Never Go Back Home

[Ambrose Wilder]

Life made sense, generally speaking. Amie had a simple view of life. He woke up, ate, worked out, ate, took a nap, lazed around, fought some, played around, ate, hung out, slept. Something like that anyway.  IT wasn’t quite that simple, but it tended to follow that general concept. He also travelled a lot. He commonly walked away from his guild for a month at a time. More, less, it varied. He got into trouble, he earned jewels, he spent some, and he hoarded a lot. He had quite a stash back at Lamia Scale. He also earned some money from renting out a house he owned in Cerulean. Amie was very protective of his money. That had gotten a bit stupid today.

Amie had met some guy, who really made no sense, and headed to Worth Woodsea. He avoided the far North, it was bad news. Still, he couldn’t help it, he needed to look into a rumor he heard. Someone matching a vague description was up there. Well, it turned out that wasn’t exactly accurate. Yes, someone who looked like Amie had been… mentioned, except that the one mentioned was Ambrose, by some questionable people. He suddenly hated how similar he looked to a slightly younger version of himself.

He showed up, dressed in his blazer and slacks, with a brown duffel bag for the travel. A small collection of people nearby said they’d heard something about a tall blond, and pointed him in a direction. Well, it wasn’t much, but he’d gotten that far, so he went. He met up with someone who had a broken wagon wheel. A woman with arms too weak to do the job herself. That was fine, she even offered him a few jewels to fix it. He did, and while making polite conversation he felt sharp pain, before seeing nothing but the ground.

When he woke up his blazer was done, as was his shirt, and someone was sitting near a fire. Actually a few people. Amie took a slow breath, glancing at the sun. It had been early when he got here, it was probably mid-afternoon now. They seemed to be counting out his jewels, which he hated, but what he really hated was that a particular man wearing Amie’s blazer on his shoulders… looked familiar. After a bit of staring, the man turned around, and yes, he was definitely familiar.

He walked over with a knife, chuckling at Ambrose. “Hey there Amie, long time, you skipped town and I’ve been looking for you for years.”

“Not actively I hope,” Amie said, chuckling a little, despite his foul mood, “You’re pretty slow if that’s true.” The comment was met with an annoyed slug to the skull. The handle of a knife to Amie’s face, and the migraine was almost as bad as blood in his eye was going to feel, so he closed that eye hard, feeling the trickle go down his face.

“I may not have given you this,” the man said, dragging the knife over the scar down his entire arm, “but I can certainly remove it for you.”

Amie tuned out somewhat, looking at the men still counting his money. “Hey! Hands off! That’s mine!” A rather jarring kick to the abs reminded Amie that he really shouldn’t stick around. He charged up a Power Strike, his fist burning through the binding ropes. As soon as he was up he threw a fiery punch at his captor. The man went flying backwards. He realized they probably saw the guild mark. Lamia Scale. Easily found, he’d be easily found, he swore aloud, punching the man a few more times, the first fading from his fists but not the anger. He took a run for the men with his stuff. They were surprised enough they had to run for their weapons. A fist fight would do them no good, but he wasn’t giving them that opportunity. He ran and grabbed his duffle bag, over one shoulder, and went to grab his money. He really ought to have just run for it. Nope, he wanted his money, and slightly less important was keeping them from having money.

His jewels were collected when he felt an arrow or two wiz past him. “Oh come on!” he snapped, turning around, but this time he dropped his bag, because before he could turn completely around, a knife sliced the back of his leg, sending him to a knee with a shout of pain. He repeated his earlier, “Come on!” in frustration as he tried to formulate his plan out of this, or else wait for them to get close enough for him to take the two still conscious men out.

[MP: 175/200][/b][/b]

[Kasimir Sewik]

Boats. Whose great idea was it to take a boat? Kaz was never going to step foot on one of those things again. There was no earth or ground out on the sea. It was unnatural for people to travel on something they couldn't plant their feet on. He was so glad to be off the horrid thing that he didn't pay any attention to where he was going. ...And soon he was completely lost, now wandering around in a forest. At least the heat here wasn't half as humid as his last adventure. The temperature was cool enough for Kaz to wear his long black coat, at least.

But really, he had no idea where he was or where he was going. Civilization was easy to find in Fiore, so he figured that picking one direction and sticking with it, he would eventually stumble on a village or something. He missed civilization. Kaz wandered through the forest, annoyed with each tree branch that dared get in his way. This might be easier if he were on a path, but the last path he was on had petered out into wilderness. Rather than turn back Kaz had kept going. ...Maybe that had been a mistake.

He was still plowing through the forest mercilessly, when he thought he heard a voice. Kaz froze. Multiple voices. Quietly, with as much stealth as he could muster, Kaz crept through the remaining shrubbery. The voices were a little hard to pinpoint, but he could see the smoke of a fire - that had to be the source. He had no idea who would be out in the forest like this, but he suspected they weren't friendly. Unless they were friendly campers? It was possible, but he'd rather avoid trouble. At the same time, he couldn't completely stifle his curiosity. He crept close enough to see a clearing in the near distance, along with a few men. There was a blond, his back facing Kaz, the back of his head making it impossible to see his identity, but Kaz could make out the bound hands behind his back. Vaguely he recognized the Lamia Scale guild icon - he sure was running into a lot of Lamia Scale lately. But he noticed instead, in the setting sun and the blaze of the fire, that the man's back was completely covered in scars.

Kaz rolled his back to a tree, out of site from the camp. Idly he looked at his black gloves. Outside of his face, his entire frame was covered completely. The black coat covered his neck and went all the way to his feet, tall boots and thin gloves hiding away what it exposed. Beneath the coat were also a long sleeved shirt and long pants, too many belts for it to be considered anything except a fashion statement all over, but which also ensured it was impossible to 'accidentally' see what lay beneath.

Kaz shook his head. That man was clearly being held captive; he might need Kaz's help. Quickly Kaz darted his head out again, trying to count how many other men there were. He stopped counting when he saw three. Back to the tree. Kaz's forehead knit, thinking quickly. If he jumped in to help, things might be tricky. Kaz didn't know if the captors were wizards or not. Maybe it would be best for Kaz to slip away for now, pretend he hadn't seen this....

“Hey there Amie, long time, you skipped town and I’ve been looking for you for years.”

Kaz's eyes widened. Wait, that guy had been...? He didn't peek his head out again, but mentally went back to the image he'd just stored. It could have been Amie. Kaz had been distracted by the scars, but the physique, hair, and Lamia Scale icon - of course it was Amie. Kaz flinched as he heard the sounds of Amie being beaten. He needed to do something quickly and help. But how? Just jumping in could get them both in trouble... The solution presented itself when Amie decided he'd had enough of being a captive.

Kaz peeked again when he heard the sounds of combat. Amie was right in the thick of things, like normal. Shirtless. Outside of the scars, Amie was pretty toned. Kaz tried to tune that out. Kaz quickly scanned the rest of the enemies - Amie was horribly outnumbered and not in perfect condition, Kaz had to step in to help. The archer was on the fringe of the clearing, not too terribly far from Kaz's position. He quietly crept up on the man while the others focused on grabbing their weapons and aiming at Amie. Kaz trusted that it would take at least a few hits before Amie fell, so might as well make the best use of this confusion. Clamping a hand firmly across his foe's mouth, Kaz pulled him further into the trees. Before the man could protest or notch another arrow, Kaz slammed the hilt of his sword against the man's head. Immediately the man went limp, and Kaz released him to the ground.

The others were still focused on Amie and apparently hadn't noticed that one of their friends was down. Probably because Amie had fallen to his knee, and a man with a knife was getting dangerously close. If something didn't change... but he was a bit far to hit anyone else with his sword in time. Gritting his teeth, Kaz stomped on the ground. The earth rumbled in response, shaking violently. The men cried out in surprise as they lost their balance, tumbling over. Hopefully it would give Amie and Kaz at least an extra second to try and gain momentum in the fight.

MP 140/150:

[Ambrose Wilder]

Ambrose had a long and extremely unpleasant history with the men around him. Well, actually only the one. The other two were new and that made them less his problem. Of course, he should have expected new people. He did, he just didn’t expect new people coming after him. What was he, some blue ribbon prize at a fair? He was bubbling over with his violent tendencies, things that if his parents had taught him, those men had made sure he would manifest. Then beat him down if he showed any resistance. One day these people needed to shut up and leave Ambrose alone, or at least for long enough for him to hope they finally had. Today wasn’t the hopeful day. Tomorrow might be, once he got away.

It was a struggle to fight, Amie was still keeping one eye closed and his leg was not willing to be of much use. Vision and mobility were fairly important battle tactics for Amie. He smeared the blood back from his face, but he was still weary about it get in his eye. He didn’t know much about medicine besides taking care of himself, but it felt like getting blood in his eyes would be bad for them. He smeared his arm over the wound again, not even wincing because the pain in his leg was far too distracting for that. He saw someone coming toward him, and he was completely going to take advantage of that. This man thought that Amie was helpless just because he was down? Clearly he was new.

Suddenly the earth started shaking. “This is not normal,” Amie complained. He wasn’t sure why it was happening, but he wasn’t so lost in his anger that he couldn’t make a random comment. Oh well, the men were also surprised and went down. Fine with Amie. He managed to use his good leg, kicking down and jumping himself into the air. It was lopsided to say the best, but at least he went up a good fifteen feet like usual with his Long Jump. Actually he was so lopsided that instead of coming down on both the enemies he only managed to hit one, but whatever. A good elbow to the chest did more than enough, and that man was completely winded, if not with broken ribs. Fine, Amie still punched him, a few too many times. He wanted them down. He didn’t know who’d cut his leg, but based on the knife near the other man, he was directly his rage at the wrong person.

Well, this guy apparently didn’t think getting his knife was a good plan, because while Amie was beating in the other man’s face to make sure he was unconscious, he felt someone kick him in the side, knocking him over. Oh, that was one thing, and something Amie didn’t like, double teaming. He was used to it, but something about it being the bandits clicked in his fight. He started swearing, along with the rest of his comment, “You don’t even know me, you idiot,” he shouted, swinging his good leg around for a clean sweep, knocking the man over, falling so he’d land on top of Amie. “So leave me alone!” he added, using a Power up for his fist, his eyes flashing red before the crack of his fist hitting this man in the chest, and the gasp of air. Amie held him up there, easily able to keep the man’s weight on his charged arm, then pushed him up some before sending another kick to his side to knock the now unconscious body to the side.

Amie just lay there, panting, really wishing he had his shirt. There was a reason he wore that thing, and it was the same reason they took it off. To remind him of the scars, he gritted his teeth. He should probably stand up. He’d completely forgotten about the archer, but he just lay there, too angry about the situation to formulate an actual plan.

[MP: 155/200]

[Kasimir Sewik]

As soon as Kaz's earthquake ended, he regained his mobility. He started to dash towards the rest of the fight, but made it too late. Amie had already cleaned up the other two men. Kaz slowed down to a trot, putting the claymore on his back again. He blinked, a little shocked at the violence before him – the two men had been beaten thoroughly, and Amie lay panting with multiple wounds. Blood on his face, blood on his leg, some other marks – it was hard to tell exactly where Amie's wounds were, they were so smeared in blood.

Awkwardly Kaz stopped a few feat from Amie. Kaz didn't really know how to approach him. They were meeting much sooner than Kaz had thought (or hoped), he'd practically ran out of the bar after a brief conversation (interspersed with some flirting). Then there was the matter of the fight, Kaz had tried to step in, but really Amie had done all the work. Plus, Kaz had heard enough of the conversation earlier to know that this instance was affiliated with Amie's past. If it was one thing Kaz tried to avoid, it was anything about his past. He gave others the same amount of distance, rarely asking about anything from their past life. Yet here Kaz had literally stumbled upon Amie dealing with... well, something. There was also the matter of Amie being currently injured and probably in need of medical attention. And shirtless. With many, many scars, clearly not from his last little scuffle.

If that wasn't enough, Kaz was cloaked completely in a trench coat. Which, out in the middle of nowhere, looked fairly suspicious. So he stood a good distance back, waiting for Amie to recognize him, instead of the coat first, which could possibly result in a flaming fist to the face. But he needed to say something, Kaz just had no idea what would be appropriate in this situation.

“Hi,” Kaz finally decided on. “I was in the area, and thought that maybe I could help you?” All he'd really done so far was take out the archer, and given Amie a brief opening in battle. He was still going to need help getting his wounds cleaned and bandaged.

[Ambrose Wilder]

Ambrose was a competent fighter. It was quite seriously his best skill. Fighting, getting into and out of fights. The scars weren’t a testament to that. The scars were a testament to his childhood. By the time he became a good fighter he stopped getting scars. He knew he had a couple of new scars since he left the bandits, since he ran away, but none of them were memorable. They blended in with the general backdrop. He hardly noticed them, except the one down his arm and the one next to his eye. Seriously, what was it with these guys and wanted him blind?

He was still catching his breath. He was half aware of his surroundings, but also mostly exhausted from everything. This would be a good time for them to jump in with reinforcements. They really weren’t that smart, but then he was sure he heard someone walking toward him. He tensed, but he was tired, until he heard a voice. He leaned his head back a little, catching a glimpse of Kaz and breaking into a laugh, “Hey! It’s the flirty guy from the bar!”

He was relieved. Sure, it was possible that this guy was in with the bandits, but he doubted it. It was too ironic, too unlikely, too much like a complicated game of chess. Besides, these bandits simply were not that clever. He kept laughing, both eyes closed now, feeling the exhausting as his defenses ceased. He was too tired for this, he really was.

“Were you the distraction? That’s lucky,” he sighed, still laying there. He felt like he was getting covered in dirt laying there, and he really didn’t like that, but he was tired, and bleeding, and it was just too funny. “What are you doing here?” he asked, slowly sitting up, pushing himself up, with noticeably effort. “Can, uh….” he sighed, “Can you bring me by bag? I need to get the blood out of my face, its giving me a headache…” he admitted. Keeping one eye closed all the time was seriously bugging him.

[Kasimir Sewik]

The... the flirty guy from the bar? So that's what he was known as? Kaz sighed. He supposed there was much worse, but it wasn't exactly the image he wanted to portray. Alcohol and flirty. Then again, maybe it wasn't too far from the truth. Frowning a little, Kaz watched Amie burst into laughter. Had the blood loss finally gotten to him? That couldn't be a good sign. He certainly sounded delusional. Kaz failed to see anything that was funny about the situation; Amie looked like he was in poor condition.

When Amie sounded more serious, Kaz was quickly reminded that he still had much to do. He felt guilty for not acting sooner. "I've got it, stay still," Kaz ordered, looking around for the aforementioned bag. He hoped it had something that could help Amie. And he really hoped that Amie was smart enough to take Kaz's advice and stay still. If he kept moving around, he was only going to hurt himself further. The blood on his face looked serious... Kaz couldn't tell where Amie had been hit exactly.

The duffel bag had fallen only a few steps away, back from where Amie originally fell. Kaz retrieved it easily enough, although he briefly hesitated. The other bandits were still unconscious. The archer still lay slumped against the tree. But the other two that Amie had fought... they didn't look so hot. He would need to check on them later, but after he took care of Amie. At least, to make sure they would survive...

Kaz placed the duffle bag next to Amie. "Tell me what you need and I'll help you," he unzipped it. Without waiting for Amie's response, he began looking for something that might help him - medicine, bandages, anything. "I just happened to be in the area when I thought I heard something suspicious. And then I found you. Small world." He found a small clothe, which he gently put against Amie's forehead. Wiped a tiny bit of blood off, ready to do the rest or let Amie take control if he insisted. "I think you would've got them even if I hadn't stepped in, though. Still, I can pretend this makes us even," Kaz shrugged. Amie was hardly a damsel in distress waiting for Kaz to come along and save him. Kaz had been in a similarly tight behind before Amie arrived in Hargeon. "...Are you hurt anywhere else, though?" Kaz asked. It was hard to be both trying to look for more blood or wounds, and not stare pointedly at his past wounds.

[Ambrose Wilder]

Yes, the flirty guy from the bar. He was also cute, and helpful. Those were good traits. Amie wasn’t going to mention that Kaz was cute. He’d already said as much at the bar, while he’d been drinking. So now it would just make no sense. Unless Amie was flirting, but Amie… really didn’t flirt. He just laughed and joked around. Thus is what he was doing now, but Kaz seemed to find it more unsettling that Amie seemed so happy. It was a stressful situation and now he was getting help, it was a relief, and it was funny, so he laughed.

Kaz told Amie to stay still, and Amie obliged. He didn’t really want to go around jumping about. In fact, he probably shouldn’t have done it in the fight, but he didn’t have the choice. He had to fight to survive, and some extra blood loss…. Well he was paying for it now. Kaz pulled Amie’s bag over and Amie felt like a child. He wanted to just reach out and have his things. Like some sort of toddler reaching for a toy. No, he knew his stuff, and he was used to taking care of himself. Kaz being the one with the bag was just an odd scenario for Amie.

Kaz asked for instructions as he started going through Amie’s things. Amie just sat there. He had a bit of medicine, for lesser cuts and bruises. He brawled a lot, so he kept that with him. It wasn’t intended for major injuries, but it could help. He also had some clothes, normally his money would be in that bag. He had enough to work with, but not so much it was awful to lug it around on trips. “Fate wanted our travels to coincide then,” Amie teased slightly, trying to keep his spirits up. “Lucky still.” He winced when Kaz put something to his face. Amie took it from Kaz, wiping most of the blood up and then holding it against the most painful point, where the injury was.

“Aw, but I think you owing me would be fun,” he teased again, “Either way, you did help… and you’re helping, which I appreciate,” he admitted. He felt awkwardly scrutinized by Kaz. He wore shirts for a reason. This was pretty much that reason. He wanted to shift awkward, but it would hurt too much, “Uh, my leg. Got kicked around, but my leg is cut up. All the other stuff, that’s very old, so don’t worry about it,” he said, acknowledging the scars. It wouldn’t do to pretend they weren’t there. “I could probably use a shirt, but then I could probably use a bucket of water too,” he sighed.

[Kasimir Sewik]

Kaz grinned a little. So it was fate that they had met, huh? If Amie could flirt or joke around like that, Kaz supposed he couldn't be in too much trouble. Finding the medicine and some bandages in the bag, he applied it to another clothe before moving on to inspect Amie's leg. “I guess so, I certainly didn't expect to meet you out in the middle of nowhere.” He began treating Amie's leg while the other man worked on his face.

Kaz paused, thinking what Amie would make him do if he really did owe him. “That almost sounds like you had something in mind,” his eyes glinted back a little mischievously. If Amie were to suggest something... Kaz doubted he would mind whatever it was. “And really, it's the least I can do, so don't worry about it.” Of course he was going to help Amie. Even without the whole 'owing' thing, Kaz didn't want to see someone get hurt. Although honestly... Amie's identity had definitely been a motivating factor to jump in. Kaz wasn't sure he would have gotten involved otherwise... but then again, knowing him, he probably would have found some way to intervene.

He kept his eyes respectfully away Amie's marks this time, instead focusing his attention on the injured leg. When it was patched up as best he could, Kaz rose to his feet. Unbuttoning his own coat, he revealed a simple white shirt and dark pants, the clothe too tight-fitting to see any skin beneath. It made his gloves look a little strange without the coat, but he kept them on anyway. When the coat was completely off, he instead draped it over Amie's shoulders. “I'll see if I can't find any water in a bit,” he told Amie. “But for now, I'll trade you my coat for some of your supplies,” he stole a few more bandages from the bag.

Leaving it in easy reach of Amie, Kaz instead turned his back and walked to the fallen men Amie had attacked. He crouched next to the one that had originally antagonized Amie with the knife. First he placed his fingers on the man's neck, checking his pulse. He knew Amie was likely watching, but didn't care at the moment. “Do you know these guys?” Kaz asked. He had heard enough of the conversation earlier to know that the answer to that question... was yes. But he'd rather hear it from Amie, and any details. These thugs had definitely seen more of Amie's fury than the troublemakers in Hargeon. The pulse was still beating for this man, but... Kaz slid his fingers down to his chest. The man had definitely broken a few bones. Kaz was doing what he could to try and stabalize him; if left on his own, he would surely die. “If they were just planning on robbing you, they would've dumped you somewhere instead of going to the trouble of keeping you captive.” Kaz pointed out. Then again... hadn't Amie mentioned something during their first meeting; something that made Kaz think Amie had money? Perhaps these thugs were planning a ransom of sort. Or... “Don't tell me you have a bounty on you too or something.” He would have preferred for Amie to have mentioned it earlier if that was the case.

[Ambrose Wilder]

Amie was going to have an alright time with Kaz. If Kaz insisted on being serious Amie supposed he would have to mellow out and be serious. That was so much work. He’d been so serious a few minutes ago, and he didn’t want to go back to it. Serious was bad. The association should be clear, even if normally he didn’t actually think being serious was bad. He just found it boring. However right now he just didn’t want to deal with it. He was in pain, wasn’t that serious enough? Well Kaz’ grin said Amie could stay relaxed. “Likewise,” Amie said when Kaz said he hadn’t expected to run into him. Not that Amie was complaining, not dying was a great motivator to a happy interaction.

“Mm, not yet,” Amie admitted, “but I admit it seems fun to have in my back pocket,” he teased. He really had nothing in mind. He just wanted to be able to say it. Maybe sometime if he actually had something he wanted to ask of Kaz he could cash it in. If Kaz cared. Mostly it was just them exchanging words, it meant nothing beyond what Kaz was willing to put up with. They hadn’t really had trouble thus far, besides how limited their experiences together were, and how Kaz had run off the first time. Actually, that would be a nice way to cash that in. Asking why he ran off so fast, but really Amie didn’t want to ask.

Amie sat still while Kaz worked on his leg. Kaz suddenly took off his large coat and gave it to Amie. Maybe Amie was feeling a bit slow, but he hadn’t expected that. “Cool, thanks,” he said casually, not sure why he felt the need to comment. It worked for the water too, so he didn’t say more. Kaz took some bandages to the bandits. That was fine, Amie supposed he shouldn’t have lost his cool, but it wasn’t a rare occurrence. Seeing the bandits, that was rare. He saw Kaz checking for a pulse and he sighed, loudly enough to be heard, “I didn’t kill them. I lost my temper, but I didn’t kill them,” he muttered somewhat. He was bitter, at the men, but he was trying to not get worked up again.

Kaz asked if Amie knew them and he wanted to lay down. “Uh… yeah, I used to… live with him, not the other guys, I think they’re new,” he explained lightly. He didn’t want to get into it, but he supposed this much couldn’t hurt. “They did want my money, but its not about money with them. They’re all about the pain,” he said, grumbling again. He sighed. Get ahold of yourself, idiot. Inhale, exhale, and a small laugh, “Sorry, no, they wanted to capture me, not rob me.” He did sound lighthearted again, and that was an improvement. He liked it, it actually made him feel better. Then the bounty question, Amie laughed in what sounded like a mix of nervousness and embarrassment, “Oh, that thing… heh, funny story… probably,” he admitted, “I bet there is one out there, but I haven’t really asked around.”

[Kasimir Sewik]

Well if Amie ever did decide to cash in Kaz's debt, Kaz hoped he would use it for something fun. Debts were a great way to get people to ask things they normally wouldn't ask. Except this was supposed to make them even. Well... If Amie ever did have something in mind, Kaz was curious to find out what. As long as it wasn't questions about his past. Less talking, more action. That seemed a lot more fun.

He could tell that he was aggravating Amie just by checking the bandits' conditions. But at least he wasn't telling Kaz to stop. They weren't dead, as Amie had said... just extremely beaten up. He couldn't tell which part Amie was upset about - but at least it wasn't with Kaz. Amie was probably upset at himself or the men. Kaz faltered momentarily in his treatments when Amie mentioned living with the guy. He had expected something, but he certainly hadn't expected that. From their last conversation, Kaz remembered that Amie had a bad family. Was this... a relative of Amie's? Kaz took a closer look at the man. He didn't look anything like Amie, but that didn't mean much.

The atmosphere was becoming heavy, even heavier than Kaz had intended. He needed to find some way to make this better. "Well, they won't be coming after you again anytime soon," he wasn't sure if he was making light of the situation or trying to make Amie feel better. Maybe a little of both. Simple robbers or bounty hunters would have been so much easier to deal with. He doubted Amie wanted this particular visit from the past.

Kaz froze when Amie laughing nervously about the bounty question. There was no way. After that entire conversation in the bar, Kaz had thought he made it pretty clear: the reason why he didn't travel with others was because of his bounty. It would only cause more trouble for anyone with him. And after hearing all that, Amie really was wanted by someone, Kaz was going to be pretty angry. It wasn't until Amie finished speaking that Kaz sighed, half out of relief and half out of frustration. So Amie didn't know for sure, but it was likely. Kaz wasn't sure if that counted or not, but it did make him feel a little better than if Amie had simply avoided telling him.

"It's a hard life, being so popular. Tell them you're taken, and maybe they'll leave you alone," he joked. He checked the other man, but he seemed relatively 'fine'. At least nothing that required immediate attention, so Kaz left him alone and instead searched around the camp. There were a few supplies, mainly camping supplies. He did find a canteen of water, which was what he'd been hoping to find. Was stealing from bandits technically stealing? Kaz figured they at least owed them the water, and took it anyway. He returned to Amie's side and offered it to him. The other men were still unconscious, and probably would be for a while. He wasn't in a big rush to leave or particularly interested in staying, and was only concerned about Amie right now that the others weren't in immediate danger of dying.

[Ambrose Wilder]

Amie would have opted for something good in cashing in Kaz’ debt. Maybe not fun, but nothing bad. He still pushed that back from his mind for the moment. Amie was busy watching Kaz with the bandits. Amie said a few things he probably shouldn’t have, and Kaz kept working. Amie was an open guy. Normally he never talked about his past. He was very open, except when it came to how he got his scars, or his parents. Things that would get people talking. Things that would earn him pity. Other things were fine, but he didn’t want pity, and he didn’t want people digging into the past.

Kaz said that the bandits wouldn’t be coming after him anytime soon and Amie just… laughed. Maybe not these ones, but they’ve got friends… Yeah, make him never want to be near you again. Isn’t that what you’re always afraid of? Them digging into the past, trying to turn you in, hating you, or avoiding you? His laughing hadn’t been much, and faded into a thoughtful expression, “Guess so.”

As far as the bounty, Amie felt like travel was always safer with company. Even if one or both of the company drew in unwanted attention. Amie didn’t bring in as much unwanted attention as this particular scuffle implied. He’d gone years without an altercation with the bandits, and he was afraid this would set the whole thing off. His jaw tightened again. Lamia Scale. The only way to keep them hushed was to kill them, but he couldn’t do that. Let them live, let them ruin his life. He shifted under the coat. It was all too familiar, that was why he ran. Still, even knowing Kaz had a bounty, it wasn’t like most people went “Oh? That so? Well let me just tell you about the money on my head!” Not from Amie’s experience.

Kaz joked about being popular and Amie chuckled a little, “Oh, I’m their favorite person. They’re need evidence about that taken thing, they keep asking me to come visit… but uh,” he cleared his throat just to make himself feel better, “If I do have money on my head, its old news. Mostly its my folks. Only the bandits would actually be able to connect me to it, and they don’t want the money, they just hate my guts,” he said, making a face as if to shrug, or as if it was old news. “Life’s funny that way,” he said before taking the water. Instead of drinking it he took some and washed off parts of his face, not messing up the bandaging. “Sooo… when do we get to leave? I’d probably do it on my own, but that’s gunna sort of suck really bad to walk,” he admitted, not sounding too worried despite this.

[Kasimir Sewik]

In their last encounter, Kaz had not really noticed Amie looking thoughtful about anything. Everything he did seemed so intense, whether it was combat or about his life or inquiring about Kaz. Seeing Amie caught somewhere in the middle, Kaz was possibly more worried about him. He supposed it was only normal - he had stumbled into an unexpected scene. Kaz was trying really hard to not push about info that Amie might think was sensitive. But at the same time, it was hard not to be curious.

Kaz smirked when Amie mentioned that they would need evidence for him to be considered taken. And he had learned something more - that man wasn't one of his family members. If Amie knew his folks wanted him back, he wondered why he didn't just ask them about his sister. Maybe they didn't know either, or his relationship was as bad with them as it was with these men. Amie's life was a great puzzle. Kaz rose and brushed his pants off; it was true, they needed to get going. He offered his hand to Amie, giving him support and even offering his shoulder. Amie's leg was a good excuse to walk like this - it would be painful and slower to walk on his own. Kaz was more than willing to walk side by side like this, letting Amie lean on him.

"I don't think it would be hard for me to pretend to be your boyfriend," Kaz said deviously. "In fact, it might even be natural. And besides, it's not like I'm some weak-kneed girl who would be in need of rescuing. They would probably think twice before they jump a guy with such a large sword," he grinned. It might shock the bandits into not attacking too. Or something. Kaz wasn't sure entirely where his logic was going with this point. "Your folks want you dead?" Kaz had to ask that at least. That seemed pretty extreme. "Or... you just mean the bounty is there to make you come home?" He knew Amie had no intention going back to a place he didn't like. But it was hard for Kaz to imagine kin actively seeking Amie out to kill him. Especially because it was Amie - he didn't seem like the kind of person who would warrant such treatment.

"By the way, I have no idea where we're going," Kaz admitted while they walked. He had been lost to begin with. Outside of getting away from the bandits' camp, he had no plans for where they should go.

[Ambrose Wilder]

Amie didn’t make it a habit to get into long melancholy sulking sessions. He enjoyed life and wasn’t much for the anxiety and stress of thinking on the negatives. What good did it do him? When he was thinking of happier things he was more intense, more random and joyful. Sometimes he couldn’t really help it. All he could do was dwell. Well that was broken up pretty efficiently by Kaz commenting on pretending to be his boyfriend.

He coughed again, on air this time, because honestly… what else was he supposed to do? Besides blush and want to drink something, both of which he managed easily. “Right…. And how exactly would that be so easy for you? Excuse my lack of personal experience on the subject,” he said. Lack of experience dating. Pretending to date. Or having… no, just any of it. It was all weird, “You can do that all you like if you think it will help with the bandit problem.”

It didn’t help that they were walking about as close as could be. Kaz helping Amie walk because of his injured leg. Yeah, it really helped his awkwardness. It was something he had so little experience with, but apparently this was just what they were going to be doing. Amie could handle some awkwardness for this. He actually hadn’t had any issue with being close, he was used to it with people in other circumstances. The comment about being a weak-kneed girl amused him, “You know, seeing as I’ve had a lot of chances to actually date girls, weak-kneed or otherwise, I have a complete lack of desire for that,” he said, feeling casual again because it was a simple fact.

The question about Amie’s parents confused him. “Why… would they want that?” he asked, although it was actually just a repeat of what Kaz himself had asked. Or… was the bounty meant to bring him home? Huh? Oh… “Oh! Hah, no. My parents woulda never put out a bounty, can’t trust the authorities… no the bounty is on them. And their kids maybe, or maybe we’d just be bait, its been a long time, I never quite got the details, and I really don’t go around asking for them. That’s not suspicious, right?” he chuckled. It was really strange to be saying. He felt strange, because he felt almost normal. The only weirdness was that he thought it shouldn’t feel normal. Maybe it was Kaz’ having a bounty, or that honestly Amie had never tried to talk to anyone about this. He still wasn’ t giving him much, but it was nice to just say something, and laugh. He was having a good day… that was how easy it was for him to have a good day, despite the pain, and the bandits, having a nice guy to talk to.

“Eh, we don’t need a direction…  I’ll probably want around a while. East, South, West, just not North… I see how that ended up. Too bad I don’t have extended company to help me make these tough decisions,” he teased, back to looking innocent and chuckling just a little at himself.

[Kasimir Sewik]

Kaz kept his playful smirk as he elicited a cough from Amie. Oh, now Amie was just making it too easy. Was he doing it on purpose? It was like Amie was practically daring Kaz to continue, which made Kaz think Amie liked it more than he let on. "You don't think we look natural together?" He laughed. "Who knows if it'll help, but I doubt it could hurt. It would take more effort on their part to jump two of us instead of just one." It seemed he had gotten Amie off the topic of unpleasant subjects. He'd much rather make Amie laugh or blush about stupid things Kaz said than the more serious topics. Part of it was true - the bandits would be less likely to attack them as a pair. But the boyfriend thing had obviously been taking it far. Kaz doubted the bandits would find the idea savory... but then, they weren't exactly there to cater to their sexuality comfort zone.

The comment about Amie having the chance to date other women, but then turning them down... Well Kaz made it a point to not bring up other women when he was flirting, he usually found that went badly. "I'm not surprised to hear you're popular, but it makes me wonder just how many hearts you've broken." Tall, blond, fair complected, bold... Who wouldn't be at least curious? "Have you never been interested in someone before?" Kaz wondered, now curious. Amie might have implied he was interested in men and not women, but apparently had little experience in 'such matters'. To be fair, Kaz had little experience in flirting with other men too... the women usually responded more favorably. This was probably the farthest he had ever gotten with another man, and even then they both seemed to tiptoe around the issue. Well, Amie more than Kaz. Kaz did think Amie's shyness in matters regarding romance was kind of adorable, maybe moreso in an awkward way, especially considering how Amie handled the rest of his life with boldness.

Kaz had completely misunderstood Amie's original explanation of the bounty. But if anything, his story made even less sense now. "Wait... there's people out there who want you for something your parents did, instead of something you did?" It was still up there along the lines of Amie's parents hunting him down. And Kaz had a hard time believing it, not because he doubted Amie's words, but to think that the world worked that way. "That's quite the grudge, even holding family responsible for someone else's deeds. I wouldn't ask for the details, even if you had them."

He continued the trek onward, without any particular destination in mind. "Directions certainly aren't my speciality. I'm pretty sure wandering around with me will only increase your chances of getting lost. It's not like I knew where I was going before I ran into you either," he laughed back.

[Ambrose Wilder]

Amie might be making it too easy, but it certainly wasn’t intentional. Girls flirting with Amie really weren’t a perk. It was friendly enough, and maybe it gave him a grasp of flirting, but when he was completely uninterested in all of them, he didn’t see it as meaning that much. Kaz, on the other hand, confused him. He couldn’t say he was interested in Kaz like that, because honestly Amie was so inexperienced with finding anyone interesting like that… that he just didn’t know. Apparently all this came together to make Kaz laugh and say they looked natural together, “Mmm, I’ll take your clearly experienced word for that,” Amie said, calming himself down some. “Yeah, it would be harder, so maybe you should stick around this time,” Amie said, smirking at Kaz. He could recover fairly quick, even from the rare moments of sincere awkwardness. It was true though, and that was part of why Amie felt travelling with company would be better.

“Thanks. I think its ‘cause I’m so level headed and calm all the time,” Amie joked, regarding why he was so popular. He soon ended up grinning, and then just laughing. It was hard for him not to joke about things when he was happy. It made him happy. “Oh, I don’t know about broken hearts though,” he shrugged, but still looked completely relaxed on that comment. The next comment, not so much. He sighed, still smiling some, and wanting to fidget some, “Not actually, no,” he said, avoiding dwelling on the lack of interest in anyone. He shrugged slightly, despite being sore and tired.

When they got to the bounty Amie wasn’t exactly intent on explaining everything. If anything, he understood the bounty as a means to draw in his parents. Percy had definitely earned his bounty if he’d had one, but he was dead now. Amie didn’t think people knew anything about Mariana, and she didn’t know anything about it either. Amie knew things. He knew what his parents looked like, though it had hazed over quite a bit in the years. He knew where they’d lived, enough that he might be able to find it again. He knew things, even if he hadn’t done enough to warrant losing his life. He understood the situation, but that didn’t mean he wanted to explain it to Kaz. Kaz eventually said he wouldn’t ask for the details even if Amie knew them, “That’s good,” Amie said, leaving it vague.

“Oh, getting lost in the woods isn’t that bad… except eventually I do want to rest again,” Amie admitted, “You getting lost worked out pretty well for me last time, so I won’t complain. Maybe we can find some water and follow it,” he suggested casually.

[Kasimir Sewik]

Kaz grinned and chuckled a bit ruefully. He had left there last encounter a bit on the rushed side. Such was Kaz's life - never spending his time in one place for too long. Part of him really did enjoy being with Amie, and the other part was perhaps frightened. He felt like something bad was destined to come there way. Or maybe that was just an excuse to keep his distance. For all of Kaz's flirtatious comments, there was a part of him that wanted to keep Amie a safe place away. There was a layer of depth Kaz wasn't willing to break yet. Parts of his life that he'd never told anyone. He wasn't sure why he wanted it to remain secret, but he didn't want to be forced in a strange scenario where he needed to explain himself vs risk offending Amie.

Amie was many things, but level-headed and calm were not two of them. Kaz shared the laugh, the smile fading only slightly when Amie mentioned that he wasn't interested in anyone. Okay, Kaz had probably asked an unfair question. He was trying to gauge Amie's interest in him. Although he hardly expected Amie to fall head over heels for him, he had at least expected a playful response. The serious 'not really' was a little harder than Kaz wanted. "Ah well. Maybe that'll change in the future," Kaz thought out loud. He didn't really mean anything by it... although he did think he could change Amie's mind.

Kaz let Amie push the matter of the bounty to the side. As promised, Kaz had no intention of asking for more details. The bounty wasn't quite what Kaz had been expecting... So even if there was a price on Amie's head, unless it was by Amie's own doing, Kaz felt like it didn't count. They had been walking together for some time. Although Kaz felt fine... Amie's words reminded him that his companion was in fact, hurt. That was why he was using his shoulder. Right, Kaz had been caught up partially in other thoughts at the time. "Sounds like good advice," Kaz agreed. Survival techniques weren't his speciality. He could make a fire with the right tools, but he had no experience hunting for food or just about anything else. At least he could tell their direction by the sun's position. Kaz paused to listen, seeing if he could hear any kind of water nearby.

Fortunately, he could hear a light trickle. Altering their direction towards the sound, they walked for some time more before coming upon a river. Upon first inspection, the place seemed deserted. Kaz couldn't sense anyone else nearby, although he was still a bit wary of other lurking bandits in the woods. "...Do you want to take a break here? I doubt they'll be coming after us anytime soon, so we can probably take it easy," Kaz suggested to his injured friend. Unless there were more of them that Amie had failed to mention... it would probably be a safe place to rest. "I know I kind of ran off last time, but I can't exactly leave you like this. Besides... my coat isn't something I normally lend out, I'll want it back as soon as we get you a proper shirt," Kaz said playfully. But part of it was true. He'd been using that coat, albeit with a few repairs, since early on in his travels.

[Ambrose Wilder]

Kaz was an ornery man. He like to poke and prod and smile about the thing which Amie didn’t know how to handle. Of all the things Amie went into head first, loud and bold and just not caring if he knew what he was doing… this was not it. It was the exact opposite of that. He wasn’t even cautious about this stuff, he just pretended it wasn’t there. It had never made a difference, because he had never found anyone to be interested in, and Amie was alright with that. He wasn’t lonely, mostly, so it was fine if he didn’t have someone to flirt with, right? Besides, how much could he really risk getting attached to Kaz? Hah, no, flirting or not, Amie didn’t think about those things. Enjoy the moment, befriend the company, simple enough.

Amie figured the question was one as far as had Amie ever been interested in the past, and again didn’t catch Kaz’ misunderstanding of Amie’s statement. However when Kaz commented that it might change in the future Amie gave a thoughtful, “Probably is,” while leaving it mostly vague.

Ambrose suggested finding water and Kaz agreed. Amie had more experience surviving in cities by now, but he was competent at surviving in the wilderness as well. In general survival skills were something he had. Competence was a nice change from being jumped and then socially floundering. Kaz was a special and confusing case, and it definitely showed in how awkward Amie could get. He probably didn’t really mind though. Too bad he didn’t have any more beer. As they reached some water Kaz asked about a break, “Its up to you. The adrenaline helps me move… but I guess…. They’re not used to being fought, so we might luck out and they’ll go running. They’re in no state to pursue me anyway… yeah, we can rest…” he said, thinking out loud. Even in his more jovial mood, he really wasn’t all that intent on joking about the bandits. Not today anyway. “Uh-huh, so does that mean if I didn’t have the injuries and the coat you’d be gone by now?” Amie smirked, arching an eyebrow at Kaz, “It is a nice coat though,” he confirmed, sitting down next to a tree and leaning against it. “Come, sit, enjoy my forest home. I’d have cleaned up, but you know how things get,” Amie added, because being serious was more exhausting than walking.

[Kasimir Sewik]

Kaz continued to gaze around the stream while Amie thought out loud about whether they should rest or not. He almost seemed like he was trying to convince himself that it was safe to rest. If that was the case... they probably should take it easy. No doubt Amie had been pushing himself earlier to get out of the bandit camp. Kaz helped Amie moved to sit, helping him against the tree, and finally relinquishing his shoulder. He obliged and took a seat next to Amie, both now leaning against the tree. Amie's 'home' was a nice place, Kaz enjoyed taking time to pay attention to nature. It was something he had gotten accustomed to, but was still nice to pause and reflect on its beauty at times.

"Not at all, it's a nice place," Kaz played along. "And I guess that's just one of my strange quirks - here today, gone tomorrow," he admitted. "Who can say? It is a nice coat though," he repeated Amie's earlier compliment. "So you'd better take good care of that thing 'til I get it back. Seeing as I doubt we'll find a clothes shop in the middle of the forest... I guess that means I'm stuck with you a while longer." His light tone made it pretty clear that he was joking. Or at least he hoped. Of course he would never leave Amie to fend for himself after what had just happened, not until Kaz was certain Amie would be safe.

Kaz lapsed into a momentary silence, staring at his hands. The gloves looked a bit strange without the coat to complete them. Normally he would keep them on regardless, to hide away the scars of the past. Casually he pulled them off, stuffing them into a pocket. His hands were laced with scars. They were disorganized and messy, the most upon his palms, as in a few occasions where he'd stopped a blade with his hands. Kaz didn't really know what he was doing, most of the time he kept all his skin tightly concealed beneath clothes and gloves, mainly so he could avoid any awkward topics. The scars went far beyond his hands, years of fighting and past wounds had marked his entire body. He had seen that aspect of Amie - had seen him without his shirt. Now Kaz wasn't exactly prepared to toss his own shirt off, but maybe this was some kind of way of showing their similarities without exactly saying it. Not exactly showing off or hiding his hands, he rested them on his knees.

"So they'll keep coming after you... And you're not mad that they're still alive?" Kaz wondered. Or maybe it would be more accurate to ask... "Not mad that I helped one of them survive, even?" They were clearly outlaws, and the law cared little for their life or death. On top of that, they would keep coming after Amie. Kaz doubted that Amie would be the type of person who would go out of his way to kill someone, even if it was more convenient for him. But choosing not to kill someone was very different than deliberately ensuring that they survived. Kaz was honestly surprised Amie hadn't been more upset earlier, especially in the aftermath of the heat of battle.

[Ambrose Wilder]

Amie pushed himself a lot of the time. Usually it was fun though. Today… well parts of today had been fun. Helping some woman, getting paid, running into Kaz again, even being made to feel awkward had been fun. Being ambushed, hit, tied up, having his stuff taken, and general dealing with the bandits, those parts had not been fun for Amie. In general though, he pushed himself through injuries and a lot of other physical ailments. It was the emotional aspect of this that was bringing him down more than anything. At least Kaz sat down, that helped relax Amie.

Amie chuckled as Kaz said the place wasn’t a mess. Amie’s forest home. He might do better living in the woods, away from people and possible problems. Or he would do better staying at Lamia Scale. He knew how to avoid trouble more… but in the end, it just wasn’t happening. It wasn’t him, and safety and survival at the cost of enjoying life, that wasn’t good enough for Amie. Apparently one of Kaz’ quirks was disappearing, but he eased this by commenting on the clothes. “Note to self, get ambushed and knocked unconscious, spend longer hanging out with Kaz. Its not a bad rate of exchange,” he mused, chuckling. “Still sounds lonely for one of us.”

It got quiet after that. Normally this would be where Amie would break into more words, or just take a nap. He wasn’t so good at the in between. However it looked like that was what Kaz preferred for the moment, so Amie just sat there, eyes blinking between open and closed slowly. He noticed Kaz taking off his gloves and… hm… that was strange. Kaz, found in an alley with bounty hunters, clearly targeted by some people, loner, but a flirt… still didn’t strike Amie as someone who looked like his hands were periodically run through a grinder. Even Amie’s mental analogies weren’t subtle. He arched an eyebrow at Kaz, but didn’t say anything. Why go asking about things that weren’t his business?

The change of subject back to bandits forced Amie’s mind back into focus. “Mad?” he asked aloud, as if it seemed like such a strange suggestion. And then he asked if Amie was mad about Kaz giving them medical attention. “… Why would I be mad about that? I have no fondness for them… but I have no fondness for killing either. I don’t want them dead, I want them to leave me alone. Wouldn’t do anyone any good to go around killing their problems” Amie paused slightly between his sentences, thinking about things as he spoke, and almost mumbling the last part. He wasn’t sure what to say to Kaz, but he wanted to say something. He felt uncomfortable serious at the moment, but strangely alright with that. “Sorry you ended up in that. I don’t mean for anyone to get dragged into it.”

[Kasimir Sewik]

Kaz noticed Amie's confused look when he saw his hands, but neither said or did anything that acknowledged that he had. Even as much as Amie joked about getting beaten up and knocked out, it was partially true. Kaz would be less likely to split when he knew someone needed him. Whenever they were set though, that was the time to head out. He thought it sounded lonely for both of them. Halfway bowing his head, Kaz listened as Amie questioned his words. Wasn't it obvious why he thought Amie might be mad? Kaz felt like he might have overstepped some boundaries. Yet they were done on purpose, so he didn't regret it. Still, he would worry about whether he had upset Amie, at least until he asked.

Amie didn't quite sound sure of his own answer. His intonation and different manner of speaking made Kaz think he was considering what to say. Or maybe he hadn't given it much thought before. At least Amie didn't seem to hold a grudge against him. "You didn't drag me in," Kaz assured Amie. "It was my choice to get involved. Considering the alternative, I'm glad I was there when I was." It was hard to think he'd even considered walking away at first. There were many parts of life where Kaz felt unsure of himself... where acting or not acting could make a huge difference. He wanted to save other people, but he didn't want to die, even if he felt like he was on the brink of death at times.

"You don't seem like someone who would just... kill to get rid of a problem," Kaz said. "But if I was in your position, I don't know, it would seem... tempting. I don't want people to die, but I wouldn't want someone from the past catching up to me, either," he laughed a little, his memories bitter. "That can't really happen in my case anyway, though. There's no one left, not that there were many to begin with." Amie had a difficult family life to work out... and people who hated his parents so much, that they were after him. Kaz had led a secluded life, really interacting with others like him on the odd occasion... Gunther had really been the only person he talked to on a normal basis. No one had really stuck out strongly in his life, except for...

Well, there was that one girl he'd met when he was sixteen. They had met and talked briefly, right before Kaz suffered more serious injuries, and then she'd spent the rest of their time together taking care of him. She was the reason he knew there was more to life, the reason why he'd decided to break free and become a wanderer for the past two years. Wait... Kaz's eyes widened. Why had it never occurred to him before? She had to be out there somewhere. What was he doing wandering around, when he could see her? He had no idea what they'd do when they met, but... he did have a connection; he had someone from the past he cared about.

"Actually-" Kaz hesitated. But the abrupt realization from earlier, it was too much for him. "This might seem out of nowhere, but I... just realized there's someone I need to find. Her name is Silver... close to our age, black hair, unusually long teeth." He wiped his brow at the realization, his heart hammering in his chest. Why hadn't he thought of it earlier? The sudden desire to see her again... it was very intense. "I guess that's not much more than what you gave about your sister, sorry." He smiled ruefully, feeling a little silly. Although four years had passed since their last meeting... he could look for her where she used to work. That had to be a start.

[Ambrose Wilder]

Amie would have liked to know about Kaz’ past, really. He might have actually liked to have someone to relate to. Maybe they could talk. Maybe they could understand each other. But the first part of that was similarity, and the similarity most important right now was that neither of them wanted to talk about it. They also didn’t really seem to want to talk about Kaz’ disappearing act, much as it was skirted around and sometimes mentioned but never discussed. Kaz assured Ambrose that he hadn’t drug Kaz into the situation, and it was his choice, but Amie still felt responsible. He didn’t feel guilty at this point, but it was still his fight, and Kaz getting involved was, as Amie saw it, the older man’s fault. “Well, I appreciate that you got involved,” he added, not sure if he’d said it already, or if he’d said it enough.

His jaw set lightly, locked in place but without the tension it could have had, as Kaz mentioned killing to get rid of a problem. Had he killed anyone since he was a child? Not on purpose. He didn’t think he had. He’d hate to think today could have changed that. His body language relaxed some more, feeling tired now. He idly listened to Kaz, and a small reference to the past, “Maybe someday I’ll know what you’re talking about,” he offered. It was too much to expect Kaz to stick around, and too much to expect even if he did, or they ran into each other more, that Kaz would open up about the past. Still… maybe someday.

Ambrose was sitting there, relaxing only because he was tired, and felt safe with Kaz there to help, when Kaz started speaking. There seemed to be some urgency in his voice. It surprised Amie, so he turned some to face Kaz more and listened. “Unusually long teeth…” he repeated back. Well that was… weird. Sort of reminded him of someone he knew, but only when pushed way, way too far. Also it reminded him of an animal, “Well, at least you’ve seen this woman since after she was two,” he sighed, “So you’re doing better than I am. Well… I mean, you want to find her, I can try to help, if you want that,” he offered slowly. Generally speaking Kaz was looking for a way to run off once he’d filled his social quota, right? Maybe Amie was exaggerating, but he felt a bit like that. There definitely wasn’t a strong feeling that Kaz wanted to stick with anyone, but he’d mentioned this, so Amie wanted to check if Kaz actually wanted help. He’d definitely be up for helping if that was the case.

[Kasimir Sewik]

Kaz didn't really want Amie to know what he was talking about... neither about killing to solve a problem, or having no one left from the past. Then again, with Amie's connection to Lamia Scale, such an event would likely not happen. People might come and go, but there would always be someone around. Impatiently Kaz waited for Amie to think of Silver. Of course, it was highly unlikely that Amie had ever met someone like that... but the sudden impulse to find Silver was very great for Kaz.

Kaz nodded, calming down a little after Amie's response. It had been a few years, but nothing that would stop the trail from growing cold. Theoretically... Kaz would be able to find her. "Thanks... I'd appreciate it if you could keep your eyes open for her," Kaz agreed, not really realizing that Amie was implying they stick together. "But now that I'm thinking about it..." he frowned a little. Silver had been working as a servant of sorts, but there was something about her that didn't quite fit that build. Like she'd never really belonged in that kind of environment to begin with. "Asking around for her might be dangerous. She seems like the type to make a lot of enemies."

He sighed, the initial high now mainly gone. At least for a while, he supposed it would give him some goal to seek. "Ah. I haven't found anything on your sister yet, by the way," he added. Granted, they had seen each other not long ago. Kaz's last civilized town had been Hargeon, so he hadn't really asked around. Judging from Amie's own comments, his search had yet to turn up any new clues too. "I was hoping that the next time we met, I'd have something for you," he admitted. It was part of the reason why he hoped he wouldn't run into Amie again right away.

[Ambrose Wilder]

Amie could relate to things he might appear to be separate from. How he acted now was a far cry from how he’d been a decade earlier, or the decade before that. He was old enough to have these changed, but also those had been such stark contrasts from his normal life. He didn’t try to dwell on those things though. It wouldn’t have been surprising of Amie felt jealous of Silver. Kaz seemed to run off, but he really wanted to run back and find this girl. Amie had friends, but no one who just absolutely had to see him. He didn’t really mind, but it was something he could feel a bit jealous about, in the face of such enthusiasm.

“Of course. Common courtesy for the guy who bandaged all my deathly wounds,” he said with a grin. He just had to make some sort of joke out of it. It was how he preferred to communicate. Jokes were fun, and put him at ease. Serious things were dull. Clearly Kaz didn’t want to stick together, but Amie didn’t point this out. No need. Although he did say, “I’ll try to run into you more often to check on that.” When Kaz said that it might be dangerous, Amie chuckled, “Oh, I don’t mind that. Getting into trouble is a specialty of mine, can’t you tell?”

Things seemed to calm down, and then Kaz mentioned Mariana. He hadn’t heard anything, “That’s not surprising. It’s a big world,” he admitted. He’d been looking for years, and come up with nothing, “Actually I was out here looking for her… lovely trap to set for me. Maybe it would be better for her if I didn’t find her. She doesn’t need tied in to all of this… but family’s family, and you’re supposed to stick together…” he said, getting quieter. It was his fault they’d been separated. He left her in that orphanage, but he had to. He’d been too young, and knowing that she at least… had lived, and not dealt with the bandits, that was a condolence. He sounded sad now, but he focused on Kaz’s comment instead. “Oh, well, I appreciate the effort anyway. It’s a nice thought, that someone else is out there looking for her. Well, someone who doesn’t wish her harm.”

[Kasimir Sewik]

Kaz laughed a little when Amie joked. He hoped that the other would help for other reasons outside of obligation. Briefly he thought Amie sounded a little different than normal, but Kaz chalked it up to his imagination. "Ah, I guess my travel situation does make it a little hard to contact me..." he realized. Rarely did he actually want to be found by someone. If he ever made a visit, it was always him traveling to wherever that person lived. And even then, such scenarios were unusual, and limited to work. Former employees were generally easier to get more work from than just anyone off the street. Kaz remained wary of just picking up jobs from the mission board, as he was officially guildless.

"I think you've got enough trouble to deal with without adding more," Kaz grinned. Amie was definitely the type to find trouble, whether it was looking for him or not. Adding even more to that just seemed unnecessary. Besides, Kaz was okay with meeting Silver later instead of immediately. It would at least give him something to investigate for a while. "Between that and stumbling across me again, it might not be worth your time to look for her. I'm sure I'll get something to work out," he decided not to trouble Amie not anymore with personal goals. Especially potentially dangerous goals.

Quietly Kaz listened as Amie explained about Mariana, along with Amie's original reason for being out in such an obscure location. "Really? They knew who you were looking for, and set a trap just to try and catch you?" He supposed that would make sense. Kaz completely knew Amie's strength first-hand, and anything except an unfair fight wouldn't be enough to take him down. But to actually try and lure Amie all the way out here... Well, maybe Amie had been exaggerating; perhaps it was just poor coincidence that he and the other men had met at all. That or... they really did hate Amie as much as he thought they did. "You can't give up looking for her now..." Kaz frowned a little. Amie almost sounded like he was giving up, but that couldn't be right. "You've come so far, and what if she actually does need your help? At least you'd be there to protect her." There was a chance that Mariana was already in danger, and with few that would care about her fate. If that was the case, she would only need Amie more. "Besides, I think this time was just a fluke. If someone does come after her because of you, I think you'd be able to take them on."

[Ambrose Wilder]

Kaz acknowledged that it could be hard to find him. At least as far as getting ahold of Amie, he went back to his guild periodically. Back home to base. It might take him a while to get back there, but he always did. Unless he died, then he totally wouldn’t’ go home, but then again he wouldn’t be going anywhere if that happened, so what did it matter? He thought about Mariana. If he died… if she actually checked back in to the orphanage, and he’d left her a message, and he was dead… Amie wasn’t going to let his thoughts show. Although thinking of the orphanage, he supposed he should head there to check back. If she had gone there… well he should leave another message. Mention Lamia Scale. Then at least she could look him up if need be.

Amie just shook his head at Kaz. Saying Amie had enough trouble. “You can never have enough trouble, don’t you know that?” Besides, Kaz was dismissing Amie’s attempts to help. He could say what he wanted. Kaz was a nice guy who Amie liked. True. But Amie was going to do what he was going to do, and no amount of telling Amie he should leave it alone was going to change that.”So, if you knew how dangerous inquiring about my sister might be… based on my asking about her ending me up ambushed… should I tell you to stop trying?” He wanted to see how Kaz reacted to that. Would he agree? See the dilemma? Should Amie tell him not to look? He wasn’t sure.

Kaz asked about the trap and Amie really, really wanted to shrug. Instead he just smiled, “Crafty old bandits, hm? By now most of them won’t even know me, but oh… the ones who do, they’ve got it in their head they have a plan.” It was the comment about Mari that got Amie quiet again. Amie was her big brother, he was supposed to protect her. He knew he wanted to find her. Did he need to find her, as badly as he thought he did? His jaw set, which only caused to stretch his face slightly, and he winced at the cut on his head. He remembered the wild panic he’d been feeling when he shot the person going after her as a baby. He remembered the desperation when he was trying to protect her when they were children. “I don’t know. I probably should have just stayed with her back then…” back when they were kids. Maybe he wouldn’t have drawn as much attention as he thought. He couldn’t know. “Nevermind. I don’t want to think about it. Can we talk about something else?”

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