Among these crowded streets, Lyric felt discomfort like nothing else. There were so many people! It felt like they were all looking at him, though he knew that couldn't of been the case. Often he was literally needing to brush by others by his very shoulders, and his paranoia sky rocketed as all the pushing ended up getting him spun around and losing his sense of direction. Which way had he come from again? Which way was out? The sooner he could leave this place, the better. This had him feeling like he was walking a knife's edge...

Yet, one thing became clear after he got lost: He might need to stay here. He could see them, constables of some sort, occasionally passing down the middle of the road where the crowd would break and give them space. Lyric, fear of being caught causing his imagination to wreck havoc on his psyche, decided as the crowds grew thinner and the sun was making way for the moon, that he would unfortunately need to stay here. Just for the night. As awful as the crowds of people were, at least he could blend into them. But, he feared being stopped at night by these authorities if he kept wandering the city. No doubt, there could be a curfew...

Fine. So be it! As the crowds seemed to disperse more and more, Lyric found opportunity in the gaps against the buildings for solitude. He found a unoccupied narrow alley way, not comfortable enough for loiterers, but enough for him to squeeze into and face away from the road. He had never done this in public before... The fear was choking him. He removed his backpack and, keeping his hood on, worked as quickly as he could. Taking off his veil, his goggles... Digging out his little makeup kit. The people around here, at least from what he could see, had a fairer complexion than what he had been wearing at Annie's inn. It seemed wise to use a similar color to help blend in, not to mention, just looking different than he had previously felt like the right move. He did his best, crammed between two buildings, a mirror in one hand and make up in the other...

It wasn't his best work, but it would have to do. Having his entire face covered like he had been, it looked more suspicions than simply doing his best with this and taking his chances.

Putting it all away and returning to the road, he underestimated how... Jarring it was, to have his face exposed like this. There was so many people around still! And they could see him! Yet, as he fought this urge to want to hide his visage yet again, he took a moment to observe people's movements. To see where they were all going, incase he might join them.

It was here, as the sun was falling and the streets were clearing, that quite the sight stole his attention. The sound of bells, and horses. A lot happened very quickly; The sudden activity on the street alarmed him as gaggles of mostly women suddenly came pouring out from their abodes. Within moments, a confused Lyric was getting pushed aside by all these ladies crowding the street, trying to find a spot along it's edges without being in the pathway of the oncoming horses.

What the fuck was going on!? Lyric, naturally, clammed up, finding himself among the flash mob that starting calling to this passerby as they approached. And the sight of it! It betrayed all expectation for Lyric. Rolling at a comfortable trot, the biggest, most beautiful horse Lyric had ever seen strode down the street. Behind him, a wagon of sorts. An ornate, very pretty and well-made wagon. An educated person might of thought to call it a 'carriage', but Lyric was not yet so sharp despite his scribe skills suggesting he should be.

This was the target of all this attention. This was the cause of the sudden chaos.

"Pick me!"
"Hey~!"
"This way!"


They all were trying their best, that was for sure. But as Lyric watched it go by at it's slow pace, it seemed to bring with it a settling presence as all who had lined up along the road became still and presentable. It was as if they were all trying to seem so well behaved, to be more easily spotted. As the horse drawn carriage was passing by, and Lyric could feast his eyes on it's luxurious ornate carved wood, it came to a... Stop.

Oh, that REALLY caused a quiet to come over them all. Blinking in confusion, intense curiosity and bewilderment overtaking his fear in the moment, Lyric just stared like a moth to flame as the door to the carriage opened and out stepped a man. A very rich, very flagrant looking man. It was immediately apparent to Lyric that this man was of a different class. A higher one. He had a finely trimmed goatee and black moustache, with slicked back hair that looked shiny with some kind of oil. His cloak draped over his shoulders a regal red color, and all along the neck was the biggest and fluffiest looking fur he had ever seen. It was like he was wearing a blanket.

Yet, the finery did not cause the rest of his equipment to escape Lyric's notice. Beneath it all, he was clearly wearing layers of leather armor with gleaming steel over a shoulder. And, a nasty looking curved scimitar. Past his sharply blunt nose, his eyes peered over the line that had gathered with a menacing aura behind them. One that, at least for Lyric, gave the sense that this was an intensely powerful man... Wearing clothes he certainly wasn't born to wear.

His footfalls were heavy on each step of the carriage, making the whole thing creak and bend slightly, as his eyes scanned over all their faces. Some tried their subtle ways, winking, blowing a kiss, fanning themselves... But, bizarrely, none dare speak. It was like they already knew doing so would not end well. What was this bizarre ritual? As Lyric wondered to himself what he was here to do, the man's sharp eyes scanned over them all that had been in Lyric's direction. And stopped.

Lyric's heart once again felt caught in his throat, a sense of dread filling him as they locked eyes. Was... He looking at him? The man's eyes, they reminded Lyric of a hawk. And he felt like a mouse. After a solid few seconds of him realizing they indeed were looking at him, Lyric's pupils shrunk like apertures in light. Could he see he was a vampire!? Had his cover been blown already!? Lyric, perhaps unintentionally, leaned back as if to hide from him safely behind the buxom woman beside him, panic filling him as the sound of compressing snow signaled his footsteps from the man rapidly approaching him.

The women to either side of Lyric, their hope was admirable, pretending for their moments that it was in fact they the man was staring at. But, he literally pushed them aside, a snarling grin crossing his face as he peered down triumphantly at Lyric. "You." He said, voice raspy. "Come on."

Lyric felt frozen. He didn't even know his legs could move, until they did, the smallest step forward turning into another as the man opened an arm, ushering him to move forward. Lyric was, frankly, terrified and confused. What was this!? The hell had he been picked out for!? Why him!? But the man's face, cleaned up as it was, had this sinister intent behind it that made Lyric too afraid to object to. For all his flashy finery, this man was a fighter, he could smell it.

Lips tightly sealed, Lyric walked over and stepped up into the carriage, the smell of the horse filling his senses as the sudden warmth from the inside enveloped him and banished the cold. If he weren't so freaked out by the scenario he found himself in, he might of been very impressed by the deep red cushioned interior...

But, the sound of the door slamming shut behind him ruined any chance he had for quiet appreciation. He felt a gloved hand push him, and immediately, Lyric sat down. And, across from him, this strange man. Lyric wasn't exactly of the tallest stature to begin with, but as the man sat confidently across from his with his legs spread open, it felt like he encompassed the entire rest of this space.

"My lord is going to like you. Has a certain taste for young faces like yours." Another sneer. "Congratulations."

What? Lyric was tense, legs together, hands on his knees, not wanting to move an inch in front of this guy. But, he felt he needed to respond, least he incur his wrath somehow. "W-What? Your... Lord?"

The man's eyebrows briefly curved, a sign of slight confusion. "Lord Belfry. Owns Belfry estate?" Lyric, naturally, didn't move. Showing no signs of recognition, the man seemed to catch on quickly that Lyric had no idea what he was talking about. "You aren't from around here, are you?"

Despite the intimidating look in his eyes, Lyric was finding enough courage to respond. "No, sir..."

"Well, I don't know how you street rats find your way begging here all the time, but you don't have to worry anymore. Eating whatever the fuck horrible scrap you get out there is a thing of the past. You get to live the high life now, in the estate up the hill." He paused, seeming to expect a reaction out of Lyric, but once again got none. "... You'd do well to thank me from pulling you out of that cess pit before someone else got to you first. Really, you people are usually more thankful."

The way he said that made Lyric's hair stand on end; Was that an order? Should he say anything? Weakly, Lyric gave his own half-committal retort. "Uh... Thank you. Sir-?"

"Godroy. And I don't actually care too much. You should probably work on it though for when your in front of Lord Belfry. You know, just incase he doesn't like you too well."

Well, that was worrying. The sudden lurch of the horse moving sent the whole carriage rocking, and though Lyric had to suddenly brace himself in his seat, he couldn't help but get this sinking feeling of worry in his gut again. There was a lot he didn't know, but, was about to find out. With him as the cargo, feeling like a honored guest and strange prisoner, Lyric and Sir Godroy were already making their way through the roads and up the hill to the grand gated Belfry Estate... A gorgeous pearl of the finest riches standing tall above the slums from which Lyric had been plucked.

And what was inside, Lyric could have never known.