𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐒𝐈𝐗𝐓𝐘-𝐓𝐖𝐎 — the raven, the lynx, and the... mermaid?

━━━━━━━

 𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐔𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐘, 𝐖𝐇𝐄𝐍 𝐀𝐋𝐄𝐊𝐒𝐀 had managed to part the pads of her calloused fingers from the comfort and solace Kaz's warmth provided, she managed to find her way beside Inej and Nina, perching along the very edge of the dome to await the arrival of the Menagerie.

 The dome was wide and shallow, made of glimmering glass and silver filigree. Aleksa could see the rather flashy pattern carved within the mosaic tiles the party-goers flashed across. Two wolves with their pointed fangs bared. They chased one another, fur as pure and bright as the snow-laden lands in which they thrived. Aleksa couldn't help but roll her eyes.

 "So..." Nina's voice was higher than usual, an amused edge soaked with something sweet, "I see you aren't so mad at Kaz anymore."

 Inej nodded, though her voice was smaller, gentle, "You touched him."

 That had Nina's face falling ever so slightly. The teasing had been easy, to watch in the corner as Aleksa made Kaz Brekker look at her as though she were a stack of pristine kruge... But Inej was right, and she was right to breathe the words in such a way. Nina could remember when she'd grabbed Kaz's arm back at the Hellshow, the glare she'd received had been enough for her blood to run cold.

 Aleksa kept her eyes cast below, watching as the guests entering through the grand archway were shepherded into rooms just off the rotunda. They were split into groups no larger than ten, each of them patted and prodded to be sure that no weapons were glued to their person. Guards even emerged with little brooches and pins used to keep coils of hair out of the face; they had good reason to be on high alert.

 But despite the ants scuttling over the grounds all dressed in finery like a herd of overgrown peacocks showing off their feathers and frills, Aleksa still muttered, "He apologised."

 Nina gaped, "I must have misheard you."

 "You heard me correctly. Kaz told me he was sorry for putting us all in danger without telling us the plan had changed." Aleksa rubbed her fingers over the divot settling between her brows. Every day was hard when Kaz Brekker was around, so why couldn't she simply brush him away? Why couldn't she be content with fleeing back to the Little Palace to be rid of him?

 It simply wasn't an option, and it never had been. Inej and Jesper had become Aleksa's home; their smiles and laughter, their glistening eyes and bruising hugs were all Aleksa could think of when someone mentioned the place they felt safest, happiest. But Kaz was there too, and somehow, even dressed in black like the worst of omens... he outshone everything.

 "He —" Aleksa parted her sights from the party below, finding that her fingers were ever so restless, "I said that I'd always follow him, but I needed a reason. I won't follow blindly anymore, I did that with Aleksander, and I won't do it again." She couldn't see the slowly growing smile on Inej's face, the utter pride brimming within her, "I told him that I'd stay, that I'd fight beside him... But I needed to know what I was fighting for. I told him that I want to know what started this feud with Pekka Rollins."

 The girls let those last few words stew within the air for a moment. There were flashes of shock, utter bewilderment... Inej rested a hand upon Aleksa's shoulder, "You were right to ask... But what did he say?"

 "He agreed."

 Nina laughed, and the sound alone drew both the Shadow and the Wraith's eyes her way, "Of course he did. If anybody were to steal the thief's heart, it would be you." Nina couldn't help but grin; she was far more observant than any of them gave her credit for.

 To most, she was a simple girl who could be plied with waffles and sweet treats to keep her quiet. She was loud and could be utterly immovable when her mind was made up... but she caught the things that so many others couldn't.

 She could see love within the eyes of a person as though they'd announced it to the world, as though it were a flashing beacon shooting through the sky and parting the haze of grey clouds. Nina saw that in Kaz... but in a way that was ever so different to what she was used to.

 Where Matthias had once stared at her with fondness in those Fjerdan blue eyes, Kaz Brekker stared at Aleksa as though she'd hung the stars herself. He was subtle, however, but when it came to Kaz, anything other than a scowl was something to marvel at. He really thought he'd been careful, covering up his pauses and stares with the clearing of his throat... Dirtyhands truly was just a boy, after all.

 "That boy looks at you like I look at a plate of waffles." Nina concluded, "Or... perhaps how I look at Matthias."

 Aleksa was sure that their dearest Nina could feel her heart beating ever so wildly within her chest, threatening to break bone and flesh all in the means of escaping. Aleksa couldn't say she'd noticed it to the same extent as Nina, perhaps... however, that was simply because hope was dangerous.

 "He was going to tell me something else, too," Aleksa said, "Before I stopped him."

 "He was probably going to fall to his knees and profess his undying love for you."

 "Very storybook, Nina. Not exactly Kaz, but I do like the optimism." She could wish for such a thing to happen, for things to just be that simple... but that would never be right. Kaz Brekker wasn't simple. Aleksa Morozova was not simple. They were a concoction of rage and terror, of haunted limbs and tarnished souls.

 But maybe one day, when the ghosts ceased their calling, things could be easy.

 "Who knows?" Aleksa relented, "There are a few things I want him to say to me, but I won't make assumptions or get my hopes up. For now..." Aleksa stared down at the crowd laced with silks. Purples and reds glistened like jewels, fabrics flowed like water, and even from where they were perched, all three of them could hear the chimes of bells clinging to ankles.

 Aleksa peered at Inej; the Wraith's hand still clung to her wrist, growing tighter as the bells jingled and chittered. The Shadow curled her fingers around Inej's, "You don't have to do this. Nina and I will be quite alright on our own."

 "She's right. You don't have to put those silks on again." Nina nodded, and with great effort, she leaned over the pair and joined their little connection.

 Three shades of skin all brushed one another, and while Inej Ghafa took a moment to swallow at the sensation, she still smiled, "I've done worse."

 "I know. You scaled six storeys of hell for us."

 "That's not what I meant."

 Aleksa's inhale was as sharp as a knife, slicing through the air with utmost ease. The mere thought of those silks Inej had once worn, of the spots that had been painted across her skin, the way she'd been marked both by ink and by men...

 Aleksa could have summoned every ounce of Merzost and toppled the Menagerie if Inej had asked, "We know that too, but it doesn't matter if you've done worse or not. This is your choice, you don't have to do this."

 But she did. Inej Ghafa had resolved herself to seeing this silly little heist through to the end; she'd come so far in the name of freedom, finally graced with the opportunity to take it for herself, to feel it between her own fingers — she wasn't giving up.

 "I'm finishing this," Inej said, and the utter determination within her soothing voice was enough for Aleksa to nod without question because that was just how they were. They were two girls taken from their homes and placed under the hands of men that never cared for them. Their circumstances may have been different, but control was something they both sought, "I — I want to wear those silks right beneath Heleens nose. I want to come out the other end, and for her to know that I used her own gowns and jewels to do it. I want —"

 Inej stopped.

 "Tell us." Aleksa said, "You can want things, Inej, you'll have the freedom and fortune to want and take whatever you desire."

 "I want her to see me free... and then I want to watch The Menagerie burn."

 "I'll help you spark the flames myself, anything for you, my darling Inej."

 "All this time... and it still brings me peace to know I have you by my side." Then Inej squeezed Nina's hand, "Both of you."

 She said no word of the dream she had; a crew of her own, a ship donning the title of the Wraith. She wanted to feel that salty breeze drifting through her hair, trailing her skin. She wanted to rock atop the waves as slaver ships swallowed their fear beneath the shadow that The Wraith would cast.

 Aleksa looked between the two women at her sides. For so long she'd grown up without friends, without girls anywhere near her. Perhaps Aleksander knew they'd have an influence over her, that control could only be sucked from her through men in positions of power. He'd made her feel small, like a little girl, even by the time she'd turned eighteen.

 But Inej Ghafa and Nina Zenik... They were girls hardened by the world around them, the world that treated girls like dirt upon a boot. They had become strong, not only because of such harshness, but in spite of it.

 "Well, if we're to do this..." Nina said, keeping hold of the Wraith and the Shadow, "At least we're doing it together."

 Inej nodded, "Together."

 "The prettiest gang members Ketterdam's ever seen." Aleksa grinned, hair whipping at her cheeks. Then, her eyes widened, "They're here."

 The girls of the Menagerie would forever stick out like a gaggle of sore thumbs. Tante Heleen liked to dress her girls in a way that would appeal to the masses; should a man saunter in with kvas lingering on those vile lips and thoughts only pulsating with the desire for a Zemeni girl, his gaze would be set upon a poor young woman dressed as a fawn. Soft ears would be fastened within her hair, small white spots slathered over bare shoulders.

 His eyes would be able to find his craving with ease — as though a great red arrow was pointing right to their forms. It made Aleksa sick as she spied the girls flitting across the grounds; a Shu girl was dressed as a serpent with red beaded scales, there was a Kaelish mare with an auburn topknot, a Ravkan fox, a raven, an ermine... and then, at the very back of the group, a Suli Lynx.

 Aleksa could feel the sneer pulling at her lips, yet even still she was privy to the notable lack of a Fjerdan wolf laden in silvery furs; Tante Heleen was ever so well-versed in appealing to her clients.

 The gaggle of unfortunate girls were ushered through the rotunda doors in a wedge formation; their gowns positively glistened; red beaded scales shone like rubies, the Kaelsish mare seemed to shimmer even brighter than the Lanstov emeralds. Their hoods secluded their faces, drowning frowns in nothing but darkness while capes fluttered behind them, shielding them from the start of a light snowfall. They were met by uniformed guards.

 Nina's eyes scanned the lot of them, yet Tante Heleen and the obnoxious tangle of blonde atop her head was yet to be seen, "I don't see her."

 "Just wait." Inej said, trying with all her might to smother the resentment in her voice, "The Peacock will enter last."

 Then, as though Tante Heleen had been summoned like the devil himself, she appeared in a frock of green and teal. Feathers practically burst from her golden hair. Each look to the side had them waving like a sea of limbs... but Aleksa couldn't help but snort, "Surely she can't be deluded enough to think that looks good."

 Nina bobbed her head, lips agape, "That truly is something. Very subtle."

 "Subtle doesn't sell in the Barrel," Inej said before she whistled around two fingers. The sound thrilled through the air, skirting over rooftops and weaselling through the darkness until it hit Jesper's ears; their signal. It was time to begin.

 It had been quite the squeeze to shuffle through the ventilation ducts that led to the small room in which a handful of girls from the Menagerie would be searched and left to ready themselves for the long night ahead. The Exotics had removed their capes and cloaks and laid them along an old oval table.

 One of the blonde guards busied their fingers by patting the girls down, shuffling digits along the seams and edges of their gaudy costumes. They'd even taken to poking the bundles of hair wrangled atop their heads, all just to ensure that no form of weapon could possibly be smuggled.

 There had been another guard stationed at the door with a gun in her hands — but the weapon made her look ill at ease, as though even the means of protection couldn't offer solace within their lockdown. Aleksa had rolled her eyes, the Fjerdans were still locked in a time where women couldn't and were not permitted to serve in the army in any combatant capacity. The weapons in hand were nothing more than trophies, no more than empty threats.

 When the guards had left, there were just five minutes for the Crows to complete their task. Nina had immediately slowed the poor young girl's pulses until their glistening bodies draped in ridiculous frocks toppled to the ground in unceremonious heaps, and the moment Inej had unscrewed the grate, the three of them hopped down.

 Inej was first, landing on solid feet that merely found the prospect of a fall exciting. Nina, however, followed such grace with nothing more than a pitiful tumble. She landed about as gracefully as the poor woman forced to surrender to slow-beating hearts.

 "Oh, Nina," Aleksa cooed as she stood upon noble toes. Her fingers wiggled as her hand remained before their Heartrender. She tugged Nina upwards, "You're the picture of elegance."

 "Not all of us are made from the shadows themselves. I'm made of waffles and toffee, give me a break."

 Aleksa couldn't help but snort at the breathless way Nina had said such a thing. Amidst their childish laughter that they kept as quiet as they possibly could and made closer to the girls abandoned on the ground; they'd found their way to a flock of five; a Kaelish girl that Nina would have to do her best to imitate, a Ravkan fox, a Zemeni fawn, a Suli Lynx that made Inej's fingers rattle... and a Kerch Raven — This one would be Aleksa's.

 They swiftly stripped the three girls to whom they'd be impersonating, then bound each of their wrists and ankles with cords from the curtains and gagged them with torn pieces of their prison clothes.

 "Clock is ticking," Inej said as she scowled at the flimsy purple material within her hands. She wouldn't have the time nor resources to coat her shoulders with spots, nor to smudge her eyes with a thin layer of black coal... but the outfit would be enough. It always had been.

 Aleksa watched as Nina swiftly worked. While the Heartrender would often procure little bottles of pigments and powers to alter her hair, Nina had to grasp ahold of the poor Kaelish girl and bleed the girl's bright red colour directly from the strands of hair into her own. The unconscious girl was left with a ghastly frock of white atop her head, while clumps appeared almost rusted from Nina's rushed attempts.

 Nina's hair wasn't quite Kaelish red... but it would do. The Heartrender then peered at Aleksa, "The Raven's hair is darker than yours, but you're about the same build."

 Aleksa shrugged, a pair of heeled shoes within her hands, "She's a little taller, but these'll help. Go ahead, darken my hair."

 "It won't last long."

 "I find that I rather suit dark hair, Nina, love."

 "How'd I know you'd say such a thing?" Nina hummed, fingers already tangling with a feather that had fallen from the Kerch Raven's costume, bleeding the darkness into Aleksa's revitalised curls. With the lack of time to appropriately Tailor, Nina only managed to make the strands a few shades darker, but it would be enough for suspicious gazes to roam over her and wave her along without batting an eye.

 It seemed that Nina was the first to be smothered in her costume, for she certainly couldn't keep a snort from tumbling free. Nina Spun in place, peering at the trail of blue and green scales fanning out around her. The Heartrender had done the impossible job of squeezing her curves into material that certainly was not built to house the flesh she possessed.

 Nina Zenik was built from delightful curves and rounded expanses of skin... the girl she'd plucked her unfortunate costume from was not.

 "What the hell is this supposed to be?" Nina said, peering ever closer at the glimmering scales. The plunging gown so scarcely covered the cleavage bulging at her chest, and as Nina spun, Aleksa could see the way it clung like a vice to their pretty Heartrenders behind.

 "Maybe a mermaid?" suggested Inej. "Or a wave?"

 Aleksa couldn't help but chuckle, "My bet is a Slidroher."

 "A what?"

 "Oh," Aleksa waved a hand, crouching to pry her own costume from the ground. It was entirely obsidian and a smattering of oil-black feathers poked from the sheer material, "Just a magical creature from the shores of Fjerda... They use their voices to lure men to their death."

 Inej's grin matched Aleksa's, "Very apt, I wonder what Matthias would have to say about that outfit."

 Inej herself was soon sheathed in purple. Silk bellowed over her body, and bells were once again tied to her ankles. It was the very same outfit she had once donned within the Menagerie, the same silks and fabrics she'd wear when men chose her in a sea of women and had their way until they were satisfied.

 She'd sobbed in those silks. She'd screamed into them.

 Now, Inej Ghafa simply smoothed the fabric over her arms and gritted her teeth; she was thankful for the distraction, for the mindless chatter her dear friends provided.

 Aleksa considered Nina's words; what would the Fjerdan have to say? Nothing, really. He'd be far too pink in the face and tongue-tied to utter a single coherent sentence.

"He wouldn't approve," Nina said.

 Aleksa had managed to weasel her way within the intricate tangle of fabric within her palms; it had been a task, especially as she muffled a bout of laughter when their dear Inej deemed Matthias a great big, brooding, yellow tulip. But the Wraith was right, Matthias Helver perked up whenever Nina's voice cut through the air. His Ice-cold eyes would thaw until pitiful puddles were left behind whenever she laughed.

 "While I'd quite like to imagine Matthias' reaction..." Nina drawled, her face pale from the powder she'd slathered across her cheeks. She pointed a finger, wagging it until Inej peered over her shoulder, "I'd settle for seeing how Dirtyhands reacts to his Shadow."

 Despite Aleksa shaking her head at such words, she allowed a short moment to pass as she dwelt within such a scenario. With Inej and Nina staring her down, almost goggling like teenage boys as she spun to show off the dress she'd plucked... she too simply couldn't help but wonder what Kaz would think.

 The dress she donned was a stark difference to the purple lynx or the teal-coloured... whatever Nina was supposed to be. This dress caressed the length of Aleksa's body, a long trail fading out behind her. The sleeves were puffy yet cinched at the wrists, and the material slivering over her arms was entirely sheer... But it wasn't that aspect that had Nina Zenik grinning like a madman, it wasn't even the open back or the bundle of feathers lining the Shadow's sides and waist like a set of folded wings...

 No, the delightful detail that had dear Nina giggling like a schoolgirl was the lack of fabric drenching Aleksa's stomach. Upon the chest was a patch of material that had been carefully cut away, leaving a flash of skin in its wake. From her cleavage to the glitter dusting her flesh... the sparsity of material stooped lower and lower, showing off the plane of Aleksa's stomach and the slight ridges that had begun to form after months of fighting and running for her life.

 Aleksa peered down, even her belly button was on show.

 "Well..." Aleksa grinned. It wasn't quite to her taste, for while the Shadow of Ketterdam liked to flaunt and parade, she was still one to keep her flesh enclosed. She liked the silken material of her puffy-sleeved shirts, she rather enjoyed the trousers and suspenders that would cling to her body... but for now, Aleksa Morozova was rather content with the feathers dusting her back and the train of ebony trailing behind her, "I'm going to give seventy Fjerdans a Heartattack."

 Nina clapped her hands as her pink cheeks drew higher. Those eyes of hers sparkled like the dusting of snow toppling from the frozen skies, "You're going to do more than that." Nina drew closer, seizing Aleksa's hand as she spun her once more, "Mhm, Kaz Brekker has met his match. I cannot wait for him to trail behind you like a dog."

 There was a beat until Aleksa's lips curled as though she'd swallowed something ever so sweet, "I can't say I'd mind that."

 Inej shook her head, a coil of black hair whipping to and fro, "Despite the circumstances... You do look beautiful. The raven is very... You."

 Nina hummed, "Perhaps you can steal Dirtyhands' colour, as well as his heart." But then her smile fell as yet another knock sounded against the door. Nina had fastened the locks before they'd started... but no amount of stalling would keep the guards away now. They had to get moving. "Are you both ready, then?"

 No. That was the immediate answer that came to mind; Aleksa might have been incredibly sure of herself, perhaps even to a dangerously cocky degree... but even she couldn't deny that the thought of being surrounded by dozens of Fjerdan guards sent shivers down her spine.

 They were as cold as their lands, as vicious as their winds and as unfeeling as the snow... The ice does not forgive; that was something she'd heard muttered by those blondes time and time again. Aleksa peered at her hands, fingers curling inwards until her palms were hidden from sight.

 Could she protect them all if the time came?

 Aleksa heaved a great breath and smeared on her prettiest smile, "Let's not keep them waiting."

 Inej readily agreed, "We'll need a distraction. They're going to notice that four girls entered the room, and only three are coming out."

 Nina only tutted, wiggling her fingers as her brows curled inwards as though to say 'Now, who exactly do you think I am?'. Then, as Nina's pale fingers splattered with freckles curled around the doorknob, she glanced at the ground, "Watch your hems."

 The door hardly cracked open when Aleksa slapped a sweet smile onto her face. It was one crafted with agile fingers, one perfected over time... one as manipulative as Aleksanders. Perhaps such a smile ran through their blood, infecting each poor soul that sparked a new line upon their rotting family tree.

 It looked as though it had been designed with sugar and caramel. Like someone had moulded toffee and chocolate into a deliciously devilish curl... Aleksa felt her cheeks rise, her lashes brushing against them. Then, for a final touch, she straightened her spine as though Baghra was awaiting her presence, ready to scold her and smack her with a stick.

 With delicate curls drenched in a pretty shade of spruce framing her features, and with pink dousing the flesh upon her face... Aleksa looked like the doll she had once been as a child. No imperfections could be spied, not a hair out of place and not a single crack in her porcelain mask.

 Nina took the first step outside the safety of their room. They fled from the coiling scent of rose and jasmine that had clung to the unconscious girl's necks and wrists and began to enter the lion's den. This wasn't like Hellgate — there would be no lizards to slay, no monsters to battle, but should things go awry, an entire army of wolves would soon be baring their teeth.

 The guards ahead waved them on impatiently, and with the slightest of movements beneath her cape, Nina took ahold of the guards. One of them moaned and groaned, almost folding in two as her nose began to flood with a crimson waterfall. It seeped between her fingers, dribbling down her chin until her pristine uniform had been tainted.

 The other guard recoiled, horror reflecting in her eyes as though they were tinted mirrors, but in the next instant, her arms fled to her stomach. They curled forcefully, fingers taught as her cheeks were flooded with air.

 Nina twisted her wrist and Aleksa knew precisely what was to come; her fingers plucked the sides of her dress, hiking the hem just a sliver above her ankles, she nudged Inej, "Your hem."

 Inej barely had the time to swipe up her cape and silks before the guard coiling like a twisting vine doubled over and heaved the remnants of her breakfast, lunch and dinner over the once pristine marble floor.

 Aleksa sneered, her nose scrunching at the smell as she followed Nina through the chaotic crowd. Guests shrieked and squealed, clambering to scramble from the mess of blood and vomit that had come together in the most vile of concoctions.

 The crows sailed past without a hitch.

 "The nosebleed probably would have done the trick," whispered Inej.

 Nina shrugged, "Best to be thorough."

 "If I didn't know any better, I'd think you liked making Fjerdans suffer."

 Aleksa grinned, leaning closer to her dearest Wraith, "Why can't it be both?"

 From then on, it was time to keep the attention they drew to a minimum. Aleksa snatched the edges of her obsidian-silk cape and twisted it around her body like a blanket. She copied Nina's actions and tilted her head towards the ground, finding the marble detailing slathered on the ground to be quite distasteful — perhaps Nina had done the Fjderans a favour by covering it in blood and stomach acid.

 They blended with the swell of people filling the rotunda, hastily ignoring the Zemini fawn that had tried to corral them towards the other girls laden in capes and silks on the other side of the room. Aleksa had spared them the barest of glances — it was pivotal to remain unseen by them, to keep separate at any and all costs... though with Inej's plum cape covered in spots, Nina's odd scales and Aleksa's own tuft of feathers, it was proving to be quite the task.

 "This one," Inej muttered through the corner of her mouth as she used one hand to steer Nina into a line far from the other members of the Menagerie, all while keeping a hand coiled with Aleksa's.

 The line they became entangled with seemed to move far swifter than the others, and Aleksa only hoped that meant the guards were being more careless with their inspections. Unfortunately, as they approached the front of the line, all hopes of an easy and breezy check vanished in a puff of frozen snow.

 The Fjderdan guard had a face set in stone, his features encased with thick chunks of ice — he looked even more miserable than a brooding Matthias, truly a talent to be commended.

 The guard held out his hand for Nina's papers, cold blue eyes sweeping them over with all the scrutiny he could muster. His calloused fingers curled around the papers, holding them close, "You're taller than described here."

 "Boots," Nina said. "I like to be able to look a man in the eye. You have very pretty eyes."

 He looked at the paper, then took in the way her dress clung to her body with every ounce of strength it possessed... Aleksa just hoped he couldn't see the little split that had ripped around her bust, "You're heavier than it says on this paper, I'll wager."

 Nina shrugged, her hum whimsical as she fluttered those long lashes. The teal scales glittering around her neck like a mixture of diamonds and aquamarine slipped lower, rising and falling in time with her smooth breathing, "I like to eat when I'm in the mood."

 Aleksa brought her fingers towards her lips, acting as though her following words were sinful to speak, "And she's always in the mood."

 Her low tone simmered with honey, crystalising sugar seemed to drip from her tongue and for a short second, the guard peered at her — clearly he was not as uptight and stoic as she'd thought.

 Typical men, Aleksa almost tutted but she and Nina had managed to put the Fjerdan under their spell and he soon nodded, his voice gruff, "Move along," But before Nina could truly step forth and allow Aleksa the spotlight, the Fjerdan cleared his throat, "I ... I may be at the party later."

 Nina ran a finger down his arm, and Aleksa truly had to commend her ability to keep her lips sealed shut as their Heartrender puckered her lips, "I'll save you a dance."

 The guard grinned for a moment, then, like snow had fallen from the sky in a bundle knocking him over the head... he sobered. Aleksa could see his lips twitching, the way his eyes narrowed, though certainly not out of anger. He roved his gaze over her as Aleksa handed over her papers.

 He trailed the letters, eyes moving between herself and the paper... then, Aleksa grinned, "What? Do I look prettier than described? Or... do you want me to save you a dance too?"

 Her coo had the guard swallowing a sudden lump in his throat. His head bobbed just once, trying to keep as stiff as his Fjerdan self should have been, but inevitably, he waved her through... That only left Inej.

 Nina had stopped a few paces ahead, out of sight of the Menagerie workers yet close enough to keep an eye... even from where she stood, Aleksa knew she would have caught Inej's stumble. The Wraith had been the most unfortunate when it came to her costume; shoes that were far too big, silks that almost slipped from her body, and bells that slumped against her ankles because the ribbon was too loose.

 Like the snap of a finger, the guard's stoicism flooded his features once again, "What's wrong with your shoes?"

 "Just a bit big," said Inej, her voice as steady as ever, even despite her little slip-up. "They stretched more than expected."

 "Show me your arms,"

 "Why?"

 "Just do it," the guard prompted harshly.

 In the beat it took for Inej to free her arms from the confines of her plum-coloured cape, Aleksa trudged closer to Nina. If there was a problem... She and Nina would have to see the plan through alone. The thought sent a wave of anguish through Aleksa's stomach.

 How could she possibly leave Inej Ghafa behind? How could she let her friend be seized and separated, all while she kept a nightmare coating her skin?

 Inej held out her arms, bronze skin glimmering beneath the flicker of amber torches... unfortunately, the light just so happened to show off the lumps and bumps coddling her peacock feather tattoo.

 Another guard in captain's stripes stomped his way over, thick brows set in ferocious lines, "What is it?"

 "She's Suli, for sure, and she has the Menagerie tattoo" The guard looked her up and down once more, "... but it doesn't look quite right."

 Inej shrugged. "I got a bad burn as a child."

 But it was vastly obvious that the Captain wasn't going to take his chances, and Aleksa had to watch as her dearest friend was pulled from her side as though she were losing a limb. Aleksa remained until Inej threw one final look over her shoulder — her face betrayed no ounce of worry, it showed no signs that their plan had failed.

 Inej Ghafa nodded, and so Aleksa seized Nina's hand and tugged her towards the party. It was up to them now, and if a Heartrender and living Saint couldn't schmooze their way through a silly little party... then perhaps they were never truly destined to reach their goal and drown themselves in kruge after all.

━━━━━━━

DATE: 18/05/2025

:･ﾟ★ WOAHHHHH, HIIIIIII

please remember to leave feedback & comments. i require a certain number of comments before i publish the next update. please give me a follow to keep updated. do not leave 'update' comments, you will be muted.