Crows of a Feather

Buy The Stars

Erine

Nighttime in Ravka was unlike anything Erine had seen before. The breeze carried a gentle song as it filtered through her unruly hair, The streets were quiet, only the occasional clatter of hooves from a carriage or two echoed into her ears. But the stars, oh the stars. They shined infinitely brighter here than in Ketterdam. Light pollution Kaz had once explained to her. Living in a city that wakes at night meant the constant burning of lanterns dimmed nature's nightlight. But In Ravka, the lanterns were minimal, scarce, lit only enough to see what was needed and nothing more. This allowed for the stars to shine as if they had just been made.

This is why the young girl now sat on the roof of the royal archives, twirling a dagger as she stared at the stars. A few constellations she could recognize, others not so much. " what are you thinking about little saint?" Inej asked very quietly standing beside the girl as she waited for the signal. Erine shrugged, setting the dagger in her lap 'The stars here very pretty' Inej smiled "Yes they are, they look just like the ones from home" she commented softly. Erine knew she wasn't talking about Ketterdam. Inej had told her many stories of her childhood traveling with a suli caravan, following the wind, and performing for a living. Ketterdamn would never be Inej's home, Erine was smart enough to know that the suli girl beside would never stay there, Inej was as free as the wind. Maybe not physically free, but in her soul. Erine tugged on Inej's Tunic 'Do you think- do you think it is possible to buy a star?' Inej crouched down to her level, " I don't know- it would be offaly hard to actually get one" she responded as she tucked pieces of Erine's hair behind her ears so she could look at her honey brown eyes. ' Kaz says everything is worth some amount of Gold'

Erine wanted to add 'including me' but she knew better than to do so in front of Inej. The suli girl harbored a deep hatred for the way Erine viewed herself as property, the way Kaz didn't care enough to teach her differently. But Erine had only ever known what it was like to be property, Inej didn't seem to understand that with Kaz- she was the most human she's ever been. But old habits die hard. Erine froze as Inej placed both her hands on Erine's shoulders and forced her to look at her "If that is the case... then you, my little saint, are worth every piece of gold. And don't let anyone- not even Kaz tell you otherwise" Erine nodded and hugged the girl she considered a sister.

Five minutes later the lights to the dome of the archive went. Jesper's Signal. It was go time for the panther and the wraith. The plan was simple, follow the phosphorus trail to the blueprints, make a copy, and leave the way they came in. In and out, just how Erine liked it. Inej would be the one to copy the plans, Erines handwriting- if one could call it that- was far too messy and risky. So she would stay as a lookout of sorts.

Erine landed with a soft thud onto the shiny marble floors, the archive was beautiful in the dark- she could only imagine what it would be like in the daytime. Inej landed right behind her, the pair exchanged a nod and went to their respective positions. Erine was waiting Just around the corner from where the ropes hung, then as if in a second sense she stepped to the left just as the lights started to come back on. Saints. Erine locked eyes with Inej and walked over to the suli girl, without a thought Erine pulled down the rope wrapping it quickly, and hid behind a desk with Inej. Footsteps of the guards getting louder and louder Plan B? She singed, Inej nodded and lept up to her feet.

Erine thought it looked like a dance, the way Inej managed to flawlessly waltz behind the guard, no sound, no mistakes- she was like the wind. Graceful, delicate, mesmerizing. Once she saw that the coast was clear she quickly joined Inej at the gate, getting on her knees The panther wasted no time trying to pick the lock. She had to admit- this lock was tricky, unlike most that she had or worked on, but Erine was always up for a challenge. Using her kit she began fidgeting around making little to no noise, picking a lot was a tedious and sometimes time-consuming thing, it called for focus and patience something Jesper didn't seem to have. Not even thirty seconds into her picking Erine heard Jesper whistle "Move" he whispered so softly that Inej didn't hear it. Erine turned around and glared at Jesper her hands never stopped working on the lock. Jesper jerked his head again, signaling for her to move as he aimed his gun at the lock. The bell tolled Just as Erine stood up and gently pushed the gate open, a proud smirk on her face and she stuck her tongue out at the defeated sharpshooter. The wraith and the Panther followed the hall to the exit where Dirty Hands was waiting. Inej crept up on him with a dagger faking a strike when his cane hit the ground.

" A bit slow on the draw there" she teased "Or just on time" he taunted. Erine watched the pair as she skipped past ready to go back to the inn and tell Kaz about her lock-picking skills, sure that he would be proud.

Kaz

Kaz analyzed the blueprints as he laid them out for him and the other crows- plus Arken. They stood around a small bar table, Erine straight across from him chewing on yet another cookie, he assumed she probably picked Arkens wallet and bought another plate for herself. Typical panther. The more the kerch boy stared at the map in front of him the more his frustration grew, anywhere there was entrance or exit there was a guard. No way in, No way out. But the Bastard of the Barrel knew better- Kaz knew if there's a will there's a way. " Well I thought this plan might not work" Arken commented, Kaz could've stabbed him right then and there. Behind him there was a scream and a crash- it appeared the aerial dancer had fallen. Kaz turned back around just to see a small tweak in Arkens lip as he took a sip of his drink. Then his eyes drifted towards Erine, who was glaring at the grown man beside her, she noticed it too. 'Clever girl' he thought to himself, he knew he could count on Erine to catch every detail- even the ones he sometimes missed. He needed time to think- away from this crowd. "Meet back here in two bells" was all he said as he walked away motioning for Erine to join him as he headed back up to their room.

Back in their small one-bedroom, Kaz sat on the vanity bench while Erine sat crisscrossed on the bed. She had taken her earplugs out allowing her ears to relax and recoup after such extensive use. Kaz hated how red they always looked after she had been in public, such a clear sign of agitation. Yet he was surprised to hear Erine speak first " He did it," she told him, fidgeting with a lock and pic. Kaz knew exactly who 'he' was and what 'he did'. " Yes he did" he replied, " katje, don't make it obvious you know, we still need him" She just nodded. "Kaz?" she asked quietly he hummed in response. " The archive today, the lock, I picked it," she said. Kaz almost laughed out loud. She was trying to impress him, she was always trying to impress him. The boy felt something boil in his chest, a familiar feeling of pride. Something he only felt from his Crows- namely Inej and Erine. Of course, he was proud, he was the one to teach her how to pick a lock- and now look at her- a master thief. But even with that pride, he felt a hint of shame.

Shame for tainting such an innocent soul like Erine's to do the dirty work. To corrupt a child into this lifestyle- to make her like him. Kaz hated all of it, He was supposed to free Erine not sentence her to a life of crime- of pickpocketing. Kaz knew she would never have the normal childhood she deserved but still, somewhere deep down inside of him, believ- no thought- that he could give that to her. But he couldn't, instead the only thing the bastard had to offer was his approval, despite how little it seemed to him. "Well done, guess you did earn those cookies after all" and then the panther and Dirtyhands drifted into a comforting silence, and they schemed for what was ahead of them.

A/N~ surprise! I'm not dead.... yet.

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