Esclava H. Maegstire's Story

Esclava

Esk still couldn't believe that he had forgotten about her until now. Sure, his thoughts were mostly occupied with Master and Robin and a whole lot of things those days, but to forget about the one who had raised him for as long as he could remember and given him the chance for an education!? How ungrateful was he?! If his Aunt Emily was here, she'd... She'd...

Well, no matter. Esk would make it up to her. Maybe by hunting a hare for her; it was her favorite kind of meat, after all. Or was it deer? All he could remember was Aunt Emily patting him on the head and giving him a larger helping of stew that day instead of smacking him on the head and giving him just enough to fill his belly. And maybe she would lessen that painful ache he kept feeling whenever he thought of Robin and Master...

But first, Esk had to find her. He didn't know where Aunt Emily lived, but he knew her name. If he tried really hard, Esk could vaguely remember the scent of soap, a blurry face with stern features that had light brown hair tied in a braid which reached her waist, hard and calloused hands...

Esk nodded to himself and closed his bag, fastening it shut. He might not remember much, but he was sure he would know Aunt Emily when he saw her. He just had to look around and search for her himself. He couldn't rely on others to help, not when he knew so little details himself. Besides, Esk had no idea how they'd contact him if he did, as he was constantly on the move. They might even tell him that it was impossible, and he couldn't have that, because it wasn't. It wasn't impossible, because that would mean... That would mean...

Although Esk's face remained blank, his brow furrowed. He shoved the thought away like it burnt and focused on doing a sweep of the area instead, in case he had left something behind. It would not do to disobey the landlady; especially when she had given him a cheap room and good food. The small room was empty apart from a neatly made bed, his pack, and himself. The small window opposite the bed showed him that it was raining heavily, but the windowsill was empty.

He had packed everything, then. Esk recalled the landlady's rules, ticking them off inside his head. Clean the room, make the bed, air out the room before he left... Everything was accounted for. He swung his bag over his shoulder and left the room, closing the door behind him.

As he went down to ground level, the landlady called out to him with a grin. "Hey, boy! Where're you going now?"

He paused and turned to face her, softly answering, "To Brainde, ma'am." While pulling the hood of his jacket up. It was waterproof and would protect Esk from the rain, just like how his bag and pouch would protect his belongings from the elements. Robin had given it to him as a present...

Hey, Esk! I'm giving this to you! Don't worry, I've made and tested it myself. It's element-proof! Even made you a pouch, too! And don't think you need to repay me either, like last time. It's a gift... And there was the ache inside him again; so large that it hurt.

Ah. The landlady was saying something. Esk forced the pain and memories away and listened, hoping that the landlady would not punish him for his lack of attention. Master used to throw things when he noticed someone wasn't listening.

...Ah, but Master wasn't here anymore, was he? He felt the ache inside his chest deepen even more.

"-Minstrel's Mug is a good place to stay in Brande, according to a traveller that once stayed here. He was such a handsome man... Here, I'll give you the map of directions he gave me, how about that?"

Esk found a slip of folded paper forced into his hand. He awkwardly mumbled his thanks and opened it, committing the directions to memory. Turn left here, then turn right there... Once he was done, he folded it back into its original shape and kept it in the inside pocket of his jacket, zipping it back up when he was done.

The landlady grinned broadly at him. Although she had the beginnings of wrinkles on her face, she was still pretty enough to attract many eyes; especially those of men. Although the red-headed young man in front of her was too young and serious for her taste, he was nice and quiet. And she always did have a thing for blue eyes...

She decided to tease him. "Boy!" He turned towards her, a vague frown on his face. Shame, he would be quite the looker if he stopped frowning and smiled more. She smiled coquettishly at the young man and, half flirting; half joking, said: "how about a kiss on the cheeks as thanks, eh?" She laughed, figuring he'd refuse.

Although Esk's face remained frowning, he felt relief. A kiss in exchange for the map. Equivalent exchange. He no longer owed her anything, and it was an order, to boot. But she wasn't Master... Master wasn't alive anymore, though. Should he obey her, then? And was it a kiss on the cheek or a kiss on the lips? Well, she is kind of pretty...

Just as the landlady's laughter was dying down, Esk stepped forward and kissed her on the cheek. It was awkward and quick, but still a kiss. She turned red and touched her cheek, staring at him. He really took it seriously? Wow. His sense of humor must have been worse than she thought...

Esk, meanwhile, made sure that the hood of his jacket was up and sunk the lower part of his face down behind his collar; hiding it from view, before leaving the tavern. He adjusted his bag to make it more comfortable, fingered the saxes at his waist; making sure that they were sheathed properly and protected from the weather, and started to stride towards Brainde. He would continue his search for Aunt Emily there, and hopefully find her.

He would find her, and she would be his Master - Mistress! again, and then the ache in his chest would stop hurting. Right?

Esclava

SOME TIME LATER...

Esk frowned and turned slowly in a circle, staring as he did so. Unfortunately, everything still looked the same; which wasn't going to help him in finding the Minstrel's Mug. Just to be sure, he turned even more slowly, taking in every detail he could see. Nope, still nothing. Damn.

The landlady was both right and wrong about the map. Although it lead Esk to Brainde on the shortest route possible, it didn't lead him to the inn he was looking for. And although he had made it into the city, he had been lured and ambushed into its alleys by two men who had tried to kill him and take his belongings. One of the men; who was wearing a black bandana, had seemed desperate for help for his friend and practically dragged Esk into the alleys with loops and twists. Once Esk was confused and lost, the man grabbed him in a chokehold to hold him still while the other man, who had been hiding out of sight till then, approached him with a sharp cleaver.

Esk head butted the one holding him with the back of his head. Ignoring the pain and the man's cursing, he reached to pull out his sword, but had to drop into a crouch in order to avoid the other man's swing with the cleaver. He kicked out a leg in a low swoop before the man with the cleaver could react; knocking the man down with a shout. With a glooping sound, the cleaver fell out of the man's grip onto the muddy ground, which Esk snatched up and stab behind him through the Bandana-wearing man's chest. The man let out a strangled gurgle and collapsed with a thud on the ground, lifeless.

His partner; who had gotten up from the ground, yelled, pulled out a dagger, and ran towards him. Without pause, Esk pulled a knife out of his boot and threw it at the man. The angle was awkward, but the target was too close to miss and his aim rang true; hitting the charging man right in the head. The man's step faltered, and he fell without making a sound, landing with a thump face-down on the ground.

Esk pulled out his saxes and stood in a battle-stance, wary for any more intrusions. When none came, he sheathed his saxes and flipped the man over, pulling his throwing knife out and wiping it clean on the dead man's shirt. He absent-mindedly placed it back inside his boot, pondering over his options.

Someone could have heard the scuffle and might come to check it out. If they were the same as the guys he'd killed, Esk might be in big trouble if there were too many people to handle or if they could hold their own in a fight. If they brought the law, he was still going to be in bi - wait, what if he had broken the law by killing someone?! He'd have broken a rule!!

Oh, Gods. Esk made a mental note to look up the city's rules.

Either way, staying here was dangerous. People might come to investigate and they might not be from the law either. Therefore, he had to get out of here, and fast. Esk stooped down and grabbed his pack, which he had dropped during the fight. Fortunately, the mud slid off of it just like water did, dropping back onto the ground in large brown lumps. Slinging it over his shoulder, he then stooped down to check out the body. He needed a map, after all.

The man Esk had nailed between the head wore clothes made out of rough cloth which were of a simple cut. He had little of value, only a small drawstring purse which was half full of coins and a pocket watch made out of tin. Much to Esk's irritation, he had no map. Esk grabbed the pouch and pocket watch. There was no point in wasting good items and money, especially when the person in question had just tried to kill him.

The other man still had the cleaver inside his chest. Esk pulled it out and wiped it on the dead man's shirt, inspecting it. The cleaver was sharp, but it was rusty and the balance was shot. Still, He could sell it for some money once he got the rust off. He decided to keep it as well. Although his shirt was torn and bloody, he had good pants, good boots and a pouch half filled with coins. Esk grabbed the pouch, boots and; after some deliberation, the pants. Although he reasoned with himself that they'd fetch a good price and that the other man didn't need them anymore, he still had to look away during the procedure and strangely felt like he was violating the dead man's privacy. He left the area as soon as he was done.

And that was how Esk found himself in the alleyways of Briande, turning around in circles in the hope for finding something familiar to lead him back to the main road or the gateways of the city.

Now that he was away from the scene, Esk had the opportunity to wonder about the two men. Although the bandana man had good items, he had shoddy clothes, while his partner in crime had good clothes but no good items. After thinking about it, Esk decided that they had robbed another man blind earlier and shoved the thought out of his mind.

Where am I? Esk looked around again. He was in a dark alleyway with several different routes, and he had no idea where he was. Well, one thing's for certain - I can't go backwards. I can only go forward. But which path? he looked around and after careful consideration, chose the path heading towards the left. The path was made out of rough stone and had a lot of mud, but he could vaguely remember arriving here from that direction.

Well, here goes. Esk thought, walking onto the path. Hopefully, this'll lead me out of this maze.

Cardista stopped her joyous hopping and scurried up to Remeil with her eyes wide as she watched him pull the coin purse out. There was something about that glorious sound of coins clanking together that always made her heart melt and caused the corners of her cherry tinted lips to pull up into a high goofy smile. Without giving him a moment to change his mind, she grabbed the pouch from his hands with what could be described as a squeal of joy. Hugging the pouch to her face as if it was a fuzzy little creature in dire need of attention. "Thanks! This will help!" She was really liking this guy. Once the little bag was deposited with the other treasures of her pack, she began to circled around Remeil, her fluffy tail encircling him as she made her primal feline like round. Followed by her pouncing the poor injured man quite unexpectedly in a a massive hug that would probably knocked anyone off their feet in prefect health.

She let her mighty hold to him go and was back to skipping off a head giving an impatient jester for the two to catch up as she rounded the corner into another alleyway. She was only out of her two companion's sight for what seemed a moment when a rather loud thud followed by a small cry, "Owies!"

What had happened in that brief moment was this, she was not paying attention looking over her shoulder to see if Tollun and Remeil were following her when she had ran into another traveler, who seemed quite lost. Being more than a foot shorter and far less built, the impact was enough to knock her on the ground landing quite hard on her bum. She made the small cry more out of reflex, but still looked up at the probably equally startled Esclava with large pout. She knew deep down it was her own fault for not looking but she wasn't about to admit that. She furiously pushed her disheveled thick red hair back from her olive face as she took a moment to compose herself before trying to get off the mucky ground.

At the sound of the thud, Tollun went from a decent gate to a flat out run. One of the many instincts hidden deep within his scales shot out like a spike into his mind, his body becoming little more than an extension. The mud squished an extremely audible sound as Tollun's feet beet against it like a blacksmith's hammer.

Stopping partway into the turn, to give just enough time to observe. Before him stood a man of decent stature, with a look like that of lost puppy that saw a rat for the first time. Deeming him to be not angered, Tollun approached the strange man in hopes of dealing with the situation quickly.

"I apologize for the lack of attention of my associate." Tollun spoke, moving between Cardista and the stranger. He had no clue as to how aggressive the man was, but Tollun has never taken chances like that.

Kazuyama blinked his eyes twice before looking down to the heavy weight in his hands. Much to his surprise, he found that he was holding a black longsword in each. For a fraction of a second, he had no idea where he was or what he was even doing there. He glanced around just in time to see a man and a woman leaping at him, battle axes in hand. Instinctively, Kazuyama rolled to the side, feeling a heavy ax slam into his shoulder pauldron as he blocked the other with his off hand sword, the other striking at the man's calf leaving a deep gouge. The woman, seemingly in a rage, at what Kazu could not discern, continued with her assault as the man attempted to stand and rejoin her. As The weapons master gathered his senses, he began to panic slightly, but managed to steady his attacks and keep his guard. He would guide his right sword into the notch of the woman's ax and handle, effectively immobilizing it before striking at her. She let go of the ax, just before Kazu's sword reached her, backing away and pulling two daggers from her belt. the man on the other hand, stood to strike at Kazu's back just as the woman went in to strike at Kazu's front. Briskly, the swordsman, dressed in black ducked to his left just as the two bandits came to strike. The man couldn't stop the fall of his ax as it cleaved into the woman's neck and shoulder just as Kazu flipped his off hand sword in his hand and spun around making contact with the man's back. Kazu's sword dove deep into the man's flesh and burst through his chest. The two bandits fell as one to the ground as kazu withdrew his sword. He stared in awe for a moment before stepping back with a look of disbelief on his face and began to run.

After a few minutes, Kazu had found himself lost within the woods.. He looked around seeing nothing familiar, but he could hear voices coming from the north. He kept traveling onward, a name coming to his mind. He pondered for a moment at it before realizing it to be the large city of Marrowvale, he found that he also knew the general direction. Continuing onward, he heard the sound of someone running along a mudded path. Kazu moved silently through the forest, thankful for his small feminine figure, until his eyes spotted a group of people. One looked to have traits of a dragon, and another, cat ears and a tail. the others looked to be human... for the most part. He stepped out into the path, keeping on guard as he spoke to the group, his voice clear and bright, combined with his looks would make almost anyone assume that he were a girl at first and he would almost always try to play this card. "Um, Hello there. I seem to be lost. I'm trying to find an inn in the city of Marrowvale..." Though it was meant for the whole group to hear, he looked directly at the Neko as he spoke.

Esclava

Esk blinked and stared at the two of them, pulling the hood of his sleeveless green jacket back up to avoid the rain. Although the cat girl with red hair was the one who fell down, the impact had been enough to cause it to fall, exposing his head to the rain. She had taken him by surprise, appearing around the corner as suddenly as a ghost. Still, she was real enough for him to still feel the after effects of the bump, so she must be real.

Ah. He should help her up. She must have fallen to the ground quite hard to cry out like that, and if Esk gave his assistance in getting the mud out of her yellow dress she might stop pouting at him. Before he could do so, however, a half-draconian man dressed in clothes made out of burlap appeared, apologising for his companion's lack of attention while standing in front of the cat-girl in what could be considered a protective gesture. Esk remembered fighting a couple of them in the arena under his Master's orders. They were pretty vicious and he had almost lost an arm to one of them. Still, he seemed to not want a fight, which was quite alright by Esk's opinion. He didn't want to fight either. All he wanted was directions.

Just as he was about to answer the man, a clear voice rang out. "Um, hello there. I seem to be lost. I'm trying to find an inn in the city of Marrowvale..."

Esk tensed up and swung his head to the source of the noise, wary. Even if she was a girl and seemingly non-aggressive, something seemed off about her, although He couldn't quite figure out what. She was dressed for battle, so maybe she was looking for a fight? she was focusing her attentions on the red-headed neko, who seemed to be under the half-draconian man's protection. He would definitely try to fight her if she tried anything. If there was a battle, Esk was pretty certain that it was going to get ugly. Best to answer the question before anything else happened.

"Sorry. I'm lost too." He answered, making sure to be heard over the rain. He turned to the duo, giving the answer he had intended to say before he was interrupted. "It's ok. Do you know the way to the Minstrels Mug? I'm planning to stay there for a while." He ducked his chin behind his white shirt's oversized collar, waiting for an answer.

At Esclava's first words, Kazu's head dropped slightly, feeling as if it would be quite a while until he would find out exactly what had been driving him to go to Marrowvale. He approached the others cautiously examining them. Though they weren't human, or at least not entirely, Kazu wasn't really alarmed by them, moreso, he admired them. The structure of the dragon-like man, and the feline woman who's eyes captivated him with their offset colour and the narrow slits of the pupils.

As he moved to join the group, Esk's question rang in his ear causing him to smile and speak in a silver bell-like tone. "Oh, I know that name! That place is in Marrowvale Brainde, isn't it?" His smile was of the brightest of innocence as he looked into Esk's eyes.

Esclava

Esk stared back right into her purple eyes, refusing to blink. Something still seemed off about her, but she wasn't attacking them and actually seemed to be quite as lost as he was. She wasn't an enemy. He relaxed, but made sure to keep his guard up. He wasn't entirely sure whether it was a ploy to lull them into a false sense of security, and he hadn't spoken to girls for quite some time. Fought girls, yes. Actually talk to them? The last time Esk did was when he was 18, and when Robin saw how flustered he was he promised to never force Esk to do so again.

He nodded in answer to her question, breaking his gaze away from hers as he did so. "I have a map," He muttered uncertainly, pushing his hands into his pockets, "which lead me here to Brainde." He decided to ask her a question himself. "What's your name?" He added, almost as an afterthought, "I'm Esclava."

Upon hearing Esk admit to having a map, Kazu's delight could barely be contained. He wouldn't be stuck in this forest much longer, and even if he were, he at least managed to find people that weren't attempting to kill him at this particular moment in time. He moved closer to Esclava, stopping only a few steps away.

In his silver bell voice, he spoke to the group and gave a half bow, half curtsy, crossing on leg behind the other, and tilting his body forward as he lightly lifted the base of his coat. It was well rehearsed, feminine enough to make people assume, but with just a hint of masculinity that could be used in the defense of not 'lying' about his gender. It worked well with Kazu not being a gender specific name as well. " It's a pleasure to meet you Esclava. My name is Kazu Sakurai, The Twin Blade." As soon as he said the title, he wondered where it came from and why he felt it was part of his name. "May my swords be of service to you." He liked the sound of his short and simple introduction, but he couldn't remember coming up with it, he just knew it.

Esclava

Esk blinked, but otherwise showed no sign of his surprise. Kazu Sakurai was a guy, huh? That explained it. Or he could just be a really flat-chested girl who didn't mind flashing her chest to others, in which case the sense of wrongness couldn't be explained. But it went away when he did that half-bow/curtsy, so yup, she was a male.

The Twin Blade... Nope. Never heard of he-him. Esk wasn't surprised by that fact. He wasn't really interested in the current news; preferring to train instead, and had probably out of the loop with the rest of the world for years. It didn't help that he had spent most of his life confined in a castle.

Esk hunched his shoulders warily, unsure how to respond to Kazu's reply. For as long as he could remember, no one had actually treated him this way before, and he was at a loss what to do. He frantically went through the social responses that Robin had drummed into his head, and after what seemed like eternity (but was only a few seconds), he chose what seemed like the best answer. "Um. Nice to meet you too." Awkwardly, he held out a hand. I hope I'm doing the right thing. "May my daggers be of service to you too."

Still sitting in the muddy alley Card took a moment to divert her attention form mild ache that had shivered up along the length of her auburn colored tail. It was much like the pain one gets when they hit their elbow off something. She leaned over, her fingers, digging into the mud as she leaned over peeking around Tollun's thick muscular legs at the feminine boy...This was enough to cause her ears to perk back up, wanting to touch him like all new things she found fascinating. She scrambled up to her feet once more, balancing herself with a light hold on to Tollun's back side. Forgetting that personal space thing that she had been told about on so many prior occasions, or at she vaguely remembered it but it surely didn't apply to friends...

Wiping the sludge off her hand on to what used to but the unsullied front of her tight leather slacks, she was quick to indulge in her interests of the this new comer. Slinking closer as if he might reach out and bop her on the head, she kept her hands low and balled in to slight fists as she leaned in looking up with curiosity gleaming in those almond shaped two tone eyes. He was taller than her and there was some slight masculine lines along his jaw but he had such a smooth baby like face. His voice was also like a silvery bell to her feline ears.

"Inn is close to here." Her accent hanging heavily on each word she spoke. She must of looked like a refugee, muddy and hair all astray. The sooner they got to the inn, sooner she could see if they had a bath house within. It might of been her cat like nature but feeling filthy wasn't something she took much joy in. She straightened and began walking in more of a proud strut trying hard to not let it show how uncomfortable she was feeling at the moment, determined to get to The Minstrel's Mug which was only two or less shady blocks away close to the docks. Though at this pace it would be easier for the others to follow her with more ease. She would stand there outside the doors waiting for them to catch up, impatiently tapping her foot.

Walking between the two men conversing, and following Cardista, Tollun looked back to check if Remeil was following. He was certain that the man had nothing to worry about here, but an extra blade was rarely a bad thing. After Tollun collected his answer, he stopped, still turned around, and spoke "I am Tollun. If either of you wish to find an inn, it would be best you follow."

After saying his piece to the two of them, Tollun resumed following Cardista. More than likely she would get to the Minstrel's Mug without incident, but Tollun didn't want to have to deal with another "run into" with complete strangers.

Remeil stayed silent as new people appeared, unsure as to whether or not they could be trusted. To many things were going on to allow him to form an opinion on them. Becoming more uncomfortable he decided to push forward past Cardista and the others. Once inside the in he found a table as far away from the fireplace and took a seat waiting for the others. Despite being a little cold he refused to get closer to the fire due to his fear. This being the first time things have been quiet enough for him to think. He ran over his mind the things that lead up to this point. Not even able to count how many people Remeil cut down to get his freedom. Freeing many of the other slaves he knew he was unable to free them all. His heart bleed for them wishing he could have saved them. Now worry of his next threat crawled into his mind Azazel would be coming for him soon and maybe Master Zeno would be there as well. He wondered how long he had before they would track him down and would his dream of freedom end there. However even with all the pain full thoughts he did acknowledge how fortunate he was to have found a few that he felt safe around. Cardista had done so much for Remeil to feel at ease.

It was weird that he felt calm around her. As a slave he was considered a raging beast in the arena leading to the name Hell's Blade. He had been forced to kill so many people and tortured for so long that the idea of being happy didn't even seem like a possibility. Dreams weren't something he was privy to as nightmares filled his sleep. Yet with Cardista and Tollun made him want to dream that this would never end.

Zeebarl was currently wishing he had a cloak of his own for all that water that was tumbling out of the sky. Of-course he had his ornate military cloak, a prized piece of clothing he managed to somehow convince a wealthy lord to part with, for some 'precious' gems, however it did little to keep the rain off his head. He still was puzzled on how he managed that, though that was just a piece of a much bigger pile of things he was puzzled about these days. He quickly decided against thinking about it, and was just thankful the sky water had begun letting up for once, continuing to plod along, dragging his precious cart filled to the brim with wares and provisions, making his way at a leisurely pace through the alleyways.

"When will this bloody water cease? Honestly, i'm not sure my goods will keeps dry for much longer! This bizarre weather really has no consideration for the honest hardworking merchant! Best find a pub or inn to keep dry, hopefully with some chance of finding out where in world I can sell my wares without getting drenched!", the half-dwarf grumbled to himself as he wrung out some unwanted moisture in his soaked, dark blonde, locks, doing the same to his water clogged scarf. He was however honestly relieved he wasn't the only one that seemed dazed and confused however, as the residents seemed just as bewildered as Zeebarl was when the water began to fall, even if they were just empty shells in his eyes nowadays. Zeebarl pondered briefly on why this strange weather began to happen, but honestly he didn't give much of a care, and only knew it would be easier without. He had been to Briande before, that he was certain of, but he honestly barely visited the place, thanks to the local guard often being immensely uncaring, though thankfully theft was usually high on their priorities list, something Zeebarl was hoping would be enforced the most in any town. His lack of visits certainly didn't help him his knowledge of the area, seeming to have a bit of trouble with remembering the quickest routes to the local inns and pubs, grumbling to himself about any familiar surroundings. He was slowly getting more and more frustrated, irritated at the lack of obvious signs around him, and his own choice in choosing narrow alleyways instead of the open street to avoid the cart tumbling from trying to drag it through a puddle.Then he found the corpses.

They both seemed to be killed by bladed weapons, one from a knife in the head, the other from something larger, perhaps simply just a larger knife? Zeebarl cared not, but he knew this would definitely not be a good position to be caught in, not to mention an absolute pain to pull his cart past, cursing under his breath, wondering if his day would get worse. It also seemed that some of their possessions had been taken as well, or at least in Zeebarl's mind it did, causing him even more fury, snarling to himself as he dragged the corpses; "Better not attempt stealing from MY possessions, unless you want to end up in worst state than these two! Hard to pinch belongings with your head caved in."
He than dragged his cart along behind him, still grumbling under his breath as he turned right, and wandered around the back-alleys some more until frustration took it's toll as he ran back onto the mud covered road, glumly deciding to simply give up on finding a dryer path. He hoped all this water wouldn't start rusting the metal on his steel toe caped boots. Certainly wouldn't be cheap to fix with the wear and tear he had put his boots through. He shrugged it off in irritation, glaring at the sky water as if it had a personal vendetta against him, until it suddenly began to let up, which the merchant was thankful for, giving a smirk of relief about it. When his eyes lowered from the sky, he saw ahead of him a small cluster of travelers waiting outside an inn, named the Minstrel's Mug, to which his smirk widened at the sight of not only a place to rest, but also of possibly some new customers, though one however, a crimson haired, well muscled man dressed in a faded blue robe that seemed to have been injured somewhat, had already wandered into the inn. No matter, Zeebarl was sure to get round to all of them. Fussing over his hair and his coat, Zeebarl sauntered over to the group casually, with his cart in tow, giving his best smile.

"Good evening fellow weary travelers! I trust you are all as eager to wander into this fine inn as am I? Hahaha, but of-course! Though I am sorry to keep you when you are so close from shelter, but perhaps you could take just a slight moment to browse the wares of this tired merchant?", he greeted them, giving them all an expectant look.
He then directed his eyes towards a young neko lady and a serious looking half-dragon, of all people to wander into a inn in these parts, hoping to get them convinced first, due to his begrudging lack of experience with reptilian half breed man, while with neko kind he had found to be generally more ditsy compared to the average human.
"Perhaps you sir would wish for a new set of clothes? Not there are anything wrong with yours good sir, oh by the contrary those are a fetching combination of garments you wear sir, burlap does wonders for you sir, but perhaps you would wish for more comfortable and luxurious clothes fr those days where you wish to simply just have a relaxing time in peace, perhaps for a night of romance with the lovely lady besides you there? Fear not madam, for I have wares for you as well! Perhaps you would like to treat yourself to a new elegant dress or some priceless jewelry to help bring out more of your youthful beauty? Perhaps some exotic perfume? Though in truth, I doubt you can do much to change perfection, isn't that right gentlemen? Hahahahahaahahaha!", Zeebarl continued to chatter, putting as much warmth and friendliness he could fake into his voice, face and especially his eyes, which he mostly tried his best to avoid staring at any of the strangers for long. He was called Weasel Eyes for a reason after-all.

He then moved his spiel onto the other two men, one a tall an wiry fellow that also had red hair with plenty of scars, the other a rather effeminate looking with long flowing raven black hair that took him a few moments to figure their true gender, which he counted himself extremely lucky for and glad he avoided an embarrassing mistake.
"As for you two fine gents, I can tell you that I certainly have what you need for all your maintenance need for those fine looking weapons your carrying! For those longswords of yours sir, I have the perfect wax to help you slice and dice your way even through solid stone! Surely worth their price i'm sure you will find!As for you my tall friend, I realized you have a wonderful pair of saxes their, a true wonder of craftsmanship if I ever saw one, though it seems their luster has dimed somewhat. Worry not my friend for I have the perfect polish to bring the shine back, perhaps even giving a slight edge in battle with the light blindingly reflecting off of them?", he babbled again before giving all present a good old grin, and finishing off his sales-pitch in a reassuring tone; "Of-course I have plenty more wares in this old reliable cart to pick from, so feel free to ask for anything, and I mean anything lady and gentlemen, that you wish for!I have plenty of wonders and much desired items in stock! So what do you fine folk say? How can Zeebarl assist you today?"
He finally beamed at them, giving the look of an honest worker while in his mind he was sneakily smirking, fully convinced he had at least brought three of them under curiosity and most certainly purchase.

Tollun reached into his pocket, slowly sifting his fingers through his coin pouch. He could feel the urge to keep his money hidden from this strange merchant, and the pain of the though of giving even a single coin to the strange merchant. He had no reason to even get new clothes, but the man was good enough to at least make the half-dragon pause and think of what he might need.

"Do you have a leather chest-guard?" Tollun asked, his voice calm and collected, and extremely serious. He gave off the air of someone who was far from flaky, and more than willing to live in the crappiest of places just so he could have a pile of gold. It wasn't far from off, and definitely something that any merchant who has worked with a customer with even the slightest bit of dragon blood in them would tell you they are like.

Kazuyama

Kazu took Esclava's hand in his and shook it with a strength that was seemingly impossible from such a delicate looking figure. His face cheerful as he did so. "Thank you very much." As he said this, he felt the warmth from the presence of the Neko girl moving closer and turned slowly to look at her. He too was curious about her from the moment he laid eyes on her, and the Draconian as well. His manners faltering, he reached out as if he were about to offer to shake her hand, but instead scratched her head softly between her ears with a slightly nervous grin locked upon his lips.

Just as he was about to speak to her, a man, slightly shorter than himself but with a much larger frame approached the group from an alleyway causing Kazu to hurriedly retract his hand. He outspokenly introduced himself as Zeebarl, a 'tired traveling merchant' with a cart full of many wares. As Kazu listened to this banter, he couldn't help but feel somewhat skeptical. As a blacksmith, he knew his jewelries, armour weaponry better than most, and only a few times had he ever heard of waxing a blade, and even then, it was only for long term storage. Furthermore, one would not expect to see 'priceless jewels' being carried around in a cart, and if they were, they were not advertised so openly. Kazu was about to speak up, but decided instead to listen and humor the merchant.

When the half-dragon spoke, his voice gave Kazu a slight chill. He watched though as he went through his coin pouch and decided to check his own monetary standing. As he rummaged through the small bag at his slender waist, he discovered that he was actually quite well off and decided to inquire to the merchant once he was done with the Draconian.

So...apparently this merchant gentleman was not all the familiar with dealing with a Neko. Cardista forgot all about the uncomfortable feeling of being hopelessly filthy. Honestly all the sales talk went in one ear and out the other. As she lurched closer to his cart wondering how he could possible fit all those treasures in there. A finger pressed hard to her chin as she leaned in closer, closer, and closer still. "Can I get new pants for Tollun?" She was not going to let up on getting the man a new pair of pants.

Her eyes scanned over the wares...but they were covered. Surely the half dwarf wouldn't mind if she moved the coverings some. With her free hand she gingerly lifted a covering open and closer she leaned in. She shot a quick look at the merchant he seemed busy soliciting his goods to the two new men that joined her little group and probably would not mind if she got in for a better look. And with that, all that could be seen of the cat girl as she dove head first in was a pair of booted legs and a fluffy red tail sticking out of his cart, as she dug deeper through his wears. There was an occasional muffled "Oo or Ah" as Card found quite a few trinkets that caught her fancy, but having a problem locating proper pants for her friend. An occasional crushing sound echoed from the cart, as she became more furious in her search.

Seeing Cardista jumping in head first into a merchants cart he quickly darted over and pulled her out. Holding her up by the back of her shirt. "Um I don't think you should do this." He gently placed her on the ground and patted her head with a slight chuckle. He turned to the man trying to sell his wares hoping he has not seen. "Just ask the man what you are searching for might make things easier." Remeil looked down at his shirt and noticed it was in shambles and wished he had kept a bit of his money for new clothes but he had given it all to the Neko to use. Another time. He thought to himself. Finding money after he rested shouldn't be to hard.

Esk returned Kazu's grip with an equally crushing one of his own with a nod. He turned to follow the draconian man - Tollun, wasn't it? He wasn't really too sure - and was about to follow him (he was allowed to do so, right? Esk honestly didn't know) when a small man with a large frame came out of the alleys. He was carrying a cart filled with items that were covered over with cloth, and introduced himself as Zeebarl, a tired travelling merchant who seemed friendly, even if his eyes were constantly moving around. Esk dutifully listened to what the merchant was saying, subtly checking his saxes. They weren't dull, he had just polished it a few days ago. Maybe the merchant had bad eyesight and didn't want glasses, which was why he kept moving his eyes around?

Esk did a mental checklist, ticking off the items he had in his head. He didn't really need anything except a spool of thread and some needles, which he had given to an old lady who needed it for sewing up her son's arm after an accident with an axe a few days ago. There was so much blood that Esk was surprised he didn't bleed to death. He saw the process first handed, and had refused to take it back, in case something like that happened again. The old lady had given him a few coins in exchange.

With that in mind, Esk turned his attention to the merchant, who was conversing with Tollun. He opened his mouth, then closed it again. Master had taught him that interrupting a person's conversation was bad and deserved punishment, even though Robin claimed that it wasn't and Master's head belonged up a horses arse for teaching him that. For now, Esk decided to keep his mouth shut. Master might not be here, but Esk really didn't want to risk getting a book to the head with a yell of how rotten and worthless he was, only stopping when he obeyed the order to kiss his feet.

Esk turned to the cart instead, intending to get the items he needed from there himself. He found himself facing a man with blood-red hair patting the neko on the head with a faint chuckle, before looking down at his clothes with faint concern on his face. Why - ah, Esk thought, noticing that his clothes were in shambles, maybe he needs new clothes. The three of them are probably travelling companions. He decided to hep out. After all, he had to repay them for leading him to the inn.

"Excuse me," Esk said quietly, striding over to them. "I've got pants. And boots. Thanks for leading me to the inn." He held the items out to them. The pants were light blue in colour and the boots were a dark blue-green, but they were in good condition.

As Remeil pulled her out, Card's legs kick for a sec as he held her by her shirt, having ride up some exposing her navel before put her on the ground. She had to fists full of "treasures". By treasures of course meaning a couple of pretty loose buttons and piece of what seemed to be jerked meat of some kind. She gave a small pout to Remeil not quite sure why he had rushed out like that to pull her from the cart, the man seemed busy talking to everyone. Though the moment he gave her that small bit of affection, with the light pat upon her fiery head, her soft lips turned up into a smile. She held out the piece of jerky to Remeil knowing he was hungry. Pocketing the buttons, before turning to the Merchant hands on her hips puffing her chest out, though her discolored seemed warm and the smile still pulled at the corners of her mouth, hearing Tollun ask about a piece of amor of some sort she added, "And Tollun needs pants. The meat was how many coin?"

She wasn't about to try not paying for the dried meat. For a moment before she had a flashback of getting beaten by another merchant, much like a child for helping herself to the fruit on their market stand. She had thought how kind it was for him to of put out food to share only to find out it was not free the hard way. She gave a small shutter and went for one of the coin pouches concealed in her pack. She had no desire to repeat that experience.