Surprise, surprise. I've decided to add a flashback after all. I know, you were all looking forward to and craving that chapter about running. ;) Trust me, this is better, I hope. Enjoy.

It was the crying that woke her.

Groaning softly in her bunk, Peri rolled over onto her side and unceremoniously thumped on the wall above her head with her fist, and for a moment the unending sound dwindled down to a soft sniffling. Peri knew better than to believe that was the end of it though, and sure enough, ten minutes later the crying restarted in earnest. She was sorely tempted to turn around and punch the wall until it cracked, but her fist was already sore from the countless other times she'd hit the wall the past few hours. It wouldn't do much good anyway; that kid was bent on keeping the entire house up, it seemed. She supposed she could sympathize with her, since she'd lost her parents just a week ago, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. The thought of telling the girl that she wasn't alone, that everyone here understood what she was going through, it brought a sour taste to the back of her mouth. Coddling the child would make her soft, make her trusting, and that was the sort of thing that got someone hurt. There were people here who would do anything for an extra scrap. This girl couldn't be led to believe that anyone here was trustworthy. For example: Peri couldn't walk outside her room without snagging something off a passerby and Marya slept with men for money. Peri remembered the day she'd found out where Marya went every day (she'd been stealing a few coins from the brothel's prosperous treasury), and the needles of shock the discovery had sent into her skin. She hadn't been able to look at her friend for a week, maybe two, and now Peri almost envied her. She had it easy. Same job, day in and day out, while Peri had to adapt to whatever was thrown at her. If she hadn't loved stealing so much, she might have signed on. Well, there was a reason she'd said 'almost'.

Speaking of Marya, it seemed that her roommate wasn't getting any sleep either, because her breathing had been uneven for the past two hours and every so often Peri would detect the faint clink of the glass pieces hanging from the window. Marya liked to watch them spin in the moonlight when she was thinking or, in this case, bored. Peri considered stuffing her head under the thin pillow cushioning her head, in an attempt to block out all the noise, but it was too thin to make any difference. She figured it didn't do much good in the actual padding department either, but she couldn't think of another use for it and so it continued to pose as a pillow until she did. Beneath her the glass clinked again, and Peri took this opportunity to roll over and peer over the edge of the bed.

"Tell me it's almost time to go," she whispered. Just because the kid next door was loud, didn't mean she had to.

"At least an hour," Marya answered morosely, her finger lazily spinning a broken shard of a bottle. Peri pressed her lips together and flopped back on her bed, regretting the action when her head slammed into one of the spring within the mattress.

"Who knew that one day I'd be looking forward to that damned cart," she muttered, earning a grunt of agreement from below. The glass clinked once more, then fell silent completely. Peri wished it hadn't because now there was nothing to distract her from the muffled sounds of grief from the other room besides the feeling of general discomfort throughout her entire body. Minutes passed, fifteen, twenty, and still the girl cried. Growling, Peri thumped the wall twice, hard, but there was no response. The crying continued at the same volume and now Peri's fist hurt.

"This is ridiculous." The glass clinked again. Peri murmured softly, focusing on the soft sound and trying to force her ire back down. She hadn't cried this hard, and her parents hadn't even died. They'd dumped her in the dust and ridden away while she watched, leaving her to this hellhole. In her opinion, that was worse, but she had never said so. If she had, the entire house full of orphans might have killed her. She knew when to keep her mouth shut, to an extent. There was a surge of movement below and suddenly Marya's face appeared in her peripheral. Peri rolled her head to the side and waited for Marya to speak.

"Come on, I can't take this anymore."

Peri didn't know where Marya intended to go where the crying would be inaudible, but the older girl had been here longer. Perhaps there was some secret cellar she'd discovered and never told her about. Peri smirked at her own quixotic ideas and sat up, hopping down to land silently on the floor. Marya was already heading for the hallway, so she forewent her shoes and hurried after her friend. Down the stairs they went, stepping quietly, and they took extra care outside of the dragon's bedroom. She was a notoriously light sleeper and many a child had been beaten in the dead of night for sneaking extra food. Thankfully, both Peri and Marya were notorious light walkers, especially when they made a concious effort. Marya led the way outside and Peri eased the door shut behind them, a smile growing on her face. She knew just where they were going. Once they were clear of the treacherous porch, with its creaks and knocks, they took off barefoot across the dusty yard and into the trees.

The amount of times they'd run this path were evident from the faint path their feet had beaten through the trees, and they followed that path now without even looking for it. They knew this stretch of woods like they knew their own bodies, and within minutes the cheerful babble of the river beckoned through the trees. Peri pumped her arms harder in an effort to skip past Marya and make it to the river before her, but the moment she stepped off the trail the older girl laughed and stretched her limbs out longer. Not only was Marya tall and lanky in ways that made men stare after her when she walked, she was also built for speed, and she used it now. Peri heard the sound of pebbles crunching a good ten seconds before she so much as glimpsed the river through the trees, and by the time she arrived, panting and out of breath, Marya was naked and floating a few yards off the shore, waving impishly. Peri laughed and threw a pebble, but her eagerness to be in the water overpowered her desire to defend her honor. She shed her clothes with practiced ease and bounded in after Marya, squealing at the chill the water sent up her spine. She waded as fast as the cold water would let her in an effort to dunk Marya's head underwater, but before she got close enough the older girl sent a wave of water crashing over her, effectively halting her progress. The silty river bottom billowed up around her toes as she danced away from Marya, trying to get clear of the girl's wild splashes, but wherever she went Marya followed. Within no time she was completely soaked through and exhausted, while Marya was still moving easily in her wake. Slowing her movements, she bent her head and endured the frigid waves until Marya was close enough, then pounced. Using all of her weight, she shoved Marya's dark hair underwater, and then she swam for her life.

Marya came up screaming, spluttering, and swearing colorfully enough to make Skink blush, but in the two seconds it took Marya to scrape her hair from her eyes and look around for Peri, she had already made it to the opposite shore and was currently scrambling up the bank along a complex system of roots. She reached the top in seconds and turned around to spear Marya with a triumphant stare.

"I believe this round goes to me," she said, spitting water from her lips and grinning. Marya gave a gusty sigh and nodded, kicking off of the river's bottom to float on her back. Satisfied, Peri took a flying leap back into the river, taking great care to send a rain of river water over her friend's body.

(…)

There wasn't much time for swimming after that, not if they wanted to dry off before it came time to head back to the house. Reluctantly, they climbed up onto the pebbly beach and tugged their clothes back on, which was made harder by the thin film of water over their skin. Carefully, so as not to get more water on her clothes, Peri gathered all her hair together and wrung it out over the water, getting her hair as dry as possible before going to curl up beside Marya near the treeline. Five years in the same room meant the two of them either had to get along or kill each other. Peri was pleased to know that they had chosen the former, because without a friend she would have gone crazy ages ago. For a long time neither of them spoke and they listened to the river do it for them. There was no danger of either of them falling asleep, not with the chill of the water still in their bones and in their hair. At some point Marya started humming under her breath, and Peri was happy to listen all night long. Marya's voice wasn't the high, crystalline voice that the public seemed to adore these days, but it was beautiful in its own way. Low, throaty, it was the kind of voice you might hear on the road at night, just as you notice the light of a campfire up ahead. It had a rustic quality to it that made Peri feel… home. Not many things these days could invoke that feeling in her.

"I feel bad for that girl, you know," Peri said, once her hair had dried and it was almost time to go. "The crying one. Her parents… they must have been close."

"Doesn't mean we have to suffer for it."

"I know, I know, but, well, I guess I understand why she does it."

Marya waited, and for a moment Peri thought she wasn't going to answer. Then:

"I know. I guess I'm just… jealous she got to know her parents. To be able to mourn them."

Peri gave Marya's shoulder a squeeze of comfort. While she remembered clearly the day her parents had left her, Marya only knew the orphanage. Her parents had died before she was even two months old. Their voices fell silent again and Peri focused on the insects filling the forest around them, their multitude of sounds meshing together to form an almost musical buzz. For a while she expected one of them to speak, to say something else deep and insightful, but after a while she realized that nothing needed to be said. Why not just sit together and listen?

(…)

"Get yer lazy arses up 'ere and unload these barrels."

Peri needed no second invitation. Long past were the days when lifting a load of illegal contraband was difficult for her. She took her place at one end of the barrel and Nick took his place at the other, and together they hefted the massive thing up into the air. The putrid stench of fish coating everything she touched, including the insides of her nose, but that smell was a facade. Its only purpose was to mask the scent of drugs from anyone who came to inspect their ship. It also served a capable deterrent to officials and the type. Who would want to spend any longer than they had to on a ship that smelled like the inside of a whale's stomach? Her first time aboard, it had taken them nearly an hour to unload the barrels. Now it barely took half an hour. They finished just before the sun crested the city roofs behind them, sweating but barely winded. They shared a quick smile before climbing back up onto the Fair Maria to search out Skink for their assignments for the day.

"A'right, can ye handle a little teamwork?" Skink asked with a wide, toothy grin. It was met with a sheepish smile on Nick's part and a smug one on Peri's.

"Sure thing," Peri answered, digging her elbow into Nick's side. Skink nodded brusquely and rummaged around in his pockets for a moment, then withdrew a folded piece of paper. Peri took it from his outstretched hand and quickly unfolded it, eager to see what they would be going after today. Nick scooted in closer to get a look at the paper, and for a moment both of them were silent. The smile dropped from her lips and a cold shiver ran under her skin. Looking up, she searched Skink's eyes for some hint of merriment. This wouldn't be the first trick he'd handed to them, and she prayed with all her heart that this was one of them. But the stony expression on his face condemned her suspicions.

"Are you out of your mind?!" Nick hissed, taking the words right out of her mouth. Skink closed his eyes and gave a mournful shake of his head, his wiry beard brushing his chest as he did so.

"Are you trying to get us killed?" Another head shake.

"Then what in hell-"

"Listen." Skink's voice was suddenly loud, thundering, and it cut off any sort of protest. They both fell quiet and the grizzled smuggler made an effort to reel in his temper. "Listen," he said again, softer, "the person asking for this, he's... dangerous. It was accept or be killed, and if you don't get this…"

"We get killed," Peri finished flatly. Skink nodded.

"Not just you two, but the entire crew. Everyone we've ever dealt with. They might even trace you two back to the orphanage."

Peri's stomach dropped down through the bottoms of her feet, and a frigid fear, far colder than the river in the woods, took root in her chest. She almost felt sick, except there was no way that was possible. She hadn't eaten since yesterday afternoon when she'd pinched a loaf of bread off of a shelf. It wasn't that she wouldn't love to see Mrs. Ballem suffer, maybe even die, but there were other people at the orphanage that she couldn't bear to see hurt. Against all odds, she had managed to form a few attachments to that cursed place, and if she didn't come through those attachments would come under fire. She refused to be responsible for that.

From the look on Nick's face, he hadn't come to the same conclusions as she had. He was going to refuse, and Peri couldn't do this alone.

"Well, you can go tell this guy to shove-"

"We'll do it."

Nick wheeled around with outrage written across his face, but Peri ignored him. She gave Skink a short nod and turned to stride off of the ship, cloak tucked tight around her body to ward of the chill she knew would never truly leave her. Her boots, stolen only a month ago, should have made hollow thudding sounds as she walked, but the only footsteps audible were those of her companion as he ran after her, anger practically pulsing off of him.

"Peri, Peri, stop!"

She didn't stop. These people were going to kill her, Nick, Marya… she couldn't handle that.

"Peri! Stop!"

Once again she ignored him, already setting about the process of braiding her hair. It would only get in the way once they reached their destination. However, she was forced to stop when Nick grabbed ahold of her arm and yanked her to a halt. She whipped around and was satisfied to see Nick take a good step back from her, out of clawing range. She considered walking away again, but she figured he would only run after her, and he wouldn't be quiet about it. So she stood in the center of the dock and continued braiding, maintaining a frigid stare as she did so.

"Peri, we can't take this job," Nick said after quite a few calming breaths.

"You heard Skink back there. These people, they'll kill everyone we know."

"Peri! This isn't a job, it's a suicide run! We're talking about the Dragon Riders here, not some crime lord. Think this through."

"What's to think about? I'm not going to be the one to get Marya killed."

And with that Peri turned and continued stalking along the docks, her braid complete. She stuffed it down the back of her cloak and pulled the hood up over her head, shielding her feminine features. She made it ten steps before there was another touch on her arm, but this one was softer. She stopped, but she didn't turn around. Nick heaved a long sigh behind her, the defeat notable in his gesture.

"Alright, Kitty. Alright. But you can't do this angry. If we're going to survive this, we have to be prepared. Are we okay?"

Peri didn't answer. Instead she snagged Nick's sleeve and pulled him along with her as she headed for their safe house nearby.

(…)

"This is completely insane."

Peri rolled her eyes but otherwise didn't respond at she wiggled into the maid's attire she'd paid for two days ago, every sense she had telling her this dress was impractical and ridiculous. Her skirt would get caught when she ran, the shoes weren't good for anything besides walking, and the bodice was made for someone with a much larger chest. She compensated by stuffing her shirt inside the dress and took great care to make it look natural. Nick was trying not to look amused in order to avoid a pointed kick to the knee (maybe these shoes were good for something after all), but Peri made a point of ignoring him. He had it easy: all he had to do was change pants and pull on a jacket and he was done.

"I mean, we've done crazy things before, but this, this is a whole new level."

Peri tugged at the dress a little to get it to sit right, examining herself in the dirty mirror they had propped up against the wall and making adjustments where they were needed. Her hair was a bit of a problem, as the only hairstyle she knew how to attempt was a braid or a ponytail, but thankfully a friend of Marya's had lent a hand. Now she looked like any other maid in the Lodge, if a little young. But she knew children younger than she had been four years ago who worked for the lords and ladies of Dragon's Landing, so her youth wouldn't be that noticeable. Satisfied that there was no dirt on her face, she turned to Nick and raised an eyebrow, a silent question.

"Ready when you are," Nick said, throwing a cheerful bravado into place to hide the fact that they were both terrified. If they were caught, death would be a mercy.

"Good," she said, clearing her throat. "Let's go."

Leading the way, she made her way out onto the street with Nick ten steps behind, sometimes more. She had a basket full of various fruits tucked under her arm, in case someone questioned her identity, and behind her Nick carried a small amount of leather. The streets were crowded as always, but they were even more so the closer they got to the Lodge. When Peri reached the square she could hardly see spaces in between the people around her, and she had to shelter her burden with her body to avoid spilling it on the ground. There was evidence of such accidents everywhere, broken leaves pressed down between the stones that paved the street, and little children darted around to catch whatever dropped. To go through the middle would be harder than fighting a war, and besides, the servants' entrance was easier to reach if one went around. So around she went, working hard to look like she wasn't in a hurry. She felt like she was going to start buzzing with all the nerves she felt at the moment. It had taken weeks, almost a month, to plan this heist, and if all that work went to waste now, their employer wouldn't allow them a second chance. Marya would be killed, as would Skink and the entire crew of the Fair Maria, plus countless others. This had to work.

At last she reached the alley where the servants' entrance was located. She slipped clear of the chaotic mass within the square and took a deep breath as space opened up around her. Not many people dared to hang around in the alleys surrounding the Lodge. Approaching the small door that served as the entrance, she dug a small pouch out of her clothes and set it down amongst the fruits in her basket. The door was elevated and slightly sunken into the wall, made of a dark wood that had been meticulously polished. It had no windows, but there was a small slot cut into it at eye level, covered by a piece of wood that could be slid back from the inside. There was no exterior handle. Peri stepped up to the door and knocked, trying to stand a little higher so she could see through the slot. Behind her Nick arrived, shifting almost imperceptibly from one foot to the other. There were footsteps behind the door, and then the wood panel slid back, revealing a pair of shrewd green eyes.

"Some fruits and leather for the Riders," Peri announced, holding the woman's gaze for three seconds before dropping her eyes. The door creaked open just a crack, but it was wide enough that both Peri and Nick could slip inside. The door was shut behind them almost immediately, but Peri didn't bother worrying over the heavy clanging it made. She had it on good confidence that door would remain unlocked for twenty more minutes. Almost at the same time, she and Nick both offered identical bags of coins, as well as the fruits and leather they had mentioned at the door. The woman took them without a word and left, leaving the pair of them standing in the shadowed hallway alone. Peri wasn't idle for long.

She set off down the hall at a brisk pace down the hall, as if she had somewhere to be, and before long she spotted the pile of supplies she'd been promised. Scooping them up, she followed the directions she'd been given, making her way out to the main hall where the grand staircase descended from the second floor. Servants were coming and going like bees in a hive, all of them terribly busy with some important task that they'd been given. In order to blend in, Peri had to make like she was preoccupied with something similar. She wanted desperately to look around for Nick, just to take comfort from the fact that she wasn't alone, but that simple gesture might blow her cover. Up the stairs she went, forcing herself not to take them two at a time, and at the top she turned right. The next part was a little tricky, as it required more luck than skill, but it shouldn't be too hard. She had to happen upon the room she was looking for while it was empty, or else someone might suspect that she wasn't who she said she was. For this stage, she'd brought along something of her own. It lay tucked in her pocket, but it was easily within reach should she need it. Counting carefully, she ducked into the fourth door on the left and stopped, pretending to be flustered. A maid already cleaning straightened up, looking confused.

"Oh, hello," she said, tossing a rag over her shoulder.

"Sorry, wrong room," Peri said in a scattered way, brushing a few stray pieces of hair back from her face. "I'm just- sorry, I'm not feeling right."

She began to back away, but she'd already piqued the maid's interest. The woman set down a bucket of suds and came closer.

"No, it's quite alright. Maybe it's something I can help with?"

"Oh, no, I wouldn't want to bother you…"

"It's no bother at all," the woman said, waving her hand dismissively. "Do tell."

"Well, it's just… a friend of mine, well…" Peri looked down with a small frown, thoroughly disgusted with the show she was putting on. Were all women really like this, fluttery and completely helpless? She thrust her hand into her pocket and pulled out a slightly crumpled note, offering it to the woman. "What should I do?"

The woman took the note and smoothed it out on her dress, then held it up to read it. After a moment an amused smile spread across her face and she handed the note back.

"What do you want to do?" the woman asked, folding her hands in front of her. Peri bit her lip and looked down at the note, then allowed tears to flow to her eyes. Compassion immediately bloomed on the maid's face and she ushered Peri closer. "You don't want to run away with him?" she asked, gently, like she was talking to a fragile baby bird. Peri swallowed her nausea and nodded delicately, trying to be the baby bird this maid saw her to be.

"He frightens me," Peri confessed softly, earning herself a strong squeeze around the shoulders. Just then, a figure appeared in the doorway.

"What are you ladies talking about?" Peri could hardly recognize her friend's voice, cold and smarmy as it was, so it was that much easier to fake the horror on her face as she looked up. Nick lurked with a predatory smile on his face, and suddenly Peri remembered just how dangerous her friend could be.

"B-Bernard?" she stammered, bolting to her feet. Beside her the woman rose as well.

"How did you get in here?" the woman demanded, fire lighting in her eyes. Peri felt a new sort of respect for her; perhaps she wasn't as daft as she seemed.

"Sweetheart, none of this concerns you," Nick sneered, his smile poisonous. The woman bristled visibly and for a moment Peri thought she would march over and strike him. Instead she opened her mouth and shouted a quick 'Intruder!'. The response was immediate; at once a large group of men appeared, dressed differently from the male servants, flanking Nick on both sides.

"Come with us, sir," one of the men said without emotion. It wasn't a request. These men were going to escort Nick off the grounds whether he liked it or not. They were gone in a heartbeat, and Peri sagged visibly. The woman looked utterly furious, but she made an effort to gather herself and turned to Peri.

"I'm sorry about that. I'm going to go have a word with Lidar about security."

And she left. Peri was left standing dumbfounded, still not quite convinced that their plan had worked. It had actually worked. The sun shining in through the window caught her attention as it steadily dropped towards the sea, and she winced. It had taken longer than expected to get inside, so she had no time to stand around. Without hesitation she hurried over to a leather bag hanging from the bedpost. Inside was a small collection of bottles, each labeled in a language she didn't know. Peri had no idea what it was intended for, only that it was worth her friends' lives, so she lifted each bottle from the bag and slipped them into the bodice of her dress, hoping no one would search her there. Once the bottles were secure and everything looked normal, she gathered the cleaning supplies she'd brought and left the same way she'd come. The only nerve-wracking part was getting past the woman who'd served as her distraction. Thankfully she was occupied with scolding a pair of guards at the door, who looked concerned for their lives. In no time Peri had slipped out of sight. It took her less than a minute to hurry down the hallway to the servants' entrance, but it was the longest walk of her life as she fervently prayed she wasn't too late. Dropping her supplies beside the door, she seized the handle and twisted, half-expecting it not to move. But it did, and she slipped out into the evening air. They'd done it.

(…)

"That was some believable acting back there, Kitty," Nick said as he dropped in beside her on her way back to the docks. "Maybe you should do some plays for the commonfolk."

"Yeah, you too. You make a good jackass." But Peri was smiling under her cloak, and he knew that. He gave her shoulder a gentle shove and laughed as she nearly tumbled into the dirty waters of the harbor. The sound of their boots changed from a clip to a hollow thud as they mounted the docks and began heading for the Fair Maria.

"I can't believe we actually pulled that off," he said quietly, giving the sailors around them a suspicious look. The sun had set during their journey back and now everything was taking on shades of gray as night began to fall. "Do you have them?"

"Sure, down my shirt," Peri answered, scanning the boats for their dingy little smuggling ship. "Care to get them out for me?"

"I know I was good back there, but I'm not actually a jackass. You know that, right?"

Peri shot him a disbelieving glance, but when she turned her eyes on him he was staring at something further down the docks. The expression on his face was what caught her attention. Turning her head slowly, she quickly found the Fair Maria bobbing gently at the end of the dock. At first she didn't notice anything wrong, but then she realized that the shadows lying about her decks weren't, in fact, shadows.

"Are those…" She couldn't finish. She didn't have to. Nick grabbed her arm like it was the only thing keeping him from drowning and hauled her around, taking off running back down the docks with Peri bumping along behind. She was too shocked to even try to keep step, because Nick's reaction had answered her question better than any words could have. The crew of the Fair Maria was dead.

"Peri, get your ass into gear and run!" Just as Nick spoke, the crew of one of the nearby ships all abruptly stopped their tasks and flooded over the sides of the deck, spreading out across the deck with frightening speed. Peri saw a glint of steel, and then she was ripped away from Nick from behind. The hood of her cloak fell back, revealing her hair, but that was the least of her worries as she felt a knife prick at her throat.

"One move, bitch, and you're dead." Peri didn't have to be told twice. She didn't think she could have struggled if she'd wanted to. Skink was gone. She'd never haul those damned barrel around again, and she'd never hear his growling laugh, nor Joss's always-changing story of how he'd lost his hand. The Fair Maria would be found in the morning with the blood of her crew stained into her deck, but with a little work it could be scrubbed clean and sold for honest work. The only thing keeping her from throwing herself against the knife at her throat was the similar one held to Nick's.

"Where're the bottles?" one of the men asked, striding forward to stand between the two of them. "Speak."

"My shirt," Peri answered slowly, her voice hoarse with unshed tears. The man in the center nodded and the knife dropped from her throat. Shakily she withdrew each bottle, conscious of all the eyes on her, and set them down on the dock. Once her shirt was empty she stepped back and waited, her eyes darting back and forth from the speaker to Nick. Immediately the knife returned to her throat, but she could only focus on the man in the center. The speaker, a slender man with fair hair, examined the bottles with an clever expression, like this was all going in a direction he liked. Peri forced her anger and grief back, waiting for him to speak.

"Good, very good," the man said, his voice smoother than butter but about as trustworthy as a snake's hiss. "Boys, go get ready to set sail." Almost all of the men surrounding them broke away, returning to the ship they had been watching from before, leaving only the speaker and the two men holding Peri and Nick. "You two," the man continued, pointing to the men with the knives. "Kill them."

What happened was not quite what he'd requested. Both Peri and Nick moved at the same time, dealing blows to insteps, groins, anywhere that was sensitive, until they were both free. Rather than stick around and fight, both of them sprinted off along the deck, making no effort at subterfuge. Behind them they heard furious orders to kill them, shoot them, etc., but at that point the dodged behind a massive warship that complicated any aerial shots. Already Peri's breath was ragged, both from exertion and emotion, but she'd never run so fast in her life than at that moment. Footsteps sounded in pursuit, but they had a head start and experience on their side. They knew the docks from endless days of working them, flitting back and forth between smuggling ships to deliver all sorts of goods. They reached the shore and didn't stop, heading for a safe house a few streets away that connected to a tunnel leading out of the city. It was too late for them to catch the cart back to the orphanage, but even if it weren't they still would have avoided it, for fear of getting someone they cared about killed. If they could just make it a few streets, they could be safe.

They shouldn't have underestimated the speed of their pursuer.

The only warning they had was a soft grunt, and then a huge, smelly mass crashed into Peri's back, sending her crumpling onto the stones. She struggled to get up but she couldn't move the weight of the man on top of her, pinning her on her stomach. She couldn't even see if he was lifting a knife to kill her or not. Odds are, he was. Abruptly the man jerked backwards, then fell to the side, giving her just enough room to kick her way free and stand. She whipped around, ready for a fight, but instead found a body. Well, it wasn't a body yet, but it was well on its way to becoming one. She stared in horror as the man jerked and spasmed, a wide gash at his throat pouring too much blood onto the road. Peri probably would have stood there all night, but once again Nick grabbed her arm and ran, pulling her behind. They left the man dying in the middle of the road.

(…)

"Nick."

No answer. There hadn't been an answer the first eleven times she'd said his name either, but she was determined to keep trying. Perched on a crate next to the barrel of rainwater, she watched as Nick scrubbed madly at his hands like they were coated in acid, when in fact they were the cleanest she'd ever seen them. There hadn't even been enough blood on his hands to cloud the water. Peri scrubbed at her face as yet another rebellious tear worked its way out of her eye, trying not to think. Skink was dead. Joss was dead. Everyone else was dead. The man in the street… he was definitely dead. Nick had killed him. Marya… Peri tried to stifle a whimper, but instead a sob broke free of her chest and she clamped her hand over her mouth. That sob was only the precursor, as many more filed out after it, and all the while Nick was washing his hands of the blood he couldn't stop seeing. Since no one was watching, Peri put her head in her hands and wept like a child. Everyone she loved was dead.

She wasn't sure how long she sat there crying, but at some point there was a hesitant touch on her knee. She found no point in trying to pretend she was fine, so she looked up to see Nick standing before her like a broken toy, his eyes emptier than she'd ever seen them. Neither of them spoke, but when she leaped off the crate at him he caught her as if the whole thing had been planned. And then they stood there, clinging to the last thing they had left, and they both cried.

"We can't go back," she whispered at last, hiccups punctuating her words. "If they're s-still alive, we'd put them in danger."

"What're we going to do?" Nick asked, his voice wobbly as a newborn foal. He sounded as lost as she felt.

"I don't know."