To A Thief - Chapter 42: My Lovely Partner

What the hell is going on!?

Norg

An underground port city of pirates.

"Why so surprised?" Sekai grinned, twirling the wooden dagger Sister Eri had playfully crafted Stiff so long ago before him. "We made a pact, didn't we?"

It was amazing how overwhelming the flood of memories that came upon simply gazing at this man were. Even more so when Stiff's eyes followed the spinning wooden dagger. It was just as it had been when he traded it to the man.

Realizing something else, Stiff was snapped back into reality and quickly reached into his satchel, pulling out an old weathered bronze dagger, handing it across the wooden one towards Sekai. "Right...! Our pact."

Spectators were a little baffled at first, wondering what the trading of these seemingly worthless objects signified between the two vastly contrasting thieves.

Taking his original wooden dagger in hand and getting a nice hold on it, Stiff chuckled softly with a glazed look in his eyes. It finally fit so well in his hand. Back then, his hands were so small he could hold it with both. Now it had fit his hand perfectly.

Looking at the base of the hilt, he saw that the name 'Stiff' had remained unscathed, just as Sister Eri had left it. Bringing the wooden toy of a dagger to his lips, Stiff shut his eyes and smiled against it, already lost in the sea of memories despite having just met with Sekai after ten years.

Having taken the weathered bronze dagger in his hands, Sekai examined it rather casually without much nostalgia before chucking it upward and turning his hip slightly to catch it directly in its original hilt which was strapped to his thigh. "Like a glove, aye?" He grinned.

Stiff grinned back and gave him a nod, throwing the wooden dagger up into the air in a similar manner to try and catch it in his satchel, but was clubbed in the head by it instead. "Ow!" He yelped, quickly picking it up and instead placing it in the bag himself. He had to pretend that didn't just happen.

Sekai crossed his arms and sized the young man up. "Boy, oh boy. You haven't grown much, have you Stiff?" He said, leaning forward and holding his index finger and thumb close together. "I figured you'd be a little taller, mate!"

"What! I've... I've grown!" Stiff scoffed. "I... will grow."

Sekai smiled and motioned his head behind him. "Come on, there's somebody you need to meet first," he said, turning around and walking towards the direction of a large wooden staircase leading into a hallway built around a tunnel.

Stiff quickly followed behind. It was strange, but he felt an odd comfort being around Sekai even though it wasn't like they were good friends or anything. They were simply two thieves who had made a pact in the past.

He couldn't say the same for the other residents, however. They eyed Stiff like dogs who had just found a new chew toy.

"I know you've got a lot of questions- and I've got plenty of answers, but be patient," Sekai told him as they made their way down to the end of the hallway, where two large wooden double doors stood.

Stiff could only nod in response.

Pushing open the double doors, the two entered a large room with a table in the center full of scrolls and materials and the like. On the walls were also weapons and armor, specifically of far-eastern style.

Behind the desk, however, stood a tall and manly figure, bearing a long white and black overcoat and a head of snow white hair pulled up into a pony tail. The hair appeared to connect around his jawline, forming a neatly-trimmed beard. He appeared to be hume, albeit tanner than most. Rising from his large chair, he gave a short glance at Sekai before turning his attention to the smaller thief beside him.

"Stiff, I'd like you to meet Gilgamesh," Sekai introduced him. "He's the one who runs this here joint, and we just so happen to be buddies."

"Oh! Uh... hello," Stiff blinked, wondering what Sekai had brought him here for.

"Arr," Gilgamesh simply stated in a raspy and similar tone that Stiff knows he's heard from someone else. "So, this be the boy what's been referred ta' in me Salnar's letters, aye?"

"That's right," Sekai grinned. "The kid who took out your former apprentice."

Stiff blinked at Gilgamesh's words. "Wait... "me Salnar?" So you're Salnar's... eh!?" He hunched over in surprise, pointing his finger at the man's ears. "But... you're a hume! Last I heard there's no such thing as interracial child bearing!"

"Aren't I?" Gilgamesh nodded to the boy's hume observation. "He's not me real boy 'corse, ye bloody dolt. But I'd think that I see 'im all the same."

Stiff's eyes went wide. "Holy hell... Salnar really is a pirate, then... an adopted pirate... and I've been making fun of him about his speech since I met him."

"Arr, so ye think we talk funny, eh?" Gilgamesh cracked his knuckles. "You got nethin' else ta say 'bout us pirates?" His voice could pass off as menacing.

Stiff straightened up and held his hands up. "Whoa, uh... no, I..."

Gilgamesh leaned over his desk, staring with his one exposed eye at the kid. "Hmm?"

Sekai rubbed the bridge of his nose in defeat.

"Well..." Stiff gulped. "Maybe a little bit!" He exclaimed, shutting one eye and limping around as if he had a peg leg all the while bending his fingers into a hooked shape. "Arr, jumpin' jellyfish! Scally-wags be comin' ta' shiver their timbers in my face! Bou's**t, bou's**t, bou's**t, bou's**t!!"

Sekai quickly bopped Stiff on the head and pulled him back into place, keeping a hand on his shoulder and mumbling, "That's enough of that, mate."

"Ow! What the hell!" Stiff jerked his neck back and rubbed the top of his head while glaring at Sekai.

"Sorry about that, he was a lot more mature when he was-" Sekai began, but stopped and tilted his head as Gilgamesh let out a hoarse laugh.

"Arr, keep yer bleedin' sorries. This 'ere runt's got guts. I like guts. But most pirates like em' fresh out o' yer bowels, so mind ye tongue, little thief," Gilgamesh smirked, resting his hands on his desk.

Stiff grinned and gave a light shrug. "Alright, then."

Sekai cocked his mouth in a pleasantly surprised manner, shrugging at Stiff as if to say, "Not bad, kid."

"Listen, runt. I like ye. Me son likes ye. So I think fer now ye kept yerself a little stay here in Norg. But I'll tell ye this now, you tell anybody about Norg, or even think about Norg in the presence of all the outside land lubbers, we'll hogtie and throw ye to the bleedin' Sahagin to have their way with ye. We'll know, so don't even try. Any questions?"

Stiff gulped and quickly nodded his head. "Loud and clear... but, there was one question," he said, bringing a finger to the side of his head in thought. "What did Sekai mean about your "apprentice"? Oh wait! You mean..." He began to look back, remembering the ferry to Selbina and fighting all those undead pirates with Moku. "Was your apprentice... a skeleton?"

Both Sekai and Gilgamesh sighed heavily.

"Um, no..." Sekai said. "I meant Gazo."

Gilgamesh nodded. "Arr."

"Gazo!?" Stiff nearly stumbled back in surprise. "He was your apprentice? But wait, wasn't Gazo with the Descent?"

"Aye," Gilgamesh ran his index finger and thumb along the fine line of his beard. "Correctin' Sekai, Gazo used ta be me apprentice. Went off on his own long ago on some "journey" an' vanished for many a year til' now. If I had known he was sailin' with them clowns sooner, I woulda' gone after 'im meself."

"Oh..." Stiff lowered his head in thought. "Sorry for... killing him... and stuff."

Gilgamesh sneered, shaking his head. "Arr, It means little to me when I've his killer in the palm of me hand. Gazo was a fine swordsman, but ye bested im'. And now yer here."

“And like it or not, you're working for us now!” A young female voice added nonchalantly as the door burst open.

As they all turned their attention towards the door, they saw a red-headed female who couldn't be much older than Stiff standing there with her hands to her hips. She wore a yellow visage of garments that weren't the most protective of clothing, per say. A half-cut yellow top, complimented by a yellow and red skirt that fell just over her lower thighs and the occasional thin strap wrapped around her limbs. A head of red hair cascading over a hidden blue head band and down her upper back greatly complimented the wild grin on her pretty face. Stiff could already tell this girl was TROUBLE.

“So, this is little Stiff that Sal and Sekai are always talking about,” the girl smirked as she made her way casually over to Stiff and circling him as she began to size the thief up. “Honestly, I was expecting something a little taller,” she giggled.

Stiff followed her with his head and furrowed his brows at her short comments. Those were really getting old. “Yeah? Well, when I saw you, I was expecting something a little more girly,” he retorted defiantly.

Her grin faded and she stopped to stare at him, then laughed again while patting his head. “This is a cute kid, Sekai!”

“Right?” Sekai chuckled, crossing his arms with a grin. “I knew you'd like him.”

“'Like' isn't the word I'm looking for,” Stiff muttered, jerking his head away from her hand with a glare.

“Heh! They call me Lion,” the girl introduced herself, keeping a smug look on her face as she poked Stiff on the forehead just to piss him off some more.

He brushed her hand away once more and gave a grumpy look. “I can see why...”

She leaned over and gave a fierce grin this time, as if his remarks were actually getting to her now. “You know, you got a big mouth kid! Do you kiss your mama's a*s with it?”

He looked back at her just as fiercely, not holding back especially after that. “Quit callin' me a kid! I doubt you're even older than me! On second thought, you're right. I apologize, ma'am. What are you, like thirty-one?”

“You serious?” Lion scoffed, her voice getting sharper. “Eighteen. How old are you, thirteen? Fourteen?”

“You got just one year on me,” Stiff snickered, holding his hands up in front of him while rolling his eyes and saying in a goofy voice, “Watch out guys, we got a big girl over here...”

The obnoxious pair went chibi and quarreled like no tomorrow, nuking insults at one another... forcing Sekai and Gilgamesh to watch them go back and forth. It wasn't until the two ran out of breath that Gilgamesh finally intervened.

“I see ye've met me girly,” he muttered, nodding towards Lion. “This little thief won't cease to surprise me, Sekai.”

“I'll say!” Sekai smiled helplessly. “He's gotta be the first man not to fall for Lion upon first glance. In fact, he hated her upon first glance. Now that's a first if I ever saw one. I'm impressed, Stiff. But you might wanna cool it with your new partner...”

Stiff froze entirely, his head slowly cracking towards Gilgamesh's direction. “D... Daughter?” Then his head quickly turning towards Sekai. “P... Partner!?” Then one last time towards Lion. He could have sworn he heard glass breaking behind him. It was the sound of his whole world shattering around him. He threw his hands up in the air and wailed, “PARTNER!?!?!?”

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To be continued in Chapter 43: Blur

Author's Note

It's been a lengthy break, but...

I'm back! Time to get back down to business.