(after chaos+ hadrian's wrath)

Geebus. The Lord High Commander gave him a beating, so did his aunt. His neck is wrapped in bandages because the Lord High Commander prodded him in the neck and made him BLEED. God, it HURTS. A LOT. Wait till he tells Ranna about it, maybe she'll get mad at the Lord High Commander and eventually damage their 'relationship'. A cynical smile flashed to his face upon that thought. But she won’t come back in a couple of days.

He was hoping the aging Lord High Commander was busy torturing his troops because of his… uh… because he likes to torture them for fun. That’s right; he likes to torture his men for fun.

Nana Xilin, who was there at the incident when he was beaten black and blue by Hadrian… and she DID NOT help him at all or stopped the Lord High Commander’s wrath, told him take a day off. Which so he did, he needed the fresh air also.

Gods. The PAIN.

He just stood there by the square near the fountain. Nicolai just sighed, he shook his head. He shouldn’t have called the Lord High Commander that he was a prune-face. But, yeah, he was jealous of him that he caught his manager’s attention. He wished to be noticed by her also, but the only thing he receives from her is a pat or a soft smile.

That kept him happy.

He was deep in thought; the poor thing was tired also. So he can care less for the world. He could hear children playing and the birds chipping; those were the only things he could hear.

A figure approached him from the back… slowly approaching him. There was a devious smile up his face, and no, it was NOT the Lord High Commander.

Raid forcibly kept her expression smooth and vaguely interested as a shopkeeper related her life story. Damnit, she didn't care if she was the daughter of a merchant. She was, too, and look how Raid had turned out.

At any rate, the woman was getting on her nerves. It was time to distance herself...

"Miss," Raid drawled, pointing at the boy playing behind the woman. He'd been gnawing on a sweet he'd swiped from her stand. "Is that your son?"

"Huh?" She turned to look. Raid made her escape...

Well, she'd like to wash off the spittle the woman's brat of a son had gotten on her hand when he'd shaken it upon greeting. She grunted, weaving her way through the crowd towards the nearest fountain.

A movement--familiar in pace and method--caught Raid's eye, and she stared curiously as what was obviously a fellow thief stalked prey that was...

...Obviously not worth the trouble.

Raid frowned. The man definitely wasn't boasting any particular amount of money, so to speak--he bore no riches, no accessories. Very much a poor man...the thief was wasting his time. And making someone else, who actually did need the money (Raid may have been a thief, but she DID have standards) have a more difficult time.

Well, then. She'd just have to interfere.

She slunk forward and caught the man's wrist as it reached for the oblivious man's pocket, twisting it upwards ever so slightly to acheive as much pain as possible in as little movement.

"Ah, ah," Raid murmured. She pressed her thumb into the joint of his wrist, and the would-be thief howled. She smiled. "Run along before I call the Guard on you," she said again, and smiled once more when he wrenched away from her and fled.

Raid turned her attention to the remaining bystander. "You're not too bright, are you?" She cocked a hip, waiting for him to turn around.

Uh. Yeah, he stood there... staring blankly at the clouds. Oh look, that one is shaped like a carrot. Hee. C'mon boy, get back to reality. Then he heard noises from the back, winces of pain also.

"Ah, ah," someone muttered. "Run along before I call the Guard on you," it said again. Oh no. NOT the King's guard. I repeat. NOT the King's guard. He had enough trouble a few days ago, and it was the High Commander he face.

"You're not too bright, are you?" the voice said again.

He turned around to the direction of the voice; he saw a man running like there is no tomorrow. And, another figure, a woman. Nicolai blinked a few times, she looked like a tough cookie. He gulped his saliva and braced himself.

"I'm a daydreamer." He said flatly and shrugged. "AND, I am NOT stupid, Miss. Just an ABSENT-MINDED person."

The man turned to face her. He took a few moments to process the situation, blinking a few times. Raid idly wondered if he was touched in the head.

"I'm a daydreamer," he said at last, flatly, and shrugged. "AND, I am NOT stupid, Miss. Just an ABSENT-MINDED person."

"Right," she smiled, still in her loose stance. Now that Raid could get a good look at his face, she saw he was actually kinda of...cute. Maybe she could get some lighthearted entertainment out of this.

She snickered at him as she walked past, dipping the hand from earlier into the fountain. Raid sent an amused look at the man over her shoulder as she rinsed off. Call her sadistic, but he looked like he'd be fun to tease.

"Of course," Raid drawled, "You are absentminded. A stupid person wouldn't have seen that thief creeping up on you. You did. Of course," she said again, and laughed.

"Right," the woman cooed still her hand on her hip. Nicolai twitched, he was dead-tired, okay. And he's very unaware of things if he's tired; okay, the raging Lord High Commander and the sight of rabid dogs will send him running faster than you can say cookie.

He just shook his head, and throbing it also. Big-fat headache...

He heard the woman snicker and took a close look at her. She was kind of... cute. Wait, was he falling for her? Oh hell no, his heart and love is only for Ranna. Oh gods no... not for this... woman standing infront of him.

"Of course," The woman said sarcastically, "You are absentminded. A stupid person wouldn't have seen that thief creeping up on you. You did. Of course," she said again, and laughed.

Again, he twitched at what she said. The youth flustered a bit, blushing. The ebon haired young man looked away, then looked at the woman for a mere millisecond and looked away again.

"If he wanted to steal something for me then. He's not going to get anything, at all." He replied rather coldly. "I got nothing." Then he shrugged.

The young man gave a visible twitch, flushing. Raid let loose another snicker, enjoying how easily he got flustered.

He looked at her once, then glanced away. He looked at her again and, once more, turned his gaze away in blatant embarrassment. "If he wanted to steal something for me then he's not going to get anything, at all," He replied, rather coldly. "I got nothing." Then he shrugged.

Raid flicked her wrist, sending a few droplets of water towards the petulant man. His attempts at playing the unaffected bystander were all too easy to see through.

"Oh, you must know, then." Raid smiled beautifically at him and proceeded to lie through her teeth--though he wouldn't be able to tell. "When a thief finds his or her time wasted, they resort to less...pleasant means of taking out their frustration." She gave a pointed glance in his direction.

The lady flicked her wrists and droplets of water landed on his dirt-covered face due to the reason the lady dipped her hands to the pool of water. Nicolai blinked as he wiped his brow.

"Oh, you must know, then." The woman said as she flashed a beautiful smile. "When a thief finds his or her time wasted, they resort to less...pleasant means of taking out their frustration." She gave a pointed glance in his direction.

He shrugged, "So?" Nicolai replied stoically. "I've been always picked on. I could care less anyway."

He shrugged. Again. "So?" he replied stoically. So the man was keeping up the cool act...ha. "I've been always picked on. I could care less anyway."

"Then you aren't too bright. At all," Raid informed him, settling herself onto the edge of the fountain and watching him through lowered lashes.

Apathy about being...picked on, as he put it, wasn't the smartest way to go. If you lay down and took it, there would be no end, and eventually you'd break. Call her sentimental, but this man was too beautiful, too obviously naïve to be broken.

"What's your name, thief-bait?" she drawled.

"Then you aren't too bright. At all," the lady said. Of course it did hurt him a lot. He looked at her with his beautiful eyes,"I haven't got any decent education in my entire life." Nicolai replied. "I'm poor... and my parents, died."

He took a deep breath, "My aunt couldn't afford to send me to school anyway. Besides, she doesn't give a damn about me anyway."

Still the silence embraced them, they were sort of in a staring contest.

"What's your name, thief-bait?" she asked.

"Nicolai. Nicolai Tiede." He replied. "Yours?" He asks while sitting down beside her by a few meters apart.

"Nicolai. Nicolai Tiede. Yours?" "Nicolai" sat down on the fountain beside her; Raid snorted. He was at least three meters away, the little coward.

"Raid," she spoke up, using her characteristic drawl again. She eyed him, feeling devious.

"Parents dead? That's a shame." Subtly, she leaned back, allowing her right index finger to swirl around the fountain water. "No education? Too bad." The hand stilled, then suddenly flashed upwards, slinging a large wave of water towards the oblivious man.

"Being a fool? Your fault," Raid smiled, and laughed again.

"Raid." She spoke simply, but there was a devious grin on her face. Nicolai just shuddered.

"Parents dead? That's a shame." Subtly, she leaned back, allowing her right index finger to swirl around the fountain water. Not funny, he twitched and wanted to fight back, literally. But, he was talking to a woman, and it wouldn't be nice also. "No education? Too bad." The hand stilled, then suddenly flashed upwards, slinging a large wave of water towards the oblivious man.

He was wet now, mainly his clothes. Nicolai reddened as looked away from the woman. "Being a fool? Your fault," She said, laughing.

His face is now red as a tomato. True, he was a fool... not to mention gullible also.

"Very funny." He said coldly. "Ha...ha..ha." He laughed mockingly.