Chapter Text
"I still can't get over ol' Derek, he didn't just go straight... Married, shop in the best part of town... He went straighter than straight... Just like that...
We used to be thick as thieves, literally. We'd travel around the world, always on the hunt for loot. Ahh those were the days..."
As the brown-haired person tried to look at the other, a blue spiky hared rogue of sorts, despite having their eyes wander aimlessly out of recent revelations, they can't help but have this feeling that puts them at even more stress regarding what is happening around them just now. Hearing the constant blank noise of the soulless praises from the King and his guards before taking them into the cell, it kind of felt like that even if they weren't an enemy to them, it still felt like....
It was all fabricated and making something nonsensical to be more than just that. Even announcing themselves as just their title felt like they aren't themselves at all, like they're a doll making a speech out of the hand of it's master.
Even more so, ever since their mother mentioned about being a reincarnation of the Luminary, they can't help but feel like they are just nothing.
And now, the worst is likely happening as this Erik person is speaking despite already going to Cobblestone there right away.
They don't-
"Hey, you alright there? You seem to be very winded out, must've been how much we did for today right? Heh. It was pretty rough.", they hear Erik try to cheer them up as they chuckle
Speaking of Erik..... And their trip to the under the city lines, something is weirding them out too
"Why.....", they opened their mouth, staring at nothing
"Hmm?"
"What is it with,,,, That place with the "ruffian" thing.... Why is there such a difference between people like you, and up there.", they expressed sympathy
"I..... Uhhh.... Don't follow?", Erik asked
"I mean, in my mind, people want usually do things as a main part of their life in order to live, and yet, so many of people like you have to live off of like that. With a person guarding something much more fortunate to live as, or heck, even interact at all, and only valuing gold as if it's a necessity of anything decent. Why?"
Erik tries to give an answer to their question, before-
"Don't answer that question. What I was wondering right-RIGHT now is that, while Derek wants to live the life he seems to want, I can't help but feel like something about it is ignoring the bigger issue about things that the city seemed to have with him just joining in on that, even after you escaped, his original intent, especially since you talked about the cost of being up there at one point."they specified
Erik begins to lightly smile upon understanding what the person is referring to
"Yeah... I get it, we often become thieves and the like in order to survive from the bad hand we are dealt with. It may be very thrilling with every heist me and Derek successfully did, but it was a reminder of something much more important.
We don't challenge ourselves for the mere glory, we have at it for what is needed on top of the riches we can gain. We both knew it all too well.
If anything, I didn't really expect such a clean person like yourself express such sympathy to it all.", Erik begins to smirk at them
They don't know what exactly to say due to their lack of experience to such a life being exposed to them outside of the occasional steal or two when they were really young alongside Gemma, leaving with no answer to their question
Erik begins to drop it and talk about the forge thing he has.
All they could wonder is one thing after they successfully made a dagger in quite high quality
What in the world is making him not craft something so much valuable if it's so damn easy
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"Life just isn't fair..."
"...Favorite little Leaf, huh?"
There's that talk again, this idea that being a mortal is some sort of curse that makes people not allowed to be anything outside of their control. All of this Luminary talk, and how being not that makes you unable to be this or that is making them really stressed out.
Why can't they just be what they are, and by their own choice to values? Why does it have to be by fate? Why does fate even exist?
Why... WHY?!
Why do people have to follow all of this? What is this purpose that it brings? Why can't things be.....
"Free..."
At this point they can't even tell what they are exactly feelings, it's only making them even more upset
"i'm not lucky...."
"Wha?", A man who goes by the name of Flint responds, followed by Erik standing next to them looking at them with surprise
"I'm not...... lucky. In fact, I don't want to be lucky, why do I need this?"
"I mean, you seem to be THE Luminary, are you not?", Flint questions
A silent begins to chill
A chime tolls
"Ah, don't worry Flint, he just is talking to himself, nothing much.", Erik intervenes before they end the conversation there
A moment later
"You are getting rather off after we went out of Heliodor, I think there is something more than just what you say, especially if I'm told to look over you in a sense.", Erik talks to them out of genuine concern
"I'm sorry to bother you and him.",they decided to shame themselves out of wishing no trouble
"Don't be, I can't ever shame someone for feeling something is bothering someone, going against that is like going against the Thieves code!"
They begin to chuckle right out of their mouth for what seemed like since ages ago
"Thieves code? I thought it was something like honor this or that between the like-minded?"
"It's more than that, it's about respect, challenge, for fun, and looking over others of such brethren!", Erik tries to explain lightheartly
"Look, it's all about that until someone steals your left lost tooth that you valued under your pillow and sells it off for like..... 5 to 10 gold at most, alongside a mug'ol of the finest pint.
Oh.... Wait!"
Somehow all of a sudden, a loud roaring of laughter erupted from their throats like fireworks.
No wonder having a punch to such delivery can mean so much from so little
"Wow, you almost make Derek blush from miles on end from here for making something like that go out of your mouth.", Erik chuckled
And then they went on like nothing had happened, not after...
"Alright alright... We can talk about the personal stuff later; we have something much more important to you at hand in our little trip. Say, I don't believe you mentioned your name at all, especially since whenever you told me about you being the Luminary, it didn't seem as fun to do so....
What is your name?"
A thought passed, and they smiled like they never had, even during the last few years of being in Cobblestone, or heck, even Gemma at times.
"Jacob."
And the rest was history....
For now.