House Call.

[channe]

"... you keep on likin' that stuff, then." A pause, as she takes this all in. It's a little strange to think that one would want knowledge for knowledge's sake. Agnie is a pragmatist; why not concentrate on things you can use?

"... yeah, but you can't scare the peasants," she said. It's almost a joke. "You scare the peasants, ain't nothing gonna save you."

[BetaFlame]

"Or you know, intense training so I can beat you with a sword even more soundly than I can now." He gives her a faint smile and a wink. They still haven't sparred. One of these days, they will both be uninjured in the same moment, and can. He strokes his thumb over the wood of his staff as they walk, considering for a moment. Not his favored weapon, but he could still do some damage. He hoped.

"Part of the peasants seem to think I am a sorcerer, another part half love me for giving out a ton of building materials after the quakes, and then they suspicious of why I would do such a thing. Myrkenites are a tough bunch to get to like you." He rolls his eyes a little toward her. Clearly he means more than just the peasants there.

[channe]

"You can't beat me," she says. "Glenn can't beat me. Renea can't beat me. Nobody can beat me." She grins at him and walks forward a little, turning around, walking backwards, her finger out pointing at him once more. And she says Aleksei has a ego problem? And then she listens to him, tilting her head to one side, shrugging.

"You have to understand that, in general, outsiders wi' skills an' education aren't all that common," she says. "They get lapped up by whatever poor sod has the unfortunate privelige of bein' the Guv and thrown into defense o' our fair land. About half of the time, they turn out to get kidnapped by the drow, or changed, or whatever. You'll understand why we just -- don't -- trust as much as you'd like us to."

[BetaFlame]

He just -laughs-. "You should have brought yours. We could have found out right now." Oh? Was that a challenge? Clearly, he was ready to test her theory anytime she liked. She does have the misfortune that he has been training pretty hard lately over what was the battle with Aeryn. "We'll have to make a wager on it." His brow arches slowly, head tilting, "Unless you are all bluster?"

For the rest? He shrugs. He understands, he mostly is amused by the whole thing. A few people have popped by to ask him for advice on a problem. He does have a reputation. Other times, farm wives hide their children when he walks by, like he is going to eat one. "I'm not really worried about it. They'll get used to me eventually. I'm an odd one."

[channe]

She shrugs back and then eyes him. He called her prickly? That has nothing on this look. This look is daggers. Poisoned daggers.

"Okay. A wager. Twenty gold coins an' a drink at the Dagger, unless you have something else in mind?"

A pause, and she continues walking. "Around the Dauntless farm-wives, at least, you can tell what they think of you by what they call you. If they address you as mag or mastar, they think you're a harmless trickster or good mage. If you're koldun -- well, that means sorcerer, and sorcerers, at least, get the death penalty in New Dauntless." She pauses. "Worse, up north."

[BetaFlame]

He's amused. "It will be fun. You have no idea how I fight, and I have no idea how you do." She hadn't really seen him that night. That was something different. That as brute force with no art. Aleksei was an artist. His fight was won with his brain, prediction and anticipation of attacks were his style. "I don't drink, but other than that, sounds fine to me. Since I don't drink, I want to claim another forfeit."

His smiles, slowly, just barely glancing at her, and throw down the gauntlet. "If I win, you have to kiss me."

[channe]

Her walls go up almost immediately.

He can see it in the way her jaw sets; in the way her eyes harden, and in the way she turns her back to him to continue walking quickly towards the farm-gate, the town, the butcher. "Then you won't kiss me. Ever. And you don't want to, either. Trust me. You don't want to."

They're not far from the house. That thought passes her mind -- and she stops, turns and looks back at Aleksei one more time. "Besides, you don't have your sword."

[BetaFlame]

"You brought it up first, remember." He just raises an eyebrow at her. He gives her an easy smile and a shrug. He glances over at her, looking a little sad that already she is shutting him out. Though her question catches him off guard and he gives a little flinch.

"Yes. Well. There are a couple of people here from my old country.. demanding I come back with them to face justice. I gave my sword to Glenn to give to them to placate them." He hadn't really planned on getting into all this today. He wanted to deal with one problem at once. "This goes back to me being property of the crown, I think."

[channe]

"It's not like you haven't been thinking about it," she says. "The dinner. The sword." And then she sighs. "... you know what? Fine. Come on."

She turns away from the gate and starts walking back to her mother's house. "I have a second one. It's the one Aeryn gave me. You can use that one. I'm still getting used to the weight of the white one you made, so we'll both have a bit of a handicap." And then, she looks over her shoulder. "... and you never told me this. You're not going to go back with them. Only justice you gotta be worryin' about is Myrken justice."

A grin.

And then they're close enough to the house where the Kaczmareks are swarming them once more. There's fast Dauntless -- no doubt Magda asking for the status of the trip to the butcher's -- and she disappears into the house, leaving Aleksei out front with twelve-year-old Otto and Agnie's older brother Dominik... who isn't smiling.

[BetaFlame]

He just blinks at the sudden reversal and back to the house. Agnie can be mercurial at times. He just smiles down at the little one, watching him for a moment, before looking back up at Dominik. He seems familiar. Perhaps.. at the Dagger at some point? Regardless, he gets a smile and a bow of the head from Aleksei. He can not smile all he wants, its not like that is going to intimidate Aleksei.

"Afternoon."

With that he just shifts his weight to lean on the staff, brow still quirked at Agnie's disappearance. Oh, this will be interesting to say the least.

[channe]

Dominik smirks at him. "So you're the koldun what's been hanging around my sister." He pauses, snorts, and walks off without another word.

Otto just continues to stare at him.

It could get uncomfortable -- until Agnie comes back out with the two swords. In her left hand -- the one he gave her, shining white in the afternoon sun. The other is a saber, silver-steel, polished to brightness, with a ruby in the pommel. She hands the second to Aleksei and indicates a field not far. "C'mon, we don't want this lot gapin'."

[BetaFlame]

Dominik gets a faint sign and look shot at his back. One step forward, one back, it seems. They will think worse of him when he loses the angel and the bindings that keep his natural magics in check. Oh hell, that is a whole other headache to shoves away for the moment.

"Is it okay if I leave this on the porch?" He indicates his staff, and assuming she says yes, props it in the corner. As they walk he tests the saber, feeling its weight and balance. His grip shifts around around it and he grunts a little. "I'm used to blades about this length I can use two handed. You definitely have the advantage over me." He rolls the blade, and watches the sun glint over it. Interesting.

When they reach their destination, he unhooks the front of the heavy cloak he wears everywhere and tosses it over a tree branch, or a fence, or something equally accessible. A couple of test slashes and thrusts through the air and he nods to himself.

"Any rules you want to go over? I am not familiar with your customs."

[channe]

"Ugh. Just don't get me too bloody. Also, ignore Dom," she begins, once they're far enough away from the rest of her family. "He has problems. Anyway. In Dauntless, there's a salute." She displays it. "In Razasan, there's another one." This time, her fingers touch her forehead and then turn to the sky. "In Myrken Wood, though..."

She lunges before he might be even ready.

This is Myrken Wood. Surely he was expecting that.

[BetaFlame]

The comment about Dom having issues earns a little smirk. Oh? Didn't they all? Agnie empathic, Aleksei has a split personality, an angel, and a demon.. he's pretty sure he can forgive her brother his little quirks. He watches her salutes.. then she gets to Myrkenwood. Ah, yes. He believes that is called the 'fuck you', and of course he was expecting it.

She lunges and he lifts the sword he was loaned in a parry. One designed to not stop the momentum of her lunge, just redirect it past him. He takes a single step in toward her, and his left hand is curled into a fist and sent in toward her ribs. Two can fight dirty.

[channe]

And really, she's been searching for a word for it; empathic, while not something she'd known in the past, fits quite well. It's a word she doesn't know. It's a word she might learn.

She takes the punch. Staggers back. Throws her hands wide. Falls to the ground. "I lose," she crows.