“Okay, whatever, let’s go.” Sharee responded, not really caring about the friend Sarel had made while incarcerated. She was there for Sarel, and frankly couldn’t care less about the fate of any other prisoner. She let Sarel walk in front of her, once again taking on the role of a proper noble in her walk and movements. She hoped the others had managed to create an effective distraction, because if they got caught due to her allies’ incompetence, she would kill them herself.
Sharee prepared for the moment of truth as they walked upstairs into the lobby. Normally, there were a few guards and the jailor stationed in the room, but now, thankfully, it was empty, save for a single guard who rushed out of the door leading outside without paying them much attention. It seemed like whatever the others were doing, it was working.
Before stepping outside, Sharee whispered to the Dunmer once more. “Remember, this disguise relies on the guards not paying too much attention to us, so we need to stick to the sidelines and get out as soon as possible. They won’t recognize you by a passing glance, but if any of them really pay attention, they’ll likely spot you.”
Sarel played his part and wore a stoic visage. Perhaps he was a Dunmer nobles son, dislonged from his home in Vvardenfell where he was training to be an Ordinator, now stuck in the position as a Leyawin guard. This was who he had to be, or imagine himself to be. Whatever distraction the Argonian's associates were devising had apparently worked. The top level was almost completely empty, they were even able to leave through the front door.
"You mentioned a contact. How big is this?" Sarel asked, he lead them down a narrow alleyway.
“Not now, when we’re outside.” Sharee quickly responded. They had made it out of the prison and were heading toward the gate, but they weren’t out of the fire yet. Sharee was starting to become slightly more comfortable, as they were far enough from the prison that the guards were much less likely to identify Sarel. Leyawiin was a big place, so it wasn’t strange for a guard to see another that they did not recognize, and the ones posted away from the prison likely had not seen Sarel before.
Eventually, the pair made it to one of the city gates, though it was not the main gate. As they started outside, she realized they would need a good excuse for a guard to start walking away from the city, or the gate guards would become suspicious, so Sharee quickly came up with something.
“Oh, thank you kind sir. With all the crime in the city recently, it feels so dangerous to walk around alone. I…don’t suppose you would escort me to my horse as well, just to be safe?” She asked convincingly in her Cyrodilic accent. Sarel nodded, and the two started off in the direction of the stables without so much as a second glance from the nearby gate guard. Once they were out of sight, they quickly changed direction and headed east, into the Blackwood forest.
“We’re heading for a place near the coast where you can dump that uniform and, if everything goes to plan, we’ll be meeting up with my people. They should be bringing your equipment…and hopefully something for me as well, so I can get out of this stupid dress. Now, I promised answers, so I think it’s time to give them. I’d be lying if I said I did this for selfless reasons. I’m putting together a crew for an upcoming job, so I hired the local Thieves Guild to help me recruit, and they informed me about you. The thieves guild has eyes everywhere, and I guess one of them saw that little scuffle you got into that ended up getting you locked up. They described you as a capable fighter, and that’s enough for me to take interest. So, seeing as I just saved you from execution, I think taking me up on a well-paying job offer is a trade definitely weighted in your favor.” Sharee explained, carefully watching him and judging his reaction.
Sarel huffed loudly when he understood what was happening. This was just a way to get to his skills, they needed a killer with a debt, and they found one. The offer seemed rather generous overall, and Sarel wasn't going to lie and say the job didn't sound interesting. She was building a crew for some reason or another, perhaps highway robbery. Maybe she was an adventurer. Sarel felt a hint of obligation toward the Argonian and her crew, they may very well have saved his life, and most certainly risked their own. He tried to swallow that as he tactfully responded.
"I'll have to hear what the plan is." He said in monotone, not looking at the Argonian. It was then he realized he did not know her name. "I'm Sarel, as I'm sure you already know since the Thieves Guild is keeping tabs on me. What's your name?"
“Name’s Sharee-Mar, and I’m glad to hear this wasn’t a complete waste of time. Anyway, the plan’s simple: myself and my crew capture that ship over there in the harbor, then we use it to take even greater prizes from the Dominion, East Empire Company, and whoever else we find. For the first job, I’ll be giving everyone, including you, double the normal cut for such a job, if that makes it a bit more appealing. Stealing an Imperial ship is of course a dangerous prospect, but I think I’ve proven that I am more than capable of forming a solid and successful plan.” She explained.
It was not long before the pair arrived at the place she had picked out for them to meet, right next to the shore looking out over the Leyawiin docks. The others would hopefully meet up there soon with their equipment, and a few hours later, the rest of the crew she had Kilith had been hiring. At that point, she would give her full explanation of the plan to the rest of the crew, and start putting everything into motion. For the moment, however, she just needed to finalize everything with Sarel, as well as get out of her disguise.
“This is where we’ll be meeting the others. Make sure to find somewhere good to dump that uniform so no one stumbles upon it. Hopefully, it won’t take too long for my people to get here.” Sharee commented.
The Dunmer stayed quiet, he wasn't sure what to say. He unstrapped the shield from his arm and let it fall to the ground, from which it stood like a totem. This woman, Sharee, was insane. What did she want, to roam the high seas, attacking Dominion and Imperial vessles? For what, for the glory and gold? Well Sarel would not be apart of such a suicide attempt. From what he understood, the Dominion took their trading ships quite seriously. They even had Khajiiti privateers working with them. Sarel didn't even want to think about what the Empire would do to pirates. Nothing pretty, Sarel was sure. Though, to be fair, this is exactly what Sarel always wanted, a group of adventurers locked together in destiny and danger. Sarel leaned against a giant rock.
"I won't lie to you, Sharee. This plan sounds absurd. Do you expect the East Empire company and the Dominion to just roll over for you? How many ships do you expect to take; two, three at most? People don't play nice with their money." Sarel knew he wasn't saying anything the Argonian hadn't already thought about, but he felt the obligation to make his worries known. Like most criminals, this lot was doom to failure, and like most criminals, the only way out of this, once they were in, was through a chopping block. Sarel shivered as he pictured that for a moment. "I'm sorry, but despite my immediate reaction to join you, and trust me that's all I want to do, I can't see this plan being successful. Under any circumstances, not even with a stone-cold lizard like yourself."
Sarel removed the sword from his sheath and stuck it in the ground behind the shield, then lifted his helmet and placed it atop the hilt of the sword. His dark red eyes shone in the sunlight like two ruby orbs stuck onto his face.
Sharee chuckled. "I think you severely underestimate me. What, you think I haven't thought about the difficulties, the challenges? Pirates such as ourselves are not all to rare on the Padomaic, or do you believe the Imperial propaganda that they are eradicating pirate crews by the dozen? No, I've been sailing for years, usually as a hire for the East Empire Company, and I can tell you that they can barely hold their own out there. With war brewing between the Dominion and Empire, a few pirates sacking trading vessels is surprisingly low on their priority list. The Padomaic ocean is a big place, and they could hardly just track us down. We take to the seas, ambush likely targets, then hide out on one of the hundreds of uncharted, uninhabited islands that dot the sea. We start making enough trouble in one place? Then, we just head on over to a different part of Tamriel and let them forget about us."
Sharee walked closer to Sarel and started to pace around him. "Or maybe it's just that you don't trust me, that you don't think I have what it takes to pull this off? Well, you really don't know who I am, do you? I was born in Black Marsh, under the sign of the Shadow. I take you for an educated man, so I think you know what that means. I was born to kill, raised and trained from the day of my hatching to be an assassin of the Dark Brotherhood. I was taught not only to kill in the most obvious ways, with blades and claws, but also to be a strategic and cunning planner. I have killed everything from peasant to king, from the lowliest scholar, to the most fearsome warrior. I have orchestrated the downfall of necromancer covens, and the fracture and destruction of bandit clans. Militaries have lost leaders to my blades and poisons; I have thrived on and off of the sea, so I don't think you should doubt that I am more than capable of handling a pirate vessel. I have been doing this my entire life, and I am very, very good at what I do."
Sarel watched intently as Sharee made her point. She was right about the Dominion and the Empire raring to fight, it was bound to happen at some point or another, and Sarel was educated enough to know that the Empire would need to focus all it's attention on the Dominion if they did start a war. The truth started to rear it's ugly head and Sarel was hard pressed to find any excuse not to go, aside from that terrible fear of the seas.
Of course, that's not how Sarel has always been. It took several ship wrecks and a traumatic experience to get him to fear the very thing he once craved to be one with. Sarel remembers his years on Solstheim as a child, his passion for the seas and the inexcapable desire to venture off in a dangerous adventure with like minded indeviduals. This Sharee was a killer, just like him; and a Shadowscale even. Sarel knew that what the Argonian was saying had truth in it. He thought for a moment, looking over to the horizon, the sun reflected on the shimmering surface of the sea. Then he remembered all his other thing, those he left at the Inn. He lifted the helmet and sheathed the sword again.
"I need to get my things at the Inn," he finally said. "I'll meet back here in less than an hour."
“Honestly, it probably isn’t a good idea for a recently escaped prisoner to return to the city right after escaping. I would say just wait here for my people to return, then I’ll send one of them to go get the stuff. You really shouldn’t go back into Leyawiin for a while…at least not in your current state. I’m somewhat of an expert at disguising myself as you might be able to tell, or, well, as you probably cannot tell. Suffice to say I’m covered in makeup and dyes right now and actually look nothing like this.” Sharee said motioning to her face before walking over to the edge of the water.
“I should probably wash this off, actually, get back to my normal look. Anyway, if I get someone to bring me my things, I can do the same for you. Some recoloring on your face, dye your hair, change your eye color, and you might just be able to walk around. Of course, being that you’re Dunmer and not Argonian, it won’t be as effective since Humans and Elves are a lot better at recognizing each other than they are a Khajiit or Argonian, but still. If you keep to yourself, you’ll be able to walk around safely.” She offered.
Sarel shook his head, Sharee was right. Going back into town was a huge risk, and the distraction might very well already be over. That mattered very little, because, now that Sarel thought about it, many of his things were left in his room. His katana, his armor, his magical scrolls, and all the tomes related to the Order; completely unique and invaluable texts which told the long history of the Order.
"I need my things, Sharee." Sarel said, cross. He didn't know what to do, the things he left behind called to him, yet the threat of death loomed in the city. "I cannot have my things pillaged by some disgruntled Inn worker. I don't have much time, and so, neither do you."
Sarel was showing all his cards now, this was what he cared about, the glistening of his eyes said so. If Sharee couldn't see how important this was to him, he'd rather take his chances with the guard alone.
“Like I said, just give a few minutes for my allies to arrive, then I’ll send one of them to go fetch your things. And if you don’t trust them to do it, I’ll do it myself. Don’t worry, we’re not going to leave your stuff behind. Just list off the things you want, and I’ll take care of it. I’m not going to have you getting locked up again after I just went through all that trouble to bail you out.” Sharee said, trying to reassure the rather stubborn Dunmer.
"No," Sarel responded. "I will wait for your friends, but only so that you may disguise me. I will get them myself."
Sarel was quite matter of fact. He even turned toward the giant rock he lent against earlier, removed the helmet and sword, once more, and set them aside. He sat on the cold hard ground and looked up at Sharee. "So what do you expect me to do on this little quest?" Sarel used belittling language in order to hide his fevorous craving for information.
"Hmph, I guess that's better than nothing." Sharre responded, at least glad he was patient enough to wait for the others. She had never disguised a non-Argonian before, but she guessed she would have to be much more detail-oriented than with her own face to prevent others from recognizing him.
Walking along the shore, she found a rock that was large enough to be suitable, kicked of her shoes next to it, then went through the annoying processes involved in removing her dress until she was finally able to drop it down onto the rock. Walking through the Blackwood forest had muddied it significantly, so she would need to wash it at some point before using it again. She finished undressing down to nothing, then waded out into the water to wash away her disguise.
“I expect you to do what you’re good at. I not only need hands to help manage the ship, but I need skilled fighters, people who I can take into a boarding party and reasonably expect them to stay alive without cowering in a corner somewhere. Compared to the standard crewman, you’ll be somewhat of a…specialist, and your pay will reflect that.” She explained before dunking her head under the water, scrubbing away at the makeup and dyes. The dye in her feathers faded away until they were back to their natural orange and the colorations of her scales on her face shifted back to their normal patterns. The concoction she had used to alter her eye color was waterproof, however, so she would need to wait until she had her alchemical tools back to fix that. By the time she pulled her head back above the water, she looked like an entirely different person.
Sarel closed his eyes momentarily as the Argonian waded into the water. He took in her words with a careful critical lens. She refered to him as a specialist, Sarel wondered what she knew about him in general, and if she was aware of his keen ability in the ocean. It would be quite coincidental if Sharee did not know his skills, and yet recruited him to be apart of a pirate crew; quite coincidental indeed. When Sharee emerged she looked completely different, her scales brilliant contrasts to what they were before. Her colors spoke a sweet song about her home and reflected it outward. Sarel knew some about Argonians and their customs, there was a sizable population in Raven Rock.
"I must admit, killing Imperial affiliates will be a first." Sarel said, he couldn't help but admire Sharee's physique as she exited the pond.
The water around Sharee was painted in flowing, multicolored designs as the dyes flowed away from her. Being Argonian, she was of course very much at home in the water and usually took the chance to swim if possible. A career on the water was a perfect fit for an Argonian, and on sailing vessels, they could do things that would be much more difficult for people of other races. If there was a hull breach on the lower decks of a ship, an Argonian could work to repair it without much of a risk. Waterbreathing potions and spells could achieve the same effect for others, but they were not permanent, and they still weren't as agile in the water. Sharee briefly considered taking the chance to go for a swim, but decided against it, as the others would arrive soon. Perhaps she would jump in later at some point.
Sharee walked out of the water and back onto shore, standing in the light to dry off, a task made much easier by her waterproof scales. She heard Sarel's comment and chuckled slightly. "What, you actually feel bad for hitting the East Empire Company? They practically have a monopoly on trade across half of Tamriel. They inflate prices, stifle competition, and pass on none of it to the common worker, all to line their own pockets. They're almost as bad as the Dominion, and that's saying a lot. To Oblivion with both of them, I say." Sharee commented. She easily noticed his eyes staring her down, not that she particularly cared. If anything, she took it as a complement. She was well-aware of what those in Imperial cultures expected in terms of conduct and modesty, she just simply didn't care.
"Any intentions to go with those stares?" She teased, staring him down as she awaited his response.. She always found it amusing to try and embarrass Humans and Elves in such situations, as they rarely expected her to be so direct on calling them out in such situations.
Sharee seemed to have all the answers, or at least she convinced herself she did. Nothing would likely convice Sarel that attacking the East Empire Company was fair play. He considered himself a proponent of the Empire after all; it was a hell of a lot better than what the Dominion had in mind. Though, to be truthful, Sarel was never really able to call himself a true citizen of the Empire; the title has far too many subtlties.
Sharee called him out on his gazing. "Our intentions toward eachother should remain very professional." Sarel said easily, an adolescent smile crossing his face, "I'm starting to realize that we could become very dangerous for eachother."
Sarel was of course referring to the very difficult relationships killers share. Physical attraction fuels the fire and only creates and addiction. Impassioned killers with a mutual attraction would always be a dangerous combination.
Sharee chuckled. "Hmm, too bad. Nothing wrong with a little 'stress relief' ever now and then. Not that there would be time for that now, of course. Once the others arrive, I'll need to prepare for the rest of the crew. As I mentioned, this is where all the recruits will be meeting around dusk, and I'll explain the details of the mission for anyone who hasn't heard it. I have a few ideas for how to take the ship, and I'll decide once I get an idea of how many we have. Now, after the meeting..." She said with a suggestive smirk, walking unnecessarily slowly past him toward her clothes on the rock. She put on her underwear, though she didn't really feel like going through the trouble of putting on that dress again, especially when the others would be bringing her clothes in only a few minutes. Instead, she simply sat down in the light next to Sarel to finish drying off.
Sarel had been around the quarters, he knew the game. He wasn't sure what he wanted out of Sharee anymore, but he knew that she wanted him; which, in it's own peverted way, was attractive. Sarel allowed himself access to the show Sharee was so willing to give. The physique of an Argonian woman is at once familiar and beautiful, and foreign and shocking.
"How long have you been getting into trouble?" Sarel asked.
"That depends on what you mean by trouble. I've never really been one to conform to rules, as you can probably tell. I'm twenty-eight, roughly. There's always a bit of a discrepancy birth and being given to the Shadowscales. My first real memory is of being trained to fight, so that has been part of my entire waking life. I killed another person for the first time when I was eleven, a sort of rite of passage, really. I became a full Shadowscale at fifteen, not that it lasted long. The Dark Brotherhood collapsed not long afterwards, but I survived and adopted my current...profession. Now, I do pretty much whatever in Oblivion I want. I take what jobs I want, I fight and kill whenever it suits me, and just generally keep myself...entertained. After everything I went through with the Dark Brotherhood and Shadowscales, I've come to realize that there's no point in holding back. Why go through life waiting, working, and doing all that nonsense when it could all come crashing down in an instant? No, I'll live my life, thank you. I'll take whatever pleasures I can get, whenever I can get them, until the Void decided to take me." Sharee said passionately, motioning out toward the harbor.
"Take this ship, for instance. Sure, I could wait a decade saving up all my coin to buy a vessel, then another year to hire a crew. I could spend half my life planning and waiting, or I could just...take it. I'll either take it now and reap all the benefits, or I'll end up serving Sithis in the Void. Either way, it's better than doing nothing." Sharee explained. She had deviated a bit from his question, but she always liked to take the opportunity to enlighten others on the "correct" way of life.
Sarel noticed something in all of Sharee's speech, she had truly deluded herself into thinking that this way of living was useful for everyone. To her, this was how everyone should live. Sarel felt a sudden shift in the mood in the air, he recognized her flaws, too. In every relationship he'd ever had with a mortal there was always a point in time when Sarel would recognize their most unendearing flaws, it was a sort of curse. Being cognisent of something that was that deep and imebeded in a person, would always lead to a perpetual and destructive sense of pity. Sarel now felt that for Sharee, and it was poignant.
He settled on changing the subject, since Sharee seemed inclined to do so, "You should probably know, I've been to Akavir. I've spent a quarter of my life in one boat or another." Sarel shrugged, looked to Sharee with unassuming eyes, he was truly humble concerning his navel skill. "I suppose that might be important."
“That’s good. I already have a few recruits that are good on the water, but I don’t expect everyone will be. You’ll probably be tasked with teaching some of the less experienced recruits, at least at first, but…Akavir.” Sharee began, trailing off into her own thoughts for a few moments. “I don’t suppose there’s anything worth taking over there, you think? It’s not like there’s any trade between Akavir and Tamriel, so I’m sure there’s someone over here who would be willing to pay a fair sum for whatever we can take”
"Akavir is a wild place," Sarel said, nostalgia trailing behind his baratone. "But," he added, a glint of playfulness in his eye, "No one makes gold like the Ka' Po Tung. And the Tsaesci are reknowned for their treasure." Sarel was still comfortable, still spurred by the flush of adventure. "Not saying I would ever want to go back, but if we did, I guarantee we wouldn't leave without some gifts"
"I'll make sure to keep that in mind. A lot of legends make it seem like the Akaviri are some grand and impenetrable empire, but the way I see it, if that was true, then they would have taken Tamriel a long time ago." Sharee observed. "You won't catch me being afraid of some gold-scaled snake people."
Sharee leaned back, resting on her hands as she looked out over the water. The frigate almost seemed to be calling to her, and if everything went to plan, it wouldn't be long before it was hers. "It's been too long since I've been on the seas. I'm looking forward to this."
Sarel had flashes in his vision of these so-called "gold-scaled snake people". Their slithering masses coming toward him in an army of waves, utterly demoralizing. Sarel snapped back to reality and focused on Sharee. She was like them in a way, the Tsaesci; her snout was shorter and overall her skin seemed much more rough, but she was similar. Sarel wondered for a moment if perhaps her people and the Tsaesci shared some sort of ancient lineage. That was before his eyes, again, began scanning the Argonian beauty. In order to get his mind off of her Sarel began unsnapping the pockets on the guards belt. Mostly there were just some pieces of paper and a septim or two, there was also a flask. Sarel pulled it from his left-most back pocket and unscrewed the cap. It was almost filled with whiskey. Sarel chuckled momentarily, mimed a toast to Sharee, and downed a few large swigs. Then he pointed the flask at Sharee, hoping she would take it, and not force him to drink alone.
"We might as well entertain ourselves; your contacts seem to be taking their sweet time." For a moment Sarel just let his sight settle on the bright horizon. He thought about how Sharee knew about him, the Thieves Guild. Sarel was a smart enough man to know the guild existed, but he didn't know to what extent. Then he thought of a topic of conversation, one he thought would be interesting. "So did you hear the specifics about my fight? Is that why you wanted me?"
Sharee gladly took the flask, taking a large swig. Her day had been so busy she had hardly had time to drink; she would need to rectify that after the meeting with the crew. She saw him staring at her again and wondered if she would end up with company for the night. If not him, she was sure she could find someone. “Yeah, the Thieves Guild has eyes everywhere, mostly beggars. No one ever seems to notice them. I don’t know how it works elsewhere, but any of the organizations connected to the Cyrodilic guild protect the beggars in exchange for information. Of course, that’s not their only source of information, and they had a bit on you other than eyewitness reports. I didn’t ask how they got it, so don’t bother asking. I’m guessing you’ve been in this area at least for a little while, there was something in there about a ruin nearby that you ended up visiting.”
"Aylied," Sarel nodded, taking the flask and chugging from it a little. When he stopped drinking, Sarel's eyes unfocused, and Sharee was no longer in front of him. Instead, Uriel sat there. His decapitated head was at his side, tongue sticking from his mouth, his eyes ajar. Maggots collected at his neck hole and Sarel suddenly felt the urge to vomit. An instant later the scene was back to normal and Sarel had to shake the memories from his head. "I was visiting an Aylied ruin."
"Hmm, I've been in one or two of those before, as a bodyguard. The city of Stormhold used to be an Aylied city, so it still has some of those white stones and weird looking statues. At any rate, there wasn't too much more on you. Just some basic stuff to give me an idea of who you are. Normally, I probably wouldn't have bothered with it, but I need good people for this job. I need people not only that can fight, but who can teach the inexperienced sailors how to not get themselves, and the rest of us, killed. I need officers. I'll have to see your skills for myself before I give out any roles, but provided you're not all talk, you'll probably get one. Of course, swabbing the decks would be a better fate for you than the chopping block, which is no doubt where you were heading before I intervened. I'd call that a win for you." Sharee said, grabbing back the flask and taking another swig, silently wishing she didn't have to share. "And if you accept my...offer, we can have a bit of a 'celebration' later." She said with a suggestive smirk.
Sarel looked down at the dirt and smiled a little. He snatched the flask from Sharee's hands and took a swig, as he did he eyed the Argonian. The Dark Elf slumped to one side, leaning on his elbow, and stretched out his legs. He was getting rather comfortable, but he was also getting rather drunk. He was close to the seductive Argonian now, then he looked up at her. He allowed himself to peer directly into her eyes, he wanted a moment of consideration. He knew what their future would be, he'd been apart of it before. They'd have some fun, have a fight, and hate each other, then it would happen again; it was most certainly a cycle. The physical attraction would always be at their back, like the addiction of a skooma user. Sarel looked into the scale-like eyes of the Lizard woman, and knew he was already hers, whether he liked it or not. Considering that, he decided a little flirtation wouldn't hurt, it might even delay it further, which he took no objection too. He took another long swig then put the flask down between them, it was a little less than halfway full. He felt himself switch in sobriety, he was now very near hammered. "What's in this stuff?" he thought.
"So you really want to test my skills?" he said, allowing a little chuckle. He smiled dully, "Maybe. Do you think you'll be able to keep up?"
"Hmph, keep up. I'll do more than that." Sharee said as she brought herself to her feet. She walked around behind him and stopped just on his other side, letting her tail wrap lightly around his neck and rest on his shoulders. She looked down on him with a mischievous smile. "Like I said, later tonight, after the meeting. I'll stick around outside the city. Since you're so adamant about going back to Leyawiin yourself, how about you pick up a few drinks while you're there? Maybe we'll even have a bit of a party with the others, followed by a more...private one of our own. Or, who knows, maybe it won't be so private, depending on the company we have."
Sharee crossed her arms and looked at him with a more serious expression. "Just don't look to far into this. I don't want you following me around and acting like there's more to this than there is. I don't feel like dealing with that again. Last time I had to smash a guy's face against a stone wall a few times before he got the message to stop bothering me. I'm pretty sure he lived."
Sarel sat up as Sharee stood. He chuckled when the tail was wrapped around his shoulder, and rolled his eyes at the Argonian's finishing comment.
"You sure know how to get a man going." he said. He picked up the flask once more and allowed himself one last swig. He figured he'd need some wits about him for his jaunt through Leyawin, so he saved the last swig for later.
Sharee simply laughed in response before unwrapping her tail from around his neck and walking in front of him. Without explanation, she leaned over, close to his face, and put her hand on his chin. She then started moving his head to the left and right, carefully observing his features and making note of all she would need to do. "Your disguise shouldn't be too hard. You have those tattoos, so I'll cover those up, touch up your skin to be a bit lighter, and dye your hair blonde. As long as no one gets too good of a look at you, there shouldn't be a problem. Just don't dunk your head in water while you're in the city and you'll be fine."
"Oh, too bad. I was planning on visiting the bathhouse." Sarel responded in a joking tone.
