Most definitely the god, her god, had chosen his timing correctly. The corridor that led to the surface was more or less empty. No brothers dragging their stolen women or guards peering to see the rogue kenku who had now risen in hierarchy above all of them, yet still was somehow trapped.

They walked in silence. More guards joined them on their excursion and Stare became more rigid as they reached the end of it - to the door where the large mess hall was. She squared her shoulders, twisted her hand around the hilt of her dagger and became fully intent on marching past them without any reaction.

There were fewer guards then normal in the hall, but some nevertheless. Some of them turned their way, raising eyebrows to the large company that was entering. A couple of them gawped at Stare like idiots before Vitruvion growled.

Hurriedly they looked away and Stare knew she was going to have to add that to her list of requests. To let her fight her own battles. Treat her with respect and send her on missions as he had before, by herself. Indeed, his sister had just gone missing, and she had been lying in self pity for some long days, but that did not mean she was pathetic. The kenku walked faster, folding her arms tightly over her chest and there was a need for a general picking up of the pace.

Eventually the front door came into view. Stare perked up, excitedly for the desire to simply see the outside. Eyes darting around she began to take in the dream of the outside world, that she had partly refused to see herself, then been refused to see by others. Slowly, she stepped into the dusklight, her lungs filling with the crisp, cold air. Her entire stance relaxed, her eyes took in the buildings, the street and the world beyond and suddenly … things were good again.

She began to walk, turning around as if to head for the stables hidden behind the side of the Guard House. But a voice disagreed.

“Walking,” he said, and for the briefest moment touched her shoulder. Her body spun in surprise of it. Already he was taking steps, and gesturing ahead. “Come.”

She looked at him a moment, breathing in long and gradual. He tilted his head back to her, raising a brow.

“What?”

“Nothing,” she grunted, though was sorely disappointed in being told where she was to go.

Vitruvion watched her for a moment as she started towards him. A couple of times he blinked, but he did not answer her, rolling back his shoulders and beginning to walk.

-+-

For some long hours they walked, the sun setting around them, the world quietly becoming a still life. The guards separated from them, merging into the streets and alleyways surrounding, keeping a respectful distance away, but still there. More than once Stare caught sight of one of them, passing across the width of a perpendicular avenue, as she crossed, and sometimes shadows flickered at the tops of buildings. Her pace, however, was set to that of Vitruvion, who walked ahead at a reasonable pace, forging a path through this night time city, the two of them as ghosts confined to a plane of existence.

She kept quiet, simply enjoying the silence and stillness for what it was. Not getting tired easily, she kept going after him, although sometimes they paused as he reached a crossroad with indecision. Keeping her eyes mostly on the ground or at his back Stare felt the metaphor similar to her own situation - being at the crux of unknown futures. Indeed, she could probably try to get away now, simply stopping and falling behind, or ducking into a nearby doorway. She did not have her marbles - in fact she wasn't sure where they were at all currently, having not seen them after her return from the theatre. After she had slumped and eventually fallen asleep she had woken without any of her weapons either on her.

But the fact she had once used them already to escape from Vitruvion's obsessive 'protection’ was somewhat understandable. Justifiable was something else, but with his controlling personality it was going to take a rather extreme amount of negotiation to gain them back. To persuade him that she was better with them.

It made her decision to try to make a deal with him all the more attractive. Without the conversation, where would she be? Stuck, doing this silence for days, weeks, months on end? Practically a prisoner, although in some terms free, and nowhere near what she had been once. What could she honestly offer him though, that he would agree with for all of the benefits and changes that she desired? Her agreement to stay with him? That was already a given, surely. He had said, quite plainly in answer to her question that he would never let her go. So what else? A willingness to stay perhaps, a guarantee that she would no longer complain, no longer fight his authority. Because he was her god, she had to remind herself of that.

What else? What did he actually want from her that she was willing to give? Intimacy was definitely out of the question for her - she was going to remain adamant on that front. Perhaps, if she offered her fealty, as Raevin once had? Was that really something she wanted to do? Swear her allegiance to him? Well, wasn't she loyal to him anyway?

The problem was, there was a list twice as tall as her of things she wanted, but there was very little she could think of that she could offer him. Certainly, he could have some suggestions of his own - that she was open to. Maybe he would surprise her, and ask for some odd guarantee, like a promise or a favour, saved for later. What did he actually want? Well her, for one, and her safety. He wanted his kingdom, his power. He wanted his sister back. He wanted Raevin well, and he wanted security. Stare did not know how to find a way to give many of those things. For instance, finding him power … was that even possible?

It was, simply by her staying with him. She made him stronger, that had become clear from one of the initial months of when she had first demonstrated her magic. And now - now she had wings, had speed, had an ability to stare and cause a plethora of negative effects on people. All the world was hers, could be for the taking.