Sometimes, Alvin just knew right away when a job would be easier than others. He could look around, see what was going on, and just know. When his latest job included pretending to save and follow until he got paid a woman so sheltered that she literally knew the world from books and was so caught up in her own problems she barely noticed anything else and a teen boy so pale and thin he barely looked like he could fight and passed out as soon as he was safe on the boat for Aladhi Seahaven, well. If he was on this job long enough that the next time he visited Xian Du his mother realized that nice man that knew a lot about her son was gone, he'd be surprised.

The kid did look pretty bad, though. Flushed, and breathing heavily in his sleep. Curious, Alvin pulled off a glove and pressed two fingers against almost visible pulse in his throat, frowning as he felt the rapid beat and scorching heat against his skin. Geez, the kid better not better not be sick. The sun probably wasn't helping, hot and bright enough to make even him feel a little dizzy. "Yo," he called out to Maxwell, watching her turn slightly towards him. "Think you want to get below deck?" He picked up the lithe unconscious body, nodding towards the stairs down.

Her eyes raked over them, calculating. That wasn't good. Maybe she wasn't so spacey she'd be completely blind to the fire that burned inside him. "Yes, of course," she said finally in her stern, almost distant voice. She swept past him, seeming to barely give thought to Jude's predicament. What was actually going on in her head... it was anyone's guess. Her reactions were so otherworldly that it made it hard to read and anticipate. This woman could be more danger than he originally thought, if he couldn't figure out what she knew and what was still hidden.

Maybe... it might be better to put her down now. It might save his own skin later on.

It wasn't until they were beneath deck that Jude started to rouse, opening glassy eyes and looking up at him before screwing them shut again. Great. The kid did have a fever. Just his luck that the one that got sick was the medical student. "Where am I...?" came his distant voice, strangely just weak. One would think if he was sick, his voice would sound a lot rougher. His eyes cracked open, a slit of gold as his head turned, looking. "A ship? What-" His eyes opened wide as strength returned to his voice, his gaze sharpening as memories started to return. "I'm a criminal," he whispered.

And there it was. Alvin suppressed a sigh as Jude shifted in his arms, moving to put him down. He really was an honors student, horrified at the thought he had done something catastrophically wrong. At least teenage boys were easy enough to read and manipulate, unlike supposed Lord of Spirits in the shape of a beautiful woman. If all else failed, short of killing both of them, he could always sleep with the kid and use that to turn him against Maxwell.

Elize was a little cutie, and even Alvin wasn't immune to her charms. He could do without the floating doll, and why Maxwell hadn't set the damned thing on fire yet was a mystery to them all. Then again, considering it wasn't an active threat to her or her mission, she probably didn't care about it. Or maybe she had fallen prey to Elize's cute face too, who knew.

Jude wasn't immune either. It shouldn't have surprised Alvin as much as it did that he was as good as he was with kids. Elize seemed to have attached herself immediately to him, silently holding onto his arm as they exited the Sapstrath Highroad into Sharilton. If he hadn't been looking at that exact moment, he would have missed the moment when Jude shifted so his slim hand took her tiny one. It was so cute he felt his teeth rotting and his heart lurching.

Somehow, Jude still hadn't managed to completely shake whatever it was. He seemed better at night, without the hot sun beating down on him, but it still came in waves. Never as bad as the first time on the boat, though. Alvin would never let him live down fainting again. A part of him made him wonder if it was contagious. There were a few mornings where he woke up feeling worse than when he fell asleep a few times, almost dizzy on standing or under the hot sun. The feeling persisted throughout the day, but never overwhelming him. Thankfully.

The kids had fallen behind. Alvin turned to look, seeing Jude kneeling before the young girl as she whispered shyly in his ear. A long stretch of neck revealed itself as he bent his head towards her, and Alvin found himself beating down the urge to walk over and pull the collar down the rest of the way, press his lips against the pulse just barely hidden there. No, right now wouldn't be the appropriate time. Jude turned to look up at him, and for a brief bizarre moment, Alvin had a feeling that those gold eyes saw past him, past the barriers barely holding himself together. Kid already proved he was more perceptive than he originally thought, at least when it came to battles. If he saw through him, Alvin had no doubts he'd be able to take him in a battle, but oh boy would he rather not want to do that.

Instead, Jude kept a hold of Elize's hand as he stood, coming over to him so he could say in a low voice, "Elize isn't feeling well. We're going to go on ahead to the inn so she can get some rest, okay?"

Elize pressed her pale face into Jude's leg when Alvin looked at her, still shy. "Fine by me," he said breezily, affecting a carefree tone. It'd give him time to send message by sylphjay and talk with the Lord of Sharilton. There were enough sides he'd be able to play here that would be able to advance his own plans. "Though you might want to run it by Milla first so she knows where you ran off to."

The relieved smile he gave the older man wormed its way under the carefree mask, sticking uncomfortably with him as Jude went to tell Maxwell where he and the little cutie were going. She was talking to someone, a familiar looking woman of noble bearing and gentle demeanor- oh ho. If he was right, that was definitely the sister of the Lord of Sharilton. Alvin had to admit, sometimes Maxwell did make his work easier for him. It was impressive just how easily she did it too. If he could just predict when that was going to happen, or figure out just how much she knew about Exodus and Elympios...

What was he doing? Alvin listened to the sounds of Xian Du bustling outside as he stared up at the ceiling. What was he doing back here, with them? Everything was falling in the wrong order, tumbling in a way that felt out of control. Not here, not so close to all the memories and the king of Auj Oule and with Milla- Maxwell finally revealing she knew, she knew he was Exodus. If she knew that, what else did she know? Did she know what she had done, and what Exodus was trying to do to her? Why they were after her, what their true goal was? Did she even know what the Lance of Kresnikwas?

With a subvocal snarl, he rolled over. It didn't matter. They were going to fight in that silly colosseum to win the rights to use the wyverns, and if he got the timing right, when they actually got back to Rashugal, his other plans would be falling into place. They would be out of Auj Oule soon, out of Xian Du, out of a place that stank of frantic memories and a rapport of a gun too loud for any child to hear.

Sheets on one of the other beds in the room shifted and Alvin looked up, equal parts curious and paranoid. Jude may have forgiven him far too easily, but that didn't preclude Rowen from deciding he was too much of a threat and offing him here. It was nice to have the Conductor on his side, but he knew it was a double edged sword - Rowen, at any time, could come to the conclusion that Alvin was more trouble than he was worth and leave his cooling body where it would never be found. Though, with every passing moment, the chances of it happening were less. If he hadn't done it yet, even after blatantly betraying them constantly, he should be safe.

For a moment, he couldn't quite make out what was going on. Alvin lifted his head slightly, almost amused once he saw clearly what was going on. Jude had climbed into Rowen's bed, and started to shift his weight so he straddled the older man. The kid leaned in once he was situated, eyes half closed over those golden eyes as his lips parted ever so slightly, showing a hint of white teeth. Interesting. Alvin had long since suspected the kid at least was interested in trying out both genders, and the declaration that it wouldn't have mattered to him if Mill- Maxwell, damnit - was male sealed the deal for him. And he had gotten the feeling Jude liked at least older women, and could be persuaded to try out his curiosity on older guys too. But that much older? Kid still surprised him.

Jude snapped his head up at the sound of Alvin moving, his pale cheeks staining red as he whipped around to stare at him, wide eyed. Ah, still embarrassed about his preferences. Alvin watched, almost fascinated as the almost feverish blush crept across his skin in blotchy patches, almost crawling down his throat in a very fetching way. Almost made him want to grab him and trace it with tongue and teeth-

Which was when Jude threw himself off Rowen and marched out of the room, avoiding meeting Alvin's eyes. Now he just felt like a heel. It was number one in the handbook: Thou shalt not cockblock. And with a kid like Jude just now figuring out what he liked and easily shamed into what people think he should like... this could set things back pretty far for his plans too. Though now, when he tried to figure out what those plans were, outside going home... he had nothing.

Nothing but the idea of seeing more of those golden eyes.

The night clime in Fennmont never got less beautiful, nor less creepy. It was a gilded sort of loveliness, painted gold over an infection from inside. Every place Alvin looked, he could see someone from Auj Oule or Exodus, eating the pretty mask from the inside out. And with Nachtigal now assassinated before their eyes, things would just get worse. He shouldn't care about this, not with the Lance so close to being used. Not with the chance of going home so near that he could taste it. He shouldn't care anymore about Auj Oule and Rashugal and the fate of Rieze Maxia...

But he just couldn't. Not with those gold eyes, looking so thoughtful, so pained.

At least during the fights against Agria and Nachtigal, Jude had seemed the healthiest he had ever been. It had surprised even Milla, just how strong and fast the kid could be when he felt well. Alvin wondered if he had even gotten hit, considering how much he was abusing snap pivot. Any upcoming fights would be easy with him and Milla around, especially with how well the two of them worked when linked. If he didn't know better, Alvin would have sworn that Jude and Milla were born for each other.

If he was sappy and sentimental that way.

"Alvin." Milla's voice cut through his thoughts. He turned, idly noting her exasperated and worried expression. "Have you seen Jude?"

He felt an eyebrow creep upward towards his hairline. There were some people he expected to be distracted by Fennmont, especially after what had just happened. He would have expected to hear Rowen had disappeared, trying to rebuild after his friend had been killed by an unknown assailant. Definitely not Jude, not the boy following the Lord of the Spirits around with wide eyes and fierce fists. "Nope. You check the Medical School?" The last time he had seen Jude, he had been pouring through texts at his old school, absently promising he'd be at the entrance to Arklund Quag when they were ready to make their assault on Fezebel Marsh. Milla put a hand to her mouth as she thought, her hips swaying in that way that still drew Alvin's eyes lower. She may be Maxwell, but he was still male and she was still very, very attractive. And... he just couldn't summon the same fire as before, not after getting to know her. "Hey, look, I'll go check it out. Promise, that's all I'm going to go do." There was nothing at Talim Medical School he needed to pass along anyway. Enough active spies had infiltrated there.

Crimson eyes studied him as the hand at her mouth came to her hip, almost threateningly close to her sword. While he could take her in a straight physical fight, he knew, it wouldn't be purely physical. The damned woman and her mana, able to cast as easily as breathing. She would set him on fire, encase him in earth, suffocate him with air, and drown him before running him through. And at the same time... the part that hurt the worst was the utter distrust in her eyes. When had he come to think so much of Milla's trust?

... when had he come to start thinking of her as Milla instead of Maxwell?

Finally, she crossed her arms. "I'm putting my trust in you, Alvin," she told him, the words more a threat than encouragement. Warning him that if he betrayed them one more time, that if he left not to gather Jude, she would set him on fire before gutting him. Some part of him cynically told him that maybe he should let Milla do it anyway. He pushed it down, ignoring the new sharp edges it created and turned from her, raising a hand lazily as he left.

Where he expected to find Jude was not where he had actually parked his ass. There were plenty of people milling about that needed help, exactly where one would think to find an honor's student like Jude Mathis. But he walked past several patients groaning in pain, some in so much agony they could barely make a noise as they waited for a doctor to be free. Something like this he would expect to see in Elympios, where mana was unusable except via spyrixes. Here, where mana lobes could shift mana however they wanted, couldn't they fix illness and injury much faster? But... a bitter laugh spilled from his lips. Mana lobes couldn't fix everything. Jude's big mana lobe and medical knowledge couldn't fix Milla's legs. Alvin closed his eyes, hand on a door knob. It would have made things so easy if Milla had stopped there. If she had gotten out of their way. Alvin felt his heart clench at the thought, at the idea of Milla confined to Driselle's bed, unable to walk. That wouldn't have been Milla, and Jude would have never allowed it. And he didn't.

Alvin shook his head. Enough. They had to get to Fezebel Marsh, and these thoughts weren't helping. A quick peek in confirmed it was a small examination room, and there was someone in it. An apology sprung smoothly to his lips before he realized most of the lights were turned off, and the one that was still on illuminated a familiar face, lashes closed over those golden eyes. Jude's hands lay still on an open book in front of him, while several others stacked next to him. After a moment, he stirred, opening his eyes and looking up at the ceiling without seeing it. Everything the kid was doing- Alvin opened his mouth, feeling the words escape with a dry click. "Getting caught up in studies, honors student?"

The kid was acting like he had just received bad news.

Jude jumped at the sound of Alvin's voice, obviously having been so deep in what he was reading and his thoughts that he didn't hear him open the door. His eyes darted around, looking for the others, and only seemed to get more frantic where they didn't catch sight of Milla or anyone else. "A-alvin," he finally squeaked out, shutting the book he was reading but not yet standing. "What's wrong?"

"Milla's wondering where you are." Alvin stepped in, not yet closing the door behind him. Something about the fact that it was him made Jude nervous, and right now that wasn't what he wanted. "Guess she's getting antsy about the Lance and wanting to make her move."

Jude made a soft noise, looking away. He still didn't stand, still not quite looking at him. Worry started to creep into Alvin's mind as he came around the desk, tossing an arm around the boy's shoulders. A usual gesture, repeated after countless battles and meaning nothing. But as soon as his arm touched Jude, he felt him tense and panicked hands push at him. "G-get away!"

Alvin backed up, his hands lifting peaceably. "Whoa there. Owch, that hurt the ego." He watched as Jude didn't even glance at him, instead wrapping his arms around himself. What had he been reading? "I'm not going to hurt you. Hell, not like this. Got no reason." For some reason, that made the kid curl up even more, his eyes trained steadfastly in front of him. "C'mon. Milla's probably about ready to storm the school herself." He turned to leave, pausing when he didn't hear Jude stand. "What's up?"

"Alvin..." There was a long pause as he turned back around, looking at Jude. Finally, those honest and open gold eyes looked right at him, the pain and confusion clear. "I think... this is where we part ways. I'm going to stay in Fennmont."

What.

"What?"