the exploration continutes ((open))

A little cackle, like a tinkling bell rang from the top of the building. Butterfly wings twitched excitedly as she tried to open the heavy pouch. What fun. in the busy city, it was such a joy to know people were watching her as someone's money bag suddenly grew wings and flew away. She laughed again, although it died a little bit as the knot was a little too difficult for her to open. The pouch was bigger than her and it was such a struggle getting it all the way up here. It was the roof of a church, it stood out against the smaller buildings of the town.

She finally worked out the knot with a little teeth action and coercing, but it finally spilled open and dropped onto the towns people below.

She perched herself next to it and kept it steady while the coins trickled in a steady flow to the ground. They shone nicely in the sunlight and she was more amused by the shiny flashes of light than the swarming masses beneath her, scrambling for every coin they could get their hands on. Although that was funny as well. People were so entertaining to play with.

Joek watched with a slight bit of amusement as the little bag had flown from his henchman's belt. "Looks like your share just... flew away!" He laughed as the henchman checked his pockets, letting out a frustrated cry, following it and then.. joining the mad dash for the little golden coins, punching anyone the poor sap could reach.

Joek's eyes lit up, looking toward the roof. "Fairies... a creature after mine own heart..." He ran his way over, climbing up the back way and sitting on the roof.

"Yooooo hooooo heeeeelloooooo." He crossed his arms, smiling at the little thing. "Just here to talk, I promise." He held up a hand, still smiling.

"Care to see something really shiny?" He slipped a hand into his jacket, pulling out a dazzling locket. "Want it?"

She took in a sharp breath at a voice behind her and glared at the person yelling at her. The rest of the bag fell off the roof as she skittered to a hiding spot. Not that it would do any good, the guy had already seen her. Her wings fluttered nervously. He claimed he wanted to talk. Suspicious, but if anything she could just run away; he didn't seem to be able to follow her.

Cautiously she flew around him. Bobbing near his head, examining him. Finally settling on the locket. It was quite shiny. She gingerly reached out to touch it, but pulled away, thinking it a trap. She settled fluttering in front of him and looking at him expectantly.

"What do you want?" she asked, her voice sharp although quiet.

Joek let the locket dangle, snatching up in his hand at her reaching for it. "Ah ahhhh. Like I said, I'd like to talk. Care to follow me? I swear to you no harm will come your way." He stepped down from the roof, and climbed his way down. Leaning over and seeing the people still maddeningly fighting over a few spare coin.

"I noticed you don't care much for money. I respect that," He said when she caught up to him.

"I merely wish to know your name. To see if you'd like to spend a little time letting me speak with you. If you don't mind." His dark blue eyes stared into hers, smiling all the while.

"Perhaps a meal?" He slid the locket from it's clasp again, letting it hang.

Karma was balancing a tankard on her head when she watched a coin purse just sort of...float off. Her head followed it and she managed to catch the tankard before it slid completely off her head, only spilling a bit of its contents. She giggled as the henchman started to become frantic. A fairy? How cute! Karma always liked fairies because she felt she could relate to them in a way...being a conniving magical creature and all. The djinn handed her tankard to one of the men and gave him a look that said, "No toasting yourself with my beverage" and watched Joek scurry up the back way. Her knees and ankles felt funny from the booze, but she was still willing to risk the climb. She'd done backflips while blacked out before...according to witnesses that is.

Luckily though, Joek was already descending before she had a chance to follow and she snatched her tankard back from the henchman as he was halfway to taking an illegal sip. She slid into position next to her friend in hopes of meeting the little shiny bandit, but kept her words to herself. After a few drinks, Karma knew she could be very loud on accident and didn't want to risk hurting the little critter's ear drums. Instead, she offered a smile and a little finger wiggle as a form of hello.

Quite a ways back, Jaz followed him cautiously. She peeked over the roof as he climbed down joining him when he reached the bottom. Her automatic response was to stay hidden when another person joined them. She scurried to hide behind a barrel on the ground, watching the two closely. A tentative patch of grass became a little greener as her bare feet touched the ground. It curled around her feet, as if trying to keep her there for a while longer. One person was ok. But two? This had to be a trap. The other one hadn't even talked yet, just waved at her. Maybe it was all part of their plan.

The busy street intimidated her as well. So in a fit of courage she zipped through the air and perched herself on Joek's shoulder.

"What do you want?" she asked again, cupping her tiny hands near his ear so he could hear her better. "And who is that? This had better not be a trap. I gave the money back." She crossed her arms, feeling justified in her excuse. She had given back the coins, just... not in the preferable manner.

Joek's eyes widened slightly at the grass becoming greener around her. A bringer of life! Wondrous! He smiled brightly at the fairy, cocking an eyebrow in surprise at her landing on his shoulder. With the question of the other he gave a puzzled look. "Other? What Oth- Oh." he turned to his right, smiling brightly as always. "This is my assistant and friend Karma. She does wonderful fire dancing... perhaps you'd like to see later?"

At her excuse for the money he looked at her once more.

"You gave the coin to the people. In my book, that is faar more important than returning it to it's owner."

Karma cocked her head when he seemed to answer a question that involved her identity. Of course the fairy was nervous! Two strange people wanting to be in her presence. Karma could understand having severe trust issues with people. Lucky her, she happened to cross paths with the mafia. Hopefully she would find more comfort in their company by the time she discovered their identities though.

The tankard was tilted back and she looked at the fairy closely. She was so colorful, and covered in tattoos! Karma's smile widened, genuinely appreciating the little lady's appearance. She spoke in a low voice, but not quite a whisper, "I like your ink. And your green wings. Green is a popular color here..." She chuckled and nodded at Joek's hair and at her own clothing.

Fire dancing. Meals. Talking. What was this person trying to achieve? She couldn't believe he was being nice for the sake of being nice. The offer was tempting though. She'd take what she could. She regarded the girl with narrowed eyes, interested. Her voice was nice, not abrasive like the one whose shoulder she was perched on. Her ink? She examined her delicate arms with the bands of vines around them and smiled proudly. They were nice weren't they?

She stepped off of the guy's shoulder in exchange for the girl's.

"Thank you~" she almost sang. "I'm glad you like them. I'm Jasminantheschunii. By the way."

The compliments did the trick as she warmed up to the pair. Hey, they were giving her free stuff /and/ compliments. She always had an escape route if she needed it. Might as well take advantage.

Joek watched the fairy float it's way over to Karma. He felt only a tinge of jealousy that his new fun thing had chosen Karma over him, but alas, no changing such facts. With a slight bow of his head, he looked at Karma.

"Our little friend here is an excellent pickpocket. And quite the performer as well. Perhaps you could find a place for her in our shows this evening?" He turned a corner into the shop, smiling at the tavern keeper. There was a carnival scheduled to be going on at any day now! He wanted his troupe to be at the headlines, getting all the attention while his workers got the real money... Pockets were so loose when they were drunk...

"Please, eat, drink, anything you want. Get yourself full and happy. We can talk opportunity later! No pressure!"

Shows? Whatever, she'd ask about that later. And perhaps a meal for her wasn't exactly generous here. Everyone was so much bigger than her, she'd probably be satiated with a crumb from anyone's plate. Anything huh? She flew over to the bar and examined her choices. Lots of strong smelling liquids that burned her nose. She made a face as she fluttered around someone's drink and looked at it curiously. The person who'd bought it was less than pleased. He shooed her away, so she returned to her perch on Joek's shoulder.

"I want something sweet" she whispered to him, unsure of how this whole human place worked. He;d said anything, but apparently that was a more specific word than she'd assumed at first.

"Something sweet it is." He reached over toward the maiden working the tables and grabbed her skirt as she passed. "We need your apple cider and a slice of your freshest pie. Thank you."

The girl's face paled slightly at the green haired man, nodding. "On the house of course Mr. Joek."

"Good girl. Hop to it."

He turned to the fairy, smiling a bright smile to her. "So, what brings such a mighty warrior as yourself to this little area?"

Tirananniel lifted her head as some intriguing figures entered the tavern, a man with green hair, a fairy and another. Her bright optics followed them for a moment as she studied them, perhaps she would learn something of interest from their chatter. For now she left her cloak pulled up over her head, just another slightly ominous hooded figure in a less than reputable tavern, nothing out of the norm. Her ears perked, sensitive to the male's voice as he asked the little fairy a question. Of course the answer would prove of more interest, though for that tidbit she would have to wait patiently. Idly she let her delicate hand trace a pattern on the underside of the table, something to do to pass the time as she shifted through the mostly meaningless conversation. This was only another town in her many she frequented, always in pursuit of the final pieces to her puzzle, to her plot and her plan.

Deciding that perhaps this was indeed the man she was seeking she motioned for the serving girls attention and whispered a request in the maiden's ear, placing a shiny coin in her hand as she spoke. A moment later extra flagons were placed in front of his party. Perhaps some extra drink would loosen their tongues. She could only hope for such a thing, since she was less than eager to go extract the information she wanted herself. A bowl of the daily stew was placed in front of her, with a chunk of hardened bread. Blinking, she began to eat, taking small graceful bites. It wasn't a feast fit for a king but better than the fire-roasted birds she had been eating as of late. So for that she was grateful, gone were the days of easy meals for her coin was fast ruining dry, she needed a way to replenish her stores and she had a uncanny feeling that this was something that would soon be fixed. She stole another glance from behind her hood at the party, waiting for their response to the drinks, the young serving maiden pointing her out. She cursed inwardly at the maiden's misstep, perhaps she had not been through enough in her explanation of what the girl was to do, or rather the girl did not understand the desire for her to not be hoisted into the spotlight. There were always supports of her old lands about and it was best not to call attention to herself in public places until she knew the crowd.

Perhaps she should have been worried at the amount of sway Joek had at this place. But sweets were promised to her. A whole piece of pie? That had to be at least five times her size. Yes, she would eat very good tonight. Giddy, she giggled on Joek's shoulder as he asked the question. Why was she here?

"To cause trouble~" she whispered to him, cupping her hand over her mouth. When the pie arrived, she glided down onto the table to figure out the best way to go about this. She was taller than it. She could do this. And the cider smelled so much nicer than whatever everyone else was drinking here. She reached into the glass and cupped her hand to have a sip. Like liquid sugar. She broke of a piece of flaky crust from the pie and walked around the table casually adding on to her explanation. She had to talk a little louder if she wanted him to hear her.

"And to look around the world," she added. "The forest was getting too boring. I need new things." She scraped a bit of filling from the side of the pie. This was so tasty.

Joek smiled at the happy little thing with all the sugar. He grinned from ear to ear, almost like he'd found a puppy he was interested in. He turned his attention however at the drinks being placed in front of him.

"From management?" The maiden shook her head. "They wish to give a gift with no mention of names sir..."

"Oh but you'll tell me... Won't you?"

The girl seemed to go pale again. "They really insisted I didn't."

"Now don't tell me you are going to be a poor server to me and not allow for me to know my benefactor... Letting truth flow is such wondrous medicine." The server bowed her head, pointing to the girl at the bar.

"Ah. Thank you, another cider please, my guest will probably like it to go with her. Also... Have my lustrious friend come pay me a visit? I doubt she'd get far either way buy manners... are.... manners." The server nodded again, bowing and going to her other tables.

Joek's eyes flitted to the girl at the bar, still smiling a dangerous smile. "Heeelloooo!" He waved to her. "You can't expect me to retrieve a free drink without the company of the charitable! Come. Sit with us!"

As the green headed elf-man’s booming voice echoed over the mostly empty bar, Tirananniel couldn’t help but frown from beneath her raised cloak hood, utterly disappointed in the outcome thus far. Well there went any last chance at a more hushed encounter. She pressed her lips tightly together and readied herself for this encounter drawing upon her wit to ground her in her purpose. Rising gracefully from her seat she pushed her empty bowl in front of her, luckily she had finished her meal before being demanded to move. With small, dainty yet sure steps she glided over to them, studying the little gathering as she moved.

Pausing a feet or two in front of the man, she assumed was Joek, she slowly raised her delicate hands upward, removing her hood, exposing her striking face and revealing her as a winter fae, though she was fairly certain they would not be aware who exactly she was.

“A friend I am,” she stated in a light airy voice, possessing the quality of shiny silver bells, her bright turquois eyes enchanting those who dared stare into their depths.

“I do hope you fine people may forgive me of my bluntness so that I can oblige you with my purpose,” she smiled as she finished speaking, gazing upon the little fairy. An unexpected guest and observer, for she truly only had business with Joek.

Joek leaned against the table, raising a vivid green eyebrow as she slipped off her hood. "Oohhh what sweet manners this one has... Very much unneeded. Sit. I insist."

He placed a foot under the table, kicking the chair on the otherside from him out so she may sit. "And please, if you are as friendly as you say you are... Drink." He pushed the ale that had been given him over to her.

He smiled at her. "Your kindness has not gone unanswered, now. State what you need? Is this business? Or Pleasure?"

The plate became a sort of bench for her as she made her way through a tiny piece of the pie. She munched on it happily as the interaction went on, her head turning back and forth with their conversation. Another friend, hmm? Having her fill, she went to inspect her. The woman was ridiculously pale. Pretty. But she was new and still in the unsafe category. So after bothering her with examination for a few seconds, Jaz fluttered back over to Joek for cover.

Their conversation seemed important. Maybe the icy girl was trying to woo him. Odd, it was supposed to be the other way around, wasn't it?

"I think she likes you," Jaz whispered. Her glassy laughter rang a little louder.

Tilting her head downward, letting her gaze drift towards the floor in a show of humbleness, she listened to his words. Watching the chair move outward, the abrasive sound of wood scrapping against the floor troubling causing her brow to twitch ever so slightly. She clenched her jaw together, securing her expression in a serene mask.

After he finished his invitation, her head lifted gracefully up, her stunning gaze entrapping his own, then darting back down to the floor.

“Business,” she whispered in a dry voice, the word breaking from her lips as she blinked.

Her gaze drifted over to the others in the group, wondering if they were necessary, if there was a way around professing her needs in front of so many. Trust was something not given away lightly. Though to confess the need for privacy was not something she desired in the slightest.

Regally, her hand gestured away the drink, not tempted by such a human indulgence.

“I have my needs of gaining a new source of coins, rumor has it that you are a connection to such means” she narrowed her eyes, hoping he would understand what she was proposing. She had magic and such to offer, a hired sorceress was often worth a great deal. Her sensitive hearing could slightly infer the little fairy's comments, but she found her other purpose greater than finding merit on commenting such things, though she did offer the little fairy a coy smile.

Joek's smile only widened slightly at the woman's words. "Ahhh I see. Well then. We can talk matters like that certainly.

"We need to go inspect the carnival to make sure things move smoothly. Tell me, are you wishing for the style of work that my Troupe needs? Or are you asking for a job that I can refer you to... Say... Lynn's brothel. Not that there would be any judgements on such a thing. Lynn is a spectacular woman, one of the most noble I've met."

He chuckled, taking in her looks. Men would pay a lot for her probably, not that he would have any interest.

"Alright. Tell me your skills and I'll point you to where you are needed?" He stood up from his spot, grabbing his mug and downing a bit more of the apple cider, handing it to the hooded girl. "To start with. My name is Joek, thief lord extraordinaire. You need it, I'll get it, you hate it, I'll get rid of it, you need protection, I'll keep you safer than any king on this rock.I fear no man and all men fear me. At... Your... Service." He smiled, giving a small bow. He was giving his introduction not only to the hooded girl, but also to the fairy and even a few passerby who were looking in wonderment.

"What can I dooo.... For you."

She held her composure as he spoke, unmoved by his little prods and pokes. A weak women would react to such things, finding the need for defense, but she felt no such stirring rather a sly smile forming on her lips. So the great thief lord thought himself witty, how amusing. As he named himself, she only bided her time, of course she knew who he was, why else would she had so carelessly thrown herself in his path, my the man just wanted to hear himself speak. Egotist was probably a fitting adjective for the man, though this was a weakness she was sure to file for later use, a harp string in which to pluck upon given the ripe time.

When he finished she returned his bow, with a long, regal bend at her waist.

“Perhaps you indeed can match me with what I seek,” she paused her vivid eyes capturing his own cat-like ones for emphasis.

“I can offer my aid in the realm of magic for a hearty price, but fear not my grasp of sorcery is varied and potent, enriched with ancient wisdom and depth of knowledge.”

She stopped reaching out to run a single finger delicately down the side of his arm,
“Be it what you need, I will get it, you despise, I shall rid the world of it, protection you shall have it, and no dark desire shall frighten me from it.”

Dropping her hand she gazed back up at him, spirit blazing in her shiny optics.

It was true. Joek loved to hear the sound of his own voice. It was a sound that he trumpeted across the towns, for he feared no one. He was untouchable... He was just a Joek... Something to be spread from person to person through telling...

The man listened to the girl, placing his arms behind his back. "My dear please. There is no need for you to be so formal. You have me sold! Rejoice! I'll have your pockets teaming with gold if you can pull off what you say. Now. There is only one slight detail... You see my troupe is one with a bit of a.... reputation. A sort of calling card if you will." He stepped around a corner, showing a group of trolleys and people standing on them.

"An in town circus is our front. So if you wish to be in our little gang, you'll have to prove you can perform... Put on a show for us if you will. I was going to ask the same of Jaz here. To show us her performance skills! Give us all a show to remember, and to keep eyes forward, attention rapt..." He kept his voice a bit lower, and their pockets loose..."

Tirananniel smiled at his requested, finding it trite in a way, the need to prove herself. Illusions were a personal favorite of hers, and yet the work at the whore-house was indeed calling her name, she smiled inwardly knowing he enjoyed putting people on the spot, having the final say.

“Does M’lord have any requests?” she asked coyly, letting her eyes dart up from the floor to find his briefly and then back down. She could appeal to his desire for control, with an act of humility, after all it’s not often a winter fae would put herself in such a vulnerable position, something was clearly too good to be true.

Joek cocked an eyebrow, smiling at the girl. "A request? Noooo I don't do requests. Not like that anyway." He took a seat on a barrel, smiling at her. "This... This is an audition! Be spectacular, be phenominal. Make me glad that you are standing here before me. That is my only request."

He crossed his arms, smiling. Karma was being awfully quiet, he'd have to kick her around a bit later to liven her up.

"Begin."

Tirananniel sighed and shook her head, unable to corporate so mindlessly.

“I fear I cannot oblige such a vague request,” her voice was collected and cool.

She would not flaunt her powers about so aimlessly, save that they may attract unwanted attention, of course she had her gracefulness, her traditional dance steps, her ways of beguiling men but that too she would not flaunt so easily.

With that she glided over to him, bending over to whisper into his ear softly,

“I am a most powerful sorceress, tell me that you can not slip me within your troupe seamlessly and I will show you a liar. Both you and I know there are many ways to make yourself useful.”

She pulled away and narrowed her eyes, she was not a puppet, nor one for doing things merely to please others.