so bothersome sometimes. This young one reminded her of some of those little critters that tried to play dead so predators wouldn’t harm them. Were they completely oblivious to their own smell? When the boy noticed the marks on her wrist which until that point had been covered by her green tunic’s long sleeve, Ren couldn’t help but curse in her head. She hated that she had to be careful about this around this city. She hated that she couldn’t be a puma and a Kelvic. She hated that a boy like that could call her a slave. Renalee gritted her teeth in anger and considered her options. The human didn’t really know what her status was. He was just making educated guesses. She could use that. Perhaps she could be a Kelvic for just a little bit. “If you had thrown that purse I would have heard it clink against stone or wood. If you had somehow quietly removed it from your body I would have smelled the change in your scent. Now, Ravokian,” she growled softly, but threateningly. “You don’t want to be playing with me.” With a quick movement Ren removed the distance between the two and pushed the shorter male against the wall he had been so insistent on climbing a chime ago. The forearm of her left hand was pressing against his chest, holding him in place and the tip of her dagger was hovering a breath away from his exposed neck. “If you won’t give my purse back I will have to take it. And I’m not too opposed to retrieving it from your dead body.”

[Giph]

Giph's facial expression turned into the almost perfect visual representation of the phrase, Oh, Petch!, when the woman in front of him stated she knew that he hadn't had gotten rid of the purse, because she would heard it or smelled it. He really wanted to curse this day, why had he gone for the easy looking target again? He should have been more carefull and passed up on it, there could have been another reason for the fact she just kept her gold in the open. He cursed those bloody kelvic and their sensitive noses. When she rushed him he instinctively raised his arms to protect his chest and head from the impact as she slammed him against the wooden wall. The left arm she was using to press him against the wall was also trapping both his arms, well he probably could easily push the arm away, or knee her in the privates and run as she crumpled over in pain, he had quickly found out that despite women not having anything there they still where just as sensitive down there as males. But the fact that she had that damnable dagger against his throat convinced that doing either of those actions was a very very bad idea. “Fine, kelvic.” He gritted out from in between clenched teeth and slowly moved one of his hands towards his belt, where he took the purse he had hidden there underneath his cloak and threw it away from him, it landed a few meters away from both of them. “There you go, now let me go and lets never see each other again if we can help it.” giph said with a scowl on his face.

[Renalee]

Why did it sound so much like an insult when this particular boy referred to her as ‘Kelvic’? Oh yes! Perhaps because for him it was. Ren bared her teeth for a moment, just long enough for him to see her slightly elongated canines. A low, threatening growl was reverberating in her chest as she followed closely the movement of his hand, reaching down for his belt. One wrong move and she would be cutting his throat. Luckily, the boy seemed to realize the immediate danger she posed to his life and behaved intelligently. He took out her purse, showed it to her in what seemed like a peaceful gesture and then threw it to the side a couple of steps away from them both. Ren’s hold on him loosened slightly and she gave him one final push before she let him go completely. She pulled the dagger away from his throat and bestowed a feral grin upon him after stepping away. “Good boy.” It was clear in the tone of her voice that she was speaking to him as if he were a pet. Take a spoonful of your own medicine. The blonde retrieved her purse quickly, weighing it in her hand for the briefest of moments before tucking it away. The dagger was still in the open in case the thief decided to stop being smart. “Let’s do that, yes,” Ren confirmed her own aversion to seeing him again. “Think of this-” she gestured between them. “-As a favor I’m doing to you. You can learn to pick your targets better from today onwards.” With the hand still holding the dagger the Kelvic motioned towards the exit of the alley. “After you, little thief.” She was not about to turn her back on a viper, even one that appeared to have no fangs.

[Giph]

Giph just grit his teeth and reminded himself that he was born better then she was and probably would be better for the rest of his life. After all, humanity reigned supreme while the other races where struggling for survival, or in the kelvic's case, born and bred to serve for their short life. It didn't matter how she phrased her words, she was below him not otherwise. But why did he still want to take that dagger of her and ram it up her arse when she said it? “Oh shut up.” he rudely interrupted that overused 'lesson'. “Don't try to construct it as if you did me a favor kelvic. If you wanted to do me a favor you would already be gone.” He spat out as he kept at a respectable distance of the wild animal. When she said he would have to leave first he shook his head. “I sometimes do dumb things, but I draw the line at turning my back towards an armed person who clearly hates me.” he pointed out to the kelvic. Besides, she was like a wild animal, and turning ones back to a wild animal probably was even more stupid. “You are the one with the dagger. So why don't you leave first, afraid i'm going to stab you with something I just happen to find here or what?”

[Renalee]

Ren wasn’t about to sheath her dagger, even if she would only need a breath to pull it out again. For all she knew the human was more dangerous than he appeared and had some way of hurting her that he was waiting to reveal at just the right opportunity. So when he suggested she be the one to turn her back on both the wall and him and just hope to make it to the corner her eyes narrowed and her chest rumbled threateningly. “I wouldn’t put it past you,” she declared at his sarcastic question, sizing him up again. He truly didn’t look like much and perhaps if this was any other time and any other city she would have let it go. Here and now however, Ren wasn’t about to take any chances. “Here’s what we’re going to do,” the Kelvic said after quick consideration. “I’m going to come over and we’re going to walk out together - your shoulder to my shoulder.” She paused and smirked before adding. “Or rather your shoulder to somewhere lower on my arm. Once we’re out you will go left and I will go right. And we will never see each other again.” If they wanted to get out of here - something which the young woman was rather insistent on doing - this seemed like the best course of action.

[Giph]

Giph scowled at the kelvic's remark about his height, yes he would get back at her one day, when that blasted dagger wasn't a problem and when she was sleeping, or otherwise incapacitated. “And I wouldn't put it past you to change your mind and stab me when we are shoulder to shoulder anyway.“ Giph remarked at that plan. Kelvic where animals, and since when where non-domesticated animals predictable? “So here is what I propose, you leave that way of the alley.” He pointed to the exit behind her, "Walk backwards for all that I care if you don't want to turn your back on me. I just climb over the wall as soon you are gone, that way I don't come in reach of your dagger and short temper. While you don't have to turn your back on me, so I can't stab you with a rock.” He didn't even bother hiding how stupid he thought her comment about that was.