Ciri eagerly accepted when she realized the conspiratorial gesture of Denisa, and then blushed a bit when she explained it. She didn't quite know how to feel about an illegal gift - but on the other hand: She'd stolen from him a short while ago when she made her ill-thought-out escape attempt, so she figured all things were equal. And besides: She cared deeply for him. He was a good man. And this girl seemed to be a good person too!


When she was asked if she wanted to come to her place next weekend, Ciri almost jumped for exitement, but did manage to contain herself before doing so. She didn't wanna seem "not cool", which she'd gathered from her pl...hanging out with Renata and the other girls was the worst thing one could be.
She did not eagerly at the suggestion, though: "I'd like that a lot", she said, her face all smiles. She hadn't exactly been "cooped up" in this cabin. She had free reign and could go see her friends, and everything else. But it was still quite a limited place in this little village. She had been completely overwhelmed the first time she was in the city, but she knew that this world had many cities and also ones larger than the one she'd been to. So if she was meant to survive here, she'd need to learn to cope with those places.

"Can I?", she asked Daniel eagerly, and when he answered "Sure, if she wants...but behave.", Ciri at first thought he was speaking to her.

"I will, I promise!", she grinned, only to then blush crimson when she realized he'd been speaking to Denisa. It was clear from the way the two talked that they had been close. In a sense, still were. It warmed her to see, in a sensse, because she realized that even once she grew up, she would likely still be able to count on him to be there for her. That made her relax a little bit more. She grapped a few snacks as the two talked, trying to figure Denisa out from her mannerisms and way of speaking, and it seemed pretty clear that she was, in fact, "cool".

"What....what do you do in that big city?", she asked her with interest. "And...and what's so cool about living there?"

Sipping sweet wine and munching on snacks, Denisa watches Ciri, thinking about all this. There is no likeness to good old blacksmith, but it also doesn't look like the girl would hate being here. There's something off about this, but in the end, she's not about to judge. Maybe keep an eye on the situation to possibly find out more?


"That's...a really wide question. But you can get food from all parts of the world, and meet people from all over. The shopping centers aren't just for shopping, there's a lot of other things to do there as well, and you'll always find enough people to do them with. Like go to concerts in the evenings and such. But really, it more depends what you want to do. I'm pretty sure you'll find people there to do it with."



"You forgot the big city anonymity." Daniel adds.


"Yeah, especially that one. Like...this..." Denisa waves her hand around. "Is nice. But there's like hundred people and most of them are old. And not very bright." Daniel lifts up a finger and opens his mouth to defend the village, before some examples of villager brain use march before his memory's eye and closes his mouth again.


"That's fair, I guess."



"And you know, the city...it's alive. It's not just a place, where people live, it has a soul of its own."

Ciri listened to Denisa's reply, and nodded. She saw something in the young woman's face that she didn't quite know what to do with. It wasn't quite suspicion, but...apprehension? Uncertainty? Of course it was staggeringly unlikely that she'd worked out the truth, but she didn't need to in order to cause trouble for them. Not maliciously, she didn't get the feeling that Denisa was malicious in any way, but asking the wrong sorts of questions could lead to...complications, she thought.

So she politely nodded to the answer given, then said:

"I'm looking forward to seeing it all.", before pretending to get a message on her phone, her hand reaching into her pocket and taking her phone out.

"Renata asks if I can come pl...hang out", she looked at Dan, the look in her eyes more one of "I'm going to get out of here before I give the game away". "I'll be back later", then fixed her facial expression, turned around and looked at Denisa with all the subterfuge which years at the Cintran court had taught her. "It was really nice to meet you", she smiled "I can't wait to see the city!" before she ruined her stratagem a little but by hurrying a little bit too much towards the front door.

Quickly grabbing her jacket and putting on her shoes, she rushed out the door and away from potentially uncomfortable questions. She got as far away from the house as possible, so they wouldn't be able to see her, but still kept well inside the confines of the village. She was not going to run away again. Instead, she wandered around, trying to get more of a feel for the place than she had so far. She'd more or less only known her house, Renata's house, and the road from one of those places to the other. Granted, the village wasn't big, but it was still more than the small part of it she'd seen so far. And if this place was to be her home, she should get to know it.

She took out her phone as she walked

"Sorry, just thought I'd get out of there before she became even more suspicious. I don't know what I did or said, but I'm sorry :( Taking a walk around the village", she wrote to Daniel, so he wouldn't worry about her pulling another stunt like the one she'd done a week earlier.

"Oh...okay, I guess? See ya later, then." Denisa shrugs, surprised by Ciri leaving all of a sudden on which she is pretty sure is a fake message. Daniel doesn't stop her, if she doesn't feel okay around here.


"That was weird..." Denisa stares at the spot where Ciri has been sitting.


"Eh, you didn't know my sis, did you? She was a bit off, but at least the kid is okay. If a bit strange. I don't think I ever told you how she picked up one day and went to live in some weird tribal colony in a forest. It's been long ago, and I didn't see her since. Probably some sectarian bullshit or something, but get this, she died and I'm the only living relative. Or at least known." He explains casually, while reading Ciri's message.


"It's fine, she's alright. And not suspicious." Daniel replies to Ciri, before putting the phone down again.



"So I ended with a kid of my sister's making. At least she's like, dunno, thirteen or fourteen, so we could skip the diaper and learning to talk part."




____________________________-


A week later, Daniel stops the car in front of Denisa's place for their agreed upon visit. He knows Denca is very much looking forward to this, and she definitely wants to interrogate Ciri on her past. Hopefully she doesn't forget any of the important info.


"Alright, Ciri, here we are. Behave, alright? So you don't have to come back to sore backside. I'm not sure what she's planning, she didn't tell me, but I'm pretty sure you'll like it. If anything, drop me a message or call." Her first couple days without Daniel's oversight. Hopefully it won't end in tears, though knowing Ciri, and especially Denisa, he probably should have a belt ready when she gets home.



At that point, Denca comes out of the tall building, all smiles.


"Oh, hello, come on, let's get you unpacked and we'll see where we go from there." She grins at Daniel. "I'll return her on Sunday, undamaged, promise."



"Yeah, yeah. Just keep an eye on her, don't let her get in trouble. I'll leave the rest to your discretion. You know how to deal with anything that might come up." With that, Daniel helps Ciri with her bag out of the car and leaves, slightly nervous, but in the end, he's leaving the girl in competent hands...


"So...welcome to my place. Come on in. Nobody else is home for the weekend, luckily, so we have whole place to ourselves. Let's party." She leads the way to the elevator and to their floor. "Here's my place. Excuse the mess." Denisa says, dropping her shoes and leading Ciri to her room. "Only got one bed, but it's wide enough for both of us, or I can sleep on the couch. Make yourself at home. Wanna snack?"

Ciri blushed a little when she read his text. She'd been sure that Denisa had been suspicious of her, and had therefore retreated to avoid exacerbating the problem.
It turned out she'd misread the situation completely. This time it had been fine...but what about next? She sent back a heart, and then wrote Renata and asked her if she wanted to hang out.

Late afternoon, approaching dinnertime, Ciri came back home and hugged him when she entered. "Sorry about earlier", she said. "I was sure that she was growing suspicious, so I thought it was best to retreat.", a little bit sheepishly. "I hope it didn't cause you too much trouble?"

____________________________________

Ciri had honestly been looking forward to this visit the whole week! She HAD gotten a good first impression of the girl. Yes, she was a grown-up. But a COOL grown-up. Someone who likely wouldn't be too hung up on stuff like "Bedtime" or stuff like that. So she'd been looking forward to a weekend off from rules - at least the most annoying ones.
She became slightly red in the face at his warning, but nodded. She had no intention of messing up here.
She was about to reply, when Denisa exited, and it was probably a good thing, as the remark she'd been about to make had involved eye-rolling. She smiled widely when she saw her, and grabbed her bags. She didn't run towards her and hugged her like she had Daniel, so that subtle difference was very much visible. She saw her more like a type of cool older sister than anything else.


When she entered the girl's apartment, she took a few minutes to look around. Yeah, it was different than the house, but not all in a bad way. Sure, it was more messy. But also good in another way. It was more...lively in some sense!
She had not at all heard the exchange between the two adults - or she would have frozen solid at his remark about how Denise knew how to "deal with anything that might come up". Ciri was a smart child, and would have been able to figure that meaning out instantaneously.

Fortunately - or unfortunately - that warning went unheard and therefore unrecognized.

She looked at Denisa when she said no one else was home, and smiled, grateful to be alone with her. But...who else would be here?

"So, your husband isn't home for the weekend?", she asked, then noticed that her host was not wearing a wedding ring the way people here seemed to do when they were married. "Or who else were you talking about?"

When they got to the guest room, Ciri immediately started "nesting", meaning unpacking her few things, changes of clothes etc. She had, of course, left the doll back at the house. Both because she did NOT want to lose it here. And because...well...she didn't want "her cool older sister" to know that she still liked dolls.

"Party?", she said with a mischievous grin when she'd finished unpacking, picking up on something Denisa had said earlier. "I'd love that. What did you have in mind?"

Her husband? Now there's a girl that presumes too much. Denisa laughs and shakes her head.


"No husbands here, my friend. Nah, just some other young people, we live together. It's cheaper that way and you get the company." Sometimes of cool people, sometimes of crackheads, but the latter seem to filtered out as one ages. Of course Ciri picks up on the party.



"Hmmm...we can hit the streets, though most fun places are only eighteen plus, so you won't be getting inside. And Dan was extremely specific about some of the places that don't enforce this rule. But I have a friend at lasergame place, if you'd be up for it..." Realizing Ciri probably has no idea, she brings up a video on her phone to show her what happens there.


"There are some music shows too, depends on what kind of music you like. And like...I'm trying to think of something suitable for your age, but generally friday evenings don't really provide that." She knows plenty places, all at least sixteen plus. "Ooor I can make your hair different color and we'll see what Dan will have to say about that. It's...mostly safe, I'd say. I'll say it was my idea if there's trouble."

*Ciri frowned a little at being told that she was too young for the cool places, but she didn't want to start trouble over it, so she let it lie. Two ideas resonated with her, however. The lasergame and the coloring of hair!
She tried to appear less eager than she really was when she watched the video, and didn't have much success, but nodded her agreement. "This looks like fun!", she announced, being fairly certain that the skills of stealth that Geralt and Vesemir taught her would also come in handy here, even though the weapons were not blades. And coloring her hair differently? That could be even MORE fun! The look on Daniel's face!

"Sounds good!", she repeated, and waited for her to take the lead on the plans.

Once they exited the building, Ciri involuntarily reached for the girl's hand without noticing it, again feeling slightly overwhelmed by the gigantic surroundings which would put even Novigrad to shame size-wise. Everything was so gigantic here. She made sure to stick close to Denisa, but when they finally arrived at the laser game place, she was very exited!
She paid very close attention when the instructor showed her what to do. The "weapon" felt cumbersome and clumsy in her hands, but she very quickly grasped its concept. It was modelled losely after a real weapon which functioned not quite unlike a crossbow. She'd never shot a crossbow, but she understood the concept, of course.


When they were let loose in the hall, Ciri understood the game very well. There were several obstacles and boxes and other things to serve as cover to hide behind. It was, essentially, a tracker's game. Where was your opponent?
Ciri had not taken any mutagens. She had not undergone the trial of the grasses. The potions that would have increased her senses would not work on her, and she didn't have any, regardless.
What she did have, was patience, speed, and agility. And a sense of hearing which Geralt and Vesemir had trained her to use pretty well. She managed to abstract from most noises - including some strange metallic sound which seemed to come from all around them, and some strange music too. She could not do this perfectly, but she could do it well enough, at first, to track Denisa's movements like she was a deer and Ciri was a wolf.

She snuck up behind her, aimed the gun at the spot the instructor had pointed out, and pulled the trigger, setting off a noise that told her she'd done it. She giggled loudly in triumph

That kid really must be overwhelmed by the city noises to stick so close to her and even hold her hand. It's hard to imagine for Denisa, for whom this is natural habitat, but she doesn't object. Part because it's cute and part because the girl clearly needs some support.



But it's clear she doesn't need support when it comes to playing the game, and where Denisa expected an easy win over kid who doesn't know better than to charge forward, she's in for a surprise. All of a sudden, that child turns out to be a silent, almost invisible hunter. What the fuck. The fogmachines hide her movement, and music hides her sounds. She has a nasty habit of appearing right behind her and shooting her in the back.



It's only her superior knowledge of the game and of the arena that keeps her from even more humiliating defeat. She has to resist the urge of camping in a corner somewhere, and in the end, the score doesn't look great for Denisa.



"Well, fuck. Where did you learn moves like that?" She asks when another group goes in and she has a much needed beer outside the arena. Dan said her mother was a weirdo, but now it looks more like her mother was some sort of special forces weirdo. Her thighs hurt from moving crouched for the last fifteen minutes.


"You should try airsoft, y'know. With how you can hide, you'll be an instant star."

Ciri giggled a bit at the praise. She took a few moments, though, to consider her response. "My...my mom taught me to move in the forests", she said cautiously, hoping to hide her BS behind the supposed trauma. "Stalking animals to come close enough to hunt them", she went on, and gave herself the thousand-mile-stare for a moment, before she shook her head to pretend to try to shake it off and return to normal.



"Anyway, what's that airsoft-thing you talk about?", she asked, hoping that the change of subject would draw Denisa's attention away from how apparently exceptionally good she was at this thing. Not knowing, of course, that she was accomplishing the exact opposite.

When they were eventually done, she felt full of confidence, more so than when they'd gotten there. Not stupid, obviously. She wasn't going to run off because she saw something shiny. She had already understood pretty well that the horseless carriages could be fatal if one got in front of them. And that cities were prime places to get lost, she knew already. This place just cranked that knowledge up to 173,24. But she did not almost cower like she had before, nor hold Denisa's hand as they left. "So...how do you color your hair?", she asked. "I mean...I assume it's possible but I don't see how? It's not like there's magic that can do it for you", she chuckled, in the way that could be construed as slightly suspicious, without Ciri realizing it.

"And....and what color?", she asked out loud, but the tone of her voice showed that she actually really meant to ask herself. She had no idea what would be a good color for her. Black like Yennefer? Red like Triss? She was very much unsure. "What do you think?", she asked eagerly, looking up at her with wide, trusting eyes. It was clear that she was looking for a female role model to emulate. And Denisa had just introduced herself as the prime candidate.

That looks like it has been a wrong question. Not that the answer doesn't provoke even more questions, but at this point, Denisa is perfectly okay not knowing the answer. So she welcomes the change to something else. After a short explanation what airsoft is, and another round of getting her score forever ruined in this place, they leave and get around to hair color. Denisa stares for a bit. Did she expect green is her natural color? By now, she doesn't even remember what her natural color was, but it definitely wasn't green.


"Well, there's colors that can change the color of your hair. I've got a bunch of them. It's a bit of a lengthy process, and very messy, but it's worth it. I do it a lot." Possibly more often that'd be good for her hair. She needs to think what color would be best for Ciri, and balance it with shock value for Dan. Did he think that just because she didn't steal any small worthless item and leave it in the mailbox this time, he can get away without some prank?


'I've got red, blue, green and black. We can even combine them, like do one part that color, the other different. I'd go with blue, but it's your hair, so you should decide. Imagine how others will stare. And Dan'll have a fit." She's about eighty five percent sure he won't punish Ciri, though he might send a sharply worded message to herself. A tattoo or a piercing would definitely be a problem.


"But don't worry, it will wash out after some time, so you won't be stuck with for the rest of time, in case you don't like the end result."



When they get home, she grabs her colors and sets them in front of Ciri so she can pick.