A/N: Dumbass me is starting this chapter during midterms week...
So y'all better appreciate this ;) lol but really I get lonely without feedback.
EDIT: It's been a little too long. Sorry... in return- a Riven fic will be posted soon!
EDIT 2: Sorry about the long wait! Real life (mother hospitalized, school sucking, etc) happened, so sorry.
(Ironic that I was talking about traffic before this chapter; its still surprising how many people go through this non-frequently updated fic) (I'm also sorry a lot but not doing much about it; this HAS to change.)
P.S. Shoutout to MiriaJiyuu for posting some rather long reviews/returns to my PM's; thanks for your input, MiriaJiyuu! (Vi and Victoria are indeed the same person.)
P.P.S. 'oppa' in korean means big brother (no I'm not a gangnam style hypetrain-er even though it's old, i'm actually half kr) & obafemi in yoruba roughly translates to something along the lines of "the king/god loves me" (oba being king or god, femi being loves me) EDIT: 3-2-14 Obafemi's chapter will come later instead of this one.
3-2-14 Wow. Here comes the ancient update! 3 months late... Sorry guys! (I actually posted it on this date for once)
Without further ado,
Skij Leonhart
Chapter 7-
"Wow... I didn't know you guys hid out in a dumpster like this."
David scoffed as he set the girl he had been carrying in his arms for a while down to her feet; she was awake and giggling a little at Vi's ignorant joke.
"Please, give me a second."
David brushed aside the remains a hanging circus poster; Victoria hadn't even seen one of those before, and wondered how old the poster was. Hearing beeping, she diverted her attention back to the man in front of her.
"And there we are." David remarked as he finished entering his code into a keypad on the wall; nothing fancy or LED; just an old-style, punch-in keypad that would work when rained on.
The wall in front of them slowly slid into the ground, and as it clicked into place in the ground, lights flickered on down the way, lightly illuminating a steep, descending staircase.
"After you, m'lady." David smiled as he turned around and knelt down enough for the smaller girl to jump on his back as Vi tentatively made her way down the stairs, checking behind every so often to make sure David was still following.
After checking the third time, Vi heard a scoff behind her.
"I'm not going to leave you here, relax." Vi chuckled nervously, nonetheless clutching her backpack straps tightly as she descended further. Suddenly, the stairs came to a sudden halt; Vi had been picking up speed heading downwards and ran smack-dab into the wall, falling onto the floor in a heap.
Laughter could be heard from up the staircase as steps approached while Victoria scrambled to stand and straighten herself up. When she could see his feet, she began angrily, "Why didn't you tell me about that? I thought it would open up into some or something... not lead to more facades or locked doors! A little common courtesy never hurt any b-..." Vi trailed off as the stern look plastered across David's face came into view; the girl on his back looking down at the ground.
"Lesson number one: be observant. I have no use for anyone around here who doesn't help out in any way. Since we lost Caine back there... I might need a new strategist." As he slid the girl off his back, Victoria's mind flashed pictures of the scrawny boy with blood and god knows what else splattered everywhere in the cell and she shuddered.
Sure hope that doesn't happen on a daily basis around here.
Seeing the concern on her face, David walked up to her and put his hand on her shoulder, similar in mannerism to her brother's old ways. Vi managed to suppress a shiver and focus on the words that were directed towards her.
"It's not often we lose someone, but we do. And... I'm being harsh 'cause I want you to be happy here, and thrive... but I need you to help me help you, and do what you can to help around here, okay?" Vi nodded imperceptibly; words, if she tried, would've failed her.
David understood and placed his palm on a portion of the concrete wall with no visible breaks; however, like the first wall, it sank into the ground slowly before allowing entry to a bright, wide-open room. Vi was still staring at the ground, however, and didn't notice the throng of people lounging in the room as she began to speak.
"You know, its possible you might have to get in here quickly; that door will be too slow to close on or behind anyone; it seems a little old; maybe some renovations, or..." Vi looked up after taking a few steps into the room and her throat constricted; multiple pairs of eyes were staring her down with varied levels of intensity. The nervous girl gulped audibly and shrunk back towards the entry-way before an arm crossed behind her shoulders, barring her exit. Victoria swallowed nervously as she was pushed forwards into the room.
Great, I haven't even been in here a minute and I'm already insulting their technology? How much worse can this day get?
"H-h-hi, uh, I'm, uh..." Victoria stuttered before David came to her rescue.
"This is Vi. She'll be staying with us for the time being; during which she will prove her usefulness..." The group's heads nodded their assent as he spoke on, "and she'll be rooming with Olive. Any objections?" Vi sighed internally in relief; she was going to have to work on her nerves if she wanted to last a day here.
A girl a little older and taller than Vi emerged from behind a tall, muscular teenager, who had his hand around her shoulder protectively, with a hand in the air.
"Yes, Jessie?" The dirty blonde's first words came out as a squeak; she cleared her throat forcefully and began again.
"Where's... where's Caine?"
David sighed and hung his head a little; this was all the girl needed as she collapsed to the floor in shock wordlessly. Without raising his head, David began issuing more orders.
"Ben, move her to her room and stay with her; make sure she doesn't do anything stupid." A lanky, tall teen got up from the couch, lifted her onto his shoulder effortlessly and walked down a hallway off to the side.
"Lin, see what we can do to improve on the entry doors and their mechanism speed; Vi's right, we ought to be able to safely exit and enter this place." A petite Asian teenager slipped off in the other direction; seconds later, clanking could be heard from down the other hallway.
Vi's eyes widened; she figured her musings would go unnoticed; already, David was acknowledging her advice?
David looked up and turned in Vi's direction, meeting her surprise with a smile and clasping her shoulder in a firm hand.
"You're one of us now." David let go and turned to the remaining four standing diligently near the couch.
"Dylan, Oba, meet me in my office. Olive, show Vi to your room, would you?"
The two older teenagers nodded; Dylan dwarfed by the larger Obafemi, who could have (and often did when required for missions) passed as an adult. The three walked down the same hallway Lin went down, David's female companion close behind.
Olive motioned towards a third hallway across from the entrance, but in between the two that had already been traveled by. From what Vi could tell, the infrastructure of the base was well done; the living room that they had been in was relatively square-like, with hallways leading down in four cardinal directions.
As the two walked down the hallway illuminated by LED's going down the ceiling, Vi allowed her mind to wander a bit as she gaped at the infrastructure.
Whoever designed this must've been a genius...
"If you're wondering who made the place; it was mostly Caine's idea. He and Jessie were pretty close... But Caine was a real genius when he... didn't have to make decisions. Pressure always got to him." Vi nodded solemnly; she'd seen how he freaked out back at the cell when the shadow warrior had attacked them.
The younger brunette was so enraptured in her memories that she ran into Olive, stopped at the room door; the two subsequently ended up in a heap on the floor.
"Sorry!" Vi squeaked out as she pulled herself up and turned around to help the other girl up; in reaching down, however, Victoria had a rather adequate view down Olive's shirt. The younger girl couldn't help but blush and look down as she offered her hand; when Olive reached her feet, the pair stood in silence for a few awkward seconds.
God, now she probably thinks I'm the most awkward human being ever and we have to room together and this is just the first few seconds and I-
Vi's thoughts crashed to a jarring halt when she felt a hand underneath her chin, softly pushing it up to meet eye contact.
"Thanks for the hand, Vi." Olive released her hand gently and, before turning, turned half of her mouth up in a smirk. As keys jingled in the lock of Olive's room, Vi took the time to completely analyze her roommate from head to toe.
Olive stood maybe two to three inches taller than Vi, with long, brown hair with the occasional blonde highlight; it was straightened at the moment, but Vi could imagine it curly. Olive's figure was fuller than her own; probably due to the years Olive had on the relatively mentally-matured youngster. Even true to her name, Olive's eyes were a deep green; not too bright, enough to almost be mysterious. Vi was entranced.
I suppose I never thought I was into girls... maybe I'm not? But she's just so amazing... How did I not notice this earlier, in the living room? Right... she was standing right next to that Dylan guy... Oh.
Dismay broke into Vi's psyche; she'd gone from being engrossed in her roommate to the realization of the in-availability of this same roommate in a matter of 50 seconds. The disappointment invaded her physical control and as she walked through the doorway, Vi collapsed onto the floor. A faint voice trickled into her consciousness.
"This is my bed, and yours is over there; mine's more than big enough for the two of us though... and over there's th- Vi? Vi!"
Vi felt arms underneath her back and legs lift her smoothly from the floor and set her gently into a bed.
Soft. Plushy. Mmm.
"You're freezing, Vi, good lord. Sleep with me tonight, alright?"
Not like I can protest.
The newest recruit was rolled over in bed so that she faced the wall; Vi subsequently felt weight shifting in the bed before an arm slid over her body, the hand attached resting near her right hip. A pillow slid in underneath her head, and a body pressed closer to her back. After a few seconds, a leg even crossed itself over her own. A fiery feeling arose from within her, but she was too tired to focus it.
"Sweet dreams, Vi." The girl felt a light kiss on her head before all other movement in the bed stopped. Without even noticing, Vi had tensed up; relaxing all of her muscles set her even deeper into the encasing form behind her. A smile graced the exhausted girl's face; she felt like she belonged.
She finally felt at home.
E/N: I personally like where things are going; hope y'all do too!
I just noticed she faints/passes out/goes unconscious a lot... idk why but it's just what it is.
Ages are going to blur over the next few chapters; I'll try to clarify all the time skips but when I finish those, whatever age they end up at is where I want them to be, and that's that. :P
Character list of the people in the story (in current scenes):
Vi, Jessie, David, Olive, Ben, Obafemi, Lin, Dylan
F, F, M, F, M, M, F, M (genders)
Thanks for your patience folks! Hopefully this stuff speeds up, but no promises.
Riven story inc!
-Skij
