Ace noticed how much the other enjoyed the gift, even though his voice didn't exactly show it. The mercenary smiled to himself. Well, he could be civil sometimes, he just didn't care for it. Their journey hadn't even started yet, so he knew he shouldn't be jumping to conclusions, but maybe, just maybe, working together could turn out to be enjoyable.<br/><br/>When Caine decided to ride, Ace didn't even try to hide the smile on his face. Great, he would get to keep Girl for a while longer. Not that it mattered, of course it didn't. She could die, for all he cared, right? The man had to force himself to keep the frown out of his face at his own thoughts. He shouldn't be getting attached, not to a horse who could break her leg before they even reached their destination, and yet... His face twisted, annoyed at himself, annoyance that he pretended to direct at Crusty when he sighed. Well, at least the nickname still came easily to him.<br/><br/>"Well, I'm sure that there will be some horse in the stable you can pick." Ace said, confusion evident in his voice. There was clear distaste in Crusty's voice, that shouldn't be there because of something as simple as buying - or stealing, if Ace had anything to say about it - a horse. Then maybe he didn't like riding or wasn't good at it, and would've preferred to walk. The thought of a very clumsy and stiff Crusty trying to keep himself on top of a horse brought a smile to Ace's face, and the mercenary hoped this was the case.<br/><br/>Then the man looked between him and Caine, seeming lost, and then suddenly began to walk to the stable. Ace couldn't suppress a chuckle at that, still entertaining his previous thoughts. He heard Caine chuckle, too, and wondered if the other man had thought something similar or was laughing for an entirely different reason.<br/><br/>What he said though made Ace's eyebrow shot up, and the mercenary looked between Caine and Crusty.<br/><br/>"Crusty? Really?" his voice dripped with humour barely contained. "Oh, wow. And here was I thinking you appreciated the polite and well-mannered ones." Ace had filled Crusty under the make-fun-of part of his brain, and he hadn't really stopped to look at the man, really look at him. But he allowed his eyes to travel up and down the other's body, before he entered the stable, and he allowed himself an appreciative hum. "Well, well, you really have a good eye." Ace chuckled once again, sending a small grin to Caine. "So, he is your type. Interesting the things we find out about people." he teased. "Well, right now I think I should go fetch Girl. And give the stableman a lesson if she isn't there."<br/><br/>Ace began to make his way to the stable, frowning a little at the faint sounds he could hear coming from it. He came to the door to see Crusty bumping his head to a little grey kitten. Ace froze, dreading the sudden rush of affection that overcame him at the simple and almost sweet scene, at the involuntary memories trying to surface. His grip on the door tightened with anger, as he tried to suppress the feeling deep down once again. That was why he hated kittens and puppies and children. They just made it very difficult for him to hate them. Not that it made any sense, but Ace didn't really care about his logic making sense or not.<br/><br/>He stayed on the door until he found it safe to talk with his usual tone, and not let any affection slip through it. He just hoped neither men had noticed.<br/><br/>"So you found a little pet?" Ace asked, walking towards the other man with what he hoped was a mocking smile on his face. "Isn't it a little too cute for you?" when he was near enough, he raised one of his hand for the kitten to smell, unable to stop himself. But as soon as the cold and wet nose of the kitten touched his finger, he could almost see the cat curling up around deformed legs, almost hear the clear crystal laugh that was probably the only thing that could truly warm his heart. He withdrew his hand hastily, as if the kitten had burned him, turning his back to both man and cat and walking straight towards Girl, anger boiling inside him.<br/><br/>That was how it all started. Comfort leads to carelessness that leads to things like that to surface and then it all came crumbling down. He couldn't allow others to see him weak, and he couldn't allow himself to be weak. There was no one who would not take advantage of a weakness, and it would be good for him to remember it.<br/><br/>He began to check the reddish fur of his horse for any new wounds, making a point of completely ignoring the pair behind him. There was no wound, but Girl seemed to lean in his touch, almost as if she found it comfortable. Great, first the kitten, now the horse. What a good day that was turning out to be. However, he also could feel the tension on the horse's neck, and he frowned, wondering what caused it. The stable seemed peaceful enough, although now that he paid attention, the other animals seemed somewhat tense too.<br/><br/>"Hey, Gruffy!" he half-yelled, not really managing to put enough amusement in his voice as he would have liked, and turned to see the bulky man walk out of a door on the back of the stable. "If you would be so kind to get two more horses for my companions."<br/><br/>"All horses here are already owned." he answered, his voice surly, but with a hint of fear in it, probably remembering the night before.<br/><br/>"If you would like to keep your balls, you better figure something out then." Ace snapped, his voice turning into a growl, annoyance finally taking hold of him completely. He pressed his lips together and forced him to calm down. While he didn't care about the other feelings, it wouldn't do well to act harsh or to let how much the whole situation bothered him to the others - it was bad enough that there was a situation to begin with. The stableman paled at his tone, and Ace felt a little relieved to find out he could appreciate it.<br/><br/>"I'll go see if someone in the inn is willing to sell. I doubt it, though..." the stableman began, and Ace rolled his eyes, finally being able to slip into a state of calmness again. At least that much he had learned.<br/><br/>"Oh, come on." he straightened up and eyes the other horses, choosing a pinto and a palomino horse that seemed strong enough to survive the forest. He walked towards the palomino, grabbing the reins and pointing to the pinto one. "Find this one and that one's owners and tell them kindly we would like to buy them, will you?" there was a smile on his face again, and by the expression of the stableman, it was menacing enough. Ace was very aware that much of the fear he inspired was because others thought of him as a madman. Well, not important. The important thing was that Gruffy began to walk towards the inn as he was told.<br/><br/>Ace began to guide the palomino towards Crusty, to give the reins to him, when he felt a powerful jerk trying to pull the leather from his hand. He looked at the horse's eyes, wide with fear, before turning back to Crusty.<br/><br/>"Care to tell me why this horse seems terrified of you?" he asked, eyebrow raised in surprise and curiosity.