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Some time after Chase had fallen asleep she awoke, her eyes glowing more intense with the darkness of the night. Slowly she sat up and yawned while slightly shaking her head, then glanced behind her to find Chey was not in bed, and figured she was probably still out.

Standing Chase grabbed her stuff before heading out of the room. She wasn’t really concerned at where Chey could be at the moment as she wandered out to the hallway and past Kali’s and Risa’s room. She could tell it was quite late at night the moment she stepped out of the back door of the inn and looked up at the moon which laid high in the sky as the light from it blanketed the town. This was a favorable time of Chase’s as she slipped into the cover of the darkness and headed just to the outside of the town to a more wooded area.

Risa balanced carefully on one foot still juggling and keeping the umbrella balance and smiled hearing the gasps of awe from the small crowd below. she lifted her leg up and began to juggle underneath it and around it then lifted the umbrella from her head catching all the balls in one hand. she wasn’t done yet thou and she placed the umbrella down and the balls back in her pocket then pulled out three daggers covering them in a container of liquid which she uncorked then set them alight grazing them against the stone wall and began to juggle them.

it was like a deadly ring of fire and risa concentrated carefully walking across the line and leaping a few times as she spun around still smiling. it was always a thrill but to have such an appreciative audience was knives. then as she pushed down on the line throwing the daggers high up in the sky and spinning around and upside down with her arms carefully tucked by her chest. the gasp of shock she heard was great.

landing back down on the lie she crouched holding out her hands and lifting her head up she caught two daggers by the handles as they fell and one by the blade in her teeth still on fire. she lifted it out and bowed smiling to the crowd and heard there cheers.

Risa smiled raising her head as she stood straight balancing carefully on the wire. it felt good to be appreciated for her art. she stared down still smiling then noticed chey staring up at her she flicked the flames of the knifes and fell back keeping her feet firmly tucked around the line as her clothes and hair blew in front of her. as she turned upside down risa bent her knees and grabbed a hold of the wire with her hands, twisting her body around. she let herself drop to the ground but kicked of a wall to slow her decent as she landed on her feet.

the crowd smiled and cheered then moved off as risa picked up a few gil they had dropped for her. as she did so she spoke to chey.

"thought id just get some money for the road, seeing as we spent most of ours."

she didn’t look at chey when she said this trying to pretend she hadn’t enjoyed making the money.

Risa kept picking coins from the ground and as she heard the words from chey she suddenly stopped in her tracks while lifting a coin from the ground. she held there for a moment as if trying to let the moment pass then spoke out.

"yes, i know squirm. "

risa sat up holding the coin within the grip of her fingers examining it a little.

"i knew him from a young age, before he could even speak. when i first met him caged like an animal i knew no animal should be treated like that and i set him free. but as i soon learnt he was no ordinary beast."

she stood to her feet still looking away.

"his ways were very savage and there were many a time he got us into trouble, but before i had met him i felt alone."

"we had a lot of fun travelling together, entertaining and getting into mischief." She smiled thinking back "....maybe it was my mistake for what happened that day, maybe if id taught him a bit better and hadn’t been so close to him. i don’t know if i can forgive him for not helping me when those people took me or if ill ever see him the same way again. i just hope his learnt from his past mistakes and doesn’t cause pain for you. i did love him like a brother......"

risa grasped the locket around her neck tightly.

Suddenly someone had reached out and grabbed Kali by the shoulder as she passed by. The person pulled her into the shadows of the trees, yet strangely enough the grip the person had on Kali’s shoulder indicated that she was in no danger.

“Where’s Chey and Risa? We need to get out of here now.” Chase quickly Kali her voice sounded demanding yet in a way alarming as if their lives depended on it. And at a closer look, even as she stood in the shadows, anyone could tell her clothes were ripped and ragged. She looked exhausted with fresh cuts and bruises on her skin while blood dripped from her mouth.

Looking out at the street as she let go of Kali's shoulder Chase only glanced down at her, "Yeah, well you can beat him to a pulp if you find him before he finds us. I was lucky enough to get away, after him and his slimy henchmen jumped me while I was out last night." After that was said she turned and began to walk away as a few drops of blood dripped off of her fingers, "Come on. If he can't find me he'll come looking for you or the others, that's why we need to get out of here."

As Kali ran off Chase back up to the wall of the alleyway and leaned against it. She refused to let her legs give out, she knew it would only make it harder for her body to move if she sat down now. She stared down at the ground and in only a few moments she heard the familiar flapping sound of the crow as it flew down and landed on her shoulder. It cried out once as she raised her arm and stoke the crow's chest with the back of her fingers as she replied, "No, I'm not down for the count, yet."