Mario hypnotised the door. If that annoying healer didn't come in five minutes, he'd take the silly poultice off by himself. He. Was. Fine! He was grateful for the healing, and yes it had been bad for a couple of days, but he was not a cripple, for fuck's sake-

A sharp rap on the door interrupted his inner complaints. Claudio walked in, carrying a weird frame – about waist high, approximately twelve inches deep and slightly wider than himself.

"What's that? Are you trying to make a chair?" he asked, his anger temporarily forgotten.

"It is a walker, not a chair," Claudio said. "It is meant to help the injured or fragile to walk again-"

"Fragile?" Mario bristled. "I'm perfectly fine!"

"I will be the judge of that," Claudio said. He put the walker next to the bed and sat down to unwrap the poultice. "If you had not kept ruining my hard work, it could have been healed long ago. You are aware of that, yes?"

Mario grumbled under his breath, but the healer ignored him. "The walker is for Attrei. He will start learning to walk soon."

"Oh." That made sense. Baby was fragile and couldn't walk without stumbling after every second step even before the injury. "You better teach him how to do it properly this time. But why did you bring it here?"

"Well… Attrei will not need it for a couple of weeks, but you might-"

"Forget it," Mario snapped. "I told you, I'm fine."

Claudio's lips twitched. He removed the poultice and wiped the leg with the clean towel. "Sí, you are fine. For now. But one more triathlon – mabari, ocean, guards – and you may need it for the rest of your days. Better safe than sorry, no?"

"No." Mario jumped off the bed, put his pants on, and stormed out the door, ignoring the healer's snickering. Now, where's Korlys?

oOo

Korlys stepped outside The Crown and Lion Inn, wrapping his cloak around him. Although the sun was shining brightly, there was a chill in the air, made all the sharper because of the sea breeze coming off of the ocean. He had managed to take his leave of Claudio before any of the others had awakened, covering his haste with the excuse that he had a lot of business to attend to today. Which was true, strictly speaking. He had to collect payment for the shipment of silk, and talk with the captain about resupplying the ship and hiring the crew members they were still lacking.

But what he really needed was time alone to think, as well as to take care of some last minute details. He was leaving tonight for Denerim, and he dared not even consider his plans in front of Mario, for fear that the other elf would somehow catch on.

He hadn't given the blacksmith or the carpenter very much time to take care of his request, but it couldn't be helped. They hadn't gotten a new crew until Alamar, and there had been too much going on that had commanded his immediate attention anyway. It was only afterwards that he'd been able to flesh out the details of a mission that had been on his mind for several months now.

Korlys mentally ticked off the supplies that he would need to bring with him, most of which he already had. There were a couple of special poisons he wanted to find, and he needed to make sure the blacksmith would be finished before dinner, if he wasn't already. Most of the food that he would need while on his mission he planned to get in Denerim, and he had left a lot of his clothes and supplies on the ship to avoid having to spend too much time packing while Mario was asleep. The Antivan knew he could be soundless, but he wasn't taking any chances – this was too important to risk Mario finding out before he left.

Korlys carefully avoided thinking about what the other elf would do once he woke up. The Antivan had already decided on the exact wording of the letter he was going to leave, too paranoid that Mario might find it to write it down ahead of time. He hated having to sneak away in the middle of the night, but this would be his last chance; after this, every other Fereldan city they visited would be way too far from Denerim to make the trip practical, and Korlys had no plans to ever return to this country once they left.

Besides, he'd be gone for two or three weeks at the most. Mario, Attrei, and the boys were all on the mend, and they had Claudio to take care of them if anything happened. He was going to leave them with as much gold as he could, and Mario would be able to make up for anything they lacked. Amaranthine was reasonably safe, and all of them were smart enough to keep a low profile. They will be fine, he reassured himself for the hundredth time.

As the docks came into view, Korlys pushed all that aside. His decision had been made before they even landed in Amaranthine – he had a mission to complete, and he meant to do it.

oOo

Korlys finished his preparations, both for getting the ship fully outfitted and for his own personal journey, by mid-afternoon. Plenty of time to spend with Mario still, he told himself, although his heart was heavy. He walked around until he felt sure he would not betray himself in the slightest, then went back to the inn.

He walked into the dining area to find the boys were up, sitting at one of the tables and playing with the dominos Attrei had the ship's carpenter make for them. Other than the apprentices, the room was empty. The boys seemed alert, although a little pale. Still, Claudio would never have allowed it if he thought they might relapse, so it was a good sign. Before he could ask them about Mario's whereabouts, the thief walked in.

"Korlys! There you are!" he said cheerfully as he closed the distance between them. "Are you done with your business?"

"All done and all yours," the assassin replied cheekily.

"Good! I've got us a few extra coins, and I found a bistro where they make the best meat pies ever. Want to go check it out with me?"

"Is this a date?" Korlys teased.

A date? Mario's ears perked at that. Truth was, Mario had not thought of it that way, he just wanted to share a pie with Korlys, but a date…! He felt his face burning and hoped against hope that he was not blushing – and that the brats really were as interested in their game as they pretended. "Of course it is," he said, trying to sound as if he'd planned it all along.

"Then of course I want to go," Korlys said, this time with no hint of teasing.

oOo

Korlys spent all that late afternoon and evening fully focused on enjoying every second with Mario, memorizing every detail, engraving it onto his mind, painfully aware of how fleeting moments of joy had been in his life. Every smell, every sound, every glance from Mario, his eyes shining with the simple joy of belonging, of being together – he knew because he felt it, too – had been etched into his heart. It was amazing how vivid life became when you were conscious of how ephemeral it was.

And now he stood here at the side of their bed, watching Mario sleep, finding it hard to wrench himself away. In his right hand was the folded note he had carefully written out by the firelight. He longed to kiss Mario one more time but wouldn't risk it, even though the other elf slept deeply, thanks to Attrei's potions.

Feeling the pressure of time slipping away from him, Korlys forced himself to get moving. He placed the note on the table next to their bed, shouldered his pack, and slipped out into the night.

oOo

Mario was coaxed into consciousness by the distant noise of the docks and the gentle notes of a recorder. The air smelled of fresh bread and coffee, and he greedily took a deep breath. "It seems we're the last to get up," he said with a contented smile, turning to Korlys, but found him already gone. Maybe he'd come back with breakfast? Wouldn't be the first time – his spoiled Antivan loved these peaceful moments in the mornings.

But Korlys didn't come back, and Mario reluctantly got up. Yawning, he stretched his arms and back. He pulled on his clothes. He turned to grab his watch from the bedside table and saw a piece of paper beneath it. Curious, he picked it up. 'Caro,' it said, in Korlys' strong and confident strokes. A note? Why would Korlys need to leave him a note? Frowning, he started to read.

The world spun around him. His legs turned to jelly and he slumped on the bed. Away? Far away. No. No, that's bullshit. He must've read it wrong. It was too dark – he got the letters wrong. He jumped up and pulled the curtains from the window, almost tearing them down. Standing by the window, he followed the words with his finger as he read the letter aloud. But the words were still wrong, still didn't make any sense.

By the time you find this, I will be far away. I am sorry I cannot explain now, but I have some business I must take care of, and I need to do that alone. Please honor my wishes and do not attempt to follow me, even if you find this letter much sooner than anticipated. I promise you, I will be back by your side as soon as I can.

Some business? What business? Getting Nico, obviously. He went to Antiva to deal with his former master. But why now? It was Korlys who'd planned their route as far away from Antiva as he could. And why like this? Leaving behind a comfortable ship with a trustworthy crew and a tested team of allies who'd kicked the Crows' asses many times by now, choosing a random merchant ship where he'd be never certain about anyone and anything? Even Baby wouldn't be dumb enough to do that. But there was no other business.

Stop being a naïve idiot, a smartass voice inside his head whispered. You know what 'business' it is. You always knew this day would come. It just came earlier than you expected, that's all.

No. No, he wouldn't. Korlys loved him.

He never said so, did he?

He didn't have to! His every smile, his every look, every gesture, said it more clearly than any words could.

There is no such thing as love. Didn't he say it himself? It's just a thing people say when they want to get close to you to hurt you. Remember?

Yes, but that was ages ago!

Was it? A few months, really.

That was before! On the ship, he'd said the opposite. He said he couldn't live without Mario, begged him not to go. What was that, if not a confession?

He was hurt and confused. Now that he's better he's come to realize you'd just drag him down. You're no match for him. You know that; always have.

There was no denying that. But if Korlys wanted to end it, he would have told him so. He wouldn't sneak away in the middle of the night like a coward. Especially not after yesterday.

The date wasn't his idea. He just went along with it.

True. But he saw the look in Korlys' eyes. The quiet happiness, pleasure of being together… love. And anyway. Why would he go along with it, if he wanted to leave Mario? Why leave a note, or promise to be back at his side, if he wanted to sneak away forever? Korlys was always direct and honest. He'd never pretended, never tried to hide who he was. Why start with these silly games now?

The smartass voice couldn't find any reply to that and Mario sighed in relief. Maybe he'd just missed a hint – or maybe this business was related to Korlys' past. In that case, Claudio might know about it. He carefully tucked the note into his pocket and ran out to look for the healer.

oOo

He found them all in the inn's dining hall, clearly killing time before he and Korlys emerged from the bedroom and ordered them to leave for the ship, their backpacks neatly piled in the far corner. Attrei was sitting on the windowsill, playing his recorder with his eyes closed and a blissful, dreamy smile on his face. Mario arched his brow at the sight – the innkeeper, a huge human lady that looked like a talking cupboard with a blonde wig, didn't look like someone who would allow any deviation from proper manners.

But it seemed they were the only guests, the other three that had been staying overnight having apparently left already, and she seemed happy to indulge all their wishes – for a price, of course. She'd just put a steaming pot of coffee in front of Claudio, so absorbed in a book he didn't even notice. Meanwhile, her daughter – a willowy kid with doe eyes who was either adopted or took after her father – brought cups of tea and a plate of scones and placed them all next to Anastasio; when the kid lifted his eyes from the game of dominos he'd been playing with Dante and thanked her with a smile, she blushed and fled away, almost tripping on her feet.

The boy shot a curious glance after her – and noticed Mario, standing in the doorway. "Good morning, ser," he said.

The rest of the gang turned to look. "Where is Korlys?" Claudio asked almost accusingly, his book still open in his lap. "Still in bed?"

"He left," Mario said, trying to keep his tone neutral. Judging by how they immediately snapped to attention and stared, Korlys probably left no other notes.

"What do you mean, he left? Left when? And where?" Attrei asked.

"He's got some urgent business elsewhere. But he'll be back. We'll wait for him here," he replied, unwilling to say more in front of the innkeeper, who was watching the scene with open interest. "We'd like to rent the rooms for a few more days, if that's okay," he said as he turned to her now.

She shrugged. "As long as you got money, I don't see why it wouldn't be."

Mario nodded. "You can go play in your room," he told the boys. "We'll be staying here until he returns."

"Can we take some scones, ser?" Anastasio was hungry; neither he nor Dante had had breakfast yet.

"Sure," Mario said distractedly. "Take them all."

Once they had left and the innkeeper had gone to prepare lunch – spicy pumpkin broth and baked lamb – he sat next to Claudio, pulling out the note from his pocket. Attrei turned into a sparrow and flew over to his wheelchair. He wheeled over and took the note from Mario's hand.

"So you don't know what business he's talking about?" he asked, when he read it.

"I hoped he could tell me more," Mario said, turning to Claudio. "Do you know about something, anything, from his past that could be a reason for this?"

"Why would I? Look, kid. I have told you many times. There are no friends in the Crows. Teammates, or allies – sure. But friends that would share their dreams and worries, and risk their necks for one another – no."

"But Korlys said he helped you when you arrived at his cell," Mario muttered, not willing to give up hope just yet. "And you healed him after the fight… It sure feels like you knew each other well."

Claudio sighed. "He did help me," he admitted. "But do not think too much of it. We felt mutual respect, shall we say. Perhaps we even enjoyed talking to each other when we met-"

"See, that's what I'm talking about," Mario cut in. "Are you sure he didn't mention something during those talks?"

"But Korlys was the top Crow in the cell, second only to Nico. And no matter how much you refuse to believe it, he did not get there by being nice. He got there because he was damn good at his job, with everything that goes along with that – including not being reckless enough to chat about his personal business with random people."

An uneasy silence spread between them, heavy with implication. Mario felt the smartass voice wanting to say something – something that would hurt. Him and Korlys.

He promptly got up. "Whatever. What matters is that he's coming back."

"It might... take some time," Claudio said. He sounded almost gentle.

Mario jutted his chin forward. "Don't see how that matters?"

The healer shrugged. "We have money for ten days, maybe two weeks," he pointed out.

"I'm sure that's plenty enough," Mario said defiantly. "And if it's not. I'll deal with it."

"I could find a job," Attrei offered eagerly.

Mario wanted to laugh at him, but thought better of it. "Thanks, Baby. But you don't need to worry about it. We'll be fine."

"We could use the time to remove the cells and the torture chamber from the hold of the ship," Claudio offered. "When Korlys returns, we will probably have to leave immediately, and there might not be a chance like this for a long time." It was highly unlikely that Korlys would return, but if Mario was determined to wait and see, they could at least spend the time in a useful way.

"Good idea!" Mario had avoided going down there ever since he'd dragged Velasco to his execution, and he knew Korlys hated it too. He'd be glad they'd taken care of it when he got back.

oOo

Korlys crouched on a rooftop, waiting in the late evening gloom. One hand was curled loosely around the heavy metal object in his pocket. It was a little bigger than the palm of his hand, and he ran his thumb over the cold metal, tracing the design that had been worked into it, a design he'd become intimately familiar with in the months that had passed since his first trip to Denerim.

The door of the tavern opened – right on time. He silently watched a Templar make his way down a cobblestone road. He'd been shadowing the man for days now, looking for patterns. Like most people, the Templar was a creature of habit, which made his mission so much easier.

The ex-Crow had been meticulous about identifying his marks, spending more time than he'd originally planned – he'd already been in Denerim over a week – but it was critical to identify not only the correct men but the order in which he'd deal with them.

It wasn't too hard to single out the ringleader – Mario had uttered the name 'Ser Piers' in his nightmares often enough. Most of the other Templars didn't seem to like him or spend much time with him, but there were two who did, and it was Korlys' experience that most people didn't change associations very often. They would be first.

He silently shadowed the man, waiting until the Templar was near a particular area he'd scouted out ahead of time. It was very close to the little hovel set at the end of a dirty back alley he'd been renting while here. It was the perfect spot for what he had in mind – sparsely populated, and the few residents who were there were the sort who minded their own business.

Choking the man until he passed out was child's play, but carrying him back to the hovel proved a bit harder. Korlys thanked the Maker the Templar didn't have his armour on as he dumped him onto the filthy floor and locked the door behind them. He wrestled the unconscious man onto a plain wooden chair and secured him tightly, each ankle lashed to a chair leg, thighs secured tightly to the seat, hands tied together at the wrists behind his back, and chest bound to the chair's back for good measure.

The fire he'd stoked before going out that evening had burned low, but the embers still glowed brightly – plenty hot enough for what he had in mind. Once the elf was satisfied with his rope work, he took the object out of his pocket and placed the flat end of it in the embers, taking care that the wooden handle stayed well away from the coals. He turned back around and stared at the man thoughtfully for a while before deciding to gag him too. When the ex-Crow had planned this little trip, he'd thought he would enjoy listening to them scream and beg. Now that he was here, however, he found that the process of locking away everything but the assassin part of him had turned him cold, and he preferred to execute his plan without listening to their babbling.

Done with the gag, Korlys sat down on a little stool next to the Templar. As he waited, his mind went back to the note he'd left. It had been deliberately vague, because if his lover had any inkling of where he was going, he would follow, regardless of his request or the destination. He could only hope that Mario wouldn't come to the conclusion that he'd left to deal with his former master. The thought made him uncomfortable, but there was no way the other elf could accompany him. He wouldn't have minded that Korlys planned to murder the men who'd gang raped him, but as strong as Mario was in certain ways, he wouldn't have the stomach to do what was necessary – what justice demanded. Considering all that Mario had suffered, and continued to suffer in the wake of that night, no death short of death by torture would satisfy him. As it was, they would not spend the months in a torture chamber they would have in an ideal world. But, you took what you could get, yes?

Ah, he is coming around. Korlys watched the Templar struggle to open his eyes, then blink a few times. The glassy look in them was rapidly replaced by confusion, and then, as the man took in his surroundings and noticed the assassin observing him, by fear. Good. At least he wasn't too stupid to be afraid. Korlys went to fetch the object he'd brought with him. The assassin used tongs to pull it out – better to let the handle cool a little before holding it, just in case. Safety first and all, he thought with a malicious grin.

"Do you recognize this shape?" Korlys asked, as he turned to the man and held up the white-hot metal. He'd gotten the blacksmith on the ship to make it secretly from a sketch he'd made of Mario's tattoo. The image was that of a cat, sitting down but looking over his shoulder at the viewer. Pounce, the thief had said, when Korlys had asked why a cat. They sometimes called me Pounce. Korlys hurriedly stuffed that memory down into a far corner of his mind.

"You should," he continued. The Templar's eyes bulged and beads of sweat popped out onto his brow – whether from recognition or simply having a brand that close to his face was hard to tell. Korlys really didn't care which – this was a message meant for Piers, anyway. He thought the man might be smart enough to make a connection once the bodies of his friends had been discovered, but he wanted to make sure he knew which victim this was payback for. The brand would create scar tissue, possibly obscuring the shape, if the skin was given time to heal. But since it would not, Korlys was satisfied that the design would be clean and easily recognizable, especially to someone who had been behind Mario for a while. Rage threatened to boil up at that thought, but he suppressed it. He needed to stay as calm and clear-headed as possible – nothing would come between him and his mission.

oOo

Attrei licked his lips, so dry they felt glued together. The last time he was this anxious was when he had his Death Magic exam; all his instincts were telling him it was wrong. He'd passed, just barely, but for once the low score hadn't bothered him.

Now it was similar and opposite at the same time. He knew that it was right, but he also knew his friend wouldn't see it that way.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Come on, he thought, what's the worst he could do? Yell a bit? Mock me? Eh. Claudio had once said Mario was all bark and no bite. And if it would help his friend, it was worth it.

He knocked on the door. The "Yeah?" from the inside was mildly irritated already. Not a good start. With a suppressed sigh, he entered the room.

"Hey," he said, trying not to sound nervous.

Mario was pouring over a notebook, pressing a blotting paper on it. "I made a blot because of you," he accused, without so much as lifting his head. "What do you want?"

Attrei had prepared several carefully worded arguments, but now when he looked at his friend, he knew Mario would never let him finish them. So he went straight to the point. "I think you should start taking mind healing."

Mario spun on the chair, and stared at him. "No. What the fuck? Why-"

"Because you need it," Attrei cut in. "And don't bother lying to me, Mario. You've been trying to hide it, and you might've fooled the others, but I'm a mind mage. I've been trained to tell when someone is in distress." He saw Mario wanted to protest, but he pressed on. "That's what my magic is for, you know: to soothe and heal the mind. If you ignore it, it'll only get worse."

"Yeah, yeah," Mario snapped. "No worries, I'll deal with it myself."

"Bullshit!"

Mario blinked, surprised, then laughed out loud. "Wow, Baby. You almost sound like a man."

But that teasing was getting old by now; it had no effect on Attrei anymore. "You can't deal with it on your own, like you couldn't fix your leg on your own. A potion will only get you so far, but when it hurts, you need a healer. And since I am a mind healer, I decide what your treatment will be, and I'm not taking 'no' for an answer anymore. We're starting immediately."

oOo

The effect of the body's discovery on the citizenry was far beyond what he'd imagined. It was only then that Korlys realized he had misjudged the public – they weren't nearly as jaded as Antivans were. To be fair, he'd gone above and beyond what even most Crows would have, leaving the body naked and mutilated on the Templar barracks' doorstep. He'd grinned diabolically at the thought of Piers' reaction when they found the body's missing appendages in its mouth, but had neglected to take into account that the average citizen would have no clue as to motive, and therefore no feeling of safety that information could have brought. The next night, he found all activity shutting down the moment the sun passed the horizon, and bars closing early for lack of customers. The assassin turned in early that night.

oOo

Korlys had expected the Templars would be like angry hornets whose nest had been disturbed, and they had: scouring the city for the perpetrator; wearing their armour off duty and on; and even going so far as to vary their routes. But that hyper-vigilance could only be maintained for so long, and Denerim was a port city – strangers came and went with regularity, and the fact that a ship had set sail the very morning the body was discovered helped calm the populace faster than they otherwise would have.

As the days stretched into weeks, most of the citizenry fell back into their familiar routines. Not Piers, though. It appeared the man needed no more clues to intuit motive – perhaps he was more intelligent than Korlys had expected. More likely, he just had the well-honed instinct for self-preservation common to all animals. At any rate, the Templar had become exceedingly cautious.

But that was fine with Korlys, because he was saving Piers for last. And the next man on his list wasn't nearly so feral, slipping into complacency as quickly as the rest of them.

oOo

"Okay, guys," Mario said, with a frown. "We need to decide what we're gonna do. It's been three weeks. We're almost out of money. We can afford to pay for the inn for three more days. But removing the cells wasn't cheap, and we also need to pay our crew. We can't hope to keep them if we don't give them any money."

He looked at Claudio and Attrei seated at the table in a private lounge that Mario already considered 'theirs', dipping chocolate chip cookies into hot herbal tea with milk. It was delicious – and expensive.

"I can cover our costs by pickpocketing, but it's not nearly enough to pay all the sailors. I've already scouted a few targets where I can break in, and I'll go to the first place tonight. But I can't be sure how much I'll get, and I can't do it more than once a week."

"Why?" Attrei asked, confused. "The guards won't know who did it, right?"

"No, but they'll be on high alert for a while, making the work more difficult. But it's not guards I'm worried about, it's the thieves guild. From what I observed, they're pretty well organised. If I meddle in their business, they'll be after me like a dog after a sausage. Not to mention they… kinda hold a personal grudge against me. My best hope would be to convince them it's one-off work by random guys who arrived on ships and are long gone."

"I see." Attrei chewed his bottom lip. Who would've known burglary was that complicated! "So what are we going to do?"

"We could earn much more money if we used the ship," Claudio suggested. "Shipping goods to nearby ports and back."

Mario nodded. "Yeah, I thought of that, too. But I have no clue how to run a business like that. It'd be up to you. You okay with that?"

"Am I okay with making money?" Claudio laughed. "Sí, I am okay with that. But if we are to stay in the city for some time, we need to do it in the proper manner. Merchant guilds are just thieves guilds in disguise, after all."

Mario sighed. He'd hoped it would be easy, but apparently no such luck. Once Korlys is back, I'll make him wash dishes for a year for putting us through this shit. For the whole crew! "And you know how to do that?"

"I have to prepare our ship documents. I will do that today, and tomorrow we can go to the guild to register ourselves as merchants."

"I want to come with you. I need to learn more about it."

"That is a great idea." Claudio gave him an encouraging smile. For a teen who barely knew how to read and write, Mario wasn't doing so bad.

"What about me?" Attrei asked. "Is there any way I can help?"

"By staying safe," Mario said. "It's not that I don't believe in you," he added when he saw how Attrei's face fell. "But you're an apostate on the run. I'm sure the Templars were informed and have your description. So please, lay low. I don't want to have to flee from here before Korlys returns."

"He could dye his hair," Claudio suggested. "It will not be a perfect disguise, but if you do not cast magic in public or attract attention to yourself, it should be enough."

Attrei's face brightened. "You can do that? I know there are potions that can change your hair colour, but I never learned them – they were strictly forbidden in the Tower, and my mentor said we were in deep enough trouble as it was with our mind magic without adding to it by breaking the rules."

"Well, the Crows are quite happy with both bending and breaking rules. But I need to get some ingredients. I will set Dante to it while Mario and I try to make a deal. If he can find everything at the market, you can be a blondie or black as a raven by tomorrow evening."

"And then I can help?" Attrei asked eagerly.

"You will help keep our books," Claudio suggested. "Keep track of deals, figures, how much we spend and earn, things like that. If you think you have what it takes. It is a huge responsibility."

"Of course I can! I won't disappoint you, you'll see! It'll be awesome!"

Mario sighed. "Let's hope you're right."

AN:

Thanks, as always, to our awesome betas, BloodSong13T and Suilven, for all their help and suggestions!

Parts of this chapter may seem familiar to anyone who has read Korlys Evens the Score by ShebasDawn. Some passages from there have been woven into this chapter, edited to tighten the prose and harmonize with the rest of the story.