Viper was not used to the feeling of guilt. They were an information broker, the world's best information broken. If someone wanted information they had to pay and if they wanted information from the best, then they should have to pay the best.

Never had they seen anything wrong with it. When they were called to that meeting all those years ago, they had gone to prove once and for all why people should pay their prices. They hadn't spared a second thought to the idiotic stuntman dressed in purple leather. They had never volunteered information and they weren't about to start.

It never crossed their mind to help the obviously out of their dept kid. Never crossed their mind to take pity on them. Over the years they had charged the idiot more than others, charging them more than they would have charged someone else because they were annoying. It became a habit to add on twenty percent when the Cloud asked them anything.

Finding out some of the information they had on Skull was wrong was annoying. That annoyance was tempered by the revenge the Cloud took on their Storm. Seeing the normally composed man looking like an idiot was a down payment for the wrong information. Setting the Rain up to kiss the Cloud and annoy the Storm was just too amusing to pass up.

The reaction was everything they had hoped for. Fon's absolute fury radiating off of himself, Colonnello preparing himself for an actual fight with the Storm even Lal's vast amusement was perfect.

They hadn't counted on Skull coming in. They hadn't counted on the shattered window. The fury was over the top and they said as much. Only…Skull's hurt and pain were very much obvious. The way the others left without knowing their born gender made something twist uncomfortably in their gut. The way Skull didn't come out for the rest of the day had them tossing and turning in their bed.

The churning anger of Cloud flames that seemed to saturate the house had them getting up. Before they even realized what they were about they were in front of Skulls room. A booming knock on the door echoed in the silence of the hallway. They were tempted to shuffle their feet as they waited for the door to open.

Skull's eyes were gleaming with unrestrained power, glass shards gleamed from wounds she had not taken care of. Her anger had not abated since lunch. They could practically see the Cloud flames sparking.

"Perhaps I went too far." They muttered mulishly after a moment. "I will give you a fifteen percent discount as an apology." They don't know what they expected but it wasn't the disappointed look that Skull gave that caused the knot in their stomach to tighten.

"No thank you." Skull's voice was only barely above a whisper, and Viper almost thought they would have felt better if Skull had screamed at them.

"Twenty." They said, sliding their foot in the doorway to stop the door from closing.

"Viper," Skull started with a weary sigh.

"Thirty percent and I will buy you new makeup." They declared folding their arms looking imploringly at Skull.

"Thirty percent off your prices, or thirty percent off the inflated stupidity tax you charge me?" Skull asked, a hint of reluctant amusement in her tired voice.

"You know about that?" They asked after a moment of silence.

"You will find there is very little I don't know about you."

"Then why pay it?"

"Because it made you happy." Skull stated with an eyeroll like the answer should be obvious. It didn't make that knot deflate, if anything it felt like Skull had struck a hot dagger into their stomach and twisted it. They blamed Skull's hidden flame. It made no since otherwise.

"Fifty percent off my regular price, and I'll buy you some makeup." They said, their voice soft.

"I don't want a discount Viper." Skull ran a hand through her hair.

"Then what do you want?" They asked taking their eyes from the Cloud and glaring at the floor.

"An apology would be nice."

"You want an…apology?" Their eyes snapped back to those purple eyes that had an unreadable look in them.

"It might not mean much to you or the others but yes, I would like an apology. A heartfelt apology means more to me than any discount."

"I…" Viper began as they looked up. Their eyes locked on Skulls. "I am sorry Skull. I wanted to annoy Fon and I took it too far."

"Thank you. Next time please don't use me to annoy Fon. I know you have something against him, and I respect that. I don't care what it is, but I am not a possession to be used, regardless of what you and the others often times think.

Viper nodded, the feeling in their gut didn't completely disappear but they did feel a bit better as they walked back to their own room. The word's "it made you happy" floated around in their head. A snort left their mouth the thought of: How had nobody noticed just how much of a Sky Skull truly was.