Norbert had been pushed out of the arena with the others when the precessions had finished. The spectators having left for the day, coming to return tomorrow when the contest would start again. Norbert looked around as everyone left him, not bothering to try and calm the man down over the realisation of their country's anthem.

Walking out, the sun setting once more for the day, Norbert jumped onto the first roof, the guards having left for the day. The uproar the new guests would have caused would be significantly lessened. Most of everyone wants to get out of there and into the fresh air on their faces and a bit of privacy.

Opening up the door to the inn, everyone looked at him as he quickly closed the door behind him. In front of him was the table with no food on the plates yet. Norbert looked around the room, everyone looking at him even more complicated than before; Norbert remembered the vampire waving at him and disappearing for the rest of it.

He looked around but could not see if anyone here was in the arena before. Nobody seemingly familiar as Norbert continued to look around. Nobody moved from their seats; Norbert grunted in amusement that all the play had none out of them.

Sitting down, Norbert saw the maid once more come out and deliver the food on the table. Norbert picked at the food as he was lost in thought, wondering what the next day would have in the stall for him.

"Any idea when Count von Count will show up?" Norbert asked his two companions at the table. Neither of them was roused from their food; at least someone was making the worth of the food he paid for.

Forcing the food down his throat, not remembering the last time he had eaten so frequently since coming here to Masanu. Shaking his head at the thought as he put the last piece in his mouth. Wiping his mouth on his finger, getting the last bit off as he licked it up, making sure not to get any of the sauce onto his glove.

He patted his stomach as he looked around the table; his two companions had eaten everything from their plates. Picking them both up, cradling one in each hand like a baby, Norbert nodded to the bartender, pouring out several glasses from a beer keg as Norbert headed towards the ladder.

Climbing up it without using his hands, Norbert walked towards his door, pressing the handle down with his foot while slightly kicking it, allowing the door to swing inside. Seeing the sparse room, only the chest, bed, and curtains; no other furniture was on the site.

Placing the bird and the fox gently on the bed, Norbert unstrapped himself as well, taking his coat, outer pants, boots, and socks off, just lying around in his yellow sweat-,sweat-stained cotton clothes. Smelling them, thankful that they didn't need a wash, Norbert hung his removed clothing over the chest, hoping to air them out slightly.

Flopping onto the bed spread-eagled, Norbert looked towards the door as he started counting, wondering how long until his night-time guest would appear.

***

Norbert's eyes opened up as he heard the door creak open. He had heard a creak as loudly as the one leading to his room. Hearing a seethe from the door opener on the other side, Norbert already assumed who it could be.

Out behind the door, even in the darkness of night and the sounds of rowdiness on the streets outside, a reality Norbert started to make sense of. With the sun now gone, most people here could venture safely under the cover of darkness.

The short blonde hair once more popped out as she looked around. Norbert closed his eyes and tried to steady his breathing, wondering what the woman would do now that he was 'sleeping' in bed.

Hearing the ruffling of clothing followed by steps getting closer. Feeling the bed move to the left as weight was added, Norbert cracked open an eye, wondering what the waitress was doing.

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He saw the clothed hand coming down towards his cheek.

SLAAAAAP

The sound reverberated around the room, making Norbert jump slightly out of bed from the impact as two blazing eyes stared back at him. Speechless and unable to move from the shock, hearing the steps move towards the door again.

He was adequately jumping out of bed; this time, Norbert dashed towards the door, stopping himself from grabbing onto her. The waitress stopped for a moment, and the two froze in time. Norbert stopped himself as he held still before walking away to the windowsill. He left his weapons and no boots as he climbed out the window.

Leaping to the top, Norbert looks across to the other house next to him, where the people are out again and discussing with each other. Leaning over the building and looking down, I saw the stalls filling the streets, more people out now than ever before. Examining the people beneath him, the sense of excitement overpowering him. Nobody wants to miss out on the possible show that would be happening tomorrow.

As he continued to stare for longer underneath, the excitement was accompanied by nervousness. Here and there, the hints were evident to him, like most things when you knew where to look. Smiles on the faces of the stall owners were slightly forced, hands clenched slightly more complicated than usual. People looked behind themselves, making sure they weren't being followed. The creases of the face are more pronounced than they should have been.

Bags under their eyes, footsteps slightly shaky, the user unsure if tonight would be their last night of a whole house, the last night of a warm bed, the last night of being tucked in. Shaking his head, Norbert stepped away, looking up at the moon and the stars and wondering what the waitress was doing.

His answer came from scraping on the side and a hand appearing. Turning over, seeing it try and grasp to pull itself, scraping sighed in defeat, having to come to her rescue; seeing over, Norbert grasped the hand, pulling the woman up the rest of the way, gently placing her beside him.

The waitress flattened her dress as he left her. He was walking back to the centre of the roof and lying down again. The sound of footsteps coming closer to him, dirt scraping on the ground as rocks skittered away, and finally, Norbert saw the waitress sitting next to him out of the corner of his eye; he was leaning back on one hand as he looked up at the sky, trying to see if she could discern the same information that Norbert could out of the stars.

Norbert continued to stare, not wanting to interrupt the waitress before she wanted to talk.

"I saw you today." She said bluntly to Norbert.

Nodding his head, "That you did, several times. One of them right now even." Norbert said, wondering what the waitress was talking about that at all times.

"No, not here, out on the arena floor." She explained in further detail, wistfully turning and looking at the direction where the colosseum would be.

Norbert just nodded his head. "Like I said, the only reason I'm here is for the tournament," Norbert said to her; as a matter of fact, the sing-song that was usually in his voice was gone. He knew that the waitress wouldn't appreciate it.

"With you and the vampire, Count von Count. He waved to you, didn't he." The waitress asked him.

Norbert just nodded. "Like I told you earlier, I came to this inn out of all the others because he said he would meet me here. A fact I still haven't forgotten and will need to see why he is so late." Norbert stated, anger hitting his voice of being left high and dry.

"He didn't even bat an eye when those representing his own country were being announced. But a single measly human can garner his attention so much for you." The waitress stated, finishing it off and letting her voice echo around the building they were resting on top of.

"How shocked would you be if the very same vampire was the first to ask me to represent Grimm, to be a part of your company," Norbert said to her, tilting his head as he saw her eyes grow wide.

Speaking under her breath, asking more herself than him, "Why would you ever not represent your own country?" Bewildered by herself, she even asked the question in the first place.

"Maybe because that isn't my own country. Not really." Norbert said to her.

"But then, why turn him down?" She asked, trying to join the dots as to why someone would have the gall to turn something like Count von Count down.

"Because of who asked it," Norbert said to her. A puzzled look on her face as she continued to explain his thoughts further, "He is an irrational person who does whatever he thinks is necessary, will string you along as much as needed before dropping you for the next shiny thing. I'm probably a long line of humans he has picked up, examined and thrown away again." Norbert said, his voice getting louder and louder the more he explained, at the end, nearly shouting for everyone to hear.

"Now, Norbert, what do you think of your best buddy?" Came a voice from behind his head. Count von Count's pearly whites appear above Norbert.