The group did not find any problem as they rushed through the staff area. Some of the staff did seem to find it odd to find the group where they did not belong, but those who did point that out did nothing to stop them. Some of them even appeared to have recognized Kara, but again, no one caused any trouble. Soon the group managed to leave the station and was now on the side road that gave access to the cargo area.
"Where are we?", asked Kara.
"Back access area for cargo. There should be fewer people here than in front of the station. Especially fans."
"Well, ok. As long as we get to the shopping area fast, I don't mind."
"Yeah. Speaking of that. Even with the many different decoy groups we used, we are bound to find fans around the shopping area. Are you sure you can't let your crew handle the shopping for you?"
"What? That again? No! I must hand pick what I buy. Don't want other people handling my things or my money, without my presence. Besides, it is your job to handle the fans, and it's not like I mind signing a few autographs."
"Yeah, that's not really the issue here.", said Libbier recalling the chaos that unfolded at the station when the train arrived, "Let's just hope the amount of fans that appear is manageable. Anyway, let us not stay in the same place for too long, it may call unwanted attention."
"Yes. Onward to the shopping district.", said Kara with great enthusiasm.
As they made their way to the shopping district, Libbier could not fail to notice how Kara was skipping around as she hummed some music Libbier did not know. Libbier hoped this behavior was just a reflection of how excited her client was, and that it would die down with time, but as they came closer to the main shopping area, where with no doubt there would be a lot of people, Kara only seemed to get more energetic.
It was surprising how carefree Kara seemed for someone that went to the trouble of hiring a mage for an escort. Libbier could not tell if she was completely oblivious or she had that much trust on the guild. Not that it mattered, it was all the same for Libbier, but still, this kind of reasoning could spell trouble if she was unable to lay low.
"Will you please calm down? We are arriving at our destination. If you keep drawing attention to yourself, melding with the crowd will be pointless. Or worse, it will just get us surrounded by more of your crazy fans."
"They are not crazy.", replied Kara, "They are just devout, who do not want to miss a chance to get my autograph."
"Or a piece of you.", muttered Libbier.
"What?"
"Nothing. Just thinking to myself."
"Hey! You are being paid for your services, but that doesn't mean you need to be so uptight about everything. Enjoy this a little."
"I'm not here to enjoy anything. If it was up to me, I wou..."
"Would rather be cleaning floors. Yeah, yeah, I heard you the first time."
"Not exactly what I said, but true nonetheless."
"You creep me out sometimes you know that?"
"We do not know each other long enough for that statement to have meaning."
Kara rolled her eyes.
As they arrived at the main road, where many people went on with their lives, and shopping. No one seemed to take notice of them. Libbier turned to warn Kara once again, before stepping into the crowd.
"Just don't do anything that would lure attention onto us."
"Sir! Yes, Sir!", said Kara sarcastically while performing a salute.
Only a few meters until they reached the corner, and then they would meld with the crowd, hence using the sheer amount of people to hide Kara in plain sight. Only someone that was actively searching for her and knew where to look would be able to recognize her face amongst the see of people. But as they got closer, Libbier noticed a weird smoke coming from right around the corner.
"Wait!", snapped Libbier.
"What now?", said Kara, "Come on, let's go. I don't have all day you know?"
"Just wait a moment. A few seconds won't matter now."
"You would think so, wouldn't you? I make more money in one hour than you could in a month."
Libbier ignored her client and went alone to the corner. As she arrived, she could not see any fire or any source of smoke for that matter. But she did see a group of fans rushing towards them. Thank god, Libbier decided to leave Kara behind, if they had entered the street with those fans that close by, they would have been found in an instant.
"So what is the problem? Let's go!"
Libbier was startled as she saw her client so close. Kara had also ignored Libbier and followed her up to the corner, and was now right behind Libbier, looking around over her shoulder. The fans were too close and if for some stupid reason any of them decided to look to the alley at that moment, Kara would be found. Libbier just reacted, taking off her muffler and throwing it over her client.
"Hey! What's the big idea?"
"If you don't want to be found do not move and stay quiet."
The fans moved quickly, in hopes of finding Kara as soon as possible, and as such, they gave little notice to the commotion in the alley and passed by without incident. Libbier still watched as they walked away when Kara threw the muffler back.
"Are you trying to suffocate me?", she said as she entered the street, "If you don't want to go, I will go!"
Kara walked right in the middle of the street, then turned around.
"See? Nothing happened. Now, come on!", she said while taking the lead.
"This is going to be a long day indeed.", thought Libbier, still wondering where that smoke came from.
Kara went ahead, with Libbier right behind, and the crew picking up the pace to catch up. Libbier was trying to check the surroundings as she went along. Although, there was just not enough time for her to prepare entirely for that kind of surveillance. Not alone. And Kara was not an easy one to protect either. She seemed more interested in shopping than staying hidden.
"Can't you slow down?", asked Libbier.
"I can. Doesn't mean I will.", Kara replied.
"Really? Why did you hire me to protect you, if you do not want to listen to me?"
Kara stopped and then turned around to face Libbier.
"I did not want to hire you. I was convinced that I needed to hire bodyguards. Hiring you was a way to heed to that advice."
"Then will you lis..."
"Tell you what."
"... Why do I feel I won't like this?"
"*Giggle* Cause you won't.", Kara pointed at some girls leaving a nearby store, "I'm going to walk up to those girls, ask them where there's a good fashion store nearby. You have to convince them not to go around screaming who and where I am. Do that and I will do what you tell me to for the rest of the day."
"You make it sound easy. What's the catch?"
"If you fail, I will be forced to back to the train station and leave. Isn't that what you wanted at first? It's a win-win scenario."
"Not, since I won't get paid if that happens."
"One can't have everything."
Libbier pondered for a few seconds. But quickly came to a conclusion.
"Either this ends right now or you make things easier for me. Sounds fair to me, and I like the challenge. Very well, I will do it."
"This is going to be good.", said Kara with excitement, as she walked towards the girls.
"This assignment has reached new levels.", thought Libbier.
Kara approached the three teenagers so casually that Libbier couldn't even tell if she was aware of her own celebrity status or not. The moment Kara called out to them, the girls freaked out. But before they had time to scream out Kara's name, Libbier intervened, placing herself between Kara and the three teenagers.
"OI! You three have two choices and have to choose quick. Scream out and never see us again. Or, calm down, take a deep breath, answer a few questions from her.", said Libbier pointing to Kara, as to avoid saying her name out loud, "Who knows, if you behave, you might get an autograph in the end. So how will it be?"
Almost immediately, the three girls placed their hands over their mouths, as to cover the screams of excitement.
"Well I guess that takes care of that small detail.", said Kara, "So do you girls know what is the best place for shopping around here?"
"Clothes. Best place for shopping for clothes. This is the shopping district, you should be more specific in this kind of situations."
The three girls looked at each other as if they were discussing the answer, but it seemed it was a unanimous decision, as the three of them said in unison.
"Maria's Tailoring certainly."
"See, hey understood what I wanted."
"Why is that place the best one?", inquired Libbier.
"Well, you have an amazing choice of styles and types, and even if you find something you like but does not fit you, they can tailor a custom size one.", said the first girl on the right.
"That sounds expensive."
"Just what I was looking for. How do I get there?"
"You can go straight down the road from here, and you will find it. It's impossible to miss.", said the girl in the middle, almost bursting from excitement.
"Good. Let's go then.", said Kara as she turned into the direction she was given.
"Aren't you forgetting something?", said an annoyed Libbier, "I said these girls they would get an autograph at the end, and you said you would do what I told you."
"Fine.", replied Kara as she turned back and began signing what the girls gave her to sign, "I was planning on giving them an autograph regardless."
"Sure you were."
"Omg, omg, omg, ermahgerd!", began the girls, before Libbier stepped in.
"What did I say about what would happen if you didn't behave?"
The girls covered their mouths again but still could not stop jumping around.
(word count: 1751)
"Where are we?", asked Kara.
"Back access area for cargo. There should be fewer people here than in front of the station. Especially fans."
"Well, ok. As long as we get to the shopping area fast, I don't mind."
"Yeah. Speaking of that. Even with the many different decoy groups we used, we are bound to find fans around the shopping area. Are you sure you can't let your crew handle the shopping for you?"
"What? That again? No! I must hand pick what I buy. Don't want other people handling my things or my money, without my presence. Besides, it is your job to handle the fans, and it's not like I mind signing a few autographs."
"Yeah, that's not really the issue here.", said Libbier recalling the chaos that unfolded at the station when the train arrived, "Let's just hope the amount of fans that appear is manageable. Anyway, let us not stay in the same place for too long, it may call unwanted attention."
"Yes. Onward to the shopping district.", said Kara with great enthusiasm.
As they made their way to the shopping district, Libbier could not fail to notice how Kara was skipping around as she hummed some music Libbier did not know. Libbier hoped this behavior was just a reflection of how excited her client was, and that it would die down with time, but as they came closer to the main shopping area, where with no doubt there would be a lot of people, Kara only seemed to get more energetic.
It was surprising how carefree Kara seemed for someone that went to the trouble of hiring a mage for an escort. Libbier could not tell if she was completely oblivious or she had that much trust on the guild. Not that it mattered, it was all the same for Libbier, but still, this kind of reasoning could spell trouble if she was unable to lay low.
"Will you please calm down? We are arriving at our destination. If you keep drawing attention to yourself, melding with the crowd will be pointless. Or worse, it will just get us surrounded by more of your crazy fans."
"They are not crazy.", replied Kara, "They are just devout, who do not want to miss a chance to get my autograph."
"Or a piece of you.", muttered Libbier.
"What?"
"Nothing. Just thinking to myself."
"Hey! You are being paid for your services, but that doesn't mean you need to be so uptight about everything. Enjoy this a little."
"I'm not here to enjoy anything. If it was up to me, I wou..."
"Would rather be cleaning floors. Yeah, yeah, I heard you the first time."
"Not exactly what I said, but true nonetheless."
"You creep me out sometimes you know that?"
"We do not know each other long enough for that statement to have meaning."
Kara rolled her eyes.
As they arrived at the main road, where many people went on with their lives, and shopping. No one seemed to take notice of them. Libbier turned to warn Kara once again, before stepping into the crowd.
"Just don't do anything that would lure attention onto us."
"Sir! Yes, Sir!", said Kara sarcastically while performing a salute.
Only a few meters until they reached the corner, and then they would meld with the crowd, hence using the sheer amount of people to hide Kara in plain sight. Only someone that was actively searching for her and knew where to look would be able to recognize her face amongst the see of people. But as they got closer, Libbier noticed a weird smoke coming from right around the corner.
"Wait!", snapped Libbier.
"What now?", said Kara, "Come on, let's go. I don't have all day you know?"
"Just wait a moment. A few seconds won't matter now."
"You would think so, wouldn't you? I make more money in one hour than you could in a month."
Libbier ignored her client and went alone to the corner. As she arrived, she could not see any fire or any source of smoke for that matter. But she did see a group of fans rushing towards them. Thank god, Libbier decided to leave Kara behind, if they had entered the street with those fans that close by, they would have been found in an instant.
"So what is the problem? Let's go!"
Libbier was startled as she saw her client so close. Kara had also ignored Libbier and followed her up to the corner, and was now right behind Libbier, looking around over her shoulder. The fans were too close and if for some stupid reason any of them decided to look to the alley at that moment, Kara would be found. Libbier just reacted, taking off her muffler and throwing it over her client.
"Hey! What's the big idea?"
"If you don't want to be found do not move and stay quiet."
The fans moved quickly, in hopes of finding Kara as soon as possible, and as such, they gave little notice to the commotion in the alley and passed by without incident. Libbier still watched as they walked away when Kara threw the muffler back.
"Are you trying to suffocate me?", she said as she entered the street, "If you don't want to go, I will go!"
Kara walked right in the middle of the street, then turned around.
"See? Nothing happened. Now, come on!", she said while taking the lead.
"This is going to be a long day indeed.", thought Libbier, still wondering where that smoke came from.
Kara went ahead, with Libbier right behind, and the crew picking up the pace to catch up. Libbier was trying to check the surroundings as she went along. Although, there was just not enough time for her to prepare entirely for that kind of surveillance. Not alone. And Kara was not an easy one to protect either. She seemed more interested in shopping than staying hidden.
"Can't you slow down?", asked Libbier.
"I can. Doesn't mean I will.", Kara replied.
"Really? Why did you hire me to protect you, if you do not want to listen to me?"
Kara stopped and then turned around to face Libbier.
"I did not want to hire you. I was convinced that I needed to hire bodyguards. Hiring you was a way to heed to that advice."
"Then will you lis..."
"Tell you what."
"... Why do I feel I won't like this?"
"*Giggle* Cause you won't.", Kara pointed at some girls leaving a nearby store, "I'm going to walk up to those girls, ask them where there's a good fashion store nearby. You have to convince them not to go around screaming who and where I am. Do that and I will do what you tell me to for the rest of the day."
"You make it sound easy. What's the catch?"
"If you fail, I will be forced to back to the train station and leave. Isn't that what you wanted at first? It's a win-win scenario."
"Not, since I won't get paid if that happens."
"One can't have everything."
Libbier pondered for a few seconds. But quickly came to a conclusion.
"Either this ends right now or you make things easier for me. Sounds fair to me, and I like the challenge. Very well, I will do it."
"This is going to be good.", said Kara with excitement, as she walked towards the girls.
"This assignment has reached new levels.", thought Libbier.
Kara approached the three teenagers so casually that Libbier couldn't even tell if she was aware of her own celebrity status or not. The moment Kara called out to them, the girls freaked out. But before they had time to scream out Kara's name, Libbier intervened, placing herself between Kara and the three teenagers.
"OI! You three have two choices and have to choose quick. Scream out and never see us again. Or, calm down, take a deep breath, answer a few questions from her.", said Libbier pointing to Kara, as to avoid saying her name out loud, "Who knows, if you behave, you might get an autograph in the end. So how will it be?"
Almost immediately, the three girls placed their hands over their mouths, as to cover the screams of excitement.
"Well I guess that takes care of that small detail.", said Kara, "So do you girls know what is the best place for shopping around here?"
"Clothes. Best place for shopping for clothes. This is the shopping district, you should be more specific in this kind of situations."
The three girls looked at each other as if they were discussing the answer, but it seemed it was a unanimous decision, as the three of them said in unison.
"Maria's Tailoring certainly."
"See, hey understood what I wanted."
"Why is that place the best one?", inquired Libbier.
"Well, you have an amazing choice of styles and types, and even if you find something you like but does not fit you, they can tailor a custom size one.", said the first girl on the right.
"That sounds expensive."
"Just what I was looking for. How do I get there?"
"You can go straight down the road from here, and you will find it. It's impossible to miss.", said the girl in the middle, almost bursting from excitement.
"Good. Let's go then.", said Kara as she turned into the direction she was given.
"Aren't you forgetting something?", said an annoyed Libbier, "I said these girls they would get an autograph at the end, and you said you would do what I told you."
"Fine.", replied Kara as she turned back and began signing what the girls gave her to sign, "I was planning on giving them an autograph regardless."
"Sure you were."
"Omg, omg, omg, ermahgerd!", began the girls, before Libbier stepped in.
"What did I say about what would happen if you didn't behave?"
The girls covered their mouths again but still could not stop jumping around.
(word count: 1751)
