Hey, guys! Welcome back to Hear a Tale! Oof, so sorry it's been so long, since life's been kinda hectic with job stuff, health stuff, etc., but hey! I'm back now, and without any further excuses, let's take care of reviews!

Thanks so much to CitrusChickadee (Ah, glad you caught that! Not all game mechanics can be explained away with realism, but I do like to try :), rayceviking (The feeling is mutual, haha! ;), and I-KL-I (Thank you so much, glad you've enjoyed! :D) for reviewing!

With that, as we reach the halfway point of what this collection will one day be, on with the tale!

Relevant Events: End of Therion's Chapter Three

50. Breaking the Rules

"One Dragonstone down, two to go…again." Therion muttered under his breath as he stalked away from Ravus Manor, with his hand raised to shield his eye from the light of the setting sun, and with Tressa bouncing along far too cheerfully beside him. "Damn you, Darius…"

"Oh, don't let it get to you too much," the merchant said with a shrug. "At least both stones are in one place now, right? That'll make 'em that much easier to find!"

"Your optimism is both unfounded and unwelcome here."

Tressa scowled slightly. "Well sheesh, so sorry for trying to make you feel better."

Therion's visible eye rolled. "You don't need to pretend like you're here for emotional support. I know you only tagged along because you wanted to see the manor."

"Hey, two things can be true at once, you know!"

"Uh huh. And why exactly would you care about my emotional state? What, has the thought of this thief possibly having a tragic past softened your little law-abiding heart?"

"I'm trying to be kind and empathetic!" Tressa grumbled, crossing her arms. "Not that you make it easy at all…I don't know what that Darius guy did to you, but you really need to learn that the seven of us aren't out to get you!"

The thief stiffened briefly, then scoffed, not meeting Tressa's eyes. "Yeah, yeah, whatever. Look, just…I don't want to talk about it. Okay? So don't ask, or…or say anything about it."

Tressa paused, studying his face for a long moment. Therion wasn't sure what she was looking for, but whatever she found caused her eyes to widen slightly, and she stepped back, her expression softening.

"...okay," she finally said. "I won't. But, um…if you do ever want to talk about it, then…"

"Won't happen. But…" Therion exhaled heavily and shook his head. "The rest of you will listen, or…whatever. I get it."

"Yeah. Um…" Tressa cleared her throat awkwardly. "Speaking of, uh…we should probably go back and join up with - ah!"

Suddenly, a figure bumped into Tressa from behind, shoving past her and sending her stumbling forward into Therion, who caught her on instinct. Rather than stop and apologize, the figure dashed off towards the staircase that led to the lower levels of Bolderfall, cloak swirling out behind them.

"Hey!" Tressa shouted, regaining her footing and pushing away from Therion. She glared after the person's retreating back. "Watch where you're going! Jerk…some people are so rude!"

Therion arched an eyebrow. "Uh huh…quick question. You by any chance happen to be feeling a little lighter than a few seconds ago?"

She blinked. "Huh? What's that supposed to mean?"

"Your coinpurse, Tressa."

"What about my - ?" Her hand went to her side, and her eyes widened. "Wha - it's gone!"

"Figured as much." Therion shrugged. "Oldest thieving trick in the book. Poor execution on that one's part, though - you're not really supposed to send the target flying when you push past them."

Tressa gaped at him. "W…what are you talking about!?"

"Oh, it's supposed to be so subtle that you don't draw too much attention. You don't want to let the target know that anything's out of the ordina - "

"Not that! I mean, I just got robbed! Why are you just standing around critiquing the guy's technique!?"

"...is there something else I'm supposed to be doing?"

"Yes, obviously!" Tressa grabbed Therion's arm and pointed towards the stairs that the other thief had disappeared down. "You're supposed to be helping me figure out what to do to get my coinpurse back!"

"I don't recall signing up for that," Therion replied dully, extricating his arm from the merchant's grasp. "You're an adult, allegedly. What do you think you should do?"

Though she scowled momentarily at Therion's quip, Tressa shook her head to clear it and thought for a moment. "Um…oh! I could go find a guard and get them to help!"

"In this city?" Therion snorted. "Good luck. If you were a Ravus, sure, but any guard here isn't going to try enforcing anything in Lower Bolderfall for the sake of some random traveler's purse. Anything short of assault isn't worth risking their necks to them."

Tressa's eyes went wide. "Is…is it really that bad down there?"

The thief shrugged. "I won't lie and say there's no decent folk. But, ah…let's just say that life is rough on the lower levels of this town. And rough life breeds rough people. Gangs of thieves and the like are the authorities in places like that, not guardsmen."

"Ooh…" Tressa shuddered briefly. "Okay, well, then…in a place like that…then we've gotta find him and fight him for the leaves, right!? Rough him up and make him give them back!"

Though she looked up at him hopefully, Therion's expression remained flat. "See, now that's an excellent way to guarantee us getting either killed or arrested. Remember what I said about assault? Well, if the guards don't get to you, then one of the thugs or cutthroats down there will."

"Oh, um, w-well…I don't see you coming up with any better ideas!" Tressa snapped. "If you're so smart, then what do you suggest we do!?"

Therion smirked. "Isn't it obvious, Tressa?" He lifted a coin from his own pocket, rolling it across his knuckles before spiriting it away beneath his shawl with a swift flick of his wrist. "We steal it right back from him."

The merchant blinked, then sighed, rubbing her forehead. "Alright…I should've known. Fine, then! But please hurry, alright? Before that jerk spends it all!" With that, she started to walk off, until Therion's hand flashed out and snagged the back of her pack, stopping her in her tracks.

"Hold on there, brat," he said, his sly grin almost audible in his voice. "Where exactly do you think you're going?"

"Uh…back to the inn to wait with the others while you do your thing?"

"Oh, no you're not." He spun her around until she was at his side, then began walking towards the staircase, prodding her along beside him. "I never said anything about doing this on my own for you. If we're going to get that purse back, then you have to come too."

"W-What!?" Tressa ducked away from his arm, turning to stare open-mouthed at his smug expression. "You can't be serious! I-I'm not a thief! That…that goes against everything a merchant stands for!"

"Tressa, Tressa, Tressa…" Therion shook his head pityingly. "Putting aside the fact that you'd apparently be perfectly fine with me doing your dirty work for you…you need to learn that, in this world, sometimes breaking the rules is the only way to avoid getting screwed over. Those coins were yours to begin with, right?"

"W-Well…yes…"

"And they were wrongfully stolen from you?"

"...yes…"

"So…no reason not to do what it takes to get them back, right?" Therion shrugged. "Unless, of course, you don't mind your hard-earned leaves being in the filthy hands of an undeserving thief…"

"I…gah, okay, stop that!" she finally shouted. "Fine! I'll go with you! But…you'd better not make me do the thieving itself!"

"Leave the hardest part of the job to an amateur?" Therion scoffed. "Please, I'd never do something as ridiculous as that." However, the corner of his mouth soon curled into a slow smirk. "You, little merchant, are just going to be my accomplice."

The thief only chuckled as the merchant lowered her head with a groan of despair.

()()()()

Not much later, the two of them crouched quietly behind a small rock formation near the entrance to the tavern in Lower Bolderfall. A quick glance through the dust-stained window had shown them that their target sat silently at the very end of the bar, anxiously fiddling with a flagon of ale.

"That one's clearly new at this," Therion had remarked. "See how he's shaking like a leaf? You must've been one of his first hits…if not the very first."

"Lucky me…" Tressa had muttered in response.

Now, however, the merchant was beginning to sympathize with the man who had robbed her; her body buzzed with nervous energy, and it was all she could do to keep from bouncing in place as Therion surveyed the tavern's front door.

"So…what's the plan?" she whispered.

"Mhm…" The thief's eye narrowed in thought for a moment, before his gaze lazily slid over to Tressa. "You consider yourself reasonably precise with your magic, right?"

"Um…I guess so. Why?"

Therion smirked.

()()()()

Keeping his head down, Therion sidled into the tavern, sans his usual scarf and shawl. He had buttoned the white shirt underneath higher than usual, not wanting to chance any scars on his chest being used as identifying marks later on. He caught a few gazes locking onto the Fool's Bangle on his wrist, but only for a moment or two at a time; such items weren't exactly rare sights in slums such as these. It might make him a subject of mockery, but it wouldn't inherently make him identifiable.

It never hurt to be too careful.

As was customary in a place such as this, Therion made his way to the bar quietly, making neither eye contact nor conversation with any of the scattered patrons already seated around the tavern. In return, they too lowered their heads back to their tables and wholeheartedly ignored him.

Sliding onto a stool several seats down from where his target perched, Therion flipped a coin up onto the bar counter, nodding at the tavernkeeper. Needing no further invitation, the man took the coin and slid an ale towards Therion in its place.

The thief nodded his thanks and took a conservative sip of the amber liquid as he began mentally counting the seconds. For the next six and a half minutes, all he needed to do was settle in and wait.

()()()()

387…388…389…

The door to the tavern creaked open once again.

390.

Therion cast a nonchalant glance over his shoulder, shifting briefly with the rest of the tavern's occupants to catch a glimpse of the small, purple-clad figure that crept their way inside. A lavender shawl covered most of their body, while a cloth of a darker violet served as a hood that largely hid their face.

The thief snorted lightly as he turned away, feigning disinterest. Surprisingly, it was not the worst disguise he'd ever been forced to work with.

Out of the corner of his eye, he watched as the other tavern patrons lost interest in the newcomer as they shuffled over to an empty table in the corner. The figure sat, adjusting their makeshift hood, then scanning the row of stools at the bar. Their gaze pointedly skipped over the anxious thief at the left end, then snagged on Therion briefly before continuing on and ultimately landing on a pair of larger men seated a little ways to his right.

Any moment now… Therion thought, ever so slightly shifting his weight on his stool.

In a carefully subtle movement, the cloaked figure's hand closed into a fist. Across the room, the lightest gust of wind swirled to life, gently nudging at one of the men's tankard of ale, which had been set down just a bit too close to the edge of the counter…and now tipped over completely, emptying its contents directly into the other man's lap.

The victim of the spill immediately leaped up, swearing loudly and rounding on the man beside him. "The hell was that for!?" he shouted, causing all eyes in the tavern to immediately jump to him.

"I didn't touch the damned thing!" the other man spat back. "If anythin', it was you that bumped it!"

"Me!? I bumped it!? What, you mean like this!?" The first man snatched his own ale off of the counter and thrust it into the second man's face, leaving him sopping wet and spluttering.

Before long, punches were thrown, and other patrons were jumping up to either join in, pull the two away from one another, or flee the tavern before things got too out of hand. The cloaked thief at the end of the bar seemed inclined toward the latter, as he staggered to his feet and backed away, casting quick glances at the door amidst the rush of people.

Therion stood as well, taking a step towards the quickly-growing brawl, but was immediately thrown back by an overeager thug shoving by, clearly looking for an excuse to fight. He stumbled backwards, practically colliding with the other thief, though he managed to reach out and right himself before they could both topple over.

It was as he had said before - subtlety was key. There was no point if it didn't seem natural.

"Sorry, friend," he muttered, patting the man on the shoulder lightly, before carefully skirting the unruly crowd, making for the exit without looking back. A few steps away from the door, he crossed paths with the purple-clad figure, and wordlessly, he grabbed their arm and pulled them outside with him. Once the two of them were out of the doorway, Therion picked up the pace, dashing down the road and around the corner with his companion in tow.

"Nice aim, kid," the thief chuckled as they came to a halt beside the staircase that would lead them back up to Bolderfall's upper levels. "We might just make a master thief of you yet."

"Not a chance!" Tressa threw back her hood, making a show of scowling up at Therion - though her mouth noticeably twitched against the urge to grin. "I use my talents for good, thank you very much."

Therion shrugged. "Eh, I'm sure I'll fully corrupt you soon enough." He reached out and took the violet cloth from around Tressa's shoulders, shaking it out and then winding it back into its proper scarf shape. "Congratulations, Tressa, you've officially aided and abetted your first crime."

"Oh, please." Tressa's eyes rolled - though her grin didn't fade - as she shrugged off Therion's shawl and handed it back to him. "It's like you said - I'm the one who got stolen from first! And I earned those leaves fair and square, so this was hardly a crime at all."

"Whatever you say, brat." Therion reached for his belt and removed the familiar coinpurse he'd somehow secured there without a soul noticing, then tossed it to Tressa. "There you go. And for a first-time discount, I won't even demand a cut."

"Yeah, yeah, very generous…" The merchant caught the purse and held it tightly to her chest, as though fearful it would get taken again at any moment. She then averted her eyes, kicking lightly at the dusty ground beneath their feet. "Anyway…thank you, I guess. I know you didn't really want to help me, so…I appreciate it."

The thief lifted a shoulder as he wrapped his shawl and scarf back around himself. "Don't mention it. After this whole Dragonstone debacle, I think I needed an easy win." He paused. "And…I don't know. Something, something, 'kindness and empathy amongst traveling companions,' or whatever you were saying before."

"Huh…" Tressa blinked. "So you really do care after all!"

"Never said that," Therion grunted, grabbing Tressa's shoulder and wheeling her around to face the stairs. "And don't you dare go around repeating that around the others…or else I'll have to tell them all how you got a crash course in thieving, and almost couldn't stop smiling afterwards."

"Ugh, fine!" she groaned as the two began the ascent back to Bolderfall's middle level. "You win…if the others ask, this never happened."

"Deal."

See you guys next time for Tale 51: Sport!