4. Everything and Nothing

The accent had done it's duty. There was little doubt in Kiplin's mind that the other was tasting the accent and running through the lineage bits...he was finely dressed enough for that sort of thing to have been drilled in. That's what boys needed to learn more than anything in proper families anyway. Yet there was no immediate outburst to mock him. Civil creature, this one, despite the momentary lapse in reaction. "And ya, not from th' sev'th for sure. Too much fin'ry for that, I suspect." He noted with an eye used to appraising fabric from a distance, withdrawing his hand from the brief, but properly firm shake. The other's garments were the sort of thing that would fetch the house thieves a day or two off if gathered in plenty, and absently, he wondered if this O'Shea came from the clan his people had raided on occasion. It seemed an unlikely coincidence, but the places he'd lived...it was always possible.

3. Something Akin to This

The other actually moved the book. Pheeliz felt his chin drop ever so slightly in surprise. Now he couldn't help but continue reading, wondering what sort of book would enchant the blond before him so much that he would just react on that level of instinct. His smile softened, moving away from predatory and towards something that was actually warm. By the time the dark eyes of his companion had turned to him, the Knight-to-be had taken more than just the initial fancy.

The slow turn from the profile view he had had to the more ideal way to view his room mate was orchestrated with care. Someone with control of their actions! Such a novel surprise. Smiling as the other finally decided what to do with him, he returned the greeting in his own fashion. "'Lo." Kiplin had a long history of laziness in speech that the University promised to beat out of him, but that didn't mean he was going to let it affect him in conversation with his new fancy. Allowing space between them to form, something he was already somewhat reluctant to do, the would-be thief relaxed back, half perching on his bed.

"Braedin?" Pheeliz confirmed, the name comfortable on his tongue, not mangling. "Kiplin's m'name." There was a mischief in offering only one name, with no specificity whether it was a surname or given name. It was, of course, the primary mischief that was the young man's spirit, the metaphorical twinkle in the sapphire prisms. Than the expected, and somewhat more difficult question came.

He could tell the truth. Actually, it wasn't a bad idea, but still, not the best. So he told
a half truth; where his family was now, rather than where they actually came from. There were few here at the University who would appreciate gypsy blood for the great legacy it possessed, still. Racism, even at the highest institute of learning, was still racism. "From Aegea's sev'th province." Truth be told, it was more likely his wording that was bound to stir up something than his actual bloodline these days. He could be articulate, if he wanted.

Well. If he wanted to, he could've also lifted Master O'Shea's pocket gold too, but he hadn't done that yet either.

2. Terrible Tremors

The sleep that stole him was very light, but the dreams that caught his anything but dormant mind were terrifyingly dark. Though he did not move too much in his sleep, Pheeliz felt trapped. A terrible sort of trapped that he was certain he wouldn't be able to escape in time. Fingers trembled, clumsily dropping the lock pick that had been his only hope of getting out before it happened. The sound of the pick dropping and bouncing off the stone floor and through the bars, head over end, slowed in his mind a million times.

The door closed and he was awake, though not opening his eyes. The presence of the other was clear, even with closed eyes. Movement, followed by a stillness that was only interrupted by the soft turning of pages. Maybe it wasn't the blond. He had been certain that one had gotten in on some sort of scholarship for most pleasing to the eye or some odd, not any real intelligence. Unlike Pheeliz who had gotten in on his own brilliance...well, the brilliance involved in stealing someone else's test scores was at least as high as actually passing the tests, that much he was certain of.

Making a show of waking up, yawning gratuitously and stretching out in an entirely feline manner, he turned to inspect his new dorm mate, surveying the form of his reading dorm mate. A dark eyebrow perked up in mild surprise...pretty boy could read. And was doing so at such a pace and involvement that he hadn't even noticed his over-acting. Stalking from his bed over to the desk, he just barely resisted the temptation to slink his arms around the other's neck and give him a real wake-up. But that would be rude. A part of being a Guild Thief was courtesy towards others and knowing when not to soil one's own living grounds.

So instead, he glanced over the other's shoulder, wondering if he held the same aggression others did against the whole 'reading over the shoulder' thing. "Could you perhaps adjust the angle...the haze from outside is producing an awful glare off the page." The words came out as some wicked cross between purr and real utterance. Well trained muscles waited for the oncoming onslaught of natural reaction...the amount of tending this one did to his body had to have some bearing in his reactions to being surprised. If not, it would do him no harm to be prepared, anyway.

1. Fresh Prospects

It was fantastic weather when Pheeliz made his way onto campus. Everyone else was miserable, of course, the on and off drizzling was enough to drive anybody mad. Though the weather was terrible for the house-theifs(everyone stayed home on days like this) and even the average pickpocket might not necessarily see it as an advantage, the trickster in the young man saw it as a glorious way to prey on folk's emotions. Gloom and doom meant people were more willing to be coaxed into "something fun" and nervous freshmen like himself were no different.

Within moments of entering into the thrall of students mulling onto the grossly over-sized campus, the man-child had already swindled some of his classmates out of their pocket money. It wasn't too difficult...he had just set up a small betting pool against himself. Rather than hide his talent and skills, the young man had long ago decided to play them for laughs here. To get caught slipping into his old habits could get him found out...but if he treated it like sleight of hand, he could claim that the landowner's son he'd stolen his education from had picked it up to better entertain Ladies. So, pocketing his reward for having knicked another boy's coin purse while he was bragging about his pickpocket defense get up, the bright young man tossed his small travel sack over his shoulder and took off up the stairs to his dormitory.

He caught sight of a rather broad specimen of man heading down the hallway. Though certainly in support of the Ladies, Kiplin was an equal opportunity observer. The fluff of blond curls stood out, but the young man had already made his way past him by then. Of course, that gave him an excuse to glance back and catch view of something else entirely. "Not bad." He muttered, fingers moving to scratch at the scruff on his chin. Glancing at the numbered doors, he tried his key at last, grateful that it turned. As tempting as it had been to forgo the key and pick his way in, it'd be pointless to reveal all the tricks the young master had up his sleeve.

Sliding into the double, he noted that his dormie had already arrived and left again. Assuredly, it would be the blond brute that had passed him on his way up. That's just how Pheeliz's life worked. That the other had sparked a feeling of past meeting only made it more impossible for the other boy...man? to be his room mate for the year. A dark smile stretched at his unshaven face with the thought...part of him strongly hoped to find out that Mr.Light and Handsome would turn out to be just enough of a jerk for him to have fun playing with.

Travel had taken something out of him, and unlike his classmates, he had very little desire to be out and about when he was tired. That was how thieves got caught, and until he had thought of a good reason to go by Kip rather than the given named he had stolen, he wasn't going to leave anyway.

Dropping his knapsack by the foot of his bed, he plopped on top of the bed. As his eye for quality had previously assessed, this year was going to hold some of the most wonderful sleep when he was using his bed for that particular purpose.

Prologue: Pheeliz

Ever since I was a little kid, I knew I had true skill. With ordinary features, I wouldn't've needed them, but I've got my dad's eyes, and there aren't too many little boys with bright blue eyes and dark curly hair running around. So, being a distinctive looking little brat, I had to have skill to survive. Of course, it did help that my mom's got enough gypsy blood that her wanderlust is stronger than any normal thief, and we never stayed in one city for longer than two months anyway.

Well, until my grandmother died that is. I'd just been nominated for full membership within Mom's guild on base of merit, as I'd been bringing in a reasonable amount of money for an adult house-thief, and an altogether ridiculous amount for a ten year old pickpocket. The lifting lay's a dangerous one, but it pays well if you've got the sort of skill I have. Anyway, when grandmother died, Mom inherited the small share of Guild land grandmother had been living on, and was obligated by grandmother's will to tend to it. The piece of paper claimed it was for my good, to have a normal childhood even if I was a proper member of the Guild already.

I remember being so pissed off at first. If Mom's gypsy blood hadn't been enough, our way of life had certainly given me the wanderlust at least as bad, and being tied to one place seemed a mighty burden.

I wasn't too far off, but I found ways to entertain myself. Of course, now that I'm old enough to chose between Knighthood and going straight into serving the Guild, I've been looking at ways to get into the Royal University. And by looking at ways, I mean tricking one of the higher land owners. See, I pick up their mail sometimes, so that they don't have to spend a day going to the city, and I lifted his acceptance letter. Dummy got another one on the same day for a similarly prestigious school anyway, so's not as if he'll miss it.

So on someone else's exam scores, I've gotten myself in. In and out of this cage that's been killing my Mom for the last eight years. And when I'm a proper Knight on a stolen scholarship, I'll release her from the will's contract by submitting the land as forfeit to some Lady of the Court, letting Mom get back to the Guild as she should be.