Prince of the Stars

It was a little awkward, he thought– but Johnny chalked the awkwardness up to himself. He was a fairly awkward person, after all– he’d proven that fact to himself time and time again. “Yeah, sure– that sounds great. You know up where the farmland is? Up–”

“Ah, yeah– sorry.” It made sense that someone who worked in a mansion as large as this one would be busy, even this late at night - or at least, it made sense to Johnny in this moment as he made his way home from the bar. “I don’t mean to interrupt or anything– uh. I’m just a little lost.”

He snickers, realizing how silly that sounds. “And I know I live here and all and it’s kinda dumb to get lost in the town you live in and all, but I’ve only been here half a year, yeah? And it’s hard to figure out those roads in the dark.” He nods, rubbing one eye with the palm of his hand. “If you’ve got a map or anything in there–” he pointed to the mansion, “–I’ll be happy to pay you for it.”

So far it seemed as if the man believed Skye’s lies, and he was grateful for this.  Though it looked as if Skye would have to give up the act eventually, quickly becoming stuck on how he could help the stranger find his way home.  Of course he could simply turn him away, but what would be the fun in that?  Perhaps he could keep up the lie for a little longer.

“It looks like you’re trying to break into my house!” 

Danny could be quick to anger at times. Trying to play off an obvious robbery attempt like it was nothing wasn’t going to get Danny to second guess what he was seeing. In fact, it would probably take a pretty convincing argument. Of course, there was nothing really in the store worth stealing. However, that’s what made it all the more irritating for Danny. The leftover stock was bad, but he needed to try to sell it off so he could make back some money. As for the money he kept from Rosetta’s job, most of that needed to go somewhere else than Danny’s personal savings.

“Get away from that window! Who are you!?”

Well the man was not as stupid as Skye hoped he would be.  Taking a step back from the building, Skye prepared himself to run in case he had absolutely no other choice.  However, even though he had been caught, it did not necessarily mean he was not going to try stealing from the shop anymore.  He just wanted some food, and maybe a few various trinkets that he could sell.

While Johnny had become fairly fond of going out after sunset to avoid the heat of the day, it was only for one thing that he stayed out quite so late as he was out on this particular night. With a few drinks tucked happily away in his tummy and a good conversation with the regulars who hung out in the bar at night behind him, Johnny hummed pleasantly to himself as he made his way home from Raeger’s.

It was a long walk, unfortunately - and while Johnny relished nights like this for how fun and comfortable they could be, it was kind of a pain to get all the way back home in the dark. The woods weren’t as easy to navigate at night as they were in the day - and when Johnny found himself trudging through somewhat unfamiliar territory, he gave himself pause trying to figure out where he was. Had he turned right too soon? It would probably connect through to the path he took home if he kept going north, right?

It wasn’t until a rock kicked up and snagged the side of his shoe that he even noticed that he wasn’t alone.

“Huh?” he started, squinting in the darkness to see who had suddenly been startled into addressing him. “Oh, hey– sorry, did I scare you? You work here?” He gestured to the mansion. He didn’t know much about it personally, besides knowing that it was tucked away on roads he didn’t often travel. One could see the top of it well enough from most places around here, after all. “Think you could help me out, buddy?”

Luckily it did not seem as if the stranger had noticed Skye’s mumblings to himself, and he let out a sigh of relief.  The last thing he needed was for the townspeople to catch on to the fact that there was a thief roaming around the forest.

“Oh... no, I mean... yes.”  Though the man’s immediate response what that no, he had not scared him, he decided to lie through his teeth and admit to being one of the mansion’s many workers.  Perhaps disguising himself as one of them would be an easy way into the building, and silently he thanked the stranger for the idea.

Danny walked back late from Materia. Man, work had been tiring ever since he’d had to work for Rosetta. However, it was a good type of tired, somehow, unlike when he’d run his own store. As he began thinking about what he’d do to unwind before bed, he heard something coming from the back of his shop- er, house. He should probably just call it his house, now.

He went ot the other side and there he saw someone fiddling with his window.  It didn’t exactly take a great amount of intellect to form a theory about what was happening. “Hey! What do you think you’re doing?!” Danny snapped. 

Skye held his breath as he waited for the moment to pass.  Perhaps he could make a run for it, but before he even had the chance to, a man appeared from around the corner.

  “Drats!” She had forgotten dinner once again, but that hadn’t worried her as much as the fact that now she’d have to close down and wait until tomorrow to find out if the Great Detective would find the thief. Of course, Selphy already knew it was the store owner responsible for her own robberies – but, she was exited nevertheless. 

Having heard of a treasure that was kept in a small house in the town, Skye set that as his destination for the night.  Travelling up to the small building, it was late into the night when he peered through the window and into the dark room.  Unable to see much, he decided to just head inside and see what he could find.

Unfortunately, she didn’t think of the possibility until it was too late, and while he began to climb out the window all she could do was stare in open-mouthed shock. Of course, this didn’t mean she wasn’t going to chase after him – only that she’d allowed him to get a head start. She could, without a doubt, close the gap in no time if she ran fast enough.

With this in mind, Frey, like any sensible person would, ran out the front door to ensure that he wouldn’t get away. Looking around wildly, she spotted a mess of silver hair not too far away and began sprinting towards him in a blur of fury.

“You already got back what I stole!  What else could you possibly want from me, Princess~?”  He asked, still keeping up the pace as he looked back at the girl chasing him.  “This thief isn’t quite ready to die!”

As he ran, he did not pay enough attention to where he was going, and although he knew the forest well, he did not know it well enough to run through it blindly.  It did not take much longer before he suddenly tripped on the root of a tree, falling face forward as he skid through the dirt. 

“Ah… You would be incorrect in that. The restaurant closes at night and this is also…the incorrect entrance,” he said, keeping a neutral expression. He leaned forward a bit to examine the stranger closely. Something in his memory was struggling to get his attention, but he couldn’t quite grasp it. To be fair, it was late and there was someone in his office acting odd.

“Oh... ?  This isn’t the restaurant entrance?”  He feigned innocence, looking around as if the place did not look like an office instead of a diner.  “My apologies. ♥”

[Blinks slowly, taking in her surroundings and realizing she definitely passed the Inn.]

    Regis and Sabrina had decided to leave the Islands for a business trip that didn’t involve him. Unfortunately, Will found himself with double the work as he managed not only his paperwork sent by his father, but also the local mining business. All the work had drove him to sacrifice his beauty sleep in order to finish the business. 

    He had stationed himself in his room, working tirelessly into the night. As he reached over to his mug– realizing that he was out of coffee. Will had told himself he was going to finish all the work by tonight… so it was inevitable, another coffee it was… Will draped a sweater over his shoulders and made his way out of his room into the open cabin area of his yacht with a lazy yawn.

    Tiredly fiddling with the coffee grinder, a quick chill shot through his body. Quickly, Will turned around and eyes scanned over his dim surroundings. …Maybe he was hallucinating? There was no way something could’ve came in.. A cat, maybe? …Not a person, right?

    Not one to take chances, Will dashed over to the lights and switched them on, and found….

Word had it that an incredibly wealthy family lived on these islands, and Skye was determined to find them.  When wealth was involved, he would not bother to leave a note, knowing that he had to take these jobs more seriously.

Once night had finally fallen, the man made his way to the large house and climbed through a window that had carelessly been left open.  “Well isn’t this my lucky day... ♪“ It did not even look like anyone was home.

Though it seemed like he was wrong.  As Skye made his way into the kitchen, he noticed a figure standing there.  A figure that noticed him before he got a chance to sneak away.

It seemed like he was at least kind enough to have left her belongings alone. Or rather, it seemed like he had not yet gotten the chance to swap them in for gold. 

Yes, that was a much more probable explanation. 

Flashing him a petulant frown, Frey brushed the dirt off her dress and huffed. “I guess everything’s here…” she said, allowing herself to march towards the thief and circle around him in a display of suspicion. Her brows knit together as she inspected his person, fighting the urge not to punch his pretty little face once more. However, her seriousness melted away for a brief period when he suggested that she get out of his house.

“Me? Leave you alone so you might steal again?” Frey laughed, putting her hands on her hips. “As if! You’re coming with me back to Selphia, where you’ll be tried and- and-” She paused for a moment, trying to think of the right word to use.

Watching as the princess walked around him, Skye could only roll his eyes, waiting for her to get her fill.  “Goodness, Princess... I know I’m beautiful, but no need to stare.”  He spoke in the same tone he usually used to flirt, but the underlying bitterness was evident.

“Oh come on!  I gave you this stuff back, so-”  Before the man could finish his response, Skye cut himself off once the princess finished her own statement.  Well that was his cue to run.

“Yeah... sorry but that’s not happening!”  He walked towards the window, climbing on the windowsill and preparing himself to jump out.  “This thief’s not quite done with what he started. ♥”