𝕬𝖗𝖘𝖔𝖓𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖘 𝕷𝖚𝖑𝖑𝖆𝖇𝖞 - [𝗞𝗮𝘇 𝗕𝗿𝗲𝗸𝗸𝗲𝗿]

𝐱. 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐄𝐍 — you heathen

━━━━━━━

 𝐊𝐀𝐙 𝐁𝐑𝐄𝐊𝐊𝐄𝐑 𝐇𝐀𝐃 not followed Aleksa, Inej and the Conductor back to the Slat after their discussion had met its end. He had told the Shadow and the Wraith to keep an eye on their new crew member, to drag him to the Slat and keep him out of eyesight until he returned.

 Aleksa, despite the questions that had bubbled on her tongue, knew better than to ask Kaz where he was going, and why he wasn't joining them. So, rather than ask a question that would likely go unanswered, she simply nodded and parted him with "Don't miss me too much." before spinning on her heel to catch up with Inej, and a very disgruntled Conductor who threw cautious glances at the Wraith.

 Even now, as Aleksa, Kaz, Jesper, Inej and the Conductor bounced along the bumpy cobble road within a snug carriage on their route to Novokribirsk, Aleksa had no idea where Kaz had paraded to when he'd watched her saunter off.

 The curiosity was still there and she threw glances at him every few moments until a bump in the road snapped her attention back to the pain growing on her tailbone. Whatever it was that he had left them behind to do, Aleksa knew it had to be important, for he had put their mission on pause and trailed off into the night.

 Kaz dipped his head, chin close to the collar of his shirt as he lowered his voice to but a rasp of a whisper, "Is there something on my face, Aleksa?"

 Aleksa was not somebody to blush and stutter when caught staring, and so she dramatically flung her chin into the palm of her hand, cocking her head to stare up at him as her lashes fluttered, "Am I not allowed to admire?"

 Kaz's stomach twisted and he hated it. A scoff split through his lips before he could think of a retort, and from the corner of his eye, he could see the Shadow Summoner roll her eyes and slump back into her seat.

 The carriage was small, 'cosy' the Conductor had said, but that was certainly not how any of the crows would have described it. Jesper, though frighteningly tall, was impeccably skinny, and Inej was but a wisp in the breeze; thus the Zemeni boy and the Suli girl had the fortune of setting themselves on either side of the Conductor whilst Kaz and Aleksa perched opposite to them.

 Aleksa hadn't taken it personally when Kaz had shuffled in his seat, pressing himself as close to the door of the carriage as he possibly could, his legs angled away from her own... Though she did worry that if he scooted any further, he'd find himself on the cobbled road, watching as they left him in the dust.

 Aleksa had spent a majority of their already tiring journey splitting her glances between Kaz and the Conductor; for whilst Aleksa couldn't quench her thirst for answers regarding Kaz... Aleksa also couldn't quell the unease that settled in the pit of her stomach when the Conductor met her eyes.