Hey guys! Welcome back to Hear a Tale! Before we get into it, review time!

Thanks so much to CitrusChickadee for reviewing! Always fun to explore how something like healing magic might be able to work! And of course, Alfyn and Ophilia always have to be cute, no matter how serious the situation ;) Glad you enjoyed!

With that, on with the tale!

Relevant Events: Therion's Chapter Two

42. Standing Still

"So, Therion," Cyrus' voice came gratingly over Therion's shoulder once again, making the thief grimace, "if I may be so bold, could I possibly inquire as to what your plan of attack might be?"

All that pedantic fluff, when the question could've been three words long, Therion thought dully, pinching the bridge of his nose. Tch…scholars.

"You don't need to worry about my plan," he hissed aloud, though he did not turn to face the older man. "Your job is to stand here, say nothing, and let me do my job."

The professor gave a soft, indignant huff behind him. "Well, now…there's no need to be so snappish. You are the one that asked me to help in this endeavor, after all."

"I asked if you knew Orlick or Barham," Therion corrected, "seeing as you all ended up in the same profession. What I didn't ask you to do is attach yourself to my side for everything following that."

"Come now, I couldn't simply stand back and wait while you undertook this risky task all by yourself, could I?"

"The other six seemed content enough to do that."

"Well of course, a group of eight would likely prove rather counterproductive to a discreet thieving operation, wouldn't it?" Cyrus peered over Therion's shoulder at the merchant's stall they had both been watching for the past several minutes. It was situated in a rather wide-open square of Noblecourt, so the thief and the scholar had had to remain quite a ways away in the shadow of a building in order to avoid detection. "A duo is naturally able to be far more subtle, and allows for more flexibility than going alone - I could keep watch for you!"

Gods, give me patience. "...uh huh." Therion shook his head. "I thought you weren't a fan of illegal activity, Professor. Any particular reason you're so eager to help me out here? You do understand that thieving is a crime, right?"

Cyrus chuckled. "Of course I do, my boy, but this is a special case! We are friends, are we not?"

"News to me."

"And of course, I am not so stubborn in my morals that I cannot understand that there are certain situations in which exceptions must be made," the scholar continued, with no indication that he had heard Therion's quip. "No, in fact, while I must admit that petty thievery is not quite my cup of tea, I loathe scholarly misconduct far more. This Orlick…if I have him right, he is hoarding all knowledge of this ruby Dragonstone - which, I might add, does not belong to him to begin with - for himself, and is squirreling away its secrets for his own benefit, and no one else's. As a scholar myself, that, I cannot abide."

And so…you don't mind me stealing oasis water from someone who has literally nothing to do with any of this, Therion thought silently, but did not bother to point out aloud. Excellent logic, Professor.

"Great to hear it," he said instead, flatly. "You can tell him all about it once we get into his house and get the Dragonstone. For now, if you could stop talking my ear off and let me work, I'd greatly appreciate it."

Cyrus cleared his throat and quickly nodded. "Right, right, of course, forgive me. Though first I must say, I did not expect thievery to involve so much…standing still, admittedly. Especially given your own mannerisms."

"...do I dare ask what that's supposed to mean?"

"Oh, only that you seem the restless type," the professor replied. "Always fidgeting, fiddling with things, keeping your hands moving…I don't mean it as a criticism, of course! I myself often behave much the same."

Therion forced himself to still the hand that had been actively toying with the end of his scarf. "...riveting. Well, let's just say I know how to be quiet and still when I have to be." Unlike some people. "You have to know how to wait for the right moment if you don't want to be caught."

"Of course, of course, you are the expert thief after all! Ah…" Cyrus cleared his throat yet again and smiled awkwardly. "Very well, I will…stop talking to you now. Go right ahead with your plan."

"Finally…" Therion muttered. "Just stand back a little, will you? This'll be done before you know it."

As the scholar obligingly retreated a few paces, Therion stepped out of cover, strolling casually along the street as though he belonged there. Beneath his lavender shawl, his right hand was clenched around the chain link that dangled off of his Fool's Bangle, holding it in place so that it wouldn't rattle. He drew closer to the crowd watching the oasis water merchant hawking his wares, his visible eye narrowed in an illusion of interest.

Therion skirted the edges of the gathered people, circling around until he stood close to the stall at the merchant's left. He wasn't overly out of place - several other townsfolk had approached the counter as well, examining the bottles of crystal clear water displayed there.

"Come one, come all!" The proud merchant was calling out to his rapt audience. "I present to you the most precious and refreshing beverage in the realm! Oasis water, all-natural and free of even the slightest impurities! One sip and you'll taste the difference! You there!" He pointed to a random passerby. "How about a drink?"

If you lead a thief to water… Therion reached out with his shackle-less left hand and picked up a bottle, holding it at eye level and studying it closely, as many other customers were doing. Tch, he thought, unimpressed. Looks like regular water to me. The things bluebloods'll throw their leaves at…all because they're too damned lazy to boil the "slightest impurities" out of their own water.

Not that any of it was his problem. It wasn't like he was planning on paying.

With the bottle in his left hand still raised conspicuously to his eye, Therion shifted, letting the rippling of his shawl cover the motion of his right hand as he swiftly snagged the neck of a second bottle with his thumb and index finger - the rest still held down the chain link to keep it quiet. Once the bottle was spirited away beneath his clothing, he stood like that for a moment more to gauge whether or not he had managed to arouse any suspicion.

No one so much as glanced in his direction.

"Hmph," he muttered aloud, speaking up enough that the merchant and the closest townspeople would be likely to hear him, but not to think much of it, "too rich for my blood." With that, he replaced the bottle in his left hand on the stall's counter, offered the merchant himself a quick nod of farewell for good measure, and sauntered away from the stall, not a soul realizing that the seller's inventory had just quietly shrunk.

Therion moved in the same direction as he had been walking when he had first approached the stall, figuring that it would look marginally more suspicious if he'd simply turned around and hurried back the way he'd come. Once he had descended the stairs on the other side of the square, however, he chose a route on the lower path that would ultimately lead him back to where Cyrus was waiting. Before long, he was able to slip back into the shadows of the building they'd used for cover, returning to the scholar's side.

"What do you say, Professor?" he asked smugly as he came up behind Cyrus, causing the older man to jump. "Fancy a drink?" He slipped the bottle out from beneath his shawl and held it up, smirking.

Cyrus' eyes widened, his mouth dropping open a fraction. "Oh, my…Therion, I must say, that was an incredible display of skill! Why, I was watching this whole time, and until this very moment, I was convinced you simply must not have had the opportunity to take a bottle at all! I must commend you, truly - you worked so quickly that I did not see a thing! How did you do it?"

"Trade secret," the thief replied, concealing the bottle once more. "But since I'm feeling generous today, I'll throw you a bone - never forget that misdirection is the most powerful weapon in a thief's arsenal. Sometimes, the best thing you can do to throw people off your trail is to just stand there and look like a regular person."

"Aha!" Cyrus laughed, delighted. "Incredible, truly incredible! I suppose I shall have to remember to call upon you whenever I am in need of someone with a penchant for discretion."

"Please don't."

As was typical, the professor ignored Therion's flat words. "Why, between your dexterity and my aptitude for logical dilemmas, I'm sure the two of us could make a surprisingly formidable team!"

"Not happening."

"Come, my friend!" Cyrus tossed the edge of his cloak behind him and strode out from the shadows, beckoning to Therion as he went. "Let us return to the others, and give our friend Barham 'the goods,' as they say." He chuckled to himself lightly. "My, this was fun. We really should team up with one another more often!"

Therion's eye rolled as he traipsed after the enthusiastic professor. "Uh huh, sure," he muttered under his breath, "like that would end well for either of us."

See you guys next time for Tale 43: Dying! (oh boy lol)