Catching Gold

"Aren't you even going to tell me what's wrong?" Relieve washed through her chest as Ruan heard his voice cut through the noise of the rain. She still didn't turn around, but now it wasn't out of fear, it was out of shame. What would he think of her now? Surely she must look so dumb and stupid and... A sob wrenched it's way out, followed by another and before she knew, Ruan was crying again, her whole body hunched over and her shoulders shaking.

"Don't just walk away! Please..."

He sounded closer now, out in the rain, probably soaked to the bone again. Ruan clenched her hands into fists, trying to calm down, to breath. Urgh, this is all so messed up! And now he's getting wet too and probably feeling confused and I'm being so stupid stupid stupid!

(that is so true)

Walking closer until he was standing directly behind Ruan, Tom stopped. She was crying.
Did I really screw up that badly? He ran one hand through his hair, pulling it away from his face and out of his eyes. So much for that favor, he wasn't entirely sure what he'd even done that would effect Ruan so much, or anyone had done. But he could guess that it had something to do with Dolores.

Tom took one more step forward, so that he was standing beside Ruan rather than behind her. Wordlessly, he knelt down beside her, arms resting in a leisurely fashion on his knees. With a sad sort of smile, Tom patted Ruan's shoulder, trying to tell her that it was okay, whatever she was upset about.

A small hick escaped Ruan as she took deep breaths. It wasn't really working. So far for calming down, she thought. But then she suddenly felt Tom's hand on her shoulder and all she could do was break down crying again like a little girl. She couldn't bear it anymore, sank to her knees as well and just leaned against his chest, almost screaming rather than crying.

It took a while, but after what seemed more than an hour Ruan finally felt somewhat calmer. The rain had finally given up on drowning the world and was now dropping down almost gently. Ashamed, she turned her head away from Tom, quickly wiping her eyes. "I'm... I can't... Gah, I am sorry Tom."

Tom had been satisfied to stay quiet while she let it all out. If that was what she needed, than that was that. It made him sad though to see her so upset, as much as Tom hated to admit it.
He glanced back in the direction of the Inn. Even now that the rain was letting up, nobody had come looking for them. How supportive a family did Ruan really have? They'd all seemed nice enough at first, but she must have had a reason for not staying like Dolores had. While he didn't mind being alone with Ruan outside while the rain died into a sprinkle, it just bothered him that nobody seemed to care enough to come out.

"Can't what? You don't have to be sorry Ru."
He moved his hand up to her face and gently pulled her back so that he would be able to see her and she would be forced to look into his eyes. Maybe then she would explain something more.

"Can't what? You don't have to be sorry Ru."

Ruan was well aware that Tom was trying to catch her gaze. Quickly she looked up to meet his brown eyes, then looked away again. The door creaked a little in the wind and the sound made her jump a little. She trew a quick look over her shoulder and shuddered.

"Not here," Ruan said. She felt much better now and her eyes were dry. With a shade of her usual bravoure, she scrambled to her feet and offered her hand to Tom. "C'mon sailor, let's go somewhere we can talk." She threw a quick glance at the door. "Somewhere we won't be heard."

Seething, Dolores watched from behind the door as Ruan helped Tom up. Behind her, Jaron was shooting looks that alternated between disapproval and concern. She closed the door ever so silently and then strode past her father, giving him a cold look of her own. She had just time to see his expression change to plain mad again before she reached the stairs up.

"Ha, that's more like it!" Tom smiled and took her hand, standing up off the ground. He took a moment to pat some debris off of his pants legs, a useless persuit, before looking back once more himself. He didn't see anything, but that didn't mean someone couldn't eavesdrop.

What could she have to say that she didn't want anyone else to hear? The thought made Tom itch with anticipation, and he was glad to see Ruan acting like her usual self again. Yet at the same time he couldn't help feeling only a cautious excitement, private talks usually weren't on light subjects. "Is there a good bar around here? Or well- I guess wherever you want to go would be fine."

Now that she got herself back together, Ruan wanted to get out of Dolores' hearing range as fast as possible.

"Is there a good bar around here? Or well- I guess wherever you want to go would be fine," Tom started, but she cut him off. "Not a bar. Don't worry, I know the perfect spot. Wow, that sounded awkward." She took a deep breath and even managed to put on a smirk again. "Well, let's not sulk around. C'mon. Oh, I hope you're not afraid of heights..."

She turned around swiftly, trusting Tom to follow her. They were hurrying through narrow streets paved with uneven cobblestone, heading towards a tall building towering over the nearby houses. Most of the time it was obscured by the buildings around them, but sometimes it was visible between two roofs. Ruan stopped briefly to point at the highest roof. "There 's where we are going."

"Sure, why not." Tom snorted, he couldn't imagine that sitting in a tree or on the roof of some house would be too terrifying. He followed behind after a brief pause, jogging along through the streets behind until they reached the buildings Ruan seemed interested. He looked up to see what she was pointing at and gaped, "You're kidding, up there?"

Ruan could say by his reaction that he was slightly underestimating the height of their talking place. "Sure, why not?" he said in a casual fashion. It was satisfying to see his mouth drop as she pointed out the actual building.

"You're kidding. Up there?!"

Her smirk widened into a real smile. "Sure, why not?" she mimicked his earlier words? "Unless you are suddenly afraid..."

"Unless you are suddenly afraid..."

"Hmph." Tom continued to look up at the building for a moment longer. In truth, he wasn't sure what he thought, he'd never actually been that high up, not even on a ship, there were other people whose job it was to look out on the mast. Climbing trees was as high as he'd ever gotten. But there was no way Tom would admit it wasn't something he'd tried before. "Never! I accept your challenge." He pushed up his sleeves and wrung his hands, "Now, how do we get up top?"

Ruan could see it milling in his head. To go up there or not to go up there? To give in or to push through. "Never! I accept your challenge!" he said wringing his hands. Now, how do we get up top?"

"Well..." Ruan said, slightly cocking her head to one side. "We could take the stairs, but that's no fun at all. We could also climb!" With these words she broke into a sprint, turning left into a narrow alley and hopping a few feet high unto a ladder. "This way sailor! We'll take the adventurous approach! Plus, we don't want the concierge after us so we better not go walking in under his nose, yes?"

"This way sailor! We'll take the adventurous approach! Plus, we don't want the concierge after us so we better not go walking in under his nose, yes?"

"Certainly that would be a severe inconvenience, even if he did escape." Tom grabbed onto the ladder after and smiled up at Ruan, "Alright, I guess it's time for the test. Can we manage to break it?" He pulled at the ladder a little, testing its strength. When it didn't appear to sway, he put one foot up in preparation to climb, "Lets get this over with."

"Alright, I guess it's time for the test. Can we manage to break it?" Tom said while pulling the ladder as if he didn't quite trust the material. "Hey, a little more trust please! Dad, I mean Jaron, made it himself!" she said and smacked at his hand. When she was convinced he wasn't going to hurt the ladder again, she pulled herself up, skipping a few sports ever step. Beneath her Tom mumbled something that sounded not too happy, but Ruan thought it better to ignore him for now. Being a performers friend is never easy, she thought, smiling to herself.

It was just a short climb to the roof, and from there a short walk over said roofs to the large building. When they reached it, she stopped again. "Now comes the tricky part. We must jump from here," she said, pointing at the place they stood, "to there." Her hand was extended to a ledge about nine feet in the air, as well as across a gap.

"My bad." Tom chuckled, and swung himself up onto the roof. He walked slowly over to the edge, so that his toes hung off of it, and observed the gap, as well as the ledge.

After a moment he sat down and began to pull off his boots, which had somehow managed to stay dry on the inside, despite the earlier rain. Anything that might hinder his ability to climb had to go. Sleeves might get in the way too, he decided, and ripped them clean off. "That's better, ready when you are."

Ruan raised one eyebrow as Tom suddenly seemed to feel a need for undressing himself. First his boots went flying away and then, to her surprise, he tore his sleeves clean of. "That's better, ready when you are."

For a second she was completely taken aback. Then she broke out in laughter. "Sweet gods, Tom, you're <i>such</i> a showoff. How difficult is it to roll up your sleeves?" she managed to say. "Man, my stomach hurts from laughing. Pffffff, anyways. I am ready, and I have my clothes intact," she said, and with a giggle and a wink she took two strides back and flung herself over the gap, easily reaching the ledge with her hands and then pulling herself up. "Just take the same path as I do and you should be fine!"

"It's easier without them!" Tom insisted once Ruan had safely pulled herself up. He had to admit that he was impressed, if she'd have fallen it would have been hard to reach over and catch her. Yet Ruan seemed even more than a performer, she seemed to have a spirit for adventure. He almost forgot what he was supposed to be doing, "Oh yeah." He mumbled thoughtfully, and jumped up after her.

"That wasn't so hard!" He exclaimed cheerfully, "In fact, it was kind of fun. We ought to do this sort of thing more while I'm here. You're the first girl I've met who actually likes adventures." He laughed, "Anyway, I guess I'll shut up and let you say whatever it was you wanted to say. I gather it must have been fairly important, to come all this way."

"That wasn't so hard!" Tom stated when they sat next to eachother on the roof. "In fact, it was kind of fun. We ought to do this sort of thing more while I'm here. You're the first girl I've met who actually likes adventures," he said and laughed. Ruan had to admit she was impressed too. She had expected him to struggle all the way up but he had been a good sailor and followed the right path up, not even once falling behind. Not that I'm going to tell him that.

"Yeah well, an adventure is better than sitting on your lazy butt and let life happen. Plus, I've done this so often, it's not really adventurous anymore. It's the onliest place-" Ruan stopped mid-sentence.
"Anyway, I guess I'll shut up and let you say whatever it was you wanted to say. I gather it must have been fairly important, to come all this way," Tom said, having picked up her silence.

Ruan sighed. Now they were actually up here it became hard to talk again. At least there was absolutely zero chance of being eavesdropped on. The wind howled loudly up here, but where they sat it was calm. She took another deep breath and started talking.

"As you know, my father is the owner of an inn. He and my mother set it up together. I don't remember much of her, she died when I was nine or ten years old. She... Anyways, from that moment on it was just dad and me. Although I missed mom a lot, my life was fairly okay. I helped him out in the inn and late at night he would tell amazing stories by the fire. Those were happy times."

Ruan paused for a second, swallowing back tears and smiling at the memory.

"Then, when I was about twelve years old, dad fell in love again. Her name was Jo-Ann and she was so incredibly sweet... I immediately liked her. She didn't try to replace mom, but she was there when I needed her and what was more important, my dad became a whole person again. The gloom that had been hanging over him since my mom passed away seemed to lift and I heard his roaring laughter once again. You know what I mean by that," Ruan said, smirking at Tom.

The onliest problem was Dolores. I still don't know if Jo-Ann's husband passed away, or if they divorced, or if he just left her, but she came and took Dolores with her. At first, I was heavily impressed. She was two years older than me and the most beautiful girl I had ever seen, with golden curls and piercing blue eyes. I thought we would be like sisters and at first she behaved like that too. But I soon discovered that she had a less angelic side too. Maybe she was jealous of the bond me and my father shared, maybe she couldn't stand me and Jo-Ann growing so close, but she was constantly trying to set them up against me.

Once again, Ruan paused to take a deep breath. She could feel anger building in her chest and she sure as hell didn't want it to burst out now.

"Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn't. Jo-Ann and dad didn't realise how she almost tricked me into making a mess or oversleeping or whatever, they only saw her helping me clean up said mess afterwards. It came down to her being the responsible one and me being the culprit. But Dolores did more. When I was about fourteen, I met this guy, Mellark. I guess you know where this is going. I fell in love, and he fell in love back I believe. But when I took him home for the first time, Dolores practically let all her charm go. Needless to say he fell for her hard. And it's been so ever since. Whenever I tried to help in the inn, she was there to ruin it. When I wanted to comfort my dad or Jo-Ann, she was there to do so first. Whenever I got a boyfriend, she was there to smother the relationship."

Ruan angrily shook her head. "I didn't understand, and still don't. But of course I fled the house more often and often. I made new friends, friends she would never dare approach because she thought they were dangerous. The performers, the smugglers, the thieves, the whores... It wasn't what one would call the ideal environment for a fourteen-year-old, but to me it felt like a warm bath. I started picking up some tricks and eventually could do enough to contribute to the little group of friends that had formed. I stayed away nights in a row, not wanting to return to the worried eyes of Jo-Ann, the desperate yelling of my father and the cold, evil eyes of Dolores."

"The night of my fifteenth birthday, all hell broke loose. I had been away for a week when I showed up again. Turned out Dolores had been feeding dad lies about my whereabouts all week long. When I stepped through the door, she immediately started flinging accusations at me, right where everyone could hear. The room was packed full with people, but all conversations fell silent as she screamed how I was selling my body on the streets, how I took whoever wanted me, that I was, in short, a EB: Beep, this word is censored.. Now, I have done some things I'm not proud of, but I most cerntainly have never... Would never..."

For a second, Ruan couldn't continue, choking up in her emotions. She swallowed, breathing heavily. "That monster..." she whispered. Then she continued.

"I would never do that, however desperate. The worst of all weren't the hundred or so whitnesses, or the triumphant expression on Dolores' face. It was the hard, unforgiving face of my father, not putting out a toe to protect me. That was when I knew I had to leave. I refused to live in this situation any longer. As calm as I could, I strode towards Dolores as if she wasn't there. I didn't look at any of them again, just walking past them, upstairs and packing my clothes, knives, my moms hair ribbons-" Ruan lightly touched the ribbons hanging from her hair "-and some other important stuff. Just when I wanted to walk out the door again, it was pulled open and my dad appeared in the doorway. He was furious, but not as furious as I was when I saw him. Before he could say a word, I screamed in his face that if he didn't protect me now, he never had to again. Then I climbed out the window and ran."

Ruan looked at Tom's face to make sure he was still interested.

"I can tell you about my worldly travels later. I stayed away for five years. One night I was performing in a tiny town not too far from here. I thought everyone would've forgotten me by now. Suddenly, someone called out my name. Not Ruan, but Maris. Man, I almost fell into the fire. It was my dad. I was so shocked, I almost sliced my own fingers off. Then came a trick that needed a volunteer. He immediately pressed himself forward and while I performed he was whispering an endless stream of apologies and how much he had missed me and how much he loved me and how incredibly stupid his behaviour had been. I told him to go away and leave me alone, I just couldn't trust him anymore. He said he would but he also asked me to please, please come back, if even for a day."

"At first I banned it from my thoughts, but then the thought of seeing Dolores stupid face made me go." Ruan laughed. "Man was she shocked. She almost dropped hot soup on someone's head. My dad was so incredibly happy, it made my heart melt. And Jo-Ann was there too. I hadn't realised how much I'd missed them. It's still not all lovey dovey between the three of us, but at least we can work on it now. The onliest one not too thrilled was Dolores, of course. You, well, you saw how she acted towards me. But can you understand now why I reacted so strongly? It's so cliché, but it brought back bad memories. I know, I mean, I don't want... I can't..."

Suddenly she blushed and looked away. "I just really like you, okay? I don't want it to go like it always did back then."

(WOA looooooooong story)

Tom listened to Ruan tell him about her life without interrupting. It was hard to sit still, but the subject was very interesting. Part way through his expression changed though, to something more like disgust. Thinking back, it was true that Delores had seemed eager to help... But she played the innocent role very well.

"I'm sorry you've had to go through all of that." He said finally, scratching the recently healed marks on his arm while he contemplated how to word things. He just felt more guilty with every word she'd spoken. The people she'd lived with, the company she'd been driven to keeping. He somewhat fit in that unfortunate category of people himself. Not as a performer, although he did play various instruments, but certainly as someone who had done things society frowned upon. Only that was for the sake of reaching towards higher places, forget fighting for mere survival.

Personally, he wouldn't have wanted to keep long term company with whores and thieves. Those were the types of things that would make him feel unhappy, and he couldn't live a day without reason to laugh. But at least such a profession provided space, and a slight level of opportunity. Tom struggled, he squirmed on the inside, wanting to know how she could stand to go back to Delores and her father. Maybe it was a loyalty thing. Just because he usually couldn't go back to the same place twice didn't mean other people didn't have at least the desire to. And then there was the whole family thing, it did seem to be a sort of bonding thing, family.

Well, maybe he could help in some way. She deserved better, but surely he could be good enough, at least for a little while. His face lit up, and he threw his arms around her in a tight hug, "I understand Ru, but you don't have to worry anymore, you'll be wishing my awesome friendship were easier to annihilate before you know it. I do have a couple of questions though, and I should hope you won't mind answering them." He warned, letting her go with a hearty pat on the shoulder.

(Good grief your post was longer than I expected! Awesome to read though, I really can't complain)

(trololol I'm the master of big-ass posts)

It was definetely a plus for Tom that he just let her talk and talk and talk for what must have been the longest time she ever talked in one piece. He just sat there, making appropiate expressions at times. When she'd finally finished, there was a short silence. "I'm sorry you've had to go through all of that," Tom said, absentmindly scratching some scars on his forearm. There was another silence.

Ruan started to fear that she'd scared him of with her story, when suddenly he smiled and almost squished her in half. "I understand Ru, but you don't have to worry anymore, you'll be wishing my awesome friendship were easier to annihilate before you know it." Before she knew it, Ruan laughed out loud, relaxing again. "Ow, Tom, you're killing me," she called out, smacking his head and smiling.

"I do have a couple of questions though, and I should hope you won't mind answering them," Tom said on his turn. "Yeah, sure. Fire away."

Tom rubbed his head where she'd whacked him, making his sodden hair stick out in odd directions, "Foul play." He mumbled, even though he didn't notice if or not it hurt. Maybe it was weird, but he loved the way she laughed, and hearing it was worth taking a million smacks on the head.

"Yeah, sure. Fire away."
"Alright." Tom seemed pleased, "I might have fibbed a bit, I really only have one question for now... A request actually. I want to go back. To the inn, I mean. You don't have to come with me, but I want to see with my own eyes the things you've told about this siren-sister of yours. It's not hard to believe that she'd be capable of playing a seducing role. Honestly, she was going to take me to find clothes, only an idiot would waste that kind of-... Anyway, I feel like I should ask you first, but I'll probably do it anyway now that I know what's going on. It's habit I'm afraid, and even though we haven't know each other for very long, I'd like to know that we can trust each other."

"Foul play," Tom muttered, but it didn't sound like he meant it. Beside, his hear was now sticking out in a very sexy messy sort of way, which was taking up quite a lot of Ruan's attention. Without realizing it herself, Ruan twirled a lock of his white-ish hair around her finger as Tom made his request.

Honestly, she didn't know what to answer. She didn't quite understand what he meant. "Why do you want to go back? Don't you believe the things I told you? And if we get there, she'll put on the charming façade in no time," she said. And actually, I don't want to leave this roof because I'm falling hard for you. The thought came uninvited and Ruan felt her face flush. She let go of his hair quickly and clenched her hands around the ledge of the roof. Her gaze swept over the city, but she averted his eyes.

"Why do you want to go back? Don't you believe the things I told you? And if we get there, she'll put on the charming façade in no time,"

"Why do I want to go back?" Tom repeated the question, his focus momentarily lost. Not just his mental focus, but his eyes kept changing focus as well, he couldn't see or think particularly clearly. Until she turned away. He blinked, watching her look out over the city, apparently not liking his idea too much.
"I believe you, but by the sound of it that will probably happen anyway, wait or not."

"I believe you, but by the sound of it that will probably happen anyway, wait or not," Tom said.

Ruan let out a sigh. "Fine. What's your plan, captain?" she teased, shooting him a sideways glance. Wrong decision. Sexy faces weren't eactly good for focus. "Er, right."

(And now I'm the queen of the short posts lol.)

For a moment Tom paused again, a funny look briefly his face as if he were thinking about something, and simultaneously trying not to. But then it was gone and he let out a rather loud laugh, "Ah, those things! Well, I usually just make it up as I go." He shrugged, "But maybe some sketchy idea might help. Look here, we'll go back as if everything is about as it was when you ran out. Just pretend you're still mad, or whatever else you can think of that might encourage her to swoop down. I say have fun with it, after all, what's more entertaining than getting revenge on the vengeful?"

He nudged Ruan cheerfully with his elbow, and stood up, holding his hand out for her. "And then if you wanted to mess with her even more, we could get hitched." He grinned.

"Ah, those things! Well, I usually just make it up as I go. But maybe some sketchy idea might help. Look here, we'll go back as if everything is about as it was when you ran out. Just pretend you're still mad, or whatever else you can think of that might encourage her to swoop down. I say have fun with it, after all, what's more entertaining than getting revenge on the vengeful?" Somehow, Ruan felt as if he were going to say something else, but hadn't.

"Oh well," she mused. "Never let slip a chance to aggravate her." Tom laughed and held out his hand to help her up. "And then if you wanted to mess with her even more, we could get hitched," he grinned. Of course, her stupid face had to flush at that, but she grinned right back and too his hand. "Sounds lovely."