"What do you want?" Cormac muttered.
The Strange Man looked offended. "You are still such a rude young man! Rude, rude, rude! Well, if that's how I'm to be treated, maybe I WON'T tell you about that fellow you're trying to avoid, and how you're only getting closer to him." He crosses his arms in a huff.
Cormac sighed and slowly brought the carriage to a stop. "Sorry." He dropped the reigns and rubbed his temples. "Argh... I can't get anything right, can I?" he asked more of himself than of the man next to him. This is why I traveled alone before this...
The Strange Man looked over at Cormac and smiled. "Toucan get lots of things right. All you have to do is open your mind, balance your emotion with logic, and posses the valiant, noble heart of a warrior. Oh, and stop being rude." He sipped his tea.
"Where was I? Oh yes. That fellow who was killed? Well, it turns out, that fellow with the odd thong wasn't lying. He had been screwing everyone who worked under him, literally and metaphorically. Including you. He overheard some of your conversations with thong-man, about how you're trying to avoid someone. He decided, perhaps there would be money in telling this Siran fellow about you. He's heading down this road now as we speak. You'll run head first into him. And your options right now are both limited and unpleasant."
"What do you suggest?" Cormac asked, trying to keep himself calm while berating himself with insults. They shouldn't have stayed put for so long. He shouldn't have talked to Thorne, or anybody for that matter. Now they were in danger again. It could have all been avoided if he never found that flyer, but he couldn't turn back and he wouldn't allow himself to leave Astien. Not again.
The Strange Man raised his eyebrow, looking somewhat amused. "Do I sense trepidation? No, that's not it. Regret? Remorse? Please clarify for me, young man, I'm quite curious."[/size]
"I need to protect them," Cormac said in a wavering voice. "But what if I can't? What if I just keep making it worse?"
The Strange Man places a hand on Cormac's shoulder. "You are stronger thank you may think. Why, in another life you could be a great warrior in Orotelos, serving in the King's Circle. But, I believe I've said a bit too much on that subject." He placed another hand on Cormac's other shoulder and straightened his back out.
"Stand straight and proud, young man. This situation you're in? It's terrible as a rule. But the two of two must be strong for each other. You will both falter occasionally, and when that happens, the other must be there to pick them up! You must take this situation and make it better! Neither of you will survive otherwise. Besides, would the fellow in this wagon be very happy to see you so crestfallen? No he wouldn't! So hold your head high, like the brave youth you are!"
(Gtg, sleep time. I'll try to be on before work.)
Cormac nodded and took a deep breath and slowly let it out. "I'll do my best." He climbed down from his seat. He looked to the strange man. "Thank you." He stepped into the carriage and explained the situation to Astien, leaving out the bits of him working in the red-light district as a dancer. Though he did explain that Thorne had once known his mother.
Astien listened silently. "You did that for me? Oh Cormac, that's so kind." He gave Cormac a big hug. "But now we have to figure out what to do." Astien looked over the map. "If we continue down this road, we can hope that Siran doesn't notice us, takes us as just another traveller. So long as I stay in here, of course. But I'm sure that man have him a description of you, so that would be rather risky. Or, we could take this other road, which takes us to..." Astien's face blanched as he saw where the second road led. He started trembling. "Havard's Pass."
Cormac thought for a moment. "I have an idea." He grew his claws and cut off his braid and trimmed other bits of his hair. He them sprouted his wings, but kept them tucked under his cloak to form a hump. "If I don't speak, then we should be fine." He pulled his hood over his face. "Do you think this will work?"
Astien looked over Cormac's disguise. It could... It might work. All we would have to so is hope he doesn't speak to us for any reason. He could stop us, ask for directions or something, I don't know. But Cormac, are you sure you want to risk it? I..." He took a deep breath. "I'm not afraid of Havard's Pass. I've let it haunt me for long enough. I can go through it."
"Alright," Cormac said. "Havard's Pass it is." Cormac quickly studied the map. "It'll be fine, Astien." He smiled assuredly before stepping out of the carriage and closing the door. He climbed back onto the seat and got the carriage moving again. He kept his disguise up just in case. He was going to miss his long hair during the winter months, but if a description of him got out it was probably for the best that he had cut it.
The Strange Man was gone when Cormac returned to the driver's seat. And like last time, there was no indication he'd ever even been there. Astien leaned out the window and spoke. "Cormac, Havard's Pass isn't a safe place for outsiders. Well, not so much outsiders as anyone the residents find different or odd. Be careful." He withdrew back into the carriage and drew the curtains.
Cormac nodded and kept his eyes to the road as they made their way into Havard's Pass.
Over the horizon, a town was visible in the distance. By the time they arrived there, the sun had begun to set. Almost as soon as they entered, townsfolk began eying them suspiciously.
Cormac blinked as his eyes grew heavy, but he didn't dare stop. The sooner they got out of Havard's Pass, the better off they were. If that meant giving up a night's worth of sleep, he was willing to go that far.
Astien carefully opened the window, and without leaning out, he called to Cormac as quietly as he could while still being heard. "We have to stop for the night. The forests are dangerous at night. You need to sleep anyway." He silently shut the window and backed away from it.
Cormac nodded slowly and pulled the carriage to a stop once they reached the edge of the town. He fed and watered the horses before stepping into the carriage. He retracted his wings once the door was shut and locked. "This place gives me the creeps, Astien. As soon as the sun comes up, we're leaving." He removed his cloak and tossed it onto his bed. He ran his hands through his hair. "Feels weird having short hair after so long."
Astien pulled a pair of scissors from his bag and beckoned Cormac to him. He began cuttin his hair, cleaning it up. "I know what you mean. I hate this region so much. There are still a few more towns we'll pass through before we're outside it's borders, too." Astien shuddered. "At least you can go outside. I'm trapped in here as long as we're here. A word of advice," he said as he snipped, "Don't let anyone know you're half-drake. As far as they're all concerned, you're a full human who's traveling alone through this region. Don't let them know about me." He paused his cutting and placed a hand on his belly. "This place isn't very safe for mages, homosexuals, or pregnant men. All of which, I sadly am." He resumed cutting. "I learned they weren't keen on mages the hard way."
(Off to work with me, yaaaaaay)