pullmeoutalive | Ramey

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.

[ Everything about Emily just screams “straightforward”, so he knows he can take her at her word. To be honest, she’s offering him a pretty solid deal, whether he opts to take it or not, so that’s not really the issue.

He holds up a finger. ]

One caveat. The people I work for don’t feel like they can go to the authorities without making their situation worse. That’s why they come to me instead. No matter what happens, I want your word that none of this is gonna come back around to bite my client in the ass.

[She pauses, the hesitation clear. Emily wishes it were so easy to make such promises. But considering that she doesn't know the details of the blackmail itself, it's impossible for her, as Empress, to turn a blind eye to higher offenses; she can't be complacent and pretend to be ignorant about something that might affect her city in unforeseen ways.

There are always more subtle ways of dealing with things, if it came down to that, though. Corvo could help her, if this was something to be kept out of the public eye -- as long as she found it reasonable, and not an act of say... a murder cover-up, or something similar.]

As long as your client isn't a murderer, or something as equally reprehensible, then you have my word.

[ He snorts. ] You’re quite the saint, aren’t you?

No murders involved, I promise, so we shouldn’t have a problem.

[She isn't particularly bothered right now what this man thinks of her. She's doing what she believes is necessary. (Let's just hope it doesn't backfire on her, at the end.)]

We'll see.

[With this tenuous agreement in place, Emily doesn't want to dawdle.] You lead the way.

Age before beauty, is that it?

[ They may have an agreement of sorts, sure, but that doesn’t mean Alec’s going to be easy to deal with at all. As for having her behind him, well, he’s not too worried.

He heads to a nearby fire escape and begins climbing back to the roof. He spent quite a while going over a map of the city, apparently not long enough, but he should be able to make his way back to his mark easily enough. Once on the roof, he turns to her. ]

I assume you’re not gonna freak out if I run so I can make the jump, right?

[She wants to say something snide in return, but years of practice leashing her unbidden words kick in; she doesn't respond to his remark, deeming it nothing worth responding to.

She follows with ease, climbing up the ladder close behind him. She straightens her coat when they reach the roof, looking at him critically.]

Why would I? I'll be right behind you. [-she says with an edge of a challenge in her tone.]

[ He quirks a brow, noting her challenge with a slight smirk. So, this is how it’s going to be, huh? ]

Just making sure.

[ With that, he takes off, running and leaping onto the next roof over with ease. He’s not much for conversation as they go from rooftop to rooftop- he’s still trying to figure out how best to deal with this situation. He could use his wards and ditch her thanks to his camouflage and his enhanced speed, but given that she knows the location of his intended target, that wouldn’t do him much good.

He ultimately decides it’s better to keep her close for now, and in short order, they arrive back at the roof where this whole mess started.

He turns to her with a grin. ]

Try not to fall off this time.

[She follows wordlessly, tracing his path almost to the tee. She doesn't want to lose ground with him, just in case he decides to pull something with those strange powers of his. But quietly, there's a part of herself that doesn't want to be shown up by him, either. And so her footing is surer than the last time, and Emily's jumps are nearly forceful in their landing, as if coercing herself to secure her boots to the rooftop.

She looks at him a tad defiantly after their last jump.]

You're hilarious. Does everyone have to put up with your big mouth, or is the pleasure all mine? [She sounds more annoyed than actually irritated.]

I usually work alone, so nobody has the pleasure of dealing with me but me. This really is your lucky day.

[ He shrugs, moving to a gaudy skylight in the center of the roof, all swirling, ornate metal and wide panes of glass. There appears to be a library or observatorium of sorts just inside, and about a ten-foot drop to the floor. He crouches near the lock at the base of the skylight, glancing over his shoulder at her. ]

Keep an eye out, would you?

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i'm alive i swear

welcome back <3

thank you!

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