𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐑𝐓𝐘-𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐄 — pe stor djurisk

━━━━━━━

 𝐉𝐄𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐑 𝐇𝐀𝐃 𝐁𝐔𝐑𝐒𝐓 like a stream of colourful confetti upon learning of Wylans true nature; he'd held his stomach and almost tipped over, all the while Wylan had become a vibrant shade of pink as he stared up at Aleksa.

 Aleksa was one of three in the room to wear entirely unsurprised expressions. For while Nina looked utterly furious, Matthias wholly confused, and Jesper still cackling like the witch Matthias would soon think him to be... Aleksa, Kaz and Inej had all known the truth.

 Inej, of course, had gathered intel the moment Wylan Hendricks had rolled into town. He'd kept his head down, trying to make a simple and honest living, but Kaz Brekker liked to know everything about everyone.

 And, in turn, whatever Kaz knew, he almost always shared with Aleksa.

 Kaz leaned back in his chair. While one hand remained dutifully wrapped around his cane, the other lounged atop his bad leg. A surefire sign that the scuttling around Hellgate had caused some bother, "Why do you think I've been keeping you around?"

 Wylan deflated quite pitifully, "I'm good at demo."

 "You're passable at demo... You're an excellent hostage."

 It was cruel, but so very Kaz. Aleksa tapped Wylan on the shoulder just once, her bright eyes scouring the pages he'd been scrawling over. It looked like he'd been drawing a cake, "Don't worry, you're our cutest hostage yet... though... your only opposition is our... well, Matthias, so I suppose that doesn't count for much, hm?"

 Wylan surprised her by biting on his lip. His cheeks were pink from her flyaway compliment, but they only grew darker as he tried to swallow a little bout of laughter bubbling at Matthias' expense.

 Of course, the argument on whether Raske should replace Wylan started up once more... Jesper was adamant about leaving the baby behind, while Kaz assured that little ole' Wylan Van Eck didn't know enough people to cause even a peep of trouble

 Wylan paused in his scribbling, "Don't I get a say in this?" He complained like the child Jesper had already deemed him, "I'm sitting right here."

 Kaz's brow climbed his forehead, and Aleksa soon took a seat beside Wylan. This would be fun.

 "Ever had your pocket picked, Wylan?" Kaz asked.

 "I ... not that I know of."

 "Been mugged in an alley?"

 "No."

 "Hung over the side of a bridge with your head in the canal?"

 Wylan blinked. "No, but —"

 "Ever been beaten until you can't walk?"

 "No."

 "Why do you think that is?"

 "I —"

 "It's been three months since you left your daddy's mansion on the Geldstraat. Why do you suppose your sojourn in the Barrel has been so blessed?"

 "Lucky, I guess?" Wylan suggested weakly.

 His guess was entirely incorrect. For when Kaz Brekker deemed someone worthy of following, they were protected. Aleksa had no doubt there had been a person or two looking for the mysterious Van Eck who'd disappeared into the smog of Ketterdam as though a magician had performed some illusion.

 But Wylan was never found, thanks to Kaz. Thanks to the Dregs.

 Aleksa plucked a pencil from Wylan's fingertips and tapped him right on the very tip of his freckled nose, "I'm afraid Kaz is your luck. You've been under the Dreg's protection."

 Aleksa was very much aware of the stares boring into her flesh; namely from Nina and Jesper. Nina Zenik still had yet to truly see how Aleksa slotted into the dynamic of the crows; she was unaware that Aleksa was and would always be such a crucial member, one adored by each of them.

 Jesper was likely trying to understand when she'd found out every little drop of information about the heist; she'd been back for less than a week and they'd all managed to slip right back into their original roles. Aleksa had fallen right back into place as Kaz's second in command without so much as a blink.

 Jesper had to admit... he was a little jealous.

 The sharpshooter tipped back on his heels, hands trailing ever so carefully over his pearl-studded pistols, "Why did you move out of your father's house, merchling?"

 Wylans voice was a mere croak trying to fit through his tightened throat. His gaze dropped to his papers, his stolen pencil back within his fingers, "It was time."

 "Idealist? Romantic? Revolutionary?"

 "Idiot?" Nina suggested, her head tipping to one side, "No one chooses to live in the Barrel if they have another option..." But her eyes strayed to her fellow Grisha, the young girl who despite being a summoner of shadows, managed to alight her features like the sun.

 Inej had told her snippets, hardly enough to make a sound profile... Yet Nina knew Aleksa had left the Little Palace behind for reasons still unrevealed to her.

 Wylan huffed and his breath jostled one of the copper curls dangling over his eyes. His pencil dug into the paper, "I'm not useless."

 "Raske is the better demo man—" Inej began, only to be halted as Aleksa held up a finger.

 "Wylan, dear?" She said, "Any... hidden talents? I'm particularly gifted at hypnotism —"

 "— Manipulation." Jesper corrected with a grin.

 Aleksa pointed his way, smile unwiltered. He was right, "And Kaz is splendid at sleight of hand, what have you got?"

 Wylan blinked. From the moment he'd met the crows he'd hardly been able to get a word in edgeways. He'd never have thought that the sharp shadow summoner would have been the one to shine a light upon him. He cleared his throat, "I've been to the Ice Court. With my father. We went to an embassy dinner. I can help with the plans."

 Kaz tapped his gloved finger on the beak of his cane, "See that? Hidden depths. And I don't want our only leverage against Van Eck cooling his heels in Ketterdam while we head north. Wylan goes with us. He's good enough at demo, and he's got a fine hand for sketching, thanks to all those pricey tutors."

 Jesper rolled his eyes as Wylan only blushed further, "Play piano, too?"

 "Flute." Wylan snapped.

 "Lovely. We have witches, demons and the pied piper." Aleksa said almost whimsically, winking as Nina muffled a laugh. They were an odd bunch, but they always had been.

 Such a strange group of Grishas, Grisha hunters and those who'd turned cold in the alleys of the Barrel. Who better to take on the impossible heist at their feet? The only issue was... would they be enough?

 Aleksa could certainly cloak them, but Fjerda was only ever shrouded by darkness when night fell, unlike Ketterdam where the streets always seemed brushed with twilight. The snow blanketing Fjerda like a coat only made the sun brighter, it made the moon dance upon the ground... They'd have to, quite literally, walk in through the front door.

 "And since Wylan has seen the Ice Court with his very own eyes," Kaz continued, "he can help keep you honest, Helvar."

 Matthias only scowled as fiercely as the ice in his blood allowed. Wylan blanched, his flush disappearing behind the guise of absolute nausea.

 "I doubt the sneer is lethal, Wy." Aleksa chimed, blinking softly as she switched her eyesight to Matthias, "Otherwise I'd be ever so far underground."

 Matthias found himself agreeing with her for the very first time since he'd been subjected to her company.

 Aleksa could just about hear the hum from Matthias, and she truly did have to swallow the urge to laugh at his little display. It was the first time his face had softened... sure, he might have been agreeing to the fact that he'd happily put her to her grave, but it was a start for the Fjerdan.

 While the swell of amusement might have been enough to set the atmosphere into something they could all stomach, Aleksa spied Jesper grinning into thin air. The look in his eyes was something all too familiar. It was the same look he'd sport when he heard dice clatter. The same manic grin that would twist his features with absolute joy whenever he spied a deck of cards.

 Thirty million kruge... after Per Haskell's twenty-percent share, they'd have roughly three and a half million each... Aleksa never quite cared for the kruge, the heists were all about the adrenaline, the freedom she'd feel after being chained for fourteen years... it was about the fun.

 Kaz would pocket his money and while he'd keep some by just like he always did, most would be diverted to the Crow Club. He'd buy more and more shares, until, inevitably... it was all his. Then Pekka Rollins would pay.

 Inej would free herself of her indenture, and knowing the Wraith... she'd soon be on a ship of her own travelling the salted seas. She'd search for her brother, she'd find her parents... she'd find some safe, innocent happiness. She deserved it; and while rocking about on the ocean waves only ever reminded her of the day she'd been taken, she'd be able to do it knowing it was all her own.

 Jesper, however... Wasn't exactly known to be responsible with just five kruge, let alone three million. He'd already gambled everything he owned, he squandered any chances at painting himself as the perfect son for his poor father... Maybe Aleksa would take his shares and force him to find himself right back at his father's doorstep with a sappy little apology. Kaz certainly wouldn't oppose...

 Aleksa broke her stare with Jesper the moment his gaze faltered and his head decorated with springing curls dipped to the floor.

 Kaz tapped his cane, he too had pondered upon what his crows would do with their shares. Jesper... Jesper, he'd keep an eye on. Kaz didn't need his sharpshooter burying himself in an even deeper grave.

 He knew he'd lose the Wraith, and while he'd have to find a new spider to crawl along the damp and grotty walls of their city, he'd always known she'd find her way out.

 From the second Aleksa had returned and accepted her part in the heist with that grin that made his stomach — he wondered what she'd do. Would she leave with Inej? Would she find herself a home away from Ketterdam, away from him? Or would she stay? He... He wanted her to stay.

 "Take out your pen and proper paper, Wylan." Kaz said, "Let's put Helvar to work."

 Wylan dipped his hand into the little leather satchel propped by his feet. Aleksa couldn't truly understand how the others hadn't clocked that the boy had come from money; the satchel was very obviously real and authentic leather. The golden buckles shone like a true lump of gold, not a single dull scratch to be seen...

 It was only made all the more obvious when Wylan fished out a slender roll of butcher's paper, and a metal case housing a set of very expensive pens and inks.

 "How nice," Jesper noted, his voice akin to a mother's coo, "A nib for every occasion."

 Aleksa hummed, "Maybe he'll write you a note, telling you that you really are starting to look like you're thirty..."

 "You take that back."

 "I won't."

 "I'm suddenly on the Fjerdan's side."

 "Traitor."

 Kaz let out a dull breath; he should have known the two of them would fall straight back into their irritating dynamic. Like a brother and sister teasing one another whenever they could. He looked to Matthias who'd remained unmoving, "Start talking, it's time to pay the rent."

 Aleksa batted her head between the bastard and the Fjerdan; it was rather fun to see somebody glower at Kaz as though it'd actually make him shake in his boots. Kaz merely blinked in turn, far too used to furious faces glaring holes into his cruel little head.

 Finally, Matthias huffed and trudged closer to Wylan, all too aware of the way the copper-haired boy tensed, "The Ice Court is on a bluff overlooking the harbour at Djerholm. It's built in concentric circles, like the rings of a tree." The words looked as though they pumped poison into his veins. Though, he was betraying his country... for the second time... "First, the ringwall, then the outer circle. It's divided into three sectors. Beyond that is the ice moat, then at the centre of everything, the White Island."

 Aleksa watched with beaded eyes as Matthias spilled his guts. Every word looked as though someone, probably Nina, was pulling them from him with a harsh tug; as though a prickle was being freed from flesh. He'd gone paler, if that was even possible, as he pointed a scarred and nail-bitten finger upon Wylan's rather masterful sketches of the Ice court.

 He went on about checkpoints – which sounded rather disastrous, really — as well as the handful of heavy-set guards that would be pacing with guns slung over their backs. That was all very lovely to learn.

 Then, of course, there was the knowledge that the gates — one of which would be their way in — weigh thousands of pounds and could only be operated from within the guardhouses... and, even if they could raise one of them, opening a gate that isn't scheduled for use would only go on to trigger the wonderfully named 'Black Protocol'. The entire Court would go into lockdown, and they'd give away their location in a heartbeat.

 It was safe to say that everyone had shared a rather nauseating look of unease at that little revelation.

 Still, Matthias managed to break past the scowl on his face and the betrayal building within his heart as he pointed to the plan, "The buildings of the outer circle surround the ice moat, and at the moat's centre is the White Island, where the treasury and the Royal Palace are. It's the most secure place in the Ice Court."

 Kaz nodded from his place, eyes peering over the table to scan the little drawing right beneath Matthias' dirty finger, "That's where Bo Yul-Bayur will be."

 Aleksa was almost ready to find a leash when Matthias smiled like a hound. He bared his teeth, displaying the chip that Nina still had yet to repair. He looked utterly feral as he spoke, "Then your quest is pointless, there is no way a group of foreigners is going to make it to the White Island."

 "Don't look so pleased, Helvar. We don't get inside, you don't get your pardon."

 "Quite." Aleksa agreed. The promise of freedom and home had been all that called to Matthias, she was sure that whether or not he pretended to believe their quest to be an impossible one, he'd go all the same, "Plus, you have no idea just how well we manage to squeeze ourselves in places that really want to keep us out."

 Matthias blinked, "I believe you." He looked like he wanted to scold himself for saying that, but it was clear that the crew before him, beside the boy craning over his drawing, were nothing more than snakes slithering into places that nobody else would dare enter.

 He could believe it because they'd already done it. Inej was a moving breeze, she flittered on the wind and squeezed through the barest of cracks. Jesper, while rowdy, followed orders when the time came. Kaz, the demjin, was crooked enough that Matthias truly believed he could shift his bones like a monster... Nina had already proved that she could weasel her way through the unwanted.

 And Aleksa, well, she was swaying on her feet as though music was trailing past her ears, even after he'd told them they'd all find their inevitable ends in his home country. They were all insane.

 "But it doesn't matter." Matthias continued, "I can't change what is true. The ice moat is watched from multiple guard towers on the White Island and a lookout atop the Elderclock. It's completely uncrossable except by way of the glass bridge, and there's no way onto the glass bridge without clearance."

 "Hringkälla is coming," Nina said.

 "Be silent." Matthias snapped, his features twisting into a sneer, but even he couldn't hide the way his muscles seized upon every chant of her delightful voice.

 Kaz tipped his head, "Pray, don't."

 "Hringkälla. It's the Day of Listening," Nina trailed off, her eyes entirely on Matthias... thus, Aleksa carried on as though the information was no more important than telling Kaz the sky was blue... or, rather, a bleak shade of ugly grey. Ketterdam was lovely.

 "It's when the new Druskelle are initiated on the White Island."

 Matthias' face was red and his fingers were stark white as they curled around the table edge. Aleksa thought it might snap, "You don't — Neither of you has the right to speak of those things. They're holy."

 "Oh, come now." Aleksa sighed as she toppled into a chair. Her boots were kicked onto the table, just barely avoiding Wylans set of expensive pens and parchment, "They're simple things, Helvar."

 "How do you know of such things?"

 "I was raised in the Little Palace," That was a bit of a stretch, "Most of us are taught about your lot... just in case we find ourselves being dragged from our beds and tossed onto a pit of fire."

 The sound of Matthias' teeth grinding together seemed to reverberate around the room. He almost made to retort, to exclaim that Grisha were unnatural once again, but even he knew they'd all roll their eyes and wave him off.

 Aleksa almost grinned at the silence from the towering man; he was learning well. Still, she shrugged her shoulders, watching the way the ruffles around her wrists jostled like leaves on the wind, "Fjerdan royals throw a party with guests from all over... A lot of the entertainment comes from here, actually."

 "Entertainment?" Kaz asked, though it was rather obvious from the way the word had spilled like vomit, what Aleksa had meant.

 "Actors, dancers, a Komedie Brute troupe..." Nina said for the Shadow Summoner, catching the way her eyes would, on occasion, glance towards Inej. It was strange to see just how much Aleksa cared... Nina had expected something different, someone different.

 Though, she supposed such expectations only came with the dreaded title of Shadow Summoner itself. She'd expected the same callousness of the Darkling, she'd expected her spine to wrack with an unruly shiver at her voice.

 But she was just a girl with rather strange friends.

 Nina parted her plump lips, readjusting the waist of her dress, "... and the best talent from the pleasure houses of West Stave."

 Aleksa tutted; the Fjerdans claimed to be ever so high and mighty, so holy that they believed the ground they trod was left unmarked in their wake. But they were just like everyone else; they took what they wanted, when they wanted it.

 Though it was rather funny to imagine what Matthias would be like in a pleasure house. The brute would likely curl up into an old lump on the ground with pink cheeks and tears in his eyes. Maybe they could take him to one, an initiation of sorts... just to see how long he could stand at the entry without blushing like a fair maiden.

 "The one day a year that the Fjerdans slap on real smiles," Aleksa chimed, eyes staring through Matthias, "Though not for you, of course... the Druskelle are more like..."

 "Monks?" Nina snorted.

 "Exactly."

 Matthias spluttered like a fish out of water. His cheeks flared to such a degree, that the flush that had alighted Wylans face seemed normal in comparison, "A good time needn't involve wine and... and flesh,"

 Aleksa, Nina and Jesper were the three to let out a great deal of laughter. Jesper would find himself flirting with anything and everything, especially his own reflection. Nina was a great flirt, one to rival even Aleksa herself... Aleksa, well... she'd bat her lashes and pout her lips just to get her way, which meant that she always did. Even when such looks were directed towards her dearest Brekker.

 "Wine? Sure. It's not quite to my taste." Aleksa pondered, already missing the delectable sweet cherry drink she'd guzzle like water, "But flesh? Now that's a party."

 "I wouldn't bother, Aleksa," Nina sighed, plopping into a chair as she crossed her legs over one another. Her deep eyes bore into Matthias' and Aleksa could see the man quite physically shaking in his boots, "He wouldn't know a good time if it sidled up to him and stuck a lollipop in his mouth."

 "Ooh, I'll certainly have you stick a lollipop in my mouth if you're offering."

 "When we're alone, perhaps."

 "The deal is the deal."

 Kaz's cane found the ground rather swiftly and with such a loud click that it sounded like thunder echoing from the clouds above. His stomach had twisted like a coiling reptile... it wasn't exactly an all too unfamiliar feeling. It was something, however, that hadn't reared its ugly head in quite some time.

 The day Aleksa had stepped on that boat and disappeared into the smog surrounding his city... it had left with her, and now... the moment she'd returned, it hit him with full force. That glint in her eyes as she spoke to Nina. The way her lips tilted into a crooked and coy little smile...

 His eyes were narrowed, and he hadn't even noticed.

 "Calm down, pretty boy. You can stick a lollipop in my mouth too, if you'd like." Aleksa slipped her legs from the table and back to the ground with a hearty thud. She'd missed being able to tease Kaz all with the innate desire to see his cheeks bleed pink; now though... she'd be surprised if she ever saw him sport such a colour again.

 He'd grown colder in her absence, and while such a fact made her heart contact almost painfully... Aleksa couldn't smother that little spark in her stomach that was glad he had. It almost felt like with her return, he loosened with every passing hour; that her return was letting Kaz Brekker bleed through the guise of Dirty Hands.

 Nina flicked her sights between the two. One looked like the cat that got the cream, whilst the other, namely Kaz... looked about as sour as ever. Yet he always let his shadow get away with everything, it was something she'd noticed quickly. Nina blinked, struggling to keep her lips tightly sealed together.

 Oh. She grinned. Because really, wasn't it obvious? Couldn't the others see it?

 Nina smothered a giddy little giggle as she cleared her throat and directed a toffee-scented finger towards the plans beneath Wylan's frock of curls. The poor boy looked utterly bewildered at the back and forth Alkesa and Kaz had shared, the way Aleksa was still standing even after making such an offer to Kaz Brekker of all people, "The embassy gate will have to be open. Maybe we shouldn't worry about breaking into the Ice Court. Maybe we should just walk in with the performers."

 Kaz tore his eyes from the smile that had drawn him in, "This isn't Hellshow. It won't be that easy."

 And so, back they were to the problem at hand.

 "Visitors are vetted weeks before they arrive at the Ice Court," Matthias said. "Anyone entering the embassy will have their papers checked and checked again. Fjerdans aren't fools."

 "Well..."

 "Not all of them, at least."

 Aleksa and Nina chimed in time, both of them grinning like petulant little children when Matthias huffed.

 "Aleksa, you've had your fill with bullying the Fjerdan." Kaz stated, though even he knew his words would fall upon deaf ears and soon enough Matthias Helvar would find himself being compared to a goat, or perhaps even a pig, "You as well Nina. We need him friendly. When does this party take place?"

 "The spring equinox." Aleksa supplied; she could remember the days, weeks and months she'd been forced to learn every tiny little bit of information about the Fjerdans. From Djel to their sacred grounds and the silly tree they worshipped.

 Once her teachings were done, once such harsh views on the Fjerdans were instilled within her growing mind, and Aleksander had moved on to the Shu. There were fewer negative connotations, one of Aleksanders only redeeming qualities... it seemed the Fjerdans were those receiving the brunt of his anger, as well as the Otkazat'sya, of course.

 Inej stepped forth, and her footsteps were entirely unheard as she hovered behind Aleksa. Even now, the strange avalanche of comfort the two received when side by side was overwhelming, "Exactly two weeks from today."

 It was then, that Kaz Brekker cocked his head... His eyes glazed over as though focused beyond belief at something the others could never hope to see.

 Aleksa could practically hear the gears churning in his head, but that look was one she'd missed so very much, it made him look — well, rather handsome really. But that was Kaz, scheming face or not. Her hands clapped together lightly, hardly making a sound, "Scheming face."

 Inej hummed, while Jesper rocked on his feet, only perpetuating the glint in his wide brown eyes, "Definitely."

 Kaz blinked, and the room flooded straight back in, he turned to awaiting gazes, "Is the White Rose sending a delegation?"

Nina shook her head, "I didn't hear anything about it."

 "Even if we go straight to Djerholm," Inej said, fingers dancing along Aleksa's shoulders. She watched the way the white cotton deflated beneath bronze digits. The warmth was welcomed, touch from somebody she trusted was comforting, "We'll need most of a week to travel. There isn't time to secure documents or create a cover that will bear up under scrutiny."

 "We're not going in through the embassy," said Kaz. "Always hit where the mark isn't looking."

 Wylan peered up from his work, his freckled nose scrunching, "Who's Mark?"

 Aleksa laughed. He still had a lot of learning to do if he really was to join them on their impossible heist. She spoke above Jesper's gaudy chortle, "The mark. The target, the idiot you're looking to fool."

 "Oh."

 Kaz leaned back in his seat, fingers tapping along the crow's skull atop his cane. The silver detailing glinted almost menacingly, it fitted him well and matched the small slivers of silver embedded within his waistcoat, "What's the easiest way to steal a man's wallet?"

 "Knife to the throat?" asked Inej.

 "Gun to the back?" said Jesper.

 "Poison in his cup?" suggested Nina.

 Unbeknownst to them all, Aleksa had slinked from her chair to stand behind Wylan once again. She peered over his drawing, catching his blinking eyes, and with a grin she said, "These are ever so detailed, Wylan."

 "Oh, thank you."

 "No, really. These are magnificent."

 Wylans face was as bright as the ripest of tomatoes. His head had dipped, and he hadn't even noticed the fingers that slipped into his pocket. He wasn't like the other men Aleksa would rile up with coy little grins, her popped buttons and rather obscene words... he was just a boy who hadn't had many kind words directed his way.

 Still, attention got the best of almost everyone.

 Aleksa held her hand high, and there, in between two pearl-painted fingers was a leather wallet, "There's nothing in here... but I still swiped it all the same." Aleksa tossed it to the table, watching with delight as Wylan scrambled for the empty thing with blistering cheeks.

 "Charm does wonders," Aleksa said, skirting around the table, "Far easier than dealing with the aftermath of a knife or a gun... less messy, I'd say. Poison is fun, but words are simple."

 Matthias looked between them all, "You're all horrible."

 Kaz Brekker, for the first time in quite a while, felt his lips curl, "Words..." He hummed, and that stoney grit had Aleksa's eyes on him in a heartbeat, "The easiest way to steal a man's wallet is to tell him you're going to steal his watch. You take his attention and direct it where you want it to go..."

 "Exactly, and because Kaz doesn't have my pretty face or..." Her eyes dipped to her own chest, "Other assets — no need to blush, Matthias, we're all adults, no?"

 Matthias looked about ready to pray for Djel to just smite him where he stood. She was just as bad as Nina.

 "Hringkälla is going to do that job for us. It'll be the watch, the..." Kaz rolled his eyes, "... Asset. The Ice Court will have to divert resources to monitoring guests and protecting the royal family. They can't be looking everywhere at once. It's the perfect opportunity to spring Bo Yul-Bayur." Kaz pointed to the prison gate in the ringwall. "Remember what I told you at Hellgate, Nina?"

 "It's hard to keep track of all your wisdom."

 "At the prison, they won't care about who's coming in, just anyone trying to get out." His gloved finger slid sideways to the next sector and he tapped just once. "At the embassy they won't care who's going out, they'll just be focused on who's trying to get in. We enter through the prison, leave through the embassy. Helvar, is the Elderclock functional?"

 Matthias nodded, showcasing that ridiculous shaving job he'd received in Hellgate, "It chimes every quarter hour. It's also how the alarm protocols are sounded."

 "It's accurate?"

 "Of course."

 "Then we'll use the Elderclock to coordinate our movements."

 "Will we enter disguised as guards?" Wylan asked, tapping his now blunt pencil against his chin. His fingers were already smeared with silver lead, and now his chin had a little smudge too. He frowned at the piece of blue cloth Aleksa procured from her pocket... It had the Lantsov double eagle embroidered in gold on one of the corners.

 He plucked it from her hand, wiping where she had poked a finger.

 Jesper rolled his eyes, "Unfortunately, only Aleksa, Nina and Matthias speak Fjerdan."

 His disdain was as clear as day; whether directed to the Fjerdans in general, or the fact that he knew he'd never quite be able to sit still long enough to garner such a talent.

 Matthias narrowed those ice-cold eyes, a stubbed finger slicing through the air, pointing right at Aleksa, "You speak Fjerdan?"

 "Obviously, pe stor djurisk." Aleksa clicked her tongue as the final word left her lips. It was a placid insult, 'you big brute', but it got the message across.

 Nina bobbed her head, "Very good, you speak like a native."

 "We'll enter as we are." Kaz interrupted the two before they could begin yet another bout of back and forth. "As criminals. The prison is our front door."

 It was a good plan... the best they were going to scrounge up, really. The problem was that Aleksa really did not like the idea of abiding by Fjerdan's rules. The mere thought of having shackles binding her wrists was enough to have her heart stutter.

 Under Alexander's eyes, she'd been behind bars. They'd been sealed across her blackened windows leaving no room to escape, but she hadn't been bound unless she truly stepped out of line. The look on his face when she did...

 Kaz knew this. He knew more now, for when Aleksa had received the letter filled with Alina Starkov's pleas, Aleksa had decided it was time for somebody to know. She'd thought it would make going back easier. That it would make seeing that room that had swallowed her childhood less poisonous.

 He looked her way, and while everything within her was screaming to say no, to dig her heels and refuse, Aleksa nodded just once. Short and sharp, but that was enough.

 Jesper scratched a nail at his chin, "let me get this straight," He said, eyes narrowed on Kaz, "You want us to let the Fjerdans lock us in jail? Isn't that what we're always trying to avoid?"

 "Criminal identities are slippery. It's one of the perks of being a member of the troublemaking class. They'll be counting heads at the prison gate, looking at names and crimes, not checking passports or examining embassy seals."

 "Because no one wants to go to prison," Jesper's head bobbed rather solemnly. His fingers found purchase upon his guns, and the knowledge that he'd have to part with them for a short while sent his heart hammering; they were the only things that could ever draw his racing mind away from the tables, from cards and dice and kruge.

 Nina rubbed her hands over little bumps that had risen atop the flesh of her arms. She'd been a captive before, she'd felt the glare of the Druskelle that had stolen her away and forced her behind bars with nothing but an old can to sip salted water from.

 She really didn't want to do it again, "I don't want to be locked up in a Fjerdan cell."

 Kaz flicked his sleeve and Aleksa spied the familiar little glint of metal. Two slender rods perched between his gloved fingers, each one unwavering as Kaz held them steady. You could search and search for a shake of his hands, and yet never could you find it.

 His lockpicks. The very items that Aleksa had seen Kaz fiddle with time and time again. He always had them snug in his coat sleeves, ready to fall right into the palm of his hands. He'd used them so many times on the heists the two of them would conduct; shadows would befall them, glossing over them like ocean waves while Kaz would narrow his eyes and toss a lock aside in record speed.

 "You let me take care of the cells," Kaz said, and the little metal rods disappeared once more. Like a magic trick.

 "Thing is..." Aleksa dragged out, and soon enough her audience was at attention. Her boots thudded on the ground as she circled the table. She bypassed Wylan as he peered through golden lashes, past Matthias who held his breath and looked ready to pop as she drifted by like a shadow beneath lantern light.

 She paused by Kaz, finding that her feet simply didn't wish to move any further, "Will Yul-Bayur come willingly?"

 "Finally doubting your charm?"

 "Not in my nature, I'm afraid."

 Kaz fought the urge to smile once more, and as ever, he settled for a light tap against her ankle with the heel of his cane, "Van Eck said the Council gave Yul-Bayur a code word when they first tried to get him out of Shu Han so he'd know who to trust: Sesh-uyeh. It will tell him we've been sent by Kerch."

 "Sesh-uyeh?" Aleksa muttered, brows curling together while a little divot appeared between them, "Heartsick?"

 Kaz made no more to confirm, no expand upon the meaning. Aleksa wasn't even sure if he himself knew what it meant. Still, Kaz peered at each and every one of them. He held their gaze, and when he stooped his eyes higher, latching onto Aleksa who was still standing right by his side, her hand curled around the back of his chair — yet never quite touching him — he spoke again, "This can be done."

 She grinned, fingers tapping the lacquered wooden chair, "Then we'll be the ones to do it."

 It was like a fire erupted. Like champagne was passed out as music played and people danced. There was a hint of excitement in the air... Matthias was evidently still dubious of their plan as well as his own involvement, Wylan gulped as he trailed a finger over his sketches once more, and Nina simply remained silent as she digested the information, as well as another toffee she'd found.

 But Jesper grinned, his smile creating a wildfire among the four original crows. Inej, who'd done her best to maintain a modicum of nonchalance in front of their newcomers, couldn't quite help but let a buzz simmer over her skin. Her lips curled upwards as though Jesper had tied strings to their corners and puppeteered them himself.

 Aleksa was utterly elated. Sure, Matthias might have spent the better part of the hour explaining in horrific detail all the ways they could fail and get caught. They might have peered over plans of a building with unbreachable entrances... but that familiar feeling was growing and growing.

 Her gut was ready to burst, every heist felt like the very first one all over again.

 It was a strange sensation; to feel so very excited about marching into a land that held no place for Grisha, a country that wouldn't hesitate to bind them... and kill them. But the adrenaline always spurred them onwards... and it seemed that a hint might have sparked in Matthias.

 He folded his huge arms, muscles pulled taught, "You have no idea what you're up against." But while he spoke his words, there was no grit and growl. There was no sneer...

 Kaz felt it too, only he always swallowed the feeling. He never quite allowed more than a crooked slant to befall his thin lips. Still, they could all see that dark gleam in his eyes grow brighter, as though sunlight streamed through a glass of burning whiskey, turning it the shade of sweet and sugary honey.

 He cocked his head, "But you do, Helvar. I want you working on the plan of the Ice Court every minute until we sail. No detail is too small or inconsequential. I'll be checking on you regularly."

 Inej traced her finger over the detailed sketch Wylan had produced. She paused in her path, her tone as light as a feather, "It really does look like the rings of a tree."

 Aleksa sauntered to her side, "Looks like something I'd shoot an arrow at... It looks like a target." She tapped the very centre, the most protected place. The centre of the target was always the smallest and hardest place to hit... but she could do it, and in this case... they could do it.

 Bo Yul-Bayur was coming to Ketterdam, and they were getting that money.

━━━━━━━

DATE: 08/07/2023

:･ﾟ★sorry for the long gap between chapters, hope this longer one makes up for it; i've been on hiatus, but i'm (hopefully) back to business.

also aleksa and nina are such a moment.

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 and receive sneak peeks! do not leave 'update' comments, you will be muted.