[ P ] king of the clouds

In all his time here in Rionnach, this had been the first time he heard such a big announcement from Rook himself.

Of course, the man is still elusive. Ace has never met him or seen him, but from all that he's heard, he is very real. He's also likely not someone you'd want on your bad side. So, when he said the ball is of interest, Ace took it seriously.

Some plans have come to mind, but haven't come to fruition yet. He needs more allies or to get along on a really elaborate plan that someone else is putting together. Either way, he's itching for some action and chaos, so he hopes that he might find some.

Lucky for him, he came across a golden opportunity. Or a potential one. He caught wind of a vendor on their way to the King with some freshly caught meat. Something about a taste test for the ball and so that was all Ace needed to hear. He knew he needed to intervene in some way and what better way than to steal some food? It would make a lovely meal for the day and he could share the leftovers with some of the hungry closer to home. Really, this guy is making himself an easy target at the beginning of winter. He would've been smart to hire some guards.

Ace follows close by, but his footsteps are slow and quiet so as to not blow his cover. He needs to figure out a distraction so he can swiftly steal the elk and be off. The man stops to take a break and Ace watches him from behind a tree.

What to do, what to do...

"Speaking."

Ace Sinclair

@Ephemeral

A distraction was needed? Ephemeral could provide that even though he had no idea that was what he was doing. Instead he had merely been playing a game of chase. It was one of his favorite games. Hide was another game the yearling had pretty good success at.

Ephy had found a squirrel to play chase with. Well, more than one squirrel actually. He would start out after one and it would run up a tree where he couldn't reach it and so the game had to be continued with a different squirrel instead.

And on and on it went with one squirrel after another. Eventually his game leads him towards a wolf following after another. It would seem the he wasn't the only one playing chase.

The squirrel was forgotten about in favor of the other wolf. "Hi!" He called out brightly. "You no good chase." He commented on how the other male was still lagging behind the intended target.

Ace nearly jumps out of his skin at the stranger's voice coming out of nowhere. It catches the attention of the hunter too and he frantically gestures for the stranger to get out of sight. "Shhh! Get down! He'll see you!" he whispers, hoping his cover isn't totally blown.

If it had, this guy would get a real earful. Rook made it very clear that the ball is of interest and in all the whisperings after that, many thieves like him collectively agreed that it must be sabotaged. What better way than to steal their goods? But he won't be able to do that and come out victorious if he gets found out so quickly.

Ace sucks in a breath and slowly looks around the tree trunk again, half expecting not to see the hunter because he bolted, but he's actually still there. The hunter takes a final look around but continues walking and dragging the elk behind him. Ace exhales in relief. They're safe… for now.

Looking back at the stranger, the thief realizes he's nothing but a lanky boy. Probably naïve too if he's so quick to say hi to someone he's never met. Certainly a stark contrast to the boy named Colburn that he met not too long ago. But, as Ace is finding, he's starting to have a soft spot for kids. Well, as long as they don't tug on his tail or barf on him anyway.

Keeping his voice low, he speaks to the kid again. "That was a close one. You should be careful coming up to strangers like that, kid. You could get in some real trouble one day," he scolds, or pretends to, but he can't keep a serious face. His lips curve to a smile and his eyes brighten. "Name's Ace. What's yours?" Out of the corner of his eye, he notices the hunter stop again but he can't tell if it's because they're talking. Damn winter and its lack of sound barriers.

"I need to get that elk. Want to help?" Normally he's a one man show for jobs like this, but maybe he can use the boy's naivety to his advantage.

"Speaking."

Ace Sinclair

@Ephemeral

Ephemeral didn't take the words as a scolding but as an invitation to a different game instead. "We play hide now?" The yearling asked as he joined the other wolf in his concealed position behind the tree. The boy crouches down and glances around. If they were both hiding who was supposed to find them? This question didn't remain in his head for long for as soon as the thought entered he was already asking it. "Who find?" Because if you were playing hide then someone had to find.

And then he was distracted from his thoughts by what the other had to say. "Who Stranger? You Stranger?" A stranger was a concept that was completely foreign to him. He had never heard the word before and so had no definition for it. In fact he assumed it to be the other's name. But then a different name was given. "You name Stranger. Stranger Ace." The youth looked to be quite proud of himself at this proclamation.

"Ephemeral. Ephy." The boy gave his name with an excited wag of his tail. To him giving names meant they were friends now and having friends was an entirely exciting thing. How could one not be happy to have just made a new friend? Of course it wasn't all that hard for Ephemeral to place someone in the friend category.

The lanky wolf was quick to nod his head when he was asked if he wanted to help get an elk. "Ephy good hunt." Of course that was entirely subjective but he did manage to get enough to survive on even if it didn't look it.

It becomes pretty clear that this kid is pretty young. Ace finds himself taking a deep breath and holding back the urge to make an audible sigh. This might be a much harder task than he thought. Not only does he need to try and pull this off, but now he's babysitting this kid to make sure he doesn't get himself killed. "Yes, play hide," he tells him with a nod, partially rethinking this whole operation.

"Alright, Ephy," he says, turning back to the task at hand. The kid claims he's good at hunting, but that's not exactly what Ace is going for here. How can he try to explain this better? He didn't think what he said before had been that complicated so this is quite the challenge. "No hunting today, I want that guy's elk. Take it from him, you know? He uh…" he's trying very hard not to make it so obvious he's a thief, though something tells him the kid might not pick up on that fact that quickly. "He stole it from a poor lady," he lies, but thinks the kid will go along with it. "We need to get it back."

But how? The man ahead of them has started walking again and is getting pretty far out already. If they don't act soon, he may be too far to catch up with. "We need some kind of distraction so I can take it…" now he feels like he might be talking more to himself than to Ephy. The gears turn in his mind as he tries to think of a good plan on the spot. Maybe this kid's innocence could be helpful? He seems cute enough.

"Can you distract him while I come from behind to take the elk? I'll be close by so I'll make sure you don't get hurt," he suggests and waits with bated breath to see if the kid agrees (or understands the plan).

"Speaking."

Ace Sinclair

@Ephemeral

So they weren't hunting but were rescuing an elk instead. He had no idea what a distraction was either. "Ephy distract!" The boy declared eagerly despite not even knowing what it was that he was agreeing to. Whatever it was he was certain that he could manage it. But then Ephemeral was full of self confidence, without managing to come across as narcissistic. Instead he just had that childlike innocence that assumed the best of everything.

The only thing the boy really got was that his new friend, Stranger Ace, would come up behind the unknown wolf and would remain nearby. "Ephy no get hurt." The teen stated with confidence. He really couldn't imagine how he could possibly be hurt. The elk was dead so it couldn't hurt him. He had no thought that the unknown wolf might try to attack him.

The yearling hardly waited a moment longer before rushing over towards the wolf dragging the elk carcass. "Hi! Where go?" He spoke up brightly to the unnamed wolf.

The longer Ace talks to this kid, the less confidence he has that this whole plan will work. Ephy seems enthusiastic about distracting, but Ace isn't entirely convinced that he knows what he needs to do. Though, he can't really get mad at the kid for wanting to try.

Before he could attempt to talk more strategy, the kid is already running off to catch up to the hunter. Ace holds his breath while he watches, but so far it actually seems okay. The guy is a bit startled at Ephy coming out of nowhere, but he doesn't run off or turn around just yet.

"What are you doing here all alone?" he hears the hunter ask Ephy, concern clear in his tone. He drops the elk to focus on the boy and Ace's eyes get wider. Good, the guy should be pretty distracted for a little while at least. Ace sneaks from tree to tree, peering around each trunk to make sure the hunter hasn't turned his head yet.

"You're lucky you found me, these woods are not always safe, you know," Ace hears the hunter say in a very Dad-like tone. Ace smirks.

He gets closer and closer… until he finally gets close enough to grab the neck of the elk. He starts to drag it back to a tree, but he sees the hunter's ear twitch and his head snaps around.

"Hey! What are you doing?"

Ace panics. "I'm uh… wait, what is that?!" he pretends to point out at something like he's seen a monster and the hunter falls for it. With the short time he's turned back around, Ace tries to drag the elk away faster. He glances at Ephy and hopes the kid might be a quick thinker or else this could turn into a disaster.

"Speaking."

Ace Sinclair

@Ephemeral