Maya
The man walked closer to her position, slowly and completely unaware of her presence. He still hadn't spotted her, albeit it was onl… morey a matter of time until he would. Maya knew, trying to hide deeper in the bushes was no option, as the danger of being spotted by Rodrik and Bear was too high. Still, it took her a lot of courage to give Irving a nod. What if he would miss? Oh, dear gods, she put her life in the hands of the most useless person she ever encountered!
Irving's arrow hit the man at the right temple, digging deep into his skull and killing him immediately. He didn't even had time to scream, albeit his body made a muffled sound as he fell to the ground, causing Rodrik to listen up.
“What was that?”, he growled. Bear chuckled slightly as he turned his head towards the bushes. Maya could see the thirst for blood in his dark eyes and for a moment she feared that he would see her. “I told you I have a man out there”, he ans… [view original content]
Maya
The man walked closer to her position, slowly and completely unaware of her presence. He still hadn't spotted her, albeit it was onl… morey a matter of time until he would. Maya knew, trying to hide deeper in the bushes was no option, as the danger of being spotted by Rodrik and Bear was too high. Still, it took her a lot of courage to give Irving a nod. What if he would miss? Oh, dear gods, she put her life in the hands of the most useless person she ever encountered!
Irving's arrow hit the man at the right temple, digging deep into his skull and killing him immediately. He didn't even had time to scream, albeit his body made a muffled sound as he fell to the ground, causing Rodrik to listen up.
“What was that?”, he growled. Bear chuckled slightly as he turned his head towards the bushes. Maya could see the thirst for blood in his dark eyes and for a moment she feared that he would see her. “I told you I have a man out there”, he ans… [view original content]
They are both alive and relatively safe for now and as with any other character it's possible that it will stay that way if you pick the right choices.
Maya
The man walked closer to her position, slowly and completely unaware of her presence. He still hadn't spotted her, albeit it was onl… morey a matter of time until he would. Maya knew, trying to hide deeper in the bushes was no option, as the danger of being spotted by Rodrik and Bear was too high. Still, it took her a lot of courage to give Irving a nod. What if he would miss? Oh, dear gods, she put her life in the hands of the most useless person she ever encountered!
Irving's arrow hit the man at the right temple, digging deep into his skull and killing him immediately. He didn't even had time to scream, albeit his body made a muffled sound as he fell to the ground, causing Rodrik to listen up.
“What was that?”, he growled. Bear chuckled slightly as he turned his head towards the bushes. Maya could see the thirst for blood in his dark eyes and for a moment she feared that he would see her. “I told you I have a man out there”, he ans… [view original content]
[Agree to leave Dimitri behind] Nah he's fine. Good to see rangers. More soldiers for Leonard to command when he returns.
[Disagree with Garen] Nah nah we all know what's gonna happen but we can pretend like it's not going to.
They are both alive and relatively safe for now and as with any other character it's possible that it will stay that way if you pick the right choices.
Maya
The man walked closer to her position, slowly and completely unaware of her presence. He still hadn't spotted her, albeit it was onl… morey a matter of time until he would. Maya knew, trying to hide deeper in the bushes was no option, as the danger of being spotted by Rodrik and Bear was too high. Still, it took her a lot of courage to give Irving a nod. What if he would miss? Oh, dear gods, she put her life in the hands of the most useless person she ever encountered!
Irving's arrow hit the man at the right temple, digging deep into his skull and killing him immediately. He didn't even had time to scream, albeit his body made a muffled sound as he fell to the ground, causing Rodrik to listen up.
“What was that?”, he growled. Bear chuckled slightly as he turned his head towards the bushes. Maya could see the thirst for blood in his dark eyes and for a moment she feared that he would see her. “I told you I have a man out there”, he ans… [view original content]
Maya
The man walked closer to her position, slowly and completely unaware of her presence. He still hadn't spotted her, albeit it was onl… morey a matter of time until he would. Maya knew, trying to hide deeper in the bushes was no option, as the danger of being spotted by Rodrik and Bear was too high. Still, it took her a lot of courage to give Irving a nod. What if he would miss? Oh, dear gods, she put her life in the hands of the most useless person she ever encountered!
Irving's arrow hit the man at the right temple, digging deep into his skull and killing him immediately. He didn't even had time to scream, albeit his body made a muffled sound as he fell to the ground, causing Rodrik to listen up.
“What was that?”, he growled. Bear chuckled slightly as he turned his head towards the bushes. Maya could see the thirst for blood in his dark eyes and for a moment she feared that he would see her. “I told you I have a man out there”, he ans… [view original content]
[Agree to leave Dimitri behind] Nah he's fine. Good to see rangers. More soldiers for Leonard to command when he returns.
[Disagree with Garen] Nah nah we all know what's gonna happen but we can pretend like it's not going to.
Maya
The man walked closer to her position, slowly and completely unaware of her presence. He still hadn't spotted her, albeit it was onl… morey a matter of time until he would. Maya knew, trying to hide deeper in the bushes was no option, as the danger of being spotted by Rodrik and Bear was too high. Still, it took her a lot of courage to give Irving a nod. What if he would miss? Oh, dear gods, she put her life in the hands of the most useless person she ever encountered!
Irving's arrow hit the man at the right temple, digging deep into his skull and killing him immediately. He didn't even had time to scream, albeit his body made a muffled sound as he fell to the ground, causing Rodrik to listen up.
“What was that?”, he growled. Bear chuckled slightly as he turned his head towards the bushes. Maya could see the thirst for blood in his dark eyes and for a moment she feared that he would see her. “I told you I have a man out there”, he ans… [view original content]
Maya
The man walked closer to her position, slowly and completely unaware of her presence. He still hadn't spotted her, albeit it was onl… morey a matter of time until he would. Maya knew, trying to hide deeper in the bushes was no option, as the danger of being spotted by Rodrik and Bear was too high. Still, it took her a lot of courage to give Irving a nod. What if he would miss? Oh, dear gods, she put her life in the hands of the most useless person she ever encountered!
Irving's arrow hit the man at the right temple, digging deep into his skull and killing him immediately. He didn't even had time to scream, albeit his body made a muffled sound as he fell to the ground, causing Rodrik to listen up.
“What was that?”, he growled. Bear chuckled slightly as he turned his head towards the bushes. Maya could see the thirst for blood in his dark eyes and for a moment she feared that he would see her. “I told you I have a man out there”, he ans… [view original content]
[Go back and try to find Dimitri] but after this line “Please, don't take me! I have nothing to do with that! Take her, leave me alone!” which turned out to be himself a pathetic coward, Maya should let him die, now we need to find and kill him(just joking) and [Stay silent], my brother.
Maya
The man walked closer to her position, slowly and completely unaware of her presence. He still hadn't spotted her, albeit it was onl… morey a matter of time until he would. Maya knew, trying to hide deeper in the bushes was no option, as the danger of being spotted by Rodrik and Bear was too high. Still, it took her a lot of courage to give Irving a nod. What if he would miss? Oh, dear gods, she put her life in the hands of the most useless person she ever encountered!
Irving's arrow hit the man at the right temple, digging deep into his skull and killing him immediately. He didn't even had time to scream, albeit his body made a muffled sound as he fell to the ground, causing Rodrik to listen up.
“What was that?”, he growled. Bear chuckled slightly as he turned his head towards the bushes. Maya could see the thirst for blood in his dark eyes and for a moment she feared that he would see her. “I told you I have a man out there”, he ans… [view original content]
Maya
The man walked closer to her position, slowly and completely unaware of her presence. He still hadn't spotted her, albeit it was onl… morey a matter of time until he would. Maya knew, trying to hide deeper in the bushes was no option, as the danger of being spotted by Rodrik and Bear was too high. Still, it took her a lot of courage to give Irving a nod. What if he would miss? Oh, dear gods, she put her life in the hands of the most useless person she ever encountered!
Irving's arrow hit the man at the right temple, digging deep into his skull and killing him immediately. He didn't even had time to scream, albeit his body made a muffled sound as he fell to the ground, causing Rodrik to listen up.
“What was that?”, he growled. Bear chuckled slightly as he turned his head towards the bushes. Maya could see the thirst for blood in his dark eyes and for a moment she feared that he would see her. “I told you I have a man out there”, he ans… [view original content]
Maya will leave the target audience for Hatoful Boyfriend behind
Drent will disagree with Garen
This also means that this was Maya's last part in this chapter. If the other choice would have won, there would have been another part soon, in which Maya would have attempted to find Dimitri in the forest, which would put her, Irving and Christian at risk. But well, as long as a man and his pigeon are together, nothing bad can happen to them! Surely not such nonsense like death or torture, right?
Since I was busy for most of the weekend, I only got to start writing the next part yesterday. It's going to be a Jaron part and I hope that I'll finish writing today, but if not expect it tomorrow at latest.
The Voting is closed!
Maya will leave the target audience for Hatoful Boyfriend behind
Drent will disagree with Garen
This also mea… morens that this was Maya's last part in this chapter. If the other choice would have won, there would have been another part soon, in which Maya would have attempted to find Dimitri in the forest, which would put her, Irving and Christian at risk. But well, as long as a man and his pigeon are together, nothing bad can happen to them! Surely not such nonsense like death or torture, right?
Since I was busy for most of the weekend, I only got to start writing the next part yesterday. It's going to be a Jaron part and I hope that I'll finish writing today, but if not expect it tomorrow at latest.
According to steam critics, it's the best pigeon dating simulator ever, as well as one of the few things I could imagine that are weirder than Dimitri himself. I assume he would have a lot of fun with it.
According to steam critics, it's the best pigeon dating simulator ever, as well as one of the few things I could imagine that are weirder than Dimitri himself. I assume he would have a lot of fun with it.
The Voting is closed!
Maya will leave the target audience for Hatoful Boyfriend behind
Drent will disagree with Garen
This also mea… morens that this was Maya's last part in this chapter. If the other choice would have won, there would have been another part soon, in which Maya would have attempted to find Dimitri in the forest, which would put her, Irving and Christian at risk. But well, as long as a man and his pigeon are together, nothing bad can happen to them! Surely not such nonsense like death or torture, right?
Since I was busy for most of the weekend, I only got to start writing the next part yesterday. It's going to be a Jaron part and I hope that I'll finish writing today, but if not expect it tomorrow at latest.
Sorry for the longer wait, but hey, it's a super long part again. I guess that should make up for the wait. Hope you enjoy!
Jaron
The morning sun was already brightly illuminating the room when Jaron woke up. It took him a short moment to orient himself. He wasn't in the small cabin aboard the Pale Princess, where he rested in over the course of the last week. No, this room was furnished like a nobleman's bedroom, or perhaps at least like a nobleman's guest room. He was at the Burned Man's house and judging from what he attempted to do today, this might be his last morning before he would meet the Seven.
The last evening passed quietly. He had resisted to beat Robb up and he was proud about it. A true hero wouldn't beat a defeated and defenceless man. He had shown mercy, albeit Robb was less than thankful. And he had met Ellena. Seeing her again still worried him more than anything. He was glad that Martin went with her to protect her from the things that lurked in the streets, but he was heavily displeased to see her as an errand girl for the Burned Man. She deserved better.
Harpy had tried to reassure him of course and now, after a good night of sleep he had to admit that she was good at talking. She had managed to calm him down, with soft and soothing words. And for every word she had said, Robb had grinned at him as if that was the funniest thing he had seen in ages. Judging from his default frown, this was probably true.
And Robb... as much as Jaron hated this man, he was pivotal for their plan. As Harpy had told him when she had shown him his room late last night, it didn't matter if Robb was on their side or not. He knew only half of their plan and even if he intended to betray them, he had no time to do it until it was too late for Butterfly to prevent anything. The way Harpy explained it to him made him believe her. Now in the morning, he realized that he just wanted to believe her. Or perhaps he just wanted to fight for something with a meaning for once. A just cause, no matter the people he had to ally himself with. Criminals, cutthroats, sellswords... what mattered was that the man they were up against was easily worse than all of them combined.
Jaron looked up as the door to his room was opened. He saw Martin entering the room, a worried look on his face. “Good morning”, he mumbled with a sullen voice. “Harpy is waiting in the main hall and Robb should be back soon. Are you ready to die?” Jaron shook his head. “Don't think so”, he answered. “Besides, what makes you so sure I'm going to die today?”
Martin shrugged and did not answer at first. Jaron raised from his bed, quickly putting on a shirt and his trousers. Just as he thought that Martin would stay silent, the mercenary began to speak again. “I'm not sure that you are going to die today, but it's entirely possible. You should be prepared for it”, he mumbled with a sullen voice.
“You disapprove of her plan?”, Jaron asked and Martin shook his head. “I disapprove of my role in it. Hiding like a coward, leaving her at the mercy of a man who could make the Stranger shiver” He pressed his lips together, avoiding to look at Jaron.
“You're not hiding like a coward and you know that”, Jaron insisted. A joyless smile flashed across Martin's face. “I've always told myself it would be no big deal for me to see her in danger, that I would hold no loyalty beyond the money towards anyone”, he answered and his bleak stare met Jaron's. “I should be with her when she faces this man. Instead she chose you” His voice sounded bitter for a moment and he seemed to notice it. A hint of regret found it's way into his eyes. “I don't mean to sound angry at you. It's just... I know you're going to fight like a dragon, but you are...”
“Wounded?”, Jaron asked, carefully moving his left arm. It felt a lot better today, but he doubted that he could hold a shield with his hand. Martin gave him a nod. “Aye”, he answered. “You are a good man, Jaron. But you are hardly in any condition to fight”
“Perhaps I don't need to”, Jaron stated. “If you do your part correctly, everything will be fine” Martin gave him a sad smile. “Perhaps”, he admitted. “Come one, don't let her wait” He turned around and Jaron followed him. For the first time since he met him, he noticed a crack in Martin's usually jovial smile. The mercenary was genuinely distraught over Harpy's plan.
Her plan... to call it daring or risky would be an understatement. Currently, Robb was arranging a meeting with Butterfly himself, a meeting between him, Jaron and Harpy. She had explained it at least a dozen times to him over the past evening and still, he did not like it any more. Jaron would pretend to work with Robb, to defect to Butterfly and his men. Harpy would play a scared prisoner, luring Butterfly into a trap. She had told Robb that she intended to kill Butterfly herself as soon as he would let his guard down. She hadn't told him that Himani would follow them, to find out where they would meet. She hadn't told him that Himani would inform Martin about their location, who would in turn lead a group of mercenaries to them, rushing in to save the day. It was more than risky and Jaron did not like it at all. But the alternative would have been to leave her alone and he couldn't do that.
They entered the main hall and Jaron saw Harpy looking out of a large window towards the small courtyard of the mansion. She looked even paler than usual, the cold autumn sunlight highlighting her dark hair. As she turned around, Jaron saw dark rings under her eyes, indicating that she found a lot less sleep than he did. A smile flashed across her face, but it failed to reach her eyes as she walked closer towards them. “Good morning, sleepyhead”, she said with a forced smirk. “Glad you decided to show up”
“Wouldn't miss the show, would I?”, Jaron answered, failing at sounding any less worried than she did. Despite this, Harpy's smirk turned into a full smile for a second, vanishing as quick as it came. “Robb should be back soon. We need to get you ready”, she explained, looking over her shoulder towards the window with an almost haunted look on her face.
She glanced at Martin and for a moment, the two simply looked at each other in silence. It was Martin who looked away first, staring at the floor without saying a word. “Where's the Burned Man?”, Jaron asked. For a moment, he saw something that seemed to be regret in her eyes. “He's sleeping”, she answered. “Sleeping?”, Jaron asked, raising an eyebrow.
Instead of answering, Harpy grabbed his healthy arm, gently pulling him out of the room. “Sleeping”, she insisted again as they walked down the hallway, passing the door that lead to the Burned Man's room. “I gave him undiluted milk of the poppy. He's going to be out cold for the next hours, or else he would stop me”
“He disapproves of your plan?”, Jaron asked in surprise. She gave him a nod and he saw the reluctance in her movement. “He's not ready to do what it takes to defeat Butterfly. He is not willing to put me in a situation where I could end this war, out of fear that he might loose me”
“Perhaps you shouldn't do it then”, Jaron insisted, immediately noticing the displeased look in her eyes. “You don't approve of this either?”, she asked and he shook his head. For a moment, Harpy looked hurt. “You don't need to approve of it”, she hissed. “You just need to help me”
She stopped in front of a large door and Jaron put a hand on her shoulder. He felt her tensing up under his touch, albeit she relaxed immediately “I will”, he promised and for the first time this morning he saw her genuinely smiling at him. “Thank you”, she mumbled.
She opened the door and Jaron saw that the room behind it was some sort of armoury, more like a collection of weapons and armour. Valuable westerosi long swords hanged on the wall, next to arakhs, ghiscari scimitars and braavosi foils. In the centre of the room stood an armour stand that immediately aroused Jaron's attention, holding the finest armour he had ever laid his eyes upon. It was a grey armour crafted in the elegant style wealthy noblemen from the Reach preferred, with subtle golden engravings that formed a pattern on the steel.
Harpy noticed his stare and smiled as she pulled him closer to the armour. “Sadly, a helmet is not included”, she said and chuckled as he gave her a surprised glance. “It's a gift! A knight needs protection, right? I tried to arrange for your old armour to be brought here, but sadly the condition it's in won't assure your safety”
“And... and you can just give this away?”, Jaron asked. Harpy looked from him to the armour and shrugged. “It's not like me or the Burned Man have any use for it either way. I doubt he would disapprove and I doubt I would care. It's a gift for a friend”
A short laughter found it's way out of her throat and she softly pushed him towards the armour. “Don't stand around like a donkey, put it on!”, she urged him and Jaron reluctantly complied. He still did not like her plan, but the thought of wearing this armour for battle filled him with pride. If there was one thing he was always lacking in his life as a hedge knight, it was a fine set of armour. And this seemed to be right out of the legends he used to worship when he was a child. He looked back at Harpy who gave him an affectionate smile. “Put it on!”, she urged him again. “You don't need help, do you?”
His mouth formed a slight smirk at her remark and he carefully started to put the armour on. Being limited to use his right arm handicapped him more than he wanted to admit and several times he had to use the left arm for support, letting out pained sighs as he put too much weight on his wounds more than once. Still, he had the opinion that he did well despite his wounds. Harpy seemed to see this differently, as he saw her watching him with a worried look on her face every time he made any noise.
The real problem came when he had to put on the parts of his armour where he couldn't use his right hand for. Putting on the right pauldron took him several minutes and tying the gauntlet down was something he wasn't even able to do without significantly stressing his wounded arm. He tried to pull the strings that were supposed to strap the gauntlet to his right forearm, only to let out a moan as hot pain flashed through his left arm, causing him to stagger backwards.
Harpy darted towards him, grabbing his shoulders and preventing him from going down on his knees. Her dark brown eyes looked at him with a worried expression in them and she gently grabbed his right arm with both of her hands. “May I?”, she asked softly. He gave her a short nod, trying not to show his pain in front of her, as she started to tie the glove with quick and experienced movements. “You know how to do this, right?”, he asked.
A pained expression flashed over her face and Jaron already regretted that he had asked her. She gave him a short nod. “Haven't done it in a long time”, she mumbled and closed her eyes. “But I grew up helping men into their armour. There are things you don't forget” The short melancholic expression on her face went away as she looked back at him. “By the gods, take a look at you”, she exclaimed with a bright smile. “Oh, one more thing!” With these words, she quickly ran to the wall, taking an elegant longsword from it, before triumphantly returning to him. The sword was long, with a straight blade forged out of bright steel. For a short moment, Jaron thought it would be Valyrian steel, but this foolish thought vanished quickly. Still, it was a remarkable blade, fitting for someone who wore an armour like that. “Now you look like a true knight!”, Harpy exclaimed as she was helping him girding the blade.
“You're implying I'm not a true knight already?”, Jaron asked with a smirk, watching how the smile on her face vanished. “That was not what I...”, she started to justify herself, before noticing the smirk on his face. “Oh, you...”, she hissed, giving him a playful punch on the upper right arm. “You are a true knight and a real bastard, you know that?”
“Well, it's kinda in my name”, Jaron answered and both of them burst into laughter. “No, no seriously”, Harpy gasped as she tried to regain her breath. “It's sad that we don't have a mirror in this room, you really need to take a look at yourself. Clothes make people indeed” Before he could comment on that, she cut him off. “You know what I mean”, she hissed. “You look great in that armour. Butterfly is going to piss himself when he sees you”
Jaron slightly grinned as he heard this. “You can stop flattering me now. I'm really not that impressive”, he said, noticing that his cheeks got warm, probably red. “That's not entirely true and you know that”, Harpy answered softly. She looked up, right in his eyes and for a moment it appeared as if she would slide closer towards him, still having one of her hands rested on his right gauntlet. The moment was gone too soon, as she burst into laughter again, taking a step away from him. “You should look at you now, Jaron”, she giggled. “You are really not that impressive when you're all red like that. You should have called yourself 'Ser Jaron the Red'” This caused both of them to chuckle, albeit Jaron had to clench his teeth in anger at the same time.
She turned away from him, much to his disappointment, walking closer towards the door. “I assume Robb is back by now. Come on, I really don't want to leave Martin alone with him for too long”, she urged him. Jaron let out a frustrated groan and she let out a short laugh again. To his content, her smile seemed to be far less forced now. Still, there was one more thing he had to talk about...
“Harpy”, he said, causing her to turn around immediately taking a step towards him again. “Yes?”, she asked toneless. Jaron pressed his lips together for a moment. No, not now. That would be terrible timing. “Is anything wrong?”, she asked again. “Are you sure about your plan?”, he asked and noticed that she let out a sigh. “I am”, she stated. “I know it's risky, for you, for me, perhaps even for this drunken pig Robb. But I am willing to take that risk if it means that I never have to look at a tiny mutilated corpse again, knowing fully well that I am to blame”
Jaron noticed the tears in her eyes and put his good hand on his shoulder, pulling her into a soft hug. For a second, she rested her head on his shoulder, slightly shivering as if she was about to weep. “You are not to blame for what Butterfly does, I hope you know that”, he tried to console her. She pulled away from his hug, holding him at arms length while looking him sternly in the eyes. “You have no idea what I'm to blame for”, she hissed. “True, I never harm a single one of Butterfly's victims. In fact I knew most of them personally, I cared for all of them in some way. While some might see it as morally wrong what me and the Burned Man do, I also see the good in our works” She paused for a moment. “But that doesn't mean that I don't send them out on the streets every fucking day, that doesn't mean I don't put a huge target on them. I know exactly that Butterfly makes no difference between children and adults when it comes to the treatment he gives them”
Her face got a distraught, almost disgusted expression as she continued “Still, I smile at them every time they get ready to go out there. I give them a kind word and embolster them, promise them a hot meal when they return. I hug them when they leave, knowing fully well that it might be the last time I see them. And only the most intelligent of them come to the same conclusion”
She turned around, away from Jaron and he saw that she was writhing, her hands shaking. “Me and the Burned Man, we are as much at fault for this situation as Butterfly. And I'm not willing to take this any longer. I have tried to convince the Burned Man to change so many times, but he is the most stubborn and determined man I've ever met. He won't stop”, she mumbled and looked over her shoulder. Jaron saw that she was crying. “So he leaves it to me to stop Butterfly. And I can't do this without help. You. Martin. Even Robb”
There were many things Jaron wanted to tell her in this moment, but before he could say anything, the door to the armoury was opened again, revealing Martin standing in the doorway. The mercenary looked surprised, from him to Harpy, his face showing a mixture of worry and amazement. “Are you crying?”, he asked and Harpy shook her head. “It's nothing”, she answered. “I'm fine, just... anxious”
Martin gave her an understanding nod, looking at Jaron, looking at him from head to toe. “May the gods have mercy, I believe we have a real knight among us”, he said with a sly grin. “Jaron, you bastard, you look great!”
“Butterfly is going to piss himself, that's what I said”, Harpy answered, wiping her tears away. Martin chuckled as he heard this. “I doubt it, but it's a nice image in my head”, he said and his smile faded. “Robb arrived and he's impatient. Apparently you're having a meeting with one of Butterfly's men very soon”
Harpy let out a sigh. “Better get ready then... he caused me nightmares for the past four years. Time to face them” Holding her head high, she started to walk out of the room, Martin and Jaron following closely and in silence.
They arrived at the main hall shortly afterwards. Robb was already there, walking in a small circle, his face showing impatience. “Look who finally decided to show up. Good morning, Ser Bastard”, he snarled and Jaron shot him an angry glare. “We got a meeting with Butterfly's men in half an hour. And we shouldn't be late”
Slightly less angry, he looked at Harpy. “You're sure about that?”, he asked. Harpy gave him a nod and Robb let out a sigh. “If we fail, death is the best thing that can happen to you”, he warned her. “I know”, Harpy answered with an angry tone in her voice. “Do me a favour and shut up. I can't stand your insults today”
Robb did her the favour and stayed silent, albeit Jaron saw an irritated look on his face. Harpy did not seem to mind, as she turned around towards Martin. The mercenary opened his arms widely and she jumped at him, tightly hugging him. Jaron saw Martin's distraught facial expression as he was gently holding her.
“Stay safe”, he mumbled. “Or else...” His voice cracked. “Honestly, I don't know what I'm going to do” A sad smile flashed across his face as she leant upwards to give him a kiss on the cheek. “I will, my friend”, she said and sounded as if she tried to convince herself. “Nothing bad can ever happen, as long as I got a true knight with me”
“About that...”, Martin mumbled, glaring at Jaron. “I like you a lot, Jaron. But if you fail to protect her...” He was cut off by Harpy putting a hand on his upper arm. “He won't”, she reassured him, looking at Jaron. He saw trust in her eyes. “He won't”, she repeated.
“Touching”, Robb growled. “But the men we are going to meet won't wait for us. We got one chance, so don't fuck this up” Harpy gave him a nod and for a moment her face dropped. “It's going to end today...”, she mumbled. “It's finally going to end today, one way or the other”
Jaron, Harpy and Robb stepped out of the building, leaving Martin behind. Jaron looked over his shoulder, back at the mercenary, noticing the grim expression on the man's face. He felt anxious, slightly dizzy as he thought about the danger he would get himself into. But he was not afraid. Perhaps this wasn't a story that would be sung about by minstrels. But that didn't matter. He had to do the right thing here.
They walked in complete silence. Robb seemed oddly relaxed, while Harpy tried her best to hide her nervousness and failing miserably at doing so. Jaron was aware that the people on the street were looking at him and this filled him with pride. He was a knight and now he finally looked the part. Of course, his wounds still affected him slightly. His left arm felt numb and every few minutes, pain flashed through his ribs. But his pride was stronger than any pain he felt.
Robb lead them through the streets of Oldtown for about half an hour. The streets soon got less elegant as they left the mansions behind that surrounded the Burned Man's house. People instinctively seemed to make room for them, no matter how crowded the streets were. More than once, Jaron saw scrawny children looking at them in bewilderment. They recognized Harpy and without a doubt, she recognized them too. Somewhere among them was Himani, Jaron knew it. The urchin was following them and a few times Jaron almost thought he could see him in the crowd.
Soon, streets turned to alleyways, mansions turned to houses and cottages. The once tidy streets were soon stained with mud and worse. Robb still lead them with a focussed gaze, Harpy followed. Jaron was walking closely behind her and on her sign he grabbed her arms, holding them thightly as if he wanted to prevent her running away.
“We're here”, Robb said as he stopped in front of a run-down building. It was clearly a former tenement, but looked abandoned and ruined. Planks have been nailed in front of the basement windows, leaving no light to shine in. The plans in front of the door have been torn down to allow entrance into the building. Jaron took a deep breath. Even the air smelled stale and moldy.
Robb shortly knocked on the door and it didn't take long until it was opened, only a gap. Jaron couldn't see anyone behind the door until it was opened further, revealing a tall man in black clothes. His facial features were hid behind a plain white mask, depicting a stylized cat. What would have looked good on a Braavosi mummer looked frightening on this man. He had short black hair and all Jaron could see from his face was the area around the amber, almost cat-like eyes, showing deathly pale skin that reminded Jaron of a corpse. He was armed with a curved, eastern sword that was resting in a simple leathery sheath. Robb took a respectful bow in front of this man.
“I am honoured to meet you again”, he said and the man with the cat mask gave him a nod. “This is her?”, he asked with a deep, melodic voice, his amber eyes looking directly at Harpy. Jaron felt her trembling under his grip. She put on a good show, looking exhausted, distraught and like a frightened little girl. And even if he couldn't see it, he was sure that the masked man was smiling and believing every second of her charade.
“Tom, this is Ser Jaron the Bastard”, Robb explained, putting emphasis on the 'bastard' part. “I told you about him” The masked man gave him a nod. “You did”, he growled, his amber eyes looking back at Jaron. “I have heard a great deal about you, bastard. I am the Tom, leader of the Alley Cats”
“A brutal bastard”, Harpy hissed, shivering again as he switched his attention back to her, narrowing his eyes. Jaron gave him a nod. “I have heard about you”, he said, remembering what Martin had told him about these alley cats.
“Butterfly is going to meet us at a warehouse near the harbour. He's in a bad mood today, so we won't leave him waiting”, the Tom explained, stepping out of the building. “You will follow my lead. Try to run away and we will kill you. You can keep your weapons, but draw them and you will curse the day you were born. Butterfly is not afraid of a little toothpick, but he has no sense of humour either. Have you understood everything?” Robb and Jaron quickly gave him a nod and Jaron saw movement in the shadow behind the Tom.
Out of the door stepped the tallest man Jaron had ever seen. He wore a cat mask, similar to the one that was worn by the Tom, albeit his was stained with dark red blood, highlighting his eyes of a similar colour. The visible skin of the giant was sickeningly pale, as white as snow, the same colour his hair had. His arms were almost as thick as Harpy's upper body and he had to lower his head as he stepped out of the building.
“This charming fellow is the Moggy”, the Tom introduced him. “He will take the girl from now on, so that I can see your hands, Ser Jaron” He took a step closer, looking at Harpy again. “You try anything and he will break your arms like tiny twigs” With these words he looked back at the giant. “Moggy, take the girl”, he ordered him and the giant complied. He grabbed Harpy around the waist, effortlessly lifting her high in the air, laying her on his shoulder. A look of sheer terror was embedded on her face as she looked at Jaron and he wasn't sure anymore if she was just acting.
The Tom seemed to be satisfied by what he saw. “Good Moggy”, he complimented him with slow words as if he was talking to an animal, before he looked back at Jaron and Robb. “As I said, you can keep your weapons. But put a hand on them and you will loose both”, he warned them and started to walk down the alleyway. “Now follow me. Butterfly is waiting for you”
Robb and Jaron followed them, the giant Moggy walking behind them. The Tom lead them through narrow alleyways and dirty streets and soon, Jaron was completely lost. Few people crossed their path and anyone who looked at the Tom turned around immediately. A few people even started to ran away as soon as they saw him. A feeling of dread surrounded him and his freakishly huge companion and Jaron almost felt afraid now, despite trying his best to avoid it.
“Why have you betrayed the Burned Man?”, the Tom asked without turning around. Jaron closed his eyes for a moment. He had thought about this, had thought of a story that made sense. “Because I am a knight”, he answered. “Me and your boss, we have similar goals. We want justice in this city. I had to work for the Burned Man without having a real choice. Then I met Robb and learned of his desires to defect to your group”
The Tom nodded his head in satisfaction. “I see”, he snarled. “You are an idealist then. It makes sense. Half of Butterfly's Solvers are recruited from idealists. The other half are drawn to his violence like moths to lightning” He looked over his shoulder, his cat-like eyes piercing through Jaron. “He's an idealist too, in his own way. Play your cards right and he is going to like you”
Jaron doubted this, but he stayed silent, trying to minimize the conversation with this man. He wondered if all of Butterfly's men were like the Alley Cats, or if they were just the worst of them. And not for the first time today, he wondered if he was about to die.
Soon, they arrived at the docks, but not at the well maintained part where rich merchants kept their ships. No, they arrived at the part where goods were stored, where the buildings were interchangeable looking warehouses, tall buildings, some of them guarded by armed men, some of them looking empty. The Tom started to walk straightly at one of these empty warehouses and Jaron took a look over his shoulder. The Moggy was walking behind him, towering him and still holding Harpy over his shoulder. It clearly wasn't comfortable for her and she looked genuinely terrified. There was no trace of Himani and Jaron had the fear that the boy had lost them, or even worse, that Butterfly's men found him spying on them.
The Tom pointed at the open door of the warehouse. “After you”, he told them with a patronizing voice that caused Jaron and Robb to follow his order automatically. They entered the dark, seemingly empty warehouse. A single torch was standing in the middle of the hall, barely illuminating the area around her. “You're going to wait there”, the Tom ordered them after they all entered the building. The Moggy walked up to the small circle of light, throwing Harpy to the ground like a sack of spuds. She stayed on the ground, weeping in obvious fear. Jaron wanted to do nothing more than to pull her into a hug, to tell her that everything would be alright. But he did nothing of these things. He stood next to her and Robb, even giving her a glare that was meant to be cold.
The Moggy effortlessly closed the large gate of the warehouse, blocking out the weak rays of sunlight that had found their way into the building. Darkness surrounded everything outside of the small area that was illuminated by the torch. Out of the darkness, the Tom started to talk to them.
“You think you are smart, Ser Bastard”, he said with a mocking voice and his words caused Jaron to freeze in terror. “You think you can walk up here, pretending to switch sides, just so you can get an easy kill” Short, cold laughter filled the air, certainly coming from more than one throat. “What are you...”, Jaron stuttered, but was cut off by the Tom's voice. “We know everything. How you planned with that little whore down there, conspired to end this war in a single strike. You should have known that your attempts were futile. You should have left the city before even thinking about trying anything here”
Harpy slowly staggered to her feet, her shocked stare mirroring Jaron's. But soon her shock switched to anger, as she looked at Robb. The mercenary looked genuinely surprised, slowly taking a few steps backwards, out of the light. A deep, hissing sound was heard and he immediately jumped back into the circle, a terrified expression on his face. “What...?”, he stuttered. “I... I haven't...”
“You fucking traitor...”, Harpy mumbled as tears ran down her face. “You fucking traitor!” She screamed, attempting to charge at Robb. She was cut off by a new voice, deep, compelling, threatening. “STOP IT!”, the voice yelled through the darkness and Harpy stopped. She turned her head towards the direction of the voice and started to slowly walk towards Jaron.
“You are surrounded. My men are only waiting for an order”, the voice said again and the sound of footsteps was heard. Harpy staggered around Jaron, slowly pushing him between her and the direction of the voice, shivering as she huddled up against him. She was slightly squeezing his ribs, but Jaron hardly noticed it. What mattered was the man who finally came into his field of view, the man who caused him to pull out his sword. The cold sound of steel filled the air for a second, giving him a moment of hope. Feeling the blade in his hand calmed him down. And then he saw the man.
He was tall, not even close to the huge size of the Moggy, but taller than Jaron, his shoulders wider, his arms thicker. He was younger than Jaron imagined, being somewhere in his forties, wearing a brown and green tunic, armed with a crude looking short sword. He had a clean-shaven, but brutal looking face, reminding Jaron of a vicious dog, with messy dark hair atop his head. His eyes were brown and dull as a rock and he was eyeing Jaron with pure hatred in his stare. With every step he took closer, Jaron felt Harpy shivering behind him, tears flowing down her face as she was sobbing in fear. The man stopped walking closer as Jaron pointed his sword towards him. “That's close enough!”, the knight shouted, surprised about how weak his voice sounded.
The man gave him a cold, cruel smirk. “Trying to play the hero, you bastard?”, he asked, raising his left hand. Jaron saw movement in the dark, men surrounding him and Harpy. The man took another step forwards, this time not even bothering with Jarons shaking sword. He looked at him and at Harpy, who was still panicking. His smile got wider and as he spoke, his voice was deeper than before, more intimidating, as cold as ice, as brutal as a dragons fire. “Do you have any idea who I am?”, Butterfly asked him.
“You are Butterfly...”, Harpy mumbled, looking past Jaron. “You... you are Butterfly?” Her voice sounded as if she couldn't believe her eyes. “You look... you look like a common thug!” She gave Jaron a shocked stare. “I half-expected a monster, but you are just a street rat...”
Butterfly narrowed his eyes at her insult. “And you are a disappointment. I've heard about your beauty, but now that you stand here in front of me, with your eyes full of fear, I don't see it. What exactly are you, Ghiscari? Andal? I don't see the beautiful woman they promised me. I only see a filthy mongrel whore”
He looked back at Jaron. “And you... you made a terrible mistake in coming here today. I have been informed about every step of your plan”, he growled, giving Robb a quick glance. The mercenary looked genuinely dumbfounded, slowly raising his hands. “But... I... I have never...”, he stuttered as he looked at Harpy. “Please, you got to believe me, I am not a traitor!”, he shouted towards her.
Butterfly slowly shook his head. “Pathetic”, he snarled. “How you could ever put your trust in this man amazes me. Then again, you are not very clever, aren't you, bitch?” He walked another step forwards, putting a hand on Jaron's shaking blade. “You on the other hand... I admit you look more like a knight than I have imagined”
“What do you want?”, Jaron asked him, suppressing the urge to stab him now. No, he couldn't provoke a fight now, not without Martin's backup. If he would ever arrive. Butterfly gave him a wide, brutal smile. “Clever bastard”, he complimented him, like the Tom had complimented the Moggy earlier. “You plotted to kill me. It was a weak plan and doomed to fail the moment you trusted Robb. But that does not change the fact that you brought me a generous gift” His smile turned slightly lecherous as he looked at Harpy. “A truly generous gift. I have to thank you for that”
Jaron pressed his lips together, as the urge to kill this man grew stronger. He knew, his chances of survival got slimmer with every passing second. But even worse, his vivid imagination filled his minds with images of what Butterfly would do to Harpy.
“Hearing only her side of the story, you must think of me as some kind of monster”, Butterfly told him. “And to be honest, from her point of view most of the things she told you are true. But I think it should be clear that she is little more than a stupid child” He softly pushed the tip of Jaron's blade down. “An ignorant whore who could never see the truth, who could never see what I'd try to achieve”
His eyes reminded Jaron of a hungry wolf as he looked back at him. “But you... you are not a stupid child, am I right? You are smarter than that. Perhaps you can see what I try to achieve here”, he growled. Jaron narrowed his eyes, still refusing to allow his fear to control him. He had promised her, had promised Martin, had promised himself to keep her safe.
“And what are you trying to achieve?”, he asked. Butterfly's grin caused him to shiver “This city is sick”, he answered. “Infested with rats who feast on the good citizens of Oldtown. Rats like that little cunt behind you. You can't fight a sickness like that without making some sacrifices”
“Sacrifices!”, Harpy shouted, almost jumped up. “You rape and you torture and you kill! This is not a sacrifice! This is just you fulfilling your sick pleasures!” Her voice trembled with rage. “How can you dare justifying what you've done?” She put a hand on Jaron's healthy arm. “Kill him!”, she shouted. “Kill him!”
Butterfly yawned playfully. “Your tongue will be the first thing I'll take from you. Would make you a lot better”, he chuckled, before looking back at Jaron. “Attack me now and I will show you why this was the biggest mistake in all of your life. Try it and I will give you the same treatment I am going to give that slut behind you”
“Tell me what do you want?”, Jaron shouted at him, finally feeling his fear getting hold of him. “You could kill or capture us easily, but you prefer to talk. Why?” Butterfly raised an eyebrow. “Ah, now you're asking a good question. You see, I wasn't that interested in you when you entered the city. Another nuisance, but this time a knightly nuisance, working for the cripple. But when three of my men got killed, I admit I got a little curious”
He opened his arms widely. “And now I want to talk. Just you and me. I don't want us to be enemies. Imagine how much good you could do, fighting against the sickness in this city, together with me”, he explained. “You expect me to believe you?”, Jaron growled, feeling a thumping pain in his ribs, a reminder of the last time Butterfly got interested in him. “Your men tried to kill me not long ago!”
Butterfly gave him an almost apologetic grin. “True”, he answered. “I don't deny it, I wanted to see you dead. But that has changed. Now I'd like to recruit you, rather than killing you” Jaron shook his head. “You expect me to believe you?” Butterfly shrugged. “It doesn't matter if you believe me or not. I expect you to listen and I expect you to think about it. Working with me has benefits, benefits the Burned Man could never give you”
With these words, Butterfly took a look over Jaron's shoulder. “Of course I don't expect you to work for free. Whatever you want, I will give it to you. Money. Fame. Or perhaps you want that girl you're so desperately trying to protect right now”
Butterfly took another step closer, putting a hand on Jaron's left shoulder, applying uncomfortable weight on his wounded arm. “You can have her”, he whispered in his ear. “As long as you want. Of course, I'll take her first, but if you want you can have her before I really start with her”
He paused for a moment, putting his hand away from Jaron's shoulder before he took a step backwards, just out of reach of Jaron's sword. “And most importantly, you'll stay alive. I could kill you right now and while I doubt that you would go down without a fight, my men will defeat you. You are wounded and alone. That bitch behind you isn't worth shit and you know better than to put your trust in Robb, right?”
The mercenary was staying silent, his head hanging low, a shocked expression on his face as he was standing at the edge of the illuminated circle. The mentioning of his name caused him to look up to Butterfly, before he looked back at Jaron, slightly shaking his head, his eyes wide opened in fear.
“Of course, I expect a tiny bit of trust first. Put down your sword and step aside, so that I may deal with the whore behind you”, Butterfly snarled with a grin. “Ask anyone in this city. Provoking me is a bad idea. Lower your sword now or I will order my men to attack you. Lower your sword and I will spare you, trust me”
A drop of sweat ran down Jaron's face and Harpy behind him was tightly holding to his shoulders. “Don't do it”, she pleaded him. “Kill him. Don't do what he wants from you. Don't become his pawn, please!” The tone of her voice made Jaron wonder how much of her fear was acted and if she truly believed that he would do such a thing.
Of course, he could attack Butterfly now. The crimelord hadn't drawn his sword yet. A quick strike and it would be over. Or he could try to continue the talk, try to gain a bit more time for Martin, albeit this would risk him loosing any advantage if Butterfly would decide to attack him first. The mercenary was out there, gathering good fighters to take Butterfly down. He would come, he had to come! He wouldn't fail him, right?
And then another, darker thought crossed through Jaron's mind. Perhaps Martin wouldn't come. Perhaps Himani failed in following them, or worse. He was on his own. And he would die here if he would continue to stand against Butterfly. Dying here wouldn't be heroic... but was joining Butterfly truly any better?
[Attack Butterfly and try to gain an advantage][Try to stall him by talking][Accept Butterfly's offer and lower your sword]
A little bit, yeah. However, the hilarious reactions of my non book-reading friends as we were watching that episode together over a livestream made more than up for the mean cliffhanger at the end and the infuriating changes they made from the books in the Stannis and Dorne storylines. The Arya and Tyrion scenes were awesome though!
They walked in complete silence. Robb seemed oddly relaxed, while Harpy tried her best to hide her nervousness and failing miserably at doin… moreg so. Jaron was aware that the people on the street were looking at him and this filled him with pride. He was a knight and now he finally looked the part. Of course, his wounds still affected him slightly. His left arm felt numb and every few minutes, pain flashed through his ribs. But his pride was stronger than any pain he felt.
Robb lead them through the streets of Oldtown for about half an hour. The streets soon got less elegant as they left the mansions behind that surrounded the Burned Man's house. People instinctively seemed to make room for them, no matter how crowded the streets were. More than once, Jaron saw scrawny children looking at them in bewilderment. They recognized Harpy and without a doubt, she recognized them too. Somewhere among them was Himani, Jaron knew it. The urchin was foll… [view original content]
[Attack Butterfly and try to gain an advantage]- I want something like attacking Ludd Whitehill at Highpoint to happen (albeit Butterfly would probably not die).
They walked in complete silence. Robb seemed oddly relaxed, while Harpy tried her best to hide her nervousness and failing miserably at doin… moreg so. Jaron was aware that the people on the street were looking at him and this filled him with pride. He was a knight and now he finally looked the part. Of course, his wounds still affected him slightly. His left arm felt numb and every few minutes, pain flashed through his ribs. But his pride was stronger than any pain he felt.
Robb lead them through the streets of Oldtown for about half an hour. The streets soon got less elegant as they left the mansions behind that surrounded the Burned Man's house. People instinctively seemed to make room for them, no matter how crowded the streets were. More than once, Jaron saw scrawny children looking at them in bewilderment. They recognized Harpy and without a doubt, she recognized them too. Somewhere among them was Himani, Jaron knew it. The urchin was foll… [view original content]
They walked in complete silence. Robb seemed oddly relaxed, while Harpy tried her best to hide her nervousness and failing miserably at doin… moreg so. Jaron was aware that the people on the street were looking at him and this filled him with pride. He was a knight and now he finally looked the part. Of course, his wounds still affected him slightly. His left arm felt numb and every few minutes, pain flashed through his ribs. But his pride was stronger than any pain he felt.
Robb lead them through the streets of Oldtown for about half an hour. The streets soon got less elegant as they left the mansions behind that surrounded the Burned Man's house. People instinctively seemed to make room for them, no matter how crowded the streets were. More than once, Jaron saw scrawny children looking at them in bewilderment. They recognized Harpy and without a doubt, she recognized them too. Somewhere among them was Himani, Jaron knew it. The urchin was foll… [view original content]
Although, I dont see this being to effective in keeping Butterfly at bay, I think it will at least give Jaron a little time to find something useful or scout out some sort of advantage... Hopefully. Also, hell naw, you ain't gettin nowhere near Harpy.
They walked in complete silence. Robb seemed oddly relaxed, while Harpy tried her best to hide her nervousness and failing miserably at doin… moreg so. Jaron was aware that the people on the street were looking at him and this filled him with pride. He was a knight and now he finally looked the part. Of course, his wounds still affected him slightly. His left arm felt numb and every few minutes, pain flashed through his ribs. But his pride was stronger than any pain he felt.
Robb lead them through the streets of Oldtown for about half an hour. The streets soon got less elegant as they left the mansions behind that surrounded the Burned Man's house. People instinctively seemed to make room for them, no matter how crowded the streets were. More than once, Jaron saw scrawny children looking at them in bewilderment. They recognized Harpy and without a doubt, she recognized them too. Somewhere among them was Himani, Jaron knew it. The urchin was foll… [view original content]
Sorry for the longer wait, but hey, it's a super long part again. I guess that should make up for the wait. Hope you enjoy!
Jaron
Th… moree morning sun was already brightly illuminating the room when Jaron woke up. It took him a short moment to orient himself. He wasn't in the small cabin aboard the Pale Princess, where he rested in over the course of the last week. No, this room was furnished like a nobleman's bedroom, or perhaps at least like a nobleman's guest room. He was at the Burned Man's house and judging from what he attempted to do today, this might be his last morning before he would meet the Seven.
The last evening passed quietly. He had resisted to beat Robb up and he was proud about it. A true hero wouldn't beat a defeated and defenceless man. He had shown mercy, albeit Robb was less than thankful. And he had met Ellena. Seeing her again still worried him more than anything. He was glad that Martin went with her to protect … [view original content]
They walked in complete silence. Robb seemed oddly relaxed, while Harpy tried her best to hide her nervousness and failing miserably at doin… moreg so. Jaron was aware that the people on the street were looking at him and this filled him with pride. He was a knight and now he finally looked the part. Of course, his wounds still affected him slightly. His left arm felt numb and every few minutes, pain flashed through his ribs. But his pride was stronger than any pain he felt.
Robb lead them through the streets of Oldtown for about half an hour. The streets soon got less elegant as they left the mansions behind that surrounded the Burned Man's house. People instinctively seemed to make room for them, no matter how crowded the streets were. More than once, Jaron saw scrawny children looking at them in bewilderment. They recognized Harpy and without a doubt, she recognized them too. Somewhere among them was Himani, Jaron knew it. The urchin was foll… [view original content]
This chapter is so fuking good that I don't have any words to describe or I may have, I just love it, kind of like Harpy. [Try to stall him by talking] Martin will die, someone will die! SHIT!
"Try it and I will give you the same treatment I am going to give that slut behind you" that mean he will rape Jaron? However he say "I don't see the beautiful woman they promised me" so probably he will just torture Harpy and Jaron...
They walked in complete silence. Robb seemed oddly relaxed, while Harpy tried her best to hide her nervousness and failing miserably at doin… moreg so. Jaron was aware that the people on the street were looking at him and this filled him with pride. He was a knight and now he finally looked the part. Of course, his wounds still affected him slightly. His left arm felt numb and every few minutes, pain flashed through his ribs. But his pride was stronger than any pain he felt.
Robb lead them through the streets of Oldtown for about half an hour. The streets soon got less elegant as they left the mansions behind that surrounded the Burned Man's house. People instinctively seemed to make room for them, no matter how crowded the streets were. More than once, Jaron saw scrawny children looking at them in bewilderment. They recognized Harpy and without a doubt, she recognized them too. Somewhere among them was Himani, Jaron knew it. The urchin was foll… [view original content]
They walked in complete silence. Robb seemed oddly relaxed, while Harpy tried her best to hide her nervousness and failing miserably at doin… moreg so. Jaron was aware that the people on the street were looking at him and this filled him with pride. He was a knight and now he finally looked the part. Of course, his wounds still affected him slightly. His left arm felt numb and every few minutes, pain flashed through his ribs. But his pride was stronger than any pain he felt.
Robb lead them through the streets of Oldtown for about half an hour. The streets soon got less elegant as they left the mansions behind that surrounded the Burned Man's house. People instinctively seemed to make room for them, no matter how crowded the streets were. More than once, Jaron saw scrawny children looking at them in bewilderment. They recognized Harpy and without a doubt, she recognized them too. Somewhere among them was Himani, Jaron knew it. The urchin was foll… [view original content]
They walked in complete silence. Robb seemed oddly relaxed, while Harpy tried her best to hide her nervousness and failing miserably at doin… moreg so. Jaron was aware that the people on the street were looking at him and this filled him with pride. He was a knight and now he finally looked the part. Of course, his wounds still affected him slightly. His left arm felt numb and every few minutes, pain flashed through his ribs. But his pride was stronger than any pain he felt.
Robb lead them through the streets of Oldtown for about half an hour. The streets soon got less elegant as they left the mansions behind that surrounded the Burned Man's house. People instinctively seemed to make room for them, no matter how crowded the streets were. More than once, Jaron saw scrawny children looking at them in bewilderment. They recognized Harpy and without a doubt, she recognized them too. Somewhere among them was Himani, Jaron knew it. The urchin was foll… [view original content]
They walked in complete silence. Robb seemed oddly relaxed, while Harpy tried her best to hide her nervousness and failing miserably at doin… moreg so. Jaron was aware that the people on the street were looking at him and this filled him with pride. He was a knight and now he finally looked the part. Of course, his wounds still affected him slightly. His left arm felt numb and every few minutes, pain flashed through his ribs. But his pride was stronger than any pain he felt.
Robb lead them through the streets of Oldtown for about half an hour. The streets soon got less elegant as they left the mansions behind that surrounded the Burned Man's house. People instinctively seemed to make room for them, no matter how crowded the streets were. More than once, Jaron saw scrawny children looking at them in bewilderment. They recognized Harpy and without a doubt, she recognized them too. Somewhere among them was Himani, Jaron knew it. The urchin was foll… [view original content]
They walked in complete silence. Robb seemed oddly relaxed, while Harpy tried her best to hide her nervousness and failing miserably at doin… moreg so. Jaron was aware that the people on the street were looking at him and this filled him with pride. He was a knight and now he finally looked the part. Of course, his wounds still affected him slightly. His left arm felt numb and every few minutes, pain flashed through his ribs. But his pride was stronger than any pain he felt.
Robb lead them through the streets of Oldtown for about half an hour. The streets soon got less elegant as they left the mansions behind that surrounded the Burned Man's house. People instinctively seemed to make room for them, no matter how crowded the streets were. More than once, Jaron saw scrawny children looking at them in bewilderment. They recognized Harpy and without a doubt, she recognized them too. Somewhere among them was Himani, Jaron knew it. The urchin was foll… [view original content]
They walked in complete silence. Robb seemed oddly relaxed, while Harpy tried her best to hide her nervousness and failing miserably at doin… moreg so. Jaron was aware that the people on the street were looking at him and this filled him with pride. He was a knight and now he finally looked the part. Of course, his wounds still affected him slightly. His left arm felt numb and every few minutes, pain flashed through his ribs. But his pride was stronger than any pain he felt.
Robb lead them through the streets of Oldtown for about half an hour. The streets soon got less elegant as they left the mansions behind that surrounded the Burned Man's house. People instinctively seemed to make room for them, no matter how crowded the streets were. More than once, Jaron saw scrawny children looking at them in bewilderment. They recognized Harpy and without a doubt, she recognized them too. Somewhere among them was Himani, Jaron knew it. The urchin was foll… [view original content]
They walked in complete silence. Robb seemed oddly relaxed, while Harpy tried her best to hide her nervousness and failing miserably at doin… moreg so. Jaron was aware that the people on the street were looking at him and this filled him with pride. He was a knight and now he finally looked the part. Of course, his wounds still affected him slightly. His left arm felt numb and every few minutes, pain flashed through his ribs. But his pride was stronger than any pain he felt.
Robb lead them through the streets of Oldtown for about half an hour. The streets soon got less elegant as they left the mansions behind that surrounded the Burned Man's house. People instinctively seemed to make room for them, no matter how crowded the streets were. More than once, Jaron saw scrawny children looking at them in bewilderment. They recognized Harpy and without a doubt, she recognized them too. Somewhere among them was Himani, Jaron knew it. The urchin was foll… [view original content]
Comments
[Disagree with Garen] Even though I agree with him
[Agree to leave Dimitri behind] Poor guy, but it's enough of trouble for Maya
When did Lucas or Lunett die ?
[Agree to leave Dimitri behind]
[Stay silent]
They are both alive and relatively safe for now and as with any other character it's possible that it will stay that way if you pick the right choices.
[Go back and try to find Dimitri] I have a weird feeling he could be useful.
[Stay silent] Silence is a valid option.
I forgot.
http://strawpoll.me/4618069
Great i like them
[Go back and try to find Dimitri]
[Stay silent]
(go back and try to find Dimitri)
(Stay Silent)
[Agree to leave Dimitri behind]
[Disagree with Garen]
Awesome chapter can't wait for more.
[Agree to leave Dimitri behind] [Disagree with Garen]
[Go back and try to find Dimitri]
[Disagree with Garen]
[Go back and try to find Dimitri] but after this line “Please, don't take me! I have nothing to do with that! Take her, leave me alone!” which turned out to be himself a pathetic coward, Maya should let him die, now we need to find and kill him(just joking) and [Stay silent], my brother.
[Go back and try to find Dimitri]
[Disagree with Garen]
[Agree to leave Dimitri behind] we all need to go on our way...
[Agree with Garen] it will be dragons in the story?
The Voting is closed!
Maya will leave the target audience for Hatoful Boyfriend behind
Drent will disagree with Garen
This also means that this was Maya's last part in this chapter. If the other choice would have won, there would have been another part soon, in which Maya would have attempted to find Dimitri in the forest, which would put her, Irving and Christian at risk. But well, as long as a man and his pigeon are together, nothing bad can happen to them! Surely not such nonsense like death or torture, right?
Since I was busy for most of the weekend, I only got to start writing the next part yesterday. It's going to be a Jaron part and I hope that I'll finish writing today, but if not expect it tomorrow at latest.
lolwut
According to steam critics, it's the best pigeon dating simulator ever, as well as one of the few things I could imagine that are weirder than Dimitri himself. I assume he would have a lot of fun with it.
Visual novels and dating simulators, hacky hu.
I'll recommend this for you:
http://store.steampowered.com/app/313740/, http://store.steampowered.com/app/307190/, http://store.steampowered.com/app/326480/, http://store.steampowered.com/app/291030/, also you can try a complete free game http://store.steampowered.com/app/321840/
Busy mourning last night's episode?
I know I am ;(
That makes 3
Sorry for the longer wait, but hey, it's a super long part again. I guess that should make up for the wait. Hope you enjoy!
Jaron
The morning sun was already brightly illuminating the room when Jaron woke up. It took him a short moment to orient himself. He wasn't in the small cabin aboard the Pale Princess, where he rested in over the course of the last week. No, this room was furnished like a nobleman's bedroom, or perhaps at least like a nobleman's guest room. He was at the Burned Man's house and judging from what he attempted to do today, this might be his last morning before he would meet the Seven.
The last evening passed quietly. He had resisted to beat Robb up and he was proud about it. A true hero wouldn't beat a defeated and defenceless man. He had shown mercy, albeit Robb was less than thankful. And he had met Ellena. Seeing her again still worried him more than anything. He was glad that Martin went with her to protect her from the things that lurked in the streets, but he was heavily displeased to see her as an errand girl for the Burned Man. She deserved better.
Harpy had tried to reassure him of course and now, after a good night of sleep he had to admit that she was good at talking. She had managed to calm him down, with soft and soothing words. And for every word she had said, Robb had grinned at him as if that was the funniest thing he had seen in ages. Judging from his default frown, this was probably true.
And Robb... as much as Jaron hated this man, he was pivotal for their plan. As Harpy had told him when she had shown him his room late last night, it didn't matter if Robb was on their side or not. He knew only half of their plan and even if he intended to betray them, he had no time to do it until it was too late for Butterfly to prevent anything. The way Harpy explained it to him made him believe her. Now in the morning, he realized that he just wanted to believe her. Or perhaps he just wanted to fight for something with a meaning for once. A just cause, no matter the people he had to ally himself with. Criminals, cutthroats, sellswords... what mattered was that the man they were up against was easily worse than all of them combined.
Jaron looked up as the door to his room was opened. He saw Martin entering the room, a worried look on his face. “Good morning”, he mumbled with a sullen voice. “Harpy is waiting in the main hall and Robb should be back soon. Are you ready to die?” Jaron shook his head. “Don't think so”, he answered. “Besides, what makes you so sure I'm going to die today?”
Martin shrugged and did not answer at first. Jaron raised from his bed, quickly putting on a shirt and his trousers. Just as he thought that Martin would stay silent, the mercenary began to speak again. “I'm not sure that you are going to die today, but it's entirely possible. You should be prepared for it”, he mumbled with a sullen voice.
“You disapprove of her plan?”, Jaron asked and Martin shook his head. “I disapprove of my role in it. Hiding like a coward, leaving her at the mercy of a man who could make the Stranger shiver” He pressed his lips together, avoiding to look at Jaron.
“You're not hiding like a coward and you know that”, Jaron insisted. A joyless smile flashed across Martin's face. “I've always told myself it would be no big deal for me to see her in danger, that I would hold no loyalty beyond the money towards anyone”, he answered and his bleak stare met Jaron's. “I should be with her when she faces this man. Instead she chose you” His voice sounded bitter for a moment and he seemed to notice it. A hint of regret found it's way into his eyes. “I don't mean to sound angry at you. It's just... I know you're going to fight like a dragon, but you are...”
“Wounded?”, Jaron asked, carefully moving his left arm. It felt a lot better today, but he doubted that he could hold a shield with his hand. Martin gave him a nod. “Aye”, he answered. “You are a good man, Jaron. But you are hardly in any condition to fight”
“Perhaps I don't need to”, Jaron stated. “If you do your part correctly, everything will be fine” Martin gave him a sad smile. “Perhaps”, he admitted. “Come one, don't let her wait” He turned around and Jaron followed him. For the first time since he met him, he noticed a crack in Martin's usually jovial smile. The mercenary was genuinely distraught over Harpy's plan.
Her plan... to call it daring or risky would be an understatement. Currently, Robb was arranging a meeting with Butterfly himself, a meeting between him, Jaron and Harpy. She had explained it at least a dozen times to him over the past evening and still, he did not like it any more. Jaron would pretend to work with Robb, to defect to Butterfly and his men. Harpy would play a scared prisoner, luring Butterfly into a trap. She had told Robb that she intended to kill Butterfly herself as soon as he would let his guard down. She hadn't told him that Himani would follow them, to find out where they would meet. She hadn't told him that Himani would inform Martin about their location, who would in turn lead a group of mercenaries to them, rushing in to save the day. It was more than risky and Jaron did not like it at all. But the alternative would have been to leave her alone and he couldn't do that.
They entered the main hall and Jaron saw Harpy looking out of a large window towards the small courtyard of the mansion. She looked even paler than usual, the cold autumn sunlight highlighting her dark hair. As she turned around, Jaron saw dark rings under her eyes, indicating that she found a lot less sleep than he did. A smile flashed across her face, but it failed to reach her eyes as she walked closer towards them. “Good morning, sleepyhead”, she said with a forced smirk. “Glad you decided to show up”
“Wouldn't miss the show, would I?”, Jaron answered, failing at sounding any less worried than she did. Despite this, Harpy's smirk turned into a full smile for a second, vanishing as quick as it came. “Robb should be back soon. We need to get you ready”, she explained, looking over her shoulder towards the window with an almost haunted look on her face.
She glanced at Martin and for a moment, the two simply looked at each other in silence. It was Martin who looked away first, staring at the floor without saying a word. “Where's the Burned Man?”, Jaron asked. For a moment, he saw something that seemed to be regret in her eyes. “He's sleeping”, she answered. “Sleeping?”, Jaron asked, raising an eyebrow.
Instead of answering, Harpy grabbed his healthy arm, gently pulling him out of the room. “Sleeping”, she insisted again as they walked down the hallway, passing the door that lead to the Burned Man's room. “I gave him undiluted milk of the poppy. He's going to be out cold for the next hours, or else he would stop me”
“He disapproves of your plan?”, Jaron asked in surprise. She gave him a nod and he saw the reluctance in her movement. “He's not ready to do what it takes to defeat Butterfly. He is not willing to put me in a situation where I could end this war, out of fear that he might loose me”
“Perhaps you shouldn't do it then”, Jaron insisted, immediately noticing the displeased look in her eyes. “You don't approve of this either?”, she asked and he shook his head. For a moment, Harpy looked hurt. “You don't need to approve of it”, she hissed. “You just need to help me”
She stopped in front of a large door and Jaron put a hand on her shoulder. He felt her tensing up under his touch, albeit she relaxed immediately “I will”, he promised and for the first time this morning he saw her genuinely smiling at him. “Thank you”, she mumbled.
She opened the door and Jaron saw that the room behind it was some sort of armoury, more like a collection of weapons and armour. Valuable westerosi long swords hanged on the wall, next to arakhs, ghiscari scimitars and braavosi foils. In the centre of the room stood an armour stand that immediately aroused Jaron's attention, holding the finest armour he had ever laid his eyes upon. It was a grey armour crafted in the elegant style wealthy noblemen from the Reach preferred, with subtle golden engravings that formed a pattern on the steel.
Harpy noticed his stare and smiled as she pulled him closer to the armour. “Sadly, a helmet is not included”, she said and chuckled as he gave her a surprised glance. “It's a gift! A knight needs protection, right? I tried to arrange for your old armour to be brought here, but sadly the condition it's in won't assure your safety”
“And... and you can just give this away?”, Jaron asked. Harpy looked from him to the armour and shrugged. “It's not like me or the Burned Man have any use for it either way. I doubt he would disapprove and I doubt I would care. It's a gift for a friend”
A short laughter found it's way out of her throat and she softly pushed him towards the armour. “Don't stand around like a donkey, put it on!”, she urged him and Jaron reluctantly complied. He still did not like her plan, but the thought of wearing this armour for battle filled him with pride. If there was one thing he was always lacking in his life as a hedge knight, it was a fine set of armour. And this seemed to be right out of the legends he used to worship when he was a child. He looked back at Harpy who gave him an affectionate smile. “Put it on!”, she urged him again. “You don't need help, do you?”
His mouth formed a slight smirk at her remark and he carefully started to put the armour on. Being limited to use his right arm handicapped him more than he wanted to admit and several times he had to use the left arm for support, letting out pained sighs as he put too much weight on his wounds more than once. Still, he had the opinion that he did well despite his wounds. Harpy seemed to see this differently, as he saw her watching him with a worried look on her face every time he made any noise.
The real problem came when he had to put on the parts of his armour where he couldn't use his right hand for. Putting on the right pauldron took him several minutes and tying the gauntlet down was something he wasn't even able to do without significantly stressing his wounded arm. He tried to pull the strings that were supposed to strap the gauntlet to his right forearm, only to let out a moan as hot pain flashed through his left arm, causing him to stagger backwards.
Harpy darted towards him, grabbing his shoulders and preventing him from going down on his knees. Her dark brown eyes looked at him with a worried expression in them and she gently grabbed his right arm with both of her hands. “May I?”, she asked softly. He gave her a short nod, trying not to show his pain in front of her, as she started to tie the glove with quick and experienced movements. “You know how to do this, right?”, he asked.
A pained expression flashed over her face and Jaron already regretted that he had asked her. She gave him a short nod. “Haven't done it in a long time”, she mumbled and closed her eyes. “But I grew up helping men into their armour. There are things you don't forget” The short melancholic expression on her face went away as she looked back at him. “By the gods, take a look at you”, she exclaimed with a bright smile. “Oh, one more thing!” With these words, she quickly ran to the wall, taking an elegant longsword from it, before triumphantly returning to him. The sword was long, with a straight blade forged out of bright steel. For a short moment, Jaron thought it would be Valyrian steel, but this foolish thought vanished quickly. Still, it was a remarkable blade, fitting for someone who wore an armour like that. “Now you look like a true knight!”, Harpy exclaimed as she was helping him girding the blade.
“You're implying I'm not a true knight already?”, Jaron asked with a smirk, watching how the smile on her face vanished. “That was not what I...”, she started to justify herself, before noticing the smirk on his face. “Oh, you...”, she hissed, giving him a playful punch on the upper right arm. “You are a true knight and a real bastard, you know that?”
“Well, it's kinda in my name”, Jaron answered and both of them burst into laughter. “No, no seriously”, Harpy gasped as she tried to regain her breath. “It's sad that we don't have a mirror in this room, you really need to take a look at yourself. Clothes make people indeed” Before he could comment on that, she cut him off. “You know what I mean”, she hissed. “You look great in that armour. Butterfly is going to piss himself when he sees you”
Jaron slightly grinned as he heard this. “You can stop flattering me now. I'm really not that impressive”, he said, noticing that his cheeks got warm, probably red. “That's not entirely true and you know that”, Harpy answered softly. She looked up, right in his eyes and for a moment it appeared as if she would slide closer towards him, still having one of her hands rested on his right gauntlet. The moment was gone too soon, as she burst into laughter again, taking a step away from him. “You should look at you now, Jaron”, she giggled. “You are really not that impressive when you're all red like that. You should have called yourself 'Ser Jaron the Red'” This caused both of them to chuckle, albeit Jaron had to clench his teeth in anger at the same time.
She turned away from him, much to his disappointment, walking closer towards the door. “I assume Robb is back by now. Come on, I really don't want to leave Martin alone with him for too long”, she urged him. Jaron let out a frustrated groan and she let out a short laugh again. To his content, her smile seemed to be far less forced now. Still, there was one more thing he had to talk about...
“Harpy”, he said, causing her to turn around immediately taking a step towards him again. “Yes?”, she asked toneless. Jaron pressed his lips together for a moment. No, not now. That would be terrible timing. “Is anything wrong?”, she asked again. “Are you sure about your plan?”, he asked and noticed that she let out a sigh. “I am”, she stated. “I know it's risky, for you, for me, perhaps even for this drunken pig Robb. But I am willing to take that risk if it means that I never have to look at a tiny mutilated corpse again, knowing fully well that I am to blame”
Jaron noticed the tears in her eyes and put his good hand on his shoulder, pulling her into a soft hug. For a second, she rested her head on his shoulder, slightly shivering as if she was about to weep. “You are not to blame for what Butterfly does, I hope you know that”, he tried to console her. She pulled away from his hug, holding him at arms length while looking him sternly in the eyes. “You have no idea what I'm to blame for”, she hissed. “True, I never harm a single one of Butterfly's victims. In fact I knew most of them personally, I cared for all of them in some way. While some might see it as morally wrong what me and the Burned Man do, I also see the good in our works” She paused for a moment. “But that doesn't mean that I don't send them out on the streets every fucking day, that doesn't mean I don't put a huge target on them. I know exactly that Butterfly makes no difference between children and adults when it comes to the treatment he gives them”
Her face got a distraught, almost disgusted expression as she continued “Still, I smile at them every time they get ready to go out there. I give them a kind word and embolster them, promise them a hot meal when they return. I hug them when they leave, knowing fully well that it might be the last time I see them. And only the most intelligent of them come to the same conclusion”
She turned around, away from Jaron and he saw that she was writhing, her hands shaking. “Me and the Burned Man, we are as much at fault for this situation as Butterfly. And I'm not willing to take this any longer. I have tried to convince the Burned Man to change so many times, but he is the most stubborn and determined man I've ever met. He won't stop”, she mumbled and looked over her shoulder. Jaron saw that she was crying. “So he leaves it to me to stop Butterfly. And I can't do this without help. You. Martin. Even Robb”
There were many things Jaron wanted to tell her in this moment, but before he could say anything, the door to the armoury was opened again, revealing Martin standing in the doorway. The mercenary looked surprised, from him to Harpy, his face showing a mixture of worry and amazement. “Are you crying?”, he asked and Harpy shook her head. “It's nothing”, she answered. “I'm fine, just... anxious”
Martin gave her an understanding nod, looking at Jaron, looking at him from head to toe. “May the gods have mercy, I believe we have a real knight among us”, he said with a sly grin. “Jaron, you bastard, you look great!”
“Butterfly is going to piss himself, that's what I said”, Harpy answered, wiping her tears away. Martin chuckled as he heard this. “I doubt it, but it's a nice image in my head”, he said and his smile faded. “Robb arrived and he's impatient. Apparently you're having a meeting with one of Butterfly's men very soon”
Harpy let out a sigh. “Better get ready then... he caused me nightmares for the past four years. Time to face them” Holding her head high, she started to walk out of the room, Martin and Jaron following closely and in silence.
They arrived at the main hall shortly afterwards. Robb was already there, walking in a small circle, his face showing impatience. “Look who finally decided to show up. Good morning, Ser Bastard”, he snarled and Jaron shot him an angry glare. “We got a meeting with Butterfly's men in half an hour. And we shouldn't be late”
Slightly less angry, he looked at Harpy. “You're sure about that?”, he asked. Harpy gave him a nod and Robb let out a sigh. “If we fail, death is the best thing that can happen to you”, he warned her. “I know”, Harpy answered with an angry tone in her voice. “Do me a favour and shut up. I can't stand your insults today”
Robb did her the favour and stayed silent, albeit Jaron saw an irritated look on his face. Harpy did not seem to mind, as she turned around towards Martin. The mercenary opened his arms widely and she jumped at him, tightly hugging him. Jaron saw Martin's distraught facial expression as he was gently holding her.
“Stay safe”, he mumbled. “Or else...” His voice cracked. “Honestly, I don't know what I'm going to do” A sad smile flashed across his face as she leant upwards to give him a kiss on the cheek. “I will, my friend”, she said and sounded as if she tried to convince herself. “Nothing bad can ever happen, as long as I got a true knight with me”
“About that...”, Martin mumbled, glaring at Jaron. “I like you a lot, Jaron. But if you fail to protect her...” He was cut off by Harpy putting a hand on his upper arm. “He won't”, she reassured him, looking at Jaron. He saw trust in her eyes. “He won't”, she repeated.
“Touching”, Robb growled. “But the men we are going to meet won't wait for us. We got one chance, so don't fuck this up” Harpy gave him a nod and for a moment her face dropped. “It's going to end today...”, she mumbled. “It's finally going to end today, one way or the other”
Jaron, Harpy and Robb stepped out of the building, leaving Martin behind. Jaron looked over his shoulder, back at the mercenary, noticing the grim expression on the man's face. He felt anxious, slightly dizzy as he thought about the danger he would get himself into. But he was not afraid. Perhaps this wasn't a story that would be sung about by minstrels. But that didn't matter. He had to do the right thing here.
They walked in complete silence. Robb seemed oddly relaxed, while Harpy tried her best to hide her nervousness and failing miserably at doing so. Jaron was aware that the people on the street were looking at him and this filled him with pride. He was a knight and now he finally looked the part. Of course, his wounds still affected him slightly. His left arm felt numb and every few minutes, pain flashed through his ribs. But his pride was stronger than any pain he felt.
Robb lead them through the streets of Oldtown for about half an hour. The streets soon got less elegant as they left the mansions behind that surrounded the Burned Man's house. People instinctively seemed to make room for them, no matter how crowded the streets were. More than once, Jaron saw scrawny children looking at them in bewilderment. They recognized Harpy and without a doubt, she recognized them too. Somewhere among them was Himani, Jaron knew it. The urchin was following them and a few times Jaron almost thought he could see him in the crowd.
Soon, streets turned to alleyways, mansions turned to houses and cottages. The once tidy streets were soon stained with mud and worse. Robb still lead them with a focussed gaze, Harpy followed. Jaron was walking closely behind her and on her sign he grabbed her arms, holding them thightly as if he wanted to prevent her running away.
“We're here”, Robb said as he stopped in front of a run-down building. It was clearly a former tenement, but looked abandoned and ruined. Planks have been nailed in front of the basement windows, leaving no light to shine in. The plans in front of the door have been torn down to allow entrance into the building. Jaron took a deep breath. Even the air smelled stale and moldy.
Robb shortly knocked on the door and it didn't take long until it was opened, only a gap. Jaron couldn't see anyone behind the door until it was opened further, revealing a tall man in black clothes. His facial features were hid behind a plain white mask, depicting a stylized cat. What would have looked good on a Braavosi mummer looked frightening on this man. He had short black hair and all Jaron could see from his face was the area around the amber, almost cat-like eyes, showing deathly pale skin that reminded Jaron of a corpse. He was armed with a curved, eastern sword that was resting in a simple leathery sheath. Robb took a respectful bow in front of this man.
“I am honoured to meet you again”, he said and the man with the cat mask gave him a nod. “This is her?”, he asked with a deep, melodic voice, his amber eyes looking directly at Harpy. Jaron felt her trembling under his grip. She put on a good show, looking exhausted, distraught and like a frightened little girl. And even if he couldn't see it, he was sure that the masked man was smiling and believing every second of her charade.
“Tom, this is Ser Jaron the Bastard”, Robb explained, putting emphasis on the 'bastard' part. “I told you about him” The masked man gave him a nod. “You did”, he growled, his amber eyes looking back at Jaron. “I have heard a great deal about you, bastard. I am the Tom, leader of the Alley Cats”
“A brutal bastard”, Harpy hissed, shivering again as he switched his attention back to her, narrowing his eyes. Jaron gave him a nod. “I have heard about you”, he said, remembering what Martin had told him about these alley cats.
“Butterfly is going to meet us at a warehouse near the harbour. He's in a bad mood today, so we won't leave him waiting”, the Tom explained, stepping out of the building. “You will follow my lead. Try to run away and we will kill you. You can keep your weapons, but draw them and you will curse the day you were born. Butterfly is not afraid of a little toothpick, but he has no sense of humour either. Have you understood everything?” Robb and Jaron quickly gave him a nod and Jaron saw movement in the shadow behind the Tom.
Out of the door stepped the tallest man Jaron had ever seen. He wore a cat mask, similar to the one that was worn by the Tom, albeit his was stained with dark red blood, highlighting his eyes of a similar colour. The visible skin of the giant was sickeningly pale, as white as snow, the same colour his hair had. His arms were almost as thick as Harpy's upper body and he had to lower his head as he stepped out of the building.
“This charming fellow is the Moggy”, the Tom introduced him. “He will take the girl from now on, so that I can see your hands, Ser Jaron” He took a step closer, looking at Harpy again. “You try anything and he will break your arms like tiny twigs” With these words he looked back at the giant. “Moggy, take the girl”, he ordered him and the giant complied. He grabbed Harpy around the waist, effortlessly lifting her high in the air, laying her on his shoulder. A look of sheer terror was embedded on her face as she looked at Jaron and he wasn't sure anymore if she was just acting.
The Tom seemed to be satisfied by what he saw. “Good Moggy”, he complimented him with slow words as if he was talking to an animal, before he looked back at Jaron and Robb. “As I said, you can keep your weapons. But put a hand on them and you will loose both”, he warned them and started to walk down the alleyway. “Now follow me. Butterfly is waiting for you”
Robb and Jaron followed them, the giant Moggy walking behind them. The Tom lead them through narrow alleyways and dirty streets and soon, Jaron was completely lost. Few people crossed their path and anyone who looked at the Tom turned around immediately. A few people even started to ran away as soon as they saw him. A feeling of dread surrounded him and his freakishly huge companion and Jaron almost felt afraid now, despite trying his best to avoid it.
“Why have you betrayed the Burned Man?”, the Tom asked without turning around. Jaron closed his eyes for a moment. He had thought about this, had thought of a story that made sense. “Because I am a knight”, he answered. “Me and your boss, we have similar goals. We want justice in this city. I had to work for the Burned Man without having a real choice. Then I met Robb and learned of his desires to defect to your group”
The Tom nodded his head in satisfaction. “I see”, he snarled. “You are an idealist then. It makes sense. Half of Butterfly's Solvers are recruited from idealists. The other half are drawn to his violence like moths to lightning” He looked over his shoulder, his cat-like eyes piercing through Jaron. “He's an idealist too, in his own way. Play your cards right and he is going to like you”
Jaron doubted this, but he stayed silent, trying to minimize the conversation with this man. He wondered if all of Butterfly's men were like the Alley Cats, or if they were just the worst of them. And not for the first time today, he wondered if he was about to die.
Soon, they arrived at the docks, but not at the well maintained part where rich merchants kept their ships. No, they arrived at the part where goods were stored, where the buildings were interchangeable looking warehouses, tall buildings, some of them guarded by armed men, some of them looking empty. The Tom started to walk straightly at one of these empty warehouses and Jaron took a look over his shoulder. The Moggy was walking behind him, towering him and still holding Harpy over his shoulder. It clearly wasn't comfortable for her and she looked genuinely terrified. There was no trace of Himani and Jaron had the fear that the boy had lost them, or even worse, that Butterfly's men found him spying on them.
The Tom pointed at the open door of the warehouse. “After you”, he told them with a patronizing voice that caused Jaron and Robb to follow his order automatically. They entered the dark, seemingly empty warehouse. A single torch was standing in the middle of the hall, barely illuminating the area around her. “You're going to wait there”, the Tom ordered them after they all entered the building. The Moggy walked up to the small circle of light, throwing Harpy to the ground like a sack of spuds. She stayed on the ground, weeping in obvious fear. Jaron wanted to do nothing more than to pull her into a hug, to tell her that everything would be alright. But he did nothing of these things. He stood next to her and Robb, even giving her a glare that was meant to be cold.
The Moggy effortlessly closed the large gate of the warehouse, blocking out the weak rays of sunlight that had found their way into the building. Darkness surrounded everything outside of the small area that was illuminated by the torch. Out of the darkness, the Tom started to talk to them.
“You think you are smart, Ser Bastard”, he said with a mocking voice and his words caused Jaron to freeze in terror. “You think you can walk up here, pretending to switch sides, just so you can get an easy kill” Short, cold laughter filled the air, certainly coming from more than one throat. “What are you...”, Jaron stuttered, but was cut off by the Tom's voice. “We know everything. How you planned with that little whore down there, conspired to end this war in a single strike. You should have known that your attempts were futile. You should have left the city before even thinking about trying anything here”
Harpy slowly staggered to her feet, her shocked stare mirroring Jaron's. But soon her shock switched to anger, as she looked at Robb. The mercenary looked genuinely surprised, slowly taking a few steps backwards, out of the light. A deep, hissing sound was heard and he immediately jumped back into the circle, a terrified expression on his face. “What...?”, he stuttered. “I... I haven't...”
“You fucking traitor...”, Harpy mumbled as tears ran down her face. “You fucking traitor!” She screamed, attempting to charge at Robb. She was cut off by a new voice, deep, compelling, threatening. “STOP IT!”, the voice yelled through the darkness and Harpy stopped. She turned her head towards the direction of the voice and started to slowly walk towards Jaron.
“You are surrounded. My men are only waiting for an order”, the voice said again and the sound of footsteps was heard. Harpy staggered around Jaron, slowly pushing him between her and the direction of the voice, shivering as she huddled up against him. She was slightly squeezing his ribs, but Jaron hardly noticed it. What mattered was the man who finally came into his field of view, the man who caused him to pull out his sword. The cold sound of steel filled the air for a second, giving him a moment of hope. Feeling the blade in his hand calmed him down. And then he saw the man.
He was tall, not even close to the huge size of the Moggy, but taller than Jaron, his shoulders wider, his arms thicker. He was younger than Jaron imagined, being somewhere in his forties, wearing a brown and green tunic, armed with a crude looking short sword. He had a clean-shaven, but brutal looking face, reminding Jaron of a vicious dog, with messy dark hair atop his head. His eyes were brown and dull as a rock and he was eyeing Jaron with pure hatred in his stare. With every step he took closer, Jaron felt Harpy shivering behind him, tears flowing down her face as she was sobbing in fear. The man stopped walking closer as Jaron pointed his sword towards him. “That's close enough!”, the knight shouted, surprised about how weak his voice sounded.
The man gave him a cold, cruel smirk. “Trying to play the hero, you bastard?”, he asked, raising his left hand. Jaron saw movement in the dark, men surrounding him and Harpy. The man took another step forwards, this time not even bothering with Jarons shaking sword. He looked at him and at Harpy, who was still panicking. His smile got wider and as he spoke, his voice was deeper than before, more intimidating, as cold as ice, as brutal as a dragons fire. “Do you have any idea who I am?”, Butterfly asked him.
“You are Butterfly...”, Harpy mumbled, looking past Jaron. “You... you are Butterfly?” Her voice sounded as if she couldn't believe her eyes. “You look... you look like a common thug!” She gave Jaron a shocked stare. “I half-expected a monster, but you are just a street rat...”
Butterfly narrowed his eyes at her insult. “And you are a disappointment. I've heard about your beauty, but now that you stand here in front of me, with your eyes full of fear, I don't see it. What exactly are you, Ghiscari? Andal? I don't see the beautiful woman they promised me. I only see a filthy mongrel whore”
He looked back at Jaron. “And you... you made a terrible mistake in coming here today. I have been informed about every step of your plan”, he growled, giving Robb a quick glance. The mercenary looked genuinely dumbfounded, slowly raising his hands. “But... I... I have never...”, he stuttered as he looked at Harpy. “Please, you got to believe me, I am not a traitor!”, he shouted towards her.
Butterfly slowly shook his head. “Pathetic”, he snarled. “How you could ever put your trust in this man amazes me. Then again, you are not very clever, aren't you, bitch?” He walked another step forwards, putting a hand on Jaron's shaking blade. “You on the other hand... I admit you look more like a knight than I have imagined”
“What do you want?”, Jaron asked him, suppressing the urge to stab him now. No, he couldn't provoke a fight now, not without Martin's backup. If he would ever arrive. Butterfly gave him a wide, brutal smile. “Clever bastard”, he complimented him, like the Tom had complimented the Moggy earlier. “You plotted to kill me. It was a weak plan and doomed to fail the moment you trusted Robb. But that does not change the fact that you brought me a generous gift” His smile turned slightly lecherous as he looked at Harpy. “A truly generous gift. I have to thank you for that”
Jaron pressed his lips together, as the urge to kill this man grew stronger. He knew, his chances of survival got slimmer with every passing second. But even worse, his vivid imagination filled his minds with images of what Butterfly would do to Harpy.
“Hearing only her side of the story, you must think of me as some kind of monster”, Butterfly told him. “And to be honest, from her point of view most of the things she told you are true. But I think it should be clear that she is little more than a stupid child” He softly pushed the tip of Jaron's blade down. “An ignorant whore who could never see the truth, who could never see what I'd try to achieve”
His eyes reminded Jaron of a hungry wolf as he looked back at him. “But you... you are not a stupid child, am I right? You are smarter than that. Perhaps you can see what I try to achieve here”, he growled. Jaron narrowed his eyes, still refusing to allow his fear to control him. He had promised her, had promised Martin, had promised himself to keep her safe.
“And what are you trying to achieve?”, he asked. Butterfly's grin caused him to shiver “This city is sick”, he answered. “Infested with rats who feast on the good citizens of Oldtown. Rats like that little cunt behind you. You can't fight a sickness like that without making some sacrifices”
“Sacrifices!”, Harpy shouted, almost jumped up. “You rape and you torture and you kill! This is not a sacrifice! This is just you fulfilling your sick pleasures!” Her voice trembled with rage. “How can you dare justifying what you've done?” She put a hand on Jaron's healthy arm. “Kill him!”, she shouted. “Kill him!”
Butterfly yawned playfully. “Your tongue will be the first thing I'll take from you. Would make you a lot better”, he chuckled, before looking back at Jaron. “Attack me now and I will show you why this was the biggest mistake in all of your life. Try it and I will give you the same treatment I am going to give that slut behind you”
“Tell me what do you want?”, Jaron shouted at him, finally feeling his fear getting hold of him. “You could kill or capture us easily, but you prefer to talk. Why?” Butterfly raised an eyebrow. “Ah, now you're asking a good question. You see, I wasn't that interested in you when you entered the city. Another nuisance, but this time a knightly nuisance, working for the cripple. But when three of my men got killed, I admit I got a little curious”
He opened his arms widely. “And now I want to talk. Just you and me. I don't want us to be enemies. Imagine how much good you could do, fighting against the sickness in this city, together with me”, he explained. “You expect me to believe you?”, Jaron growled, feeling a thumping pain in his ribs, a reminder of the last time Butterfly got interested in him. “Your men tried to kill me not long ago!”
Butterfly gave him an almost apologetic grin. “True”, he answered. “I don't deny it, I wanted to see you dead. But that has changed. Now I'd like to recruit you, rather than killing you” Jaron shook his head. “You expect me to believe you?” Butterfly shrugged. “It doesn't matter if you believe me or not. I expect you to listen and I expect you to think about it. Working with me has benefits, benefits the Burned Man could never give you”
With these words, Butterfly took a look over Jaron's shoulder. “Of course I don't expect you to work for free. Whatever you want, I will give it to you. Money. Fame. Or perhaps you want that girl you're so desperately trying to protect right now”
Butterfly took another step closer, putting a hand on Jaron's left shoulder, applying uncomfortable weight on his wounded arm. “You can have her”, he whispered in his ear. “As long as you want. Of course, I'll take her first, but if you want you can have her before I really start with her”
He paused for a moment, putting his hand away from Jaron's shoulder before he took a step backwards, just out of reach of Jaron's sword. “And most importantly, you'll stay alive. I could kill you right now and while I doubt that you would go down without a fight, my men will defeat you. You are wounded and alone. That bitch behind you isn't worth shit and you know better than to put your trust in Robb, right?”
The mercenary was staying silent, his head hanging low, a shocked expression on his face as he was standing at the edge of the illuminated circle. The mentioning of his name caused him to look up to Butterfly, before he looked back at Jaron, slightly shaking his head, his eyes wide opened in fear.
“Of course, I expect a tiny bit of trust first. Put down your sword and step aside, so that I may deal with the whore behind you”, Butterfly snarled with a grin. “Ask anyone in this city. Provoking me is a bad idea. Lower your sword now or I will order my men to attack you. Lower your sword and I will spare you, trust me”
A drop of sweat ran down Jaron's face and Harpy behind him was tightly holding to his shoulders. “Don't do it”, she pleaded him. “Kill him. Don't do what he wants from you. Don't become his pawn, please!” The tone of her voice made Jaron wonder how much of her fear was acted and if she truly believed that he would do such a thing.
Of course, he could attack Butterfly now. The crimelord hadn't drawn his sword yet. A quick strike and it would be over. Or he could try to continue the talk, try to gain a bit more time for Martin, albeit this would risk him loosing any advantage if Butterfly would decide to attack him first. The mercenary was out there, gathering good fighters to take Butterfly down. He would come, he had to come! He wouldn't fail him, right?
And then another, darker thought crossed through Jaron's mind. Perhaps Martin wouldn't come. Perhaps Himani failed in following them, or worse. He was on his own. And he would die here if he would continue to stand against Butterfly. Dying here wouldn't be heroic... but was joining Butterfly truly any better?
[Attack Butterfly and try to gain an advantage] [Try to stall him by talking] [Accept Butterfly's offer and lower your sword]
A little bit, yeah. However, the hilarious reactions of my non book-reading friends as we were watching that episode together over a livestream made more than up for the mean cliffhanger at the end and the infuriating changes they made from the books in the Stannis and Dorne storylines. The Arya and Tyrion scenes were awesome though!
[Accept Butterfly's offer and lower your sword]
Amazing chapter. But In all seriousness, we need to survive. Live another day.
What if Jaron is sent to find Dairon? We can possibly let him go. Would you rather have some like the Moggy do that?
Think this through. Jaron can betray Butterfly once he's on the inside. He can save Harpy....the Urban Knights...Ellena
http://strawpoll.me/4651742
[Attack Butterfly and try to gain an advantage]- I want something like attacking Ludd Whitehill at Highpoint to happen (albeit Butterfly would probably not die).
[Try to stall him by talking]
Hard choice for me between killing him now and trying this, but lets just hope Martin will come.
[try to stall by talking]
Although, I dont see this being to effective in keeping Butterfly at bay, I think it will at least give Jaron a little time to find something useful or scout out some sort of advantage... Hopefully. Also, hell naw, you ain't gettin nowhere near Harpy.
Great chapter!
"his righ forearm", isn't his right forearm
(Try to stall him by talking)
This chapter is so fuking good that I don't have any words to describe or I may have, I just love it, kind of like Harpy. [Try to stall him by talking] Martin will die, someone will die! SHIT!
"Try it and I will give you the same treatment I am going to give that slut behind you" that mean he will rape Jaron? However he say "I don't see the beautiful woman they promised me" so probably he will just torture Harpy and Jaron...
[Try to stall him by talking]
[Try to stall him by talking]
[Attack Butterfly and try to gain an advantage]
[Accept Butterfly's offer and lower your sword] I hope I won't regret this but it could be a great opportunity or potentially a horrible mistake.
This was a fantastic chapter! I loved it and the choice was difficult the most difficult so far I think.
[Try to stall him by talking]
[Attack Butterfly and try to gain an advantage] I want some action !
I'm curious if Jaron ended up working for Maron Mullendore instead of the Burned man would he have crossed paths with Lucas and Leonard?
[Try to stall him by talking]