The market street is always abuzz with activity during rush hour, today being no exception.
In stark contrast to the rest of the day - where a slow, lazy trickle of people is the norm - people are rushing past, clearly in a hurry. Whether it's vendors loudly advertising their wears, customers haggling or those simply passing through, everyone has something to do or somewhere to be and sees no reason to dawdle.
Indeed, no one spares Nao a second glance, which is just the way she likes it.
Leaning against a wall at the mouth of an alley, she surreptitiously surveys the crowd, scoping out the easy targets from the more difficult ones and mentally categorising them by their apparent wealth.
Most have only recently got out of work and are scurrying to get home. Simple enough targets but not the type to have any valuables or much money on them and would most likely end up being more trouble than they're worth. A few couples are chatting and meandering down the street with handbags and wearing some fancy looking bracelets, but groups are always a risky business and those lovebirds are eyeing each other like hawks- it'd be difficult to go unnoticed by both of them at the same time.
Huffing out a sigh, Nao takes a step away from the wall and is about to leave and try again later when an older man on the far edge of the street catches her eye. Clad in basic yet high-quality clothing, including a worn leather watch, it's clear from his pale skin and dusty blond hair that he's a tourist passing through. Leaning over to check out the blacksmith's blades, he looks thoroughly distracted and she spies the top of a wallet peeking out from his back pocket, the thing practically begging to be taken.
Well, if he's going to make it that easy who's she to deny him? Call it the 'authentic local experience.'
Slipping into the mass of people she begins manoeuvring between pedestrians, narrowly avoiding being kneed in the gut several times by careless adults who don't think to look where they're going. Honestly, how hard is it to look down every once in a while? Ah well, it's working in her favour at the moment anyway, and she arrives a few meters behind her unsuspecting target with little fanfare and without attracting unwanted attention. No one looks twice at a scrawny homeless kid, after all, the sight a dime a dozen in this part of town.
Crouching to fiddle with the twine tying the hem of her pants to her ankles, Nao keeps a careful eye on the man and waits. When she'd first started doing this she would rush in thoughtlessly, an amateurs mistake. Now she knows better. Watching as he swaps a few quick words with the blacksmith, once it looks like he's about to leave she stands up, speed walking so that she bumps into him as he turns away from the stall, transferring the wallet from his pocket to hers in the same motion.
Half-feigning a stumble, she's about to call it a job well done and blend back into the crowd when a hand grabs her by the wrist.
Heart leaping into her throat, she turns to look the man in the face, trying to act nonchalant. He doesn't seem angry - not yet at least - but she knows from experience that can change at any moment.
Looking down at her with a slight crease in his brow, when he speaks it's a deep and rough sound, worn from disuse. "You alright, kid?"
Blinking owlishly and staring blankly, she breaks into a grin as the hand he held captive fidgeted. "Sorry, mister! Didn't see ya there is all."
As he gives her one last once-over she hopes he can't hear the rapid beat of her heart or see the sweat beading on her forehead, praying he's as dumb as he looks and won't think to check his pocket. Evidently he isn't the sharpest knife in the block because he lets go after a few tense seconds, giving her one last look before huffing out an "it's alright" and continuing on his way.
Child's play.
Wasting no time, Nao darts back into the thinning swarm of people, heading down zig-zagging side-streets to ensure that when he inevitably puts two and two together that there's no way he'll be able to find her. Only once she's a good ways away does she allow herself to stop in another alley to check the loot.
Smirking, Nao holds up the watch she'd nicked to the light, seeing where the leather had worn thin and there were scuff marks on the metal. A pawn shop wouldn't give much for it, that's for sure, but she's been meaning to get a watch anyhow and this one will do nicely. Wrapping it around her left wrist she looks around to ensure no one's about to jump her before taking out the wallet to inspect its contents, letting out a low whistle at the wad of bills inside. There's enough cash for a weeks worth of food, maybe more if she stretches it a bit.
There's also a faded photo that she pointedly doesn't look at and a couple bits of ID she treats similarly.
Stuffing it all back into her front pocket, she's about to head back out when the sound of light footsteps reaches her, likely only heard because of how quiet it is. Glancing over her shoulder, she cursed her luck, turning around fully to give her approacher a wide smile.
"Sparrow, you shit, where is it?" The older boy half-yelled, likely to avoid attention. As he got nearer she could see that he'd grown a bit since she last saw him, but puberty and a good diet 'll do that, she supposes.
"Ah, Magpie, I was hopin' to see your mug around here soon. How's ya brother doing?"
Looking like he's stepped in something particularly foul, his face twists barely-concealed revulsion. "Cut the crap, where's the money?"
He's scarcely a few meters away now and panic flares as she backs up, holding up her hands in a placating manner. "Look, I ain't got it yet, 'kay? Jus' give me some time-"
He doesn't wait for her to finish before lunging and she scrambles to get away, stumbling in her haste, and he manages to grab her by the collar- slamming her back into the wall.
He's close enough that she can see the dark bruise on his jaw and cuts on his face, can smell the old, crusted blood and feel his oily hair on her face. When he opens his mouth to talk she catches a strong whiff of brandy and scrunches up her nose in disgust. "You've had enough time, you've had nothing but time. It's time to deliver, little Sparrow. You know how Crow gets when he's angry. You don't want him angry, now, do you?"
"By the looks of your face, I reckon he's already pretty pissed. Did he break that nose of yours while he was at it or was it always that ugly? I can't remember." A punch to the gut had her doubling over and he threw her down to the ground, kicking her in the face when she tried to get back up, forcing her to lean back on her hands. The telltale feeling of blood in her mouth says her lip is probably busted and her rips feel bruised, but she laughs anyway. "Still as sensitive as ever, eh? Thought you high life folk liked a good joke."
Sneering down at her, he looks about ready to take another swing so she quickly continues. "Settle down, I was only yankin' ya chain, no need to get your knickers in a twist. I got Crow's cash right here, see." Pulling out and languidly lifting the money, she watches mournfully as he snatches it out of her hand, taking the time to stand up and dust herself off while he counts the bills.
"This'll do, until tomorrow at least."
Halting in the middle of checking if he broke her nose, her head snapped up in shock. "Now hold up a minute, what in the bloody hell do ya mean, 'till tomorrow?' That ain't the deal we agreed on."
Eyes flickering up to her own briefly, he unceremoniously shoves the wad into the inside of his jacket. "No, it isn't, but neither was you taking an extra month to pay off your debt. I expect double this tomorrow, consider it interest."
Blanching, Nao splutters for a second, searching his face for any hint of jest. She found none. "I can't get that much in a day, it's impossible and you know it. I got lucky with that score as is."
Smiling for the first time in all the time she's known him, he genuinely appears delighted at her plight and she starts to seriously regret every time she's ever annoyed him, just a little bit. "Then you better either pray for mercy or start running, little Sparrow. See you tomorrow."
At that he turns on his heel and starts walking away, leaving her wondering just how much trouble she's gotten herself into this time.
—
Admittedly it wasn't a very good idea to attempt to swipe some food from the market this close to closing, but Nao's never claimed to be very smart anyway.
Her stomach had twisted painfully - reminding her that she hasn't had a proper meal in days - and all logic flew out the window when she saw the last loaf of bread sitting at a stall unattended. If she'd taken a few extra seconds to survey her surroundings she'd have seen the stall owner talking to a customer nearby and definitely would have noticed the way he'd kept glancing at it every few seconds. Indeed, hindsight is 20/20 and clearly so is the man's eyesight because as soon as she laid a hand on it he'd called out and started moving towards her. It wasn't one of her finest moments when - in a fit of desperation - she took the bread and booked it down the street, leading to her current predicament.
Dashing between people, Nao listened to the heavy, rushed footsteps behind her and the yells of the man telling her to stop- which is a silly thing to do, really. What's she going to do, say 'oh hey, sorry for trying to steal from you but can you kindly refrain from beating my face in?'
Yeah right, it'd be more likely for a bag of gold come down from the sky and have it land directly into her lap.
The footsteps are getting louder and she doesn't need to look to know that he's nearly caught up. To make matters worse the few people left milling about have caught on to what's happening and have started looking, which isn't good. If she's going to live long enough to be murdered by Crow then she's going to have to do something, fast.
Trying to gather her bearings, she looks for any identifying features that would tip her off to where she is relative to the market, but after feeling a hand graze her shirt she ducks down a side street that she thinks is the right one, not having enough time to check properly because the old geezer also turned- albeit a little slower than her.
Her legs have started burning and rocks are getting stuck in her feet but the end is in sight, now, so she musters up the last of her adrenaline to take the nearest left- straight into a dead end.
The man slows to a stop once he notices, chuckling between heavy breaths. "Nowhere to run now, huh, punk?"
Ignoring him, she shoved the end of the bread in her mouth, continuing full pelt. Attempting to gauge the height of the wall, once she was a few feet away she jumped.
Scrabbling to find purchase on the rough brickwork, her toes dig into the slots between the bricks and pushes off again, hands reaching for the ledge. By the time the stall owner realises what's happening it's too late, Nao is already pulling herself up and swinging a leg over the edge. Stopping for a brief wave goodbye, she let go and drops down to the other side of the wall, smirking to herself after hearing muffled curses.
Dusting off her hands, she turns to find her way back but freezes mid-turn, bread falling from her open mouth.
"That was pretty impressive, kid."
Standing in front of her, just a few meters away, is the same man who's ID is in her back pocket.
Bending down to pick up her hard-won prize - not breaking eye contact - her muscles are tense and ready to move at the slightest hint that he's about to move towards her. Straightening back up, she waits for him to continue- to make the first move. Nao knows this alley well, has used it many times, and subsequently knows that the only way in or out is the wall behind her or the exit behind him.
Neither of them move. He appears quite content to watch her, most likely having come to the same realisation she has, and she's busy desperately fighting the urge to run.
He's a largely built man, all bulk and hard muscle, which could mean that he's slow. Judging by the scars littering his arms and face that may very well be true, but something about the way he's watching her says he's more than capable of catching her if she tried to climb back over the wall, that he would be ready for it. Getting past him isn't a viable option either, not with how close together the walls are.
So Nao does what she does best- she bluffs.
Standing tall, shoulders back and chin up, she tries to calm her thundering heart and is rather impressed with herself when her voice comes out steady. "If you want ya money back, too bad. I already spent it, yeah? So fuck off."
He raises a brow, unimpressed.
She soldiers on, undeterred. "Mhmm, bought this food an' everything, so you can just turn back around and continue on your merry way. Maybe I won't mention ta anyone how you cornered a kid in an alley, if ya lucky."
Letting out a long, drawn out sigh, he turns his gaze to the sky and mutters something under his breath, looking for all the world like he's regretting every life choice that led him to this point in time. Peering back down at her, his expression softens a tad when he sees how on guard and nervous she is, like a rabbit ready to bolt.
"Sold the wallet, too, an' I reckon it's finders keepers for the watc-"
"I don't care about that."
Mouth snapping shut, Nao squints and eyes him warily, not trusting a single word. "What're you here for, then?"
"I was going to ask if you wanted to join me, but now I'm wondering if that's truly a wise decision."
Sniffing indignantly, she studies her nails with feigned indifference, keeping her tone light and conversational, as if talking about the weather. "Join you?"
"In my travels."
Seconds tick by, and when he shows no sign of continuing, she does. "I'm not sure travelling with some creepy pedo is such a good idea. I'll pass. Now if you're finished, I'll just-" Pointing behind him and subtly edging in that direction, she's half expecting for him to not bother replying, which is why it takes a second for his next words to sink in.
"You're free to stay here, of course. I'm sure that boy will be ecstatic to hear about your devotion to paying off your debt."
Body clamming up, her stomach drops and the blood drains from her face.
"The offer still stands, of course, but I'm leaving immediately. So be sure to let me know if you change your mind quickly."
Turning around, he begins walking away but she can't hear it over the buzzing in her ears, a million thoughts all clambering to the forefront of her mind.
How does he know about Magpie?
What else does he know?
And more importantly, what should she do?
Looking around at the dirty, piss ridden alley and then down at the equally dirty bread loaf still in her hand, the decision is easy.
"Hey, wait up!"