RWBYFanon v5
RPG World of Remnant => The Vale Region => Topic started by: Metroidhunter on December 17, 2016, 08:09:14 PM
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On a not so busy street in Vale, Vivian walked down the sidewalk, humming to herself as she went along. It was a nice day out, and she had absolutely nothing better to do, so simply going out for a stroll was a better plan than none. She also didn't exactly have a destination, and had somehow gotten herself into a part of city that seemed, well, poorer than most. It looked like the kind of place that you'd get mugged for just walking through, but she wasn't too worried about the possibility. The gun in her holster, while covered mostly by her bright red jacket, would provide more than enough safety. Of course, she wouldn't need that, even if someone did attack her. Her metal prosthetics were designed for combat, after all, and would easily be able to beat anyone to a pulp if they tried to pull some shit on her. Really, she didn't think that something like that was going to happen, but the idea was entertaining. With how things had been going so far, she felt that luck was most definitely on her side.
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Michael really hated this part of town. Between the boarded-up windows on some of the houses, the graffiti on the brickwork, and the trash piled by the alleyways, it was plain old ugly. But, this was the part of town between his apartment and the nearest forge, so he went through anyway. His hands were in his pockets, gripping his scroll and wallet on the off chance someone would try and take them from him.
As he headed down the street, he noticed a rabbit faunus walking past him. 'Right, keep calm. Just avoid eye contact and move past quickly.' he thought, taking a deep breath before sighing. It was only when he got closer that something looked familiar about her. 'Those arms.....there's no way, right? I gotta check this.' he thought, hurriedly pulling out his scroll and scrolling through the videos.
He passed by her, looking down at his scroll. He saw the glimmer in his assailant's arms as she ran down the alleyway, and stopped in his tracks. He put his scroll in his suit jacket, turning around and moving back towards her. "Hey!" he shouted, continuing to move towards her.
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Vivian paid no attention as Michael walked past him, too preoccupied with her own thoughts. It wasn't until she heard a voice coming from behind her that she stopped in her tracks, her rabbit ears standing up as a result of the noise before she turned around to face the source.
"Hello!" The faunus waved at him with one of her metal hands as he started approaching her, clueless as to why exactly he was doing that. Still, meeting people was always fun, so she didn't mind. As he got closer, it occurred to her that the expression on his face wasn't exactly a friendly one... And yet, she just kept smiling, not yet seeing a reason to be alarmed.
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Michael wasted no time, grabbing the faunus by her metallic arms and picking her up, setting her against the nearby brick wall. He kept his hand on her shoulder, keeping her from getting away from him. "What did you do with my ring?" he said, his breathing heavy and his expression unchanging. He reached into the inside pocket of his jacket with his open hand, pulling out his scroll and playing the video. "You tell me where it is, or I hold you here until the police arrive."
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As he drew closer, Vivian quickly realized something that was actually pretty obvious; this guy was really fuckin' tall. Like, 'I have to crouch through doorways' levels of tall. Still, it would take a lot more than size to intimidate her. It didn't even look like he was armed, so she still hardly saw him as a threat even as he lifted her.
"Whoa-" Now pinned against the wall, she had a brief expression of surprise on her face, but it quickly faded. The situation was actually becoming much more entertaining than she had originally expected, something that became obvious when she gave him a mischievous smirk. "... Hey man, can't we get to know each other a little first?"
It wasn't until he began showing some strange footage that she started to actually pay attention to what he was saying. From what she could see, it looked like he had been mugged by someone. A rabbit faunus. With... shiny, metal arms. And here, she had been assuming that she was rather unique. What a bummer.
"No way dude." The rabbit's gaze returned to meet his as she shook his head. "You better not call the fuckin' cops, because you're definitely mistaken here. I don't mug people. And I don't steal." She kept staring at him, starting to give him a look that slightly resembled that of an angry person, an emotion that she rarely ever experienced. "Don't get the law involved, please. For your own sake."
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Michael only grew more frustrated at the smug faunus. "Bullshit. You honestly think that I'm going to believe it wasn't you? There's nobody out there that matches that description other than you. Now, you better start talking, or I will have no choice but to take you to the authorities." he said, his grip on her shoulder tightening.
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Glaring at him in silence for a brief moment, she soon rolled her eyes and shook her head. This shitty encounter wasn't going to end well. "Let's see... I am just one out of, like, millions of people with fully-functioning prosthetic limbs. There are a decent amount of rabbit faunus on Remnant, too. You really don't think it's possible that there's at least one person like me in the entire city of Vale?" With the threat of the law being involved, the situation had gone from funny to extremely irritating almost immediately. Vivian now wanted no part in this, and yet, she knew that just trying to run away would only make her seem more guilty.
"I don't have your stupid fuckin' ring, buddy. Your video isn't very convincing proof, either. Now get off of me, or I'll seriously kick your ass." Coming from a rabbit faunus that was hardly bigger than five feet tall, it most likely didn't sound too intimidating. Either way, she felt that she'd be able to take him down if need be, regardless of his advantage of height that he had.
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Michael's expression remained unchanged. "You're arrogant, and nothing you've said has convinced me of anything. If you really believe your innocence, you have nothing to fear. Now, you're going to come with me, and we will get this matter settled like civilized adults." he said, loosening his grip on her. 'She's a rambunctious one, and she doesn't seem intimidated. Although, I don't know if her kind really know civility. She'll probably try to fight me and steal my belongings again.' he thought, pulling his scroll to his face to dial for the police.
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"No. I'm not wasting my time and getting in trouble with any god damn police for something I know I didn't fucking do." Vivian was relieved to at least be let go of, but with him being set on calling the cops, her options were extremely limited. There were plenty of things that she had done that involved breaking many, many laws. She didn't know how the authorities would react to his video, and whether or not they would start digging into her past. That was some bullshit that she really didn't want to deal with. Apparently, the only way to avoid that situation was to do something equally shitty as to what he was accusing her of. Fantastic.
Not wanting him to get on the line with police, Vivian quickly hopped up and swung one of her metal hands forward, snatching the scroll from his grip with plenty of force behind the grab. With very swift movements, she stopped the call and slipped the scroll into her back pocket before taking a few steps away from him. Before he could say anything, she raised both of her metal hands up, attempting to explain her actions.
"Listen! I told you, we are NOT getting the authorities involved. I am going to give you your scroll back very shortly. I'll be honest, I don't want the law after me, because I've already done some shit that will just make me get in more trouble." Vivian lowered her arms, but she didn't stop yelling. "But I haven't done anything to you up until now. I'm not the one that took the damn ring. You'll be wasting your time with me while the actual thief is off selling your shit somewhere!" After a brief moment, she took his scroll back out, holding it in his direction. "Like I said, not a thief. I don't want to keep this. But, if you try and get the cops again, I'll knock your ass out. All this B.S. can easily be avoided if you just leave me alone."
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Michael was not pleased with any of this. "So, you're trying to prove your innocence by taking my property and walking away?" he asked, grabbing the scroll from her. "If you do another damn thing that keeps me away from my grandmother's ring, I'll have no choice but to use my combat training to restrain you. Do I make myself clear?" he said, stepping back and inspecting his phone for damage, beginning to dial.
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Vivian watched with disappointment in her eyes as he immediately went to call for the authorities again. Not only that, but now he was going to try and intimidate her with the promise of a fight? He may have been big, but even she could tell that he was still young. Chances were, he wasn't expecting her to actually retaliate, or at least she believed so. It was looking like she had the advantage.
"Oh, crystal clear." That was all she said before stepping forward, pushing both of her metal prosthetics outward forcefully to hopefully shove him back and prevent him from dialing properly. If he had the balls to back up his threat, perhaps he'd see it as a sign of aggression and attack. Vivian could only hope that was the case.
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Michael took a step back, not expecting her to attempt to overpower him. "Well, I guess that settles it." he said, putting his phone in his jacket. He straightened his jacket and cracked his neck, stepping forward toward the girl. "If you really are innocent, you have one last chance to come peacefully." he said, putting his hand on her shoulder. "Or if not, you can make life harder on yourself." he said, most emotion drained from his voice. He really didn't want to hurt the girl, he simply wanted his grandmother's ring back.
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"I'm not innocent by any means, but again, I didn't do shit to you. If you're calling the cops anyway, that's the way it's going to be." Balling both of her hands into fists, she didn't move away even as he stood closer to her than before. "I'd run, but you'd probably call them right after. Not really in the mood to run from them, either. So we can settle this the old fashion way."
Despite her words, she didn't bother getting into an offensive stance, simply looking up at him with her metallic hands resting on her hips. "I'll let you get a free hit in, because I'm at least kind of nice. Also, didn't steal from you, man. But either you hit me, or I'll start this myself."
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Michael, at this point boiling over in rage, grabbed the smaller woman, wrapping his arms around her torso and pinning her arms to her sides. He then fell forward, pressing his entire weight onto the smaller girl to try and pin her down. "There's one thing you have to learn, and learn quickly. Vaktars. Don't. Stay. Down." he said, grabbing both her wrists and attempting to hold them above her head.
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Vivian didn't try to get out of the way, only starting to resist after he had grabbed her. Being as confident as she was, she didn't think it would be likely for him to beat her, but this was still a small setback. "We'll see about that." As he attempted to lift her arms above her head, she waited a few moments before actually attempting to fight back. With all of the strength built into her arm, she yanked and pulled one free, before quickly swinging her fist and bringing it down hard on top of his head. Using that to get his weight off of her slightly, she then pulled her legs out from under him and gave a two-legged kick towards his torso in attempt to push him away.
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Michael fell back, the kick sending him a few feet away. He rolled onto his stomach, slowly working his way up to a knee before lunging again, bringing his form back down on top of her. He grabbed a hold of her right arm, using his strength to attempt to force it behind her back. He avoided her hands, his massive fists holding onto her wrists as they struggled on the pavement.
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This Vaktar dude was strong, that much was for sure. Still, Vivian possessed power in her prosthetics that would easily surpass the strength of most humans' arms. It would take a whole lot of effort to keep her restrained, something that she felt thankful for as he tried to force her wrists together again. After a lot of tugging, she yanked her opposite arm free this time, pulling back to aim a hard punch square at his chest rather than bopping him on the head again.
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'Damn, this girl's prosthetics have some power behind them.' he thought, taking a quick breath to make sure none of his ribs were broken. He grabbed hold of the outstretched arm, putting his other hand on her shoulder. He tried to force her onto her stomach, which could give him enough leverage to keep her restrained.
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Even with two punches, he was still on top of her and trying to keep her down? Very persistant, but Vivian had zero intention of letting him win this. While he held one of her arms and tried to turn her over, the rabbit kept fighting against it, using all of her might to stay on her back. Without much time to lose, she used her other hand to draw the pistol that was in her holster before immediately pressing the barrel against his stomach to make sure that he could feel it. With her finger on the trigger, she glared up at him, looking actually pissed off for the first time in a long time. "Get the fuck off. NOW!"
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Michael wasted little time in attempting to get her down, shoving her shoulder down with both hands while attempting to shift his body onto her other arm. He used his massive body weight to try and overcome her strength, trying to keep her pinned to her stomach.
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Before he could turn her over completely, she made sure to get at least one shot off with the pistol, missing him before flipping over onto her other side. Thankfully, her arms didn't exactly grow tired, so she could keep this up for a while... But she definitely didn't want to. The longer she stuck around, this worse this would get, especially if someone walked up and saw this scene he was making.
Putting both of her hands on the pavement, her arms locked up, keeping her off the ground even as he pushed down with his tremendous weight. Using her semblance, the ends of her arms began to glow before two large bubbles formed from aura appeared around her hands. Almost immediately, the started pushing off of the sidewalk and back against her arms, further increasing the amount of pressure fighting against him. She waited like that for a few moments before shoving off of the ground hard, causing both of her aura-bubbles to explode in the process. The force kicked back against her hard, though with Michael on top of her, much of the energy worked to knock him off of her. She could feel that her aura had weakened somewhat after that blow, but she was still far from done.
Taking advantage of the short opportunity, she stood and turned around, holstering the pistol before raising her fists. "Hah... Not too bad, Vaktar. But I don't stay down either."
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Michael's positioning cause him to be dropped at an awkward angle, with him landing on his shoulders and the back of his head. He fell onto his stomach, clutching his head for a brief second before slowly taking a knee, seeing the girl slightly above him. He paused for a second, catching his breath. "I'll be sure to send you the bill for my tailor once you're in custody." he said, standing up and waiting for the girl to strike him.
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"'Tch." Vivian rolled her eyes, trying not to laugh. "Don't hold your breath waiting on that." She quickly stepped back a few feet, keeping her fists raised in case Michael tried anything. Of course. he was expecting her to make a move, so she had to try something that would hopefully be less predictable than just walking up to him and punching him in the stomach.
Starting to run forward again, Vivian used her semblance to form a glowing orb of aura on the ground in front of her. Once close enough, she jumped and landed on it, the aura bubble pushing back against her feet and propelling her away, sending her right for Michael at an accelerated rate through the air. As she came at him, she swung her right fist forward with a lot of strength behind it, aiming the flying punch at his head.
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Michael saw what she was doing pretty easily. Those without mind for strategy will invariably go for the tactic of 'punch it until it stops moving'. Unfortunately for Michael, he really had not thought of another strategy in the time it took for her to get to him, so he went with what he was going to do anyway. He put his hands forward, catching the girl's arm as she went through the air and falling back with her, spinning to try and get back on top of her.
The sickening crack of Michael's nose breaking filled the air as he fell back, his arm still hooked onto hers. He fell towards her, his back to hers, as the punch stunned him.
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Vivian was satisfied when she felt her fist slam into his head, knowing for sure that she was back to having the upper hand after that blow. Pulling herself away from him while he was stunned, she simply stood there for a brief moment, trying to decide on what to so. For starters, she went with just trying to talk to him, seeing how he would react this time around. If he didn't listen, she wouldn't be opposed to gettting the fight started again. "Keep trying to call the cops, and I'll smack the shit out of you again." She lowered her fists, but still watched him closely in case he was going to try something. Hopefully, he wasn't too dazed to hear her properly. "I didn't steal your ring. I don't need your stuff. If you leave me alone after we're done, I'll even help you find the person that actually did it."
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Michael was doubled-over on the ground, droplets of blood spraying out of his mouth in his breathing. His face just didn't look right. It looked almost the same as it was a few seconds ago, except there was two slight differences. Firstly was the swelling, which had already started. The second was the slight dent that was apparently left on the right side of his face.
In the brief second he had before losing consciousness, Michael struggled to figure out what on his face wasn't broken. His nose certainly was, and his cheekbone had a good shot at it. His last thought before slipping away was 'Did I lose a tooth, or did the top part of my jaw break?'
And Vivian's question was answered with Michael collapsing into a shiny pool of his own blood, a small white glow surrounding his head.
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It wasn't until he had collapsed that she realized exactly what had happened. He just got knocked out by a single punch? Vivian had been expecting a little more from someone that big, especially one that claimed to never stay down. That had really turned out well for him. While she briefly considered taking it as a chance to get out of there, he would most likely go ahead and call the cops upon waking up. Perhaps if she stuck around and did the things that she had claimed right before passed out, he'd let her go? For some reason, she felt that the latter option would work out better.
Taking a second to look around, she saw that the street was still empty. Sighing, she moved behind him and lifted him up, putting her metal arms underneath his to start dragging him along. "... Nngh... Holy shit, why are you so heavy?" The answer to that question was probably obvious, but she didn't really care. She kept pulling him until she reached the alley a few meters away from where they had been fighting, figuring that it would be better than sitting in the middle of the sidewalk with an unconscious dude.
Eventually, she had taken him into the alley and around a corner that led to a small, isolated area. After propping Michael up against the side of a wall, she couldn't do much besides watch and wait. He clearly had something going on, as his head was glowing, so perhaps she wouldn't have to wait too long?
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Michael's body limply resisted being dragged, if only for his massive weight keeping her from easily moving him. His head thudded against the brickwork as he slowly came to, spitting a bit of blood out of his mouth.
His first thought as he woke up was that something was most certainly wrong. A quick feel of his tongue could tell that part of his mouth was broken. He could feel his aura trying to work on it, but it wasn't in the correct location. He groaned for a second before putting his fingers in his mouth, pushing the broken fragment back into position with a pained moaning, only overshadowed by the sound of bone on bone as he pushed it into place. The glow around his face escalated quickly, with his aura mending the break quickly.
After setting his nose back into place, Michael was far too exhausted to get up. He just sat there, his head against the brick, not looking at the girl. "You win." he said, pulling his scroll out of his jacket. "Just take it." he said, defeat in his voice.
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Vivian watched as he messed with his face, grimacing slightly but not turning away. It wasn't until he reached into his pocket and pulled out his scroll that she started speaking again. "How many times have I got to say it for it to sink in?" She dismissively waved one of her metallic hands at him to get him to put it away. "I don't want your shit. I beat your ass because you were being a dick. Not because I wanted to mug you."
After a moment of silent consideration, she sighed, moving to stand in front of him before crouching down to get closer to his level. "I didn't really want it to go this far either, so if you don't want to keep being a dick, maybe we can both get something out of this encounter. You don't call the cops, and I help you find your ring." The rabbit paused, feeling the need to reiterate. "Again, if I really stole your ring, I would have also taken your scroll and left by now, dude."
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Michael looked up at her, then let his head drop. "You'd be wasting your time. That video was taken three weeks ago. I haven't been able to find them." he said, wiping some of the blood away from his nose. "And I can't seem to keep you down. So, unless you feel like breaking something else for good measure, there's not a lot of reason to stay." he said, closing his eyes and trying to focus his remaining aura into fixing his broken nose.
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Almost feeling bad for him in his current state, Vivian had to remind herself that she had hit him to keep herself out of trouble, not because she enjoyed it. "I mean, you're probably right. I've got no reason to stick around. Still, did kind of break your face, and you didn't fully deserve that." It occured to her that she was about to go back on one of her previous statements, but she ignored the thought. "The least I could do is pay for your clothes, or something. Y'know, since you might actually not call the cops now." Looking at the damage she had caused again, she frowned a little, though it did appear to look not quite as bad as it did a few moments ago. "Maybe after your face stops bleeding, yeah..."
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Michael sighed, shifting himself so that he was slightly more comfortable against the brickwork. "There was no 'kind of' about it. You shattered part of my zygomatic bone, broke my maxilla and nasal bones, and dislocated my mandible." he said, pointing to the various parts of his face with two fingers. "Hell of a left hook, I'll tell ya."
His breath finally calming, Michael looked down at the scroll in his hands. He flipped it on and pushed the speed dial, bringing the phone to his ear. "Charles, bring the car down." he said, looking away from Vivian.
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"Okay, yeah, a lot of the face is broken. I tried to tell you to stop, though." Vivian kept her eyes on him as he pulled out his scroll, making sure that he wasn't dialing for the cops. Upon hearing what he said to whoever was on the other line, she stood up again, putting her hands on her hips before looking down the alleyway. "Sooo... You're just going to go ahead and leave now?" She looked rather disappointed as she said it, despite the fact that she had wanted to get away from him only minutes ago. "'Cause like, I feel kind of bad about it now. I sort of want to make it up to you. Even if I can't find your ring, well, I don't want to just be the person that broke your face."
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Michael cracked his neck before moving forward and taking a knee. "Yes, the black one. And call Mr. Blanc, I'm going to take him up on his offer. I'll see you in a minute." he said before hanging up the scroll and putting it in his jacket pocket.
He stood up, dusting some of the dirt off of his jacket. "Why is it that you've so suddenly wanted to stay near me? Believe me, I have the money to buy a new jacket. We Vaktars are not short on wealth by any stretch of the imagination." he said, straightening his jacket as he loomed over the girl. 'It is nice to have someone who does not recognize me by name. She just beats my face in for fresh, new reasons.' he thought, giving a small sigh.
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"Like I said, I'm only still here because I want to make to make it up to you somehow. I didn't expect your aura to be as low as it apparently was." Vivian didn't move much as he stood up next to her, still not intimidated by his height. If anything, she was less worried about his size after that whooping. "But, you don't need my money, so I've got nothing left to give you. Unless you, like, want something else from me, I'll probably just get going then." She rubbed the top of her head with one hand, frowning still. Every moment that passed had her feeling more and more guilty over what she had done, even though she believed she didn't have much of a choice. "Anyway, sorry about that."
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Michael rubbed the side of his head, breathing in deeply. "Fine, you know what..." he said, his thought interrupted by the arrival of a black limousine. He turned to it before bending down and brushing off his pant leg.
He moved directly past Vivian, opening the back of the limo. "Get in." he said bluntly, holding the door open for her.
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Vivian's bunny ears stood up tall as she heard a car approaching, before turning to look, only to see that he had a limousine. He really wasn't kidding about that money that he supposedly had. Of course, her own family was rather wealthy, but she tended to be a lot more independent from them than Michael seemed to be.
Once the door was open, she considered asking him questions first, but soon decided against it and climbed inside. Worse case scenario, she could break the door off and run away if it looked like he was bringing her somewhere sketchy. At this point, she doubted that he would try anything, especially after she bashed his face like that. Something told her that he wasn't going to risk a second punch to the head.
"Okayyy. Now that we've gotten somewhere... May I ask for your name?" She paused for a moment, not wanting to overload him with questions, but she was unable to stop herself from continuing. "And where exactly are we going?"
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Michael climbed in after her, sitting directly across from her. The inside of the limousine was nicely furnished in leather, with wood paneling on the sides which contained several compartments. Michael immediately opened one compartment close to Vivian, pulling out two large steamed towels. He tossed one to Vivian, using the other to wipe the blood off his face. "We're in, Charles. And don't be mentioning this to anyone. I'd rather not attempt to explain this." he said, turning to the older looking driver in the front.
The driver looked back at them, his eyes widening a bit in surprise. "Um...Alright. You got it, sir." he said, turning around and pulling off the curb.
Michael got some of the blood out of his nose. "My name is Michael Vaktar. And we are going to Ravintola Blanc." he said, his face appearing a lot more presentable.
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"Michael," she repeated after him, as if trying to write it to her memory. Vivian caught the towel that he had tossed her, still watching him with a strange look on her face. Surely, she had good reasons to be suspicious, but that gesture made her a little less wary. Instead of using it on her face like he had, the rabbit faunus began to wipe down her metal arms, getting some blood off of one of her hands as well as the dirt that had gotten on the prosthetics during their short scuffle.
"Hm. Name doesn't ring a bell. Tell me about this place." She looked away from her arms briefly, giving him a small smile. "Am I going to die there?" Shaking her head, she returned to her previous task of wiping off her arms. "Kidding, obviously. Hopefully."
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Michael relaxed into his seat as the limo went, quickly getting out of the poorer areas of Vale and closer to downtown. "You should be fine, unless they run out of rabbit." he said, giving a small chuckle. "It's a steak place, just reopened after renovations a few weeks ago. I was invited to try one of their private rooms. I figured it would be a good place to talk." he said, getting the last of the blood off of his nose and placing the towel back in the compartment.
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Once done with the towel, Vivian did the same as him, putting it in the compartment where it came from. "Private room? Sounds a little fancy. Not sure that I'm, like, dressed for that. But whatever." She folded her arms together, making a light clink as they made contact. Afterwards, she sat in silence for a few seconds, trying to think of what else to say. It was kind of a weird situation, after all; a few minutes ago, she was caving his face in, and now they were going to a restaurant? Maybe he wasn't as much of a dick as she had originally believed.
"Hey, uh, shouldn't I be the one treating you to something?" Vivian shrugged. "I mean, I won't say no, but it hardly seems like I deserve going to a steak place after all of... that."
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Michael blushed slightly, leaning down in his seat. "I was simply trying to kill two birds with one stone. I needed to do both, and we needed to discuss a few things." he said, pulling a bit on his shirt. He reached behind him, pulling a black bag out from behind the seat. He pulled out a replacement shirt for himself, and started pulling off his current shirt. "There is more formal attire here, but I don't think you'll like it."
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Vivian was slightly confused when he began taking his shirt off, but only for a very brief moment before it clicked in her mind. He needed to change his clothes after that smackdown, which was definitely fair. Not wanting to make him feel weird about it, she didn't react much, simply continuing to talk as if it wasn't going on.
"Can't say I ain't curious to see what you've got." The faunus chuckled a little, unfolding her arms to let her hands rest on top of her lap. "But, unless you've got something absolutely amazing in there, I think I'll stick with what I'm wearing now. Formal clothes are, well, I'unno. Just not my thing, I guess. I feel pretty fake when I put on stuff like that."
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Michael reached behind the seat again, pulling out a similar red bag. He tossed it over to Vivian before slipping off his shirt and putting on his replacement. Inside of the bag was a beautiful red dress, with long white gloves and matching white stockings. "I'm not sure how it will fit, but it's appropriate attire for the restaurant." he said, pulling out a tie from his bag and popping up his collar to put it on.
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"Is 'appropriate' attire also considered to be the required attire, by any chance?" Vivian questioned as she opened the bag that he had given her, not looking too impressed by the outfit inside. She pulled out one of the gloves to take a closer look at it. "Unless they've got some sort of fanciness policy, I'm not sure that I want to try it on."
As she finished speaking, it occured to Vivian that Michael was rather dressed up himself, and he was headed to what seemed to be a fairly respectable establishment. It would be odd if his guest to such a place was just dressed in completely casual clothing. "I mean, if you really think I should wear it, I could. I'd just prefer to stick with my jacket."
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Michael straightened his tie, brushing off some of the dust on his jacket. "Well, I believe there is a dress code, but since it it's only 3, I doubt there would be enough people in there for it to matter too much." he said, pulling out a pair of socks and shoes from the bag. "Worst comes to worst, they'll make an exception if I say so. They've been wanting access to our vintage collection, and I don't think they'll risk pissing me off over your attire."
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Vivian nodded. "And, like you said, we could be in a private room anyway. I don't imagine that they'll care a whole lot, yeah." It took her a moment to process the last thing he said, the detail sparking her curiousity a little. "Vintage collection... What is it exactly that you Vaktars are selling that people seem to want so much? After all, you're clearly... well off. I imagine your family runs a successful business of some sort."
Placing the glove back in the bag, the rabbit faunus shruggd again, starting to smile. "Either way, this sounds like it'll be fun. I'm glad you decided to not hate me for that fight. You're definitely not really a dick, so that's like, cool." Thinking back on the circumstances of their meeting, a question came up in her mind. "Also, what's up with the ring, anyway? Sounded like it was pretty important to you."
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Michael went to work tying his shoes, taking a bit longer than it would normally take in order to make sure they were on properly. "The Vaktar corporation is the largest producer and distributor of wine on the planet. We own many vineyards and wineries, and take care of everything down to deliveries." he said, more confidently than his usual demeanor. "We are very successful, but only have a public presence in Mistral and Atlas, for various reasons." he said, the last part rather quietly.
Michael sat up quickly after getting his shoes tied, deciding to quickly change the subject before he had to try and answer questions he didn't want to hear. "And to answer your question on the ring, it was my grandmothers. A family heirloom of sorts. It's been in my family for generations." he said shortly before the limo came to a stop.
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"The largest, huh? Bold statement. Though I can't say much I guess, as I don't really follow booze companies." Vivian noted his pride when he spoke of his family's business, though the way he changed his tone on the last part had her wondering a little about what exactly that implied. Most rich people had some sort of sketchy shit going on, though, so it wouldn't surprise her too much if that were the case. Even her own family wasn't perfect.
As the vehicle came to a stop, Vivian set the bag down on the floor before folding her hands together, waiting for him to climb out of the limo first. "I'm not one to drink a whole lot, but I'll have to try some of your family's wine... Would they have any of it here? Or do they not get it, since they are outside of Atlas and Mistral?" she asked, soon realizing that she might be starting to come across as being a little nosy.
-
Michael stepped out of the limo first, offering his hand to her as she exited. "You really are the nosy one, aren't you? I believe they carry a few of our wines here, but they don't yet have access to our most valuable wines. We have to be assured that those who get it are of the utmost quality, mostly for brand reasons."
-
Vivian chuckled a little as Michael confirmed the idea that she was asking too many questions. After he climbed out, the rabbit girl accepted his offer and took his hand in her own metal replacement. It was only a reminder as to how it kind of sucked, not being able to experience touch like that. The thought was pushed to the back of her mind as quickly as it had come up, as she didn't want to think about anything that was even mildly upsetting right then.
"Hard not to be nosy when I'm with company that is as intriguing as yourself." As she mentioned him, she took a moment to look over, briefly admiring what he wore before comparing it to her own attire. Damn, maybe the dress would have been a good idea; she would probably look like a bum to the people in the restaurant, at least compared to everyone else. "But yeah, I'll chill with the questions a 'lil."
-
Michael got a little shock to the system as her cold metal hand touched his. He had forgotten about that somehow in the intervening time. "Not to be rude, but you're a rabbit faunus with metal arms that can punch holes in people's heads. That one I know firsthand. Believe me, I'm not the interesting one here." he said, closing the door behind her.
The restaurant's exterior was very white. It had white paneling, white paint on the building, and a white frame to the door at the center. "Damn, you can probably see this place from space." he casually mentioned, walking toward the large glass doors at the front and holding them open for Vivian.
-
Vivian took some time to appreciate the building's appearance as they walked up, nodding in agreement as Michael commented on the lights. Once he held the door open, she gave him a short 'thanks' before heading inside, waiting for him to follow so that she could start talking to him again.
"I'm interesting? And yet, you've showed me today that I'm not nearly as unique as I would have thought, considering that there's another robo-armed rabbit running around the city." She briefly looked around the inside of the establishment before turning to look back up at him, giving him a smile that did a good job of showing her excitement from being at such a place.
-
Vivian's enthusiasm seemed infectious, as Michael himself started growing a smile as they entered the establishment. Michael walked past her and over to the hostess' podium. The hostess was a short, hopelessly thin woman. Michael towered over her like a redwood over a park bench. "Vaktar, party of two." he said calmly. The woman furrowed her brow and leaned to the side to look at Vivian. She looked back up at Michael and looked like she was prepared to say something when he put his hand up. "She's with me. The attire is my fault." he said, motioning with his hand.
The hostess again looked like she wanted to say something, but had the fear of god in her. She quietly picked up two menus and practically whispered "Follow me." as she led them to the table.
-
Vivian followed closely as they approached the hostess, immediately starting to judge the woman as she was probably doing the same to her. She couldn't help but have a smug grin once they were allowed through anyway, proud of the fact that she could enter an establishment while still dressing like herself. Of course, that was all thanks to Michael. Once they finally reached their table, Vivian went to whisper something to him, having to stand on her toes to reach. Even then, she wasn't nearly tall enough to be close to his ear, but she whispered anyway. "She doesn't seem too happy."
-
As they got to the table, Michael pulled out the chair for Vivian before sitting himself, waiting for the hostess to leave the private room. The room was deceptively spacious, being rather tall to disguise the fact that it wasn't incredibly wide. Still, it suited their purposes well. Being too far apart would make them talk louder than what Michael wanted to about the subject matter. "Yes. She didn't seem too pleased that you would break the dress code. Well, it doesn't matter at this point." he said, putting his napkin on his lap.
-
Vivian thanked Michael before taking her seat, nodding."Mhm, that's what I figured. Hopefully it's not bothering you too." While she knew that she had already been very inquisitive, perhaps a little too much, the rabbit still felt the need to ask him questions. However, they were of a slightly different nature, so she could only hope that her asking wouldn't get him annoyed. "So, I've learned about the Vaktars a lot today. Still, I don't know you very well, Michael. What do you do, if you don't mind me asking? Feel free to say 'no' if you want to ask me shit first." She began doing the same as him with the napkin and putting it on her lap.
-
Michael looked down at her, a small smile on his face. "No, it's fine. Ask away. I can't guarantee you'll like all the answers, but go for it." he said, reaching to an ice bucket in the middle of the table. He pulled out a bottle of wine, looking over the label. "Yep, Blut der Götter. They have our wines here. Try some, I think you'll like it. It's a sweeter wine." he said, pouring a glass for both himself and Vivian.
Michael took a sip of his wine, nodding his head in approval. "Seems like they've kept it in excellent condition as well. Anyway, you wanted to know what I do? I am working as a representative of the company in Vale while I train as a huntsman. You?" he said, the comfort of the familiar wine giving him renewed confidence.
-
Vivian was careful as she lifted the glass of wine, wanting to avoid accidentally shattering it with her iron grip. Drinking wasn't something that she did often, and for that exact reason. The more drunk you get, the easier it is for you to break things. When you've got the strength equivalent to that of multiple people built into your arms, things get a lot more difficult to control. Of course, she didn't mind alcohol in moderation, but she still preferred using other substances with less impairing effects.
"Huntress-in-training myself. Third year at Beacon so far." Vivian took a sip of the drink slowly, tasting it a little, then setting the glass down again. Her eyes returned to him as she started looking him up and down. "Hm... I'd try to guess what year you're in, but I honestly have no clue. Your height kinda throws me off." Her gaze turned back to meet his, and she gave a small wave of her hand. "No offense, though. Not sure if you wanna talk about that."
-
Michael set down his glass, seeing the delicate way she attempted to handle hers. "Here. I've got a trick that I used to use when holding a wine glass." he said, cupping his hand around the head of the glass. "If you place it between your middle and index fingers, you don't put any pressure on the glass. I've shattered a few of these myself." he said, picking his glass up as such.
Michael took a second of silence, looking down at his wine glass. When he looked back up, he turned back to Vivian. "First year. I think if I had more experience, that would have actually been a fight back there." he said, taking a sip from his glass.
-
"Ah, smart." Watching how his hands held it, Vivian then put her own glass down before picking it up again in the fashion that he had shown her. It was definitely better like that, as gravity did most of the work rather than requiring her grip to be pushing against it. Raising the glass, she took another sip from it, nearly finishing the drink off this time.
It wasn't until he spoke again that she looked up at him, grinning a little. "What? First year? I was expecting second at the very least, if not third." She paused only to take the final sip from her drink before setting the glass down and continuing. "And if you had more experience, well, we might not have gotten to be here. Which would suck, because I enjoy your company. When you're not trying to pin me down or have me arrested, that is." Vivian giggled a little while trying to get the last part out, a sign that she was obviously joking around.
-
Michael polished off his glass, smiling over at Vivian. "Yeah, you're a lot more pleasant to be around when you're not putting holes in my face." he said, laughing along with her. At this point, the door to the room opened and a waiter came through, dressed professionally.
The short, obviously balding man came to the table with a smile that did little to hide how nervous he was. "Good evening. I'm sure the two of you enjoyed the wine. Do you two know what you're going to order?" he asked, towel over his arm and notepad in his hand.
Michael took a quick glance at the menu and flipped over to the extensive steak options. "I'll have the porterhouse, medium rare. Potato on the side. And a salad. House dressing." he said, staring directly down at the menu as the waiter jotted down his order.
The waiter then looked over at Vivian, only looking slightly less nervous. "And for you, ma'am?"
-
Vivian planned to respond to him, but seeing as their waiter had arrived, she decided it could wait. She hadn't really thought about what she wanted, and she didn't know what stuff was good here either. Michael probably had better judgement than her on the matter.
Giving a small smile at the waiter before turning her attention to the menu. She didn't actually look at it extensively, instead just looking at what kinds of sides they had before turning to face him. "I think I'll have the same as him. No potato." For a moment, she pondered it further before continuing the thought. "And maybe a chicken soup rather than the salad?"
-
The waiter simply wrote down the order and nodded before exiting the room quickly, moving almost mechanically back toward the kitchen.
Michael waited until he was out of the room to snicker a little bit. He looked over at Vivian, a joyous smile on his face. "If you didn't know what to order, you should have said something." he said in between soft laughter. He took a second to look at her from head to toe. "I'm fairly certain that steak is going to be bigger than you."
Deciding to try not to laugh too much at her expense, he pulled out the bottle and refilled both glasses expertly, gaining way too much amusement at the small detail.
-
"Why is that so funny?" Vivian responded quietly, looking at him briefly with an annoyed pout. A moment later, she shrugged, the confident smile returning to her face. "Besides, even if I can't eat it all, that just means more leftovers. I'm preparing for the future, obviously." With her glass now refilled, she took it in her metal hand once again, making a light clink sound as it made contact. She made sure to hold it the way he had recommended, still wanting to avoid it breaking.
"I think I'll be good after this one." The faunus took a short sip of it before pausing, though she didn't place it down just yet. "I'm a bit of a lightweight, though I'm sure you could tell that much. Don't wanna get wasted here."
-
Michael just shook his head, maintaining his grin. "Yeah, you can imagine the number of times I've been called a lightweight." he said, finally getting himself off his laughter fit. He took another sip of wine, relaxing into his chair. "It's rather rude of me, but I haven't inquired anything about you yet. So...where are you from?" he said, setting his glass down and giving her his full attention.
-
"Tch. Probably the same amount of times I've been told I was too tall for something." Holding up her free hand, she pressed the tips of her thumb and index finger together, making a small circle with them. "Zero times."
Putting her hand back down, she casually sipped at her drink, only stopping once he had finished asking his question. "Oh, now you care about being rude?" Setting down the glass, she giggled a little to make it obvious that she was just teasing him. She then folded her metal hands together as they rest on the table, turning her head to look back at him again.
"Well, let's see... I was born and raised here in Vale. I've always been a city-dweller because of it; never liked the country." Bringing one hand up, she rubbed at her chin a little, seemingly trying to recall a specific detail. "I think my biological parents came from Vacuo, but we never met." She shrugged. "I was adopted, but that doesn't bother me. As far as I'm concerned, they're my real parents. Besides, I have my dad to thank for these beauties." Raising one of her arms, she pretended to flex with the metal prothsetic, smiling at him as she did so.
-
Michael smiled back at her, giving a small laugh as she flexed her metal arms. "You know, the country has its benefits. I've spent many a summer over at the farm in Vacuo." he said. His posture straightened up slightly as he heard the waiter return with their food, setting down gargantuan steaks in front of both of them.
"If there is anything else I can do for you, please let me know." the waiter said, bowing slightly before exiting the room.
Michael spent little time in digging into his steak, letting it melt in his mouth as he chewed. He chewed and swallowed before saying "So, what made you decide to punch holes in people for a living?"
-
Once again, Vivian decided that she would hold her tongue until the waiter had left them. Seeing the steak that she was being presented with, it did occur to her that Michael wasn't too far off from his estimate. The food was definitely a lot larger than she had been expecting. Of course, it smelled fantastic, and she was rather hungry, so she wasn't too worried about it. Once they were alone again, she diverted the majority of her attention towards him, though she did occasionally look back down as she was cutting at the steak with a knife as well.
"No offense, but I think it's, like, crazy boring outside of the city. I guess it's cool if you wanna be alone, but there's nothin' for me to do out there, you know?" Taking a break from cutting, she lifted her glass again and finished off the rest of her wine before resuming the same task from moments before. "As for why I do what I do, well, it's fun." Poking the knife into one of the pieces of steak that she had cut off, she bit it off, almost immediately smiling. "Mm, good."
Looking up at Mike again, she shrugged. "That's a short version, really. I've been fighting for a long time, even since I was little. Back then, it wasn't so much for my or others' well being. I did it because I was good at it, and people praised my punchy-punch talents. But, like I mentioned earlier... I also did some bad shit. No easier way to make up for it than to start punching bad people and monsters instead." The faunus gave him a sly smile. "Well, except for jail time. Which is kind of why I smacked you down." She moved to take another bite of the steak before continuing. "I don't know if I'm on some kind of list, but I don't want to find out by taking a trip to the police station. You seemed pretty set on making that happen. But anyway, after a while of doing it, I realized that it's pretty much the perfect job for me."
-
Michael managed to get about halfway through his meal while Vivian talked. He was quite the fast eater, something he developed as he needed to eat more food than everyone else in the same period of time. Old habits die hard. His smile only dropped briefly, when she mentioned her previous deeds. Michael made himself pick his smile back up afterwards, although it was easy to spot the slight change.
"You know, I didn't intend for it, but...is this a date?" he asked, looking at her with a confused expression.
-
She made a mental note of his reaction to her story, but didn't continue any further with it. Instead, she only laughed at his question, leaning her head against her hand as she propped her metal arm up on the table.
"That idea hadn't crossed my mind. I'm pretty sure it's not, though." Vivian took another bite of her food, waiting until she had finished the piece before she started speaking again. "Maybe I'm wrong, because I don't really go on dates. But, I think to call it that, we would have had some kind of acknowledgement beforehand that that's what we're doing. I'd probably say, I dunno... just 'having dinner'?" Chuckling again, she put both of her arms back down, looking back at him as she took a short break from the massive meal in front of her. "Now, if you had actually asked to go on a date, well, that'd be a different story."
-
Michael took a brief break from his meal to finish his glass of wine, exhaling deeply. "I mean, I'm fairly sure if I asked you on a date, you would say no, so there's that." he said, refilling his glass. His tone was not the self-pitying tone he had earlier, but rather a somewhat upbeat tone. He finished off the bottle, placing it back in the ice bucket. He returned to his meal, leaving a somewhat comfortable silence and giving his guest the option to fill it if she pleases.
-
Unsurprisingly, the silence wouldn't last long. Vivian was never really someone that wanted to stop talking when in someone else's company. While she was glad that he didn't sound like he was being too serious about what he had said, she still felt the need to provide some sort of counterargument. Not so much to make him feel better or anything, but mostly because she just wasn't sure whether he was joking or not. "Hey, I wouldn't assume that so quickly." She was quiet for a moment, only deciding to elaborate when she realized the implication of what she had said. After giggling a little, she shrugged, continuing on. "Not that I would or wouldn't agree to it, but like, you've gotta have the right attitude if you really want someone to say yes." Seeing that he had returned to eating his food, she did the same, only saying a couple more words before she stabbed a piece of the steak to eat. "Just sayin'."
-
Michael smiled at the sentiment, washing down his piece of steak with the remainder of his glass of wine. He set down his glass, a grin on his face. He picked Vivian's metal hand up, putting his hand on his chest. He then proceeded to spout, in an over the top french accent, "Madame, I would be simply enthralled if you would accompany me to the pier on the morrow. We could lie in the fields and bathe in the moonlight, and we would let our hearts meld into one."
He let go of her hand and started laughing hysterically at his own joke. "Don't think attempt number one worked."
-
Vivian didn't bother to stop him from lifting her hand, finding the action to be rather entertaining. At this point, she was definitely thinking that he was simply messing with her, so she didn't bother trying to come up with a proper response. All she could do was laugh at him for a few moments, waiting until they both had settled down to compliment his display. "Smooth as hell."
Once he let go of her hand, she looked down at it for a few moments, the appearance of her metallic prosthetic reminding her of something. "Hey, this is entirely random, and kind of a dumb question." Looking up at him, her expression changed to one that looked slightly more serious, though she still managed to keep her eternal smile. "That person that mugged you. Are you really going to give up on finding them? 'Cause like, I still think you should try and get your ring back."
-
The smile slightly faded from Michael's face as the topic shifted. "I mean, damn." he said, sighing a bit. "Here's the thing. I damn well want to get my ring back, but I can't seem to find this person." Michael pulled out his phone, pulling up another video.
The new video shows the same figure with shining arms attack a man in a business suit. She pummels him, grabbing something from inside his coat before running off.
Michael let the video play out before putting it back in his pocket. "That was my brother, Christopher. I have the distinct feeling that they are gonna find me." he said, smiling slightly at the notion.
-
"Hm." Vivian watched the footage closely, though there wasn't much to gather from it. Whoever this person was, they clearly had some sort of issue with him. Not only that, but they were giving a bad name to all the other rabbit faunus and cyborgs in Vale! And that was definitely not something that she planned to let go on for much longer. Seeing that the video had finished playing, she leaned back in her seat, picking up her fork to resume eating the steak briefly. After two bites, she decided to speak up again.
"If they dooo come after you again, then you could be prepared. You could set up a trap!" With a wide grin, she placed both of her fists on the table, still holding the fork in her grip. "I can hide off to the side and come out to beat 'em up if they try anything." She raised both of her hands, shrugging. "Hell, if I covered my arms up, they might be ballsy enough to try and mug you while I'm there. Because without the metal, I look pretty harmless."
Hit by the sudden realization that she was no longer using her manners, she placed the fork down before folding her hands together. "Anyway, that's just a crazy idea. You might be able come up with a better plan than just trying to bait them."
-
Michael watched bemusedly as his companion suddenly got very energetic. "I don't think that setting a trap would be a good idea. Whoever this person is, I don't exactly know what they want. So far, they stole my brother's wedding ring and my lucky ring. I think they're looking for something, but I couldn't tell you what." he said, shrugging and plopping the last piece of steak in his mouth.
After finishing his meal, he sat back in his seat. "For you to be able to get the trap going, you'd have to basically be my bodyguard until she comes back. And I think you probably have more important things to do than wait for me to get my ass kicked again." he said, pulling out his wallet and going through some lien.
-
"I mean, come on. If they stole a ring from both you and your brother, they're definitely trying to get some type of ring from your family. That sounds like a pretty good lead to me." Despite the food that was still on her plate, Vivian wasn't hungry anymore, something that didn't come as much of a surprise considering the size of the steak. She could probably save the rest of it for leftovers anyway. Instead of eating, she simply wanted to take the opportunity of privacy that they had to talk to him about it all. "Have you asked any other relatives about any special jewelry they might have? Because I highly doubt that what happened to you and him would just be a coincidence." Continuing to respond, she made a fist once again to emphasize her next point. "And I'm a great bodyguard! I used to do it a lot, even when I was younger. Helping you out with your troubles is the least I could do after decking you like that." She moved her hand back down to rest on the table. "Besides, I definitely wouldn't mind following you around." She winked while saying the last part, afterwards trying to stifle a laugh before letting it out anyway. "Hah, sorry. Bad joke."
-
Michael turned red in the face and laughed along with her. "I-It's all good." he said, rubbing his face in hopes that it would make the redness go away. "Well, if you want to try and help me, I won't say no. Although, I'm gonna have to go speak with my parents at some point to figure out what the deal is with these rings."
Michael fished out a few bills from his wallet, counting them out before leaving them on the table. He reached into his jacket pocket, pulling out a small notepad which he scribbled a few words on before setting a note on the table and standing up. "Oh right, you wanted to box that up, didn't you?"
-
Vivian was most definitely aware of his blushing, but she avoided commenting on it as to not embarrass him further. The rabbit girl's face lit up as he agreed to her offer of help, before she scooted own chair back and stood up. "Awesome! This might actually be kinda fun. My teammates are usually busy, so it might be cool to have someone to just hang out with. Even if it is technically to try and catch someone." Hearing the comment he made on the food, she nodded, peering around the area for a few moments in attempt to spot the waiter. Eventually, she looked back up at him, serving as another remind of their comical size difference now that they were both standing. "That food was real good, by the way! I really appreciate you bringing me here, especially after all of... that."
-
Michael smiled, the height difference amusing to him. "No problem. You're helping me now, remember?" he said, straightening his jacket. "Besides, I think it's gonna be interesting sticking around each other for a while."
Michael walked toward the door, completely forgetting about Vivian's food. He opened the door to the private room, holding it open for Vivian in a gentlemanly way, blushing slightly as he realized he was starting to act kind of like his mockery earlier.
-
Michael didn't seem to remember the food, and seeing as it didn't particularly concern her much either, Vivian simply left it as they prepared to head out. Instead, she followed behind him, giving him a grin as he held the door. "Thanks." At this point, he was almost being a little too kind, but she certainly wasn't wanting him to stop. Knowing that he really didn't take the solid punch to his face too personally was comforting. Once she had made her way through, the faunus looked over at him once more, folding her metallic hands together and holding them behind her back as she waited for him to lead the way. "Back to Beacon, then?"
-
Michael walked out past her, leading them both to the door. "I probably should. I do have to return that book to the library." he said, holding the front door open for her. For a beacon student, Michael did spend a lot of time off of campus. "Although, I need to get back to my house first."
Behind the nearby podium, the hostess peeked her head out. "Have a good day!" she said cheerily. Seeing the smile on Michael's face made her light up as she talked.
-
Vivian gave a short wave to the hostess as they walked out, thanking Michael once more as well when he held the door. Stepping out of the building, she felt that it was just a little bit chillier than it had been when they had arrived, urging her to zip up her jacket. Her eyes scanned the outside, though they were mostly lingering on the atmosphere above them. It wasn't exactly nighttime, but the sun was starting to get low, producing a gorgeous orange glow throughout the sky. Of course, her attention span was minuscule, something that was made obvious as she looked away only moments later. Besides, their conversation was certainly more important than looking at the sky.
"You don't stay at the Academy's dorms, then?" The bunny returned her focus to him, her curiosity piqued yet again by what he had said. "I mean, I can see why. It's not always great living with teammates." She giggled, recalling some of the ridiculous stuff that had occurred in her own dorm. "But, that's where I stay. So unless you want me to come with you for protection or whatever, we may have to part ways."
-
Michael stood outside the door for a few moments before the same black limo from before pulled up. Michael opened the door for Vivian, turning to speak to the driver. "A quick stop by the house and then to the airship docks. You'll get the rest of the day off after, Charles."
Michael got in after Vivian, sitting across from her once more. "Actually, I don't have a team. Stuck in the individual dorms until they find a fitting group for me. And, well, I don't exactly fit in a normal room." he said, buckling his seat belt and unbuttoning his jacket. "You know how hard it is to get a bed that fits me in one of those tiny rooms?"
-
Vivian was mildly surprised as the limo pulled up already, her rabbit ears standing up as she heard it nearing. The timing was actually kind of impressive, at least to her. Climbing inside the vehicle without the same hesitation as the last time they had been in it, she then leaned back against the seat, letting out a small sigh. It was actually even more enjoyable, now that her nerves were way settled down compared to earlier. No longer did she have any worries, letting her fully appreciate the quality of the limousine. And it was great.
It wasn't until he spoke up again that she stopped thinking about the interior of car. His explanation gave her an interesting mental image of massive man struggling to get comfortable in a very small bed. For some reason, that was absolutely hysterical, and she didn't try to hide that fact. All she could do was start laughing her ass off for a second or two before trying to stop. Still, she kept chuckling for a while, unable to get the image out of her mind.
Having finally gotten herself together, at least to a reasonable level, she shook her head and let out a deep breath as she grinned widely. "I am sooo sorry, but... God, I didn't even think of that. The struggle sounds pretty real."
-
Michael crossed his arms and scowled as he was laughed at. "Yeah, yeah, very funny." he said as he waited for her to calm down. "You know, people think that being this big is cool. It's a real bitch, let me tell ya."
He shook his head, relaxing a little. "Like, I have to get tailored blue jeans. Nobody makes pants tall enough for me normally. And I have to sit in the back seat of the movie theater, even though I'm nearsighted. And god damn I'm glad I don't have to use public restrooms anymore, that was a nightmare." he said, reaching into his briefcase nearby and pulling out a pre-cut cigar.
-
She raised an eyebrow as he pulled out the cigar, unsure if he was going to light it while they were in the limo, but she didn't say anything about it. "I won't deny it, that sounds pretty shitty. But you have to consider the alternative at well." Vivian placed one of her steel hands on her chest, gesturing to herself as an example. "You could be just barely over five feet tall. I have to look up at everything, and that absolutely murders my neck. I'll occasionally have to get my own clothes custom fitted, so I feel you on that. I'll even sometimes be mistaken for a child. And I don't think I need to even talk about trying to reach shit." She shrugged, making an 'oh well' gesture with her hands. "It's probably not as bad being short, but yeah, not too grand either."
-
The ride to the house was short, especially considering they were already in the wealthy district of Vale. The house looked average. The walls were white, the front lawn mowed not too long ago, and the front door a dark oak. The only thing that stood out was the larger-than-average garage.
"At least they have clothes in your size. They might be in the children's section, but still." he said, deciding to give a jab back at her after she laughed at him. He put the cigar in his jacket pocket for the time being, as he wanted to save it for the wait at the docks.
The house came into view as the conversation continued, the limo gradually coming to a stop as they parked on the street.
-
When he finally decided to get back at her for her laughter, she pouted a little, getting slightly peeved as he made a joke on one of the things that she had just mentioned. "Low blow, man." Of course, she deserved it, the smile returning to her face as that realization hit her.
The average look of the building was interesting to Vivian. With where they were, and the way he was, she expected something a little fancier. She actually thought it was very nice looking, as something like a mansion would probably be a bit intimidating. It reminded her somewhat of her own parents' home, though his own home most definitely had a larger garage.
-
Michael smirked as she pouted, the table turned briefly. Michael would step out of the limo first, leaving the door open for Vivian as he stretched. "Well, this is my house. If you wanted to stay here, there is a guest bedroom upstairs that you can use. Up to you, really." he said as he walked toward the front door, fishing out a key from his pocket.
Unlocking the front door revealed a nicely decorated but strangely bare house. The walls had few fixtures on them, leaving them with a deep blue shade of paint. The furniture was black leather, and there was an elaborate entertainment center immediately walking in. Further back, you could see a full kitchen behind an island counter, with dark stone tile counters covering the space. Close to the front door, there was a coat closet, tucked under the stairs leading to the second floor. The house looked strange in the fact that it was immaculately clean, more like an exhibit than a living space. That gave it a somewhat off-putting vibe.
-
Vivian followed behind him as he exited the limo, shutting the door behind them. It didn't seem like anybody was here, which was a little strange, considering the size of the house. "Thanks for the offer, but I think I'll just go back to the dorms. I don't mind hangin' out for a bit if you want, though."
Her suspicions were confirmed when they made it inside and it was empty... Strangely empty. Regardless, it was a pretty nice house, even if it did look like it could get boring around there.
-
Michael took off his jacket and put it on the post supporting the handrail on the stairs. "Welp, your call. I should go grab that library book, then." he said before heading up the stairs and turning left, disappearing behind a wall. Then, the sound of a door opening, the thud of a shin hitting a bedpost, and a muffled expletive resounded through the floor.
About a minute later, Michael walked back down the stairs with a book in hand. He quickly grabbed his jacket, slipping it back on. "So, Beacon?"
-
Vivian nodded as Michael mentioned the book. Watching him start going up the stairs, she leaned against the wall, folding her arms together as she waited for his return. Her rabbit ears popped up at what sounded like him hitting something, the yelling afterwards reaffirming that idea. She couldn't help but chuckle a little, almost feeling bad as she did. By the time he had gotten back, she was only giving him her usual content smile, not showing any signs that indicated that she had heard him through the ceiling. After all, he looked fine now, so he couldn't have hurt himself too bad.
Seeing that he was putting his jacket back on, she headed for the door, her metal hand wrapping around the doorknob. "Yep." As she turned it, an entertaining thought came to mind, one that she simply refused to pass up. Opening the door, she stood there and held it open before bowing down in an elegant manner while using one arm to gesture outside. "After you, good sir." It would be obvious to anyone that she was teasing him, poking fun at the multiple occasions where he had held a door for her.
-
Michael walked past her, pushing her ears down over her face playfully as he went. "That's for stealing my line." he said, closing and locking the door behind them. He quickly got back to the limo, pulling the door open and climbing back inside. Once they were settled in, the driver pulled out and started toward the airship docks.
"I wish I could get a team." he said, a slight smile on his face. "It would be nice for someone to have my back for once."
-
When he pushed her ears down, she only chuckled a bit, not resisting much as she knew that she had it coming. She followed behind him until they had both gotten into the limousine. By this point, Vivian had mostly gotten used to the fanciness of it, but she certainly wasn't going to get bored of riding in it anytime soon.
"Teams are cool, but they don't always work out. Sometimes trying to keep one together can be just as difficult as not having one." It was clear that spoke from experience on the rather somber subject, and yet, she didn't seem upset at all by it. "I may not be the same year as you, but I can still have your back. Especially when it comes to jewelry thieves." As she said it, she smiled back at him. While she was joking a little with the last part, the rest of her statement was serious.
-
"Thanks." he said, strapping himself in. The limo had a quick pace as it went toward the docks, the route well-memorized by the driver. "It's just been difficult, you know? Being this far away from home and everything." Michael finally bit the bullet and pulled out the cigar, lighting it with a silver lighter and taking a deep puff. The limo did not fill up with smoke as expected, instead only a thin layer of smoke appeared at the top of the cabin.
-
The faunus leaned back in her seat and began to relax, not paying much attention to the fact that he had lit the cigar. After all, it definitely wasn't the first time that Vivian had been in the company of someone smoking. She didn't prefer smoking cigars herself, but she could deal with it. "I guess I can see that. I mean, I haven't lived at home for a while, so I can't really relate a whole lot." She closed her eyes while resting against the seat, but kept talking. "Also, I don't wanna be too nosy, but do you live in that big ol' house by yourself? Because that doesn't seem very fun, honestly. I would get bored reeeally quick."
-
"Yeah, it's just me in there." he said, small puffs of smoke coming out of his mouth as he spoke. He then exhaled, a long trail of smoke crossing the cabin before it rose to the ceiling and disappeared. "It does get pretty boring after a while, yeah. I've just kind of gotten used to it. Not exactly the sociable type, you know?" he said, setting his cigar down in a built-in ashtray by the door of the limo.
'Not exactly the sociable type' was Michael's way of saying that he had no friends. Not hard to see why, considering he not only missed a lot of time a person would use to make friends at an early age while in the hospital, but was a giant in Atlas. Not exactly the friendliest place to people who stood out. Michael's smile faded when he thought of his seemingly failed attempt to start over and make new friends in Vale, a familiar scowl returning to his face as he thought.
-
His change in expression was easily noticeable, with Vivian noticing it almost right away. However, she had no real idea why, and didn't think it'd be a great idea to push on that subject a whole lot. "I, like, really need to socialize with people. A lot. I don't even have a ton of buddies or anything, I just love talking to people. Everyone seems to have some interesting story or another, or maybe somethin' else about them that's cool. I feel like I'm missing out if I don't get to hear about those things." She opened one eye, smirking at him. "Like you, for example. If I wasn't very social, well, we probably wouldn't be here right now. So that's good." Moving to lie down on the seats, she closed her eyes again. While she wasn't going to take a nap or anything, she did feel like getting a bit of rest while they drove to the docks. "Not sayin' you have to try harder to be more talkative, though. You do you. Sometimes it's better to have less connections to hold you down."
-
Michael's scowl slowly dropped from his face, which changed to more of a neutral expression. He picked his cigar back up and puffed on it, which seemed to calm him down a bit. "Atlas would be a living hell for you, believe me. Nobody up there would socialize with you if they thought it would hurt their precious image. Useless, the lot of them." he said. He shook his head, taking another long drag of his cigar. "Honestly, if anyone saw me here, with you, I'd get chewed out like you wouldn't believe. To be honest, I'm surprised you'd talk to me after all that shit, god knows half the faunus around here think I'm the devil."
Michael ended his rant with another drag of his cigar, a long trail coming out of his mouth as he went. He sank back into his seat as he realized he went a bit too far in new company. "Sorry." he said, putting his cigar away once more.
-
Despite the fact that she was simply laying there, she still listened to Michael closely, nodding in agreement as he made his comments on the people of Atlas. "Yeah, I'd say that's mostly accurate. My dad actually came from there, and while he's great, I've met 'friends' of his that were... not exactly enthusiastic about him having me around." Vivian chuckled a bit, shaking her head. "To be fair, I was kind of a punk when I was a kid, but I don't think that was the entire reason either."
Considering the rest of what he said, she sighed a little herself. "Sorry if this is rude, but like, fuck those people. Whether they're faunus or not, it's retarded to judge someone that heavily if you don't actually know them. That's kinda why I didn't hate you right away. You obviously had some sort of reason to act like how you did." She almost stopped herself from asking the next part, as it was probably a bit personal, but her curiosity got the best of her. "Why do you think most faunus hate you, exactly?"
-
Michael let out a deep sigh, his head falling back into his headrest. "I mean, it's mostly reputation. Being a family from Atlas is one thing, but we've got a legacy of being dicks to faunus that seem to follow us wherever we go. My grandfather and great-grandfather used faunus slave labor in factories. To this day, most of our workers are faunus. I'm not saying the hate is unjustified, it just gets old after a while." he said, looking out the window as they went. "That's why I like not having people know who I am. It's part of the reason I went to Vale and not Vacuo or Mistral. Vale is the place where we are the least known. Yet, I still have people vandalizing my car, throwing garbage at me. Before I got this house, I got a brick through my bedroom window." he said, turning his attention back to her.
-
Vivian could only nod as she listened to his explanation, suddenly understanding what he had to deal with. It made sense. If she didn't already know him, she probably would have fallen in with those that made assumptions and judged him. Luckily, that wasn't the case.
"Well. That's not entirely your fault, is it?" While she was still lying on the seats, she turned her head to look at him as she spoke. "I don't think trying to avoid people is a really good idea. Then again, the other option is to distance yourself from the company. Which is, well, equally shitty. Can't say I really have any good ideas to help you there."
The girl sat up, leaning forward a little and smiling at him. "But hey, at least I know you're not a dick. Maybe having a faunus to hang out with will make some people think the same thing?"
-
This time, her smile seemed to have no effect on him. He stared at the ceiling for a brief second to compose himself. "I doubt it. It seems anything I do is just bound to make more problems for me. Damned if I do, damned if I don't." he said, looking back at her with a defeated expression.
Outside, the limousine gradually halted, pulling over about a block away from the airship docks. Michael opened the door and stepped out, grabbing his cigar as he went. He took a few steps onto the sidewalk, the cool breeze helping calm his emotions.
-
Vivian was, for once, silent. There wasn't much that she could respond with. She never liked to look at things in a negative light, but there was certainly a chance that he wasn't wrong. Plus, his situation was a little more complicated than any that she had ever been in herself. The rabbit just leaned back against her seat, letting out a short sigh.
Watching as he stepped out of the vehicle, she soon followed him, moving up to stand at his side. Perhaps going on to talk about something else would be a better idea than pushing him further. "Anyway... I know where you live now, but I still need a way to get in touch with you." Pulling her scroll out of her shorts' pocket, she held it out to see if he would accept it. "Mind putting in your contact info for me? Because I would like to hang out again sometime soon-ish."
-
Michael looked down at the diminutive girl, grabbing the scroll from her hands. "Sure." Michael typed his information into her scroll, leaving it without a picture. "There it is." he said, handing the scroll back to her. "Would you mind taking my book back? I have a few things I need to take care of." he said, pulling the book out of his side pocket.
The soft breeze caused the smoke from the cigar to leave an almost horizontal trail from Michael's mouth. The cigar hung from the side of his mouth as he stood there, the shadow of his massive frame covering Vivian. "Besides, I'd just have to come back here by myself."
-
Rocking back and forth on her heels as she patiently waited for him to finish giving her his contact, she eventually took it back once he handed it to her. A few moments later, she nodded at his request, taking the book from him as well. "Can do." Vivian slipped the scroll into her pocket once more, but kept the book in her hand. "I'll be sure to return it safely. Just in case something goes wrong though, I'll be sure to pay you back for it. ... Not that you would need that, but it's the thought that counts." She didn't seem to mind being literally overshadowed by him, simply smiling up at him yet again.
-
Michael put his hand on her head, giving her a quick pat before turning and walking back to the limo. "I'll see you around." he said, closing the door after him. The vehicle quickly sped off, heading back towards the house.
After a few minutes, Michael sat in his living room. He stared down at his scroll for a good few minutes while thinking. Thinking of what the hell he could say. The grandfather clock just around the corner was the only thing breaking the silence of the room. After slowly dialing the number, he waited for it to ring. After a tense 17 seconds, a soft feminine voice came from the other side. "Hello?" "Hey mom, sorry it's been a while since I've called. Listen, do you happen to know anything about a ring?"