The first thing Skarlet noticed as she rose from the depths of her darkened consciousness was the sound of crackling flames. She pulled herself up into a sitting position and rubbed her eyes and then she realized. Huh!? My arms back, she looked at it and moved it around before she looked down, My foot too, and so is my ear. She felt around her body and realized she was completely healed.
"It beest lacking manners to englut another's food without paying those folk backeth proper. I simply has't did payeth thee what wast due." A feminine voice spoke behind her, Skarlet turned to look, there was a woman sitting there by the fire. She had fiery red hair and horns, black tinged with grey, she was consuming a piece of meat from Skarlet's bag. Her skin was brownish covered in what faintly resembled scales, they seemed to not actually be on the surface of her skin, but beneath. She wore clothes that looked old, they were just pieces of cloth held together with loose thread. She was barely covered, but that probably wasn't how the clothes were supposed to look, they were old and worn. Skarlet's eyes however were dragged to her chest as it burst from the fabric, she snorted refusing to acknowledge her loss.
"Who are you?" Skarlet asked, confused for a moment, that's when she noticed the tail that came out from her back. It was draconic, another thought crossed her mind, Aiko where's Aiko. Her head whipped around as she scanned her surroundings, she let out a sigh as she saw her resting near the fire. Sleeping comfortably.
"Me? I'm the dragon thee so rudely did attacketh in mineth sleep. Thee may not bethink so, but yond did hurteth." She snorted, her odd speech making Skarlet chuckle.
"I apologize, I didn't realize you were a werekin." Skarlet was reminded that some beasts were able to shift to human form and possessed heightened intellect. Though the church doesn't consider Werekin to be of the human races. The church's idea of the human race included the elves and the dwarves only. All others were considered of the beast race, meaning Skarlet herself wasn't considered human by them.
"Werekin 'r not, yond wast still rath'r malapert." She opened the wine, gave it a sniff and a smile alight her face.
"Ah, hmmm, I can forgiveth some mann'r of malapertness thee did doeth bringeth me such a nice present, oh how longeth it's been since I've did has't wine." She lifted the pouch to her lips and drank. Skarlet looked around for her sword, but she didn't see it. She felt a little uneasy not having her weapon but decided not to antagonize the dragon that had just kicked her ass.
"Mind if I have dinner with you?" Skarlet asked, suddenly very hungry, she could smell Maria's cooking and it was driving her mad especially after the fight.
"Wherefore not, food is only did maketh bett'r with company to shareth in the meal. Besides thith'r beest plenty here." She offered Skarlet a drink from the wine, and Skarlet took it. The dragon also handed her some meat and bread.
"My name's Skarlet." She offered, trying to reconcile if only slightly.
"Nameths? Ah right, nameths. Mineth owneth nameth beest Beatrice, t's wonderful to meeteth thee Skarlet." Beatrice replied, a smile on her face, her smile revealed sharp carnivorous teeth.
Skarlet began to eat. "For a dragon, you don't really give off a noble air or humbleness." Skarlet said suddenly causing Beatrice to snort.
"Well, unlike those fusty gents, who Is't beest hundreths of years old. Their haughty speech and self-important attitudes. Those gents art the ones legends art telleth of, but those gents art just fusty fragments of the past, i'm young so wherefore wouldst I speaketh liketh an fusty husk?" She took another swig of the wine, she had no true manners or etiquette really.
"Yeah, I guess you're right." Skarlet took a bite from the bread, she glanced behind her, the exit had caved in. I only really sorta understood what she just said though, Skarlet lamented the verbal disconnect before switching the topic "As much as I'd love to stay, I don't have the food to last, and we're kinda trapped."
"Thee needeth not worryeth about yond cave-in, aft'r our meal I shalt moveth 't f'r thee. So until then alloweth us enjoyeth this wonderful food, t's quite delicious is't not." She took a big bite out of a slice of meat, suddenly Skarlet realized something, she felt calm for the first time in so long, like being near this girl was soothing in a way.
"Fine, you're right let us enjoy ourselves." Skarlet agreed, drinking more wine.
"Skarlet, I wilt asketh, whith'r did doeth thee obtaineth this sword?" Beatrice asked suddenly as she lifted it from behind her with her tail. The feeling she normally felt when looking at the sword was gone like it was suppressed by the dragon.
"A stranger gave it to me, told me that there was a catastrophe on the horizon and I would need to be strong enough to beat it." Skarlet explained, this only caused Beatrice to look thoughtful for a moment, then she took another drink. Skarlet sensed the conversation to be over and began eating as well. They ate and drank for several hours and due to Skarlet's calm relaxed state she accidentally drank way too much. Beatrice turned to her as her mind was hazy and confused.
"H're, beest careful Skarlet, and at which hour thee defeat the beast yond's coming. Cometh seeth me." She set the sword down in front of her, suddenly a loud sound shook the cavern, the boulders blocking the entrance tumbled and fell to the ground. Skarlet glanced up lazily to see Cody stepping in with an urgent expression, he looked at her and that urgency became a bewildered expression.
"Aye, it's umh, hero guy. . . Get your ass down here and drink some wine. Wait. . . Why are you up there, that's kinda high." She spoke groggily, she was holding an empty flask, he hopped down from the pile of rocks and walked over to her.
"Skarlet? What happened, "I umh. . ." He looked away, a blush on his face for a moment. She was slumped to the side, laying in a very unladylike position. One leg pulled up, causing her skirt to ride up and reveal what was beneath.
"Oh, just been drinking with my new friend, you should meet her she's soooo nice." Skarlet turned to Beatrice, but the dragon was gone. It just left Aiko passed out on the other side of the fire "Huh, where'd ya go."
"What happened to the dragon Skarlet?" He asked gazing around, he couldn't see it from here though he still sensed it.
"Dragon? Oh gone, poof. . . who knows." She said as she got unsteadily to her feet. "Oh, my friend said she loved Maria's cooking, I need to teeeeeelll he-" Skarlet tipped backwards as she drifted into sleep.
"Woah." Cody caught her, "You drank all this wine, how were you even still conscious when I arrived. You're gonna hate yourself tomorrow." Cody lifted her into his arms and stepped over to Aiko, he nudged her side with his boot and called her name. Please wake up I don't wanna have to carry both of you. As he was thinking that she fidgeted before rubbing her eyes as a yawn escaped her lips. She pulled herself to a sitting position and glanced around.
"Good morning." Cody teased, she blushed lightly as she looked at him and then Skarlet. But that redness disappeared quickly as she got to her feet. She brushed her clothes off to mask her embarrassment.
"Um, time to go." Cody announced before he headed out from the cavern, he felt like someone was watching him leave. As long as you let me leave, dragon, I won't kill you. He had no idea that the dragon had healed Skarlet and got drunk with her, no clue that he owed her gratitude not threats.
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"I can not believeth I didst yond. I alloweth a dram wench did doeth beateth on me then just did doeth alloweth that lady home. But not yond I couldst avoideth. Yond sword, I needeth to keepeth an eye on and her. I bethink if 't beest true I manageth to pointeth that child in the right direction the child'll holp me receiveth mineth owneth revenge." The dragon spoke to the wind as they left.
Cody carried her back to town, she slept soundly the whole way, he stopped by the guild to tell them he found her, the guild was also where he parted with Aiko, Who's party members were extremely relieved. They welcomed her with a healthy dose of tears and hugs. Skarlet on the other hand, Cody carried her to Maria's home.
As he stepped up to the door and was about to knock when it opened to reveal Maria who was seemingly expecting him.
"Hey Cody, what happened to Skarlet." Maria greeted but almost immediately turned her attention to Skarlet.
"This dummy thought she could take on a dragon, It didn't go so well, she got lucky though." Cody explained as Maria led him inside. Maria headed for one of her spare bedrooms, Cody in tow, he laid her down on the bed in the room. She murmured a bit in her sleep as she rolled over and Cody placed a blanket over her. He then stepped over to the window and drew the curtains closed so if she needed to she could sleep in. Then he followed Maria out.
"She was drunk when I found her." Cody sighed as he closed the door, they took a moment to talk in the hallway together.
"What?" Maria was shocked.
"Yeah, and the dragon had 'Gone poof' as she said." Cody continued, he slightly enjoyed the confusion, surprise, and humor flashing across her face.
"What does that even mean?" Maria chuckled a bit, "Though, I really wanted to see her drunk, you beat me to it."
"Yeah, she called me 'Hero man', then she called you by name."
"Ha, sounds like she likes me more." Maria teased him, she leaned forward with her hands clasped behind her back, looking up at him with a cheeky grin.
"She told me that she needed to tell you your cooking was amazing." Cody told her as they crossed the landing and headed for her office.
"Glad she liked it, I wish she wouldn't have rushed off to face such a dangerous creature." Maria spoke in a pained voice, she had a partially annoyed look on her face. "She even lied about what commission she was going on."
"Yeah. . . We'll talk to her when she wakes though." Cody reassured her, "How's work going?" He asked as he slipped into one of the chairs facing the desk.
"Well, I finally feel like I've cleaned the knights and city guards to the point that I can move forward with a few of my other plans. Though, I can't do much now, I have to wait for a bit in that matter." She told him as she lifted a stack of papers and bounced them on the desk, straightening the stack. "Due to all of the people I've placed in both groups, I should start hearing about more corruption to deal with soon. It'll self clean for a bit, due to that I'm focusing on other things instead."
"Like what?" Cody asked with curiosity.
"Well, I'm implementing a system to investigate slaves, it will be a measure against illegal slavery. Slaves that can't be verified for their legal reasons for enslavement will be released from their bonds."
"That's not going to be easy, proving a slave is legal or not." Cody thought about it.
"Yeah, I'm thinking about making legality commissions where an adventurer is tasked to go to the location where the individual was enslaved and find legal papers detailing either their crime, or their debt." She explained, handing him a paper. There was a commission template on it.
"Hmm, well that definitely could work. Though adventurers aren't all honest." Cody warned.
"Yeah, I'll make sure they bring copies of the official documents for me to confirm." She assured him, she leaned back in her chair. "It's so exhausting to do this."
"Heh, I don't envy you Maria." Cody told her, a soft smile settled on his face, "But I'm glad you're the one in that chair instead of him."
"Have you met my little sister, she's come home recently." Maria said suddenly, Cody turned. A little girl stood in the office doorway, she was about nine or ten years old. She wore a simple light blue dress, no shoes, and a stuffed rabbit she held by the ears. She had blonde hair that matched her sisters, and her eyes or a greenish Brown.
"This is Sarah, my little sister." Maria introduced her, "Sarah, this is Cody, he's a close friend of mine." Sarah waved shyly, scampering over to hide behind Maria. Cody smiled and waved.
"Maaaria, when are you gonna be done? You said we'd play house!" Sarah whined, stomping her foot softly.
"Isn't Clara and Joseph playing with you." Maria asked, but Sarah shook her head.
"They are, but I want to play with sissy." Sarah complained, "You're always working." Maria sighed.
"Yeah I know."
"Whose the beast in the guest room." Sarah spoke with a hint of disgust.
"Sarah! What did I tell you?" Maria snapped her gaze to Sarah, her voice was stern.
"Sooorry, but that's how father called them." She complained, pouting as she crossed her arms.
"And what did I say."
"Father was wrong, and they deserve the same tre-treeet met as everyone else." She said, pouting. "So who is she." Sarah asked again.
"Her name is Skarlet, she's another of my close friends and she saved my life once." Maria explained to her.
"OOOh." Sarah had a serious look on her face, "Can I play with miss Skarlet, someone who saved sissy's life must be cool." Her eyes sparkled, Maria sighed, but shook her head.
"Skarlet just came back from a fight with a big scary dragon, she needs her rest. I'll play with you a little later."
"Awe." Sarah whined, "Fine, make sure you do!" She waved at Cody as she left. "Bye sir Cody sir."
"Bye Sarah." Cody waved as she left, "Well, I have now."
"Huh?" Maria asked, looking at him
"You asked if I met her." Cody laughed, smiling, "Cute little sister you got there."
"Isn't she precious, aside from the bad habits she picked up from father." Maria replied.
"Yeah, but with you to follow, she'll figure it out soon enough." Cody smiled, She laughed and nodded.
"Maria, my lady I come with good news." The door to the office opened and a familiar face strode through. Reddish-orange hair and golden eyes, Lilly had returned.
"Ah, what do you have for me." Maria asked, straightening her posture, Cody friended and his hand went to the hilt of his sword.
"I've taken the head of Cerberus which has sunk it's teeth into Aguris, the crime in the backstreets will collapse and lose it's order over the next couple of weeks. You should have a much easier job mopping that up now." Lilly smiled as she hopped onto Maria's desk, pulling one foot up to rest on the desktop. "I've made sure to give them quite the scare I believe the big fish will move out of Aguris due to this."
"Umm, thank you Lilly, I appreciate your work. My servants can rest easy now, and I don't have to worry about them being threatened again. At the moment I don't have anything more for you." Maria thanked Lilly, though she wasn't smiling. She still didn't fully trust the girl.
"What are you doing here?" Cody asked, frowning.
"What's it look like, I'm serving my master." Lilly retorted with a cheeky grin.
"You tried to kill her." Cody accused
"She survived. If I wanted her dead she'd be dead." Lilly replied matter a factly.
"I challenge you to a duel."
~
Lilly stretched, she was wearing her assassin gear, the maid dress tossed to the side. She slid her hands behind her back and drew her knives. As she gazed at Cody she unconsciously licked her lips. Cody stretched lightly as well before drawing his sword, he had taken his coat off and was in a white shirt and pants.
"Alright, the rules are no killing, the duel is over the moment someone surrenders or is unable to continue." Maria announced, drawing her own sword and raising it up. Cody placed his sword in front of him, and steadied his breathing. Lilly pulled her body down low like an animal and smiled.
"Begin" Maria swung the sword down and instantly there was a clang of metal. Lilly had closed the distance instantly and Cody swung. Lilly blocked and used the moment to twist into a flip, ending up at Cody's back. With a rotating spiral she brought her blade straight towards his neck. Cody sidestepped, barely getting grazed as blood soaked his collar.
Screech, an annoying high pitched sound rang out as their blades slid along each other. Cody felt pain and the world tilted as she smashed her heel into his shin. He brought his blade around to slice at her but she easily twisted away. She's so fucking fast! He thought as he felt his foot get hooked out from under him, he spun instinctually and brought his leg around to smash down where her head was.
Thud, she caught it, and before he knew it he was spinning and slamming into the ground.
Clang, Cody swung his blade as fast as he could and deflected a strike before blocking the second. He was locked in a bind with Lilly, her second knife no longer in her hand. She wrapped her legs around him and flipped him over, twisting around him he wrestled his sword from him before slamming his face into the ground and putting the blade of his own sword against his neck.
"Damn hero, I'm impressed, you're stronger than the last time we fought. Only a little though." Lilly teased before getting off him, "wanna keep going?"
"No, I surrender." Cody sighed as he dusted himself off.
"Oh by the way, Maria. I will be taking me leave soon. So I hope you can succeed without me watching your back. However I do have great faith in you." Lilly smiled before she picked up her maid dress and disappeared back inside the mansion. Maria stepped over to Cody and offered him a towel.
"Thanks, I appreciate it. She's really strong." Cody sighed, daping at the light cut on his neck.
"You ok?" Maria asked.
"I'm fine, I just need to get stronger that's all." Cody resolved with a clenched fist.