Revolution
Chapter 6
"The people who oppose your ideas are inevitably those who represent the established order that your ideas will upset."
-Anthony D'Angelo
Tom ran a hand through his shaggy orange-blond locks, making a sound of frustration. Damon leaned against the supporting pole of the hospital tent, where Skinner was being treated.
The two men had left Owen with some money and directions to a candy store earlier than afternoon. Skinner had been hauled and dragged all the way to the Underground headquarters, where there were doctors who could treat Skinner. They had been waiting for almost an hour now.
Soon enough one of the Underground's few doctors emerged. Tom looked at him expectantly.
"He has a mild addiction to opium," the doctor said, "Nothing a few days of rest won't cure. From the looks of it, he's been in withdrawal for some time now. He's probably trying to kick the habit himself."
Damon's brow vanished behind his hairline. "Are you sure?"
"Why don't you come in an' ask for yourself?" a defiant Cockney-accented voice came in from behind the canvas. Obviously, Skinner had been listening to them. "I'm perfectly capable of answering questions, thank you very much!"
Tom tried not to smile. As alert as always, he thought. He found some comfort in knowing that the thief's way of living hadn't changed very much in the past decade.
"Good afternoon, Skinner," Tom called cheerily.
There was a pause. Then, a disbelieving "Tom...?"
The American mouthed his question to the doctor, who nodded his assent that Tom could go in and talk to Skinner. Striding into the tent, Tom grinned.
"You're a sight for sore eyes, Skinner," he said, intending the pun to strike home. As usual, it did.
"Very funny," Skinner replied, and he saw the sheets as they shifted. The thief was sitting up as the other man pulled up a chair to the cot and sat on it the wrong way round. The two regarded each other for a few minutes, silently appraising the other.
It was Tom who spoke first. "You haven't changed much in ten years."
"Not that you can see it," the thief retorted. "What's all this business I hear about the Black Duke?"
The younger man tensed at this; did Skinner know? Had someone told him? No, it was unlikely; after all, only a select few knew who the Black Duke was. "I was going to talk to you about that."
"You're the what?!"
Damon raised a brow when he heard the Cockney accent echoed through the cavern. Heads peered out of their canvas tents, trying to locate the source of the noise. Of course, he knew where it came from; only Rodney Skinner could speak like that.
It didn't take long for him to come out, blubbering, just like Damon knew he would. He raised a brow as Skinner came out, because the invisible man dragged a feeble excuse of a blanket with him. It had caught on his leg, and he shook it, trying to get it free, while moving away from Tom.
"Skinner, look —"
"I know what you want, my answer is no —"
"Listen to me —"
"I washed my hands of matters like this years ago —"
"Hear me out —"
"I like my head on my shoulders, thank you very much —"
By now, people from the adjacent cavern were crowding at the entrance to the main cave, curious as to what the commotion was all about. There were many young children among the crowd, and they peered from dirty and thin face in awe as the sheet moved about on its own accord.
"Skinner!" Tom grabbed the thief by the shoulders, stopping his progress across the cavern. Damon paused, unsure of whether to intervene. Apparently, there's no need for that, Damon thought, watching with interest. "Skinner, stop and listen to me!"
Startled into silence, Skinner didn't fight as Tom dragged him back into the tent.
"Skinner!" Tom hissed, back inside. "Can't you just listen to me?" When the other man didn't say anything more, he continued. "You want to know why I do this?" He let go of Skinner's shoulders and pointed to the tent flap, where the crowd was still gathered. "It's for them! You saw the children. You saw them, how miserable they are." Then, quietly, "I do this for them, and for the hundreds...thousands all around the world."
Skinner had kept quiet through his, and sighed. He knew what it was to be a street kid, leaving on scraps of food and money from other people's pockets. He knew what it was to have a hard life. "Alright. I'll hear you out, but it doesn't mean I'll agree to anything."
Tom nodded, satisfied. At least he could talk to Skinner now. "There's going to be a meeting in a couple of days. The rest of the League is attending —"
"The League?" Skinner's jaw dropped, if Tom could have seen it. "The League? But they — we — were disbanded years ago! Half of us are dead!"
The younger man gave him a boyish grin. "Are you so sure?"
He quietened. "Go on."
"I want you to be there," Tom said. "With the others, to hear me out."
Skinner sighed again. He didn't like this; he knew he was being dragged into something that he didn't want to be dragged into. "When and where?"
Chauvelin stalked through what had been formerly known as Buckingham Palace. No one questioned him; everyone knew that Reed and Dante favored this young Frenchman, and no sane person wanted to incur the wrath of either.
Chauvelin cared nothing for the status, the wealth, or the fame that being the protégée of the two most powerful men in the world entitled him to. No, he was a simple man, and he liked it that way.
But every simple man has some sort of agenda.
There was no doubt that Chauvelin had one. In these days, it was more unusual for someone to not have one. Just what his was, though, remained a mystery even to Reed.
And that was what made him so dangerous.
Reed knew to beware men of Chauvelin's kind. They were especially dangerous, but the young Frenchman had managed to earn the respect and trust of Prime Minister and King, and that suited him just fine.
A silent man, he passed some young clerks, who regarded his presence with ill-disguised suspicion. Chauvelin didn't care, not at all.
To each his own, he mused, walking out into the sunshine of the courtyard. To each his own.
A/N: A little short this time, I know, but I've been insanely busy since the last chapter, so...yeah. Hope you enjoy.