Today I'm writing more light-hearted. :3 HAVE SOME FRIKKIN SOPPY STUFF TO LIGHTEN THE GODDAMN MOOD
P.S. This is different from my Sacrifices storyline! Oh and Darvo's in here! I posted this in my tumblr, but what the hell. Posting it here too.
"TENNO SCOOOOOM!"
The annoying taunt made her spin around and fire a barrage of super-heated plasma to the unfortunate Grineer. She unsheathed her Galatine and swung it with relative ease, despite her being shorter than the weapon itself.
"A Heavy unit is approaching."
"Dammit, Lotus, why now?" she muttered to herself, reloading her Dera and readying for trouble. A Grineer Heavy Gunner approached the Tenno and spun her Gorgon. Instinctually, the Tenno pulled her and casted Bullet Attractor. As the Heavy Gunner stood up, more Grineer were coming in the room. She smiled. They fired their weapons and the bullets began to fly towards the Heavy Gunner. Underneath her helmet, Yanmei was laughing maniacally as the Grineer were mortified to see their bullets piercing their fellow Grineer. Too late. She's dead. As they stepped closer to the corpse of their fallen comrade, a sound was heard, then there was an explosion. The Grineer were stunned, and the Mag grabbed this opportunity to slice them one by one.
"There are no other life forms here. Get to extraction."
She breathed a sigh of relief, trying to catch her breath. "I'm not useless…" she breathed. "I'm not useless."
Instead of going back to the Dojo, she lurked in the market instead. She was too upset to go home. Too upset. At least she finally blew off some steam when she accepted that Extermination mission on Phobos. She decided she should treat herself for working so hard. That's the only form of recognition she can get right now. She skipped past some stores, window shopping for some new weapons or some new gear. After a while, she grew tired and looked for a spot to spend the night on. She remembered this abandoned spot where a certain merchant set up his illegal merchandise. It was well hidden from view. Yanmei lurked in the shadows and went there, avoiding the other merchants' view. The place hasn't changed. It still looks dark and shady. What she saw there, however, was different.
"He's back."
Darvo stood there, tidying up his stuff for the night. Her knees trembled upon seeing him. "He's back!" she muttered to herself. She snuck up behind him, like a cat stalking its prey, then went for the pounce. Both of them landed on the floor. Seeing the flash of black and red, Darvo remembered the Stalker and mistook her for him. He immediately began screaming for help, only to be silenced when, instead of killing him, the shadowy figure squeezed him tight.
"You're back!" she squeaked, not letting go of the unfortunate merchant.
He recognized that voice. "Y-you're the young Tenno who always comes here, right?" he managed to say, still being trapped in the Tenno's intense bear hug.
Still on the floor, she spun him around and pulled at his nose. "I told you to call me using my name!" she protested. Afterwards, she embraced him again, and in a more serious tone, she said, "Never scare us like that ever again." Darvo just sighed and reciprocated the hug. "I thought the Stalker got you. Many of us did," she said, still squeezing him tight. "Heh, I should get in trouble more often." She withdrew from the embrace and looked at him questioningly under her helmet. "I didn't expect a skilled Tenno to worry so much about a mere merchant like me," he said. Skilled Tenno. That one got her. Tears were welling up in her eyes; thankfully she didn't remove her helmet just yet. She didn't want to show weakness. She just embraced him tight and they stayed like that for a few minutes.
"Uh… Tenno-" he was cut off when she withdrew from the embrace. He knew she was staring at him fiercely under her helmet. "…I mean Yanmei, could we move? This position is rather… awkward." Embarrassed, she rose up immediately and shook the dust from her suit. Darvo noticed the scratches and cracks on her suit. "What happened to your Warframe?" he asked. Yanmei sighed. "I soloed an Extermination mission in Phobos," she said. Darvo gave her a worried look. "All by yourself? You could get killed in there, you know. Where is that overprotective father of yours?" he asked. Her breath hitched in her throat. "I'm just upset, okay? I butchered some Grineer to blow off some steam! At least it's better than convincing myself that I am useless like what that miserable bastard just said!" Silence followed afterwards. Darvo just sat there. "No need to get upset Te- Yanmei. I was just asking." She sighed and leaned against a wall. "Okay. Sorry if I yelled at you."
He stood up and gathered his things. "I guess that explains why you don't want to go home." She finally managed to calm down and help him tidy up. "So where are you staying for the night?" he asked, eyeing the Tenno beside him. She retracted her helmet and sighed. He looked at her soft features, ironically covered in blood and sweat from her last skirmish, and went back to tidying up, careful not to be caught. "I… I don't know. I have nowhere else to go I guess. And I only have a cache of 250 credits with me. Shoot. I guess I'll just find a safe spot-" she was cut off by him. "Have you lost your mind? It's too dangerous, especially here. This is Corpus territory, you know. Some merchants may take your presence wrongly." She crossed her arms and swung her hips. "And where do you suppose I should go?" After a few moments of silence, he finally spoke up. "I don't mind you staying with me tonight."
Her eyes widened and she eyed him. He immediately avoided her piercing gaze and there was a light blush on his pale face. "Don't worry, I won't try anything! Your junk will be safe…" Yanmei's face was red now. Darvo realized he just stated a double entendre and the flush on his face intensified. "I meant your gear!" he cleared his throat and wiped his face. "I won't try snatching them from you and selling them, okay?" After a few seconds of awkward silence, Yanmei let out an amused laugh. Boy, that laughter. So freakin' precious, for a fearsome Tenno. In a matter of seconds Darvo was in a laughing fit as well. "Okay, okay. Thank you Darvo," she said, pinching his cheek. He flinched a little, still not used to the touch of this feral little creature. "So, where do you stay?" she asked. Darvo went silent again. "I… I just go hopping around inns and-"
"THE HELL DARVO?!" she exclaimed. He desperately tried to calm her down. "Hey, hey! I'm reopening my business to pay off some old debts, okay? I have to sell and move as much as possible so they wouldn't catch me empty-handed." Yanmei just sighed in defeat. "How the hell do you think I can pay for the rent and food? I only have 250 credits, Darvo. I don't think that's enough. Also, if you notice, I just stare at your junk because I don't have platinum to buy it."
Awkward silence followed afterwards. It was her turn to be embarrassed. Their choice of words is poor this night. "I meant your merchandise!" She cursed and apologized to him. "Language, woman!" he jokingly said. She cleared her throat and rubbed her head. "Don't worry. Though I'm on a budget I'll pay your share." Yanmei looked up to him. "R-really? Wow, thanks Darvo. Don't worry, I'll figure out a way to pay you. Be warned though, I only have five platinum in my account. I know, I'm broke," she said. He chuckled. "I guess you'll just have to figure out a way to repay the platinum."
They began to travel to look for a place to stay. After a few minutes, Darvo abruptly stopped walking. "Wait… if we're going to rent… does that mean we're sharing a room?"
A small feminine hand landed on his cheek.
