Once a Thief: Part 6
----- Black Heart -----
Note: This story may contain sexual situations, strong language, images, etc...
Intended for mature audiences only. Reader discretion is advised.
Intended for mature audiences only. Reader discretion is advised.
The Black Rose stood upon a precipice overlooking a vast sea of crashing waves. More than once her mind drifted to the events that had transpired the night before below such waves. It had been the first time she had taken a lover, the first time she had given in to such temptations, and the first time her body had given her a pleasure no words could describe. The sylvari's views on relationships -especially those of a romantic nature- and the inherent weakness of the heart it brought weighed heavily on her. She shut her eyes listening to the rhythmic sound of the ocean waves and the wind which played in concert with it.
Her mind's eye, however, stared at the angelic form of a pink-haired, thinly muscular woman as she floated within the depths of the blue ocean. Her hair swayed in the current and she smiled as a few bubbles escaped her mouth. A ray of light from the cove above found its way onto the woman, her nude form fully exposed for Tressa to see.
temp
Tressa's body brightened, much as it had done the previous night. In fact, her entire body had radiated throughout their rendezvous, reacting to the woman's presence, her fingers… her lips.
Footsteps behind her alerted her to an approach; instantly she knew who it was. Tressa grinned as she returned a recently purchased hat back atop her head. "Care to join?" she asked without turning.
Kimura giggled. "You know, I really do need to practice sneaking up on you," she said as she made her way up the rock face, easily scaling it. "Who knows? Skills can always been improved upon; maybe a few lessons sometime?"
Tressa remained focused on the waters below. "That… That could be arranged, if you are serious."
"Well, yeah! That would be… I mean, if you're planning to stick around a bit more. Or did you want to…" The pink-haired woman shifted her weight and wrung her hands. She was more at ease with climbing the shear wall than she was speaking aloud about the previous night's encounter.
Tressa's golden orbs darted to the woman, attempting for a stealthy glance, but clumsily stayed upon her longer than she'd meant to.
Both women began talking in unison, "So, um…"
After a long awkward pause, Kimura finally exhaled and smirked, brushing back a lock of her hair from her eyes. "Well, I'm… uh… I'm glad you came here with me."
"It was… um… Well, it was quite the experience…" The Black Rose's voice cracked, perhaps for the first time.
Kimura smiled, turned her lime-green eyes to the sylvari. "Aye. It was. I had fun - a lot of fun!" Her eyes trailed up noting the intricately embroidered hat or velvet reds and deeply stained blacks, complete with a blood red moa feature.
Tressa cleared her throat, adjusting her leaves which had fallen from under it. "It's new. And before you ask, I purchased it, legitimately here on the island."
"I didn't… Well, that's good to know. Turning over a new leaf an all," Kimura paused at the unintentional pun in the idiom and stifled her giggle. "Well, it looks good. It suits you, I'd say." Kimura reached into her side pouch, revealing a small cloth item. "Well, I purchased something too. It's a new mask," she said, slipping on the black hood.
"It certainly isn't pink, so that's a good start," Tressa smirked.
"Yeah? It's more menacing then?" She grinned beneath the mask, attempted to deepen her voice. "Give me all your money!"
Tressa's orbs glanced down at the woman's exposed toned midriff. "Oh yeah: completely menacing." After a minute, she realized she was staring and quickly looked back up. "Um… the mask, that is."
Kimura tilted her head a moment, pulling the mask off. She collected her thoughts before she spoke in a serious tone. "This isn't going to get weird between us is it?"
The Black Rose removed her hat, if nothing else than to have a distraction from the probing question. While she had logged lots of time studying human interaction, she possessed very little experience when it came to actually interacting with matters of the heart (unless it was to drive a dagger through it!).
"Because… Well, I… enjoyed it. And, there's really nothing I would change. I would do everything the same. All over again."
Now it was Tressa who shifted her weight awkwardly. She adjusted the brim of her hat, and obvious ploy to bide her time.
Kimura's brow furrowed. "It's… I mean… It's okay if you feel differently. I understand."
Tressa's voice was as soft as the sound of a baby quaggan. "I did… enjoy it as well." Her eyes never left the hat.
A relieved sigh came from the pink-haired woman. "You did? Really?"
"I… Yes. It was… the first time."
Kimura smiled joyfully. "Well that's amazing! It was my first time with a sylvari!"
If it was possible to have a lump in her throat, Tressa would have swallowed it. She was both relieved and terrified at once. She finally brought herself to speak. "And… you would… wish to do… something like that… again?"
Kimura simply nodded, seeing her companion was having a much more difficult time expressing herself than she was. After a silent moment, she decidedly leaned upon a rock, allowing the sylvari as much time as she needed.
Tressa noticed the gesture and felt a bit less tense. She returned her view to the sea. "I never understood," she began. "The need humans and other fleshlings had for such carnal pleasures. And, beyond simply the lust-filled exchange, I… I feel as though something inside me has blossomed since. Like, a glowing red flower in the darkness of night." She paused her thoughts for minute, reflecting on her words and laughed a bit embarrassingly. "Not… um… my flower. I meant… metaphorically."
"Although, I believe I saw that blossom last night too," Kimura teased.
A red flash pulsated from the sylvari. "Yes… well…" She cleared her throat. "Back when I was a sapling… Well, before leaving the Grove; I felt the dream, even if for me it was nightmare. Regardless, I could still hear and feel the thoughts of other sylvari - as all sylvari do. When I left that, I left those thoughts and feelings behind. But, last night… deep in the waters… with you… I felt that again."
Kimura stood upright, approached Tressa, and offered her hand with a small welcoming smile upon her face. "I am glad. I don't want this to affect our work and what we have built. But… I want more. With you. And, I think… I think I share that same want you're describing."
Tressa stared deeply into the woman's liquid lime-colored eyes. They captured the rising sun, reflecting a warm invitation, to which the sylvari longed to accept. She reached out her own hand, to take her companions, then sharply paused, as her head turned to the path leading to them. She spun on her heel, daggers already in hand and whispered, "Someone's approaching."
Without hesitation, Kimura's mask was already on, as she readied her pistols. A brief curse was uttered under her breath at the interruption, and her mind threatened to be pulled into the scenario which may have played out had their attention not been drawn to the unknown subject. She also wondered just how much of the hypothetical scene played out in Tressa's mind.
Kimura peered down the path, noting the approaching figure's looks and body type. "Tressa. I think I recognize her; I think it was when I was re-conning the Dejarin Estate."
Both women stayed at the ready, with Kimura finally making the connection and confirming that it was a house guard from Dejarin Estate. Her recognition, however, still hadn't convinced Tressa. Kimura placed a reassuring hand on the woman's shoulder carefully. "It's okay, alright? We're one of them now, remember?"
Tressa flinched momentarily at the touch, then glanced back. "Are we?"
"Aye. We're under their employ now, yeah? Let's hear what she has to say. Shall I greet them?"
Reluctantly, the assassin stowed her daggers. "Yes. You are better at such things. I shall follow your lead, Kimura."
Kimura took a few steps toward the steep slope of the rock face, paused to say something more to Tressa, then grinned as she discovered the assassin had already vanished without a sound. She spun back around, slid down the rock, and called out to the figure ahead. "You there! You're one of Paige Dejarin's people, yes? I believe of the house guard?"
The woman came forward with a slightly furrowed brow of annoyance. "I am not owned. I work for her on occasion, but I will take your loose words as a friendly greeting. This place isn't a place to fight."
Kimura was a relatively shorter woman, with a petite stature compared to the large woman's. One would have to look closer to discern the woman wasn't a norn. Nodding, Kimura reached out her hand in the purposefully non-aggressive gesture of a handshake. "Well, it sounds like that's something you, myself, and my colleague have in common then: all working for the Dejarins."
The woman reached out, shook Kimura's hand with a raised eyebrow. "Colleague?"
The silent sylvari took a few steps from a nearby shaded area and onto the overlook, making her presence known. Both hands remained quietly on her sheathed daggers.
"So if we're all friends here, what's she doing hiding in the dark?"
"In case…" The Black Rose hissed.
Kimura shrugged. "Can never be too careful; even here in this paradise, dangers can present themselves. But you'll have no trouble from us. As I said, we're under House Dejarin…"
"For now," Tressa's words were daggers, and while Kimura knew they were only a defensive mechanism, she couldn't help but wonder if there was still a tinge of truth to them.
She cleared her throat. "Well, like I said, we just took a contract with Paige Dejarin and… Wait! Where are my manners? This is The Black Rose, and I am… um…" The woman paused at the realization she never had the need to use an alias; most of her jobs used to come by way of contracts dropped off at the flower stand or by Barrox, himself. She glanced back at Tressa with perplexed shrug.
"The Pink Thorn," Tressa said, as if it were, in fact, a nickname they'd already agreed to.
Kimura's face flushed beneath her mask. "Um… No. I am… Um…" She stammered, trying to grasp at any nickname better than the one the assassin had just branded her with. "Shadow? Yeah! I'm Shadow."
Tressa raised a thorny eyebrow thinking 'Shadow' was a word that least described the pink-haired fleshling.
Lime-green eyes rolled as she returned her attention to the woman. "And you are?"
"Name's Ariadne. My full name holds little meaning. Ari is what some call me."
"Very well. Ari it is then! So what is it you do for the Dejarins Ari, and what brings you to Southsun?" Kimura asked, leaning against a boulder.
"Well, I come with a message from Lady Paige Dejarin, but I want to make certain I am delivering it to the right people. I was told of The Black Rose; the description fits, but… What did you say your name was again?"
"Pink Thorn," Tressa blurted.
Kimura huffed, raised an eyebrow at the sylvari. "No. Not 'Pink Thorn'," she said, continuing with a purposefully mysterious tone, "I am: Shadow!"
A chuckle came from Tressa.
Ari frowned from the corner of her mouth. "Shadow? Okay, so there's a problem there: I alone know about ten different people named Shadow, and there was not a 'Shadow' mentioned from Lady Paige Dejarin."
Kimura grumbled. "Okay, fine. That may have been a job I did once under that name: The Whitehammer heist? The Cogsprocket job? The Thistlebrook theft? All Shadow; all me. But, it's not 'Pink Thorn,'" she scoffed at Tressa.
"Shadow: The Pink Rose," Tressa said coyly.
A loud inhale followed by a louder exhale came from Kimura. "No. Listen… My name isn't important right now! You have a message? I suppose Paige mentioned The Black Rose and her companion? Well, I'm the companion (apparently!)."
Ari glanced at Tressa then back to Kimura and nodded. "Lady Paige Dejarin has requested your assistance with a matter. She is to lead a group into a lab to retrieve something… A sword and some gloves I think she said? Regardless, the group is going to be meeting in Lion's Arch to coordinate a strategy."
"She wants us to fight? We're a thief and an assassin, and she wants us in the fray?"
"Maybe she plans to sneak into the place? I really don't have the details, only to deliver this message. Will you be attending?" Ari said dryly. Despite most people's feelings to the contrary, she never liked the beach and wanted to make her time there as short as possible.
Kimura was looking at Tressa, having an unspoken conversation. "Should we agree to go?"
"What's the harm in sitting down to hear what she wants us to do? Remember what you said, she's our employer and we're seizing a new opportunity. The first sign from you that you're not comfortable, we bolt," Tressa silently imparted with only a nod.
Kimura nodded to Ari, "Aye. We'll be there."
Ariadne took little time with the pleasantries of saying goodbyes, promptly leaving the couple alone. Tressa was still on the overlook as Kimura joined her, flopping down on the mossy granite surface of the overlook.
"Okay, that was embarrassing! I froze. I couldn't think of a cool nickname like you: 'The Black Rose'."
"Pink Thorn?" Tressa slightly giggled.
Kimura groaned and pulled off her hood. "I mean it! I'm not going to intimidate anyone like you without a good name. And besides, I don't think drawing attention to my hair is wise! Not bloody likely to have too many people with pink hair running around, you know…"
Tressa took in a breath, sighing an apology. She genuinely hadn't meant anything more than playfulness, and she admittedly wasn't very good at it. Often when she had tried to be humorous, it was met with little success.
"Well, you know… 'Thorn' isn't that bad. I dunno. I'm… I'm just not very good at this kind of stuff: coming up with names and the like. All my heists and jobs were named for me."
"As was The Black Rose. It was my reputation which created the moniker."
"Oh yeah. That's right! I had forgotten about how you got it. People talk when they're happy with your service, but they don't talk about a great robbery they paid someone to do. Usually they don't want to bring any attention to themselves, so my participation kinda remains shady. I can't exactly advertise… And I don't think, 'Oh hello! I'm Kimura!' is a good option either." Kimura threw a loose pebble over the edge in frustration.
"I am uncertain how she knew just where we were. I assume the Dejarin woman aquired our whereabouts from you?"
"Yeah, I told her before we came. Just in case she needed us. Sounds like my assumption was warranted."
"Do you…" Tressa's mind wandered. "Do you think she was privy to our… activities last nightfall?"
Kimura considered, then shrugged. "Well, she seemed eager to leave, so no, I don't think she was hanging around last night. Unless she was twenty feet underwater. I mean, really… the only thing I noticed was… well, you." Her face flushed as the words left her lips. Tressa's glow pulsed, indicating the words were felt by her as well. "I really did have a great time with you Tressa," she said with a smirk and a playful swat on the woman's shoulder.
Tressa raised a thorny brow, but grinned. "Hey, watch it, fleshling," she said. It was the first time the sylvari had used the term as endearment rather than insult.
"Well, I watched it last night… and rather liked what I saw!" Kimura winked.
Tressa smiled without meaning to. To know someone looked at her with fondness instead of fear filled her with something she'd been reluctant to feel most of her life: joy.
Kimura scooted closer to the woman. "Can I ask you something?" the words were almost a whisper. "How did you end up with Barrox and Plopp?"
"I was found," she said shortly, as if the explanation was enough.
The woman's lime eyes were wide. "Huh. Me too, now that I think about it; although looking back, I think Barrox had his reasons. But, you know, it worked out. He gave me a place to be, and well, our extended family… or garden, as it were."
"Reasons?"
"Well, he was the one who came up with the whole flower business front. He had two skilled botanists who grew the flowers. You've seen them: the Canthan couple whom attends to the botanicals." After Tressa nodded, Kimura continued. "He needed a kid to play as their child as part of the scam. And, well, I fit the bill," she said gesturing to her Canthan appearance.
The woman's eyes were a bit slanted and her thin nose was smaller with wider, less-promenade cheekbones. Tressa stared at the woman's features as she spoke and pointed them out. It occurred to the sylvari, she'd never actually asked about her cultural characteristics (other than why she decided to dye her hair pink!).
Tressa inadvertently giggled, interrupting the woman's memories. Kimura raised a thin eyebrow which morphed into an approving grin, then a warm smile. She slowly, carefully slipped her gloved hand into her partner's. Tressa tensed up for a moment, then closed her petals around the thief's.
"So, what do you mean you were found?"
Tressa's golden orbs never left their intertwined hands, the contrast of her dark petals against the woman's pale complexion a clear indication of just how different they were, yet how the can be grafted as one. She took in a breath, staring into Kimura's accepting eyes, causing the assassin to slowly pulse a scarlet hue. This time, however, it was not from embarrassment, but rather, from the unfamiliarity of acceptance.
"Plopp. Plopp was the one who found me. I was… A job had gone wrong, and I was badly wilting. I am not sure what would have happened to me had Plopp not come along when he did."
"Sounds like we both lucked out then. The life of a street rat, especially a girl… Well, it's not that long lived. And if Plopp hadn't found you… We'd both not be here if it wasn't for Barrox and Plopp."
Tressa held up their clasped hands. "And this?"
Kimura stood, pulling the sylvari along with her, never letting go of her hand. She took a step closer, allowing their bodies to meet and smiled longingly at Tressa. "I think we're good together, you and I. And, I want this to continue. I want to explore this with you, if you want that too. And, if your glow is any indication, I think you do too, don't you?"
Standing in such close proximity, hesitantly glancing at the woman's lips as she spoke, The Black Rose could do nothing but whisper, "Yes."
Kimura leaned forward, pressing her lips to Tressa's leafy soft, glowing lips. The sylvari returned the kiss, accepting the woman who was once just a companion, once just another human… once a thief… into her own black heart.
Kimura giggled. "You know, I really do need to practice sneaking up on you," she said as she made her way up the rock face, easily scaling it. "Who knows? Skills can always been improved upon; maybe a few lessons sometime?"
Tressa remained focused on the waters below. "That… That could be arranged, if you are serious."
"Well, yeah! That would be… I mean, if you're planning to stick around a bit more. Or did you want to…" The pink-haired woman shifted her weight and wrung her hands. She was more at ease with climbing the shear wall than she was speaking aloud about the previous night's encounter.
Tressa's golden orbs darted to the woman, attempting for a stealthy glance, but clumsily stayed upon her longer than she'd meant to.
Both women began talking in unison, "So, um…"
After a long awkward pause, Kimura finally exhaled and smirked, brushing back a lock of her hair from her eyes. "Well, I'm… uh… I'm glad you came here with me."
"It was… um… Well, it was quite the experience…" The Black Rose's voice cracked, perhaps for the first time.
Kimura smiled, turned her lime-green eyes to the sylvari. "Aye. It was. I had fun - a lot of fun!" Her eyes trailed up noting the intricately embroidered hat or velvet reds and deeply stained blacks, complete with a blood red moa feature.
Tressa cleared her throat, adjusting her leaves which had fallen from under it. "It's new. And before you ask, I purchased it, legitimately here on the island."
"I didn't… Well, that's good to know. Turning over a new leaf an all," Kimura paused at the unintentional pun in the idiom and stifled her giggle. "Well, it looks good. It suits you, I'd say." Kimura reached into her side pouch, revealing a small cloth item. "Well, I purchased something too. It's a new mask," she said, slipping on the black hood.
"It certainly isn't pink, so that's a good start," Tressa smirked.
"Yeah? It's more menacing then?" She grinned beneath the mask, attempted to deepen her voice. "Give me all your money!"
Tressa's orbs glanced down at the woman's exposed toned midriff. "Oh yeah: completely menacing." After a minute, she realized she was staring and quickly looked back up. "Um… the mask, that is."
Kimura tilted her head a moment, pulling the mask off. She collected her thoughts before she spoke in a serious tone. "This isn't going to get weird between us is it?"
The Black Rose removed her hat, if nothing else than to have a distraction from the probing question. While she had logged lots of time studying human interaction, she possessed very little experience when it came to actually interacting with matters of the heart (unless it was to drive a dagger through it!).
"Because… Well, I… enjoyed it. And, there's really nothing I would change. I would do everything the same. All over again."
Now it was Tressa who shifted her weight awkwardly. She adjusted the brim of her hat, and obvious ploy to bide her time.
Kimura's brow furrowed. "It's… I mean… It's okay if you feel differently. I understand."
Tressa's voice was as soft as the sound of a baby quaggan. "I did… enjoy it as well." Her eyes never left the hat.
A relieved sigh came from the pink-haired woman. "You did? Really?"
"I… Yes. It was… the first time."
Kimura smiled joyfully. "Well that's amazing! It was my first time with a sylvari!"
If it was possible to have a lump in her throat, Tressa would have swallowed it. She was both relieved and terrified at once. She finally brought herself to speak. "And… you would… wish to do… something like that… again?"
Kimura simply nodded, seeing her companion was having a much more difficult time expressing herself than she was. After a silent moment, she decidedly leaned upon a rock, allowing the sylvari as much time as she needed.
Tressa noticed the gesture and felt a bit less tense. She returned her view to the sea. "I never understood," she began. "The need humans and other fleshlings had for such carnal pleasures. And, beyond simply the lust-filled exchange, I… I feel as though something inside me has blossomed since. Like, a glowing red flower in the darkness of night." She paused her thoughts for minute, reflecting on her words and laughed a bit embarrassingly. "Not… um… my flower. I meant… metaphorically."
"Although, I believe I saw that blossom last night too," Kimura teased.
A red flash pulsated from the sylvari. "Yes… well…" She cleared her throat. "Back when I was a sapling… Well, before leaving the Grove; I felt the dream, even if for me it was nightmare. Regardless, I could still hear and feel the thoughts of other sylvari - as all sylvari do. When I left that, I left those thoughts and feelings behind. But, last night… deep in the waters… with you… I felt that again."
Kimura stood upright, approached Tressa, and offered her hand with a small welcoming smile upon her face. "I am glad. I don't want this to affect our work and what we have built. But… I want more. With you. And, I think… I think I share that same want you're describing."
Without hesitation, Kimura's mask was already on, as she readied her pistols. A brief curse was uttered under her breath at the interruption, and her mind threatened to be pulled into the scenario which may have played out had their attention not been drawn to the unknown subject. She also wondered just how much of the hypothetical scene played out in Tressa's mind.
Kimura peered down the path, noting the approaching figure's looks and body type. "Tressa. I think I recognize her; I think it was when I was re-conning the Dejarin Estate."
Both women stayed at the ready, with Kimura finally making the connection and confirming that it was a house guard from Dejarin Estate. Her recognition, however, still hadn't convinced Tressa. Kimura placed a reassuring hand on the woman's shoulder carefully. "It's okay, alright? We're one of them now, remember?"
Tressa flinched momentarily at the touch, then glanced back. "Are we?"
"Aye. We're under their employ now, yeah? Let's hear what she has to say. Shall I greet them?"
Reluctantly, the assassin stowed her daggers. "Yes. You are better at such things. I shall follow your lead, Kimura."
Kimura took a few steps toward the steep slope of the rock face, paused to say something more to Tressa, then grinned as she discovered the assassin had already vanished without a sound. She spun back around, slid down the rock, and called out to the figure ahead. "You there! You're one of Paige Dejarin's people, yes? I believe of the house guard?"
The woman came forward with a slightly furrowed brow of annoyance. "I am not owned. I work for her on occasion, but I will take your loose words as a friendly greeting. This place isn't a place to fight."
Kimura was a relatively shorter woman, with a petite stature compared to the large woman's. One would have to look closer to discern the woman wasn't a norn. Nodding, Kimura reached out her hand in the purposefully non-aggressive gesture of a handshake. "Well, it sounds like that's something you, myself, and my colleague have in common then: all working for the Dejarins."
The woman reached out, shook Kimura's hand with a raised eyebrow. "Colleague?"
The silent sylvari took a few steps from a nearby shaded area and onto the overlook, making her presence known. Both hands remained quietly on her sheathed daggers.
"In case…" The Black Rose hissed.
Kimura shrugged. "Can never be too careful; even here in this paradise, dangers can present themselves. But you'll have no trouble from us. As I said, we're under House Dejarin…"
"For now," Tressa's words were daggers, and while Kimura knew they were only a defensive mechanism, she couldn't help but wonder if there was still a tinge of truth to them.
She cleared her throat. "Well, like I said, we just took a contract with Paige Dejarin and… Wait! Where are my manners? This is The Black Rose, and I am… um…" The woman paused at the realization she never had the need to use an alias; most of her jobs used to come by way of contracts dropped off at the flower stand or by Barrox, himself. She glanced back at Tressa with perplexed shrug.
"The Pink Thorn," Tressa said, as if it were, in fact, a nickname they'd already agreed to.
Kimura's face flushed beneath her mask. "Um… No. I am… Um…" She stammered, trying to grasp at any nickname better than the one the assassin had just branded her with. "Shadow? Yeah! I'm Shadow."
Tressa raised a thorny eyebrow thinking 'Shadow' was a word that least described the pink-haired fleshling.
Lime-green eyes rolled as she returned her attention to the woman. "And you are?"
"Name's Ariadne. My full name holds little meaning. Ari is what some call me."
"Very well. Ari it is then! So what is it you do for the Dejarins Ari, and what brings you to Southsun?" Kimura asked, leaning against a boulder.
"Well, I come with a message from Lady Paige Dejarin, but I want to make certain I am delivering it to the right people. I was told of The Black Rose; the description fits, but… What did you say your name was again?"
"Pink Thorn," Tressa blurted.
Kimura huffed, raised an eyebrow at the sylvari. "No. Not 'Pink Thorn'," she said, continuing with a purposefully mysterious tone, "I am: Shadow!"
A chuckle came from Tressa.
Ari frowned from the corner of her mouth. "Shadow? Okay, so there's a problem there: I alone know about ten different people named Shadow, and there was not a 'Shadow' mentioned from Lady Paige Dejarin."
Kimura grumbled. "Okay, fine. That may have been a job I did once under that name: The Whitehammer heist? The Cogsprocket job? The Thistlebrook theft? All Shadow; all me. But, it's not 'Pink Thorn,'" she scoffed at Tressa.
"Shadow: The Pink Rose," Tressa said coyly.
A loud inhale followed by a louder exhale came from Kimura. "No. Listen… My name isn't important right now! You have a message? I suppose Paige mentioned The Black Rose and her companion? Well, I'm the companion (apparently!)."
Ari glanced at Tressa then back to Kimura and nodded. "Lady Paige Dejarin has requested your assistance with a matter. She is to lead a group into a lab to retrieve something… A sword and some gloves I think she said? Regardless, the group is going to be meeting in Lion's Arch to coordinate a strategy."
"She wants us to fight? We're a thief and an assassin, and she wants us in the fray?"
"Maybe she plans to sneak into the place? I really don't have the details, only to deliver this message. Will you be attending?" Ari said dryly. Despite most people's feelings to the contrary, she never liked the beach and wanted to make her time there as short as possible.
Kimura was looking at Tressa, having an unspoken conversation. "Should we agree to go?"
"What's the harm in sitting down to hear what she wants us to do? Remember what you said, she's our employer and we're seizing a new opportunity. The first sign from you that you're not comfortable, we bolt," Tressa silently imparted with only a nod.
Kimura nodded to Ari, "Aye. We'll be there."
Ariadne took little time with the pleasantries of saying goodbyes, promptly leaving the couple alone. Tressa was still on the overlook as Kimura joined her, flopping down on the mossy granite surface of the overlook.
"Pink Thorn?" Tressa slightly giggled.
Kimura groaned and pulled off her hood. "I mean it! I'm not going to intimidate anyone like you without a good name. And besides, I don't think drawing attention to my hair is wise! Not bloody likely to have too many people with pink hair running around, you know…"
Tressa took in a breath, sighing an apology. She genuinely hadn't meant anything more than playfulness, and she admittedly wasn't very good at it. Often when she had tried to be humorous, it was met with little success.
"Well, you know… 'Thorn' isn't that bad. I dunno. I'm… I'm just not very good at this kind of stuff: coming up with names and the like. All my heists and jobs were named for me."
"As was The Black Rose. It was my reputation which created the moniker."
"Oh yeah. That's right! I had forgotten about how you got it. People talk when they're happy with your service, but they don't talk about a great robbery they paid someone to do. Usually they don't want to bring any attention to themselves, so my participation kinda remains shady. I can't exactly advertise… And I don't think, 'Oh hello! I'm Kimura!' is a good option either." Kimura threw a loose pebble over the edge in frustration.
"I am uncertain how she knew just where we were. I assume the Dejarin woman aquired our whereabouts from you?"
"Yeah, I told her before we came. Just in case she needed us. Sounds like my assumption was warranted."
"Do you…" Tressa's mind wandered. "Do you think she was privy to our… activities last nightfall?"
Kimura considered, then shrugged. "Well, she seemed eager to leave, so no, I don't think she was hanging around last night. Unless she was twenty feet underwater. I mean, really… the only thing I noticed was… well, you." Her face flushed as the words left her lips. Tressa's glow pulsed, indicating the words were felt by her as well. "I really did have a great time with you Tressa," she said with a smirk and a playful swat on the woman's shoulder.
Tressa raised a thorny brow, but grinned. "Hey, watch it, fleshling," she said. It was the first time the sylvari had used the term as endearment rather than insult.
"Well, I watched it last night… and rather liked what I saw!" Kimura winked.
Tressa smiled without meaning to. To know someone looked at her with fondness instead of fear filled her with something she'd been reluctant to feel most of her life: joy.
Kimura scooted closer to the woman. "Can I ask you something?" the words were almost a whisper. "How did you end up with Barrox and Plopp?"
"I was found," she said shortly, as if the explanation was enough.
The woman's lime eyes were wide. "Huh. Me too, now that I think about it; although looking back, I think Barrox had his reasons. But, you know, it worked out. He gave me a place to be, and well, our extended family… or garden, as it were."
"Reasons?"
"Well, he was the one who came up with the whole flower business front. He had two skilled botanists who grew the flowers. You've seen them: the Canthan couple whom attends to the botanicals." After Tressa nodded, Kimura continued. "He needed a kid to play as their child as part of the scam. And, well, I fit the bill," she said gesturing to her Canthan appearance.
The woman's eyes were a bit slanted and her thin nose was smaller with wider, less-promenade cheekbones. Tressa stared at the woman's features as she spoke and pointed them out. It occurred to the sylvari, she'd never actually asked about her cultural characteristics (other than why she decided to dye her hair pink!).
Tressa inadvertently giggled, interrupting the woman's memories. Kimura raised a thin eyebrow which morphed into an approving grin, then a warm smile. She slowly, carefully slipped her gloved hand into her partner's. Tressa tensed up for a moment, then closed her petals around the thief's.
"So, what do you mean you were found?"
Tressa's golden orbs never left their intertwined hands, the contrast of her dark petals against the woman's pale complexion a clear indication of just how different they were, yet how the can be grafted as one. She took in a breath, staring into Kimura's accepting eyes, causing the assassin to slowly pulse a scarlet hue. This time, however, it was not from embarrassment, but rather, from the unfamiliarity of acceptance.
"Plopp. Plopp was the one who found me. I was… A job had gone wrong, and I was badly wilting. I am not sure what would have happened to me had Plopp not come along when he did."
"Sounds like we both lucked out then. The life of a street rat, especially a girl… Well, it's not that long lived. And if Plopp hadn't found you… We'd both not be here if it wasn't for Barrox and Plopp."
Tressa held up their clasped hands. "And this?"
Kimura stood, pulling the sylvari along with her, never letting go of her hand. She took a step closer, allowing their bodies to meet and smiled longingly at Tressa. "I think we're good together, you and I. And, I want this to continue. I want to explore this with you, if you want that too. And, if your glow is any indication, I think you do too, don't you?"
Standing in such close proximity, hesitantly glancing at the woman's lips as she spoke, The Black Rose could do nothing but whisper, "Yes."
Kimura leaned forward, pressing her lips to Tressa's leafy soft, glowing lips. The sylvari returned the kiss, accepting the woman who was once just a companion, once just another human… once a thief… into her own black heart.
[The End]
[Note: To follow Tressa & Kimura's further adventures with House Dejarin
from this point, see Eternally Bound: Part 16]
[Note: To follow Tressa & Kimura's further adventures with House Dejarin
from this point, see Eternally Bound: Part 16]
