Free City, Truce - Fountain
A tiered fountain marks the center of Truce, water gushing from its
summit and trickling into a deep, wide basin, wrapped by a ring of benches.
Roads flow like rivers away from the fountain, and houses sprout like weeds
all around them. Not far to the east, the ocean roars in the harbor.

Crossroads stared down into the fountain's waters seeing the glint of what she was certain was a piece of gold. Part of her was wordering if she could manage to climb in and grab the shiny piece of metal taunting her before anyone like the local police noticed her and gave her community service.

The subtle sound of padded feet brushing against stone comes in from the southern avenue leading up to the fountain, as Kyuubey himself strolls on in, nonchalant in his demeanor as always. He pauses next to the fountain, looking up toward Crossroads on the other side of said structure, all without disposing of words or pleasantries. Staring seems to be his thing, one could guess. The light glints off the not-cat's bright red irises, making them flash unintentionally and in strange contradiction to his erstwhile-level disposition.

Seeing no one around, Crossroads slipped off her sandals and placed them at the edge of the fountain. The plan was simple. Climb in, grab the piece of gold and whatever silver she could pick up, and quickly run back befor anyone noticed. She swung her legs over and dipped her feet in, gritting her teeth at the chill. With one last look to make sure things were clear, she stood up and made a break for it, splashing noisily as she went.

Crossroads plunged her hands into the water with a grin. That piece of gold was hers! All hers! She couldn't even feel bad about taking it. Sure this was some persons wish, but it had to be the wish of some rich bastard for them to be tossing a perfectly good piece of gold! They had money to spare. Why should they need to make a wish.

Her hands wrapped around her target and she immediately frowned at its texture. Crossroads pulled it up out of the water and stared at her trophy, shoulders sagging. All that just for a golden bottle cap.

Off to one side, with her face buried in an open book as she sleeps, Twilight Sparkle rolls over onto her other side, before yawning and getting to her hooves. "...m-mh. Must've been really tired, if I slept that long..."

Kyuubey still remains seated on the other side of the fountain, watching all this without saying a thing. Despite the peculiarity of the situation, it wasn't his place to judge; people went swimming all the time. Though he did think that Crossroads could've chosen a less public, and perhaps wider location with more water available.

Kyuubey glanced past Crossroads and the fountain, toward the north end where the suburbs lay. Not seeing what he wanted, however, he returned his attention to Crossroads, blinking a single time and apparently waiting to be noticed, as opposed to announcing his presence.

Crossroads sighed and tossed the piece of trash back into the fountain. She made her way back to the spot she left her sandals with a disgusted look upon her face. She didn't even think to go after the bits of silver she passed by on the way back. When she reached the fountain's edge she grabbed hold of her sandals and pulled herself out of the water. Sliding them back on despite her dripping wet feet.

Twilight Sparkle turns to watch Crossroads, raising an eyebrow and yawning again. "Uh... What are you doing?"

Kyuubey looks upon Twilight only a moment, then gets to his feet, hopping up right afterward to the fountain's basin rim. He pads along the edge toward Crossroads, sitting down nearby and clearing his throat. "Excuse me, dear. Is Tyrranis around at all, that you're aware of? I wish to announce that I've completed my task and returned with some degree of success." The formal tone in his voice is oddly proud-sounding, and he doesn't make mention to what he'd just witnessed. The reasoning is anyone's guess.

Crossroads' back straightens as she is asked what she is doing. She looks around for the source, half expecting to be written up and given community service but instead she saw... a horse. Before she could respond though, she heard the familiar voice of Kyuubey. She turned to the cat, "Tyrranis isn't around. Sorry. He is still recovering from the fight with a witch." Besides a gigantos was a bit hard to miss. If he was around, he probably would have easily been spotted. "He had you doing a task?" Crossroads asked, raising an eyebrow.

Shrugging indifferently, Twilight Sparkle closes the discarded book with her magic, levitating it into a saddlebag and trotting closer to listen.

"A request? A task in its own right. The discrepencies are semantical, at best." Kyuubey shifts, standing up only to sit back down, curling his tail around his feet and looking up at Crossroads, though a subtle dart to the corner of his eyes and back again indicate that he's away of Twilight's presence, too.

"Either way, yes. He seemed a bit humbled by your current situation, to which I was sent to go find aid. Assuming your locations to be one in the same, I could just as easily deposit my findings upon you, if this is acceptable. I trust it will be met with the same reaction, regardless of the 'who' or 'where'. Kyuubey doesn't seem inclined to bother explaining. Communication between those that live together is important, anyway; it's not HIS fault.

Crossroads eyes the pony as it trots over, "Uh, Sorry horsey. I don't have any carrots." She said, then looked back to Kyuubey with a frown, "Our situation?" She wasn't sure if she wanted to be accepting any more aid from this cat. Past experience indicated that this was not the best of plans. She reached up and scratched the back of her head. "Well, we are all living together right now. I have no idea what it is he asked you for though."

"Why would I be asking for something to eat...? I don't get it." Twilight Sparkle just shrugs again, looking between Cross and Kyuubey with a curious expression. "Besides, even if it doesn't exactly concern me... I'm just here to listen, and learn new things."

"No? That's not good to know. If you're living together, you should make sure to keep each other up-to-date. And as far your 'situation', I was referring to your currency recession, according to Tyrranis. Apparently things have not been going well for you since your return from Viorar; I only wished to prevent... unwarranted stress." Kyuubey leans forward somewhat, glancing westward as if remembering something, then shakes his head. "Though I'm not fully aware of your regards toward me at this time, I can assure you that I have done this in your best interest. And you know Tyrranis, too; he would not have asked if he did not think it a helpful notion, either."

"So in other words..." Crossroads tilted her head to the side, glancing again at the horse. There was a word for this. "You're being nosey then? Its a bit rude to listen in on people's conversations, isn't it?" She turned her attention back to the cat. The fact that she was being listened in on was making her uncomfortable. Matters like this were personal and should be kept private! "I see..." She was a bit torn at the moment. While she didn't trust Kyuubey and thought this had to be a trap, she trusted Tyrranis.

Twilight says 'Well, yes. I suppose it is, but then again, I'm - and I'll admit this - really bad at interacting socially, even if I am trying to get better at it. I will say that it could be a lot worse, since I could've commented on everything I'm hearing right now. I know better than that, though, so I'll just leave.'

Sighing softly, and pressing both ears against the top of her head, Twilight Sparkle slowly trots away with a sad expression. "I'm sorry to have eavesdropped like this, even if I was just curious..."

Kyuubey looks over one furry shoulder at Twilight for a moment or two, as she wanders away. Where in the world were all these ponies coming from, lately? Goodness. He doesn't say anything, though, but turns back to Crossroads, with a nod. "I'll take that sign of acknowledgement to indicate that you are not opposed to accepting the proverbial fruits of my labor." Kyuubey stands again, and seems to stare straight ahead, through and past Crossroads entirely.

A sharp -crack!- issues from immediately above his head, as the literal fabric of space is visually ripped open, not unlike a sheet of paper made out of the very air itself being torn down the middle. A dark, charged portal opens up from this tear, and from it appears... a large, tightly-bound sack! Easily three times Kyuubey's size. The sack droops as gravity takes effect on its weight once leaving the portal's gate. It drops to the ground in front of the cat-thing with a loud -jingle!- of collected coin, settling as it rests on the ground. Simultaneously, the portal snaps closed, with an equally-loud crack of ruptured energy. In this, Kyuubey stands where he is, now looking up at Cross in expectation.

"Well, lesson learned right? Take what knowlege you have aquired and apply it to the future." Crossroads told the departing pony. She remembered coming here herself and having to brush up on what this world considered good etiquette, though much of it she had found silly. Like why should anyone not burp if they have to? Before she could say anything else a loud crack interupted her thoughts and she turned back to see the world literally being ripped open. For a moment she thought she should bolt for safety, but then Crossroads' eyes widened as she saw the sack appear and drop with the sweet sound of rattling coin.

"Uh..." Her mouth hung agape. Was that what she thought it was? Truely. Her hand reached for the sack slowly, almost not believing that it was sitting there for her waiting for her to take it. Luckily Crossroads came to her senses before she did. "What's that catch? Where did this come from? What do you want in return?"

Kyuubey looks down at the sack, then at Crossroads again. "There's a note for you, inside of it, right on top. Take a look, it should explain everything rather well."

Crossroads glances between Kyuubey and the bag with uncertainty for a moment. Surely nothing bad was going to happen if she touched it. It certainly didn't mean she was accepting this after all. She slowly opened up the bag and peered inside, pulling out the piece of paper.

The paper Crossroads finds is merely that; a sheet of paper, folded in quarters so as to fit into the sake without bunching too much. Still, it is a bit ruffled from the trip. On its interior is very little in the way of profession; just names, lots of them. At least several dozen, all scrawled out in different handwriting styles, on random spots upon said paper. Amidst all of these random names she's likely never seen before, four may pop out at her in particular, should her eyes come to notice them: "Kyrk", a very fancy 'Molly', and some heart-accented 'Rae Beth' and 'May Ann'.

Under the 'note', as could be assume, is filled with all assortments of gold and silver coins: all real, and apparently put together for the new recipient in front of which the bag sits.

"Kyuubey, what is this?" Crossroads asked as her eyes fell upon some of the more familiar signatures written on the piece of paper.

"Contributors to your plight." Kyuubey looks pleased with himself, but then, being a cat, this is his usual look. "Everyone I came across pitched in, to ensure that you are able to keep fighting. You can't endure if you can't accommodate yourself. There's plenty of money in the world, plenty enough to share for those who have little or none."

Crossroads looked back down at the piece of paper in shock. All of these people? She didn't even know who half of them were and they were willing to pitch in and help out a complete stranger. She was touched and didn't know what exactly to say to this for a long time. She just simply stared down at the paper reading the names over and over again before finally she said, "W-would you thank them for me?"

"They are your comrades; each and every one of them a contracted individual that yet lives to continue the fight, as you do. I will thank them if you request it of me, though it is likely unnecessary. You have allies in more places than you realize, and for more than combat situationals." Kyuubey blinks once, tail wafting lightly.

Kyuubey says 'Prove yourself as you have, and you will be proven to, when your hour of need arises. This is the way the world works, is it not? Or so I have heard, anyway.'

Crossroads smiles, refolding the paper and tucking it into her pocket. "Please do. Their generosity is appreciated and I think they should know that it is." Though she had to admit it was a bit awkward having so many other people know she was broke and jobless right now.

"Then I will do so. In the meantime, keep up the good work. You never know when danger will surface again, and you must always be on guard. Please inform Tyrranis and Lorastine of what has transpired tonight, too, so that you are on equal footing in terms of knowledge." He looks up at her, eyes shining in the way they typically do. Mischief? Maybe. Smugness? Always.

Crossroads took hold of the sack of coins, "Yeah, I'll let them know." She'd especially have to thank Tyr for asking Kyuubey too. With this money, she could let go of some of the stress she had been feeling lately. And she didn't have to go coin fishing in the fountain either. Things were looking up a little.

Kyuubey says 'Tyrranis has informed me of a companion that has taken up residence within your domicile. It seems she was a welcome addition after Tyrranis chose a nearly-unwise battle to immerse himself in; does she yet remain with you, as he stated she does?'
Action forced.

This act of curiosity seems a little out of place for the suddenness of it, but then again, Kyuubey always did have a capacity for questions, both in asking and answering.

Crossroads tilts her head slightly, "Oh! You mean Aemilia? Yeah she is staying with us now. She's very nice, and she has some knowlege in first aid which the three of us were all severely lacking." She pauses briefly, "Unwise battle?" from what he had told her, it hadn't seemed as though Tyr had the option to come find her or Lora. Though she really hadn't gotten many details as to what happened.

"Picking and choosing one's fights is crucial for survival. Even Tyrranis can prove a little too headstrong, at times. Regardless of danger, there is always the option to seek help. Better a delayed Witch's destruction than an early warrior's grave, I would assume. Occasionally, it may be necessary to utilize the lesser of two evils, if it guarantees survival." With that, Kyuubey turns and bounds away, leaving the sack of coinage behind in Crossroads' care.