𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑 — warning bell

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 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐂𝐑𝐎𝐖𝐒 𝐒𝐀𝐓 silently at a concealed booth tucked away in the darkest corner of the club; neither patrons nor workers bothered them, for they knew not to. People passed them by, throwing waves and hello's towards Aleksa who'd tip her head and offer a dazzling grin. Kaz scowled every time.

 Inej had a knife perched between her slender fingers; an impossibly black hilt with a silver, thin blade. If anything, it looked more like a letter opener, an extravagant one. The symbol of the moon was embedded within the onyx handle, and a small line of vines were carved into the gleaming blade; it was the very knife Aleksa had saved the crows with, and later, offered as a gift to their favourite Wraith.

 The Suli girl spun it between agile digits, then planted the pointed tip into the already chipped and scratched wooden table that sat just higher than their knees. She had been twirling it absentmindedly as she sighed and listened to the bustle of the club. The busyness, the overlapping voices and cheers of both win and loss comforted her somehow.

 Jesper was reclined against the back of the booth, his head lolling from side to side and Aleksa could almost see his ears twitch each time a cheer rang out. She knew he was fighting the urge to leave them in the dust and settle around a table.

 Kaz was seated directly across from Jesper. His eyes were smoothing over the club, narrowing here and there as he watched the pigeons pluck their cards and deal their hands. His leather-covered fingers spun his cane, twisting the head of the golden crow. Once, twice, and then his long fingers curled around the head and drummed away on the gleaming bird.

 Aleksa had her head firmly planted upon Inej's lap. Mousy-brown, loose curls pooled over the Suli girl, tumbling down her legs and brushing against her calves. The Shadow Summoner's wide blue eyes watched as Inej spun the blade, eyes blinking whenever the light hit the silver and bounced into her iris', tingeing them a shade lighter.

 She sighed to herself and closed her eyes. Her foot bounced on the booth chair as she recalled their endeavours to find a plausible way to cross the fold.

 The quartet of unlikely allies and friends had traversed the slick, soot-sodden streets of Ketterdam in search of leads and peeps of information. Their first stop had been at one of the brothels; the wonderfully dull owner had chirped and simpered behind her desk, twirling golden curls between her smoke-scented fingers. The stench of cheap perfume and old plums had lingered in the air as she evaded the questions Inej had asked her.

 The woman had smoothed her eyes over Inej, watching every movement, assessing her bronze skin and strong build until she flicked her sights to Aleksa. The Shadow Summoner rose a single, dark brow until it rested high on her forehead. Her lips had tugged up, unafraid of the woman watching her. She'd tossed her hair over her shoulder, offered a magical smile and planted her hands on Inej's shoulders.

 The Wraith had relaxed instantaneously, melting beneath Aleksa's warm and familiar touch. She was grounded, brought back to the room by her friend who said nothing, yet offered a million words.

 The woman behind the desk had huffed and spritzed herself with more perfume. Jesper had coughed. She then plucked her stack of Kruge and counted it with her yellowing fingers. Aleksa had wanted to burn it in front of her; money gained from the suffering of young women, teenagers... Children.

 When Kaz had finally decided they had suffered through the smell of smoke and cheap perfume for long enough, he knocked his cane on the ground. Inej hadn't hesitated to leave but Aleksa had plucked a grape from the fruit bowl and grinned as she popped it in her mouth. She hadn't spared the brothel owner so much as a glance as she passed by Kaz, chewing her grape.

 The second person they had found had been about as much help as the first; he told silly stories that Aleksa was certain even stupid children wouldn't have brought. He had ranted and raved as the stench of rum wafted from his mouth. His greasy beard and hair made Aleksa cringe back as she leaned against the cold wall of a random pub their informant had likely been kicked from.

 Their last stop had been entertaining, to say the least.

 It had been an old warehouse converted into a fighting den; men and women, tourist sand residents would place their bets on bloodied and bruised men and watch them fight until their lungs refused the air around them. The cheers could be heard from the Crow Club on occasion, and certainly from the Slat in the dead of night.

 The man they had approached was one of the fighters; he stood tall with a scraggly ginger beard dusting the line of his jaw. His hands had been wrapped, yet still blood seeped through the dirty bandages. His nose looked as though it had been broken at least once a week since birth. It jutted right, then left, then right again with a huge, bruised bump atop the bridge.

 He was reeling for the fight, lapping up the cheers and hoots that stemmed from the crowd as electricity made his feet hop on the ground. He was more helpful than the others, but only by a pessimistic margin. He'd told them exactly what Aleksa knew; the most likely way to get through the Fold... Was to go around it or suffer going directly through the mouth of the beast.

 The mere thought made Aleksa shudder, and not because of the ice that covered the lands of Fjerda. The Fjerdans hated Grisha, no, scratch that; they despised them with every ounce of their being. The Drüskelle were witch hunters, men trained day and night to catch and bring Grisha back to their homeland to stand trial. Aleksa thought it very unlikely that a Grisha would ever win a trial in such a place.

 Kaz had rejected the idea immediately, and though he chalked it up to the fact that a hike through Fjerda would take too long — which it would — another concern was, in fact, Aleksa. She was an integral member of their little crew; the one who would provide the shadows that the Wraith crawled through, the one who hopped from rooftop to rooftop with the Suli girl. She was the one with the highest chance to reign Jesper in... And Kaz, well, she'd like to think she was his right-hand woman...

 They had been at it for hours, shoes slick with rainwater, coats sodden though and noses a deep pink from the cold that chewed on their skin.

 Aleksa peeled her eyes open, squinting against the light that hung high above her face and directed her gaze towards Kaz. From where she lay she could not only see the hand curled around his cane, but the other that was gripping at his bad leg.

 It was on the colder nights that his limp became more pronounced and seemed to bother him more — not that he would ever mention such a fact, of course. But even so, the cold, mixed with a futile march through the Barrel had certainly taken its toll.

 He looked at her then, a gaze as cold as ice landing on her glowing face. He held her look and wanted nothing more than to roll his eyes as Aleksa wiggled the fingers that had been resting on her stomach into a wave. She never voiced her concerns for his leg, because Kaz Brekker was nothing if not a stubborn bastard who had to hold his weaknesses close to his heart.

 He would catch her glimpses, yet she only ever when they were alone, or when she was certain nobody would follow her line of sight. She was concerned, but she wasn't an idiot, nor did she want a bruise on her arm from that cane of his... She'd simply have to hit him back if that were the case.

 She watched him as his fingers tapped away an unsteady rhythm on the crow, observed as his jaw tightened and his eyes narrowed every now and then. She could practically hear the gears whirring inside his brutal little mind. And he watched her. She wondered how he had such a scrutinizing gaze, one that made you feel as though he could recite your life and darkest secrets back to you like a book full of poetry.

 But Aleksa, despite the prickling sensation on her skin beneath his cool gaze, knew that he knew nothing. He could stare and interrogate all he liked; Aleksa rarely spoke of the Little Palace, or even of her brother. She had two lives; the one in the Barrel, and the cage back at the Little Palace.

 Jesper watched them all, though he was entirely unseeing as he struggled to pull together the musings within his head. He leaned forward and regarded them all, "Here's what I don't get —"

 "— We're going to be here all night."

 "— Do you have a list?"

 Inej and Aleksa responded at once, each delighted at the mock wounded look upon Jesper's face. Inej craned her head lower, directing a sly smile at Aleksa who chimed a laugh.

 Jesper gaped, dark eyes filled with offence as he flicked between the two women watching as they triumphed in their bout of bullying, "Rude." He quipped. His face relaxed once more, "Why haven't they tried going under it? Just dig a tunnel."

 There was a collective eye roll from his three companions, and Kaz was the first to address his question, "Tried that. More than a century ago." His voice grew darker, "Something... Heard them digging."

 "It was made hundreds of years ago by that crazy Grisha..." Jesper pointed to Aleksa who hadn't reacted whatsoever, "No offence to your bloodline and all."

 "None taken." She spoke, and as she finally lifted herself from Inej's lap, she drew a hand through her tendrils of hair, "His name was the Black Heretic."

 "Well... Your brother, the Darkling, or, well, even you —" Jesper paused, he could see the look of warning from Inej; ever the protector. But he continued anyway, "Couldn't one of you unmake it?"

 Inej withdrew her knife, sheathing it away on her hip as she offered Jesper a pointed, stern look, "Have you ever tried fighting fire with fire?"

 Aleksa, however, was deep in thought. Aleksander had told her multiple times that the Fold couldn't be unmade by one of its own kind. That both he, and Aleksa, were powerless to stop it. He had claimed that her relentless training was to improve her strength and build upon her ability to control the shadows, to control the darkness so that one day they could try again.

 There had been a glint in his quartz-grey eyes, something unreadable. Aleksa often liked to flatter herself by believing she could look through people in the very same way she could stare into the dark and pick apart a room, but Aleksander was a blank page. He could show her everything or nothing at all. It made her uneasy.

 "I wanted to try." Aleksa piped up, and Inej and Jesper fell silent. Even Kaz stopped tapping away on his cane. She cleared her throat, banishing the meek and little voice that had erupted as she looked up from her pearl-painted fingernails, "My brother said he tried a long time ago, before we'd met... But he couldn't get rid of it. He told me that my training was far more important than the other Grisha's, that maybe one day, with our combined strength we'd take it down. But I agree with you," She looked at Inej. The Suli girl had her hood drawn back, her long inky braid on full display... She had taught Aleksa how to braid her own hair.

 "The fold felt different." She finally bit out, words that she'd kept within her gut finally spilling out, "When I was on that skiff, crossing the Fold... I reached out. I tried to touch it, to manipulate it. Draw it to me like I had with darkness so many times before."

 Inej's voice was but a whisper, "What happened?"

 Aleksa sniffed, her arms folding across her chest as she looked to the ugly wallpaper of the club. Her eyes traced the old lines, the paper bubbled here and there, no doubt from the weather, "The Volcra came. They must have sensed it. A lot of people died that day."

 "Aleksa..."

 "I wish I could take it down, but I can't, not alone, not now."

 The group remained silent, dwelling upon the new sliver of information that Aleksa had finally supplied them with. It was in moments like these that they realised they all knew so little about one another.

 All they knew of Jesper was that he had abandoned his position within the University of Ketterdam to slum it in the Barrel and gamble away everything he'd ever earned. And, of course, the fact that he was an excellent sharpshooter who loved the thrill of a bloody fight.

 Inej had come from a family of Suli performers; she and her brother were stolen from their beds right beneath their parents' noses, only to be sold like cattle. Inej had suffered years upon years under the watchful eye of The Menageries owner; Tante Heleen. She'd lived in the brothel for years, suffering at the hands of so many, until one day she had done the unthinkable and snuck up on Kaz Brekker. He had recognised her talents and deemed her a suitable investment — one worthy enough to approach Per Haskell with; from that day forth she had been a Crow, yet she bore no tattoo of the Crow and Cup that the rest of the Dregs did.

 Aleksa had told them little; she had grown up in an orphanage and then had been plucked up by General Kirigan himself to train within the little palace. They knew she'd left for an adventure, to find some fun... But that was the extent of it.

 But Kaz... They knew nothing aside from the fact that he had made a name for himself at a young age and made the Crow Club into everything it is. Other than that, the information they had was the information everybody had.

 It was strange to think about. They all trusted one another — to an extent — yet they knew little more about each other than strangers did.

 Jesper broke the silence once more, "So what could bring down the Fold?"

 Inej didn't miss a beat, "A sun summoner."

 Kaz rolled his eyes, "Doesn't exist."

 "Doesn't exist yet."

 Aleksa eyed Inej. She never spoke down upon, or belittled the Suli girls' belief and she never would. She had meant exactly what she had said to Kaz if the thought of them can bring somebody some comfort, I wouldn't take it away.

 But it was the hope in Inej's eyes that worried her. Aleksa didn't believe in the Saints, and she most certainly didn't believe in the Sun Summoner. Sure, there was a small part of her that thought such a person could exist. A Sun Summoner was simply another Etherealki; just like a Tidemaker, Squaller, Inferni or Shadow Summoner. One could exist, but that wouldn't make them a Saint.

 Inej prayed daily to her Saints, Suli and not. Every time she did, she'd bounce with renewed vigour, smile wider and glow as though she herself was a Sun Summoner herself; but Aleksa couldn't help but wonder how it would impact Inej if it came to be that such a summoner did exist, but they couldn't do what everyone needed from them.

 Kaz leaned forward, the golden head of his cane glinting dangerously as the harsh yellow lights from above bounced on its beak, "Dreesen comes into town, doesn't waste a minute. Sends out for a crew to steal something but doesn't specify what." He paused, watching each of his crew as they shifted, fidgeted, or in Aleksa's case, stared a hole into the side of his face, "Is it heavy, large, worth more than a million on the black market?"

 Inej dropped her gaze, fingers curling towards her palm. Jesper blew out a breath, weighing the options. Aleksa, however, held Kaz's gaze. He knew well enough that if they crossed the fold and traversed throughout Ravka, there was the chance of her being seen by the General, by her brother. If that were to happen... She'd likely never see Ketterdam again.

 Yet as his eyes bore into her own, he could easily see the challenge, the lust for a job. That unquenchable thirst she held for catapulting herself across the rooftops, for dipping her hand into an unsuspecting pocket, for having a blade drawn at her... It had grown stronger recently. She wasn't disappearing as often as she used to, or at least, she wasn't disappearing with a different man or woman every night.

 Perhaps that was why, he wondered. Her boredom of so few bedmates was an itch that could only be scratched by the endangerment of her life. He wanted to scowl but at the same time... His gut found it far more preferable to watch as she announced with bloodied knuckles that she'd been in a fight, rather than galavanting with yet another one-time lover.

 "Maybe he doesn't know." inej offered, "I think we can let this one go, Kaz."

 Jesper voiced his agreement, shifting forward in his seat as he shrugged, "It sounds like a trap anyway."

 "Does it?" Aleksa chimed, her voice airy as she regarded the two. She twirled a lock of hair around her pointer. "Because — and I'm talking from my experience with you freaks," Jesper made an indignant noise, "A trap is usually straightforward. A clear goal, and a clear path to said goal. I've crossed the fold, I almost died, I have —" She paused, words dying on her tongue like a wilting flower.

 Her side ached for a moment.

 A heavy sigh made her shoulders slump, "Crossing the fold to bring back an unspecified item? That doesn't sound like a trap. It sounds like a secret. Secrets are kept for a reason."

 Bitter coffee studied her for a moment, and Kaz was well aware that she could feel his gaze. He loved a puzzle, and Aleksa was one of his hardest to crack. Her little slip up had reared his desire to know more, he wanted to ask but they needed to stay on track, "Aleksa's right — don't give me that look —" He chided as Aleksa sent a smug smile his way and it crumbled into a pout, "— A trap would be easy, this is something else."

 Aleksa finally sunk back into the booth. Her head lolled back as she stared up at the ceiling, hearing Jesper and Inej mutely talk between themselves, knowing Kaz was still trying to stare her down as if he'd somehow garner the ability to see through her and pluck out her secrets. She had slipped up, it was rare, but it happened, and it only happened around her crows.

 Her fingers drifted to the left-hand side of her waist and trailed over the loose fabric of her blouse. She closed her eyes, as the skin beneath the material twitched.

 "Boss."

 Aleksa's head snapped up as a new voice joined their party. He was one of Kaz's, one of the men that paraded the streets and drew people towards the Crow Club... But also one of Kaz's secret stealers. He and his band of black-cloaked men would pinch and pry notes, letters and whatever else they could from those who served under the Barrel bosses. Information from brothels, dealing dens and bars came to them in flocks. It seemed tonight, this particular crow, Big Bolliger, had something shiny in his hands.

 Big Bol approached Kaz as his chest heaved. Clearly a little run through the cool streets of Ketterdam had taken a little too much out of him, but it was a sure-fire way to know that whatever he had on hand, would be interesting. He flicked his bowler hat, "We intercepted a note from Dreesen."

 Kaz straightened, his back rigid as the hand rubbing at his knee came to rest upon his cane, "Did you, now?"

 "It's for the owner of the Orchid." He spoke, and Inej tensed, just as she always did whenever a brothel was mentioned. Aleksa linked her pinky finger with the Wraiths. "Says they require the services of a Heartrender. Tonight."

 "A Heartrender? Why?"

 "Doesn't say. Just they need it before midnight."

 Aleksa and Kaz shared a look; there had been countless evenings where Kaz had reclined in his chair behind the oak-wood desk settled within his office whilst Aleksa pottered about putting away papers, rifling through invoices and rearranging shelves; anything to keep her hands busy. He would call out questions about the Grisha.

 A lot was common sense. Could an Inferni control fire? Well, obviously, anybody would know that. But there were many intricate details surrounding Grisha. There were limits that only few could cross, there were techniques only few could use. Kaz wanted to know about them all.

 Aleksa had quenched his desire for information by spouting out as much as she could whenever a question had been sent her way. 'Could a squaller change the pressure of air?' Kaz had once questioned, and Aleksa had recalled Aleksander speaking of a particularly gifted Squaller within his charge, 'Some.' she had replied.

 He knew everything she did about Grisha... Except for the Shadow Summoner's gifts; those were her own secrets that she scarcely gave away.

 This is exactly why the duo had shared a look; from everything Aleksa had willingly spilled; a Heartrender was a last resort to get information. You could talk and question and receive nothing, but with a Heartrender... You couldn't lie, but you could feel your heart slow until your eyes began to see spots of black. A Heartrender could stop the heart; that mere fact alone was usually enough to get people to spill their secrets.

 "You don't bring in a Heartrender unless you need an answer out of someone who isn't willing to talk." Kaz said in a breath, his words as fast as the gears within his brain. Kaz stood, his hands firmly clasped around his cane as he willed his bad leg to straighten, "That's how we get this job before anyone else. Bring Dreesen a Heartrender."

 "Boss..." The man in the bowler cap began again, shifting on his feet as Kaz directed his pointed gaze towards him. Big Bolliger seemed to shrink, an impossible feat for a man as big and as tall as he, "Just one problem."

 Aleksa cocked her head, slowly standing whilst Inej and Jesper shared a look, she approached Kaz, staying by his side as she nodded for the Dreg to speak. He was hesitant but stuttered out his words nonetheless, "Pekka Rollins knows."

 The Shadow Summoner spared a glance at the boy beside her. Even with gloves encapsulating his hands, she knew that beneath them, his knuckles were a stark white. His jaw ticked and his eyes seemed to glint dangerously beneath the shadows his own face cast. He spat the name out of his mouth as though it were venom, "Pekka Rollins."

 A shadow passed over his face, a look of something dark, dangerous. Without another glance towards his crows, without another word, he walked on. His cane struck against the sticky floor of the club and that sound was enough for the crowd to part way for him like waves on the shore.

 They all knew that sound, it was less of a click and more of a warning bell.

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24-01-2022

i hope you all enjoyed this chapter and the further look into how each of the crows thinks and feels, as well as interact with one another <3

don't forget to let me know what you think; and remember that i now require a particular number of comments and feedback before i consider releasing the next part (this is just to ensure people remain engaged and supportive, as well as allowing me to see what you all enjoyed most!)

UPDATE JAN 31st

i usually reserve Mondays for updates for both this story, and my Stephen Strange story, however, there just hasn't been enough people commenting and engaging, so I'm afraid this weeks updates will be skipped; sorry to those of you who did bother to engage, but I'm simply not putting up with ghost-readers anymore <3