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I clenched the table in front of me. The old man's daughter was fighting with him, about me. My stomach felt uneasy, their fights seemed more and more common all the time. A mirror rested across the room; it showed me my green eyes and dark unkempt hair. Facial hair struggled to cover the sharp lines on my chin.

I laughed; my appearance had changed little since the Old Man took me in. The memory of it still felt fresh, sitting in the corner of an alleyway staring longingly at a sweetbread stall. "You hungry?" I looked up to a face, lines of worry deeply creased into his skin. His hair was tied into a ponytail that went down to his elbows.

"Couldn't help but see ya staring down one of those slices of bread," the Old Man's bones creaked as he worked to sit on the ground next to me. He paused for a moment, as if he was remembering a lost detail, and then a wide smile. "Hope you don't mind me paying for ya, consider it my treat."

"Sire! He isn't from here, why do you ignore the omens?" It was Kaya, her voice forced me back to reality. I was about to get kicked out.

Silence. Then footsteps. I could picture the Old Man now, pacing around the study. He would stop at the same bookshelf he always did, the third one right of the two armchairs resting in front of his desk. The man would hum softly picking a book at random, and then walk around to his desk. "And just what do I threaten to lose by keeping an extra pair of hands to watch over the house?" His voice was low and even. Somehow the old man always knew the correct way to respond, "Correct me if I am wrong Kaya, but I recall that the dragons said that protecting kin was a sacred duty of all life."

"He is not kin sire, he is a foreigner who refuses to work."

I cursed, their voices turned into muffled noise from the wall. Taking small steps worked my way onto the wall. The thick carpet beneath me muffled the sound of my feet. A smile worked its way onto my lips; my ear rested against the wall, and I could hear their entire conversation perfectly.

"The dragons considered all of their kind kin girl, even humans to some extent. Aaron is Human and under my hospitality. Do I make myself clear?" I hesitated, the way he spoke to her... It couldn't be right. The Old Man wasn't the type to let his anger get the better of him.

There was a shakiness as Kaya spoke, she must have noticed his tone too, "With all due respect sire, this is far beyond hospitality."

I stepped back; the sound of skin against skin rang out through the entire house, "Leave."

I hurried back to the chair alongside the table, and laid my head down on it. An easy way to feign disinterest in something. Kaya slammed the study door shut, the frame bounced as it forced its way closed. I chanced a look at her; the Man's face stained her face red. She held her index fingers out in a cross as she passed me, the ward evil sign.

"Nadaro wishes to see you." Fear seized me; I may not have won the argument after all.

I took in a deep breath, and prepared for the worst. What if he learned of my sticky fingers, maybe he was too embarrassed in front of his daughter to say she was right, or maybe he learned of some other dark secret about my life that I didn't even know about. I wasn't sure which of the possibilities was worse.

I tapped on his study door twice before opening it; one of the many mannerisms I'd learned to pick up in the city. "You wished to see me Nadaro?"

"Calling me by my name now? Don't, the name you made up for is far more accurate." Nadaro gestured towards me to sit; nervously I complied and stared straight into his eyes. The center of his eyes were orange and burst out into a dark blue. Something drew me deeper into his gaze; I wanted nothing more than to watch those eyes.

" Aaron!" I flinched, a faint voice in the back of my head urged to stare back into his eyes. "Trust your senses Aaron."

"Wh-what was that?"

The Old Man shook his head, "I am truly sorry Aaron, it is rare that anyone works past my defenses. For now I hope that the old saying, the eyes are the gateway to the soul will suffice." Nadaro's voice was filled with sincerity. Nothing made since, his eyes never lulled me into a trance like that before.

"Why haven't you kicked me out yet Old Man?"

Nadako started wheezing, I jumped forward and offered him my aid. As the cough cleared I realized he was laughing, "I have no idea what Kaya told, but I have never had any intentions of making you leave." He walked around the desk and placed his hand on my shoulder. "In fact Aaron, right now I need someone of your particular skills."

My body went tense; the way he said it, he knew about me. I went back to the first job I'd ever taken. It was a cold night, clouds blocked any light the stars could have given. The place belonged to some rich bastard, paranoid. Luckily for me his paranoia didn't keep him for leaving his home unattended while he partied.

I'd managed to steal a bust of the High Dragon Endra, the cities namesake. Turned around and sold it for profit, and bought The Old Man a book with it. I always got him something after I stole, my way of apologizing. He never asked where I got the gifts from; I always assumed he didn't much care.

"What skills would those be" my voice cracked, hopefully he wouldn't be able to tell.

"I'm not mad with you Aaron. I understand completely, Endra isn't known for its hospitality to foreigners. Your options were limited" Nadako took in a deep breath pausing in the middle of his sentence. He stepped back to his seat, I stared at The Old Man's face hopeful that his body would betray his intentions and give me some sort of clue as to what he was planning.

"Straight to the point I see." The Old Man's desk creaked as he slid open the top right drawer. I watched him closely as he pulled an envelope. I grabbed the envelope as he slid it across the desk, "I need you to deliver this to the palace for me."

"That's it?" I laughed; The Old Man was toying with me, his own way of telling me he knew about my lifestyle.

"Do you have a problem with this Aaron?" Nadaro tilted his head and stared straight at me. His eyes still radiated with the same deep wells of knowledge, but they didn't suck me in like before. He looked concerned; maybe I offended him with my response. It was always so hard to tell with him.

"No!" I needed to know if he really knew or not, but I had to be careful about how I worded it. If he didn't then this sure as hell wouldn't be the conversation to tell him, "It's just not what I was expecting."