After Noct saved the girl from what might have been a very dangerous situation, the events that then came next went exactly as he wanted to. To his utter delight, he knew immediately after speaking with her that she was simply too naive and too easily fooled, an ideal victim that any thief could ask for. His grin grew wider and wider and his excitement increased as he thought about the reward he was about to get in a few moment's time.
Ah, what an extremely easy steal!
Right after introducing himself and offering his assistance to the strange silver-eyed maiden, Noct almost couldn't believe his fortune when he saw how easily she had accepted his help. After all, people would normally be more guarded and cautious in front of a stranger, especially one they had just met for the first time. Much more, even, in accepting any sudden offers they made. She, however, was obviously a different case. With only a slight look of hesitation that Noct had noticed from the corner of his eye, she had agreed almost foolishly to the point where he almost wondered where the fun was in stealing from such an easy prey. Though it was not that Noct complained, however. In fact, it just meant that his work would be easier. Right now his mind was entirely focused in tricking her with his false hospitality.
Stupid girl, he mocked.
As he led her through the wobbling crowd and towards the general direction of the inns where the girl had asked to be taken to, he couldn't help but feel a sudden and slight uncertainty that had been brought by her presence beside him. It was a feeling he had only noticed after spending time with her. As each moment passed with the girl, not only did Noct find her appearance unusual, there was a strange kind of atmosphere that surrounded her at the same time as well. An unsettling one, he noted, that seemed to come from the constant blank look on her face and the way that her eyes had seemed to look as though they were looking at something that was not entirely there. Or, perhaps, it might have been just his imagination. In the end he decided to just ignore this feeling instead. After all, she would not be bothering him after he was done with her. While Noct tried his best at a casual conversation in order to lower her nonexistent caution around him, the girl, he found out, seemed completely unfocused to her surroundings and was literally as quiet as a mute.
Hm... Or maybe she is mute.
Although acting exhausted him, Noct made sure to hide both his irritation and eagerness for a big steal underneath a clever mask. As he continued to smile and tried to seem friendly, however, there was a growing question nagging at the back of his mind for the entire time: Why did I just tell this girl my real name?
Not that Noct had a real name given at birth, of course. He was, after all, a nameless orphaned child who grew up in the slums without a home. Like many others like him, he had most likely been left behind by his biological parents either out of spite, poverty, or both. For years, he had lived as an unnamed street brat who stole for food and slept in the most uncomfortable of places imagined for the sake of a temporary shelter. Before, in the mindset of a thief, Noct had thought of names as useless and pointless things, titles of no importance. Words that meant absolutely nothing but bother to the holder. After all, there was no need of a name when no one knew you in the first place.
It was only when Pierre had asked him for a name in the middle of a conversation on a rooftop one night, looking at the dancing lights of the kingdom, that Noct finally decided to adopt one. He had said the first thing that came to his mind without much thought or decision, hence his current name. Noct.
But why Noct? Pierre had asked.
Noct, for nightfall, he had answered him. It sounds pretty decent, so why not?
Ever since then, he had taken a deep liking to his name. Noct made sure to constantly remember it, despite not having the leisure of casually telling it to anyone else except Pierre. Those few who he knew and occasionally had conversations with often referred to him by his thief name, the Crow Thief. So far, only two people had known his 'real' name: the Pierrot, and, for some indiscreet reason, this strange girl who was now beside him.
So, why had he told her? Somehow, he couldn't explain it to himself. Was it a slip of the tongue? An impulsive answer? A thoughtless tact? A result of being carried away at the prospect of his steal?
But who cares?, he thought at the back of his mind, smiling as he mentioned something he forgot about the next moment later. Then he turned to the girl, studying her emotionless expression. All the way so far, she had followed him without any hint of visible suspicion. She seemed so easily trusting to him that Noct had to constantly resist the urge to laugh at every given second. For a slight moment, he cast a glance at her silver-hued blank eyes, and the sudden feeling of discomfort came over him once again. He looked away from her, pointing to a bakeshop on the other side of the crowded street.
Remember, in a few more minutes, you'll have your greatest steal yet! All you need to do is trick this foolish one, he reminded himself as he grinned widely.
And then, you'll never see her again!
Minutes later, Noct had succeeded in his goal.
It didn't even take that much effort on his part. It was not simply because of Noct's convincing facade and years of experience that everything had went without any problems, it had also been because of the girl's help that it did. She was just extremely too easy for Noct to deceive, to the point where he could consider her his easiest steal to date. Somehow, he almost felt sorry for her. But then he reminded himself that this was just another way for people like him to survive.
Sorry, but this is the real world, little miss, he thought as he led her straight through the Roxas Square with a wide smile on his face. The square was the place where he had decided best to act out his theft. It was the perfect environment for getting a person distracted, as it was well-known for being constantly loud, crowded with people, and bustling with activities: the three main things a thief sought for whenever initiating a steal. Misdirection was the cue. He needed the girl to pay attention to something else as he performed the deed.
It had been so easy to slip out of her sight and blend in the hustle of moving bodies. To navigate through them and circle around in a wide arc, approaching once again from behind her. To silently slip one of his hidden daggers from his sleeve and into his palm, its hilt comfortably warm to his touch. To quickly reach under her cloak while she was being occupied with the busy throng of people and grab the strap of her satchel. To cut the leather in a single swift slice and retreat from her figure without even looking back. Too easy. It didn't even feel like a proper theft.
Noct didn't feel guilty as he escaped into one of the darkened alleys that the square split off into. Guilt had long disappeared after many years of thieving and deceiving, and he had grown numb to it. All that he experienced, instead, was the feeling of utter excitement and delight at the thought that he had done it so quickly and effortlessly.
What an easy steal!
He clutched the satchel tightly in his hands as he crept into a wide yet isolated alley that the previous one had forked into. Lines of crates and trash littered the sides of the path, causing the walls to rot into a darker, filthier color. Shadows loomed from the buildings beside it, making it seem like it was already close to night even though noon had only just begun. After making sure that there was no one around to see him, Noct leaned on the dirtied bricked wall, a happy grin creeping up his face. For a moment, he studied the satchel in its entirety, examining the high-quality material it had been made from. Colored in a dull white, it weighted quite slightly, and had something big and rounded protruding from within as he caressed his fingers and felt over it. He did this for a few seconds, basking in the accomplishment of his task. After he had decided he was done, Noct reached out to undo the clasps and breathed in.
Here comes the jackpot!, he sang joyfully in his head.
Noct lifted the leather cover over——but then almost dropped the thing in surprise. His eyes widened, and a sickening feeling went over his gut, rising to his throat. Because inside of the bag, there was something Noct hadn't expected to find at all. Something so unbelievable that it never even crossed his mind he'd even see it at that moment. Something so incredulous that for a few silent moments, he was as still as a rock, mouth hanging slightly agape as his mind and heart raced at the same time, petrified of the item before him.
A skull.
There was a human skull inside the satchel.
----> thank you for reading!
Q:
Why do you think Chell carries a skull around?
Whose head do you think it belongs to?