pullmeoutalive | Ramey

[Unlike Alec, Emily knows these streets all too well. The twists and turns of the alleys are nigh memorized, and even if she loses sight for a precious second, she can safely assume where she can catch sight of him again, following her mental map.

She knows, then, when he's made a wrong turn before he does. When he chooses the path of a dead end, she takes the opportunity to descend to the street, borrowing balconies and verandas to aid in her descent.

So when Alec comes to a halt, he may hear the sound of her boots hitting the pavement behind him. She isn't winded, but her breathing is harder.]

I'll ask you this once more -- who are you? And why did you run?

[ Alec turns to face her, calm as you please, hands in his pockets. ]

I ran because you threatened to arrest me.

[ He does not deign to answer her first question. ]

[She moves closer, unwavering in the face of his flippancy.]

I threatened to arrest you because you kept avoiding my questions. Which you continue to do even now.

If you were reasonable, maybe I wouldn't have to threaten you at all.

[ This was getting him nowhere, aside from dangerously close to actually being arrested, so he switches gears. ]

You remember I saved your bacon back there, right? How about you cut me some slack for helping you out?

[She stops where she's at, though it doesn't look like his words are truly giving her pause.]

Answer my questions and I might consider it.

[She considers that fair. Because despite everything, what he says is true; but if she allows even the smallest leniency, she has to make sure it's not something she'd regret.]

And if I tell you I was trying to break into that building, are you gonna arrest me?

[She frowns.] That wholly depends on what you were planning to do once you broke in.

[ He quirks a brow ] So it's not the breaking and entering that's the arrest-able offense, it's the... whatever I do after that? You people have some interesting laws.

Then let me be clear: breaking and entering is a crime in this city. But I'm willing to show a certain amount of lenience since you did... help me on the roof previously.

But that lenience only goes so far. [She's not going to let some grand terrible scheme go unnoticed, after all. Not that she trusts this man to tell her the truth, but she might be kind enough to let him off with a warning for now.

That also depends on how much he's willing to indulge her curiosity, selfishly enough as it is.]

Then I guess we’re at kind of an impasse. I was hired to break into that building, but I have this sort of client confidentiality… thing. My lips are sealed.

[ He shrugs, as if to say “sorry, not sorry”. ]

[She narrows her eyes, with both concern and disapproval.]

Breaking in to do what? What were you after?

[ Another shrug, though this one seems to say “eh” more than anything overtly cocky or flippant. ]

Anything, really. The guy who runs that place has been blackmailing my client for years. I’m here to level the playing field.

[Blackmail? That seems to give Emily pause, and the way she sets her jaw in consideration reveals at least that much.

She's torn between her duties as Empress; to not turn a blind eye to any wrongdoing in her city, or to further investigate allegations of blackmail.

Well. She did say she'd provide lenience. But she might add a stipulation or two.]

What does your client have on this individual, exactly?

[ He watches her carefully as she takes in what he has to tell her. He’s honestly not sure if the fact that his mention of the nature of the job seems to give her pause is a good thing or not. The last thing he needs is a cop (or who he assumes to be a cop) hanging around while he’s trying to work. ]

That’s getting into “do not discuss” territory.

[She's not quite the City Watch, though she has a vested interest in this city such as much as they do.]

You should consider discussing it if you want me to help you.

[ He can’t help the short little “ha!” that escapes him at her words. This lady was sure assuming an awful lot. ]

Here’s the thing, though: I don’t want you to help me.

[And now she can't help look indignant. The nerve of this man.]

You are treading upon the boundary of not having a choice. Unless you want to be taken into custody by the City Watch. I promise I can make life much more difficult for you here if you don't cooperate with me right now.

[ He gives her another considering look. Sure, he could be a total jackass about it- all he’s gotten out of this exchange so far has been a decent chase and an extremely annoying conversation- but he won’t deny that, for the moment, she has him cornered. Even with all his tricks, it’s going to be difficult getting out of here, and he’d still rather not wave magic in her face if he can help it. If playing along will get him out of this dead end, then so be it.

At length, he sighs, something resigned in his expression. ]

Fine, fine. I’m Jack, by the way. And you are?

[Some tension in her shoulders release -- barely noticeable, but there regardless. She realizes that despite his words, he may turn tail at any moment, but it's enough to make that crease in her brow not so stark.]

Emily. Emily Kaldwin.

[She hesitates. She should probably not even reveal that much, given that her nighttime excursions would give the court itself a fit if they knew what she was doing. But this man did save her from a treacherous fall, and he's seen her face as clear as day. It's not as if saying more would be any riskier than it already is.]

Empress Emily Kaldwin.

[ For once, he’s well and truly surprised, and mentally he’s caught between oh shit and yeah right. He settles on the latter- not because he doubts her, there’s something fiercely straightforward about her that doesn’t really suggest she’s one for outlandish lies, but because it’s easier to roll with. ]

Right. And I’m the king of France.

So, your Empress-ness, just how are you planning to help out, here?

Are you asking how, or are you really asking why? [She looks at him skeptically, not perturbed by his sarcasm. If he didn't believe her, then all the better. Still, she answers:] When I said I was training before, I wasn't lying. I've been doing so for years in both stealth and espionage. I can approach a situation like this with a subtle hand.

[And if she goes along, she gets to keep an eye on this stranger, while foiling a plot for potential blackmail, and all the complications that entails for both parties.]

A little of column A, a little of column B.

[ She probably wants to keep an eye on him, but surely that can’t be all. ]

You’re really making that whole “Empress” thing a hard sell, you know? I can’t imagine royalty moonlighting on rooftops and picking locks. But let’s say for the sake of argument that you come along, you help me out, and we uncover the whole blackmail plot. Then what?

I don't go around picking the locks of residencies. [But she totally has the ability to, if it was really necessary.] You don't need to concern yourself with what royalty does.

[She'd rather this particular... oddity of hers not be on the forefront of the conversation, anyway. So she's swift to answer his question.]

Then we unravel the details behind the actual blackmail. The repercussions depend on what we find, and that can be delegated to the daytime. In the courts. I'll see to it myself.

[ He narrows his gaze a little. Not out of suspicion, exactly, but because he has a feeling that if this really does play out, it’s gonna be rough. He doesn’t deal in justice. He deals in revenge. Sometimes the two coincide, but oftentimes they don’t.

Cautiously, he ventures, ]

And what about me?

[She chooses her words carefully. She doesn't want to be misleading; she has every intention of being straightforward, of him being aware of what she's offering so he can act accordingly.]

You? If you help me untangle and resolve this issue of blackmail tonight, I'll pretend that I never saw you. I can grant you at least that much.

But I also never want to see you traipsing across the rooftops at night ever again.

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i'm alive i swear

welcome back <3

thank you!

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