a story of revenge and of letting go @turnabout-thief - Tumblr Blog

Sep 19, 2018

>wake up

A cat stretches out on their bed, yawning widely. Another day back to the grind, they didn't have too much time to loiter. They got up, doing their best to work out the small crick in their neck, slipping on their sweater. They glanced at their clock, not too late, yet, maybe they had some time to relax.

Their name is Acie, and they're ready to face yet another very boring day. They'd be lying if they said they didn't just live in plain monotony at this point. But whatever, it was this or lay down and die, and they'd rather not do that. Monotony it is.

>look around

They look around the room. It's just a dinky little abandoned house in the middle of town, but it's home for now. Until they have to move again, at least. There's a few spots where they hid their money, they're not stupid enough to do otherwise. They also have a few changes of clothes and some personal effects stashed away. It looks pretty terrible outside. As it always does. They're fairly used to it.

>check out the window and think

They look outside. Forecast for today is cloudy with a side of dank! Thank you for tuning into the weather channel. The skies in this city have always been just, really dank, and very sad. Probably all the smoke and exhaust. In a way, they missed their old home, but this place felt more right for them. Besides, there were more monsters here than most places. Which was, unsurprisingly, why it was so absolutely fucking awful, decrepit, and dangerous.

>think about your old home

There isn't really much to think about. They lived there with their par and their family friends. It was a nice place, though. They were still pretty little when they left, so they don't remember it all too well.

>turn on some music

Nope. They don't have a radio or anything, and even if they did, they don't have the time to wait around. They have to get something done today.

>brush teeth

No time. Plus they don't have a toothbrush or toothpaste. Dental hygiene isn't top priority.

>what do you have to do

Their job. After all, they need money for food and other stuff. They pull on some sweat pants and stretch, there's time for a little more loitering.

>what is your job

Well, to put it simply, Acie is a thief. A pretty expert one at that. They take jobs most thieves wouldn't, and that gets them some reputation in the City. Anyone who can be used against someone else is fairly useful around here. They don't have a job today, though, so they'll just see what they can do.

>get breakfast

They suppose they have some time. They grab a granola bar and munch on it. They sigh, stretch again, and walk to the door, leaning against it. It's not that late, anyways.

>eat waffles

They don't have any.

>view inventory

They have on them; -$20. -A switchblade. -A pendant.

>check pendant

It's a gold pendant with a bright red gem in the center. Their par gave it to them. They use it as a good luck charm.

>check time

2 PM. Plenty of time, but they don't really want to be outside when it gets dark. They stretch, yawning again, then pass through the front door, looking around. They kept an eye out for anyone who looked especially wealthy. They let out a yelp as someone knocked into them, though managed to stay upright with a quick slide of a back paw to keep their balance. Who the fuck--?! "Sorry!" They hear, though the rabbit monster doesn't stop running. They take a quick step back, watching as a few cat monsters and... Was that a nekomata? Whatever. Cats. Running after them. The small group ran past them, hot on the rabbit's heels. Fucking. Bunnies.

Whatever. They'd grabbed the last cat's wallet.

>go to work

Well, technically they just did. They open the wallet, looking at the contents.

...Were those hundred dollar bills?

That was an entire week's worth of earnings, wow. They didn't even have to work today now. They blink as their phone buzzes, picking it up and putting it to their ear.

"Hi there. Is this the thief?" Her voice is sweet like honey. Why is someone like that calling them?

"Um... Who's asking?" They reply, slipping into one of the many familiar alleyways.

"My name is Grace," she says. "I have a job for you. You see, there's a certain pink rabbit monster with some very worrying items." Before they could ask how much money was involved, she continued. "Two hundred dollars."

"Deal." They don't even have to think about it, really. The girl on the line gives them an address to transport the items to. This should be an easy job, bunnies aren't very formidable, not to mention they know exactly where the target is. Two hundred isn't a bad reward for something so easy.

>give chase

They have a reason to chase after that rabbit now. They slip out of the alleyway and start on their way, cutting through alleyways and eventually getting up onto a rooftop to get a birds-eye. It was easy to spot the rabbit monster, pink was not a good choice if you wanted to be inconspicuous.

It seems the cats had stopped following them now, they're just standing around catching their breath. Something about them seems.... Familiar. Weird. But whatever. Acie has a job to do.

>keep going

Well, there are a couple ways to go about this. They could, of course, just run up and grab whatever they were holding, which was their go-to option, but they could use some trickery if they wanted to. Still, there was no real point to that right now, they're fast enough to get away from some bunny.

They hop from the rooftop, using nearby objects to get down safely. Their legs could take a lot of force, of course, but no need to hurt themselves. They look around to make sure the coast is clear, then start sneaking up, using any shadows to their advantage to get close. Easy job. Bunnies couldn't really fight back or even see in the dark well enough to spot them until it was too late.

They got close enough, then dashed forward, trying to physically tear the cargo away from their target. To their surprise, it didn't budge. The bunny held fast, narrowing their eyes at them and raising a foot.

Oh Jesus fucking Ch--

Acie quickly dodges to the right, though the rabbit's foot still grazes their side with a surprising amount of force, throwing them off balance. What the hell? Rabbit mobsters were not this strong. They just weren't. No time to think about it though, the bunny was already raising a foot to kick again. Oh lord.

>check around

They're kinda busy!

>dodge and fight back

They manage to dodge the second kick, turning their body slightly so the rabbit's foot wouldn't hit. They unsheathed their claws, lashing out and aiming for the face. They were done playing mx. nice thief.

To their surprise and mild horror, the bunny caught their paw and proceeded to twist their arm. The cat monster hissed in pain, stopping their struggle for fear of this stupid bunny breaking their arm. Either they were getting weaker or this bunny was not normal, and they were leaning towards the latter.

"Let go!" They hissed, though didn't move. They kind of needed their arms. The bunny squinted at them, then released their arm, kicking them back a bit. Definitely not as hard as they could've.

"Next time I won't go easy on you," the bunny warned, walking off. They didn't bother giving chase, instead just rubbing their aching joints. Fucking. Bunnies.

>relocate your arm

Their arm is alright. Just a bit sore. Still, they could've easily done that, which is kind of frightening. They do a windmill with their arm to stretch it a bit, rubbing their shoulder with a small wince. Thank goodness it didn't get dislocated. They kind of sucked at healing magic.

They looked around, though the bunny was already pretty much gone. Dick. They rubbed their head with a grumble, huffing. They might as well go to the drop spot and tell their client what happened, because they're not going after that bunny.

>call your client

Nah, fuck it. The drop spot isn't far, might as well just meet her in person. They get walking, rubbing their shoulder as they went. Sucked that they didn't get the job done, but they already got enough money for a days' work. They blinked, pausing as they slipped through a dark alley and pulling their pendant out of their sweater. They drew some shadow to themselves and then into the pendant. An emergency supply, just in case. They weren't the best at magic, but it would help. They put the pendant away again.

They arrive at the drop spot, a cute little house near the center of town. Weird, they were all usually vandalized, at least a little. Not even spray paint on this one! It actually made them just a tad bit uneasy. They clutch at the spot their pendant is hidden, keeping their eyes peeled, and walk in.

It's actually just as nice inside as it is outside. Though, the first thing they notice is how many cats there are. Just, cat monsters, everywhere. They do their best to look for Grace, but they don't even know what she looks like, so they just have to stand there awkwardly.

"Hey!" They're startled by a voice, whipping their head around to see who spoke. A wolf monster. Those weren't too common around here. They made their way over, slipping through the crowds until they were right in front of Acie. "You must be the thief, right?" They don't even really wait for a response. "Grace is out right now. But if you follow me I'll show you somewhere you can wait for her."

"Oh, um... Alright," they reply hesitantly, following the wolf back through the crowds. This was surreal.

>question them

"Who are you?" They ask while they're following the canine. Might as well, if they're gonna be around this person the whole time until Grace got there. The wolf glanced back at them, blue eyes calm, though something about their demeanor made them feel as though they were on edge.

"...Call me Candy," they replied simply, making their way into a hallway and then into an empty room. They let out a quiet sigh of relief. Didn't like being around so many people, maybe? They could understand that. Acie's nose twitched, head tilting slightly.

Candy smelled like cherries. They hadn't picked up a magic signature like that since they were a kid. Red was very rare, usually it only came from long family lines of them. Powerful magic users, usually, and their affinity in certain... very threatening areas was the strongest of any color. Not to be trifled with, definitely. Candy gives them a weird look, so they stop scrutinizing. They'd rather not find out how keen this wolf is with magic if they don't have to.

>question further

"There's a lot of people here," Acie commented, doing their best to sound like they weren't questioning the wolf. Candy just nodded softly, eyeing them. Seemed they'd have to be more direct. "Why's that?"

Candy blinked at them, squinting. "Classified," they replied simply. Were they trying to scare them? It wasn't really working. The wolf looked away, like they were keeping an eye out for something. "You never gave me your name."

"Nope," Acie replied simply, crossing their arms. "Names have power. You could be some kinda name thief."

"Those... don't exist anymore?" They replied, tilting their head.

"They thought the same thing about monsters for a while."

"...Touché." Candy let out a huff, looking away again.

>more on name thieves

Well, they were a subclass of monsters. They were shapeshifters, and if they got your name from you, they could control you easily. They all died off or vanished during the war. Acie isn't really afraid of them, they just wanted an excuse to not give their name.

>question candy

"So who's this Grace girl?" Acie asked, looking up at the wolf.

"She's, well... Sweet?" Acie isn't stupid. It really blatantly sounds like Candy is lying through their teeth. "Just. Watch your step around her, y'know?"

"Mm," Acie hums, raising a brow. Seems that's all they're getting about this mysterious Grace.

>question further

"So how'd you get here?" They asked, blinking.

"I mean, I do kinda live here?" Candy gave them an odd look. Yeah, probably not the brightest question, but how were they meant to know?

>more questions

"So what do you do?" Acie questioned. Candy blinked at them.

"You ask a lot of questions," they replied, tilting their head like a confused puppy. It'd be cute if Acie weren't still vaguely concerned about being murdered or something. "Not much, really," they said, looking away. Riveting.

>eavesdrop

They can't. Candy is. Blocking the door? Acie tries to squeeze around them, but they get nudged back. "Hey, no. Just wait in here." There's some sort of warning in their voice, but it doesn't feel like they're threatening to harm Acie or anything. Bizarre.

"Fine," Acie grumbled, backing up to where they were before. Seems leaving isn't an option right now.

>chill

Acie decided to just relax for a few minutes while they waited, leaning up against a wall and puffing out a sigh. Candy was quiet for a minute or two, then spoke up. "You were supposed to have a package, yeah?"

"Yeah," Acie replied cautiously, keeping an eye on the wolf. "Didn't get it. That bunny is a monster. No pun intended." Candy snorted anyways.

"Oh well. I don't know why she chose you for the job when a group of cat monsters couldn't even catch them," Candy said, blinking. Acie's face flushes in a mix of embarrassment and anger.

"Hey. Just because I didn't get it this time doesn't mean I won't be able to the next. I'm doing this job, just you wait," they hissed, crossing their arms. Candy seemed a bit surprised at their outburst.

"Oh, um. Well, okay, I guess?" They mumbled, confusion clear on their face.

>...

Acie decided to just sit there and think while they waited. Though, it wasn't long until Candy spoke up again. "You're not a normal cat monster, are you?" They questioned, glancing over at them.

"Just what do you mean by that?" Acie shot back, eyes narrow.

"I mean that you don't act like one. Are you... a familiar?"

"What does it matter to you?" Acie huffed, crossing their arms. Candy put their paws up in a sign of surrender.

"Okay, okay, I was just curious," they said, looking away.

>question them

"How many familiars have you seen?" Acie asked suspiciously, narrowing their eyes. "Since you know so much about them."

"Only a few," Candy replied, crossing their paws behind their back. Seems they ignored the slight.

>question further

"So what exactly... Do you do here?" Acie questioned, tilting their head. "You seem important around here."

"Um, well..." They paused, looking away. "I'm Grace's second in command, I guess. So I'm pretty high rank around here. It's nothing that special."

"So you're... in her good graces?" Acie prodded, wide grin on their face. Candy just raises a brow, but they probably found it funny deep down, maybe.

>start shouting

Nope, nope, nope. Absolutely not. They couldn't beat Candy in a fight if such an action upset them, not in a confined area like this. Their main ability is speed and agility, they can't use that here. Besides that, Candy is a redheart. Even if they were to somehow beat them here, there was absolutely no guarantee that they wouldn't just respawn. All in all, they'd rather just wait it out.

>...

"....So...." Candy began, fiddling with the ends of their sleeves. "How'd the master thief get bested by a bunny?" Acie huffed, glaring at them and crossing their arms.

"I underestimated them. It won't happen next time." It was only a half-truth, they had underestimated them, but they weren't sure if they could beat the rabbit, even at their best. Maybe some trickery was in order.

"Hmm," Candy hummed, blinking. "Well, Grace should be here soon. Just be patient."

>call grace

They only want to do that if they have to. Something about Grace just makes them uneasy, and they haven't even officially met. Besides, Candy said she'd be here soon.

>ask about teams

Nope, nope, nope, they're not that incapable. They just underestimated the rabbit. They can do it on their own next time. They're certainly not asking Candy for help when they already doubt Acie's abilities. That'd just prove their point.

>copy candy

Acie fiddled with their sleeves, much like Candy was doing. The wolf looked at them quizzically, which quickly got them to stop. A bit embarrassing. Just a little bit.

>whistle

...Acie... can't whistle. Even if they could, they'd rather not. If they can get any information out of Candy then they should do that instead, while they have the time.

>be patient

They're doing their best right now. They just need to get whatever information they can from Candy.

"So," Candy started up again, seemingly as bored as Acie, "where'd you come from?”

"Eh?" Acie blinked at the wolf, tilting their head slightly.

"Well, I get the feeling you weren't born here. You don't act like it." Acie decided not to take that as an insult.

"Well, caught me, I guess." Acie shrugged. "'M from the Capital."

"The Capital?" Candy repeated, a bit of disbelief in their voice. "Really? You don't seem the type."

"What type?"

"Er... Nevermind." Candy shook their head. Acie isn't really sure if they should push it or not.

>think about the capital

Acie was born in the Capital. It's one of the biggest, fanciest cities around the area. Monsters weren't all that welcome, though. Honestly, Acie doesn't know what Candy means by that. It wasn't that bad, it was definitely better than here. They actually had police.

>think about how you got here

Easy. They walked. Hitched rides when they could. This city isn't too far away, not far enough that they couldn't make it there in around two or three days.

>think about why you're here

Because they personally hated the Capital. Too stuffy, too big, too judgmental. In this city, most of the population were monsters. It was better here for them. Besides, they'd found a way to make a living here that they couldn't do in the Capital, because there were actually cops to catch them.

>think about cops

The Capital has police because humans live there, so they're kind of obligated to care. The City, on the other hand, has hardly any humans, so the government couldn't care less. There are detectives, but no government ones. Freelancers.

>think about other monsters

Not all other monsters are thieves. That's just Acie's profession. Most of the monsters here are pretty criminal, though. Hitmen and gangs and stuff. In other places they're pretty normal, though.

>think about police

Well, if a monster got caught, it certainly wouldn't just be a slap on the wrist. They'd go to jail or just get shot. That's why Acie is glad no police live here.

>...

Candy is on their phone, doing... something. "What're you up to?" They asked curiously, trying to get a glimpse at the wolf's phone. Candy pulled it to their chest, squinting.

"Talking to Grace. Apparently she's busy, but she says it's fine and she'll give you a new target in a bit." The monster moves off of the door, allowing them a way out. Well, this was more or less a waste of time. Candy opened the door, taking a step to leave, then paused, looking back at Acie. "...Look. If you're smart, you won't take that new job. Trust me," they said simply, leaving the room.

Well, that was strange. Didn't they work for Grace too? Oh well, she paid well, and it'd likely just be easy jobs. Either way, it was time for them to go. Or snoop, but they weren't that stupid. Off they went through the door, blending in fairly well with all of the cat monsters.

...They felt a chill up their back. Turning their head, they saw a black and white nekomata. They shuddered slightly. What was his problem? Whatever, they were out of here. They had to get home before dark.

>follow the nekomata

Absolutely not. That thing looks like it has an issue with Acie and they'd rather not get drive-by shanked or something. Best to leave it alone.

>go home

Gladly. Off they walked, a bit faster than before. Out to the town, where it was marginally safer. Only the bolder ones would try to pull something where so many people could see. Acie headed towards home, snatching a bit of shadow and storing it in their amulet on the way. You could never be too careful.

They spotted a bit of pink fur on their way back, immediately turning their attention to it. Of course the damn rabbit was still out here, ugh. It seemed the bunny had spotted them, too, as they turned and met Acie's gaze. It was odd, how they seemed so familiar, but Acie couldn't remember where they'd seen them before. Who are you?

Whatever. They weren't going to try again today, it was getting dark. They hurried home, though their head was spinning a bit. Eventful day, huh.

>eat something

Sure, why not. Acie treats themselves to another granola bar. Fun.

>shower

Not right now. They'd rather just chill for a bit.

>rest

Very gladly. They flopped onto their bed, time for some relaxation.

>text a loved one

Bold of you to assume they have one.

>watch a movie

Oh, they wish. They don't even have a TV, unfortunately.

>play a game, read a book

Unfortunately, they can't really do any of that. Mainly due to them only having the bare necessities. Most of what they could do was just, lay down and think. They needed to, anyways, after such an odd day.

They'd never failed. Not at this. Especially not to some rabbit. Some oddly familiar bunny. Why did they know them? Who were they? Why were they so strong? Acie threw an arm over their face, grumbling. Another thing they had to think about was Candy. A red heart would be a nice ally to have. Red magic was intensely powerful, and the most useful of any color. Acie themself was a red heart, although they weren't about to off themself to see the affects. Candy seemed physically stronger than them, anyways. Which was fine, they were on the same side. For now, anyway.

>play on your phone

Nah. They don't want to run down their battery too hard. Besides, right now it's thinky-thinky time.

>check your contacts

They flip their phone open, looking at their mostly barren contact list. Grace is on it, they saved her number. Other than that, there's a few clients they've worked with before, along with a few familiar names that they don't really want to think about.

>check the news

No real point. They get all the news they really need from the people outside. News spreads really fast in the City.

>sleep

They guess there's nothing better to do right now. They lay back, closing their eyes and quickly dozing off.

"...ey..."

"Hey, Acie, wake up!" They feel a tap on their head, waking them up from their slumber. "Rise and shine, dork. You're gonna sleep all day!"

"I'm a cat, what d'ya expect?" Acie retorted, looking up at the monster in front of them.

"Well, it's already way late and I wanna play!" The rabbit monster huffed, pouting at them.

"Very persuasive. I'm up, give me a sec." Acie rubbed their eyes, yawning. The rabbit perked up, bright smile on their face.

"Good! It's really nice out! Momma said we could play outside today." They grinned, arms outstretched to their sides.

This is Dakota. They're Acie's friend. Acie is their familiar or whatever, but neither of them really care about that too much. After all, they're still just kids. Dakota's older than them, though, a little.

>get up

Acie pulled themself up, stretching their arms over their head. Better not upset the fluffbutt. Besides, they don't wanna waste the whole day.

>check the time

Acie looked around for their clock, but before they could even read through their sleep-blurred eyes, Dakota spoke up. "It's one PM," they said, blinking. They really do know Acie too well.

"Thanks," Acie replied, rubbing their eyes.

>get ready for the day

Acie got out of bed, getting dressed in their sweater and a pair of sweatpants. Low effort is their middle name. They're ready to go.

>chat with dakota

"So what's up?" Acie asked, stretching again and letting out a wide yawn.

"Nothing much. But I'm already done studying 'n' stuff for the day, so we can just go play." Dakota has always been more energetic than Acie, they just care more in general. Acie scraped by on the bare minimum, rolled with the punches, just did what they needed to and no more. Dakota, on the other hand, always put their full effort into everything and went above and beyond where they could. Acie guessed that was only what was expected of them, since they were Princette of Monsters, but Acie was the familiar of the Princette of Monsters, so it was probably expected of them, too. Oh well.

"I can do my stuff later, we can go play."

Their mom was gonna end them.

>go play

They and Dakota headed outside. The area was enclosed, but large, part of the castle. Made sure they were safe. It was too much of a risk for either of them to go out into the open, their mom said. Oh well, they didn't really care much, Dakota and their brother were here and that was enough company for them.

"Tag?" Dakota grinned, rocking on their heels. Acie snorted, that was a very one-sided game. Dakota had some height on them, plus they were just faster. They didn't mind, though.

"Sure. You're it!" Off Acie went, running as fast as they could and even dropping onto all fours for the extra speed. They were quick on their paws, but Dakota was still obviously faster, quickly gaining on them. Acie kept their eyes straight ahead, though their ears turned backwards to keep tabs on how close their rabbit friend was. They had enough time.

They'd reached a wall of the yard, springing up as high as they could and kicking against the stone surface with their back paws. It worked well enough, they flew backwards over Dakota's head, but they hadn't really gotten a hang of the landing part yet.They ate dirt. And, of course, they'd managed to scrape their knee up pretty badly. They let out a hiss of pain, pulling their pant leg up to look at the damages. The fur was already darkened where it'd skidded the ground. Dakota was quick to get back over to them, sitting down in front of them and checking the damages.

"Ouch," they mumbled, frowning. "Oh! Hold on, watch this." They grinned, placing a paw over the wound. Their paw glowed with green magic, and once they removed their paw, all that was left of the scrape was a small dark spot. Acie pulled their pant leg back down.

"You're getting really good at that," they commented with a smile, rubbing their head.

"Thanks! You know, that was really cool. You just need to get the landing part down." Dakota smiled, moving to sit next to them. Acie snorted.

"Kinda noticed, fluffbutt. Thank you, though." They smiled, crossing their paws in their lap.

>hug dakota

Acie suddenly gets the urge to hug their friend. So they did. Dakota wrapped their arms around them, giggling. "Whoah, what's that about?" After a few moments without a response, Acie feels them grow a bit worried. "...Acie?" They asked, head tilting slightly.

"Do you... Ever miss someone, even though they're right next to you?" Acie asked softly, rubbing their eyes. Were they crying? Why were they crying? Dakota rubbed circles into their back, one ear flopping onto the cat's head.

"Sometimes," they replied simply.

Acie woke up in their bed, tears in their eyes. And then they just curled up. It wouldn't hurt to cry for a couple hours. Or more hours.