FFXIVwrite prompt 3: shifting blame
"A-and that's when he jumped at me."
Sergeant Carter, Yellowjackets Galadion Bay detachment, tore his gaze away from the flames billowing out of the windows carved into of one of the towering islets of Limsa Lominsa's residential districts, redirecting his attention back to the dark-haired young lady standing in front of him.
She was clad in the fairly distinctive coatee-and-skirt uniform of a courtesan of one of the bigger Bloodshore resorts at Costa del Sol, and dabbing at her eyes as she watched her apartment burn to the... well, figuratively to the ground. The apartments in this islet were carved out of the stone, so the fire was fairly easily contained, even if there wasn't an easy way to put it out.
"What did ye say happened again, miss?"
"He just... he just broke in while I was making dinner." The courtesan sniffled waterily, and the grizzled veteran Yellowjacket felt a twinge of sympathy despite himself. "He must have followed me home from the resort... he wouldn't leave me alone. He just kept yelling and then told me to get out and the next thing I knew... all my things are in there." A half-stifled sob. "Did he get out? Isn't there anything you can do?"
Carter coughed, glancing up at the apartment window. There were only two ways out, the door and that, and... "I don't see how if he lit it on fire with himself inside, miss. We'll have to wait and see when it burns itself out."
He shifted awkwardly as she burst into a renewed round of sobbing, patting her awkwardly on the shoulder. He didn't get paid enough for this.
Three hours later, after the thoroughly charred corpse had been recovered from her apartment and the whole thing had been duly logged in the Yellowjacket charter as a tragic revenge-suicide, Ylaine let herself in through the side door of the Dutiful Sisters of the Edelweiss's convent, near the Limsa fishermens' guild. A familiar face was waiting for her.
"Whiddled some cove'd flutter home in her wake long afore now, dove," her handler laughed. The big middle-aged Sea Wolf woman, a rogue who preferred the codename Thumper to her real name, had been working with her since she was a teenager. "Should count yeself lucky it took this long. Bene cover, though. Little bees'd never-"
Ylaine sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Talk like a normal person please, darling. Speaking like that inside the convent where we've no chance of being overheard by outsiders is so gauche."
Thumper burst into loud, long laughter. "Comin' up on twenty years since we took ye in, still haven't got used to speakin' cant. Never change, Targeter."
"I speak it just fine. If you wanted me to like it you should have thought of that before you had me professionally educated, darling."
The Roegadyn grinned, imitating Ylaine's posh accent briefly. "Aye, maybe so, darling." She shook her head, lifting the dossier in her hand. "In any event. Yer still sure ye want out of the resort postin'? Covered yer tracks on this one well enough that it'd be fine."
"Yes." Ylaine shook her head. "Frankly, I've been considering it for a while. This is just the last straw. Gegeruju will just have to get used to whoever you replace me with."
"Aright, then." Thumper passed over the paperwork. "Since ye used Lanie as yer workin' name at Costa ye can use pretty much anythin' ye want other'n that for yer new cover ID, just pick the assignment ye want, fill these out and we'll have Mizzenmast file 'em. Other'n that, I suggest a hair color change. No more purple makeup, least not for a while. Maybe an affectation. Ye'd look cute in glasses."
"I look cute in everything. I think I'll go back to natural red. It's been a while." Ylaine paged through the list of options before selecting one, scribbling her name on the bottom and handing it to Thumper. "This'll do."
Thumper squinted down at the paper. "Maelstrom legal, judge advocate general's office. Really? Never pegged ye for a desk job."
"I'm in the mood for something relatively relaxing." Ylaine flashed her counterpart a grin. "This way I can spend some time doing my civic duty and put that education you all paid to get me to proper use."
"'Civic duty'." Thumper snorted, folded the paper and stuffed it into a coat pocket. "Go find somewhere to crash, get some rest."
Ylaine slipped out the back shortly thereafter, ghosting along towards the airship docks. Lieutenant Marleigh has a ring to it, she mused. This should be different.
