Chapter Text
The sun was steadily making its way under the horizon, and Lio knew he would have to make this quick.
The boy quietly and as unassumingly as possible made his way through the sea of people in the streets. As it began to grow darker, those not involved in any shady business would start heading back to their homes. Lio, however, was on a quest, and this timeframe was ideal for completing it.
He looked around, observing the people he passed. Some were in a rush, heads down to avoid attracting trouble, and others were looking around almost shifitly. Lio figured they were out to do the same as him. So far, no one had caught Lio’s eye. He needed a target, someone who carried goods, but did not seem like they would be paying too much attention to their person. This sort of person is a bit hard to come by in a city like Luskan, but Lio wanted to have an easy night, and part of that meant not being chased by guards.
After a while of sculking around the area, Lio passed a man dressed in tattered robes. The man was of average height and build but had a meek air about him. More importantly, he had a large linen bag on his shoulder that was filled. And wide open.
Lio made with way over to the man, matching his gait. He simply walked behind him for a few seconds, making sure the man would not turn and that the cost was clear. Once satisfied that it was, Lio began reaching forward.
‘What a dumbass,’ The boy smirked as he dipped his hand into the bag, keeping pace with the man to avoid jerking the bag and alerting the man, ‘Who keeps their bag open like this. He’s just asking to be picked.”
Rumaging around a bit, Lio felt his hand brush over a thin fabric filled with what could potentially be coins. He grasped it and began lifting it out of the bag, making sure to keep an eye on the man as well as his surroundings. His hand was almost out when he tripped on the uneven ground, his shoes too big to catch himself before he could bump into his target.
“Hey!” The man exclaimed as he quickly turned, only to see Lio with his hand in his bag. Lio, figuring that he was already caught, tried to yank the man’s bag from him. The man, however, was not giving his bag up without a fight and kept a firm grasp on the strap, pulling it back towards him. Lio gave it his all. However, he was a scrawny teenager, and this was a full-grown man. When the man made to reach for one of his wrists, Lio knew it was time to call it quits.
Letting go of the bag, Lio pushed back into the dwindling crowds of people, cursing himself internally. If what he had grabbed was a bag of coins, that would surely have secured him food for at least a few days. He was once again glad that Luskan was the type of place where no one batted an eye at crime happening, unless it was happening to them. He really only needed to worry about being caught by guards that stood at certain corners, but he knew to avoid those areas.
Once he deemed himself far enough from where the altercation took place, Lio slowed down to a stop, catching his breath. Looking around, the boy began walking in a seemingly random direction, hands in his tattered pockets and head down. After ensuring no one was paying him much, if any, attention, he crept toward a house that had a clothing line hanging between two of the first-floor windows. Tugging a sheet and a shirt or two down, Lio quickly rounded the corner, making his way into an alley.
Once in the dark of the alley, Lio allowed himself to breathe, though he kept his guard up. He made his way through the winding alleys until he reached his destination. A shabby little nook covered by old sheets that was up against a grate and covered by the shadows. This was where he stored most of his supplies and food, stolen and otherwise. This alley was close to the taverns where travelers frequented, which means that there were more guards sniffing around. Because of that, there were slightly less obvious crimes and theft happening. That was why Lio chose this alley to hide his things— but it seems his plan was not working as well as he would have liked.
Because there, rifling through Lio’s nook, was a large man.
"Fuck-” Lio began as he stormed toward the other thief, “Hey, that’s my shit!”
The man stood, rotating to face the boy and towering over his short frame. Lio was not cowed, however.
“Get out of my alleyway before I fuck you up!” Lio gritted out, standing as tall and confidently as he could. If there was one thing being on the streets had taught him was that you could not show weakness. It would get you killed.
The bastard had the audacity to snort at Lio’s threat, his thin lips pulling up into a smirk, “Your alleyway? You can’t own an alley, brat. And haven’t you heard? Sharin’ is carin’. Didn’ your mommy teach you manners?”
Lio balled his fists at the comment. The man chuckled at that, bending back down and lifting the dirty sheet covering Lio’s stash.
He picked up a piece of fruit along with a pack filled with different supplies, “You don’ mind if I take a few things, right? Finders keepers an’ all that. You don’ need all this anyway.”
Having had enough and not wanting him to run off with his hard-earned resources, Lio ran up to the man who was in the process of standing, pushing him over and kicking at him, “I told you to fuck off! That’s my stash and I’m not sharing! Go find your own, you orc!”
He went to kick the downed man again, but as he swung his leg, it was grabbed by a thick hand. Lio yelped in pain as his leg was jerked from underneath him, hitting the ground hard. He scrambled to his feet as the man stood. Lio went to backup, but he was harshly grabbed by the front of his shirt.
“Let me go, asshole,” Lio tried to pry the hands off of his shirt. A fist to the stomach caused him to crumple to the ground with a breathless heave. Curled on the ground, Lio let out a strangled yelp when a boot kicked him in the back.
“You fuckin’ brat,” Another kick, “I was tryin’ to be nice an’ all, but you just had to be ungrateful!”
After another kick, Lio lay there limp, his breathing ragged. The man must have thought the boy had had enough since Lio heard his footsteps move away from him. With more than a little effort, Lio stood to his feet, reaching into a pocket in his trousers. He pulled out his dagger, an old and worn thing that had gotten him out of quite a few situations.
With a yell, Lio charged at the man, dagger brandished high to the side. The only thought going through his mind at that moment was that this bastard needed to die.
With how fast Lio was moving —despite his injuries— the man would not be able to dodge. Lio would have gutted to man, but before his dagger could sink into flesh, the hand that was holding it was caught and brought to a swift halt.
Enraged and a bit concerned—was this newcomer with the other thief?— Lio whipped around. Standing there was another man, this one taller than the one Lio had been fighting. If it came to blows, Lio knew that he would not stand a chance.
“Let go of me!” He yelled for the second time that day. Lio pulled against the grip on his wrist, but it did not even budge. Finally, looking at the new guy’s face, Lio was surprised to find that he was not even looking at him. The guy’s severe gaze was set on the man behind Lio.
“Gentlemen,” The newcomer started, his voice deep and even, laden with authority. Lio briefly feared that the man was a Guard, but shook off the thought. He was not dressed like a Guard, and in fact, did not even seem to be from around here. “What seems to be the problem here?”
Lio went to open his mouth, but was cut off by the slightly smaller man, “This little shit was stealin’ my things!”
Lio gaped, ‘That fucking-’
“He’s lying!” He screeched, jerking toward the bastard that was attempting to look innocent and failing, the grip on his arm not allowing him to get far, “He was stealing my shit! I told him to get out of my alley, but he just started taking stuff.”
The tall man took the dagger out of Lio’s hand. Lio reached out with his other hand to stop him, but the man did not bat an eye and simply put it away, who knows where.
The brown eyes briefly slid down to Lio’s dark blue before moving back to the thief in front of them and hardened, “I do not think this kid would be foolish enough to steal from someone of your stature. Tell me, if I look through this stash, would the items be yours or would they be stolen goods? I am in touch with some of the guards here. So answer wiCely.”
Both Lio and the shorter man gave the newcomer another look over. Though the man was not in guard garb, he had the air of someone who was used to giving and taking orders. His face was stony, and they could not detect any deceit in his words.
The older thief began to backtrack, “Well, uh- I didn’ take anything, I just found all of it layin’ there. I couldn’ just leave it, right?”
The smarmy, hesitant smile on the man's face fell at the harsh stare he was receiving.
“If you simply found these things, then you would not mind if I alert the guard around the corner about these lost items? They would be best suited to handle such things. Don’t you agree?”
The other man blanched, eyes flashing toward the entrance of the alleyway. He took a step back and looked at Lio, who was still trapped in the grasp of the tall man. Guard?
“I was lying, ok? All this stuff is the brats! He stole it, not me!”
With that, he took a few more steps back before turning around and running further into the alley. The remaining two watched as he turned a corner into another alleyway out of their line of sight.
Lio felt himself relax for a brief moment before he tensed again. He slowly faced the stranger, who was already looking at him, expression unreadable.
“Look, no one needed the stuff I took. I’m going to get way more use out of it than they would!” Lio was scrambling for something to say to get this potential guard off his case. ‘So much for an easy day’
The man shook his head, letting out a sort of chuckled sigh, “You still stole, kid, whether or not the items were of use to the owners does not matter.”
Lio’s wrist was released, and he quickly snatched it to his chest, rubbing it as he glared at the man. He went to stomp past him, but ended up hunching over, grasping his side with a hiss as his torso began throbbing. He supposed that the adrenaline was beginning to wear off and the pain of the earlier assault was setting in.
“Gather your things,” Lio heard the stranger say behind him, “My friend can heal your wounds.”
A strange man offering Lio —who he knows stole a whole stash of things— to follow him after threatening to get that other thief arrested for stealing? No thank you.
He grunted, “Yeah, no. I’m fine, I do not need your friend to heal me, or whatever.”
Footsteps resounded in the alleyway, and Lio, still hunched, watched as fairly well-crafted boots walked before him.
“Boy, when I turned that corner, I saw you curled up on the ground. Do not lie to me. You can hardly stand. You are injured and need to be healed. In fact, let’s get you healed up and then make our way back to collect your things. I doubt that man will come back this way tonight.”
“I said I don’t-”
“And I said that you need to be healed. That was not up for discussion, boy. Now, do you need me to carry you, or do you want to walk on your own two feet?”
“I can walk,” Lio grumbled, limping forward. The man shook his head before beginning to lead Lio out of the alleyway.
It was not before too long before the two reached one of the better inns on the side of the city. The Rat Tail Inn, named due to its proximity to Rat Alley, was meant to be a way to gain wealth in the slums. It would have succeeded if selfish money money-hungry folk were not the ones who ran it. They kept all the money to themselves and were even bribing guards to keep certain types of people away from direct sight of the inn. Of course, this did not work, but the message was clear.
Lio trailed behind the stranger as he entered Rat Tail Inn, ignoring the look he received from the barkeep as they walked up the stairs to the far left of the tavern.
The man leads Lio to one of the doors and opens it. As he does, the chatter that could be heard in the room silences, three pairs of eyes on Lio as he walks in, followed by the man.
An elf with blonde hair pulled into a high ponytail tilted her head at the man with a look, “Arius?”
The man, Arius, put a hand on Lio’s shoulder, which Lio promptly shrugged off. “Found him in an altercation with a man nearly my height. He’s injured. I brought him here to be healed, then he’ll be on his way.”
The elf, who, upon further inspection, seems to be a half-elf, nods before looking at another man in the room. The man —boy? He did not seem to be all that much older than Lio— rolled his grey eyes with a groan.
“Why should I? Take him to an actual healer or something. We stopped here to rest, and for me, that means no spells! We leave tomorrow. What if we run into trouble, and I need to heal one of you? What if healing this kid takes all my energy, and I can’t cast any spells at all? I never agreed to heal anyone outside of the party. I don’t even want to heal you all half of the time!”
Lio watched the rest of those in the room pass exasperated and mildly amused glances between each other. He figured this must not have been the first time they were hearing this rant.
A Halfling with copper brown hair and rosy cheeks spoke up from where she was resting against one of the two beds in the room, “And we are all very grateful for you doing it despite that! But the boy looks like he’s about to tip over any minute now.”
Arius lightly pushed Lio further into the room, “I would appreciate it if you heal him just this once. I would not ask if I thought you could not do it, and if I did not think it was wise. However, if you really do not wish to heal him, I am sure I can find a suitable healer somewhere.”
The black haired boy stared at Arius, almost glaring. He then lowered his gaze to Lio, who matched his expression, not appreciating the hard look. Unfortunately, he could not keep up his tough facade when his ribs gave a painful throb, causing him to wince.
“Fu- Fine! I’ll heal him”, Throwing up his hands, the young man walked towards the boy while pointing at the others in the room, ”but you all had better not get hurt for a good and long while!”
Lio flinched back when the older boy reached his hand out, placing it on his arm. He went to wrench it away, but the man stopped him. Lio watched as he closed his eyes and whispered something that sounded almost like a prayer. As he did, bright green swirls so light they were nearly yellow burst out from his hand. Lio watched mesmerized as the swirls of light climbed like moss growing on a tree, over the areas of his body that were in pain.
The swirls seemed to almost sink into him with one final burst of light. At the same time, Lio felt a cool sensation settle in his wounds. As the lights faded, so did his pain. Soon, the room returned to its normal hue, and the hand on his arm pulled back as though on fire.
“There, happy now?” Lio ignored the young man, instead blinking and shaking his head to clear the dazed feeling.
“Thank you, Dally,” Arius said with a warm voice that caused Lio to scrunch his nose as he got his bearings. The other man —Dally?— shrugged and went back to sitting at the single table in the room, shuffling a deck of cards.
Lio turned to Arius, “Ok, I’m healed, can I go now?”
The man shifted his eyes to the window, taking note of the darkness that had settled over the city. He turned back to the boy with an apologetic but firm expression, “I think it would be best if you stayed the night. It is dark out, and in a place like this, being out at this time can bring nothing but trouble.”
“What?! You said that once I was healed, you would take me back to my alley. You can’t just change your mind now! I need to go move my stash before someone steals it!” Lio knew he should not have gone with the man. There was no way he was going to stay here. He did not just need to move his stash. That was one of the last things he was worried about, actually. He had somewhere else important to be!
The Half-Elf chimed in before Arius could, “Why don’t we go get your things and bring them back here? That way, you can stay here and rest without worrying about anyone taking your stash. Does that sound like a deal?”
Lio wanted to argue, to make them understand that he could not stay here, but instead he nodded, “Whatever, no matter what I say, you’re going to make me stay anyway.”
The Halfling laughed, the sound brash but not unkind, “Well, at least you’re aware!”
Lio grunted, scowling at the ground as the adults around him began preparing to leave the room. Shoes and outerwear were pulled on, and Lio peeked through his fringe at the weapons that were being placed on their persons. He wondered how much they could be sold for. They looked to be in good enough condition to bring him a fairly decent amount of gold.
Once finished, the four older people in the room started towards the door. They were about to exit when Arius stopped and turned to Dally.
“Actually, Dall, I’m going to have you stay and keep an eye on the kid. We should not be gone for too long, and I do not expect us to be outright ambushed in this part of the city.”
Dally’s grey eyes widened in outrage, “You’re making me babysit?! He’s a baby, but he’s not a baby!”
At the same time, Lio also raised his own arguments, “I don’t need to be looked after! I can be left by myself, I’m not a kid!”
Lio and Dally’s voices overlapped as they shouted their complaints at the order. Dally not wanting to be stuck with some random brat, and Lio not wanting to be babysat. He did not mention it, of course, but Lio also did not want his plans to be foiled by this arrangement.
Arius held up a hand, “Dalladus, you are staying here and watching the kid. Consider it the rest you were speaking of earlier. You say healing spells take a lot out of you, so take this time to recuperate.”
He then looked at Lio, “Our party usually sticks together in pairs if splitting up, so I feel more comfortable with this. I refuse to just leave you here alone. So either you remain here with Dall, and we go get your things, or we do not go and get your things, and you still remain here. Which would you like to happen?”
Lio scowled. Those choices were not fair in the slightest, but still, he muttered out, “For you to get my things…”
“Okay then,” The man nodded before leveling Dalladus with a look that asked if he had any more complaints. The dark haired boy gave no response, going to sit on one of the beds with a sullen expression. His answer was clear, however, and with that, the rest of the party left the room.
Lio and Dalladus said nothing, staring at each other with silent dares to say something. Neither did. They opted to ignore each other for the duration of their time together.
For the next few minutes, Dalladus sat on the bed closest to the wall, whisps of magic that Lio refused to be impressed by, swirling around him from time to time. Eventually, the older boy got up to grab his deck of cards before going to sit back on the bed once again facing away from Lio.
Lio waited a few more minutes, watching the other closely, before he slowly and quietly moved toward the door. Dalladus was not paying him any mind, and Lio opened the door before slipping out and down the stairs. No one in the tavern even glanced at him, save for the barkeep, who once again shot him a look that suggested exactly how he felt about a scrawny, dirty boy being in his tavern. Lio ignored him, however, and made his way out of the inn.
The Rat Tail Inn was not too far from where he was headed, and he took off in that direction.
Lio disliked the fact that he would have to leave his hard-earned supplies, but this was more important. He would just have to put more effort into gathering food and materials in the next few days.
The boy turned a corner and stumbled back as he almost ran into another person who was rounding the corner at the same time.
‘What the hell, who the hell is out at this time?” He thought, annoyed. He then mentally shook his head. It did not matter. Lio did not have time to waste on ripping this stranger a new one for almost ramming into him. He went to move around them, but an outstretched arm halted him.
“Kid? What are you doing out here? You’re supposed to be in the inn.” The voice was familiar, Lio turned to it, and, yep, it was Arius and his little crew. He should have known that he would not get away that easily. Nothing that day had gone his way, so why would this be any different?
Lio backed up, fully intending to run in the opposite direction, but before he could, the Half-Elf made her way behind him, effectively blocking him from both directions.
The older man frowned at Lio, his voice and gaze stern in a way that made it hard for Lio to maintain eye contact, “You were told to stay in the inn with Dalladus. I thought we came to an understanding, was I mistaken in thinking so?”
There was a pause where Lio supposed he was meant to respond, but instead of doing so, he sucked his teeth and looked to the side, glaring a hole into the cobblestone walls. That is, until a large and firm, yet gentle, hand took Lio’s chin and turned it to face him.
“I asked a question, boy, did we not come to an understanding that you were to stay at the inn, or did I just imagine that?”
Trying without success to move his head from the grip, Lio reluctantly answered, “We did…”
“So then what are you doing out here?”
Lio shrugged, his eyes flicking to the side once more. Arius sighed, observing the boy before dropping his hand and turning the boy by his shoulder, silently leading him and the rest of the party back to the inn.
Lio felt as though he were being led to the gallows as the door to the room was pushed open. He watched with distant vindictive amusement as Dalladus jumped to his feet at the noise, seeing him pale as he caught Arius’s disappointed eyes.
The boy was pushed to sit at the table, noting with relief, his stash being placed in the corner of the room. He turned back to the argument occurring in front of him.
“-Told you to watch him. So why was he out gallivanting by himself?”
The higher-pitched voice of Dalladus rose to defend himself, “What? Am I supposed to have my eye on him every second? I turned away for one moment, and he ran. How is that my fault?”
“And in any case, you guys were going to get his things, and one would think he would stay put until he has them. So I had no reason to think that he’d run!” The older boy sneered in Lio’s direction, “He probably stole something! That’s why he’s trying so hard to leave. You might want to check his pockets.”
Lio bristled. What the fuck was this guy’s problem? No way he seriously thinks Lio stole their things!
“I didn’t steal anything!” Lio yells, “You know I didn’t! You’re just mad that you’re in trouble for not watching me!”
Dalladus made an offended face, “I am not “in trouble”, and no, I do not know that you didn’t steal anything, you could have while my back was turned. You are a little thief. Why is it surprising that I would think you did what you probably do best?”
“You fucking-” Lio started for the older boy. The Halfling stepped in front of him, putting a hand up with a raised eyebrow.
“Alright, you two, enough. No need to fight, what’s done is done, no need to resort to petty insults. Or fists.” She stared the two boys down respectively.
Arius regarded the dark-haired boy sharply, “That is enough out of you, Dalladus, and yes, you are in trouble, and you will be in further trouble if you keep going. There is no—”
Lio, admittedly, tuned out the rest of the lecture. He looked out the window and at the dark streets, only lit by the dim oil lights carried by the guards patrolling the area. He needed to leave.
He walked up to Arius, interrupting him, “I need to go! I can’t stay here, I have to be somewhere!”
The man was about to argue, but was stopped by either Lio’s pleading face or desperate tone.
The Half-Elf, who had been sitting on the bed during the multiple disputes, stood and walked over to Lio. “Where is it that you need to go?”
Her tone was questioning but not demanding, as though her question was a suggestion that he did not have to heed. Something about it made him want to answer.
“I-I just need to go pick something up. It’s really important to me. You…you can keep my stash if you want, but I really need to go!”
As he spoke, Lio inched closer and closer to the door. The Half-Elf nodded at him as though she understood, “Would you mind if we come with you to get whatever it is?"
At the upcoming disagreement, the woman continued, “We won’t make you stay behind this time, but I am also not going to allow you to go out there alone. I have visited Luskan before, and I am aware of how unforgiving the night can be here. Please allow us to accompany you.”
Lio wanted to refuse, to turn tail and run out the door right that moment, but he knew that they would catch him and that it would be a whole situation. He did not have time for a situation. He needed to reach the location before someone else could. Someone like that man from earlier. The thought alone sent a shiver through his body. Lio sighed harshly, “Fine, you can come, but we need to go now!“
The woman nodded at him and then at her friends. The party, including Dalladus, once again prepared to leave the inn.
Leaving the inn for the second time that day, Lio led the party down the streets of Luskan. Where he was headed was not too far away and was only a block or so away. He beckoned them to quickly follow him behind a tavern that was lit and filled with patrons, the sound of the music and voices bleeding into the silence of the night.
Hurrying behind the building and into the connecting alleyway, Lio looked around worriedly, his heart racing. He hoped no one else had gotten here before him. Eventually, though, Lio found what he was looking for, or rather, who. Behind a large, abandoned crate was a little girl. She pushed herself back into her hiding space as the feet grew closer, but as Lio leaned into her line of sight, her big pink eyes widened even further.
“Lio!” She exclaimed, throwing herself into his waiting arms.
Lio closed his arms around her in a tight hug. He could not describe the relief that he felt. He felt her bury her face into his shoulder, and he did the same, laying his head on hers.
“Ivellios, you were gone for way too long this time!” Her voice wavered a bit as she attempted to scold him, and Lio could tell she was holding back tears, “I thought you’d gotten caught by some guards, or killed! Next time I’m coming with you!”
“You’re too much of a baby to come with me. You can’t steal right for shit, either. You would get us caught by a guard or something,” Lio said, even as he gently pried her from him to check her for signs of injury.
The girl shook her head violently, sending her waist-length braids flying, “No, I would not! I can steal just fine, I just…don’t like to. But I can start, if it means that I can stick with you instead of hiding behind this smelly tavern.”
Lio laughed as she scrunched up her nose, “Lysi, I’m faster than you. If you were with me and we had to run, a guard, or rival, or whoever would get you and me because I would have to stop to help you. It’s safer for us both if you just hide while I go alone. And anyway, the faster I collect our supplies, the faster we can leave.”
Lysi was about to answer him, but paused, looking over Lio’s shoulder. She gasped as she saw the group of people standing some ways off behind the boy. Lio had forgotten about them if he was being honest.
“Don’t worry about them. They’re not going to hurt you, they just…brought me here.”
The girl still looked a bit fearful, but curiosity was warring with the other emotion, “So they… helped you?”
Lio frowned, “I mean, I wouldn’t say that…”
Lysi brightened, “So they did help you!”
Lio did not have time to stop the girl before she was up on her feet and heading toward the party.
“Hi, I’m Lysilian! Thank you for helping my brother!”