Tales of a Thief

[ultraviolet]

Dhiablos' history, still working on. basically why he's a backstabbing theif. ;D

feel free to comment
I'd prefer if you did actually, I'd like to see how others view my writing.

[Kiweh]

Grrrr *glares at Dhia*

[ultraviolet]

"You're going to the pound."
Dhiablos, 16, stood in the center of the room, staring at his then-owner in disbelief.
"I- uh, what do you mean, the pound?" he demanded angrily.
"I'm leaving Neopia - I've outgrown it. I figured you'd be better off with another owner than rot here while I'm not around."
Dhiablos opened his mouth and closed it again, apparently too shocked to speak.
"Besides," said his owner, shrugging, "You're a well-named ixi, you're bound to find a new owner easily."
Dhiablos, then a red ixi, just stood there gaping at his owner in shock.
"I thought you'd see it my way. Get a goodnight's sleep, and don't feel bad," said his owner, walking towards the stairs of their neohome, "it's not you, it's me."
She turned off the light and made her way up the stairs, leaving Dhiablos alone in the loungeroom, still standing in the center of the room.

***

A small bag of neopoints, a change of clothes, a toothbrush, toothpaste, an ipod nano and a pair of shoes refused to fit in his backpack. He frowned, took everything out, and re-packed, brushing his red hair out of his face.
He'd decided that he'd run away - better than facing the cold prison that was the pound. He was a proud ixi, and he couldn't bear the thought of degrading himself to begging for a home.
He decided to keep his ipod in his jeans pocket rather than put it in the bag, and wear the shoes he was planning to pack.
Finally, everything fit, so he slung the backpack over his shoulder and glanced around the room, realising that he'd never see this room again.
All the stuff he'd miss - the many posters that adorned the walls, covering the wallpaper he'd grown out of years ago; The dusty plushies that he'd forgotten about when he'd gotten the television, which sat on his desk next to the never-used bookshelf. Dhiablos had been a spoilt pet, and it was strange to think that he'd never get what he wanted anymore.
He sighed, and turned to the window.
Scribbling a note to his owner, he left it on his bed and jumped out the open window.
thud.
In the spirit of the moment, he'd forgotten that his room was on the bottom floor of their neohome, so in reality he would have only have to step out of the window.
Dhiablos had leapt out of the window and landed head-first into the muddy lawn.
He trudged through the dewy lawn, getting his jeans wet slightly, but he didn't mind. He was more interested in where he was going. He walked along the road a little, away from his house, and sat on the curb to think.
Any other pet would have broke down and cried at the fact they were leaving an owner they would never see again, even if they did have the choice of whether to stay or not.
Dhiablos however, sulked.
Had he done something wrong? He'd never done anything except be himself, which was what his owner had always told him to do. He didn't understand; this was so sudden.
After a lot of thought, Dhia decided that Life was unfair in general and he shouldn't waste time being emotional about it.
Emotional. Emotions didn't get him anywhere. Emotions nearly got him pounded.

It was then and there that he concluded that Emotions were unimportant, and didn't help anything. So he wouldn't be emotional at all if he could help it.
However, making promises to himself was unfortunately something he was never very good at.

[ultraviolet]

The sound of a busy market reached Dhiablos' rough ears as morning approached the Money Tree.
He'd slept there overnight after wandering around Neopia Central wondering what he'd do with himself. Now, busy Neopians gathered around, hoping to find something rare, useful or edible.
Dhia groaned, and shut his eyes tighter. He didn't like mornings at all.
As if to wake him up, a Toy Sailboat fell out of the tree and hit him on the back of the neck.
"Get out of the way!" said a voice loudly, pushing Dhiablos roughly before grabbing the sailboat.

A few omelettes and a half-eaten Brightvale Berry later, He was setting off to find a new life.
Dhia rubbed his blue eyes anxiously. He was tired still. The money tree was not as comfortable as he thought. He kicked a stone along the sidewalk, scowling.
"Hey, where's my purse?!"
An elephante woman was hurriedly checking her handbag, shrieking. Not finding it, she simply burst into tears.
"Hey uh- are you ok?" said Dhiablos with difficulty; someone had walked into him roughly. He turned around quickly to see who it had been, but they were gone in the crowd by that time.
"My purse! My purse!" the woman sobbed. Her makeup was running down her cheeks, of which she seemed to be wearing a lot of.
"Listen, we'll find your money, just-"
"Theif!" she shreiked, pointing to Dhiablos' jeans pocket.
"What?"
Sure enough, the tacky, sequinned purse had somehow foundd its way into his pocket.
"Listen- I don't know how that got there, seriously, I-"
The woman snatched her purse from him and discovered that her neopoints had gone.
"Theif! Burglar! Bandit!" she shreiked, pointing at him dramatically.
The surrounding shoppers stared at him, shaking their heads and advancing on him.
"Listen - I don't know how it got there! It just - appeared, I swear-"

***

"Stop! Theif!"
Dhiablos turned and ran through an alleyway, jumping over a trashcan and upending another, trailing garbage behind him. His heart thudding in his chest and breathing heavily, he turned a corner into the marketplace.
In his right hand was his backpack- someone had torn the strap on one side so he'd nearly dropped it once already. His left hand was being used to shove people out of the way as he made his way through the busy crowd.
Several angry neopians as well as a few policemen were on his trail now, chasing him for a false crime.
He didn't know how he would prove he didn't do it; in reality, he couldn't. So he kept running. Past a clothing store, he ran down the sidewalk when suddenly-
"Hey! In here!"
A brown, furred hand reached out and pulled him in to an alleyway as his pursuers ran past.
Panting, Dhiablos looked up at his saviour. She was familiar slightly, but Dhiablos was more taking in her strange attire.
She was a blue xweetok of seventeen, with bright amber eyes that had seen a lot, but still longed for the adventure. A red scarf was tied around her forehead to keep her curly, black hair out of her face. Her clothes were a little torn and dirty, but he could see she had lived well - several earrings, various glittering jewellry and relatively sleek fur adorned her petite, underfed body. A faded stiped t-shirt and black cargo's made one think of a pirate.
All of this was covered slightly by a full-length, dusty overcoat. This seemed to have been used to blend in with the crowd, but failed, making her seem more shifty in doing so.
"You!" said Dhiablos loudly on sudden realisation. "You stole the purse, and framed me for it!"
"Aye, that I did. And you pulled it off nicely it seems."
She spoke in a well-rounded, Irish accent.
Dhiablos looked out of the alleyway down the street. His pursuers had long gone.
"But why did you steal that lady's purse?"
The xweetok shrugged. "She's gotta shop, but I've gotta eat. I'm sure that she can survive in her mansion without her 300 np."
She turned down the alleyway, walking around the assorted junk that littered it. Dhiablos followed.
"What's your name?" he asked as they walked.
"My real name's Baroque." she answered, still walking. "But most people call me Roque."
"Roque." Dhiablos repeated, uncertain if he had said it right.
"no, no, Roque. Rhymes with Rogue."
"Roque."

[ultraviolet]

"So, where's your owner?" asked Dhiablos as they turned into another busy street.
Roque snorted. "Owner? I was assigned an owner when our species first came to Neopia. Then, the next pet arrived in Neopia, and I was pounded."
Her otherwise bright eyes darkened for a moment, like when a cloud drifts over the moon. She sniffed. "I escaped though. Me and a bunch of friends I'd made in there."
"That was you?" said Dhiablos in disbelief. "The mass pound breakout of the Month of Swimming?"
"Aye," she nodded, smiling cheekily. "you're a well-educated pet aren't ya?"
Dhiablos wanted to say yes, but didn't want to seem snobbish or up-himself. He settled with a sort of non-commital jerk and a shrug.
The crowd was busy - it was a saturday morning, which meant shopping. This was one of the backwater markets of Neopia Central - shops run by families, women selling foreign objects, speaking in a strange tongue, and buskers were found every 10 or so stalls, playing their instruments with the cases open to gain an extra buck.
It dawned on Dhiablos that he didn't have a clue where he was. He'd never been out of the main streets, shopping in the popular stores and meeting with friends.
Friends - his heart sank. Would he ever see his friends again in his new life?
Roque seemed to know where she was going; she was dodging through the crowd as if they weren't there - she seemed to have done this often.
Dhiablos however, had his mind in psychological mode; this meant that his physical side had increased clumsiness, obnoxiousness and general bad luck.
Therefore, Dhia was easily losing Roque in the crowd. He had to stay with her; it was his only chance of direction of any type.
"Hey!" he called out, waving his arms. "Roque!"
She turned, far ahead of him, and scowled. In a fewmoments she'd made her way to him and picked him up by the scruff of the neck.
"Don't - attract - attention," she said, breathing heavily and contiuing at a slight jog.
"I - er, - sorry."

***

They eventually reached their destination, a small shop between a flea market on its right and a fruit-and-veg store on its right. Roque entered, and Dhiablos followed.
The bell tinkled as the door shut. Dhiablos looked around warily at this small shop. It seemed to be selling antiques - it was hard to see, because little light filtered through the grimy window.
Upon closer inspection, it wasn't an antique store at all - it actually sold quite new and expensive items, but everything was covered in a thin film of dust. Behind an old wooden counter stood an aging blue Kyrii, looking at them both expectantly.
"So what about you?" said Roque as she casually browsed through the shelves, looking for nothing in particular. "Your owner, I mean."
"Same as you," replied Dhiablos in what he thought was an uncaring sort of way.
"Only my owner has 'outgrown' Neopia."
Despite himself, he could feel his eyelids burn. He turned away, facing the window and desperately willed those tears not to fall.
He had never thought he'd miss his owner all that much. But all those memories - sixteen years of them, in fact - meant nothing? Nothing to his owner anyway. Dhia sniffed.
Roque pretended like he wasn't crying. He'd probably prefer it that way, she thought.
"Well anyway, that means you're on the run."
Dhiablos turned. "A fugitive? why?"
"You're a pet that's supposed to be in the pound, that's why."
said Roque, dead serious. She stared at him for a moment, her brain working fast.
"You're going to need a new look for a new life. Come with me."
"Huh?" Roque pulled his arm and out the door, dragging him across the busy street and back up to the main shops.

[ultraviolet]

"You want me to what?"
"Nick a potion from Kauvara's, do I have to say it again?"
They were behind Kauvara's potion shop, leaning against the wall and talking casually. Well, only Roque was being casual about it.
"Steal a- a potion? But what kind?"
"That's up to you. Frankly, I'd go with a pirate eyrie morphing potion myself, but that's up to you."
Dhiablos gulped. He didn't particularly like the idea of changing species.
"How do I do it?"
"Well, that shop's full of restockers - just take one off the shelf, no-one will notice you."
"Really?" said Dhia, not really believing her.
"Or, you could just plain take one out of someone's hand once they've paid for it."
Dhia gulped. "I think I'll just grab one off the shelf."
"Sure, I'll wait out here." said Roque, pushing him towards the door.
"And don't attract attention!"
Dhiablos turned around. She was gone.
He took a deep breath, closed his eyes and walked through the door.

***

A scene of pandemonium met his eyes. Restockers were grabbing potions and haggling loudly. Roque was right, it'd be easy to get something conspicuosly and get out. The hardest part would be to actually get something.
Dhiablos made his way through the crowd, dodging n00bs and 1337 restockers until he made his way to a dusty shelf.
It was labelled 'transmogrification potions - use at your own risk. Kauvara's is not repsonsible for itching, woozing, weeping, strange illnesses, side-effects or loss of social status.'
Dhiablos fumbled with his backpack and opened it before quickly grabbing a transmogrification potion and shoving it in quickly. He was almost ready to get out of there when-
"-45k for this potion! That's my last offer!"
A Restocker rose her hand in the air quickly, waving it at the shopkeeper frantically, but not before knocking Dhiablos backwards accidentally with that hand.
Dhia hit the mutant potion shelf, which broke, sending potions flying. Several broke on the ground, oozing foul-smelling liquid and burning holes in the floorboards. Others hit shoppers, groaning at their now grotesque faces and limbs.
Dhiablos dodged under a now-mutated gelert and ran out the door, panting.
"How'd you go?"
Roque was standing in front of him with a smug smile.
Dhiablos groped into his backpack and pulled out a slightly furred bottle full of a pale-green liquid.
"Oh, how original." Roque commented, rolling her eyes.
"An ixi transmogrification potion. Well done."

[Kiweh]

((*likes a lot* Yeah I can't wait to read it all... ^^))

[ultraviolet]

"So you gonna drink that thing or just stare at it?"
Dhiablos blinked. "Huh? Oh, right."
They were sitting at a park bench on the other side of Neopia Central. He read the label on the back. Again was the Kauvara's Potions warning, then instructions.
"It is recommended that this is taken shortly after eating." Dhiablos read aloud. He looked up.
"You hungry?"
"Yeah, it's about lunchtime I think," said Roque, staring at the sun. "C'mon, I know where we can get good grub."
"We're not gonna steal it are we?"
Roque laughed and stood up, walking towards a restaurant. "No, I know the people there, we'll get it for free."
"Oh, well that's good."
They sat at one of the outdoor tables at a family-owned coffee shop, one of those ones with the umbrellas and the white plastic tables.

A few minutes later, they were eating free food. Roque had fries and a small cheeseburger. Dhiablos however, was getting stuck into what appeared to be a burger that was larger than his head. Truth be told, he was starving.
He took a bite and the whole thing nearly fell apart, it was that full.
Roque giggled. Dhiablos laughed too.
Eventually they finished their meal and the restaurant owner, a balding uni, came out. He looked about as greasy as the food, and was wearing casual clothes with a dirty, white apron.
"Okay guys, that'll be 45 np."
Dhiablos' eyes widened and he glanced at Roque, but said nothing.
"C'mon, who's paying?"
"Erm.." said Roque.

***

"I thought - you said - you knew them?" gasped Dhiablos between panting.
"Well - I've seen him before."
"That doesn't mean free food!"
"Who cares, we got out of there ok, right?"
Dhiablos gave Roque a black look.
"Anyway - go take that potion, there's a public toilet over there."
"A public toilet?"
Now it was Roque's turn for a dark look.
"I don't wanna see you mutate!"
Dhiablos rolled his eyes and walked over to the men's. Thankfully, it was empty.
He walked over to a sink and gazed into the dirty, chipped mirror and got one last look at himself. He got the bottle out of his bag and uncorked it.
"Well - here goes." he said, his knees shaking. "To a new life."

[ultraviolet]

He raised the potion to his mouth, and tilted the bottle, gripping the sink tightly with his right hand.
At first, he didn't taste anything, then a foul, sour liquid slid down his throat. His eyes watered, but he knew he had to drink it all. The bottle instructions warned that if the potion is not taken properly, errors can occur.
He drank all of it and shuddered, then looked into the mirror.
Nothing happened. He reached out and touched his face.
No difference.
"Maybe it was a dud?" said Dhiablos uncertainly. He went to read the bottle's label again when a huge wave of nausea swept over him. The only thing stopping him from fainting was his hand grasping the sink tightly - so tight that his knuckles turned white under his skin.

Transmogrification is one of the most terrible experiences one can imagine - and certainly not something anyone should experience at the age of sixteen. Those that are mutants say mostly that the feeling is indescribable, though we will try and explain Dhiablos' experience as best as we can.

Dhiablos shuddered again, and his fingers trembled around the bottle, which he dropped and it shattered. The sound of the bottle seemed so far away, and it echoed, again and again. Dhiablos' eyes turned to the mirror, and he resisted the urge to throw up at what he saw.
His skin was pulsing - twisting, turning around his bones until it settled into a new shape - still ixi, but more muscular in some places than others. The pain was unbelievable.
He gasped and put his hand to his mouth - his teeth we elongating, now pointed and rapidly turning yellow. He screamed inside his head as his jaw reconstructed itself to allow room for these teeth, much bigger than his original ones. He yelled and reached for his head, between his ears.
The small, black and shiny horns that he'd always had were twisting and growing; becoming curved, longer and pointed before turning a dull slate grey.
He shuddered again - his fur was changing. All over, his red sleek fur was being replaced by coarse, green fur with mottled dark-green spots. The sensation was as if needles were pushing through the underside of his skin - the growth of new fur. His old red fur shed and dissapeared into nothing. His eyes watered.
Then, before he knew it, it was over.
Breathing heavily, he was staring determindley into the sink. He didn't really want to see what he'd turned into.
Curiosity got the better of him. He glanced up, and couldn't look away.
The same blue eyes, pale and scared, looked up from behind the same bangs, now green, and too long, like he'd always had them. His nose was now slightly longer and he smiled, showing pointed, yellowed teeth. His ears were longer too, like his horns.
His stomach churned, and he felt sick. He shuddered again and he fainted, landing on the cold, tiled floor, missing the shattered glass narrowly.
He was exhausted.

[Lilium]

((I like it so far. ^________^))

[ultraviolet]

((I'm glad you both like it ;D))
"You're going to the pound."
"I - what - huh?"
Dhiablos opened his eyes. He was in Neopia Central, and his owner was glaring at him angrily. The streetlamps kept flickering and a light rainy mist flowed into the night.
"What, why?"
"Because you're a terrible pet!" she shrieked.
"what?"
"You're a huge disapointment! Everything you do you fail at!"
"W-what do you mean?"
"Like the baseball game in 5th grade?"
Dhiablos recalled it; it was his team's worst lost and he'd always been ashamed that it was the one day he couldn't hit the ball at all.
"And that time you got a C minus in math?"
"And when that chick dumped you in 7th grade?"
"And how you got beaten up on the first day of school?"
The ground swayed and his owner spat more and more bad memories that echoed all around Neopia Central.
"B-but, haven't I been a good friend?"
His owner laughed and it echoed; it sounded like there were hundreds of her, all cackling around him.
"No. That's why you're going to the pound!"
She started laughing again and a cage door slid in front of him from nowhere; he turned around and he was in a cage at the pound where other faceless, darkened pets leered at him, pulling him down...
And still, his owner laughed at him on the other side of the cage, but she started changing - her normal brown eyes turned to concerned amber ones and her voice changed too, it sounded Irish and oddly familiar..
"Dhiablos!" she called out softly amid the laughter.
"Dhiablos.."

***

"Dhiablos!"
"nothepoundontsendmethere-ah!"
Dhiablos sat up, panting, his eyes wide.
"Are you ok? You were asleep and you were thrashing around."
Dhiablos stared straight ahead, trying to fathom what was going on. He felt cold and clammy.
"Did you have a bad dream or something?"
Dhiablos nodded, his eyes still wide.
"It's ok, it's over."
Dhiablos then realised that he was actually talking to someone. Roque was sitting on the ground with her hand on his shoulder.
They were in Neopia Central still, but it was night. Neopia Central was silent. There were leaning on a tree in the park.
"What was your dream about, are you ok?"
"I don't want to talk about it." he choked. "What happened?"
"You must have passed out, I waited for an hour and a half and you were on the floor."
Dhia nodded, as his memory started to catch up. He looked at his hands.
They were mutant.
'Green' thought his mind numbly.
He struggled for a few seconds to find a connection between 'green' and 'bathroom'.
Nothing. He must have hit his head pretty hard.
"Why am I green?" he thought aloud.
"The transmogrification potion?" said Roque, bewildered.
"Oh yeah.." said Dhia, remembering slowly.
The mirror. One last look. The sink. The potion. His teeth, his jaw, his hands, his fur, his horns...
"How do I look?" said Dhiablos sarcastically.
Roque struggled with herself.
She longed to say: 'You look totally and utterly handsome, and I really hope that you see me the same way as I see you.'
Instead, she shrugged. "Pretty good I guess." she said, feigning indifference.

[ultraviolet]

Roque tugged her hair nervously.
"You're sure you're alright?"
Dhiablos nodded, rubbing his eyes.
"Yeah, just a little - a little freaked out, that's all."
"What was it like?"
Dhiablos looked at her. Her eyes were wide.
"what?"
"Th-the transformation. What was it like?"
"The most terrible pain you could fathom, combined with the general all-round nausea of being on a dingy in Krawk Island's choppiest waters."
Roque giggled. "Not so great, I take it?"
"Not particularly." he said, shaking his head and smiling.
"So what do we do now?"
"Well, we'll go to the marketplace tomorrow morning."
"Why?"
"Your backpack was stolen. Anyway-"
"It was?!" Dhia interrupted.
"Yes, so we're going down tomorrow to get food and stuff. Besides, there's something I want to show you down there."
Dhiablos gave her a quizzical look.
"Just go to sleep, I'll tell you in the morning."
She turned around and lay down, facing away from him, wrapping her tail around her legs to keep them warm. Dhiablos sighed - it was going to take him a while to get to sleep. He stared at the stars. Two days ago, just Two days ago, he was in a neohome with an owner, a nice bed and anything he could have wanted.
Now, he was lying under a tree in the park with another runaway.
He turned over, facing Roque's back.
She was different - that was for sure. But why had she taken him under her wing? He wondered. He was just a city-kid, spoilt and rich until recently. She was a backwater street-theif. What could she possibly want with him?
Why was she so friendly?
This question plagued him throughout the night in his dreams.
Roque however, wondered about the total obliviousness of teenage males.

[ultraviolet]

Dhiablos slept badly that night. He felt nervous and queasy, not to mention a slight headache. Eventually, he did get to sleep, only to be woken a few hours later.
"Get up!"
Dhiablos groaned. Someone was shaking him roughly.
"Dhia, get up will you?"
He opened his eyes. Light flooded in, and Roque came into view. She frowned. "Get up."
Dhiablos closed his eyes again, he had a headache.
"S'time?"
"About six-thirty. Get up."
Dhiablos groaned again and sat up, massaging the back of his head wearily. Roque rolled her eyes.
"C'mon, we've gotta go shopping, remember?"
Dhiablos blinked. "Shopping? I'd hardly call it shopping."
"Fine. Taking. Stealing. Theivery. Borrowing for an exceptionally long period of time. Call it what you like." Roque stood up and crossed her arms. "The point is, we've gotta get going."
Dhiablos got up and they started walking towards the marketplace. "My head hurts," he said, still half-asleep.
"Most likely a side-effect. Explains the dark greyness under your eyes."
"Hnnh?"
"Don't worry."
They walked through the dewy grass and across the street, eventually to the markets.
"So what did you have in your backpack?"
Dhiablos scratched his head.
"Toothbrush, toothpaste, a change of clothes..erm..some money..oh yeah, and my ipod."
"Well you can kiss that ipod goodbye,-"
"what?!"
"-hey, there's no way I'm robbing an electrical store, they've got video cameras-"
Dhiablos groaned again.
"-I'm sure we could get you some more clothes and stuff."
"M'kay."

***

Dhiablos jammed the black hat onto his head, where it made his fur stick out in all directions.
"Whaddya think?"
Another pair of jeans, a longsleeved, blue shirt and a grey jacket several sizes too big made him look quite a lot different. Especially with the hat.
"You look like a city kid." she said, nodding. "Plus that jacket's got heaps of pockets. Where'd you get all this stuff?"
Dhiablos shrugged. "Some clothing store down there."
"Down where?"
"Down there-" Dhiablos pointed vaguely down the street. He was showing off all the stuff he'd nicked in a busy street. They'd split up and decided to meet there about twenty minutes ago.
"Not there, I hope."
"Uh.. why?"
"Did you?"
"uh.. maybe..?"
Roque slapped her hand to her forehead. "Come here."
"what?"
She pulled his arm back up there to the store, a small fashion shop occupied by a few browsing customers and the Korbat owner.
"I'm so sorry, Fly." said Roque to the korbat, still dragging Dhia behind her.
Fly, who was writing something down, looked up, her blonde curls framing her face.
"Huh?" she said, chewing bubblegum.
Dhia's first impression was of an absolute ditz - blonde curls, pink-bubblegum lipstick, pale blue eyes and completely self absorbed.
He noticed that what she was writing was in fact someone's initials inside a heart drawn in pink pen.
"My friend here stole something from your store - he's new, he didn't know."
Fly shrugged, now eyeing Dhia. "He might as well, seeing how we never get any sales anyway."
She waved a manicured hand towards the now-empty store.
"You may as well keep them, honey."
Dhia looked from Roque to Fly.
"Uh.. thanks."
"Anyway, this is Dhiablos-" said Roque, making quick introductions. "-he's a runaway. Dhia, this is Fly."
"-charmed." said Fly boredly, tapping her long, fake nails against the counter.

[ultraviolet]

"So when you say a new runaway," said Fly, now talking to Roque, "you mean that he's joining us, right?"
"Aye, I was going to take him down this afternoon."
All this went straight over Dhia's head. He shrugged and amused himself by checking out the store.
Fly grinned, showing slightly pointed, white teeth. "Gosh, I hardly talk to you at all anymore, we do need to catch up more often."
"Well I've got time now, wanna chat?"
Roque pulled up a chair and they started a girl's talk.
Dhiablos wandered around the shop aimlessly, but he couldn't help notice that Fly kept glancing over to him, and that Roque's voice was increasingly starting to sound as if she'd rather be anywhere but here.
"Girls." muttered Dhiablos, catching his reflection in a nearby mirror. Two dark grey patches were under his eyes. He rubbed. Nothing happened. He closed one eye. The patch started from the base of his eyelid down to his cheek. Must be a side-effect from the potion.
Finally, Roque said that she really had to be somewhere, and they headed out the store.
"Okay," Dhia said as soon as they got out the door, "Who was that and where are you taking me?"

***

Dhiablos was lost again. He felt like they'd been walking around for hours.
"Are we there yet?"
"I swear -" started Roque in a dangerously soft tone, "- if you ask me that one more time,-"
"Okay, okay.."
He shoved his hands in his pockets and kept following. It was about 2 o'clock now, and these streets were empty. Normally, he'd be at school still. What did he have on this time of day?
History? He was sure it was history.
He guessed it was, cos there was that cute wocky chick that sat in front of him in his history class, and-
"We're here." said Roque, breaking into Dhia's daydream.
"Huh - what? oh."
Roque went around behind the back of an old brick building, to an entrance downstairs, underground. She knocked, and the door opened.
A large, shabby room greeted their eyes, low-ceilinged, dimly lit and rather largley populated by pets. Most were sitting on couches, socializing, and others weren't so much - Dhia noted a Krawk in a dark corner, polishing an obsidian dagger lovingly. One thing he noticed most of all is that they were all like Roque - shabby-ish clothes with several expensive accesories, usually some sort of jacket or coat, and a rough, torn look to most of them.
"This," said Roque, "is the Neopia Central band of theives. We are the Central Serpents, if you want to be technical about it."
Dhia's mind did a quick turn of mental arithmetic before coming to a conclusion.
"You want me to join-?"
"We all look after each other here, it's where most of the runaways hide out."
"You said you were Neopia Central's-"
"-band of thieves? Yup, there's groups all over Neopia. If we get too crowded here you might get posted somewhere else."
"are they any different to here?"
"Depends, most of us are the same. Some lots are a lot more-" she paused, "-vile than others, but majority of it's just stealing."
Dhiablos frowned.
Roque crossed the room, waving to a few people she knew.

[Lilium]

Wow, I've noticed that this isn't the same no-good rotten Dhiablos that Arathyne wants to just tear to shreds. He seems like an innocent guy.

ARA: INNOCENT?!?! ARE YOU INSANE?!?!?! *yells profanities at Dhia*
ME: *drags Ara away*