Six of Crows One-shots

Plain Sight

The room was dark, incredibly so. The only thing to penetrate the nothing was sounds. A door opening, measured, precise foot steps yet never the same weight to one step.

It smelled of leather, and fresh paint. Kaz's mind worked quickly. Where was he? No use, he couldn't see. Where was he last? Wylan's house, but he left early morning. Back to the Slat most likely, but a few roads down the memory went blurry and vanished all together. Most likely he was kidnapped.

Kaz moved his hands, there were on arm rests, hand-cuffed to them. Not exactly an issue, but if he tried to escape in plain sight, it was no use, he would most likely be shot or put in a worse predicament.

A piece of cloth in front of his eyes fell, instantly the room cleared. Small, with clean cabinets. A table, a chair sitting in front of him, empty. Plusher than the one he sat in now.
He blinked, he knew this room. It was a office in one of his warehouses. Which one? They were mostly of the same make and model. Cheaper, easier to remember. Three had been freshly painted recently but Kaz had long since decided to forget which ones.

"Hello, Kaz." A smooth voice said, the steps continued, they did not walk in front of Kaz. The chair remained empty.

"You brought me here to kill me, or to hire me. Which is it?"

"Neither. You already work for me. You all do." Kaz scowled, trying to twist around. A firm hand pressed down on his shoulder, leather gloves. HIS leather gloves, squeezed his shoulder. Kaz snarled, struggling in his seat to somehow lash out at them.

"Oh calm down." The hand removed itself. "Enough about me. Let's talk about you. The Kaz Brekker."
Kaz's fingers twitched, bare. He felt some sickness rise into his throat.
"Bastard of the Barrel, King of Ketterdam, Barrel Boss of the Dregs, The Crow himself."

"What of it?" Kaz snapped, irritated.

"All those titles, but you just couldn't help it... could you?" Kaz stiffened in his chair, something was wrong. This person, they were smart, perhaps smarter than he himself was.

"Help what?" Kaz bit out, bile climbing into his mouth.

"You just had to make it clever. Dirtyhands. Thief. Pickpocket. Lockpick. A magician. All having one thing in common. All pointing to your single weakness, your greatest flaw and you hid it in plain sight."
Kaz swallowed, clenching his hands against the arm rest.

"So you know it, too."
"Your the first one to figure it out." Kaz whispered, glancing for something so he could see what was going on.

"Oh, Kaz. You should know by now. Only takes one time to ruin a life."
They walked around, and sat down in the empty chair across from Kaz.
Jordie smiled, a small crooked grin. "Hello, Kazimir. How've you been little brother."

Kaz stopped thinking, just stared at his older brothers face.
"Your hands, that's your weakness. And of course.... me."
"Your dead."
"Of course I am. And so will you be, very soon if you keep asking me to haunt you." Kaz snarled, anger rippling through him.
"I Asked for none of this!"
"Oh be sensible." His brother stood up and shoved him back into his seat, and when he leaned closer he only saw himself staring back, the eyes of Dirtyhands coldly fixated on him.

"I am your mind, I am you. You are your only weakness. Your cleverness. Your fears. You will kill yourself! Starting...... with your weaknesses."

His cane came down in a wide and powerful arc, and the crack of the multiple bones in his hands came before the pain.
The room vanished, he was alone. In the guest bedroom of Wylan's mansion. He struggled to his feet, snatching his cane from the wardrobe after a wary glance at it.
As soon as he started down the stairs a flock of maids mixed with his friends huddled into his path, blocking his exit.
"Kaz! Your okay. What's going on?"
"I need to leave."
"But you promised to stick around for a few days."
"It's important." Kaz snapped back at Wylan, he flinched out of the way and Kaz took his chance, escaping into the gardens. Gasping at fresh air.

"They are worried you know." Inej was on the tool shed roof, looking down disapprovingly at him.
"Your not?" Kaz asked, unbelievingly.
"I am. But unlike them I know how to actually approach you about it." Kaz blew out a quiet breath.

"Kaz. You need to breathe."
"I am breathing."
"Breathe slower. Count each breath." He did, slowly. She was right, he had been struggling to get in air. His chest felt looser but something still clawed inside. He had to fix the issue. His weaknesses.
"Kaz... what's going on?" He was shaking, he only noticed when Inej took hold of his gloved hand how bad it was.
"My weaknesses.... Somethings gonna happen. I'm endangering myself... thought I could get away from it but I can't and I'm terrified, Inej. Someone's coming.... and they are going to kill me... and it's all gonna be my fault."
Inej shook her head, stepping closer to him. She squeezed his hand.
"Your okay... we won't let anyone get you. Come inside, Kaz. It was a bad dream."

Kaz took a few more deep breathes, before slowly nodding. Quietly following Inej inside.
The silence was soothing, with Inej sitting next to him. Having come down from his anxiety now Kaz could see the foolishness. It was just a dream...

The odd thing though, was the voice wasn't his brothers.
The voice hasn't been his own.
The voice was someone he never heard before.
You all work for me, anyway.
Who figured out his weakness, before they became his mind.
In the shadows, waited a new threat. Patient. Cunning. And with the only trick that mattered up there sleeves.
Because if they didn't like loosing the game, eventually they will change it.
All they needed was Kaz's weakness.
And all it took was to follow some clues.

Part one of two.