Secret Mission [Day 5, Early Night-Midnight, Task, Expecting]

[Ikkit the Bastard]

"How'd you get Fekt?"

He paused.

Then crawled up out of the bin.

"Kind of a bloody story. I was down by the Ditch, doing the regular. Heard some laughing. Loud, stupid."

His ears laid back and his lips pulled back from his teeth.

"Three of 'em. Humans, or somethin' like. Somethin' tall'n ugly, anyhow. They'd found some toadfrogs as had washed in on some debris. They were stompin' on 'em. That's what the laughin' was 'bout. So I asked 'em to stop. Polite-like."

Sneers and laughter turning into screams, begging, eyes wide in terror, one of them crying out for his mother as Ikkit, having hamstrung him, dragged him out to the Ditch and submerged his head until the waters had eaten his face off.

"Once I'd cleaned up after m'self, heard a little croak. Fekt had made it. Hadn't gotten stomped."

[Illiam'iira]

Illi does her best to stay stoic. Her eyes, nonetheless, are glassy as she nods, hands resting over her heart. "Oh... that's horrid..." The girl breathes in. "I'm glad you were there. Oh, poor Fekt, I'm glad he's with you!" Little things, the ones that can't defend themselves, sometimes need a hero, and for a moment, that's just how Illi sees her goblin friend.

...she probably shouldn't ask if she can give Fekt cuddles and a kiss... it's hard not to want to though...

[Ikkit the Bastard]

"He's a good friend. An' he's better with most folks'n I am."

He sighed.

"I'd kill damn near anyone an' anything for need, but doin' it just 'cause they can't do anything about it? Gets my blood up."

[Illiam'iira]

"He's a good friend. An' he's better with most folks'n I am."

"I dunno... you seem good with me, Ikkit." There's a small part of her that worries that doesn't mean much, but her second voice, the wise one, reminds her that may not be truth. Illi's earnestness leaks into her words. "You know, I think you're great. You're industrious, loyal, hard-working, honest, and you don't take shit from anyone -- and in a city like this that's a blessing. If someone doesn't notice it's probably because they're not bothering to actually pay attention."

She blushes a bit, her sparkles catching on light that isn't there -- Illi quickly covers her cheeks with her hands. "Sorry!"

Hopefully it's not a bother. It's just hard not to say something, when she sees what she sees in him.

[Ikkit the Bastard]

"I dunno... you seem good with me, Ikkit." There's a small part of her that worries that doesn't mean much, but her second voice, the wise one, reminds her that may not be truth. Illi's earnestness leaks into her words. "You know, I think you're great. You're industrious, loyal, hard-working, honest, and you don't take shit from anyone -- and in a city like this that's a blessing. If someone doesn't notice it's probably because they're not bothering to actually pay attention."

She blushes a bit, her sparkles catching on light that isn't there -- Illi quickly covers her cheeks with her hands. "Sorry!"

Hopefully it's not a bother. It's just hard not to say something, when she sees what she sees in him.

He looked at her. Blinked.

"You're pretty great too, Illi. Taken a bit too much guff from some berks, an' I think y'oughtta hit 'em more, but otherwise, think you're a breath'o fresh air. Y'still feel it all, an' y'try'n do somethin' 'bout it without just joinin' whoever seems t'offer a safe kip an'excuses t'do stuff y'wanted t'do anyhow."

[Illiam'iira]

"You're pretty great too, Illi. Taken a bit too much guff from some berks, an' I think y'oughtta hit 'em more, but otherwise, think you're a breath'o fresh air. Y'still feel it all, an' y'try'n do somethin' 'bout it without just joinin' whoever seems t'offer a safe kip an'excuses t'do stuff y'wanted t'do anyhow."

Oh! She keeps hiding her cheeks so they don't do their sparkly thing. The girl's smiling big though. "Thanks. I keep gettin' the feeling people think this place is gonna carve that out of me, but I'm hopin' not. I wanna keep making the choice to care. Even if it hurts sometimes."

[Ikkit the Bastard]

Oh! She keeps hiding her cheeks so they don't do their sparkly thing. The girl's smiling big though. "Thanks. I keep gettin' the feeling people think this place is gonna carve that out of me, but I'm hopin' not. I wanna keep making the choice to care. Even if it hurts sometimes."

"Sigil's called th'Cage. Think folks lose sight'o what that means t'those of us as live in it all'o th'time."

He started rummaging in the bin again, while Fekt croaked.

The Corcino men kept right on singing.

"S'why I never hold with calls t'limit who comes in an'stays. Gotta keep lively or we just look in on ourselves."

[Illiam'iira]

"S'why I never hold with calls t'limit who comes in an'stays. Gotta keep lively or we just look in on ourselves."

"Huh." Illi pauses a moment. "...that seems ... yeah... wouldn't almost everyone who was born here have had family who wasn't?" The logic doesn't follow at all for Illiam; keep the Cage closed and eventually you'd have inbreeding, smaller and smaller populations, and plagues that wipe out swathes of people... not to mention frustrations from being trapped there...

She starts rifling again, considering it more.

[Ikkit the Bastard]

"Huh." Illi pauses a moment. "...that seems ... yeah... wouldn't almost everyone who was born here have had family who wasn't?" The logic doesn't follow at all for Illiam; keep the Cage closed and eventually you'd have inbreeding, smaller and smaller populations, and plagues that wipe out swathes of people... not to mention frustrations from being trapped there...

She starts rifling again, considering it more.

"S'about th'size of it. S'why I draw a distinction between Primes and actual Clueless. Most Primes are Clueless, but plenty'o Clueless ain't Primes, if y'take my meaning..."

[Illiam'iira]

"S'about th'size of it. S'why I draw a distinction between Primes and actual Clueless. Most Primes are Clueless, but plenty'o Clueless ain't Primes, if y'take my meaning..."

"Yeah... yeah, I do." Ain't that just the way. "Is that a big deal here, and I just haven't noticed yet? I think I heard a little something about it somewhere..."

Illi pauses briefly as she finds a rotting rat crushed between planks of wood. She eyes the skull, considering it.