Morning came before Dani could really get any sleep. Azra had gotten her candy the night before, and all three of them had been up late talking about nonsense. Even when Azra and Therija went to sleep, Dani stayed up. She couldn’t sleep with the sugar running through her system and Azra’s restless movements. Eventually she wound up going up to the roof to sleep, laying out beneath the stars as if she were a free woman.
But she wasn’t free, not really. Not anymore. She had Reshi that wanted to tell her what to do, she had Wulfram that wanted to tell her what to do, and then there was the Thieves Guild. They thought she had promise.... But if Reshi caught her stealing again he’d turn her in.
She stood up, feeling like a knife was twisting in her gut as she dusted dirt off her clothes. What kind of man turned in his own daughter? Blood or not? Maybe she just didn’t mean that much to him.
Dani let out a groan and shook her head. No, she didn’t really believe that. Reshi cared in his own way, but being gentle and nurturing had never been his strong suits. Giving herself a look over, she climbed down from the roof, dropping lightly down to the street and starting off towards Mrs. Haversauns. She was still full from last night, no need to bother anyone by sneaking in and getting breakfast. Hell, Raycor and the girls were probably gone already. Which left Reshi, and she didn’t really want to see him right now.
She headed straight to Trade Road, pulling her fingers through her hair as she went. She didn’t want to make Mrs. Haversaun look bad by showing up all a mess. The dirt was mostly gone, and the knots would be out well before she reached the shop. She did pause to look at a pastry cart longingly. She could take a detour to the bakery....
No. She sighed and started trudging along again. She wouldn’t do that, there was a pastie at Mrs. Haversaun’s that she could eat. If the rats hadn’t gotten to it. But she couldn’t imagine rats daring to go into Mrs. Haversaun’s shop. She joined the steady flow of workers heading from the Rats Nest up Trade Road. They would be going to the workshops, stalls and laundry further up the road no doubt. A Priestess to The Sun ran past her, yellow robes held up so she wouldn’t trip on them, showing an amount of leg that would be scandalous to the nobles. Dani smirked, giving the woman a nod of support. Not that the priestess saw it.
Hopefully she wouldn’t get in trouble for missing morning service.
As she approached Mrs. Haversaun’s, she looked around, half expecting to see Reshi lurking nearby. But if he was, she couldn’t spot him. She couldn’t help but feel a little bit hurt. Which was foolish, she hadn’t wanted to talk to him anyways. He’d probably give her a disapproving look for sleeping out on the roof! But it had been a nice night and damnit she was sick of being kicked already.
Maybe she should just sleep on the floor next time, but the floor got cold fast. With a shrug, Dani headed into the shop. “Good morning Mrs. Haversaun.”
“Good morning Daniella.” Mrs. Haversaun glanced up, the smile on her face quickly fading as she looked Dani over. “What in the world happened to you? Are you alright?”
Oh shit, did she look that bad? Dani glanced quickly in one of the mirrors set up in the shop. Apparently she had missed some of the dirt on her dress, but nothing that warranted such a strong reaction. She supposed her face was a bit puffy, and she raked a hand through her hair again to try and settle the fly-away strands. “I don’t look that bad....”
“My dear, you look like you slept outside!” Mrs. Haversaun stepped around the counter, concern crossing her face. “Reshi said you were staying with Raycor!”
“I am.. and... well... I did sleep outside. The bed’s a bit crowded with three of us sleeping in it, and Azra kicks.” Dani sighed, standing patiently as the older woman grabbed a hair brush and started to pull it through her hair. It made her feel like a little kid again, but at least she managed not to squirm quite as much as she used to. “I can brush my own hair Mrs. Haversaun.”
“I’m sure you can dear. You can brush your own hair after you go upstairs to change. I forgot there isn’t much room at Raycor’s. Well, you’ll just have to arrive early to change from here on out, I don’t want you getting dirt on all your new clothes.”
“All my new clothes?” Dani asked dumbly, staring at Mrs. Haversaun. “What do you mean all my new clothes? I can’t afford any new clothes!”
“You can if I say you can.” Mrs. Haversaun smiled. “And I say you can, it’s excellent advertising, especially given your relationship with the prince.”
“Oh for the love of... I don’t have a relationship with the prince! I just happened to meet him, and now he wants to go on with this lie about me saving his life.” Dani threw up her arms, looking up at the ceiling as if she could appeal to some god through it. Maybe one would take pity on her and let her go back to her normal life.
“Lie?” Mrs. Haversaun pursed her lips in disapproval, but gave her head a shake and made shooing motions with her hands. “Go get washed up and changed, pick one of the dresses hanging in the corner, they should all fit you with a little adjusting of the laces. We’ll talk about this when you come down.”
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“Yes Mrs. Haversaun.” Dani groaned, and trudged up the stairs, maybe her pastie would be up there anyways, she thought she had left it with her other clothes.
The dresses that Mrs. Haversaun had hung up for her were all nicer than anything she had ever worn before, except perhaps the dress she had given her yesterday. They were all in muted shades of blue, brown and gray, with embroidery and laces of different colors. Dani stared at the selection for a moment, before picking a blue dress with a long brown vest embroidered with pink flowers. Normally she wasn’t a pink fan, but the flowers made her smile, and they matched the pink lacing up the front.
The big surprise however, were the boots. They were soft, with sturdy soles and delicate blue embroidery. She wondered how Mrs. Haversaun had known her size.... She took one look at her old boots, and smiled. It didn’t matter she supposed, she was grateful anyways.
With a light heart she practically skipped down the stairs, hair brushed, face washed and new clothes and boots perfectly clean and ready to go. But as soon as she saw the group gathered in the small sitting area of the shop, she froze.
There were four women in total downstairs talking to Mrs. Haversaun, three she didn’t recognize, and one she did: Fawn. The Felinae woman had her claws carefully retracted as she toyed with some fabric that Mrs. Haversaun was showing them. “This fabric is sturdy enough for trousers, but still soft enough for those of us who know comfort is important.” Mrs. Haversaun was saying. She winked at the women, adding, “I’ll not speak ill of men, but I have felt some of the trousers they wear, and the fabric is not as comfortable as I would prefer for myself.”
The comment brought a round of laughter from the group, and Dani blushed, her eyes widening. Maybe she should just go back upstairs, this conversation was not one she felt like joining in on! Hopefully Mrs. Haversaun just meant she had felt mens trousers in the line of business. Maybe measuring them, like she had Wulfram. Yes, that had to be it.
One of the women turned to pin Dani with an icy blue stare, her pale lips curling up in a smile. “Ah, this must be Lady Daniella. I hope you don’t mind us dropping by, Fawn said she wasn’t able to extend our invitation to you properly last night, so I decided to come by and do it myself. Luckily this has given me the chance to finally visit Mrs. Haversaun’s establishment. She truly understands the needs of me and my ladies.”
Oh.
Oh shit. Dani’s eyes widened, and she took a step back up the stairs. “Are you the- the leadership she was talking about last night?”
“Only one of them dear. Mrs. Haversaun, may I please talk to Daniella while you measure the others? I promise to be nice.”
“Of course Alodia, since you promise to be nice. She’s had a rough few days so she doesn’t need any more trouble. Understood?” Mrs. Haversaun gave Alodia a stern look.
Alodia laughed, waving a hand. “I understand Mrs. Haversaun, I understand. Daniella, dear, will you come down, or should I go up?”
“I’ll come down.” Dani took a calming breath, trying to make it as subtle as possible. There was no running from this, and the sooner it was done, the better. She came the rest of the way downstairs and sat next to Alodia. While Alodia lounged back in her chair in a relaxed manner, Dani sat perched on the edge of the chair, her hands tightly folded on her lap. This woman was one of the leaders of the Thieves Guild! If she decided she wasn’t worth letting live, there was nothing Reshi could do about it.
“You don’t need to be so nervous, this is just a talk. You had a very exciting day a couple of days ago, and it’s causing some ripples. But if we are clever, we can make those ripples flow the way we want.” Alodia smiled and crossed one leg over the other. “Wouldn’t you like that?”
“I- I guess so.” What the hell did the woman want her to say? What could she say to make sure she didn’t wind up dead, or worse? She had heard stories of what happened to people that crossed the Thieves Guild, and she had no desire to lose her hands. but she had definitely overstepped when she had tried to steal the crown. Apparently not enough for them to kill her right away, but any wrong step could change that.
Alodia gave her an assessing look. “I can assure you taht you do. The way we want it to go means more money for the Tangle, and for us. The way we don’t want it to go means we all have to leave our happy little homes, and hope we can find someplace to run our business that the nobles won’t interfere with. If Lord Roderick for instance had his choice, our entire guild and our families would hang, and he’d take full control of the smuggling operation. You don’t want that to happen, do you?”
“Of course not!” Dani stared at Alodia, her face paling. She had no idea who this Lord Roderick was, but if he wanted to hang them all she didn’t want to. She had a horrible image of Azra, Therija, Reshi and Raycor all hanging in a row, and her stomach turned. “But- but I don’t understand why you’re talking to me about this. I made a mistake, got lucky that he let me go, and that’s the end of it. And I quit stealing, so I can’t help you there either.”
“Fawn did mention that you had stopped stealing, but don’t worry, that isn’t what I want you to help with.” Alodia smiled, a hard glint entering her eyes. “And quite frankly if your attempt at stealing from the prince is any indication of your skills I rather not risk you trying again. No, I want you for your connection to the prince.”
“My connection to the prince?” Dani thought back to yesterday, and Wulfram’s visit to the shop. She doubted there was much of a connection there, she had almost taken him out with the door, and then Reshi had broken his nose! They were lucky Wulfram hadn’t taken them both in right then. “I don’t think I can help you there either.”
Except that she was technically married to him.
Shit, she had forgotten about that. She lightly touched her bracelet, moving the fabric a bit further over it.
“You can, and you will.” Alodia’s eyes darted down to the hidden bracelet, and her smile grew. “He’s already giving you jewelry it seems, and throwing you a ball. So you can perhaps help steer his interest away from certain tunnels that we don’t want him nosing around in. Or at the very least help me convince them to stall the search for a little while. Long enough that we can hide some... sensitive items. Do you understand?”
“I.. I think so, but why exactly would he listen to me? How am I even supposed to bring that up in conversation? If I even see him again before the ball!”
“Oh, you’ll see him again.” Alodia’s eyes moved past Dani, to the door of the shop, and she stood gracefully. “Your Highness, what a surprise.” She said before curtseying deeply.