Two and a Half Women

[Breda Dreaughan]

It was a pleasant walk, in the pleasant evening air, and Breda's previous concerns gradually melted away. These days she had much less chances for leisurely chats with other women than she had been used to in her previous life, and she realized she had been missing talks like this.

And this was her home. She might have moved up the social ladder, but Marn was always the same, regardless of how high you looked from. As much as she sometimes loathed the city, at times like this it felt as much a part of her as a hand or a foot did. Or rather, she felt part of the city. Often an insignificant, perhaps even an unwanted part, but a part nevertheless. She felt a brief chill, imagining what life would be like if she was to lose that sense of belonging, the only constant in her ninety-five years of life.

And then they heard the scuffle, and Breda could see Aura almost quiver from the desire to intervene. The dwarf grimaced. It was only a couple of weeks since she had last gotten involved in a street fight, and the stab wound in her shoulder still ached after exertion. And this time, neither of them was a trained guard.

But she couldn't say no. She knew more than well enough that in a situation like this, the only hope of the small ones on the streets was the mercy of others. She squeezed the handle of the little dagger on her belt.

"Go. Do your monastery teacher-beating thing. I'll see what I can do."

[Aura Thesin]

Adrenaline had already begun pouring into Aura's body, negating the effects of the alcohol. Her mind cleared, her eyes focused, sharpened, and everything became much more clear in the evening darkness. She moved easily to the mouth of the alleyway, poised on the balls of her feet, hands at the ready; it was the warrior's pose.

Silhouetted at the mouth of the alley by the light nearly directly behind her, she could see down the alley. She took another two steps in, paused, battling her nervously fluttering stomach, then spoke.

"I believe he's had enough. Perhaps you should move on."

Two sets of eyes turned quickly to focus on her. One man, for they were both men, likely older than Aura, lifted an arm to shade his eyes from the light on the street. The other stood, chest heaving in exertion or anger; it was hard to tell which. The form on the ground simply moaned, remaining curled in a fetal position and moving hardly at all.

The man shading his arms responded. "What if we dun think wer done, l'il miss? Ya gonna stop us?" Each of the men moved towards her, taking three quick strides and stopping.

Aura's eyes ran over the walls of the buildings on either side of her, the walls that made up the alley. They ran for nearly a hundred feet, were at least two stories high, and far enough apart to allow the two men to stand side by side, with little room to spare. Her eyes drifted from gauging her surroundings to the two men.

The one had calmed considerably, his wide chest no longer heaving. Instead of looking ready to fight, he seemed nervous, swaying back and forth on his feet, and taking frequent glances behind him. He was the bigger of the two, taller by nearly a foot, broad shoulders, and much more muscular. The second man, the one who had spoken, was whipcord thin. His arms seemed disproportionate to his body, longer than the should be. He stood on the balls of his feet, obviously ready for a fight, and looked like he could take care of himself.

The larger man reached out and plucked at the sleeve of the obvious leader. "We shoulda been gone alreedy. Snyde in't gonna like us takin' too long." The leader shrugged his shoulders, then batted the man's hand away from him.

"She's jus' a woman. We can take her back wi' us, if Snyde has any issues. An' 'sides, we can take wha' we wan' too," he chuckled evilly, a cold sound, devoid of any emotion. It made the chuckle that much scarier. "So, l'il miss, ya gonna stop us?"

Aura took two steps forward herself, so they were several feet apart. "If I have to," she said. With those words, with the admission that this was going to end in violence, her nervousness vanished. As it usually did.

[Breda Dreaughan]

Breda remained hidden in the shadows. She kept her eyes fixed on the victim, who, as the men started walking towards Aura, crawled feebly to the shelter of the stone wall, where he curled up again. The two assailants seemed fully concentrated on Aura, so Breda took her chance. Wrapped in her dark cloak and hugging the wall she sneaked towards the barely moving shape on the ground. If the men noticed her as she slid past them, they didn’t seem to care. Aura was obviously more important.

The victim whimpered and shuddered as Breda knelt down and gently brushed his shoulder. “Shh,” the dwarf hissed, glancing briefly over her shoulder. “Don’t move, and don’t speak. We’re trying to help you.”

It was dark in the alleyway, and the victim’s face was already badly swollen, but to Breda he seemed human - although in Marn that could mean almost anything - and not too old. He opened his other eye, the one that was still capable of opening, and made a faint acknowledging noise in his throat. Breda tried her best to ignore the alarming sounds behind her, and gently ran her fingers across the victim’s face, back and shins. The man’s pulse was rapid and erratic, breath labored, and even the gentlest touch made him groan and whimper. Bones were obviously broken, and there was no telling what had been done to the man's soft parts.

Not good. Not good at all. Breda muttered something meaningless, trying to keep the man calm, all the time expecting a knife in her own back or a blow to the head. I hope you know what you’re doing, Aura. I really, really do.

[Aura Thesin]

Neither man seemed to notice the dark shadow slipping past them to the form lying broken on the ground behind them. Indeed, they were so focused on the woman in front of them, and the possibility of the good times they could have with her, that they didn't notice much else.

Aura's stance remained on the balls of her feet, her hands slowly rising in front of her as she readied for herself for the men to make the first move.

They did. At an indication from the smaller man, the bigger moved forward, charging hard at Aura. His intention was to bear her to the ground under his larger, heavier size.

Aura waited until he was nearly upon her, then slipped easily to one side. Her hands and one foot moved in a blur, foot striking the man's shin at the same time one hand cracked across his ear, the other hand landing a solid blow at the base of the man's neck as he stumbled by. The kick knocked his feet from underneath him, and his forward momentum brought him sprawling to the ground, knocking the wind from him and leaving him stunned on the ground.

The smaller man was already moving by the time Aura turned back to him, but she had expected this. Standing firm, with no place for her to back up, her arms moved up, left hand deflecting blows from the man's right. Seeing that his blows weren't going to land, the man hesitated. With a quick rush, he moved forward, hoping to catch Aura by surprise and grab her. Aura allowed his left hand to get hold of the bicep of her right arm, lifting her left over his right as he attempted to get a similar grip with that hand. She brought her left arm over his right and down, hooking a hand underneath it and lifting, extending his elbow painfully. Jerking her right arm out of his grip as it weakened in surprise and pain, she pulled the same move with that arm, extending his left elbow painfully.

The two stood for a moment, faces inches apart, him looking at her in surprise and pain, her staring back expressionlessly. She spoke softly, "You should leave." He snarled at her, beginning to struggle against her grip. Aura leaned back and stood to her tiptoes, putting more pressure on his hyper-extended elbows. He hissed in pain, but continued to struggle against her.

She knew she couldn't hold him this way for long, and she didn't think the man on the ground was going to remain there for much longer. He was a man, and, despite her training and exceptional strength, he was stronger than she was.

So she broke his nose.

As he began to pull free from her grasp, Aura's head went back and snapped forward. Her back arched, and using those muscles and her neck muscles, she brought her forehead down hard on the bridge of his nose. The crack of her forehead breaking his nose resounded through the narrow space of the alleyway. The man crumpled in front of her, hands going to his nose as he fairly shrieked in pain.

Aura turned, her back to the wall, as the big man slowly got back to his feet, shaking the cobwebs from his head. Aura's eyes searched the alley, seeking Breda and seeing her bent form next to the prone form of the men's victim.

She spoke again, louder so both men could hear. "You should leave."

[Breda Dreaughan]

Meanwhile, Breda was feeling helpless. There was little she could do to relieve the injured man's situation. She had no tools to work with, and she didn't dare to move him in fear of his back injuries. Her own back ached in sympathy as she reached to feel the man's erratic pulse. He was he was drifting in and out of consciousness, despite Breda's attempts to keep him awake.

He needs a healer. A hospital. Which means we need to get off this bloody alley.

She glanced over her shoulder. The smaller man was on his knees, clutching his nose, while the bigger one was getting on his feet. Breda's hand slid to the hilt of her dagger. She might have been able to sneak behind the smaller man, before he could get up again. Then again, that would have meant leaving the injured man on his own, which she didn't really want to do.

Then she heard Aura's suggestion to the men. Was she really expecting them to just walk away? Was she going to let them?

Breda glanced at the half-conscious man on the cobblestones. One grievously injured man was going to mean trouble. One grievously injured and one or two dead would likely mean much more trouble. Breda knew very well the type of people Aura was currently challenging. If they were to walk away from this, they would remember. Their bosses would remember - for those two were clearly just thugs, not smart enough to think for themselves in the feral environment of Shanty Town. Yet, getting rid of them permanently would mean trouble from people much further up. Even in a city like Marn, dead citizens on the streets were likely to raise questions.

You're above this now, Breda. You're above the laws of the jungle. You've got to live according to the laws of the society now. Or you're going to lose it all again.

She kept her eyes fixed on the two men and her hand on the hilt. If the thugs were going to walk away, then they would. If they wouldn't, well, then the two women would have to get creative.

[Aura Thesin]

For several tense moments, no one moved.

Then a head popped around the corner of the alley, seemingly to check on the source of the scream. Seeing the many forms of people obviously ready for a fight the head pulled back, then a figure rushed past the alley opening.

It was replaced by another head a moment later, this one helmeted. A clear, official voice rang out through the alley. "What is going on down there?"

The two men flinched, then looked at each other. At a tilt of the head from the leader, the bigger man took off running down the alley in the opposite direction of the guard. The leader slowly walked in that direction, glaring at Aura. One hand holding his shattered nose, he wagged a finger at Aura with the other. "This isn't over, woman. Not even close."

With the uttered threat, he turned and ran in the same direction as his friend. Meanwhile, the guard came fully around the corner, moving cautiously down the alley. "Halt!" When it was apparent neither man was going to listen to him, he grunted and murmured, "Why don't they ever listen."

Another guard slipped into the alley behind him. The lead guard had a small club drawn, the other his short sword out. They moved cautiously up the alley to Aura, who made no move other than to lift her hands to show she wasn't armed. Keeping an eye on her, the lead guard took a look further up the alley, noticing Breda and the form she was bent over. He frowned slightly, then indicated to the other guard to check on the prone form.

While the second guard sheathed his sword and moved to crouch next to Breda, the lead guard asked again, "So, what is going on down here?"

Aura sighed and shrugged, glancing over to Breda before beginning the story.

[Breda Dreaughan]

Oh, crap.

Of course, the arrival of the cavalry was well timed: The injured man needed help now rather than in a minute, and though Aura was handling the two muggers exceptionally well, her luck could have run out any minute. And yet, Breda had hoped they could have escaped the scene without being noticed by the officials. As the two men took off to the distance, Breda and Aura were now left alone with the victim, to explain what had happened.

As the officer with the sword approached her, Breda slowly and rather theatrically unsheathed her dagger and dropped it on the cobblestones, lifting her hands to the level of her elbows. "Came here, saw two men beating up this guy, came to check on him," she replied to the unanswered question. The guard grunted in reply and reached to feel the man's pulse. "Also, recommend getting help statim."

"The eyewitness has been sent to fetch help from the hospital," the guard said after a pause. "What is your name?"
"Breda."
"Just Breda?"
"Just Breda." It was only a few weeks since Breda had last been involved in a street fight and, to her personal experience, coppers didn't generally believe in coincidence. Fortunately, neither of these two had been there, and she didn't remember seeing them in the smithy either.

The guard removed his coat and covered the injured man with it. Then he stood up and held out his hand to Breda. "Well then, Mrs. Breda. If you'd care to join my colleague and your friend. I'll keep an eye on our poor friend here."

Breda, lacking any real option, allowed herself to be helped up and, with a last glance towards the prone form, walked towards Aura. At least they saw the Shanties run away. They shouldn't have any reason to not believe us.

[Aura Thesin]

Aura, having had no dealings with Marnian law before this night, had none of the misgivings that Breda had. She kept her hands raised, palm out, her voice low and deferential, and told the story without embelishment or exaggeration. She glossed over her own fighting prowess.

The guards looked her over, searching quickly through her meager possessions carried on her person, asked a few questions they felt were relevant, and the whole ordeal was nearly finished by the time medical attention arrived for the man on the ground.

When asked where she lived in case she was needed for further questioning, she gave the Lions' address as her own. It was true, as she lived in one of the unused rooms in back.

As Aura turned to leave, one of the guards placed a hand on her shoulder. "One last question, miss."

Aura turned back, curiosity evident in the torchlight reflected in her eyes. She wasn't sure what they could possibly ask her that they already hadn't.

The guard looked at a little notepad he had been writing on, then peered up at her under his eyebrows. "Why would you step in to help this man? Why not go for help? I mean, you say you didn't know him..."

Aura frowned. "He needed help, and he needed it right away. Had I not intervened, he could be dead by now."

The guard nodded slightly, tapping the end of a pencil against his bottom lip. "So you said. You're not much more than a girl, skinny thing. You didn't step into this thinking that, perhaps, you had some extra ... abilities? ... that would help keep you safe, maybe?"

Red heat rose from her chest, burning up her throat. She held her anger in check, if barely. This guard was accusing her of something, she was sure, but she didn't know what. The look on his face said he had just caught her doing something wrong, and that she should just give up.

Teeth clenched, Aura glared at him. "I've been trained in fighting since I was in my early teens. I can beat almost any trained fighter in bare-hand combat, two or more if they're untrained."

Her fists were clenched at her side, and she had unconsciously risen to the balls of her feet in a fighting stance. The guard looked mildly taken aback, and Aura wasn't backing down.

[Breda Dreaughan]

Breda went through the same question-and-examine procedure. To her, it was almost a routine. During the past decades, she had been caught in the streets more times than she cared to count.

In the end, she did gave her full name and occupation. It eventually seemed easier and less likely to lead into trouble than deliberately hiding her identity. After all, being a legitimate artisan added some weight to her words, and, with all that regularly went on in the streets of Marn, it was unlikely the guards would bother to cross-check with old records. If they even kept such.

When the guard was finished with her, she turned to walk back towards the victim, hoping to be of help to the healers who had arrived. Yet she froze on her steps when she heard the other guard to call Aura back. Her heart jumped into her throat when she turned to look over her shoulder and saw Aura taking attack position. In a split second she was next to the other woman, holding Aura's arm firmly in her grasp. Breda certainly wasn't trained in martial arts, but she had been working in the smithy for months now, so she wasn't easily removed.

"I assure you, sir, the girl is not a magic user. She is just - ah - new around here. Unfamiliar with the ways of the city. And a bit overconfident."

The guard turned to glare down at Breda. "And you're what, educating her in the said ways?"
"Yes, sir," the dwarf replied, trying to sound cheerful. "She's a good friend, and I'd hate to see her have the life-expectancy of a dragonfly."

Please, don't do or say anything stupid. What the hell were you thinking? Is this what you nuns do, fight everything that moves?

[Aura Thesin]

Aura continued to glare at the guard, but said nothing further. They were accusing her of being a magic user? What proof could they possibly have? That she was confident in her fighting ability?!

Aura tensed only slightly when Breda grabbed her arm and began speaking. Slowly, she relaxed, eventually patting Breda's arm with her hand and giving her a small glance and smile to reassure the smaller woman that she was in control of herself again.

The guard looked between the two of them for a moment, a frown on his face, then shrugged. "We can always test that at Justice Hall anyways, if need be. I didn't see anything untoward, so I'll leave it be ... for now." He lifted an eyebrow at the two women, then turned as three men came around the alley corner.

Two of the newcomers carried a pair of poles attached to a thick piece of canvas. The third followed behind them. They all knelt next to the prone form of the beaten man. As the two with the canvas and poles set it on the ground next to the man, the third, wearing what could now be seen as the accepted attire of a healer, began making intricate hand movements and murmuring under his breath. Seconds later, a ball of light appeared over the outstretched hand of the healer, bright enough to illuminate the immediate area, but not much further than where the downed man lay.

The healer paused, frowning at the ball of light in his hand as it flickered uncertainly. The two men paused their ministrations of the man on the ground, and also frowned at the ball of light. The healer muttered something to them, and they quickly turned back to what they were doing. The healer let the ball float up directly above them, then began attending to the man himself.

Aura stood quietly, watching the scene, before tapping the guard on the shoulder. He turned from the healer and his attendants, looked at the two women, then said, "You're still here? If we need anything else, we'll contact you."

Obviously a dismissal, Aura looked down at Breda and smiled. "Guess it's time to go." She turned and headed out of the alley. As they reached the entrance to the alley, there was a small flare of light. Pausing to look over her shoulder, she saw the healer and his attendants covering their eyes, and the ball of light glowing brightly above them. Thinking nothing of it, she turned and walked out of the alley.

"That was an interesting walk, wasn't it, Breda?" Aura smiled sheepishly at the smaller woman. "Sorry to drag you into that."

[Breda Dreaughan]

Breda kept glancing over her shoulder to the healer until they were out of the alley. The man must have really been within inch of his life, to force them heal him with magic in the middle of the street.

When Aura spoke, Breda responded with a slight smile. "Interesting indeed. It's okay, seems to be me destiny to get dragged into trouble in dark alleys." She gave the human woman an exploratory glance. "You're not hurt? That was really quite impressive what you did back there. Some nun you are."

They were back on the more populated streets now, and people were hurrying past without paying any attention to the two women. Some of them rushing to get home after a long day, others already on leisure mood. Breda stepped around a drunken human male who was enthusiastically explaining something to a bored-looking elf.

"Do you have more exciting plans for tonight?" She asked, still smiling. "More exercise, perhaps?"

[Aura Thesin]

Aura looked down at her bruised knuckles, giving her hand a brief shake to make sure it wasn't hurt. She shrugged and glanced over at the smaller woman. "It doesn't hurt that bad. Nothing major, anyways." She looked away self-consciously. "Part of being a monk ... and I'd be called a monk as opposed to a nun ... part of being a monk is not allowing injustice to continue without an attempt to stop it. I've always been that way, which is why I fit in so well at the monastery."

They walked in silence for a few moments, each apparently in their own thoughts. After several steps, Aura turned to Breda. "We should probably get some sleep. It's starting to get late." She glanced up at the moon which was halfway through the journey to it's apex.

"I ..." she hesitated, casting a shy look toward Breda. "I work tomorrow, but have a couple days off after that. Usually I go to Shim once a month, and I dust and clean the cottage I ... arrived at when I first came here. No one has ever showed up at it; I'm not even sure who owns it, or if anyone even lives there." Aura stared straight ahead, walking a few steps, before saying, "I would like it if you came along. I don't make friends very easily, and it can get to be a lonely journey."

She waited, hoping her new, small friend would accept her request.

[Breda Dreaughan]

Breda smiled as Aura explained the philosophy of her order. "Did they ever teach you other ways to stop injustice than by rushing headfirst into the fray? I'd hate to see you stabbed in the back, or flayed by magic. Or being arrested for street violence, for that matter."

As they walked onwards, Breda reached to rub her back with her knuckles. It was indeed late, she had intended to be in bed ages ago. So she nodded in agreement as Aura suggested sleep.

After the other woman had asked for her company, Breda walked a few more steps in silence. Aura's company had proven to be rather exciting, perhaps more so than what the dwarf was looking for, but she felt surprisingly attracted to the human. Also, she hadn't been outside the city borders for ages, and the thought was tempting. And she couldn't deny that Aura's confession of loneliness and difficulty with making friends sounded quite familiar.

"I'm also due a day off," she finally said, turning to look at the other woman. "I could probably take it the day after tomorrow. I'd be happy to keep you company. Besides, it's been a while since I've been to Shim."

[Aura Thesin]

Aura shrugged as they walked down the street. She hadn't gone into the alley with the intention of ending the confrontation with violence, but she had been prepared for it. She said as much to Breda as the walked along.

"Besides, they started it by beating on that fellow in the alley, then attacking me when I asked them to stop."

Her wry smile told what she thought of that. After a few moments of silence, she listened to Breda's response to her request for company to Shim. Delighted, she clapped her hands together once, smiling down at the smaller woman before placing a friendly hand on her shoulder.

"I would love your company, Breda. Thank you so much!" She paused as they reached the inn and tavern she called home. Shuffling off to one side of the door in order to be out of the way of both the street traffic and the patrons moving in and out, she began making plans with the dwarven woman.

"How about we meet here just after sunup in two days. We can leave directly from here and walk to Shim. It will take us most of the morning to walk there, and I usually stay the night in the cabin." She shrugged self-consciously. "I guess I feel that since no one seems to live there, they won't mind too much if I spend a night there once in a while. I basically lived there for a while before I moved myself to Marn. Anyways, there's enough room for both of us in the bed, or I can take the chair if you're uncomfortable with that. Oh! And I'll have to get Marie to make up meals for two this time ... or two and a half?"

Aura grinned as she looked down at Breda's bulging belly.

[Breda Dreaughan]

Breda’s left eyebrow arched slightly as she listened to Aura’s reasoning regarding the alley incident. Fair enough, the woman seemed capable enough to survive until she learned her lesson. Perhaps she would even teach something to her opponents in the process.

As they stepped inside the inn, Breda stretched her back carefully and leaned against the wall. For a few seconds she toyed with the idea of renting a room here for the night, just to spare herself from the walk to The Content Merchant, but that would have been stupid. She’d paid her room for the month.

She nodded in agreement to Aura’s suggestion. The other woman’s last comment and look made her lift her hand reflexively on her belly, but to her own surprise she did not feel uncomfortable. Instead, she smiled in reply.

“Sounds good to me. And I’m fine with the sleeping arrangements, I’m used to sleeping tight. I shall meet you here, then?”