TRP: Finch and Larkin (Basha & Avis)

**IZZY**

[SETTING: Skyport, Day 222, a cold and sunny day.]

Finch had gotten word that Skyport was safe again, and been
really fucking eager to get back -- all right, less getting back to Skyport,
more getting out of the fucking hick town he'd been fucking exiled to. Bretta
stayed behind, with Kheman. There were still concerns about that fuckin'
pirate, or whatever. But the Sanguines were supposed to've lost their head.

Morgan Wyn was dead, and he was pretty fucking pleased about
it.

But then he got back to Skyport, and talked to Shallah, and
found out that a chunk of the Sanguines had just decided to follow goddamn Bala
instead. Fuck's sake. He grumbled and growled under his breath for two straight
fucking days, and was annoyed at himself for being relieved to get a message
from Jonn, saying he was back in Skyport too, and Larkin wanted to meet up.

By that point Finch had managed to get a few boxes of his
shit out of the guildhouse and back to his bunker, so he sent the crow back
telling them where to meet him. Jonn showed up first, bouncing on his feet and
crashing into Finch to hug him, chattering about having missed him and half
squeezing him to death before letting go and backing off, looking contrite.

"I'll let you two talk," he said, and grabbed a
box from the alley to duck down into the bunker and start unpacking.

The illusion that had hid it was gone now -- he'd have to
find a way to pay for a new one -- but there were still crates and barrels
stacked up in the dead end alley that offered a bit of cover. Finch found
himself running a hand through his hair nervously, remembering that Larkin just
fucking knew where the bunker was now, but it was all right. It'd be fine. They
weren't fucking enemies anymore.

Actually, he kind of had a couple thoughts to run by her.

**JEN**

It was unreasonably annoying having to rely on Jonn to get
in contact with Finch. He'd done his share, after all, in the fight and
elsewhere, too. Still felt off. Like she still had a right to get in touch with
Finch whenever, but hose times, they were over.

Larkin felt a sting at that but, focusing on jostling the
pseudodragons bundled up inside the canvas bag in her hands, pushed the feeling
away. It was stupid and would lead to stupid actions, like getting her ex
partner a hydra spawn for a pet.

His face, though, when he saw the beast. It would be
priceless.

Larkin smirked to herself as she navigated the narrow
alleys. She rounded the corner to the dead-end with the hidden bunker and her
grin faded when she saw Jonn bouncing around between the barrels and debris.
Damn it. She'd hoped to talk to Finch alone, without the little shit hanging
from his shoulder but a moment later, Larkin was reliefed to see Jonn grab a
box and vanish into the bunker. She waited a moment longer, then entered into
the dead-end fully and gave a whistle to grab Finch's attention.

**IZZY**

Finch looked up and keyed in on her at the whistle,
frowning. Jonn hadn't said why she wanted to meet -- might've not known,
might've just been an idiot and not said, but either way Finch had that moment
of fucking panic at realizing he didn't know what to expect. No plans. He
fuckin' hated flying blind.

He raised a hand at Larkin, eyeing the bag she was carrying.
Was it ... moving? What the fuck. What the fuck. He narrowed his eyes at her
and waited for her to come to him, not meeting her half way.

**JEN**

"Hey man, it's just me." Larkin strode towards
him, holding the bag tight to her chest. "No need to look like I got a
fucking dragon on my shoulder. Or actually... " She stopped, still a good
deal away because Finch was a jumpy motherfucker and Larkin just wanted to
surprise him, not make him zap her and the little beasts both. She undid the
string holding the bag closed and instantly, two tiny snouts poked out of it,
wriggling through the opening, followed by two tiny pseudodragons that scurried
up Larkin's arms to perch one on her shoulder, one on her head.

Larkin held onto their leashes and grinned.

**IZZY**

Finch stared.

He took a couple steps back, automatically, because what the
fuck. What the fuck. Larkin had familiars now, or some shit? They were on
leashes, though, so more like pets, but they were exactly the fucking same as
the little bastards Wyn had carted around.

"What the fuck, Lark," he said after a beat.
"What the fuck."

**JEN**

"Don't worry, their teeth are still tiny." Larkin
scratched the blue one under the chin with a finger. It gave a satisfied
trilling sound- and chomped on her. She snorted. "They like to bite,
though. You should train that habit out of it before it grows bigger."

She glanced at Finch sideways. He stared at her like she'd
grown a second head, which was kinda fair.

**IZZY**

"Me?" he said, and then, "Fucking
bigger?" and then, incredibly fucking eloquently, "Eh?"

He made up those steps he'd taken back, though, giving the
lizards a suspicious look more than Larkin.

**JEN**

"Yup. 'cause guess what; I ain't keeping both of them.
This one's yours now." Larkin patted the head of the green one sitting on
her horn with its claws buried in her hair. It hissed.

**IZZY**

He scoffed, and paused, waiting for the punchline or the
gotcha, then squinted and scoffed again. He glanced down the stairs at the dim
form of Jonn unpacking, like maybe he would give it away, then back to Larkin.
It just seemed fucking weird. Like a trick, or something. He couldn't figure
out the point, if it was, though.

He came a bit closer, glaring at the green one. It glared
back at him. Hmm. He kind of liked it already.

"All right, I ... Why, though," he asked.

**JEN**

"I just... well, just thought you'd like one."
Larkin carefully took hold of the small lizard and detached it from her horn.
It took some strands of hair with it. "They make good watchdogs. Uhm.
Watchdragons. Whatever. And there were enough of them, so..."

**IZZY**

"Oh." It sounded kind of obvious when she just
said it outright, and he felt like a dick for being suspicious, for a moment,
before he remembered that suspicion kept people like him alive. There wasn't
actually that much honor among thieves; being leery of people just giving you
shit was perfectly reasonable.

(It was Larkin, though. At some point he had to stop
flipping back and forth between trusting her and not trusting her, if for no
other reason than because it was fucking exhausting. Some point.)

"I guess, uh. Thanks, then." He held a tentative
hand out towards the little dragon. Wizard familiars did take the form of
pseudodragons at times, and they were supposed to be fucking good ones, but
he'd never quite figured out that spell.

**JEN**

The pseudodragon chirped and smelled Finch's fingers. Larkin
picked it up by the makeshift collar around its neck until its claws didn't dig
into her skin anymore, and dropped it into his hand. The blue one watched from
her shoulder before burying away into her jacket.

**IZZY**

The thing dug its claws into his hand, and he hissed, about
to reflexively shake it off, but it scurried up his arm and climbed onto his
shoulder to lurk half behind his neck. It was surprisingly warm -- not
cold-blooded, he guessed. He wondered if these things could breathe fire. Maybe
when they got older.

"Huh." He shifted his shoulders a little, and
looked down at the tiny scratches it'd left on him. He guessed it was just his,
now, just like that. "Another fuckin' mouth to feed," he groused, then
realized that probably sounded shitty, and added, "I, uh, like it. Hey, I
wanted to talk to you about some shit." He changed the topic, shoving his
hands in his pockets. "You got a minute?"

**JEN**

"Sure. Can we... " Larkin glanced around and up at
the rooftops. "Get inside, though? Not stand here like a fucking pair of
hobos."

**IZZY**

He snorted. They were a pair of fucking hobos without any
guild or organizations looking out for them. "Yeah, yeah." He jerked
his head at her and went down the stairs. Preferred being inside anyway.

He hadn't been able to move any furniture by himself, so the
bed, desk, couch, and wardrobe still weren't here, but he'd brought the
shelving boards and Jonn had put them up and started arranging his shit on
them, just the way everything had been before. He glanced over his shoulder
when they came down.

"Hey, can you go find Asya, see if she'll help move
shit?" Finch asked. "Make it a lot fuckin' easier if we could just
teleport."

Jonn glanced between them and nodded silently after a
second, brushing past to head back up. Finch wished he could offer a seat, or
some shit -- and sit down himself -- but the best options were a few
low-to-the-ground wooden crates, so he just fucking stood there like an idiot.

"So," he said. "Uh, listen, when I left that
shitty little farm town, your dad was good. Bretta stayed with him. She said
some shit, though. You heard from her?"

**JEN**

Larkin shook her head, eyes narrowed. Had Bretta heard from
Renar? He hadn't contacted her and neither had Bretta. Fucking worrying that,
but Finch said her father was doing well and Larkin had no reason not to
believe him. She just wished she could've seen for herself.

**IZZY**

He hesitated. He'd been hoping there was no point in asking,
because Bretta would've sent her a fucking letter, or something, at least, but
of course fucking not. He had to be the fucking bearer of bad news.

"She, uh." He shifted. "She told me she'd
gotten word from your uncle, through Lynette, and that he wants her to come to
Calimport with him -- sounds like he found a niche to start fuckin' rebuilding
over there, or whatever -- but that he didn't call for you."

**JEN**

"What?" That didn't make any fucking sense. More
like Renar had just assumed Larkin was with Bretta and they'd come together.
That sounded right. Right?

Larkin frowned and shook her head again. The pseudodragon
poked out of her jacket and hissed. "You mean he's just assumed I'm
coming? Fuck, I gotta tell them we killed the Queen. There's enough people
still loyal to Uncle, he doesn't have to start over from nothing."

**IZZY**

Finch drew his shoulders up uncomfortably. Yeah, this wasn't
his fucking job. Bretta should be doing this. "Nah. I mean, guess Bretta's
coming to Skyport to get to Calimport, so you can ask her yourself, but, uh.
Yeah. She told me she was going alone."

**JEN**

"What," Larkin said again, dumbly because she
didn't know what the fuck else to say. "That's... fucking. What?"

She took a step back and leaned to glance out the door, like
the answer was waiting just outside, or Bretta might be standing there to tell
her it was just a stupid fucking joke. Nothing, though. Nothing.

"I don't fucking get it. Why?"

**IZZY**

He kept his shoulders up, half shrug, half defensive.
"She didn't give me the details. Just said Renar didn't need you." He
cringed and relayed her exact words: "Said it was just going to be the two
of'em, now."

**JEN**

So Renar cast her aside. Had she failed him? Was it still
because of her dad's kidnapping? Fucking no. Couldn't be. Larkin had brought
him back and even helped explode Jonesy's fucking ship. Bretta would've told
him. Must have told him. Renar had to know.

Larkin didn't know what to do or say, so she didn't do
anything and kept her mouth shut, staring at Finch but not really looking him
in the eye. Didn't even feel anything, except fucking lightheaded. And a bit
like puking.

**IZZY**

Finch hesitantly stepped closer and put a hand on her
shoulder. What was he supposed to fucking say -- there, there? Sorry your uncle
is a shithead who abandoned you? Sorry your life is still in fucking shambles
even though you fucked up the woman who caused it to fall apart? It all seemed
fucking weak.

"If it helps," he offered, "I got a
plan."

**JEN**

"I think I have to... " Larkin turned away from
Finch and stumbled towards the wall where she stood for a moment before sitting
down on the floor heavily. The pseudodragon gave a squeak and scurried away
from her but she paid it no mind. Put her face in her hands instead and slowly,
slowly shook her head. That seemed to be about all the reaction she had in her
today. Shaking her head until it just fell off.

**IZZY**

"Oh, uh." Fuck. Shit. All right. This was why he'd
wanted a fucking chair or something. Maybe he should've waited until Jonn got
back with Asya and some furniture, but he didn't even know if Asya was on their
side, and he didn't want them around for this, anyway.

He reached out with a mage hand and shut the door, turning
just one of the locks, leaving the bunker dimmer, only lit by the oil lamps in
the ceiling. Then he carefully sidled over next to her to sit down a couple
inches away. He felt like he should ... hug her, or something, but he didn't
know if their relationship was back to that level or not.

Eh, fuck it. He slowly put his arm around her anyway, giving
her plenty off time to tell him to fuck off, or move away.

**JEN**

Larkin flinched at the touch but stayed where she was. She
let her hands fall away and sighed, breath rasping in her throat. No use crying
over shit. Not because of Renar, he'd despise that, and not in front of Finch.
He... didn't have to see that. See her weak and fucking desperate like that
because they weren't fucking partners of that kind anymore.

She wiped her dry eyes with the back of one hand, just in
case, and shifted away a few inches. "What, uhm, what kinda plan?"

**IZZY**

Relieved, Finch scooted a couple inches away as she did.
Yeah, someone else should -- be here for this. The new partner. Or her fucking
dad. Something. Not this jackass former partner who'd antagonized her and shit.

Plans. He was fucking good at plans, not comforting people
over the weird fucking circumstances of their lives.

"Right," he said. "So, turns out that Bala
fucker is kinda taking over the Sanguines in the city. Not all of them, though
-- they're scattering and shit, there's people starting new little gangs, you
know? Like you'd expect." He tapped his fingers against his knee. "So
I'm gonna be one of them. Lot of the ex-Sanguines know me, since I used to be
one of Wyn's planners, and they know I'm fucking good. Plus Jonn is weirdly
fucking good at making friends, so he can pull some in. And I figured --"
he shrugged, like it was no big deal -- "having a Basha around, that'd get
certain people on our fucking side, too."

He looked at her.

"It's no Basha empire, but I think we can give Bala a
run for her money. Poach enough of her people, and we can be the biggest gang
in the city."

**JEN**

When Finch was finished, Larkin's mouth hang open.
"Man, that's... that's fucking...fuck." She leaned in bit, frowning.
"What happened to getting out of Skyport? I mean, fucking yes to skinning
the pelt off Bala's ass, but man, you were out. Why you wanna do that?"

**IZZY**

He shrugged again and scowled. She was right. He'd been
fucking talking about getting out of Skyport for as long as they'd known each
other, and he still kind of hated the fucking place. "Yeah, well, you
know. I don't have any gold. What am I gonna do, move somewhere else and get
stuck under some other fucking thieves' guild's thumb? Still fuck Skyport, but
... there's a fuckin' opportunity, here. Better to reign in hell, right?"

**JEN**

Larkin scoffed incredulously, then chuckled. "Yeah.
Right. God."

She shifted again to lean back against the wall and stretch out
her legs, buying some time in which she didn't have to look at Finch, because
else he might see the relief on her face. Fucking perceptive fucker. But...
it's was good to hear he was staying. Good to know a friend nearby- it they
were, and they seemed to be if he was asking for her help. Help him raise a new
guild...

"So, you got a plan. I mean, yeah. I can help, but...
well, shit, what if Renar comes back?" It wasn't impossible, right?
"Will you be," she waved a hand, "competition or allies or
what?"

**IZZY**

Finch was quiet for a moment. Yeah, he'd thought about that
-- kind of had to, even if Bretta had seemed dead set on Calimport. Had to take
all the possible variables into account, and asking Larkin to put her name
behind him came with the possibility she'd take it back. Even when they'd been
tight he didn't think she'd've picked him over Renar.

"See," he said slowly, looking at the floor,
"you know I got no use for your uncle, but if he came back, yeah, I could
work with him. With. Not for. That's the fuckin' thing, Lark -- I'm not getting
fucking stuck under people like him and Baron and Wyn anymore. I work for my
fucking self now, and if he showed up and had a problem with that, then I'd
have a problem with him." He glanced at her uncertainly. "I know
family's important to you and shit. You're fucking good at what you do, though.
I still want you on my side now, even if you gotta go back to your family later
on. That work for you?"

**JEN**

Larkin chewed on her lower lip, mulling it over, though there
wasn't much of that to do if she was honest. Everything he said sounded
reasonable. And he offered to work with her again. About two years ago she'd
have sworn Finch would never again stoop so low as to spit in her face. And now
he was asking for her help.

Larkin nodded. "Yeah. That works. And I get it."

**IZZY**

He was so relieved -- and kind of fucking surprised -- that
he laughed. Once, brief and harsh. "All right. Great." Then a couple
more times. "Fucking great."

He nodded and drummed his fingers against his knee,
thinking. There'd be a fucking lot more to plan, and he'd be doing the bulk of
that, but Larkin was sharp, too. And she and Jonn could get people into the
fold. Maybe take over the old Thieves' guildhouse, after all.

"All right," he said again. "We need to
fucking get rid of Bala, soon as we can. If you and Jonn can leech off her
numbers, and get a couple people to play double agent, we can find a way to ...
scare her off, or something. She hasn't got that little kobold fucker with her anymore,
so -- it won't be like what went down in the warehouse. We'll fucking be ready
this time."

**JEN**

"Yeah, agreed. I bet that bitch, and Wyn too, they've
made some enemies. Just got to find them." Larkin kept nodding, getting
into the mood. This was great. Planning and plotting with Finch, just like in
the old day. She pulled her legs under herself to sit facing Finch fully.
"I know some gangs looking to hook up with the bigger fish. For the better
odds, you know. Old Basha folks mostly, and the dregs, too, but it's a start.
Some of them got actual potential. Just need to convince them they're better
off with us than starting their own thing. Shouldn't be too hard, though, once
we made a doormat out of Bala."

**IZZY**

He nodded again, trying to not think about the fucking gore
he'd walked into at the warehouse. Couldn't happen to Larkin. He'd make a
flawless fucking plan, get turncoats, send Jonn with her, and she'd have the
Runners backing her up, too. Fuckers had killed a hydra. They could take whatever
the fuck Bala was.

"Right, right." He propped his chin in one hand,
thinking. "We get who we can, fast, and go for Bala before she can get
anyone else on her side. Your Runners are in, right?"

**JEN**

"Guess so. Bala fucked with some of our buds, so
there's no particular love there." Though Wyn had done that as well and it
hadn't stopped Goro from getting a fucking crush on her. "They'll be game
if I ask them."

**IZZY**

"All right, good." That put his mind at ease a
bit. "Uh, they gonna be cool with helping a new fuckin' crime syndicate
get on its feet?" They'd used to work for Joan Ripley and shit, after all.
"Maybe don't tell them, or something."

**JEN**

"Yeah, uhm." Larkin grimaced. "Maybe not.
Hey, you talking big already? You don't even have a gang yet." She smirked
at Finch and poked his foot with her heel.

**IZZY**

He waved it off, smirking back. "Fuck off. I will. I
got plans."

**JEN**

"Uh-huh. Alright. Oh, by the way. " Her grin faded
and her look turned sour. "I gotta visit one of our old associates, too.
If he's still alive. Maybe you wanna come? "

**IZZY**

"Visit how?" He narrowed his eyes. "Visit
with knives?"

**JEN**

"Not necessarily knives but..." Larkin spread her
hands, palms up.

**IZZY**

"The implication of knives," Finch said, nodding.
"It's not fuckin' Shrewd, is it? I've been trying to track down that
fucking waste of cum."

**JEN**

"You bet your ass it's fuckin' Shrewd."

**IZZY**

"Aw, fuck." He scrambled to his feet and started
digging through the nearest crate. "Lemme find my good knives. Special
fucking occasion."

**JEN**

"I thought we'd break his horns. Or one of 'em at
least." Larkin got to her feet as well but kept standing by the door. It
hadn't been Shrewd who'd snapped Azriel's horn but since Larkin couldn't take a
knife to the person who'd actually done it anymore, that asshat of a rat would
have to do. He'd sold her and her uncle out to Wyn, after all. Shrewd had it
coming.

**IZZY**

"Huh." He paused and looked up. Sounded fucking
brutal. "I've got a saw, somewhere."

**JEN**

Larkin cringed and one hand went up to her own horns. She
disguised the gesture by running her fingers through her hair.  "He's deserved it, is my take. A good
beating at least, and some kind of lasting reminder."

**IZZY**

"Hmm." Finch nodded, digging through the crate.
"Fuckin' Shrewd," he muttered, then hissed in pain and drew his hand
back, shaking it a second and reaching back in for the saw. "Could take
off one horn and see how we feel. I'll, uh. Leave it up to you, since I don't
fucking have horns." He squinted off to one side. "We could break his
hands."

**JEN**

"Yeah. Uhm." Right, like Renar had broken Finch's
hands. Maybe that was an appropriate message. "First we gotta find him,
though. But worry not." She held one finger up dramatically, grinning
again. "I think I got us covered."

**IZZY**

"Yeah?" He hooked the saw to his belt. Maybe a
hammer, too. Had to have the right tools for the job.

He was gonna fucking like this being in charge shit.

"You get us there, I'll tie him up, and then we'll go
from there." He found a coil of rope at the bottom of the crate and looped
it around his shoulder.

**JEN**

Larkin tilted her head at him, chuckling. "Alright,
boss. It's some ways outside Skyport, so we better get going."

**IZZY**

# # #

The fucking scrying pool -- how fucking long had that been
there? Goddamn useful -- showed them Shrewd holed up in an inn. Finch
recognized it as this place far inland, in the city, well away from the port
district where the Basha's power had been strongest. Like Shrewd fucking
thought there'd be Basha people left to come for him.

Well, he should've fucking run further, then.

Scrying had shown them a window, so they circled the inn --
The Felled Stag -- looking for adjacent buildings that matched up with what
they'd seen. When they found it, they climbed up one of those nearby buildings
and scoped out the windows until they spotted one with shut curtains -- the
angle seemed about right, from what they'd scried, and they couldn't get eyes
on Shrewd through any of the opened windows, and Finch figured it made sense
that he'd have the curtains pulled if he was hiding out.

They perched on the rooftop with their legs dangling off the
edge, Finch still with his rope looped around him, considering the best way to
go about this now that they'd located the fucking traitor.

"Lure him out of the inn somehow?" Finch
suggested. "Fucker's gotta eat some time."

**JEN**

"It's an inn, Finch, he can just eat inside. Or order
food to his room, or whatever. Nah, we gotta do better than that." Larkin
drummed her fingertips on the tiles, thinking. Maybe they could send him a
message that got him out. Did Shrewd have family they could threaten? Come meet
us or we'll cut your sweet sister to pieces. Eh, even if he had, likely that
asshole would just let them die.

She knew next to nothing personal about Shrewd, Larkin
realized, except that he had a healthy self-preservation instinct. Maybe,
though...

"How about we just herd him out. He'll shit his pants
if one of us shows up inside. Let him run and catch him outside. Or... make him
think it's not safe in there somehow else."

**IZZY**

He scowled, but he couldn't say she was wrong about the food
thing. Shrewd was probably paranoid enough to waste everything the Sanguines
had paid him on fucking room service.

"Hey, hey." He tapped her shoulder with the back
of his hand. "Do some thaumaturgy shit. Cabinets flying open and shit in
his room."

**JEN**

"Huh." Larkin gave him a side glance. "Make
him think he has poltergeister?" she hadn't done that in a long time.
Never really liked putting on a show with her infernal legacy, except to swing
a door into someone's face. That was always fun.

Larkin concentrated on the front door of the inn, and slowly
the wooden sign next to it began to swing as if in a breeze. She snapped her
fingers and the door banged open. She grinned satisfied, then turned back to
Finch. "Sounds good to me. I'll need to get closer, though."

**IZZY**

Finch glanced over the building, studying it. It had
prominent window eaves and sills -- he was betting Shrewd had picked it out so
he'd be able to fucking scarper out the window if there was trouble, even with
him being out of shape from years on door duty. Made things easier for Finch,
too.

He pointed them out. "Could you do it from the sill of
the next window over? Bet you anything that fucker comes flying out the window
without looking, then we fuckin' clothesline him with the rope, and he hits the
ground knocked stupid."

**JEN**

"Yeah, I fucking like that. Let's go."

Larkin used the adjacent buildings to circle the inn until
she found a roof from where she could comfortable climb over. She clung to the
window sills,  inching forward along the
outer wall to where the window with the drawn curtains was, and perched on the
sill one room over. Hopefully no one inside looked out now... or anyone down on
the street for that matter. The angle was good, and she could in fact make out
a moving shadow behind the curtains, but she was also on fucking display. Had
to be quick about it.

Doing magic upon object she couldn't see was hard and it took
a moment to take effect, but slowly a rumble built up inside the room as furniture
began to shake and clatter. Simultaneously, a whisper built where Larkin
suspected the door must be, muttering nonsense incantations. Any flames inside
the room had to be turning black.

Now, here was to hoping Shrewd wouldn't see through a trick
he was able to pull off himself.

**IZZY**

Finch figured there were three outcomes here:

One, Shrewd fucking freaked out and launched himself out the
window because he was fucking dumb and didn't know what was going on.

Two, Shrewd was slightly cleverer than anticipated, and he
knew someone was fucking with him, but recognized it as a threat and bailed out
the window.

Three, Shrewd was hiding an actual brain under those horns,
and he realized someone was fucking with him and preying on his nerves to get
him to go out the window, so he went out the door instead or just stayed where
he fucking was.

The third option was fuckin' impossible. Shrewd was a brick
carved into the shape of a tiefling. The only things going through his head
were greed and paranoia. So Finch perched on the windowsill opposite Larkin and
waited, feeling the rumbling in the room and waiting, fidgeting a bit. God, he
was so out of shape. He gotten so used to just making Jonn do shit like this.

His mind had almost wandered when the curtains snapped aside
and the window flew open. He yanked the rope taut, and as Shrewd tried to heave
himself over the sill, he hit the rope instead thin air and fucking tumbled
over it with a brief shout, flipping ass over face and cracking the latter
straight into the cobbles.

Finch snorted and tossed the rope to Larkin, knowing she
could get down quicker than he could, but it didn't really fucking look like
Shrewd was going anywhere fast. Probably busted out a tooth or two, with a
faceplant like that.

**JEN**

"Got him!" Larkin caught the rope and was halfway
down to street level before Shrewd could even pull his face out of the gravel.

A woman had stopped, wide eyed at the tiefling falling from
the sky and looking about to attempt to help Shrewd up. He swatted her hand away,
clearly in panic and with no mind to get tangled up with strangers. He
scrambled to his knees and looked over his shoulder, coursing through his
bloodied teeth when he saw who'd trapped him. A second later, Larkin was on him
and before he could get up and running, she kicked Shrewd off balance, making
him kiss the dirt again.

**IZZY**

Finch gave a harsh laugh, coming down the wall much more
slowly than Larkin had, but hitting the street as Shrewd's face did again. He
came over and planted a boot on Shrewd's back, leaning his weight into it, and
gave the random concerned woman a look that made her take a couple of steps
back. Larkin was a vicious punk but her stature made her about as threatening
as a spitting kitten, and the beer gut he'd gotten at some fucking point didn't
cut an impressive fucking figure, either, but the two of them together were
enough to back off your average citizen.

She might call for the guards, though. He appraised her
quickly and saw nasty damps splotches on the shoulder of her dress, took in her
harried appearance, and thought: newborn.

"Go for the town guard and it's your fuckin' baby out
the next window," he called after her, and the look of alarm she threw
over her shoulder before picking up her pace gave him a smug, satisfied grin.

Then he ground his boot against Shrewd's back, pushing the air
out of his lungs, and looked to Larkin. "What should we cut off him first,
you think?"

**JEN**

"That fucking tongue of his. Always wanted to nail that
one to his forehead."

At that, Shrewd came to under Finch's foot, apparently not
on board with the impending separation of body parts. He kicked and struggled
to hit any of them, to get his feet under himself and up and running.

Beside them, Larkin uncoiled the rope to put an end to that.

**IZZY**

Finch started at the struggle, then scowled and dropped down
to pin Shrewd with his knee, corralling his hands with some difficulty so
Larkin'd be able to put those out of commission as soon as she was done
wrangling his legs.

"Ehh. Dunno. Might be good to hear him fuckin' beg us
not to cut off his favorite bit," he offered.

**JEN**

Larkin snorted. "Oh yeah, begging. Fucking love
that." She tied Shrewd's feet together, tight but loose enough so he'd be
able to stumble along, then drew the length of robe up to take care of his
wrists.

"Let's start small, though. How 'bout we get rid of
some of those fingers. He only uses them to grab Sanguine gold anyway."

**IZZY**

"Yeah, he's not gonna fucking need those, anymore. No
more Sanguines to sell people out to." Finch whacked the back of Shrewd's
head and shifted to dig through his pockets, finding a little gold, but not
near the amount he would assume the fucker had gotten. "Hey, dipshit. You
got the rest up in your room? If we have to go on a scavenger hunt for it, so
fucking help me, I'll cut your balls off right here, right now."

**JEN**

Shrewd writhed on the ground cursing and spitting but
between Larkin and Finch, and with his hands and feet tied up, he couldn't get
enough leverage in.

"Fuck you!" He snarled and snorted out blood and
dirt that had gotten into his mouth. "I don't have any gold. It's all
fucking gone!"

**IZZY**

Finch leaned a hand on the back of his head to shove his
face back into the street. "Goddamn, that's too fucking bad. How much can
we can get for his horns and eyes and liver on the black market, you think,
Lark?"

**JEN**

"Nothing if they go bad. Gotta keep him alive 'till we
have a buyer. I know a guy or two."

**IZZY**

He scoffed. "Yeah, obviously. We can go ahead and get a
start on the shit that won't kill him, though."

**JEN**

"Fucking ugly things these," Larkin remarked and
pulled on one of Shrewd's horns, "only half a grand in it, at best."
She kicked them, wrenching his head aside. "Barely worth the effort... if
it weren't for the fun."

**IZZY**

"Yeah? Between the half grand and the fun, how far's
that go towards reparation for selling out the Basha?" He stabbed a finger
into one of Shrewd's kidneys. "You think there's even enough gold in this
washed-up fucker to cover it?"

**JEN**

"You don't have the fucking guts to, you little- oof!
" Shrewd was cut short by Larkin's foot coming down on his head. She
leaned down, sneering. "Maybe we pull your teeth out, one by one. Sell 'em
to a dentist for replacements."

**IZZY**

Finch squinted and pulled Shrewd's lips aside. "Nah, no
one's gonna want those things in their mouth. I say we grind them up, sell them
as powdered dragon bones."

**JEN**

"Pah." Shrewd snorted onto the cobbles. "Keep
fucking talking you fucks. Can fucking tell you don't mean it." He craned
his head around as much as he could and, spotting another passers-by, shouted,
"Help! Fucking help me!"

**IZZY**

Finch shoved Shrewd's face back into the street and gave the
passers-by his most deathly glare.

**JEN**

The man who'd just been about to enter the alley stopped
dead in his tracks, stared, then took a step back and hurried out of sight.

"Hey! " Shrewd yelled, voice breaking, "Hey
you asshole! Come back!"

**IZZY**

"Dumbshit." Finch leaned his weight onto the back
of Shrewd's head to shut him up. "Why the fuck would someone help you? For
fuck's sake."

Then he straightened, grabbing the rope linking Shrewd's
hands and feet, and yanked him upright. Tried to, anyway. He wasn't really
strong enough -- he could manhandle people who were Larkin- and Jonn-sized, to
some extent, but Shrewd was a bit bigger. He scowled and acted like it'd been
on purpose, like he'd just been trying to wrench Shrewd's shoulders with the
rope.

**JEN**

"Pair of fucking losers!" He twisted around and
spat at Finch's legs. "What're you gonna do, huh? Cut me apart right here?
That guy's gonna get the watch and you can't even fucking move me.
Dumbasses."

Much as Larkin hated to admit it, Shrewd was right. They'd
spent too much time out in the open already. Next asshole to come around the
corner might be city watch or one of Shrewd's traitor friends. She cast Finch a
look, hoping to convey as much.

**IZZY**

Finch grimaced at Larkin where Shrewd wouldn't be able to
see. He had a point, yeah.

He gave it another shot, anyway, and budged Shrewd even
less. Fuck. The fact that this wasn't going to plan started to give him an
antsy feeling, which he took out by smacking the back of Shrewd's head with an
electrified hand. It didn't help the problem, but making the fucker flinch was
fucking satisfying.

"I can always just fucking electrocute him to death in
the street and we can haul him off. I know a guys with that kinda resurrection
magic that hasn't got a time limit," he lied.

**JEN**

"Yeah, right." Shrewd was breathing heavily now,
the beating the gave him starting to take its toll. "Fucking god, did you
fuckers even have a plan, or...?"

He puffed out more air as Larkin planted her foot on his
back and ground her heel in again.
"Don't worry, pal," she said leaning down, and grasped
Shrewd's neck with both hands. "I got you."

Squeezing his carotid ateries would make Shrewd much more
pliable in no time. Unfortunately, that still left the problem of how to move
him, but they didn't need his blabbing to figure that one out. Larkin only
hoped they did before he woke up again.

**IZZY**

###

Finch didn't have the stomach to back up his mouth, but he
knew someone who did, and that person was always really eager to please.

He and Larkin managed to heave Shrewd up, once he was
unconscious, and Finch sent his crow off to tell Jonn to meet them at the old
guildhall. They loaded Shrewd into a little cart to get him across the city --
heavy fucker -- and shoved him into the sewers unceremoniously, letting him
splat into the filthy water face first (but scurried down the ladder after him because
it'd be a waste of time and energy if he just fucking drowned at this point).

Jonn sat on the table in the abandoned guildhall, swinging
his legs, and hopped to his feet looking concerned when Finch and Larkin
dragged Shrewd in. He seemed uncertain about what Finch was asking him to do,
but his eyes flicked between the two of them and he agreed, slowly.

They tied Shrewd to a chair and woke him with a couple
buckets of cold water to the face. Finch and Larkin did their bit until it made
them both queasy -- yanked a couple teeth, sawed through about half a horn
until the sheer amount of blood about made Finch throw up. He did his best to
hide it and act like he'd just gotten bored, then fuckin' fled the room with
Larkin in tow.

In the doorway, Jonn asked, "You want me to keep him
alive?" and looked disappointed and uncomfortable.

"Yeah. He's gotta fucking pay for what he did. People
are gonna know what happens when you cross Basha and Avis."

"'Kay."

He closed the door, and Finch and Larkin sat outside it and
listened to Shrewd screaming and begging inside, lighting cigarettes off Finch's
electric fingertips and then off each other. Jonn never made a sound.

**IZZY**

[END]

Title: Basha & Avis. Summary: Larkin gives Finch the
pseduodragon she picked up for him, and he tells her the bad news about Renar
apparently abandoning her for Calimport. The two decide to work together again
and hunt down traitor Shrewd as an inaugural mission.