It took only a few moments before the slight tug of a smile on his face had grown into a fully-formed grin, and Urick was unable to help but recall a number of fine things from the years before - how Nowe, having just been taken under Oror's care, had so eagerly done the same to the disdain of the Knights, how he himself had commonly played in the mud himself as a child at the orphanage - surprisingly, it was a comfort in the sense that his previous worries of an orphan wandering the streets of the City of Rust were proven null with the reminder that she was, in nearly every sense he had seen so far, just like him. A girl with no family or home from what he was aware, but still a girl.
Absentmindedly, Urick flicked the last few stray drops of rain from his hair. It was only a sprinkle, now, but veil enough for the meantime. His head turned briefly upwards towards the gradually clearing sky, and then just as quickly down towards the girl he watched with some sense of curiosity that ran as deep as his nostalgia.
...He wasn't sure exactly why she seemed so intent on following him this far, Urick was. Then again, he very well might have enabled it with his own concern - he had thought that simply giving her room in an inn to stay for the night would be enough and he could have been on his way, but surprisingly, she had somehow managed to find her way back to him that very next day to thank him. It was a sweet gesture, he had recalled, though the question of how she managed to find him was a perpetual bother on his mind.
Still, she had arrived that day, and then he had occasionally spotted her the next as well. He certainly didn't mind her presence, and in fact had even welcomed it on rainy days such as this, but the possibility of a spy being sent from the Knights - or even that Yaha - was one that had slowly begun to creep into his mind. That the girl merely seemed innocent enough wasn't justification on its own terms was something even Urick had struggled to accept. What could he do? He liked to think he was above harming a child, knew he was when it was merely fear and idle suspicion he was faced with, and as much as he didn't like the thought, the "Masked Man" of the City of Rust was certainly confident in his ability to take on a few Knights if they ever should be called in to take him down...
...But more than that, and he had grown unfortunately well-aware of it, his conscience simply wouldn't allow himself to keep going without some certainty that child was safe. He knew it well - he didn't want to run away and leave an innocent, this time a young girl, to the wolves again. For that, he decided to keep her company... At least, for however long she would have wanted.
Still, he wanted to ask, not just in his own paranoia but genuine curiosity: Who was she? Where did she come from? Such a carefree demeanour didn't suggest a hard life without parents or family, but then again - he would know - most orphans were just that. Still, she didn't seem like anyone from anywhere he was familiar with, even during his time in the Knights.
Urick wanted to ask, but knew it wouldn't be fair. Not without his own story to give in fair exchange; something he had no plans to tell at any other time.
A hand ran through his hair - far more damp-feeling than he would have liked. Urick finally stood up and dusted himself off. What a boon to have found an inn willing to keep them from the rain for so little a cost that he would have just as well assumed to be welcome company. Unwelcome words and rumours on the street often stilted his luck in finding a place to stay in the few times he actually needed it (It had always been a risk compared to sleeping on the streets, he had come to find, though the existence of a young tag-along couldn't be helped), but as he had so recently learned, some of the resulting fear could actually come in useful for those too cowardly to say "No."
"Hey, Daffodil," Urick called over his shoulder to get her attention. "I'll be heading inside now. Feel free to follow whenever you're ready."
"Remember, watch your steps when coming in. You never know who might be watching... Oh- And one more thing: Be sure not to catch yourself a cold out in this rain here, either. It isn't easy to care for someone when you're on the streets, and I would hate to have you running ill."
The door closed behind him with an eerie creak, and Urick continued on.
germansingergirl
yousharknotpass
ellievsbear
jbbartram-illu
izzy806
prguitarman
kaledo-art
