timewasting | OPEN POST 2020.

[ he says it so easily, and really, it is easy. everything else they had accomplished had been done because they had simply been determined to do it. this would be no different. it was only made different inside her head because . . . well, because it was personal.

but really, it's the realization that her base in ketterdam is going to be more proactive, than stationary. because the people who buy are just as evil as the people who steal. people like pekka, or heleen. who look at it simply like it's a business venture, instead of dealing in the lives of human beings. and she can't just sink them at sea, here. she has to fully dismantle the system, not just the individual people.

but that's what kaz brekker is for. who is perfectly willing to do whatever it takes in order to make sure that the city remains breathable, for her.

and once she thinks about that, she separates herself from him just enough to push herself up onto her elbows, to lean over him, her braid falling over her shoulder as she watches him before lowering herself down for a soft kiss. ]

I love you.

[ murmured, the statement simple, her smile small, but present. ]

[ Over time, the implications behind his moniker have changed. It's a result of winnowing down his choices—and having the freedom to do so. He's built his power base from nothing and people in the Barrel tended to have long memories when it came to such things.

No one was going to forget that once, Dirtyhands was willing to take a job, so long as it paid out. Building such a reputation meant he wasn't questioned as he started to shift his focus, no longer interested in being a particularly vicious pawn on the board. He's moved up from the petty and brutal squabbles over power. Now he's got his foothold amongst another set of criminals, the merchers and council members who used all the systems to gain.

In doing so, he's carved out a path for Inej. Through ways to get to the heart of the problem, one person at a time. It's significantly more difficult work; someone with power didn't take kindly to having it wrested from them. They used every resource at their disposal, used fronts and pseudonyms, blank addresses and separated accounts. Some of it made Van Eck's work look like child's play.

But if it means there's not another story like Inej's in this damned city, then it was worth it. ]

I love you too. [ He replies, a smile curving his dark eyes. ]

[ she lowers herself to press her lips against his forehead gently, now relaxed. comfortable.

why had she wasted the energy in being stressed or upset to begin with? of course it was going to be solved. there was no other option. they were going to tear it down and build something better, together. knives drawn, pistols blazing. ]

I almost pity her. Signing a contract so substantially unfair that she loses everything but her life sounds like a horrible thing for someone to have to go through.

[ as she brushes the hair out of his eyes, eyes bright. ]

But the deal is the deal.

[ the look on heleen's face is going to be worth the blood, sweat, and tears it will take to tear her down. ]

[ The tension written in her face seems to dissipate, her eyebrows returning to their more gentle angle. He slides his hands down her sides, simple and affectionate. ]

Maybe she should've re-thought her business model. [ And the truth was: no one liked Heleen enough to dig her out of the hole. It was downfall of her own making. Years of sowing her particular breed of cruelty meant that sooner or later, someone was going to get her back for what was due.

It just so happens that the two of them are perfectly set up to do so. ]

The deal is the deal. [ He agrees, tipping his head to the side to kiss her cheek. ] I'll make an inquiry at the main branch tomorrow morning. I already know someone to call on for a personal appraisal, once we get that far.

[ she grins a little, at re-thinking her business model. because it's true. dealing in human beings works for awhile, but eventually, someone fights back. and that someone collects people to support them.

inej ghafa was willing to die with a knife in her hand, rather than remain at the menagerie. and heleen hadn't counted on her little lynx walking out the door with kaz brekker and becoming her worst nightmare. she had let inej go because kaz had been willing to pay and because inej had always been difficult. but heleen hadn't counted on inej surviving long enough to spit in her face. ]

Thank you.

[ quietly, reaching to take one of his hands, to kiss the back of it, in gratitude. ]

[ When Heleen had released Inej's indenture to him, she had thought that would be the end of the thorn in her side. He'd seen it on her face as they signed paperwork; Inej would no longer be in her hair and she'd wrongly thought the girl wouldn't make it very far. Especially since all she'd seen was the narrow, stoic face of the bastard of the Barrel.

Kaz already had plans for Inej at that point, to utilize her silence, but he'd doubled down on it. Out of spite. ]

Don't need to thank me. [ It's not like he's suffering, in helping her bring Heleen to her knees. He moves his hand up, blindly tracing his fingers down the swatches of her braid. ] Now if you're going to cuddle, let me up so I can do it properly.

[ He wants to take his shoes off. And his vest. ]

[ that earns a roll of her eyes, because he was the one who pulled her into bed, not her. but she lifts herself up to let him up, shifting so she can sit cross-legged on the bed, tucking her feet underneath her. ]

I did buy dinner. [ not that she's in a rush, at all. ] The market was selling meat pies, so I bought a few. The chef was insistent that they were the best ones in Ketterdam.

[ her tone indicates that inej is pretty sure that is false. but she inclines her head toward him, amused. ]

I also bought you a present.

[ Okay, he did pull her onto the bed without thinking of his attire. But it had been something of an emergency. So he sits up now, leaning over to undo the laces on his shoes and toeing them off. They're shuffled under the bed as usual before he takes his vest and tie off, draping them over the side table for now. ]

If they've been in business for more than two years, they're probably decent at the very least. [ One did not simply survive Ketterdam without having a halfway decent product.

He leans back against the pillows, reaching out one hand to pat her knee and slide up her thigh, thumb digging in slightly. ]

What kind of present? Or is that a surprise?

[ she watches him lean back against the pillows, his hand winding up to rest on her thigh. and inej unfolds her legs before shifting to lay horizontally, resting her head against his stomach, so she can look up at him with a glint in her eye, and a small grin. ]

You can find out later, I think.

[ mildly. ]

I have to put it on, and it's not very dinner appropriate.

[ -- well, she supposes it is for some people, but it isn't for her. ]

[ Oh, cheeky. His mind fills in some of the blanks and he can feel some color rising in his face at some of the possibilities. One of them definitely involves quite a bit of lace. ]

How much later? [ Is this a before dinner thing or after? He takes one of her hands in his, thumb brushing over her knuckles in a slow back and forth. ] That's an imprecise measure, most of what we do isn't dinner appropriate.

[ oh, semantics. he is curious. ]

I was thinking after dinner.

[ thoughtfully, letting him play with her hand, amused. ]

Though if you want, I could put it on now.

[ he did promise to rip heleen's empire from her horribly manicured fingers, so having dessert before dinner is probably fair. ]

That depends entirely on how hungry you are.

[ Because honestly, with their track record, it's entirely possible they'll get very distracted for a good while. Especially if it is what he thinks it might be. ]

If you're volunteering now, I'm not going to stop you. [ When has he ever stopped her? ]

[ she watches his expression thoughtfully before lifting herself up to lean over him, and she brushes her lips against his, before shifting to his jaw, then his temple, before she murmurs in his ear: ]

I am suddenly starving.

[ and she leans back to kiss his forehead, with a warm smile, before she scoots herself to the edge of the bed. ]

Do you want to eat in here?

[ A full shiver runs through him at the bare contact, not entirely expecting it. The surprise is a good one, as it usually is these days, leaving him wanting.

Which. Was apparently her goal. ]

Only if you plan on not finishing dinner. [ He grins, knowing how much of a distraction it would be if they stayed in here. Getting through a meal had a higher likelihood of success in the dining room or kitchen.

Ultimately, that means he does have to get up. And he does, with a sigh. Sometimes delayed gratification made things all the sweeter. That didn't mean he had to like it in the current moment. ]

I’m perfectly capable of finishing my dinner.

] without missing a beat, though she waits for him to get up before moving back toward the kitchen, amused. ]

I would wear it and make dinner if I didn’t think you were incapable of behaving yourself.

[ manner less delinquent that he is. ]

Famous last words. [ He picks up his cane before following her into the kitchen, remembering a few times she hadn't.

Granted, all of those times had been him wheedling her away from it in one form or another. Still. ]

Not incapable, it's just not at the top of my list of things to do. [ One can take the boy out of the Barrel but not the Barrel out of the boy. Also sometimes, she seems to encourage the behavior, so why would he change habits now? ]

[ predictably, Kaz dismisses her assertions of horrible manners, and inej lights the oven in the kitchen to heat the pies. she then removes the little pies from their packaging, placing them on a pan as she looks toward him, unimpressed. ]

I know you would be incapable.

[ not that she’s arrogant about her appearance or anything but she knows Kaz has certain things he finds attractive about her, and the pieces she picked out deliberately highlight those features. ]

[ Really, he should know better. Inej is gorgeous all the time, it didn't matter what she was wearing. And the occasions she has dressed up have always left him wanting in some way. His first urge is to hold her, feeling an immediate spark of joy whenever she was pressed close. It didn't always make sense to, mostly because walking with an arm around her waist is difficult when there's a cane involved.

So basically, he considers the other times making for when he can't. ]

If you say so. [ He says, leaning against the counter. She usually wins, whether he liked it or not. ]

[ she rests her elbows on the counter after she puts the pies in the oven, arching her eyebrows in his direction. if you say so typically means you're right, from kaz brekker.

but she decides to let it go. instead: ]

I have other news, about the mercher's council.

[ as she rests her chin in her hand, watching him, with a certain mischievous glint in her eye that usually means whatever news she has is both useful and funny. ]

About Councilman Visser, and visiting a house that is not his in the early hours of the evening while his wife is picking up their children from music lessons.

[ rat bastard. ]

Oh?

[ This will be good. He can tell because her entire face says mischief, her smile a bit impish. ]

Bold of him. [ To go calling on another woman while his wife picks up their kids. It feels like a very conscious decision, not just one driven by convenience of timing. ] And two-faced. He's always saying how much he loves his wife. Who's the new girl?

Mila de Jong.

[ the name means little to her . . . or meant little to her, at any rate, until inej did some digging. out of vague curiosity. and kaz could use this information to do . . . well, whatever he does with it. probably nothing good. ]

Her husband frequents the White Rose every lunch hour. So I imagine she's bored with him and found someone richer to pay her bankroll.

[ they live in a very nice house, for people who don't seem to do much work or participate in much coin. ]

Filling her pockets and her time.

[ The name is vaguely familiar. The face that floats up in his memory is a younger looking woman, with dark hair and light eyes. And a very pronounced pout. Someone used to being spoiled who doesn't seem to be making that much of an impression on her husband. ]

I wonder if he even knows where the extra is coming from. Or if he cares. [ That might be the way to unravel it all. He'll have to do some listening and poking around. ] I imagine our councilman's wife would be devastated.

She seems to be clueless.

[ thoughtfully, as she watches Kaz, and the thoughts running through his mind flicker through on his face. ]

He’s horrifically boring. [ as she glances toward the oven, to make sure their dinner isn’t burning. ] All he has is money... she would be better off taking his coin and leaving.

Most of the time, they are. A pity too, she seems nice.

[ Isn't that usually the way? Granted, he's met enough shitty women to know they aren't absolved of being horrible. It's just in these specific situations, it seems to work out in a very certain way.

Frankly, while he understands why someone might cheat—discontent, pride, generally not giving a shit—he can't sympathize with it at all. The mere word kicking around in his head alongside looking at Inej makes him feel vaguely ill. There's no one else and will never be, that he's absolutely certain of.

(Especially as his mind keeps going down that track, bringing up the possibility of a strange woman touching him and he definitely goes a bit green around the gills for a minute). ]

She could, as long as the divorce papers go in her favor.

[ oh, something is off. and she watches him, eyes scanning his face in a moment, brow furrowing as she tries to figure out what it is. what has him suddenly bothered?

she can usually read him like a book, but certain things are difficult. and whatever has him pale around the face is a mystery to her.

so she reaches out to gently take his hand, curling her fingers around his fingers, tugging gently. so he can focus on the present. or get away from whatever seems to be haunting his thoughts. ]

What is wrong?

[ with a tilt of her head, her brow furrowed. ]

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