Flower of the North [Kaz Brekker; Six of Crows]

chapter 5

AN: Decided to update a little earlier this week because I'll be busy this weekend! Please enjoy!

Cecilia was exactly where she'd told Kaz she would be the next day. Standing right at the front of Zentsbridge. She was wearing something that looked like cultural wear from Shu. A white tighter fitting dress that had odd looking clasps along the top and had a floral pattern on it. Her hair was worn as normal along with her white flats. He also noticed her wearing several silver bangles around each wrist.

Kaz found himself staring at her for longer than necessary, admiring her beauty. He barely noticed when she began to walk over to him with a small skip in her step.

"Hi Kaz! I'm happy you made it. I guess you did give me that money then, hmm?" she grinned smugly.

Kaz had never seen how brightly she glowed in the sunlight before. The way the sun glinted off her eyes made them look like pure gold. He was so caught off guard that he forgot to respond.

Cecilia held in a laugh as he just gave her a dumbfounded look, "If I look that bad I can go and change before we head to the cafe."

Kaz quickly snapped out of it, "No! Um...no. You're fine."

Cecilia let out a quiet chuckle and began to walk over the bridge, "Let's go then."

They walked side by side, keeping as short a distance between each other as they could without touching. Both Cecilia and Kaz were quiet. But as Kaz glanced over at her every few seconds, he realized she was observing everything she could see. Her eyes flickered back and forth, taking in every detail of what was around them. He also was quick to notice that her every movement was silent. He had always thought she was quiet in the Barrel, but now without all the excess noise, he could tell it wasn't just that.

Cecilia finally stopped looking around and started to talk to Kaz, "Have you been this way before?"

"A few times."

Just to steal things and commit various other crimes. But he wasn't going to tell her that.

"So...Dirtyhands? That's what the doorman called you. That's an interesting moniker to have at such a young age. And it was hard not to notice the respect the employees had for you when you walked in. Well...respect and fear. Though I suppose that could've been because of the scary look on your face. I thought for a moment you might kill somebody," she said in a light tone with a hint of amusement.

Kaz didn't understand how she could talk about this as if it was just another normal day. He wasn't just a petty thief. He was a higher up in a notorious gang. And his 'moniker' wasn't exactly one that inspired joy in people just by hearing it. Cecilia seemed completely unfazed by this new information.

Cecilia noticed his guarded and almost cautious look, "Relax, Kaz. There's nothing to be ashamed or scared of. I've never once judged you. And I never will. In fact it tells me more about you."

"Like what?" Kaz was waiting for her to say horrendous things.

"Well, you're incredibly intelligent. To be able to go that far at just 15, you have to be. And it doesn't seem like a new development either, so obviously you've held this status for quite a while. You're also quite driven aren't you. I won't make any guesses as to why. That's your business. Not to mention you're very skilled. If I was anyone else, you would've easily stolen my hairpins that time. I mean, when you stole from that incredibly rude man, he never even noticed. You're talented. And you're also good at hiding your emotions from most. Not me, of course. But you aren't an easy book to open for me either. It's amazing, really," Cecilia rambled on, her smile widening with each word.

"You're a bizarre girl," Kaz blurted out without thinking.

Cecilia laughed, "So I've been told many times before. Does it bother you?"