Avoidance

Kezrin was finally getting some sleep. The familiar routines of working at Booty Bay helped diminish the snippets of nightmares that had been plaguing her during her trip to Bilgewater Harbor. She should have listened to that feeling of doom and never stepped foot inside the city.


But... ugh. It had still been a few rough weeks since returning. She was starting to dread going to Lounge night; the new person who'd started showing up while she was gone was getting on her nerves. Mormel was pushy and abrasive and no matter what Kezrin said, wouldn't stop poking and grabbing her.

Intellectually, she realized that Mormel was just trying to be friendly. It would nice on some level to have a goblin friend... she thought she had found one in Gezelda, until she had learned that the other goblin was a warlock. That made things rather awkward.

Still, she flinched every time Momel jabbed her. And then, when the one guy at Salon had tried to drag her to the other side of the room... She pushed him away as hard as she could and had to stop herself from drawing the small belt knife she always carried with her.

The nightmares had returned stronger that night.

They weren't the old, familiar ones, where the warlock had her tied down. They were new ones. She was somewhere confining, dark. A set of shocked, accusing eyes were staring at her, and there was the scent of alcohol. The feeling of a dagger's hilt in her hands.

"Goldie, he's dead." A familiar voice spoke the words.

She could see his face in her dreams, staring at her in accusation even as they dimmed to nothing. The worst part was, she could place a name to it. Hobbart Axelhammer, one of her father's distributors.

She had checked the records while she was in Azshara. He was dead, stabbed in the chest. Only a few weeks before she'd taken up work with the AAMS.

No, it would have been a lot simpler if she'd never gone to Aszhara.

----

Kezrin arrived first, as usual, anxiously tapping her foot while she waited for Renzly to show up at the tavern. She wanted to jump when she saw her enter the door, but waited for Renzly to reach their table before asking her question.

“So? Did you hear anything?”

Renzly idly played with a smooth orange stone in her hand. “Yeah… she’s gone. Waxworth’s really ticked off now, ya know.”

Kezrin sighed in relief. “I don’t care, as long as Myzzi’s safe. She is, isn’t she?”

“Won’t know for sure until she gets ta Kalimdor.” The orange stone abruptly disappeared. “She’s gonna have a harder time sneakin’ here than ya did. Lucky you’ve got some people who don’t want ta see the merger go through, too.”

“Yeah, but at least once she gets here, I’ll be here to help her. She ain’t gonna have to go through everything I did, she’ll have someplace ta sleep, ta eat… she won’t have ta worry ‘bout walkin’ down dark alleys at night.” Kezrin grinned at Renzly. “I can keep her safe.”

“Hey! And what ‘bout me?”

“What, ya want me ta protect ya, too?”

“Very funny, Goldie. Not what I meant.”

“That’s good, ‘cause I’m pretty sure you’re the one who knows how ta use a dagger.”

“Sorta a necessity growin’ up,” Renzly said. “Somethin’ ya should learn if yer gonna be all protective. Ya miss her, dontcha?”

“Yeah. We ain’t ever been apart for so long. She’s always been my best friend, ya know?”

“... yeah.”

“I jus’ hope she likes you.”

“Me?” Renzly jolted in surprise. “Ya want to introduce her ta me? I thought ya hadn’t told her ‘bout me.”

“Yeah. We’re friends, aren’t we? I couldn’t mention ya in the letters, but it’ll be different when she’s here, right?”

“Oh. Yeah. I guess so.” The rogue took a few moments to process the idea. “I hope she likes me, too. I hadn’t really thought ‘bout it.”

“I like you, so I’m sure she will once she gets ta know ya.”

A slow smile spread on Renzly’s face. “It’s still Winter’s Veil, isn’t it? Have ya gotten her a gift yet?”

“No. Haven’t found anything, yet. Shoppin’ ain’t really my thing…” Kezrin hemmed. “And, uh, I’m not sure what she’s gonna want. I hate trying’ ta figure that kind of thing out.” Kezrin sighed ruefully. “I used ta drag her with me jus’ for that reason.”

“Then let’s go look for something. If I’m gonna get her ta like me, I ought ta at least get a Winter’s Veil gift for your sister, shouldn’t I?” She grinned broadly. “And don’t worry, shoppin’ is one of my specialties. We’ll hit the trade district.”

“But… it’ll be so crowded…”

“Perfect for blending in. No one notices ya in a crowd. C’mon, let’s go.”

As predicted, the trade district was packed full of shoppers cashing in on the “limited time only” Winter Veil sales that filled every shop window. Lights flashed from every corner, and scents from various food vendors permeated the air.

Renzly slipped through the gaps in the crowd with ease; the tiny lithe goblin hardly made a ripple in the stream.

Kezrin was a log dam. She flinched as someone’s elbow hit her shoulder and looked around in panic for Renzly.

“Goldie?” The rogue notice she’d lost her and backtracked. “Ya okay?”

“Yeah- I jus’... don’t like crowds. They make me jumpy.” She looked around warily.

“No one’s gonna get ya, here, I promise. Not with me ‘round. This is my territory.” Renzly spoke with confidence and a just a touch of swagger. “Stay with me, ‘kay?”

She held out a hand imperiously until Kezrin accepted it. With a grin, she tugged her along, being more mindful of her pace. “We’ll get this done in no time.”

Before long, they had visited several shops, though nothing struck Kezrin as being the right gift for Myzzi, though Renzly settled pretty quickly for buying her a decorated comb.

“Hey, I’m just the sister’s friend. Doesn’t have ta be perfect.”

“Lucky you. Oh... hey.”

Against the wall of the store was a display of perfumes and scented candles. Kezrin quickly picked up a large light green candle and gave it a long sniff. “Peaceblossom Dreams. One of the better sellers.”

“Goldwick Candles?” Renzly examined the labels. “Figured you’d want ta stay away from ‘em.”

“I haven’t seen any in months.” She picked up a black candle called “Fresh Powder” and grinned. “Always kinda liked this one, reminds me of fireworks.”

Renzly picked up a large pink and white candle. “This one ain’t that bad,” she said with some surprise. “Sorta pleasant.”

“Evening Rose,” Kezrin identified it. “That was one of my mother’s favorites.” She picked up another one and took all three to the sales counter. “We’d better buy some now, who knows how long Pop will keep the place runnin’.”

The clerk perked up at the two women approached, giving them a crooked smile. “That’ll be all for ya, babe?” he asked Kezrin. “‘Cause if ya like, I throw in a dinner for free with those candles.”

“Uh.. n-no thanks, really.” She slid her coins across the counter to pay.

“Ya sure ‘bout that? It’d be a shame ta waste the evenin’ without some nice company, dontcha think?”

“That’s okay, I’d r-rather not.”

The clerk leaned foward and opened his mouth again. “A pretty lady like-”

A dagger slammed into the wooden surface less than an inch away from his hand, with a thunk loud enough to turn heads in their direction.

“She said no, buster,” Renzly said softly in the ensuing quiet.

“R-right. Here’s ya change.” He hastily gave them their coins and retreated as far away as his workspace allowed. Renzly pried her dagger free, glaring at the clerk hard enough to make him fidget. She motioned for Kezrin to leave first.

“Fel, you’re still a creep magnet, aren’t ya?” Renzly sighed.

“I’m s-sorry.”

“Ya gotta be more firm in tellin’ them ta jump off a cliff.”

“Don’t ya think the dagger was a bit much, though?”

“It worked, didn’t it? C’mon, I’m takin’ ya home.”

“I haven’t found somethin’ for Myzzi yet.”

“What about the candles?”

“They’re not for her,” she shook her head. “I can’t give her our own candles.”

“Fine, we’ll keep lookin’.”

They stopped at a engineering shop next; any time of the salesmen approached, they backed away at Renzly’s glare, leaving the two to peruse the merchandise in peace. Kerin finally found a gift, purchasing a book of schematics for Myzzi.

Mission accomplished, they headed back toward the outer fringes of town and Bilgerat street. Renzly's footsteps slowed as they came near their tavern.

"Don't look behind us, but we're bein' followed." She nodded at an upcoming side street. "I'm gonna step aside and see who it is, ya just keep walkin'."

"Keep walking?"

"Yeah. To the tavern, don't lead 'em to yer place. I'll catch up with ya in a few." With that Renzly smiled and cheerfully waved as if she were not abandoning Kezrin to the unknown.