Wrong Side of Heaven, Righteous Side of Hell

Dunwall stank of rotting fish and briny sea no matter how far you delved into the city it seemed. Garrett was unused to the stench considering he grew up away from the docks, in the city proper. It didn’t help that no matter where you went in Dunwall you could not escape the ocean.

He lounged on a rooftop of a rather wealthy banker, taking stock of the lovely little treasures he had swiped from the man. One of which had been a gilded picture frame of his lovely little family. Garrett tossed the picture and wrapped the fine frame in one of his shirts to prevent the glass from breaking. What a waste of good gold. Good thing was, there was always someone with too much coin willing to spend it on meaningless keepsakes.

Now all he needed to find was a fence.

Garrett was biding his time and hoping his appetite would return so that he could eat something before nightfall. He didn’t like to work while hungry since you never quite knew what would happen on a job and when your next meal would be. Problem was his rations were just not appealing and his gut had not forgiven him for that merry-damn-boat-ride. At least stealing distracted him from his physical issues. He was riding on a high that only came from robbing some rich bastard blind.

He squinted at the setting sun peaking through slivers of the sky the storm hadn’t covered. He had about an hour before nightfall, before he could really roam the city. He needed to get a feel for it at night. See what civilians would let him get away with, if anything, and mark what the guards actually wore. He’d seen very few and that worried him slightly, given that he was in a very rich district. But above all he needed to get a letter to Basso to tell him he was still alive, that he’d made it to Dunwall without incident.

Well… Without an incident worth mentioning. Those thugs had been little more than an amusement. If that’s the worst this place had to offer he was more than confident in his ability to complete the job.

Something in the peripheral of his vision fluttered across a rooftop and with a sinking feeling in his gut, Garrett bundled his things up and shoved them in his satchel. He hadn’t donned his hood or other clothing, worried someone would recognise him as those sailors had. Besides, he still needed his traveller facade to get a room for the next couple of nights. He crept up the roof and trained his eyes on the source of the odd flutter. He saw nothing though his vision was sharp still.

Perhaps the earlier threat had him paranoid but he could have sworn he saw something. He shook himself, that must be it. He was overreacting to every little thing now that he’d had a near-miss.

He slung his bag over his shoulder and decided now was a good time to find a place to hunker down for the night. With a vague idea of where to go but no real direction, Garrett slid down the pipes trailing down the side of the building to duck into the alley. It was odd, walking around town, his face in full view of anyone who passed. It was a different sort of invisible. He blended easily with the sailors and merchants and regular people who roamed the open roads.

It was something he’d never quite experienced. And if he had he’d be too young to grasp the concept.

But here he was, just one of the crowd. Invisible while standing in plain sight.

He followed the people, cutting a couple of purses as he went. It wasn’t even that he would need that much, he just did it on instinct. Not realising he’d even done it until the weight of the purse was in his hand or in some cases, already in his pocket. He started to glance at the signs above him as the crowd began to dissipate. Finally he came across an Inn that didn’t look like a total rundown.

Inside -thankfully- wasn’t any better or any worse than the outside, which meant the owner cared about the place but didn’t have the coin to keep it maintained. Which was perfect. It didn’t attract pickpockets for two reasons. One they couldn’t afford to stay the night which would be a gamble of their contraband. And two, no one here is worth stealing from. It was the perfect hideout.

Garrett waited as the innkeeper assisted someone as he had no interest in dealing with anyone he didn’t have to. Especially a drunk journalist from the sound of him. He raved on about the rats, loudly, while the innkeeper attempted to quiet him. She finally seemed to give up and snapped her fingers at a man lounging in the corner of the den area. He was a big man and he only became more intimidating as he stood, which was likely the point. “Liam. See that this gentleman gets a room to sleep his drink off! I’ll put it on his tab.”

“Yes ma’am,” Liam’s voice carried through the air as dominating a presence as the man himself. Garrett made a note of the way his right knee didn’t seem to hold his weight as well as the left and how one of his eyes seemed glazed slightly. He may not have been blind but his vision was definitely impaired on that side. He would be a problem if he knew Garrett was a thief, so he would behave. For the time being.

Garrett watched cautiously as the monster of a man slung the babbling reporter on his shoulder and slowly ascended the steps. Trouble was, he couldn’t figure out if the guy lumbered along because he was being lazy or if he was actually that slow. Garrett didn’t like surprises so knowing how bad the giant’s knee was was going to be high on his priority list.

“Kid? You want help or you wanna just stand there like wall art?”

Garrett shook himself and forced himself to focus on the little innkeeper. As he approached he had to fight off some serious irritation. The little lady was perched on a squatted barrel to make herself look taller, hell she looked younger than him. Yet she had the nerve to call him kid?

“What’s your poison?” she asked propping a hip on the counter. He glanced up at the stairs and she chuckled. “Oh don’t you worry ‘bout Liam. He’s here to make sure business goes smooth for everyone involved in mine. He’s a good guy, really. Keep yourself on the straight and narrow and you won't have to be on the receiving end of his knuckles.”

Or just don't get caught. He lifted a brow at the “woman” and shook his head. “How much for two nights?”

She straightened and her eyes grew a little, like she hadn’t expected his voice considering his age and stature. And he could sympathize. You’d expect a rough, deep voice on a big guy, not necessarily on a willowy male, of only 18 summers.

“Um.. three silver.” She tucked a stray hair behind one of her ears and held out her hand, “Upfront.”

Garrett gave her a hard look, “Three silver? That’s robbery.” and he would know.

She shrugged and didn’t drop her hand. “You’ll be protected from the plague here. We’ve got no rats and you get your own room. Better than most places. But if you want something cheaper, try the docks.”

Garrett knew there were other places but he was also near enough to the rich part of town that this spot really was ideal. The protection was worth the money and it wasn’t as though he couldn't afford it. He just had trouble letting go of any kind of coin. With a frown he dug out the coin, careful not to let her hear how heavy his purse actually was. In fact, he was careful enough to pull out the equivalent of one silver in coppers, he grumbled as he fished the “last one” out and dropped it on the counter.

She quirked a brow at him because he had avoided her outstretched hand completely.

“I don’t have the plague. You’d know it if I did.”

He loved when people jumped to the wrong conclusion. He really did. No, he had avoided touching her because he didn’t like to be touched and he figured that was a two way street. But if she was going to think that he was worried about the plague, he could get away with acting a little odd. Which covers a multitude of sins.

“No harm in being cautious.” he said offhandedly.

She stepped down off the barrel and ducked under an open portion of the bar. “Well come on. Your room’s this way.” She took the steps two at a time, which was obviously not an easy task for her. Garrett followed quickly, it was clear even though she was short and looked perhapes twelve, the girl was fast. She darted down the hall and he assumed she didn’t even realise she was doing it. She stopped in front of a door and fished a key out of her pocket.

The room was on the end at the very back of the inn for which Garrett was grateful. She unlocked it and pushed the door open with a boot. “Here you are. Here’s a key. If you’re loud I reserve the right to have Liam toss your ass out of the building.”

“Good to know.” Garrett swiped the key from her hand and smiled as he closed the door behind him. This was going well. If the rest of the job remained on this course, remained smooth, he’d be home before he knew it.

Home and so rich he could retire.