Thief and Postman

The Seagrave, known for its badly fermented wine, hushed conversations and stained sheets; was one of those rare establishments that managed to stay afloat even with it's ironic name. It was a bar slash whorehouse slash inn slash diner. And it's owner, Sabina, was as cold and unshockable as the ship the bar was built in.

Every now and then, Postmen would wander through Coralie carrying about letters and news from the different territories. Some Postmen liked staying somewhere less... used, but others were somehow becoming odd regulars.

Just like the one that came in through the heavy hatches.

The Postman that frequented Sabina's bar were always easy to recognize, rarely welcomed was his sight though since this Postman's presence would almost always mean that there will be more bodies to be retrieved from the water once he leaves. He, however, always left a generous tip. And for that, Sabina was always ready to welcome him per usual.

This time though, the Postman wasn't alone.

A kid, barely out of puberty struggled against his chains even as the Postman pulled him through the doors. Metal cuffs adorned the child's neck and wrists, curses and swears that would make any sailor wince, were streaming out of his mouth with wild abandon.

"Someone help me!" the child cried out as soon as he saw the other people in the bar.

No-one made a move though, they were all wary about the Postman, vile beings such as they are were best left alone.

As though finally realizing just how deep the shit he's in, the child paled, if that was even possible, and lowered the arms he had kept raised as defiance.

Facing her new customer, Sabina wiped her wet hands on her apron and retrieved a key from the keyring hanging on her belt. She held it out to the Postman who took it without question and went round the bar, kid still in tow.

There was a room in the Seagrave that Sabina rarely lent out. It was once the Captain's Stateroom and was one of the most comfortable rooms on the ship. Three other individuals other than this Postman had used the room before, and two of them, Sabina hadn't seen in the last few years.

With a sigh, the owner closed the hatch, eyes lingering on the tall Postman and the hunched shoulders of the kid following him. Even now, she can still remember the baleful and pleading gaze the kid had thrown her way as he walked by her.

No-one can go against a Postman and live...


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As soon as he was let go, White scrambled for the nearest corner even as the Postman locked the hatch behind them. For the first time since he was captured, White was silent. It had been nearly an hour since his plan crumbled, nearly an hour since the metal collar and cuffs were placed on him, 20 minutes since they were let aboard Coralie, the floating territory. And since then, not a word or sound from the Postman. The man hadn't even gotten angry at the ruckus White had roused through the deck and gangways, even though many people were looking at them with shock, especially when White claimed rape.

No-one had tried to help him though, not one person from his band, not one person aboard the ships... no-one.

Feeling truely hopeless, White drew his knees to his chest, and though he didn't want to, tears started to stream from his eyes, as an unwanted sob escaped his lips. He had tried everything to get away, attacked the Postman, begged, bartered, had even tried gnawing at his shackles.

The sob seemed to catch the Postman's attention. The man had been in the process of undressing, boot resting on the bed as he unlaced it. Gloved fingers stilled as the man turned towards White. With a sigh, the Postman stood straight and turned off his gas and slipped his mask off. He left it on a desk and proceeded to unclasp the cloak which he dropped on the back of the desk chair.

"Stop crying."

The words themselves were enough to startle White into silence, but the warm palm on his hair made him look up.

Tear-stained eyes rove the unmasked face of his captor. Wild, unruly blonde locks framed a rather long face, setting off the blue in the Postman's irises. The brows were set in a frown and one side of those pale lips was quirked in mild irritation. White quickly buried the thought that rose from unknown depths at the sight of the Postman's face.

"That's better." The Postman mumbled as he straightened up from his half-kneeling position. The hand on his head dipped lower and pulled White up to stand as well. Dust was then patted off him, somewhat brusquely.

"You're quiet the looker, despite being a bandit. Are you something like a plaything in your group?" the man asked, smirking. He left White as he was and proceeded to take his jacket off to shake the dirt out of the folds.

The comment made the boy's blood boil as he recovered his temper. He had never been one for hysterics before, the Postman's silence had merely unnerved him earlier.

If glares could kill...

"I am not anyone's plaything, I am certainly, not yours!" White answered vehemently. For a moment, he thought the Postman would slap him for his insolence, but the older man merely chuckled.

"Whoa, whoa, calm down there. I never said you were, did I?" It seems as though laughter was constantly present in every word that this man uttered, and the sound of it jarred White of his anger.

"What's your name?"

White faltered at the question, slightly surprised that the Postman would even bother asking.

"Wh-white. My name's White." He cursed the stutter and quickly recovered himself. "Yours. What's your name?"

"Hmm? People call me Postman, but others call me Alicel. You can call me either." Alicel answered and sank down on the bed. Despite Eden, Sabina took pride in it's one representable room. A mattress instead of wood, actualy sheets instead of rags, the Captain's Stateroom still retained it's oppulence of old. Which is the main reason why Alicel's stay in Coralie would often last a week.

White tried the name on his tongue silently, a nickname immediately popping to mind.

"So... why did you take me prisoner? My band didn't attack you but you still dragged me away. What are you planning to do?" the boy jangled his chains nervously. He remembered what had happened to some of the boys in the band. They had told stories of getting sold as slaves, or being used by men as...

White's thoughts must have shown on his face because the Alicel suddenly threw his head back and laughed heartily.

"Wha-"

"You seriously think I'd go for brats like you? Well- I do go for anything. But I'm not that desperate. This is Coralie, whores and slaves all around. Don't worry, I've nothing like that planned for you." Alicel managed to answer in between chuckles.

White actually seemed put off by the Postman's answer, something that the older man didn't miss. The innocent grin turned slightly suggestive as the blonde reached for White's chain and tugged it.

A small cry slipped as the boy stumbled forward right into the Postman's chest. He felt himself falling and realized that Alicel had pulled him down to the bed and on his lap.

Warm palms were on his uncovered thigh, his shorts providing little coverage, fingers spreading his legs and a scragly chin was rubbing against his cheek.

White squeaked into his own palms as tears threatened to spring from the corner of his eyes. The quiet chuckle that came from the Postman turned into another laugh as the blonde let himself fall against the mattress, leaving the boy still straddling his legs.

"Plus, I probably won't get turned on if you're snivelling from with just this."

"Damn you!" White's pale cheeks was ablaze as he pushed himself off the Postman and on his feet. Many had tried to take advantage of him but White had been quick to escape, trussed up like he was, the thief was at the Postman's mercy.

"Then... why are you still-"

"Why am I still keeping you prisoner?" Alicel rose from the bed and met White's gaze levelly. Though the Postman was still smirking, there was something else in those blue gaze. "Beats me. Stick around and maybe you'll find out."


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The Postman didn't say anything after that, once again falling into companionable silence. White didn't bother the blonde much, choosing to trust the man's words for the mean time. He didn't know if he should trust the Postman yet, but nothing awful had happened to him so far. White knew he should be more vigilant, more wary, but he couldn't help melting everytime Alicel spoke or laughed. He had no idea why but it was as though the blonde had the charm to make anyone trust his words. White shook his head of the thought and silently berated himself for his softness. Though that doesn't help him at all.

The room was cool and silent, the portholes offering a view out unto the rest of Coralie.

Perched on the desk, White was able to peer out to sea, eyes observing the varied state of sinking the ships were in.

Coralie was one of Eden's rare territories. It survived for the simple fact that it was a water fortress and was thus out of the forest's reach. Even before Eden, the inlet where Coralie is, was a ship grave. It's latest addition, the 1,623 ft luxury mammoth called Coraline SS became the core for what later became known as the territory Coralie.

The boy thief glanced back at his jailor, the blonde was sitting on the bed, letters strewn across his lap. The Postman glanced at the destinations written on the back and quickly discarded the letters into their correct pile. Every now and then, he'd sequester one of the letters with one of the smaller piles. White watched him a bit longer before turning his attention back to the porthole.

His side of the ship faced the open sea, a small sliver of the inlet's collar peeked at him from the right. The lighthouse, once majestic and essential, now lay in disuse. Not many ships sail the seas these days anyway.

A small rowboat caught the thief's attention and he immediately focused on it. Fishermen setting out for a whole night of fishing. They'll be back before dawn, nets laden with fish and crustaceans. No telling though, of the sea monsters they'll have to survive in order to return home.

A ripping sound woke White from his daydreams and he quickly turned back to Alicel.

The Postman was lying on his stomach now, letters all packed up in his bag. Well, all of the letters, except for the little pile from before. These he had taken to reading through one by one, much to White's surprise.

"Oi, oi, oi! And here I was thinking you're not all that bad. Shouldn't you be respecting your, client's confidentiality, or something?" White admonished as he got off the desk. He padded towards the Postman in bare feet and stopped short of the older man's reach.

Alicel merely shrugged at him and replaced the letter in it's envelope before opening another one.

"Dead mail. Letters written to dead people by people who don't know the recievers are already dead." the blonde muttered and opened another letter. The rate he's going through the letters was surprising. He looked as though he was merely scanning through them, but White won't put it past him to memorize everything written in those few seconds.

"Still... shouldn't you like return those to the sender?"

"...And tell them what? 'I'm sorry, I can't send this to your son cuz he's dead.' They'll be happier not knowing something like that."

"Isn't it your job to deliver the letters? You could at least-"

"The dead won't hear you, they won't be able to recieve your letters. My job is to deliver messages to the living. I'm not a medium between the dead and the living."

With that, Alicel replaced the last of the letter in its envelope and arranged the stack of dead letters again. He took out a lenght of black ribbon from his bag and tied the small stack up before pocketing them.

"Though that doesn't mean that I won't honor these letters."

"What does that mean?" White asked in confusion as the Postman started to put the rest of his clothes on.

"It means that I'll be doing overtime once my round is over. So, get your shoes on cuz we'll be delivering letters all over Coralie... and perhaps get some actual food in our stomach later."

White's grin widened at the thought as he hurried after the Postman through the hatch and out of the inn.

Sabina couldn't help hiding the surprise from her face when she saw the two appear from behind her bar. The boy was cooperative though still collared and cuffed. And though the Postman still led him by his chain, the grip was lax and lenient. She saw the Postman pull the hood around the boy's head closer before the two stepped out of her inn. The tough owner shook her head as she smiled at her thoughts.

White had heard tales of the markets of Coralie, had seen it once or twice. But it still didn't fail to... disappoint.

Located on what used to be a ballroom area and extending out unto the open deck, the market was filled with people. Slavers, slaves, merchants, beggars, people, and more people. Loud shouts filled the air as merchants screamed out the prices for their wares, people bickering over merchandise, haggling for a lower sum.

As White's steps faltered, his chain was suddenly tugged and the thief found himself being pulled to the side by several men. One of them cupped the boy's chin and drew him close. Someone laughed as a hand ran over the boy's ass.

The boy cringed at the smell and silently prayed for someone to save him. These men were slavers, and they had their eyes on White. Another man tugged at his chains, muttering about White having an owner or something.

"Please take your hand off my property."

Alicel's deep voice suddenly broke through the throng of slavers and made the men step back from White. The one who had his hands all over the thief was suddenly pinned to the floor by one of the Postman's boots.

White swallowed his fear and slipped silently besides the Postman. The cloak opened up and allowed him to cling to the warm body, its folds falling on him and around him, enveloping him in warmth and security.

"We should get you better clothes." White heard Alicel mutter and a gloved hand pulled the thief closer.

From his safe cavern, White peered out at the market, all of his curiosities stifled by what had just happened. Alicel squeezed his shoulder in assurance as the two stepped into what looked like a clothes shop.

The bunk was relatively empty except for the shop owner and her cat. At our entrance, the cat slinked off its porthole perch into the depths of the small-ish shop.

"Alicel!" The woman's delighted voice shook White from his reverie and he peered out of the cloak at the shop owner. She looked rather, as everyone else, but her hair was kept tidy and clean. The smile on her face greatly improved her countenance.

"Margith." The Postman merely answered, though White could hear his smile.

"It's been some time. Nana or back home, this time?" Margit asked. She got to her feet and began to pour water for her customer. At the sight of the liquid, White swallowed and realized he was thirsty. When the woman handed the cup to the Postman, the thief's own hand shot out of the cloaks and took it much to her surprise.

"It's a long story." was the Postman's answer to Margith's unspoken question. The blonde pressed his hand on White's back and urged him out of his cloaks. Stumbling, the thief came out of his hiding place and stared angrily at both the Postman and the woman. The cat brushed against his leg and made him squeak in surprise.

"That's a rather cute kid you have there Postman. Boy or girl?"

"Boy... probably. You are male, right?" Alicel asked.

White merely rolled his eyes and nodded as he bent down to pat the kitty. The ball of fluff purred against his palm and continued to weave silkily between the thief's legs.

"Anyway, we need better clothes than what he's wearing now." Alicel turned back to his conversation with Margith and didn't seem to mind White playing with the black cat.

"I see what you mean. With his looks, he's essentially prey to everyone else onboard. I can't do much about his build but I'm pretty sure I have a smaller version of your cloak and some clothes that would probably fit him with some altering..."

"That'd be great... Is it okay if I leave him with you for now Marg?"

At the words, White looked up from where he was crouched. The look he gave the Postman was both aprehensive and worried.

"You're leaving me here?" The thought of those slavers were still fresh on the thief's mind, and the fact that Alicel won't be around to save him made his blood run cold.

As though reading his mind, the Postman smiled warmly and ruffled White's hair.

"I'll be back soon, just need to deliver some letters. Margith won't do anything to you, and as long as you stay in the shop, you'll be safe."

The boy nodded at the Postman's words and just stared as the older man left the shop. He could feel Margith's stare and turned her attention to her.

"Well! You're in odd company and there's no telling what kind of troubles you'll get into with hanging around someone like Alicel, so let's try to find clothes that'll last you longer, than those rags you're wearing now."

"How do you know Alice- Alicel?" White couldn't help asking as he watched the woman dig around the stacks of clothes in her shop.

"I don't, that's the thing. He delivers my letters and buys clothes from time to time. We've never really talked, but he grows on you. Postman are queer beings, no-one knows what they really are. For all I know, they could be Gods or demons or simple men like us."

Margith straightened her back and pulled out several items from the stacks, and grabbed a couple of boots from a cabinet. With a smile, she turned back to White and handed him the clothes.

"Now, let's get you dressed up proper."


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Alicel sighed as he slung his lighter bag around his shoulders. It was nearly evening by the time he was able to deliver all the letters for the fourth and third decks. He'll have to deliver the letters for the second and first deck tomorrow morning, the ship homes in the afternoon.

It wouldn't have lasted this long if people would re-learn how to write. How was he to know that 'Red Moor' was actually called Garth. That was why Alicel wasn't able to place the name and had actually asked around about it. It made him look like an amateur, and if Cry was around, the younger Postman would have laughed himself to tears.

The Postman looked forward to going home. Every Postman's round always start from Coralie, and then they either go north or south. Their round will once again end with Coralie and then they'll head home for the Post. They travel as though they were praying, making stops and delivering letters like a litany. It was all routine to them, a system that was rarely broken even by the dangers Eden contained. Picking up White was also starting to become part of the rosary, a bead, Alicel merely had to overcome and integrate into his routine.

He had no idea what made him take the kid prisoner earlier. True, the bandits hadn't harmed him after recognizing him for what he was. There was no merit in taking a brat like White in, that fact was proven by the market confrontation. But as Alicel gazed down at the pretending form, the decision to grab the kid was soldered and cemented.

The Postman shrugged and sighed as he made his way back to Margith's shop. He remembered the Postmaster's parting words right before Alicel left the Post for his round.

"The rock you pick up may be a diamond if you know how to polish it."

Talk about cryptic.

But White was more diamond than rock in his current form, though that doesn't mean that Alicel was interested.

He pushed the hatch open and as he stepped in, he was quickly assaulted by a flurry of frills and lace that made him stumble and fall. Someone was laughing while another voice was cursing.

Alicel blinked his eyes open and realized that the warm weight on his chest was a thoroughly decked out young woman in a dress and hat. Margith was standing to the side clapping her hands enthusiastically while the younger woman spew out curses and swears to no-one in particular.

The Postman's eyes widened when he realized that the young lady was actually White in a dress, hat and stockings... a queer sight.

Despite himself, Alicel actually lifted the boy's skirts to check if the ensemble was complete. He glimpsed white lace and pink ribbons before White nearly shrieked his head off.

"Pervert!"

Alicel merely chuckled and sat up making the boy fall off his chest into his lap. He joined Margith's laughter as the thief's face flamed.


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"You look like you had fun." Alicel commented as the two ate their dinner in their room. They had gone back from Margith's place, with White in travel-worthy clothes.

"It wasn't my fault! That woman was evil! She threatened to throw me out on the streets naked if I didn't wear those dresses." White answered. He was still pissed off by what happened, and would have been more than happy to choke Margith to death if Alicel hadn't held him back.

The Postman merely chuckled as he bit his loaf and dunk it in wine. White watched him warily before continuing on with his own dinner. Their silence was comfortable, White had noticed it before, everything with Alicel was always comfortable.

As though the mere presence of the Postman was enough to relax everyone into a state of unwariness.

Whatever it was, however the Postman does it, it was a dangerous skill. Many had died because of carelessness and trust, two things one should learn to discard in Eden. White's band had survived because they were instinctually suspicious. White was the most suspicious of them all, he had always refused to act unless all facts were on the table. It was the very reason he was able to avoid falling into molesting hands from the start.

"Margith was right."

"Hmm?"

"You are a demon."

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Apologies for the slow-moving chapters. Thief and Postman will be a bit different from The Post considering that Alicel is on the last hand of his round.
I've had a realization, characters aren't made, they're discovered. I'm still in the process of mapping out White and Alicel's personalities.
White is more straight-forward while Alicel is a bit more difficult. He keeps throwing curve-balls that makes my job harder as it is. I'll be working on their character sketches but I'll let the story uncover each of their actual facets.

Thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoy this story as much as I do.

Note: 'The Post' will be on hold until 'Thief and Postman' catches up to it.