He would have stayed longer if he could. He might have stayed forever if the wrong whim took him at the right time. That was the reason he hadn’t drank overmuch the night before, no matter how much he wanted to. It was why he went to bed before the night had grown old, no matter how much he wanted to talk to his friends. It was why he got up before dawn, gathered his things, and left a note.

Bird hoped they understood his quiet egress. He needed as few people as possible to see his movements between Lowmyre and Goldwind; even with the roundabout route through the hills he feared crowds.

It was a little hypocritical to slow his step then, but Bird did want to enjoy the walk through Lowmyre’s alleys and streets. It wasn’t quiet at this time of night, at least not as it was in Goldwind. Constructs and different bits of alchemical technology were still operating, and many of them produced some kind of noise. It blended together into a strange white noise that most people learned to block out. Most of the alchemy in Goldwind was much quieter, and the resulting silence at night was almost disconcerting for the Weird. He could still hear a quiet hum thanks to his ears, but the racket here was comforting.

There was something peaceful about the way the wind caressed him in the wake of that white noise. The sound of the breeze was just barely hidden from his ears, but Bird just thought of it as another musician in the night’s band.

“Ah, the caged bird flies free. Or maybe the free bird flies to a cage, yes?”

Bird nearly leapt from his skin, whirling to face the noise. He wasn’t thrilled with the source. The time at the academy hadn’t taught him anything practical yet, but he was more than willing to slog through this with the basic burst and blasts that Lowmyre had taught him.

“What do you want?”

“Ah, no inquiry to my wellbeing? Such a wound you leave.” The figure smiled, the grin spreading under the rough cut edge of a porcelain mask. His clothes were as flamboyant as ever, showing skin while distracting from whatever he might have hidden in the fabric. Two bestial ears stood pert on his head, higher than normal ears, and a white-tipped tail trailed behind his movements. His hair and fur were a particular shade of orange, tied back on head and kept with a care that was out of place with his organization.

That much was made clear by the two large Weirds flanking him, wearing simple clothes and the same kind of masks. The porcelain showed some stylized grim expressions, and these two seemed to have taken it further with some tattoos on their faces to press home the dour appearance. Bird eyed their Weirdness with a grimace; one had horns and the other claws.

“I’m running some errands, grimfolk. I don’t want any trouble.” Their gang controlled a solid portion of the criminal activity in Lowmyre, and their leader was a particular thorn in almost everyone’s side. A thorn that would happily leave festering wounds and kill if crossed.

Passing a gang member in the streets was far more common at night, but there was a common acceptance that staying out of their way was a good way to stay out of the line of fire. Bird knew that being addressed specifically wasn’t a good sign.

Notaraska being here was also a matter of some concern, given that he was The Grimfellow’s right hand.

“You want no trouble, but you certainly crave danger!” Notaraska laughed, his smile contrasting the expression of his mask. “Sneaking for these errands you run. Why, one might even think you have gone to an Academy for such skulking.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. Just out for a stroll to enjoy the night; won’t be long before it’s too cold to enjoy the dark.” Bird did his best to school his features, but he could feel the blood draining from his face. He didn’t know how they knew, but the implication was clear and cutting.

“Don’t fuck with us!” One of the enforcers growled, taking a step forward. Notaraska stopped him with a hand, still smiling.

“As my associate has said, let us dispense with fabrications for a moment. We are here because The Grimfellow themselves wishes us to bring you to them.” Notaraska’s expression was hard to read with the mask. He was smiling, but without anything else to go on Bird didn’t know if this was going to be a trip he’d come back from. The sour expressions of the masks didn’t paint a particular hope for him.

If he could stall for a moment, there was a chance he could use some basic spellwork to make a flash and run while they were blinded. The masks would protect them a little, but however narrow the eye slits were they would still let light in. It was a chance.

“What business does The Grimfellow have with me? I’m a singer at best and an errand boy more often.” Bird started to recount the spell mentally, trying to trace his path away simultaneously.

“A songbird, true, but a songbird that has flown into a particularly advantageous nest. A nest that The Grimfellow has been interested in for quite some time without access. I imagine that is why they wish to speak with you; to leverage you into a… ah, we shall say a mutually beneficial business deal, yes?”

“I think the mutual part of that would be a little light. I think I like my reasons more than whatever The Grimfellow has in mind.” As soon as they started moving forward, that’s when Bird would cast the flash and bolt.

“Perhaps, but you would have to talk to The Grimfellow for the specifics. I have an idea, of course; there are new connections and all manner of resource that would be available.” Notaraska suddenly smiled much wider than he had before, shrugging while he gesticulated with his left hand in front of him. “Such a shame that we never found you! The bird must have flown too high for our hands to grab.”

“Wh-” The enforcer to his left almost got the word out before his expression went slack, mirroring the other. Bird lost concentration on his spell at the sight, stunned as Notaraska moved to the side a bit, revealing a floating glyph that he had drawn behind his back. It glowed a light pink in the night, casting a particular light over the enforcers.

There was a standoff for a moment, silence as Notaraska stood smiling and Bird stood stunned.

“What’s the catch?” Bird asked, a little less confident in his plan. He didn’t know about Notaraska’s alchemical ability until now. This definitely wasn’t his Calamity.

“The catch is, I want nothing to change about the current situation.” The Right Hand’s expression dropped a bit. Still amused, but far more serious than he had been in greeting. “I think that The Grimfellow is thinking too small in trying to extort you. Trying to bring you in to get a few nobles in on drug deals or trying to play politics isn’t going to get us anywhere.”

“Then how are you planning to extort me?”

“That’s the funny thing, yes? I’m not planning to.” He moved the mask up a little, revealing enough of his face for Bird to see a full expression. The patterns around his eyes accentuated his Weirdness, Amber pupils in a sea of charcoal.. “I want to play a game that is far, far larger than simple crime.”

Bird wouldn’t dream of calling anything the grimfolk did simple crime. They had their fingers in a lot of tills, and in a lot of illegal business.

“Are you going to tell me what that is, or keep being a mysterious prick about it?”

“We don’t have time for the playbook, no. But I will say the heart of the matter: not many know of your egress or occupation, but the ones who do wish to use you. Find some small gain of you. This is small, and will damage more than it will gain.” Notaraska stepped forward, solemn eyes glinting in the light of his spell. “Do you know what I see in your position?”

“If I did this conversation would be a lot shorter.” It came as a joke. Neither laughed.

“I see potential. Potential for Lowmyre, not for the grimfolk and small minded people.”

“So you’re just… letting me go? No deals with the devil?”

“Free as a bird. As free as that bird needs to be. I have plans for the grimfolk and The Grimfellow anyway, and I think this is a good catalyst for that.”

“Leave me out of your politics.”

“Ah, were it only so simple. You’re in quite the wrong position to avoid politics.” Notaraska’s smile became a little more genuine for a moment, and less circumstantial. “Bird, if you wish to know what I want of you, I will tell you. I want you to succeed at the Academy, in a way that no one can contest. Bring knowledge back to Lowmyre. Show the Weird that we can rise, and show the Normals we cannot be kept down.”

“It sounds like you want me to outfit an army with talk like that.”

Bird was almost relieved when Notaraska took on a look of disgust at the idea.

“War has clearly worked well for the grimfolk, yes?” He spat the words. “I do not see futures like Foresight, but I see enough to know the present is sick. People have tried before. People are trying now. Some helped, some hurt, none made particular progress. I think you have a unique chance to brew a more potent remedy.”

“I don’t want to make this about politics, I just want to get some opportunity down here. Maybe we are on the same page.”

“Maybe.” The thought seemed to please him. “I want Lowmyre to have a future. That means clearing the festering ideals and letting the good seeds be sown; even if those seeds come from strange places. If you can promise to help that vision, I can promise to grease certain gears for you, yes?.”

“What of the grimfolk? The Grimfellow isn’t going to like you “missing” me so often if I’m running knowledge back.”

“The grimfolk, the Grimfellow… it is just a network of resources, a tree of many fruits, yes? It simply needs to be wrangled into growing in a new direction. I happen to be a decent gardener.”

“...You were always too damn ambitious, Nota.” This was way past what Bird wanted to consider. If Notaraska was implying what Bird thought he was, then the playing field wasn’t going to be disrupted, it was going to be thrown ass over tea kettle.

“And you were always quite… productively reckless, Student Barda.”

“So how did you know? Is someone at the Academy…?”

“No, just a few wandering eyes seeing you leave Lowmyre, and then seeing someone suspiciously like you in Goldwind. It was distant enough that… well, maybe it wasn’t you after all?”

“Probably. I don’t have nearly the patience to doll myself up like that.”

“Ah, well see? Mistakes happen. I do know now though.” He reached up and tapped beside his eyes, fox grin still wide. Bird had forgotten about his Calamity for a moment, but he almost felt like it didn’t matter. The Academy was his biggest secret, and Notaraska already knew that; his eyes wouldn’t show him anything else.

“I should be going. The sooner I get back, the less people will notice the return.”

“Indeed. I’ll make sure these two report your lack of appearance; don’t worry after them, it’s a simple hypnosis. They’ll be a little dazed, but fine after a rest.”

Bird wanted to ask how he had learned that spell, but he also didn’t want to press too deeply.

“Alright.” He turned to begin walking away, but stopped on the first step. “It was good seeing you again, Nota. It’s been a while. Stay safe, if you can.”

“Back at you, Songbird. Take care of yourself up there, yes?”

Bird left the alley and quicken his pace, trying to figure out if that had actually happened or not.

It almost seemed less strange to assume he had been hypnotized. Still, if it had been real, it meant a very powerful ally backing his plan. Bird had no interest in being associated with a gang like the grimfolk, but Notaraska he could stand and maybe even trust.

If nothing else, Bird’s conversation with the fox-Weird and Mono had given him plenty to think about on the way back to Goldwind.