Background (Rune)
From Toosigma
Rune a bright and cheerful child spent most of her young years with her mother and father who while forced into the lives of thieves always made the best of the circumstance. Mother (Angel) and Father (Robert), traveled off and on with several traveling circuses, and making the Festival rounds of villages and towns far and wide. Rune had no problem fitting into the festive and entertaining crowd of hustlers, magicians, illusionists, and of course bards. Soon her inventive parents came up with acts for the enterprising child.
Rune's life was full of festivals, basically going from one small town fair to another, then too large cities with expansive festivals and endless danger. Being a killer wasn't exactly the direction she saw her life going as a child. For coin she could tumble, use acrobatics, dance, perform sleight of hand magic, and of course had hundreds of costumes. There was even a gig her Dad started where they would tie her up in impossible looking masses of rope... only for the crowd to enjoy her escape. Life with her parents was great. Even though her form of entertainment and performance was considered Garish amongst the singers and true dancers of the traveling circus... Rune was proud of her accomplishments... and so were her parents.
Unfortunately that came to a bit of an end. During one of her escape artist performances a constable noticed that the very lock that she was picking behind her back while suspended upside down was the exact same manufacture of lock which had been picked only the night before releasing the content's of a Dukes safe. Rune of course was innocent and her parents... well short sided in their selection of lock. Naturally Robert and Angel had pulled off the crime, but the law was after Rune.
Later that night with pleads from her parents she decided to go on the run. Regardless in Rune's mind it was time to break free from her parents and make a life of her own. They had friends in the smaller festival routes and Rune would be able to disappear into the secret world of traveling performers that she had known all her life. Her parents (much to her mothers dislike) would remain behind and pretend shock that their dear child was a thief. A thief she had never been until the moment that she slipped into the night. It wasn't long after that she found herself in a position to have to take a life or two. Her skill was only great enough to provide a killing blow, not to stun or wound. It terrified her how easy it was to kill a man three times her size. She remained ever great full that her father had pointed out all the vulnerable spots on a man or beast... if only he had warned how truly vulnerable life was.
But Rune kept her head high, while she could no longer perform her acts, the skills her parents had given her were worth more then for stage performance. She picked pockets, but only of those who surely could afford to spare a coin or two. She broke into homes, but only those that would never miss a pretty ring. In her pursuits she discovered she was not the only pick pocket that followed the festival circuits... she was however the best. Many a child it seemed had been orphaned stranded or merely went wild following the pretty lights and the exciting crowds. Some of them picked up off work on the side, setting up tents, cleaning costumes, but at night they were thieves and scoundrels... soon Rune was their leader. Not leader so much as mother. Protecting, teaching, and caring for the gang. Her main rule? No one who could steal should beg. To many times she had seen the hearts and spirits of the children broken by cruel refusals and unneeded beatings. No! Her gang looked perfect, not dirty or scruffy. They blended into the crowd looking, like a child who had momentarily lost their father's hand. No one would suspect what the tiny fingers had taken. But stealing wasn't a means to and end. It wasn't what she wanted for these lost children. Sarah had a beautiful singing voice. Eric had a talent with jewelry... which was handy for reselling purposes. Rune tried to set up acts and small areas where the children could also practice and make money from their lawful skills. This ramshackle area of any given festival became lovingly termed as "The Children's corner" And soon several of her gang tearfully left her care to apprentice in craft guilds, or to study under more prestigious acts. But after only three precious years the law caught up with her again. Leaving the care of the Children's corner under the watchful eye of both the carnival's ring master and her eldest orphan Bem. She was on the run again.
Which brought her to Keagan...
As Keagan would teasingly describe their first encounter later:
"On a Ferry in the Moonsea...
I was entertaining, you were working the crowd.
Our eyes met.
I forgot what I was playing.
You forgot what you were stealing.
Then we spent the night in the local constables holding cell together, talking.
Now an inseparable duo
out to right the wrongs of the world
one fat nobleman's purse at a time"
