On the Run (Open)

[gareth]

Gareth slipped around a corner and ran between a few buildings while cursing under his breath. How had he not seen them coming this time? His precognition had never failed him to this point, granted he was not entirely certain that he'd ever been that inebriated before; he wasn't completely certain that the woman he'd been with hadn't slipped him something.

And so now he was on the run from someone who he'd crossed and it was only a matter of time before authorities were called in. He needed to get somewhere quiet and hidden but it seemed everywhere he turned there were more people.

As he ducked into another alleyway he thought he heard something go flying past his head and ducked just in time to dodge a rock that would have connected with his temple had he not seen it coming.

Gareth pushed himself faster, sprinting with everything he had before slipping through the window of a darkened house in the nick of time. He could hear the man out there searching for him and he closed his eyes, focusing on steadying his breathing and slowing his heart so that he could use his shape-changing to get a more innocent looking face.

[Seayn]

Seayn had been notified that there was a commotion coming from somewhere because of someone doing something. He was overwhelmed by the specifics he had been given by the messenger, yet nonetheless he he made his way to general area. He spotted a man running, throwing rocks and what not. He assumed that this was what he had been called for so he quickly followed, hustling in his heavy armor, slowly falling behind yet attempting to keep up. He wasn't quite sure what the man was chasing but he hoped it was something good, he didn't want to be here for some kid picking a pocket again.

The man in front of Seayn stopped, giving the young human a chance to stop and catch his breath. The man began to search for something as the armored human bent over at the waist, sucking in air. He wasn't equipped to be sprinting after others like this. He straightened up, his eyes combing the area for what could possibly be hidden in this area. He took a few steps forward, coughing loudly to catch the man's attention. He had quite a bit of sweat upon his face, yet he was sure that he could at least manage a dignified appearance. He squared his jaw, staring angrily, almost as if he was annoyed at being summoned to deal with this... which he was but that wasn't something he would usually let others see. "What's happening here?"

[gareth]

The man looked to Seayn. He was dripping with sweat and his face was beet red from a mixture of anger and the exercise of running. "I'll tell you what happened. The guy there, the one who went thataway, he robbed my house!" The man shook his head and looked flabbergasted. "The screwy thing of it is, he looks just like me! I left for work but had to come back and when I opened the door there he was with half my valuables! And my wife!" The man's face filled with rage and he began storming off in the direction that Gareth had run. "And if you won't do anything about it then I will!"

Meanwhile, Gareth sat under the window with his eyes squeezed shut. He took a deep breath in and let it out, repeating the process until he could focus. It wasn't the easiest task, not when he could hear the man screaming at Seayn. The pounding headache that was forming behind his eyes did little to help matters either. He knew it had been a bad idea to do it when he was still recovering from a night out but he'd been overconfident. He had rushed and now he was on the verge of getting caught.

"OKay, come on. You can do this." He said to himself before blinking a few times and tilting his head back. Gareth took one more deep breath before focusing. Slowly his form began to shift. His build grew more slim and toned and he shrank a few inches before his hair turned a white blond and his facial features rearranged themselves to his normal face.

Gareth was about to hop back out the window when the man came into view. He quickly ducked down, hoping that he had not been spotted. Although he looked like himself now, he was still wearing the same clothes that he had been before.

"There! Did you see that? He's in there!" Had Seayn not followed, the man would grab him and start dragging him toward the dark house.

Gareth felt like a deer in the headlights, or he would if he knew what headlights were. He crawled along the wall, trying to stay out of view of the window as he made his way for the back door.

[Seayn]

A doppleganger of some kind? Seayn was quite versed in how to deal with beings that could change their shape and appearance. He looked from the discolored man to the house, wondering to what extent the thing they were chasing could manipulate its physique. I'll check it out, just stay here." Seayn gestured toward the building, his shield spiraling out of his forearm as he drew his sword. The young man wouldn't be surprised if it was some type of monster or another. They had started appearing rather frequently and he had to make sure that they stopped coming back, for good. He did notice the small amount of motion in the window, yet he wasn't sure what it had been. It was too dark at the moment to be able to tell, it could be anything from a mouse to an elephant.

Seayn stared dumbfounded at the man as he dragged the gentry forward. Whatever was in there could pop out and murder this man in a heartbeat yet he didn't even seem to realize that. "You should probably let me handle this sir. For all you know it's some kind of monster that might tear your heart out... I've seen it happen before, pretty gruesome. You might just want to head home and list what he actually took. I'll see about whatever is in there." With that, Seayn took the lead, moving around the man that seemed too angry to think of the amount of danger that could be within that building. He glanced around the building, checking both sides before going back to the window. "If you want to make yourself useful, check for any other exits. Make sure to stay clear. I don't want you getting hurt."

Seayn moved up to the window cautiously, hoping that he would be able to see inside. He stuck his head through the window, eyes darting about. "Anyone in here?" He called, hoping that this could be resolved without violence.

[gareth]

The man looked as though he was about to leave when monsters were mentioned. He'd not considered how the person had gotten to look like him; he just thought it was some sort of fluke. But now that he thought about it, who could really do something like that but a monster? He took a step back before setting his resolve and starting for the house. "I'll cover the back. You're going in there to deal with the thing, I won't get in your way." There was no way in hell he was going into that house now that the idea of Gareth being a monster that could eat him had been brought up.

Gareth's face lost all color as Seayn entered. How was he going to get out of this? He could jump out the window but with the two of them so close he would not get far. Gareth muttered a curse under his breath before moving as silently as he could to try and get upstairs. It was driving him further into a corner but this way he could face Seayn one on one without the worry of the man outside interfering.

Should Seayn make his way up the stairs, he would find Gareth leaning against the wall opposite the landing with his arms crossed over his chest. He was doing all that he could to look calm, nonchalant even, but there was a definite fear in his eyes. "I suppose you'll be wanting the goods back?" If that was all that would be necessary then he would gladly give them up and cut his losses. They weren't worth the trouble at this point.

He took a deep breath, fighting back his nerves and putting on a smirk. "Well then, here they are." Gareth pulled the bag off of his shoulder and held it out to Seayn, keeping his eyes on the knight in case he would try to do something to apprehend him.

[Seayn]

Seayn was quite glad that his words had finally given the commoner a sense of cautiousness, it was going to be bad enough without some crazy angry man trying to bash someone's brains out. As he attempted to quietly enter, casting about in the dark to make sure that there was nothing to bump into. He stood in the doorway long enough for his eyes to completely adjust, searching every nook and cranny downstairs. Content that he wasn't going to find the perpetrator in this room, the gentry headed towards the stairs, testing it with one foot as if he expected some sort of trap or another.

Seayn emerged from the stairwell only to be greeted by a young man, platinum blonde hair and blue eyes. He didn't really look like the man downstairs at all yet that wasn't surprising since shape-changing wasn't the most unlikely of abilities. "That's it? You're just going to hand them over? Not going to attack me, turn into a monster, nothing? Well, I must say I am relieved. The way things have been turning out recently it wouldn't have been a surprise." The young knight knew the law, yet he didn't see the harm in letting this boy go, even though he was about the same age as himself.

Seayn held out a hand for the loot, not wanting to startle the other human. "Hand me the bag and I'll go tell the man outside that you must have made your escape but ditched it here. Then I can come back and we can perhaps talk about your future." The gentry examined the other man's face, attempting to read its emotions. He didn't want to let a malicious person go, if he could help it.

[gareth]

"Yeah, that's it." Gareth shook his head and slid his hands into his pockets. "It's a bunch of junk anyway, it's not worth getting myself killed over." He could not help but worry when Seayn mentioned talking about his future. Even though he handed over the goods quietly was he still going to be sent to prison or have his hand chopped off or whatever they did to thieves in this city?

When Seyan tried to read his face he would find a pair of nervous, wide blue eyes staring back at him. He was a man who was cornered and fearing for his fate, thinking that his life must surely be over now. He could run, sure, but this man was a knight and likely already had backup on the way. If he tried to run they would hunt him down.

As Seayn left to give the man his goods back, Gareth slid down the wall into a slouched sitting position, mind racing as he tried to figure out just how he'd been so careless as to be caught in the first place. It was probably that woman's fault, he was certain that she'd slipped him something that interfered with his precognition, that had made him unable to see that the husband was going to come home.

The man snatched his goods back away from Seayn, eyes narrowed in anger and suspicion. "Hell of a knight you are. I chase him all this way and you let the thief get away!" He grumbled something under his breath about how he should have left things in his own hands before giving an ungrateful humph and walking off.

[Seayn]

Seayn kept his face blank as the man reprimanded him for being unable to catch the thief. Perhaps if the man had been a little more reasonable, the young knight would have taken the thief back to him, yet it wasn't his duty to allow some brash, raging man to beat a kid bloody. He shook his head, turning and walking back into the house, up to the room that contained Gareth.

"I wouldn't have let you be killed regardless. " Seayn shook his head, sighing as he observed the room. It was obvious that the other man as scared yet that's not what the human gentry wanted. He ran a gauntleted hand through his hair as he tried to think of what to say. "I suppose I should start with an introduction. I am Seayn, Human Gentry beneath the Champion, Seraphina Herodor. As most of the other human authorities are less likely to be here, I was sent to deal with a human problem. But I'd rather not send some kid to jail for a petty crime like stealing junk from someone." He turned his back to Gareth for a moment, looking down and shaking his head as he attempted to get his thoughts in order.

Lifting his head, Seayn spoke, although he didn't turn to face the young man. "Are you a shape shifter? That man said you stole his shape. If you are, that would mean that you are one of the more... versatile humans. Different abilities are useful to us. The humans are in a bit of a fickle spot right now. We're trying to raise a militia and strengthen ties with other races because of recent outbreaks of dangerous monsters that we believe are connected. I would like to give you another chance rather than sending you to the castle dungeons. I just need to be able to trust you... That's going to be the more difficult part" Seayn turned around, looking Gareth over once more. He knew that there was potential in the young lad, although he couldn't say how much. He also liked to believe there was at least some good in everyone, which was what he wanted to get out of this boy. "What do you plan upon doing?"

[gareth]

Gareth flinched when he heard Seayn coming back up the stairs. In his mind he had already jumped from losing his hand to execution. Not right away of course, they could not do that for what he had done here, but if they found out everything that he'd done before then they were bound to do something.

He looked up at Seayn from his place on the floor, trying to look brave but when Seayn spoke he wore an expression that could only be referred to as dumbfounded. "What?" His eyes lit up and he looked like a kid that had just been given all the candy. "I'm...I'm not going to jail?"

Gareth's struggle to contain his excitement was quickly ended when Seayn began to speak again. "Yeah...I can look like different people." He seemed confused, unable to process what it was this man was saying. Seayn wanted him to join the human gentry? He was taking a liar and a thief and trying to see something more beneath that?

He knew that he could make himself seem trustworthy and who knew, maybe in time if this became a profitable endeavor maybe he would become so. For now, however, the only thing he really saw in the offer was a way out of the dungeons and perhaps even a way to avoid those who he'd crossed in the past. "I...I think I would like to give that a try. Spent my whole life on the streets fighting for what I could get. Maybe a change of pace is what I need before I get myself in real trouble."

[Seayn]

Seayn chuckled at the younger man's delighted expression. He could only imagine what the youngster had been thinking was going to happen to him. "The plan is to keep you out of jail... unless of course you have to escort someone there." He must have been expecting the gallows, the guillotine, the stocks, all despicable sorts of punishment that Seayn had never had the experience of doing to another man... Seayn hadn't exactly caught people for major crimes just yet. "That's a very interesting ability, I'm sure it will come in handy." The man couldn't exactly think of something to use it for, other than espionage and other things he didn't exactly approve of but he was sure that Seraphina and the other gentries would have ideas how to make this boy feel a sense of purpose.

Seayn smiled brightly at Gareth's acceptance, offering his hand to help the lad up... although he was at least the age of a man, if not older, at least that's what Seayn thought. "I'm glad that you're at least willing to try to make something of yourself. Hrmmm, we'll have to get you some proper attire and the guest room should do fine." He spoke to himself at the end, looking up towards the ceiling, wondering how he would get the young boy trained. He shifted in his armor, attempting to make it more comfortable as he thought. "Ah, I almost forgot, what is your name? I can't be bringing a house guest home without even knowing what to call him, can I?" He grinned at Gareth, infected with the enthusiasm that abounded in the air tonight.

[gareth]

Gareth seemed to feel the imaginary noose loosen as Seayn continued to talk and he relaxed even moreso. There was one thing that he could not seem to get over though, why was this man trusting a criminal, even though he admitted it would be difficult, to perform matters of such importance to the humans? Did he not realize that Gareth wasn't even a pure blooded human? And a criminal no less. Were the humans really in such bad shape? It was not matter to him, it gave him the chance to not only walk free but to gain some level of protection and resources. And he planned on exploiting those resources to the best of his advantage once he was in well enough with them.

"Yes, yes it does. I have some level of precognition as well." If they were going to use him, they may as well know everything that he could do. It would give them more chances to rely on him, to start trusting him. He grinned up at Seayn as a hand was offered and took it without hesitation in order to pull himself up and pat the knight on the back.

"I do not think you'll regret taking me in." He looked down at his clothes and let out a little chuckle. "Oh, these rags? They're not mine; I used them so that I could get into that man's house. I normally wear rather nice clothes." Granted a dress shirt and vest were not quite a uniform, but if they wanted his ability to slip past people, they would not likely want him in a uniform anyways.

"My name is Gareth, sorry, in all the excitement I clean forgot about it." He let out a little chuckle and ran a hand back through his hair. "So, when do I start?"

[Seayn]

Seayn nodded at Gareth, wondering where he would start with him. He had just come off of the streets, which the older man didn't know much about. He'd always been rather well off and had never had problems knowing where his next meal would come from or anything like that. He ran a hand through his hair, trying to assess Gareth's skills through his outward appearance. "Precognition? That's sure to come in handy at times." Seayn could only hope that Gareth's small amount of precognition could be honed into a finely tuned thing that would allow them to be at the scene of any danger that might occur.

"I'm sure you won't disappoint, you just needed an opportunity to shine... or something like that. Hrmmmm. That's good, I've never been good with clothes or anything like that." Seayn scratched his chin, wondering if he was prepared to take on this boy that he reckoned would quickly turn into a man. "It's good to meet you Gareth. I suppose you start whenever you want. You know, general duty being to help out anyone you can, although I suppose we should mostly focus upon humans.. I trust you. Just report anything too out of place. Giant monsters, extremely dangerous ones and the like. I'm sure you'll catch on quickly."

[gareth]

It wasn't until Seayn mentioned that he should focus most of his helping attempts on humans that Gareth started to realize just how difficult of a scam this might be to play. Giving a hand to random strangers, sure, but to devote himself, even in an act, to helping humans? He was sure that Seayn had little to no idea of Gareth's heritage and why should he? Gareth did what he could to hide the fact that his father was anything but human. To do so would be to meet the same fate that he met with his mother, being cast out with nothing but a bunch of scars (both mental and physical) to show for it.

"So, that's all I have to do huh? Just help people and let you know when there's trouble? I hate to sound a bit stingy but what do I get paid for that? It doesn't seem like something I'd get much for. It's not that I'm greedy but I do have to support myself you know?" He asked the question largely in part to hide any suspicion as to why his face had grown serious.

"I mean, is that all there is to furthering the human cause?" He had to catch himself as he was speaking, to not replace the final word with agenda. To ask about the human agenda would be to make it seem as though he were opposed, and that was something he did not want to do. Even more than wishing to weasel his way in, he was now beginning to find himself curious about what it was that the humans actually did and stood for. To this point he had held a grudge, and while that grudge was sure to stay for quite some time still, he may as well try to understand those that he disliked.