Hello my glorious readers. Once again, another week has past, but instead of the new chapter being a product of divine deliverance, this behemoth was discovered through sweat, pain, and pure determination. Much like Dante traveling through the depths of Hell to reach the unexplained beauty of existence, this piece of writing is the product of a long and treacherous journey.
Alright now that over the top poetries out of the way, which basically is just me summing up how I'm still shocked I crapped out an eighteen-thousand-word chapter during midterms week, we can get into the regular pre reading update. As always, I apologize for any English mistakes I may have made, which hopefully be better addressed in the future.
On the topic of that and responding to one of the reviews before the comment response section, I am now officially looking for a Beta Reader. Now since I'm about to graduate college….I'm sort of…in debt so I can't actually offer any money to a potential proofreader. However, I don't want to simply ask some poor reader to go through my chapters and correct my mistakes, because that would just be boring and unrewarding for somebody being so selfless. So instead, while if I get a Beta reader they will probably have to help me out with sentence structure and word choice, they'll also get to go over the stories plot with me as well as give crucial input or suggestions into how I should precede.
With my Help Wanted sign is up, we now head into the comment section.
Joecola00 (AKA double O awesome): Thank you for the Beta reader suggestion, the section above should hopefully help limit those mistakes. I'm excited to see how your level of awesomeness will reach its next transformation (This is/was written Wednesday so my reaction on this fic may have to wait until the week after) (P.S this part was written Friday two seconds ago soooooo THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU).
Also, yeah, that whole seen with Tyrion was originally supposed to be from his third person perspective, but as I tried to write that I kind of got in the head space that it come across more insightful into Tyrion's own character if it was from the victims POV. Also creating the murder victim, who while a throwaway is developed enough for him to represent a relatively normal and innocent person, shows how Tyrion enjoys killing people because every bodies life is so purpseful. This was done to emphasize his sadistic tendency rather than him being motivated by past tragedy, sociopathic, or psychopathic behavior.
Phew that was a doozy, but without further delay I present to you Chapter 11 of Electric Lens.
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Chapter 11
Being more of an actual fact then expression, Penny was beginning to grasp the Earthling phrase, 'Everything on the Internet is permanent'.
It had been almost four days since the electric soul had first viewed the video of Velvet turning Lance into a reverse pendulum, and as such it had been four days since she had purged the internet.
By far the most necessary hacking risk Penny has taken, the mechanical Atlesian was finding removing information from the world wide web far more difficult than adding in fabricated knowledge.
To the white noise of Laura obsessively making sure Velvet hadn't sprained herself on her climb to internet fame, while simultaneously berating Gareth for not instantly pouncing onto Lance and beating his face in, Penny had begun removing the video the same day as it appeared.
Despite the number of people having seen the flawless take down being akin to half the population of an entire Kingdom back on Remnant, Penny had hoped against hope that stopping the bleeding would heal the wound. But her logic knew better, and now becoming a daily nuisance, she would see the video pop up again and again.
None of the new sites it appeared on were official or well respected enough to draw in the same audience as before. However, that did little to stop Penny from taking a flamethrower to the code of any page that contained it.
Whenever Gareth and or Velvet were away, Penny's entire being was focused on searching through social media for the wear abouts of the other three Remnant natives. As such, she knew full well the reverse could be true, especially since her rabbit eared friend made it quite clear they had been aware of her presence before gravity slingshot them across two horizons.
"...how many was it today?", a timid voice broke her out of her digital crusade, and caught off guard Penny didn't even notice her roommate had walked in...or the alarm that went off ten minutes ago signaling her school day had come to a close.
"Fifty-three"-Penny
The screen lit to life, and needing a half second to match Velvet's Danish, Penny kept it simple with just numerals.
"...That's six more than yesterday", the brunette said, clearly feeling worse and worse about her first action at school as time progressed.
"...That is correct. It seems that the internet has a slow, but exponential, relationship with deleted content appearing on illegal sites"- Penny
"...T-that's...sorry"
"It is of no concern Velvet- an event such as this would have happened eventually...although I was hoping it be on a lesser scale, and one were you weren't intended to be filmed or photographed"- Penny
"...Technically I wasn't", Velvet whispered out defeated, and despite how...unenthusiastic the pastel green huntress was about diverging time to deal with the rabbit faunus rise to stardom, she couldn't help but feel Velvet always took any words she had on the subject too personally, "...I...I hope you didn't have to spend all your day on my mistake"
"I did not, but it was the only field in which I obtained progress"-Penny
Having answered the actual question, Penny noticed Velvet's eyes became slightly disheartened. However, this was in contrast to her instinctual sigh of relief.
"...T-that's...something", the Faunus replied, her voice mimicking her emotional indecisiveness.
"By definition, yes.
Still curled up slightly, Velvet seemed to crack a small smile at that, an action that made Penny want to tilt her nonexistent head,
As of this moment, your evening is free...so if you'd like to-"
"Penny he's going to be up in five minutes", the brunette now began to uncoil herself. The smile grew as she clearly stated something, she knew Penny to know.
"Yes, of course. Do you know which topics you two would like to address first-"-Penny
"...What do you think he wants to do first Penny?", if nothing else the subject of the third house member got Velvet to distract herself from obsessing over a mistake that wasn't even her own, "He was texting a lot at lunch, what were you two talking about then"
"I do not think the information is releven-"
"R-really", despite the stutter, Velvet smiled. She wasn't one to have fun prying into another personal life, and she certainly wasn't being nearly as big a tease as Coco, but she was having a small amount of fun nonetheless, "Sounded like he was quite distracted for it to be nothing"
The text icon blinked, almost imitating a pair of eyes, before Penny finally caved in,
"Gareth and I were discussing the pros of con of taking a self-defense class"-Penny
"...Is Ms. Cadarn still talking to him about that?", a tribute to her personality, the brunette haired Faunus somehow managed to become even more formal with people when they weren't in the room, "S-she's brought that up a few times over breakfast and dinner as well"
"Indeed, although Monday proved to upset Laura"
For the sake of Penny, Velvet tried to force away her own guilt, in her own ongoing struggle to not cave into even the most mundane forms of self-pity,
"I believe most of her anger was directed at the delinquent Lance. Her parental relationship with Gareth has actually benefited from the event"-Penny
"T-that's good to know", tables now turn, Velvet was the one deep in thought. Mostly dwelling on how the only good outcome of her martial arts display was Gareth's new found confidence...at least when it came to talking to the three other people in his house, "...h-his mom always talks about how he should have 'sent that Ascalon brat to the office through the glass', b-but I think she's secretly happy he got involved"
"Involved yes, but as I discussed with him at lunch, I find myself in agreement with Laura. Gareth's own safety could benefit from combat training"-Penny
"...I don't think Gareth needs to prepare for war Penny…", the rabbit Faunus giggled, "Besides his mom's only saying it because she wants to ensure my safety"
"I have deleted the video from all legal sights, but I am almost certain Laura can recall that you had complete control throughout the engagement. Even without her knowledge of aura or huntresses, she must realize you can take care of yourself, far more than Gareth can"-Penny
If she was somebody else, perhaps Velvet would have cut the electronic Atlesian off from stating the obvious. But her eyes shining with their own smile, she was having too much fun watching Penny be...too intelligent for the obvious.
"M-Maybe, but I think she's just looking out for him", the camera light turned on, indicating Penny's confusion as Velvet decided she'd been through enough one sided teasing...at least the Vale huntress own version of teasing, which really was just moments of withheld over politeness, "But I don't think Gareth is gonna take her up on the offer…. then again you know more the me"
"That I do!"
The characters were typed out with too much excitement for Velvet to ever mistake them as rude, and even if they were that would only cause her joy to increase,
"...by that I wish to convey that Gareth and I have had a very thoughtful discussion on the matter"-Penny
"Thoughtful?", Velvet grinned
"Very much so. I have informed him of all the benefits on the matter. Not only does it improve his safety, but also has a multitude of ment-
Before Penny could unleash her college thesis paper on the benefits of martial arts, a quick series of three knocks cut her off. True to the time both had forgotten, making the new score one to two, the topic of discussion had arrived.
Ushered by the noise, Vivian emerged in the room once Velvet made triple sure her beret was all but glued on her head. Opening the door, Penny found herself joining the anxiety the other two often experienced when starting the afternoon study session. Although where their social nervousness was slowly decreasing day to day, Penny felt hers unnaturally spiked.
"Oh cool, P's already online", Gareth said shooting the computer a smile, "I was hop-"
"Salutations Gareth, would you like to begin going over your Calculous assignments"-P
Seeing the text flare to life, Gareth seemed a bit off guard at how fast his electronic companion responded...especially since he hadn't even finished completed his question,
"...uh P, I think that's in Danish", the boy rubbed the back of his neck, but with a laugh. Although this didn't stop Penny from feeling, what she could only assume, was her own version of embarrassment
"My apologies, I was asking if you wanted to complete your mathematic schoolwork first"-P
"Oh...well maybe later this weekend. I was actually wondering if you guys wanted to...you know...hang out", the scratching of his neck increased with the pinkish tinge of his cheek
"Don't we do that most nights?", Velvet questioned quietly before Penny got the chance.
"I mean...yeah...but a lot of the times were just doing school work, or having a discussion on human atrocities", the last part came out whispered, but given her cheeks suddenly matching Gareth's, Velvet didn't need her superior pair of ears to pick it up, "I figured this time we could do something...more relaxing"
"Martial arts are relaxing!"-P
"P...we've been over this, I'm just not built for that sort of thing", he said, trying to shift the embarrassment from his still half unanswered question, by shaking around one of his noodle like arms.
"W-what did you have in mind?", Velvet stutter,
"Oh…well...you see my mom sort of said I could use the car tonight", his eyes now lost purchase with Penny and were beginning to dart around, "So...we could do a bunch of stuff. Head into town, catch a movie, or maybe head to a hiking trail and get some good photos"
His hands following his eyes lead Gareth emotional nervousness needed a physical outlook, and as such he said the last part while picking up Velvet's camera from next to Penny's...well next to her entirely.
If his eyes weren't doing their best impression of pinball, Gareth could have possibly noticed Velvet's jaw tighten when he grasped her photography device. But being a bit too polite, she allowed him to continue holding it. Penny, however, was already trying to type out a reply,
"I know you like taking pictur-", and as Gareth's pupils finally fell on the one location they shouldn't have dwelled, the message Penny had typed up was now only detrimental, "Oh cool...are your friends into cosplaying"
Never having been taught the word 'cosplay', Velvet's own eyes adopted Gareth's confusion, before realizing he was looking at her camera's screen...specifically the last image on it.
"They're costume are outstanding, if I didn't know better I'd say this person's hair is actually green...and is that a scorpion tail, man that thing look so realistic", being the only one in the room to find the scene epic rather than horrific, Gareth continue, bringing his face closer to the scene, "and the level of detail on that ichor monster, that's astonishing, did you edit this Vivian it's amazin-"
"No!", Velvet stated it forcefully, and although she immediately regretted her tone, Gareth got the message
"Oh...sorry, I didn't mean to offend you or anything"
"It's fine...I didn't mean to raise my voice", Penny watched helplessly as Velvet had to find a way to explain the images, "It-it's just...those people and I had a...falling out...I'd rather not talk about them"
An awkward silence filled the room, but luckily Gareth did return the camera to its rightful place.
"You mentioned seeing movie as a possible outing Gareth"-P
Doing her best, the pastel huntress tried to redirect the conversation, anything to get the young brunettes mind of who the people in the photograph were,
"Yeah...but", he trailed off looking towards Velvet, who doing her best to help Penny out forced on a smile and lifted her head,
"I-I think a movie sounds great...what type did you have in mind?"
"O-oh, well I figured we could decide when we got there. Y-you're the guest so it would only make sense for you to choose", not expecting to be able to salvage the evening, Gareth's voice came out shock, but with Velvet already making her way out the room, at a politely crisp pace
"T-then we should see what they have to offer", seeing her exit, the emerald eyed high schooler made to follow before taking one last glance at the camera, still impressed by its display, and wondering what could have happened between Vivian and the people in it.
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...Gareth had been prepared for a lot of things this evening. Most of which revolved around scenarios where he'd find himself being embarrassed, whether due to him screwing something up and making Vivian feel uncomfortable while they were out...or his mom teasing him relentlessly when he got back home.
However, as he watched the title character on the movie screen walk, or rather hop, away, he can truly say he didn't expect Vivian to have liked, or let alone picked, this type of film genre. Nor could he have ever guessed she'd have a childlike face of wonder and excitement as it now came to a close,
"Little bunny fou fou hopping through the forest, came from far away but now has returned!"
...That doesn't even rhyme
Much like the cartoon rabbit now disappearing into the horizon, Gareth wanted to disappear into his seat. But as the projector lit up the credit sequence, the entire audience of five year old's,...and Vivian, erupted into cheers.
And in that moment Gareth felt very similar to the parents who had accompanied their kids, and now had to calm down their sugar field hysteria as the movie came to a close...only he didn't dare try and encourage his fellow brunette to leave her seat.
Much to their caretakers' benefit, children's attention spans were akin to that of an insect, and it wasn't long before all the movie goers funneled out of the theater. With the song still playing though, Vivian seemed hellbent, if not hypnotized, on staying through to the end. How she could achieve such bliss from an animated bunny turning human to save her forest home was beyond him...but so long as she was happy Gareth was at the very least content.
Letting the tune turn to white noise, the senior in high school leaned back in the seat. Looking over to his side, he picked up his cell phone that had been positioned in the cup holder.
He had originally planned to hold P up so she could watch the movie too, but the disproving look of the theater attendants quickly washed that idea down the drain. Not wanting to get into an altercation revolving around copyright and illegally filming a movie, the best Gareth could manage for his robotic friend was to place her camera in a spot that could somewhat see through the cracks of the chairs,
"Well...how'd you like the film P?", the youngest Cadarn whispered, but knew Vivian was far to entranced to notice him talk
"I thought it was very entertaining-"-P
"You couldn't see a thing, could you?", he replied stating his question as an answer.
"Regretfully no... but the music sounded pleasant"-P
"It fit the tone of the movie, that's for sure", Gareth said, transferring his eyes from phone text to screen, but not before giving a small smile at Vivian. Despite her taste in genres being… interesting, he couldn't help but think she looked incredibly...cute, adorable...both words were accurate, but a bit weird given what he just watched.
"You think she's waiting for a post credit scene?", he said resting a hand on his chin.
"There's more!", Vivian 's voice rang out through the empty theater, but still at a volume she hardly ever reached, let alone obtained through joy.
"I...uh...I mean probably...not", caught off guard Gareth stuttered out his response, only to whisper no at the last minute. However, it seemed to be a futile attempt as the Danish exchange students faced dropped at the knowledge there wasn't a secret ending
"B-but they still have so much story left to tell. I mean what happens when Velvet returns to the woods", she gave him a puppy eye dog look, signaling she wanted to wait through until the screen truly did go black
"Wait I thought the bunny's name was Snowy?"
"...that's what I said...and she was a rabbit not a bunny", Vivian's eyes briefly darted from side to side as if caught in a mistake, but given how she paid far more attention to the film, he was probably the last person to question her knowledge on the subject
"There's a difference?", Gareth said, trying to use his confusion as a way to lead them out of the now ghost town-like screening room. However, as he got up Vivian latched onto his arm and dragged him back down. Seemingly transformed into a different person she got closer to his face then he thought either would be comfortable with,
"Bunny's just a nickname, while rabbits are the actual living animals", Still darting her eyes to the screen for any surprises, Vivian began listing off the correct use of each terminology, all while Gareth remained pinned in place.
Man she's got a stronger vice grip then Lance...and she's not even trying, although Gareth had counted himself lucky that he hadn't encounter the blonde behemoth since Monday, he certainly was beginning to formulate a theory as to why, if he had to be on the receiving end of this strength he's probably scared of her...hell I'm slightly terrified of Vivian right now and she's droning on about rabbits
With blood flow being cut from his right hand, to the point that even P began to light up Vivian's phone to politely ask her to stop...although in a trance the action went unnoticed by the recipient. Gareth's arm was only saved when the theater lights truly did turn off, and as his vision was shrouded in darkness, he felt Vivian's hand loosen their grip,
"Is it really over", she said somewhat disappointed as Gareth tried to shake oxygen back into his hand.
"I'm afraid so...but maybe it'll be popular for a sequel"
"Really!"
"I mean the studio that made it never knows when to call it quits when one of their franchises sees success", he said trying to make sure Vivian didn't head back down into despair...over a piece of children's entertainment.
"That would be amazing, when do you think they'll announce it", she shot up from her seat, and it was only then that Gareth noticed her legs were practically shaking the entire floor.
"Probably...sometime in the future", he said springing to his own feet, wanting to make use of her movement to finally get out of the theater, "...by the way Vivian...do you want to use the bathroom. You did kind of go through two slushies in less than an hour"
Only now realizing she was holding something in Vivian no doubt went red in the face...luckily though any blushing going on went unnoticed thanks to the darkness...or at least Gareth thought as much,
"I couldn't risk missing an important scene", slowly coming back to reality, the exchange student's words began to grow quiet as both teens made for the exit,
"I know, I had to go buy your second drink", exiting the hall, Gareth had to squint at the sudden income of artificial light. Despite having essentially left just after school, the trip to the theater took a bit longer than expected with it being a town away. That accompanied with the movie length and the onset of winter meant the sun had been put to sleep somewhere in the middle of Snowy's journey.
However, Vivian didn't seem too bothered by the switch in lighting, and with her face now lighting up like a Christmas tree, she could only offer an apologetic look before darting off towards the rest area.
Subconsciously smiling as she went, Gareth reach again for his phone looking down at the text P was already forming,
"What do you think"
"I think she's awesome", the emerald eye boy responded a bit to instinctually, and as he saw the remained of P's question his face easily surpassed Vivian's from a moment earlier,
"What do you think of the film's premise?"-P
"O-oh uh well...it was", with his phone seemingly pausing in thought, his awkwardness and embarrassment seem to fuel one another.
"...You two seem to really be getting along"-P
"Do you think so?", Gareth responded with hopeful nervousness, completely missing the undertone the three dots meant, "I mean...I don't want to put her in an uncomfortable spot, or fulfill what my mom wants...but I think I'm starting to like her"
Still tracking his eyes were Vivian went, Gareth didn't notice the thirty second pause that followed his sentence,
"In what connotation do you mean like? As in friend or more so lov-"
Luckily the brunette had no water to spit out of his mouth, but that hardly stopped him from going through with the motions.
"Woah woah woah", the emerald eye boy began, growing more whisper like with each passing word as reality set in, "L-let's not get to far ahead of ourselves...I said starting to like...b-besides it's not like I'm gonna go through with anything"
"I still do not understand what you are saying"-P
In a sense neither did Gareth, or at the very least he didn't want to put in the embarrassing mental effort to make sense of his thought process by explaining it to P,
"I-It's nothing", he said motioning to pocket his phone, before heading over to the bathrooms. Not in any need to empty an already desert like bladder, but rather a moment's piece to prepare himself. P, somewhat uncharacteristically but somehow more in character, kept diving into her curiosity, but Gareth decided to use this brief trip as a break from that, albeit, brief conversation as well, "...one sec P, just...w-well nature calls"
"Yes, it does", upon reaching the door, the whisper quickly turned Gareth's view of the restroom from a potential place of sanctuary to a hell he was now violently pushed into.
Stumbling onto the polished tile floor of the laboratory, the young knight flinched when he heard the click of a metal lock. Turning around his eyes made real what his ears already knew, and he could only stare up in preemptive defeat. Knowing full well he traded an awkward conversation with P, for a physical torture with a blonde goliath,
"And it must have been an act of nature for us to meet again", using his imposing size to its full effect, all six feet and four inches of Lance's walked up to tower over Gareth. The sight of blonde's one size too small T-shirt making it painfully obvious to the smaller brunette just how screwed he really was, "That or people have finally started to realize you exist Gareth, and luckily for me I know a lot of people"
"...G-good for you", pointlessly looking for a way out, all the emerald eyed teenager could do was revert to his instinct...and when all three of those responses could only conclude there was three toilets and two urinals he reverted to an instinctual form of passive aggressiveness only ever seen by his mom...of course the stutter really only emphasized the passive part, "D-don't you think this is a little generi-"
Gareth's statement was physically interrupted, as a fist met his left cheek and sent him spirally towards the ground. The strike had come so fast that his nerves didn't even know what to make of the situation. Leading to his pain receptors simply throwing their hands up in defeat before adrenaline could even turn them off,
"Please, what do you think this is the seventies?", latching onto Gareth's left arm, Lance's effortless drag back up. With his glasses rocketed across the room the young Cadarn was presented with the blurry, but clearly enraged, eyebrow furrow of his taller classmate's frustration, "That I'm some stereotypical jock wanting to take my anger out on a nerd?"
Nearly lifting him up like a puppet, Lance delivered another punch. This time the bullies fist wedging its way into Gareth's stomach as his body reverberate like a violin string, "I have an image to upkeep Gareth, and if people don't interfere with my status quo I leave them alone"
Giving his knuckles a break, the blonde released his grip on Gareth's string like arm. Jamming his knee straight into the emerald eyed boy forehead as had tried to buckle in on itself. The first bruise now only beginning to form, Gareth felt like his head had just been struck by a mace,
"But when people do get in my way, when they upset the order of things, well I have no choice but to force them back into place", barley getting to all fours, Gareth only manage to cinematically set himself up as kick arced perfectly into his stomach, "and with over two million fucking people witnessing an afront to the social hierarchy, you better believe the route back to normalcy is going to hurt like hell"
Clutching his abdomen, the long since beaten brunette wasn't even sure what to think, or that he even could think. All he could manage was what his body did on reflexes, and so much to his horror he fulfilled a stereotype he had told his Danish friend a few days prior,
"Sounds like your problem with the internet then...so why don't you punch a cell tower and take it up with electricity", he tasted copper as his words exited his mouth gargled. Still somewhat trapped between a sunken tongue.
"...You should have stayed Gawain", somewhat caught off guard that the brunette had even spoken, Lance looked towards Gareth with an eyebrow raise. A gesture that only lasted two second before the blonde gave out an almost disappointing sigh while flipping the bruised Cadarn's prone body like a coin, "After all, myths don't have to worry about brain damage"
Too exhausted to even close his eyes at the sight of his vision being blocked off by the sole of Lance's shoe, Gareth just waited for everything to go black. But before vision could cause change sound did...well two sounds to be exact.
Confusing the blonde juggernaut, Gareth's phone lit to life just in time for a nonstop series of progressively louder knocks,
"G-Gareth are you okay?", maybe it was due to his brain having hit the wall of its house, but the young Cadarn was momentarily just as confused as Lance at the sound of Vivian's voice. Not in a position to connect the dots that P probably informed her he simply stared between the door and his assistant unable to respond.
If his vision wasn't so horrendously blurry at the moment, Gareth would see the blonde behemoth's confusion turn briefly to fear. Unfortunately, relying mostly on his ear, the only reaction from Lance the emerald eyed boy could truly observe was his eventual sneer,
"What an excellent question Klomps, but you'll find out soon enough", the muscular man spoke with all the condescendence of somebody protected by a locked bathroom door.
"S-stop this as once", the accented muffled its way past the door, carrying with it some form of desperation...but almost in a way that made it seem she was begging Lance to stop for his own safety, "or I will ge-"
"Get who, the manager? Here let me help you, most of him is out back by the dumpster, but right now his head's trying to reach the moon", Lance's own tone carried a statistical undertone, knowing full well he'd planned his trap out all too perfectly. And, although Vivian was probably no expert on drug terminology or slang, her sudden quietness made it clear she understood no nearby authority figure was in a position to help.
"V-Vivian I'm fine, I-I'll meet you by the ca-", the raised foot came crashing down, but seemingly still wanting him awake, it only painfully sent shockwaves through his ribcage.
"I wouldn't say that Gareth. I was hoping she'd see the aftermath of my work online, but witnessing this in person is probably better", his sneaker now rested triumphantly on Gareth's chest, as he began shifting more and more weight on the boy.
Giving out groans the soon gave way to scream Gareth wanted nothing more than for Vivian to leave. With the thought process being a tribute to just how much the boy had changed over the past few days, or more accurately how much he changed since meeting P.
Please just go Viv, knowing full well the girl could take care of his assailant easier, Gareth simply didn't want to put her in another awkward situation with Lance...didn't want to make her feel uncomfortable because he was so pathetically helpless. A week ago, he wished he never encountered the Danish student in the woods, or about how he wanted to be a fly on the walls of his school forever.
But with his assault having narrowed down his thought process the truth of his new mindset was beginning to leak through. Momentarily not able to be masked by overthinking or conjured justification.
"P-please just head back to the car", he tried to hide his yells behind gritted teeth. The knocks had apparently stopped, but despite him hoping Vivian caved into his plead, Gareth knew the silence still contained a person
"No, don't do that Vivian", reading the press, the absence of pressure caused pain almost equal to its presence. Unluckily for Gareth though, that discomfort became relative as the foot cracked against his jaw. Having enough force behind it that his entire body rotate a good thirty degrees on the floor, "Don't you want to hear what your stunt has done, don't you want to see your own repercussion"
The strikes came faster, and as a result lost all sense of rhythm as Vivian's presence turned Lance's attacks from a lesson to a raged fuel punishment. Whether it be his shin, ribs, gut, or even skull the entire right side of Gareth's being became a misused punching bag.
Whatever screams the brunette had once tried, and failed, to hide, were now being successfully covered up. However, instead of preventing them through his own will power, the sounds waves found themselves stopped by an unintended sea of blood in his mouth. Quickly overflowing into an ocean as the oxidized cell tricked past his lips.
Slowly but surely the young man found it harder and harder to stay awake and giving himself some form of credit, he did think it was impressive he remained conscious this long. Still this miniscule display of self-pride was overshadowed by his next thought revolving around why he still even bothered to fight against sleep,
"Come on Gareth, tell her how bad she screwed up. Tell her what happens when you don't value being a bystander", air parting blood, a splatter of crimson was the only response Gareth could manage, "Aw, what was that champ, couldn't quite make that out. You'll have to speak up"
Although it failed, a heel did its best to breakdown the gates of bone that guarded Gareth's lungs,
"Stop", emerging from Vivian's silence a monotone voice laced with authority gave it's one warning. Under different circumstances Gareth would have thought an entirely new person had appeared on the scene.
"Or what", Lance's responded with a snark, clearly not treating it as a threat, "You'll ruin my life by posting this on the internet"
Using a leg to push Gareth's right arm perpendicular to his body, the high schooler could only wonder why that attack didn't hurt...and then his eyes filled with realization that it was only a set up as the now truly six feet taller boy turned his free foot into a hinge behind Gareth's elbow.
His smirk being replaced for a thin line, Lance's looked down at the scene while pulling out his own phone and directing it towards Gareth,
"Hate to break it to you", he whispered out, only really for himself to hear, "but I'm already using that plan to set things right"
Rearing his pendulum into possession, Lance seemed to look at the video he was now recording as if he was watching a court drama where the jury was about to give a proper verdict. However just before the sentence was put into motion, a pin interrupted his program.
The new age bully looking at the text bewildered, Gareth couldn't even think about who it was that delayed his pain. But as Lance spoke it soon became clearly even in his own spinning mind,
"Oh all capital letters, whatever will I do?", he said through a sneer, although he was far more pissed the cinematography of his next shot was ruined then by any desire to tease, "God Gareth, you should have let me know you were friends with a letter. I would never have messed with you if I'd known the alphabet was on your side"
Seeing Gareth's own phone still strobing like a nightclub, Lance leaned down and began reading two sets of texts,
"Geeze, whoever this is they really care for you Gareth. I mean the language behind some of these threats, I'm honestly not sure how they'll even accomplish some of these things", seemingly having enough delay, Lance simply conveyed the motion of rolling his eyes as he chucked the Cadarn's own phone at his head.
His whole sensory system out of whack, and his vision nothing but colorful blurs, Gareth could only hear his own phone crack as part of the screen shattered against his skull. Not even knowing what he was doing anymore he reached out for the device with his left hand. For some reason wanting to make sure the unfeeling machine, that wasn't even her actual processing unit, was okay,
"But I'm a curious man, so let's find out", this time he gave no build up to the climaxes. Not that Gareth even saw the pinnacle of his pain coming as his soon to be only good arm made contact with the spider webbed screen of his phone,
"DON'-", before he could hear those words make a promise real, before he could hear the crack of his own bone vibrate throughout his entire body, and before he could see the splintering of wood shrapnel into the now blood stained room, Gareth could only process one last thing,
Are you alright P?, and just as that thought drained the last of his strength, time was put back into motion. Not that he could see the chaos to come, as his mind was sprayed over black.
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Whatever sense of justice Lance had thought he had achieved quickly drained from his face when Velvet had burst in on him...probably due to the fact that she had quite literally burst in on him. The door hinges having been forcefully bent as the wood it was made of was pushed far past its breaking point.
With her leg still outstretched from the kick that had caused such devastation, the rabbit Faunus watched as Lance's own leg came to rest in a pool of blood. Her panic being masked by duty, at least on the outside, the Vale native looked towards Gareth's body that laid prone on the floor.
Knocked out, bruised all over, and his face covered in more blood than skin, the female brunette had no issues kicking down the door regardless of the scenes it could cause later. With her eyes moving over towards her fellow housemates' right arm, that now bent the wrong way, the only regret she felt was not striking the barrier down instantly...a hesitation that would cause more than just self-directed hatred as it became more understood.
In the moment though, her own foot made its way back towards the ground, as Velvet's chocolate iris forced their focus off of Gareth and onto Lance. He was stuttering something at her, not that she could hear him. In fact, ever since the gut-wrenching sound of bone giving way to force, she hadn't been able to hear anything at all.
Operating in a silent void she shot forward, and before Lance could even blink, or have a chance to question the impossibleness of it all, he found himself doubled over. Spinning like a top, she delivered an instinctually held back kick to his abdomen that launched him a full two feet into the air.
Crashing back to Earth, the assailant gave out a groan. Sputtering to all fours though, he was uninjured enough to know he was well and truly out of his league. Slipping and crashing on the blood he caused Gareth to bleed, Velvet watched with clench fist as the blonde behind truly met his match in David and darted out of the bathroom,
"You fucking freak", her fist suddenly losing their form, the last thing Lance said in retreat broke through Velvet self-imposed deafness as her adrenaline-fueled state vanished.
The terror of the situation now becoming real she returned her eyes back towards Gareth...but not before seeing Lance's blonde locks went orange as he escaped into the theaters main lobby.
"Velvet please stop the bleeding"
Having been ignored as well, Penny's robotic voice came out awfully panic for something so monotone through her speakers
"I-I of...I don't…", both having reverted back to Remnant's native tongue, the rabbit Faunus sprinted the two strides it took to reach Gareth, "Shouldn't we call an ambulance?"
"I already informed you I did", the voice deserved to come out upset or panic, but Penny no longer possessed such luxuries
Kneeling down, Velvet didn't even know where to begin. Despite all her training, she was only taught how to perform basic first aid on fellow aura uses. Although she'd still be nervous, in that case she wouldn't have hesitated to snap somebody's bone back into place, or move his body into a better position, knowing the person's physical soul would heal away the small amount of damage the helpful action took...but doing so to a regular human...a regular civilian, there's no telling how much more harm that could inflict,
"...I can-"
"Yes, you can, the paramedics will be here in five minutes, but we- you can help now. Flip him over so he doesn't suffocate on his own blood"
"B-But what if I"
"Now Velvet", it was impossible to tell if Penny was being forceful or just down right begging, but regardless she had made her point. Whatever fear of screwing up Velvet wanted to have gone out the door...when she blew out the door.
Still doing her best to limit the amount she moved his body, trying to avoid his misshapen arm all together, the brunette tilted her male counterpart's head up slightly. A streak of blood gushing from his mouth onto his cloth, luckily only staining stains that were already there.
Unmoving Velvet kept this positioned for what felt like hours, but in line with Penny's logic, was the time the electric soul had predicted. Regardless time, for how slow it seemed to go, flowed together, and the planetary stowaway ceased swimming with its current.
Her digital companion kept shooting her order or pleas through her hidden ears, but Velvet could only nod along in agreement. She saw the growing crowd of movie goers and heard the shock gasp of their surprise when seeing Gareth's condition, but couldn't process what any of it meant.
When more qualified people then she took oversight of his wellbeing, she couldn't even find the emotional strength to feel relieved. Only standing up, with crimson covered hands as she followed them out towards the emergency vehicle.
She noticed the sight of a person pulling out their camera, and the countless surveillance one that caught the scene in its entirety but didn't have the worrying capacity needed to think about how much covering up Penny would have to do.
All she could do was mimic her friend's robotic nature as she followed the stretcher Gareth laid upon into the ambulance. Watching with terrified interest on how different not just people from Earth, but regular humans and or Faunus were from people with their aura unlocked.
All the medical moves were so much more...careful and measured. Fluids needed to be forcefully introduced through the vein because the throat would take too much energy and muscle movement. Antibiotics ingested and administered immediately not just to the injured area, but the entire body since the skin was truly their only line of defense against a hostile world, and once broken everything was in jeopardy.
My soul protects my body...but their bodies need to protect their souls...and their far worse at it, Velvet's world went dark then light again, as she suddenly realized she hadn't even blinked as much of the scene played out,
"Miss does he have a parent or guardian you can contact?", a female worker moved over towards the Faunus, seemingly taking advantage of her sudden return to reality
"W-what?", the response was given out of reflexes, although given Penny's far to in depth explanation of the words the android was taking everything as literally as possible,
"We're heading to the hospital; his parents should be informed. Do you know their number...do you know him?", the last part was said with a raised eyebrow, as if just now the medical worker realized the girl before her could have just simply been the first one on the scene and haphazardly followed them about,
"I-I know him, and I know his parents...I mean I know his mom; I don't know if he has a dad. I-I mean he probably has one...t-that was stupid he has to have one, I...nobodies brought it u-", Velvet didn't even know her own words were accelerating, and was only stopped when the women dressed in blue placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder,
"It's okay, everything's going to be fine, we can talk about what actually happen when things are more under control, but he's going to be okay", through years of training, the women who had somehow seen just as much devastation as Velvet, albeit in a different form an setting, seem to get through to foreigner enough to calm her down, "If you have his mother's contact information on your phone, I can make the call for you. Tell her the hospitals address so she can meet you two there"
Penny seems to be giving a lecture to Velvet about her thoughts on the subject, but the rabbit Faunus didn't know how to respond to the robot's intangible request. Instead she simply handed over her phone to the professional. Receiving a nod from the women, Velvet pointed out the right phone number, before turning her eyes towards Gareth and allowing the rest of the trip to take place in silence.
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Penny watched as nurses and doctors hurried about the hospital floor. Equipped in sterilized baby blue gloves, masked, and lab coats the electronic being found herself being overtaken with what she hoped was annoyance at the sight of the supposedly comforting color.
Seeing all this through Velvet's phone, which was laid horizontal on a nearby table that could barely fit the device, Penny's false hope was dashed over and over again as the hospital staff made its way past her current room's door...or rather what was supposed to be Gareth's current recovery area, but then again if he was here Penny wouldn't be putting herself through this visual torment.
"L-Laura's in the parking lot...She's asking for the room number...I'm sorry Penny, but I d-didn't see it on the wa-", the timid voice interrupted the bodiless Atlasien people watching.
"Unit number Four-Two-Four. Located on the east side of the fifth floor, in the area designated Recovery Ward"
The robotic tone met Velvet's ear far with an uncaring the electric huntress wished to convey,
"O-okay...I'll let her know", the brunette tone conveyed that she had flinched at Penny's cold address. However, the coded sentience hardly cared...more so than that she felt...well she didn't know what she felt.
Out of her control, her thoughts all revolved around wanting to feel enjoyment, but not in the way she had obtained it in the past. In place of the jubilance that would come because of her bubbling personality, Penny wanted to feel good by being uncharacteristically….disrespectful to others.
She wanted to go and launch Lance Ascalon through Earth's moon, that now she could only view as mocking her with its sphericalness. She wanted to take horrible joy in Velvet sounding guilt ridden because the copper headed girl couldn't possibly understand how the only physical huntress took so long to help not only a person in need, but their shared friend as he was being assaulted.
At this very moment she wanted to feel better by making Velvet feel worse. Question how she was only now willingly to talk, despite ignoring Penny for most of the trip here...but at the moment all the young Polendina could do was offer the chocolate eyed Faunus the same silence she'd give her. Because more than anything she didn't want to feel this, and the coldness her voice and words now contained, and the abruptness they had of letting Velvet know she should feel guilty...that was Penny holding herself back.
Being moved up, Penny actually switched off her camera as Velvet went to type a message to Laura. Unsure of what she would do if she actually saw her fellow Hunters face. With the clicks of the texts echoing throughout the room, Velvet eventually did but the device back into its proper position,
"I-I...was hoping he would be here by the time Laura arrived", more wants came over Penny and her natural caring personality and current emotional needs were fighting for control of the phone, "...She...I-I don't know….b-but…"
Eventually Velvet just gave up on the latter half of her sentence in its entirety
"D-do you know when he'll be out of surgery, or if he's even in s-surgery yet?", the sadness in the chocolate theme Faunus' voice only fueled Penny's new emotion, and it was getting to the point where will could not hold it back.
"I do not know. Would you wish me to hack into the facilities computer system, or would that be too much of a risk?"
...and evidently, as Penny picked up the noise of Velvet legs being pulled into her chest, the sentient computer didn't possess enough will to hold all of this want at bay.
With the Faunus no doubt compressing herself deeper and deeper into a ball, the sickening happiness Penny was after emerged...and she was disgusted with herself for it. After a few minutes of both residences being in their own emotional turmoil, one finally gained enough self-pity to formulate a response,
"I-I'm sorry I didn'-", Velvet sounded like she was on the verge of crying, and despite having shifted some of Lance's blame onto the Faunus, Penny boiled over at the mere idea Velvet felt she had the right to cry. Still oblivious to the reason why such feelings were present, let alone stop them, Penny pulled a Gareth and spoke before she though,
"If you were truly apologetic, none of this situation would have occu-", despite her attempt to yell through text to speech, a louder noise overshadowed Penny's lecture.
"Oh my God, Vivian!", having dashed through two nurses, and a janitor out in the hall, Laura emerged on the scene with frantic eyes. Eyes that, once finding Velvet's, darted into the room without so much as a glance to the people she practically ran over, "What happened, are you okay, where's Gareth?"
Is she okay!? You were informed your own child has a broken arm and possible internal bleeding, infecting her thoughts, Penny no couldn't even control what she was thinking.
"I'm fine...I-I don't know how to...G-Gareth…he needs surgery", unsure how to give proper responses, Velvet guilty struggled to even get a simple majority correct.
Still panicked herself, Laura did her best to make calm herself down to make Velvet feel more at ease...but at the end of the say the mother was by far more concerned and nervous then either two other occupants of the room,
"It's okay Vivian, please just let me know what happened?", whatever nice voice the emerald eyed parent tried to emit only emerged as confused desperation.
"W-we went to the movies, and everything was going great. When it finished...I...w-well we were going to head back to the house...but we both had to use the r-restroom", Velvet's voice rang with the guilt she felt as well as Penny's own that the electric android move to her, "W-when I got out I heard noise from the other bathroom...and...and that Lance guy from school he was attacking Gareth, by the time I broke down the door he'd already broken Gareth arm...I-I'm sorry this is all my fault"
Unsurprisingly, but still upsetting Penny, Velvet's tears finally did emerge. They echoed throughout the room quietly for a moment, before, perhaps being a universal parenting move, they were muffled by Laura's delayed, but very real, embrace,
"It's okay Vivian", Laura began in a soft tone, trying to convince herself as well as Velvet. Before her voice then shifted to one of anger and sadness, "I...the Ascalon delinquent broke his arm?"
Velvet must have given a nod because she didn't voice out her agreement through words.
"And then you broke down a door to stop him...I...Vivian you did more than anybody could have asked...thank you", Velvet tears seem to stop, but somehow that only made her experience more guilt...and Penny was already deep in thought why,
She didn't do nearly enough; the removal of the barrier was not a difficult feat at all. Do not thank her for this. She's a huntress, by her own training no harm would have come to Gareth if she acted accordingly, Penny had yet to realize she was feeling anger, but these thoughts were the emotions form incarnate, I told her to go immobilize Lance the moment his presence was known, but she hesitated. She was outside the door before the first strike even landed, and even as your own son was beaten and I was informing her the situation was an emergency, she remained motionless outside a door she clearly could remove. She didn't even act until his right ulna was broken in half!
Receiving the comfort both Remnant native needed, Velvet remained quiet in Laura's arms. The both desperately wanting to find out more on the situation, but only able to whisper words of gratitude towards Velvet. The mother not knowing that the situation only made the situation far worse...and the lie that much more obvious.
Even now Velvet isn't handling the situation properly. I am the one concerned with his wellbeing, already taking into account his recovery. I am not the one producing tears despite being an elite military unit design to face far more horrific situation...whose very presence here is the result of an emotionally traumatic experience that she could not handle without my help, the words were thought as if Velvet could hear them, but little did Penny know her very criticism of Velvet mode of grief was her own way of coping with a trauma for the first time. Her hiccup not present, she was unaware that she berated the rabbit Faunus for the very things Penny comforted her on the day they met. As such, the electronic being could not realize that her words were truthful in the moment, but time would eventually deem the moment itself a lie, I showed concern, I showed an ability to sympathize enough to break the rules I made...why does she get to be comforted, why does she get to be treated like a pers-
The sudden appearance of a man entering the room stopped Penny thoughts in their tracks. Dressed in flawless and uniform suite and tie, with comb back raven hair, he captured the attention of all beings, organic or digital, despite not being the male they wished to see,
"Ms. Cadarn?", the way he spoke made all of Penny's misplaced disgust gravitate towards him instantly. However, she now remained silent, reverting back to a machine observer, a situation due to be switched from one emotional state to another all too fast.
"Y-yes", the concern now came through full force, "Is there an update on Gareth's condition?"
"I'm afraid I wouldn't be the one to know Ms. Cadarn", stepping into the room now, and breaking etiquette closing the curtain that was the door behind him, he spoke as if he wasn't sorry in the least, "I'm here to go over this evening's little...accident. My name in Steven Gundleous and I'm an attorney for Mr. Ascalon and hav-"
"...get out of this room", upon hearing who he represented, Laura looked, at least from Penny's digitized perspective, shocked, as if him walking in here couldn't have happened. However, the un realness of it all soon gave way to pure rage that was on the verge of being unleashed, "Whatever that bastard has to say I don't want to hear it'
Never having seen this side of elder Cadarn, Velvet got up to stand beside the mother. Her face still had some streak marks, but the way things were going Laura looked as if she may seek some eye for an eye justice on the man of law.
"You're understandably emotional, but you're going to reconsider that", he forwent the word 'advise' altogether, seemingly treating his presence here as a formality for a result he already knew true, "You don't comprehend the full gravity of the events that have transpir-"
"I know my son's arm was broken after he was attacked by your employer's son!", aura or not, Laura's anger was barely contained, and comparing Penny's own frustration to the parents was like putting a match stick next to the sun, "I don't care who the Ascalons think they are, or what type of lawyer they think their money can buy, I'm going to see to it that Lance gets thrown in jai-"
"Ms. Cadarn, you are not going against me, or the Ascalons in court", the suited man calmly brought up a hand, clearly indicating he wasn't here for a conversation, or even just a lawyer, more so a simple messenger, "I could tell you of how there is no proof of Lance harming poor Gareth, or how the true culprit can only be speculated because the surveillance footage in the theater just so happened to be undergoing repair, but in the end that would require a lot of work and a lot of time"
That is a lie and fabrication, and I have proof of Lance's actions against Gareth. If I can show them the evidence then...I'd most likely be utilized as witness, the sudden abruptness if Penny's thought, mirrored the oncoming silence in the room, as through a fastened mouth Laura couldn't bring herself to speak. Simply, like Penny, boiling over in her own anger,
"Much like a court case, if one were to hypothetically be pursued that is, we would all know what the outcome would be. That being in the end, a waste of time and resources for all parties", he wasn't being...mean in the way he spoke, more so direct...which only made things all that much more revolting, "Mr. Ascalon would be annoyed by having to spend time reconstructing his public image, and you would be paying him reparation for a false law suit. A payment, which on top of other legal expensive, that you can't afford"
The combed hair man was hitting every never Laura had, but in such an order that she could only silently exhibit anger,
"B-but that's...how could you possibly win a case like this, Lance attacked him and I witnessed it firsthand!", Velvet spoke up in disbelief,
"And that is your truth, Ms. Anderson I believe it was?", just having acknowledged the Faunus's presence he seemed to take an added second to recall her fabricated name, "But as you will find out, truths are not objective and hardly absolute. Lance for instance has another view of truth, as well as the theater's manager. From what I have heard they saw you assault not only young Mr. Cadarn, but poor Lance as well when he tried to intervene"
"B-but that's not tru-", Velvet chocolate orbs widen with shock before she stuttered out her response
"And so then it must be false? Please save your duality for the naive Ms. Anderson I operate in the real world", his tone never held a demeaning quality, but he did give out a sigh clearly viewing his interaction here as an unwanted way to fill time,
"Listen, if you don't want to dance over the topic then I'll just be blunt. Ms. Cadarn if we go to court the Ascalons will win, and the argument I will use to ensure that will have to center around Ms. Anderson being the assailant", Velvet open her mouth to protest, but no words came out, not that it would have caused Mr. Gundleous to pause his thought process, "Video evidence exists of her harming Lance at school, and as such she has motivation through past action to attack him in the theater."
The chocolate aura user found her mouth hanging agape, as she now became victim of the man's words surgical precision,
"However, no such hard evidence exist in the theater, and so we'll have to resort to eye witness account, and I have already shed light that the Ascalons will find more willingly testimonies then you", Laura anger was now directed at the ground, but she tried to shield Velvet by motioning her back towards the seats, "As such you will lose, in consolation it will annoy Mr. Ascalon for wasting his time, but your situation will only be made far worse because of that"
Why does he not hiccup, why doesn't he get hold accountable for stating misinformation, Penny grew more frustrated in the man...and disappointed in herself as well, as she realized that if she didn't witnessed Gareth's beating, she'd be more inclined to follow his logic then Velvet or Laura emotions.
"In place of that emotional impedance, and financial destruction on your end, Mr. Ascalon values his time enough to offer you fiscal compensation", pulling something from an inner pocket lining his suit, the blacked haired man pulls out a think piece of paper darted with an impressive amount of zeros following a single four,
"Your...he's trying to buy me out?", Laura's anger tried to make itself known, but self-pity entered the room.
"He is buying you out Ms. Cadarn", the man's arm extended the check, but didn't move it past that point as if to emphasize something to Laura, "Right now you are thinking of how immoral this is, how much your son deserves justice, and how much you have to fight for him. But there is also a small voice in the back of your mind that knows your pursuit of what you deem right will only lead what's left of you family to ruin"
Robotically, Velvet had been going back towards the chair, but at the man's monotone explanation she began moving back up. Realizing that both her and Laura needed support to face him...however she paused, and her shocked eyes could only latch onto defeated emerald ones as the mother took the check.
"I-I...t-that boy can't come back to Gareth's schoo-", Laura whole body raided surrender, and she knew her words were now only a brave front to immediate choice or demand,
"That will not happen. Lance's father is insistence his son's enrollment in public school provides a better family and company image", the man listed off the fact with no glee or sorrow, and with the staged interaction complete on his end he began walking out, "I wish you and Ms. Anderson a good evening, and will hope Mr. Cadarn has a speedy recovery"
Shaking with oncoming tears, as if the man had hit her over the head with reality twice. Laura looked as if she had failed completely in every role she had ever possessed. And as the lawyer made his way out of the room that still didn't contain Gareth, she could only whisper out one last threat as a dreadful hypothetical, "...If my-"
"...If your ex-husband was part of the equation things could have been interesting, but I would not dwell on it Ms. Cadarn for the results would have been the same albeit achieved through a different route", he paused, as if in thought, but continued nonetheless, "Of course, I cannot tell you how that different path would be forged. Because as I told Ms. Anderson I only deal with reality, and the reality is if Mr. Aelle cared enough to put resources into defending his son, he'd have cared enough to be in this room"
The echo of man's balmoral's striking the tile of the hospital echoed the emotional slap he'd just given Laura. Having had all the emotion knocked out of her, the woman went as still as a statue, as Penny observed her go though some sort of biological reboot.
Velvet, to the only credit Penny would give her at this time, immediately began trying to reassure Laura everything was all right. Originally the Faunus had approached the household matriarch out of shock she'd accept the bribe, but after the scene she just witnessed she couldn't dare question the mother on the action.
However, the Faunus words were wasted on deaf ears, as slowly but surely all Laura could do was take in rasp gasp. Looking around the room guilt ridden, she eventually remembered where she was...and worse what had just happened. Tears streaming in the women's eyes, the usual force of nature Velvet and Penny new had been truly defeated,
"I-I've got to...go. I-I'll be back in a moment Vivian, please just wait here for Gareth", the mother was already breaking down, and not evening knowing she interrupted Velvet, began to walk out of the room as the tears came.
Staring as she went, the rabbit Faunus tried to reach out an arm, but it was quickly brushed aside. An act that was repeated on repeat as the emotionally distraught parent made her way through the hospital floor seeking out a place to be alone.
Realizing that she was now in the solitude room Laura deserved to be in, Velvet silently closed the curtain. Blocking out the events of a universe she still heard before she slumped against the wall. To confused, sadden, and disturb to even take a seat in the chair,
"P-Penny that man...h-he doesn't actually have a case does he?", the android was still processing the scene herself, but the mere fact Velvet was the one to break her viewing of it only caused her to revert back to her previous emotional state...with the most recent events only enhancing what she felt.
"Why do you act as if you care?", whatever response Velvet was expecting from Penny, that was certainly not it
"W-what?", speaking in Danish, Velvet only continued to crack Penny's gate
"Why do you act as if you care, I believe the question is simple"
"P-Penny...of course I care, w-why would you ask that?", the rabbit eared Faunus whispered clearly hurt
"No, you do not. If you wanted to prevent this situation you would not have hesitated at the door or been concerned with the logic of revealing our shared secret despite my assurance it was necessary."
"I...I didn't know how bad...I-I", the distraught brunette stutter to herself, not expecting the monotone emotion of Penny's voice to hurt as much as the suited man
"You did, I was informing you how the situation was deteriorating. However, you broke through the door far too late, and even betrayed your own justification by using the mission as an excuse. A reason that you also seem to hold no value in"
"I'm sorry...I-I've just been trying to help...b-but I get nervou-", as if listing off a disability, Penny couldn't even let the young Vale woman finish,
"You're a hunter who has trained to deal with far worse situations. However, you turn you back on logic when initially interfering with Lance, and then used that same thought process to allow Gareth's arm to be shattered"
"I d-didn't mean to...I just didn't want to be a burden to you", Velvet was practically mouthing words at this point,
"You have, and despite my efforts to console and be patient with you I can only conclude now I have made an error. Looking back I gave you the benefit of the doubt, but if a situation such as a school yard tormentor puts you into irrational states of shock and aggression I must only conclude that you are not fit to be a huntress, and if I do get us back to Remnant I would highly suggest pursuing a different career path"
This wasn't like Penny, and both the android and Velvet knew that. Fully aware that it was one thing for a person to act out of character, and another to want and portray being the opposite of who they were. However, that did little to stop the words from stinging in the moment,
"...I...I want to help people though...t-that's all I ever wanted to do", not having the emotional strength to defend herself, the brunette could only question her entire purpose instead,
"Recent evidence on Earth suggests you have failed on all accords. Your very arrival is of you not being able to properly remove yourself from a highly valued reconnaissance mission, and the two earthling you have built a relationship with have only received psychological or physical harm based on your presence-"
Penny wanted to remove the hiccup from existence, but was still to focus on the new feeling taking over her processing,
"I-I've helped them though, b-before this Laura and Gareth were...we were getting along", falsely confirming her worst fears Penny caused Velvet to lose more and more of her already broken composure,
"Only because they don't know the real you. For even an undeserving aura user would seem like a prodigy to a human on Earth", a feeling of regret gnawed at Penny, and as a small, but now powerless part, new she would feel awful for all she has said...and feel more inhuman than ever for what she was about to unleash, "But perhaps that is why you have always been hesitant, for all the people in need I've witness you fail to help- were human. If they were Faunus would you have behaved like a proper defender? If Gareth had more ears would you not have blinked before subduing his human suppressor?"
Another silent slap echoed throughout the room, and Velvet stutter immediately ceased. In its place came a low, but clear response...a response that vibrated in the universal tongue, "Were stopping this conversation now Penny"
"Why?", the part of the digital soul urging her to heed Velvet's advice, the section trying to bring back the real Penny, was pushed further and further away, "I have told you I would dedicate myself to helping you. Therefore, I must know if you hold racist beliefs. Afterall such an ideology is unbefitting of a huntress and, if you want to go against my counseling, it be in your best interest if I assisted in showing you its harmful effects if you still wanted to pretend to be a protector of Vale"
"Stop", the voice echoed the demand its low tone couldn't carry, regardless the only part of Penny that cared was out of range,
"I must also know if this ability to only help people you deem worthy is a new development. Perhaps it's because of your recent knowledge of Earth's own discrimination practices. Logically, being the descendent of an oppressed group, the sudden understanding that in a different society you actually look like the oppressor has given you an unjustified sense of superiority"
"Stop", the voice grew louder no in volume, but Penny now forcefully covered her true personalities ears to prevent it from unleashing her empathic mind
"I did not expect this from you Velvet, it concerns me of what will happen if we manage to find a way back to our own planet. Will you try to spread this awful belief, convince humans and Faunus alike that epidermis pigmentation is what makes somebody superior? Must I warn my father that he will be subjected because an emotionally compromised Huntress wants to become the subjugator"
"I said stop", the noise ignored, Penny didn't hear a chair being thrown to the side, or the two footprints that approached her,
"Or do I need to warn Laura that her son's savior deliberately left him in harm's way because he needed to suffer for being a human? Do I need to warn Gareth that the girl he likes gleefully- listened as his bone crack because he needed to suffer for his species mistakes?"
With the floor and ceiling moving, Penny didn't even realize she was being lifted,
"Will my advice even matter, will Gareth even care? After all I'm just a machine to him and you get to be an actual perso-"
What couldn't reach Penny's humanness through sound, shined its way through life. Stone cold eyes, spilling out silent tears, Velvet appeared before the electronic huntress hurt and betrayed...more so than that she also seemed sure of herself.
Holding back the sadness that wanted to join her tears, Velvet gave Penny's camera a locked gaze and a meaningful look,
"Unless you're coming to apologize, don't ever turn this scroll on again", that one sentence, it shed light onto Penny's whole reaction. As all the hoors of harmful emotions had been passing through her, only to now be purged by a wave of guilt, regret, and self-disgust.
Too shocked at her own horrendous behavior, Penny couldn't process her own code. Thus. as the verbally abused Faunus held down the power button, the electronic soul could only watch part of her world go black, feeling that the rest of her soul deserved a similar fate in the moment.
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Silence was all Penny believed she deserved, and thus silence was all she got. And even as the beeps of a heartbeat echoed throughout a room, and the shallow breaths of a rising and falling chest could just be picked up, the red headed Atlasien refused to listen.
It had taken until two in the morning, but Gareth surgery had finally come to a close. With his upper body elevated at a thirty-degree angle, he was still out cold, but at least he was now finally free from people forcefully knocking him out. Although whether he would want to wake up was another thing entirely.
Even just taking a cursory glance, a passerby would only view the young Cadarn's peaceful sleep as a tension filled build up to pain. Raised by a medical crane his right arm was locked into place by a six-inch diameter caster composed of metal braces and plaster that traversed up the entry of his arm.
...but as horrible as that scene was at least it was covered. The rest of the young man's right hemisphere, at least the ones not covered in medical tape or his hospital gown, was just a sea of purple. The only remainder of pink or red now a far deeper shade then it should be and popping up as blood field islands or ravines all the way from his leg to skull. This ocean of suffering was evening more off putting by the fact that it also had a higher elevation then the untouched land.
Fittingly Penny was the only one around to see it, and with the way Laura had positioned Gareth's cracked and exhausted phone, unbeknownst of course, in just the right spot so that the pastel green huntress could see the beaten high schooler in his entirety.
Unfortunately, internal bleeding had been discovered, and thus complication to his procedure had emerged. Of course, the real delay came due to his added concussion, which made finding and the use of anesthesia a choice that took far more calculating then normal. Because of this the doctor in charge of his operation informed both Velvet and Laura that it would be best to come back in the morning, and to sleep in a comfortable place where they could get plenty of rest.
Having a calm demeanor, the surgeon had reminded Penny of her own father. Sharing similarities in everything but profession and gender. Given the hell of emotional turmoil that had erupted in Gareth's recovery room, such a kind human being was needed.
And while it did take some convincing, and much comfort, Laura eventually agreed to return home, but insisted that they call her the moment her son came out of surgery regardless what hour of the night.
The doctor of course agreed, and the woman ensured both the parent and foreign housemate that he was in safe hands and she'd make sure the operation proceeded without a hitch. This of course ended with the emerald eyed Cadarn placing Penny's portable eye on the nightstand next to the then empty bed, an action that went purposely ignored by Velvet.
Still unsure of what to do on that front, besides feeling horrible and wanting to hide in her own script forever, Penny became a true ghost as far as her fellow huntress was concerned. Doing her best to provide support for Laura, but going through her own turmoil, the environment of the residential home was more depressing than the hospital.
Never having fully recovered from her encounter with the Ascalons' attorney, Laura had excused herself as quickly as possible upon arriving at home. Only able to get out a tear field thank you to Velvet before she headed to her room and unleashed the torrent of water full force, albeit with at least an attempt to muffle the sound beneath pillows.
The younger woman though, she held a slightly different reaction to her quest for solitude. Heading up to Gareth's room, or rather her own, she only appeared before Penny's central vision unit momentarily. In that one instance, the electronic soul could see silent tears still streaming down her face, but being directly hurt, the Faunus left the hospital with more anger than either Laura or Penny had going in. Because of this, the brunette simply through a cover over her fellow brunette's laptop in order to cut Penny off, and then attempt an early night sleep by collapsing on to her own bed,
With that Penny found herself the only one left upon Gareth's arrival, and all her attention was pulled to this room, although she truly didn't believe she should be allowed to be anywhere near anybody at the moment. But...she needed to talk to Gareth, she didn't know what to say, and didn't know how she was even going to say, but she needed somebody to talk to even if they couldn't listen.
I'm not actually a virtual intelligence system Gareth, she used thoughts in place of words, despite the fact that both actions would only be given the sight of a rising and falling chest as a response, ...but I'm not a human either
I'm...I'm not even from Earth, and neither is Vivian. I've been hiding information from you and I've been forcing Vivian to withhold it as well...even such personal things such as her own identity, her thoughts trembled in a way she never experienced, and in a way that made the situation worse, Were from a different planet...and you coming into contact with me was just the outcome of being in the incorrect place at the incorrect time
I'm so sorry for that, she paused as if taking in a ragged breath, sorry you had to meet me, sorry I've put you in a hostile environment...and I'm so sorry I'd put you through all this again if it meant making sure those four afternoon with Velvet and you occurred
At this point, Penny's thoughts reverberated with digital tears, and even now she thought such an act was out of her own need to want it to happen,
It is selfish, b-but all of this...I hate it, but I love that I hate it, she watched as his head shifted, not in response to her own word, but just simply physics, Back on my home planet, back on Remnant, I'd only ever known happiness
Thoughts of being turned on for the first time, and the childlike wonder she felt when seeing her father's face and simply seeing for the first-time field her mind. Her coded sobs now accompanied by a small digital smile,
I was jubilant, and energetic...that's who I am, that's who I will always be, sights of meeting Ruby now cascade into her mental mind, and she giggled at seeing herself joyously greet the group of girls who had run her over, I was happy to do anything anybody ever told me. Being a huntress, representing Atlas, fighting in the Vytal tournament. I just reacted with a, truthfully, genuine smile, not even thinking if I had a choice in the matter or not
Her smile slowly leveled out, as the crying died down as well,
...then I was dying, the familiar sight of her prolonged dismemberment shot unwanted, but needed, into her processor, and I didn't feel anything, I wasn't scared, I wasn't angry, I just was...and it was awful
Being in that void, I questioned if I was even alive, if I was ever alive, she tried to speed up the thought process, and made the gesture of closing her one good eye in order to forget about a place of nothingness, it was awful...because I couldn't feel awfulness. That place… it affected me when I first came to Earth
But even after seeing all of your planet's history through logic...you and Velvet helped me realize that I am alive, turning the camera back on, Penny was met to the sight of Gareth still sleeping, only connecting the dot that this was the state he was in when she first met him, When we first talked you…
She paused as if about to adhere to the childlike advice, 'if you have nothing nice to say, don't say anything at all'. However, all that expression did was cause her to smile again,
You were annoying, I know it is an unkind thing to say but you were, her eyes almost shined with most nostalgia for an event that was only a month or so ago, I was trying to help you, and in responce you were just mean. Being dismissive and insisting I was a joke...I tried to convince myself of reasons for you reserved behavior, but after a while I was feeling hurt by your paranoia
She shook her head, as if all the things she learned about herself over the last few hours were the most obvious things on the planet, or planets,
And then when we had found Velvet… I was proud that I was able to get you to communicate, she was now in the park, seeing the blurry image of the rabbit Faunus, … I felt as if I made a difference in your life, that we were becoming friends despite you not knowing who I really am
That pride led me to putting you and your mom's in harm way, but I was so...overjoyed with myself that you were beginning to talk to me, words in Danish, English, and even universal enter her binary ears
My duty was put aside because I wanted to help Velvet, but then it was because I was jealous of her, thoughts of the Faunus connecting with Gareth faster than herself over took Penny's mind, and despite the horrible feeling it produced she still smiled at the images, You would call her cute, and you even just said you were starting to like her...and while I don't know if view you in a romantic way...I find myself wishing you did in me, self-conscious that other people could never develop an interest in me...because I wasn't an organic beings
She stared at the boys, admittedly hard to look at face, but was wondering what it be like if he'd become flustered when talking to her instead of Velvet,
But when I told of her percentage of these new social interaction and the strange emotions they caused, I felt relieved, and these last four days, they made me feel alive...and this moment is the most human I've ever felt, if she had a body she'd give out a sad giggle while wiping away a tear, this moment caused by yesterday afternoon, when I felt like I wanted to physically harm Lance, when I felt disgust at the Ascalons attorney, and when I voiced my anger at Velvet...Its...I've never wanted to cry so much, to possess the same tear ducts humans and Faunus do because I know I am feeling the same emotion their connected too.
She wanted to physically be seen, and made herself real in her ownmind, and perhaps even to the world even if she didn't believe it. Almost in an astral like form her imaged hands appeared coursing with green electricity as she reached out to place a non-existent hand on his real hair. Her mind even mimicking biology to a degree as she subconsciously thought his hair interacted with the magnetic current,
On Remnant I was just happy, in the void I was nothing...but on Earth I finally felt complete, she willed the sense of warmth into her mental construct as it rested on Gareth's forehead, I know that sounds perplexing. This planet, where I met you and where I have been presented more negative emotions than positive ones...but it is because of those that I know I am real, and that I am. My pride that has put your family in danger, the horrible things I said to Velvet out of blind rage, and the mere fact I feel like I deserve to be shunned forever because of it…
Her electronic hand now connects itself to a lightning filled body, as that supported a head that now spoke, and in her confession, Penny even pretend she was seeing through actual eyes,
My father would grin and say this is proof of my flaws, and I understand now why those are important. Perfection is for machines, whether evolutionary produced ones or mechanical...but faults our for the sentient, for the beings who care they exist, almost sparking the air tears now slowly leak out of her neon astral eyes, dissipating from both reality and her mental landscape. However, the face they first traversed past was one plastered with a small smile. Penny being truly happy in her own sadness
I still do not know how I will apologize to Velvet, to show her I truly meant none of what I conveyed earlier and feel atrocious for the damage they caused. I am unaware how I will balance my need to ensure your family's safety with my want to continue the friendship you, Velvet, and I have made, she watched as she moved her matter less hand down to his, pretending his own digit interacted with hers as the intertwined, I still have no knowledge on how I will get home, and what such an action will cause Velvet or I too feel...however I do know I will care deeply while I experience them all, care and appreciate the emotions I feel whether they be joyful, hurtful, or unwanted
Her electric form, began losing it forms, and as she moved her head down to rest next to his left hand, she was not aware the static arcs were still interacting his the youngest Cadarn's body despite her not imagining them to do so,
I'm going to make things right, or dedicate the rest of my existence trying too, but right now...I want to just stay here..., her pastel green form evaporating, she closed her eyes just as her vibrating locks made contact with Gareth's arm. Too caught up in her own answer question she wanted to sleep...she knew she couldn't but when did recently ever stop emotional creatures from trying the impossible
...However, it was because of this act that Penny did miss one truly impossible act. She may have discounted her astral bodies realness, but the universe certainly disagreed, and just as the energy holding her will together traversed back to the phone, a part of it remained pulsing on Gareth's just. A part of Penny's soul, that began spreading its way across the emerald eye boy's damaged body. It was weak, but the low green light soon hovered above the human entire form, and while barely visible even when shining in the dark, it proved itself to be a reflection of planet Earth itself. Waving a momentarily goodbye, the pastel turned to a deep ocean blue before blending into the darkness.
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A criminally smooth and aerodynamic car made its way through the twisted hilltop road, with a speed and level of urgency that made one question the user's soberness. However, as the mountains forest road showed a level of care unusual for asphalt this remote, and the paved path seemed to have no turn off points one question why somebody of the vehicles status was traveling in this type of environment to begin with
...Only that answer came as the dense pine trees darting the forest soon gave way to a clearing at the top. Now revealing itself as a driveway, the well-kept and almost unrealistically green lawn appeared as an emerald ocean of precisely cut grass. At the center of this terrain sea laid a beautiful three story modern house, with bay windows acting as walls as the occupants clearly had a view of everything and everyone approaching the residence...or at least they would if the windows weren't tinted to the point that they may as well have been painted over black.
Skimming across the asphalt almost as if it was hydroplaning, one's first thought when seeing the car, or rather third thought behind thinking its cost was likely that akin to a small countries GDP and it was being driven by a manic who clearly didn't make that connection, was that its windshield too sucked in glass like a black hole.
Regardless to an outside viewer, the appearance of who was behind the wheel would soon be revealed, as the car shot its way across the hundred-acre lawn in a matter of seconds. Apparently in too much of a hurry to wait for their curvature metallic garage door to open, the sports vehicles rubber tired made an unnaturally silent sound as they skidded to a stop outside the main door.
Trying to slide out from under a mechanized door he couldn't swing open, the driver reveals himself to the outside momentarily. With unkempt blonde hair, dancing the fine line between gold and brown, the man's panicked cobalt iris's hardly gives off the image the house and car had been building him to be.
In fact, dressed in a black suit, with dark navy-blue tie, the individual material objects were the only things that seemed to belong in this setting. With that being said, on a good day, a six foot frame filled out the fabric quite well, but as the man finally snaked his way beneath the metal, the sight of him stumbling his way towards his own front door would hardly make an outsider take that into account.
Miraculously not embedding his foot into the three shallow steps that lead up to the house's entrance, the man frantically pulled out a device that could be mistaken for a phone.
Muttering curses to himself for not grabbing the electronic sooner, although when he would have would be a curious debate, the golden locked individual seems to dance his fingers haphazardly over its screen. Taking a few seconds, the metal soon lit to life, and as it did another device revealed itself next to the front door.
With the same glass as screen, the monitor that revealed itself behind a once normal house wall gave out a single beep of recognition as the phone was faced before it, with barely held back shaking hands.
That single digital beep, soon gave way to the noise of what seemed like thousands and one miniature gears forcefully turning into out of their proper position. Shifting from one leg to another, the man seemed on the verge of breaking through the door manually.
However, once all the computerized and metallic pins came to an end, the entrance way opened of its own accord. Much like the car earlier, the blued eyed man hardly waited for the door to complete its process before he started entering the house.
A testament to the windows light killing ability, the whole structure seemed dark despite the sun only just now realizing it was tired. Slightly put off by this, but not unaccustomed, the suited individual gave two quick claps of his hand as a hallway lit to life.
His eyes quitting only for a moment, he had already started running before the lights came on. Now appearing in a mini maze, the man paused multiple rooms, but gave them no heed as he already knew the location he was running towards.
Past multiple twists and turns, that had just one to many right angles to become a design flaw, the now heavy breathing speedster stopped before a singular door that had a small light coming out from under it.
Choosing now of all times to become a bit gentler and quieter, the man's blue eyes still shined with panic strict anxiety, but his hand grasped and turned the doorknob with almost torturous care and slowness.
When the hidden room finally did come to life, two breaths echoed throughout the hallway. One was produced by a small child that laid in the left-hand corner of what was now a bedroom.
Shined upon by a green kaiju night light, as well as a half moon, that shone through a digital window, the boy looked no older than nine or ten, but the rest of his appearance mirrored that of the man who now gave out a sigh of relief at that very sight. With the only notable difference being his son's blonde hair grew darker as it traveled outwards from the scalp.
Leaning against the frame of the door for support, the newly revealed father behaved like he'd just woken up from the worst nightmare of his life and was just beginning to understand it was a dream. Although as his sigh soon gave way to pants, no smile of relief met his face. Instead his storm blue orbs filled with confusion, and as if to combat this emotion he moved forward into the room as if to make double, triple, and a hundred times sure of something.
However, before his first step could cross into the new territory, his overly sized phone blinked to life with a message,
Amr's fine, if you want actual answer come to your observatory room
The texts only caused him to grow more perplexed, the panicked father at least let go of the latter emotion. Now just being careful, he leaned his way back into the hall, taking one last look at the sleeping figure before he crossed the door closed behind him.
With no more instant crisis on his hand, the suited man took a much slower pace through the labyrinth. His hands coming together to give a soft, almost caring clap, the hallway lights began to dimmer. Reaching a brightness level that allowed his eyes to see just well enough that he wouldn't have to rely simply on muscle memory to traverse his own house.
Although the complex he owned was big, his ten-minute walk through it would be raising eyes. But as he paused in the middle of one of his many apparent hallways, those same eyes would go wide, seeing the most normal part hiss open. The seemingly homing atmosphere of the aesthetic, minus the placement, giving way to a computerized haven.
Taking a crisp, but relaxed, stride in the hallway soon found itself complete again. The two seem to find some level of self-fulfillment, seemingly at home in a metallic room, that's most defining feature was that one wall was entirely made up on a digital screen, with a normal office chair positioned before it.
Monitoring multiple different locations, and having those same regions connected on a green map of the north western hemisphere. Taking an instinctual step towards the chair, the man body almost forgot why he had come, but luckily his mind still remembered the information he received two seconds ago, as well as twenty minutes ago,
"I thought you said Amr's arm was broken", turning around the father looked towards the back right corner of the hidden observatory room. He hadn't heard or seen anybody else in the room when he entered, but history served him far better than his senses,
"That's not what I said", seemingly from thin air, a high-pitched voice spoke in a way that already seemed out of character.
Following the rudeness of her words, a woman in her late thirties or early forties manifested into the room arms crossed. She was dressed in casual clothes, with a black T-shirt, that despite its color still was dotted with stains, and a pair of white shorts that were looking greener due to years of field work.
Her oddly off-putting chestnut eyes narrowed on the man's own blue ones, and although the top of her almost too black hair only came up to the suited man's chin, she somehow managed to look down at him.
While most would feel the urge to run under this gaze, the man, seemingly upset at what he viewed as a false alarm held her. Although, with her pale skin gave the yet to rise satellite a run for its money, it did seem like this man was foolishly trying to showcase his annoyance with the moon,
"Then how else was I supposed to take 'There was an accident, your son broke his arm'", the blue orbs attempt to drill into the lunar surface, although as he just started to make his point he knew from past experienced he'd never reach the core, "For God sake I left work in a panic, and nearly got into five separate crashes on the way here. I know I said the phones for emergency, but if you're not going to elebera-"
"I texted you for an emergency, and if you weren't so 'in the zone' at work, I could've called and actually explained", her gaze never left him, but somehow her toned made her eyes roll, "and besides it seems you couldn't even read the text correctly anyway"
"What do you mean? I went to Amr's room and his arm seemed fine, the only concern I have of why he's asleep when it's only four", the man was beginning to falter, his confusion now only worsening his own argument,
"Because after his tutor shorted out his brain, he ran himself asleep pretending to be a knight this afternoon, but honestly that's probably a blessing. After all I don't care how soundproof you think these walls are, he doesn't need to hear this", she stated, clearly already having prepared herself for the discussion that was to come,
"...and what would that be?", the man's eyes were now losing their grip
"I already told you Arthur, 'there was an accident, your son broke his arm'", the added emphasis on that one word only caused the named man to further his eyebrow in confusion...until his orbs widened with realization, and thus quickly retreated from his wife's own irises,
"Nimue called twenty minutes ago, said Gareth was in the hospital and was being prepped for surgery. I haven't looked into it myself", she motioned over to the monitor, were one already seemed to be displaying camera footage, although given its paused state it wasn't a live feed, "...and even if he doesn't know I exist, I'm the last person that kid would want to feel concern from"
Having flinched at his oldest son's name, Arthur's eyes darted over to the screen, the inside of a hospital recovery room was on display, in between news articles. Making the situation worse, the recording was between a crime investigation article that covered Massachusetts, and a suspicious power outage near a government server in New York City,
"T-that's awful", the man said, more ashamed of himself evidently then the situation, "But why did Nimue contact us, she's the last operative I'd suspect to interfere in my personal life, especially the ones that don't exist"
"She doesn't, she just said we were the ones that needed to see this footage first", attributing his reaction to an argument they've had in the past, and were undoubtedly going to have in a few minutes, Ceinwyn blew a stray lock out of her eyes, "And you know she doesn't throw around that plural lightly"
" I know that...but still, even with all the activity going on in the tri state why would...how could he be connected to any of this", any use of actual name was covered up by the far less attachment through pronoun, "Besides...we're on the other across the country, mandate dictates she needs to bring up with the East Coast branch...and if history's anything to go by, it's just another false alarm"
"Really Arthur you think that area, out of all the regions of the world, would be false alarm. More importantly, you're not going to look into possible evidence around your own son because of protocol", Ceinwyn was truly annoyed now, and she almost wanted to go over and force Arthur to make eye contact with her...she almost wanted it to be true eye contact as well, "I will turn it on. I'll hate it, but don't think I hate it enough that I won't turn start that video"
Knowing all too well she'd hold true to that promise, and then some by pinning him to the floor to make sure he actually viewed it, Arthur dejectedly made his way over to the monitor. Relying on military-like discipline, that his consciousness was going against, he tapped the screen. In an instance the sight of an empty recovery room filled the entire wall, as the noise of a busy hospital made it as if they were just looking through a window,
Several minutes' past, and nobody entered the room. In that time, Ceinwyn strode next to her husband, and he felt her gaze shift from him to the screen. There was nothing but silence between them as this time passed, but as a nurse attended pulled back the curtain of the room, a new figure was ushered in.
Confused, Arthur was met to the sight of a young woman who was on the verse of leaving her teenage years behind. She seemed out of place, with a beret covering her brunette hair at an odd angle, that while fashionable seemed like a weird choice to wear inside.
Looking shocked, the girl walked into the room, and almost robotically placed her phone on a table so it could view the bed. Having foreseen this confusion, the sender of the film seems to have certain information pop up on the screen at appropriate time,
"Vivian Anderson?", Ceinwyn was the first to speak up, tilting her head but now adopting a focused like tone of voice, "Anybody you know?"
Arthur shook his head even though neither of them were facing each other, "Never knew a family by that name back in New England, and Nimue says she an exchange student from Denmark...that makes sense"
"What do you mean", picking up their physical cues through tone, Arthur could feel his wife's eyebrow raise and immediately regretted saying anything
"...She always talked about wanting a daughter, this was probably the next best thing", moving around that name, Arthur received no glare from Ceinwyn, and knowing her they probably both adopted guilty expression despite trying to at least watch the video as professionals,
A few more minutes went by, but eventually the sole inhabitant of the room spoke up. With nobody else there she seems to be communicating with the phone. Subtitles being produced, her words were translated, but Ceinwyn found her eyes narrowing at the accent,
"That's a unique accent for Danish", she said as if hearing something oddly familiar. Arthur nodded but didn't think it was unique enough for them to stop the recording. The student was talking about the room number and mentioning it to...a certain individual who Arthur was already dreading appeared on screen.
After a few more minutes of awkward silence though, the girl was starting up another conversation only to be interrupted by an emerald eyed woman frantically running into the room. Given that she was behaving how he did earlier, Arthur forced himself to look away, and in doing so noticed Ceinwyn do the same,
With workplace ethic now dropped the conversation luckily turned to English. The first thing Arthur noticed wasn't the words themselves, but the passage of time they indicated. However, the tone of change was soon replaced when the accented girl stutter something out,
"He was assaulted!?" Arthur's head snapped up, but immediately he wished it had just stayed down when seeing his ex-wife's distraught face. However, before his eyes could retreat again a new figure emerged.
Wanting, but unable to look away, Arthur watched the situation slowly deteriorate more and more as the lawyer began to speak,
"Ascalons, isn't that the family at the head of Almec industry?", Ceinwyn stated the question knowing the answer, but both needed a brief distraction,
"It is, but I don't see how this is relevant to our field", his eyes were glued to the screen now, slight anger overtaking him as this Gundleous continued to speak. In truth he was now just fishing for any excuse to end this video sooner...and as the scene got harder to watch for personal reasons rather than duty field ones, he was about to act on that self-justification, "Listen Nimue can give us an oral report of how this connects to possible breaches, but neither of us needs to watch this exchange"
He moved his hand up to pause the images, and while Ceinwyn went to grab his in protest, he found his digits halted as the man of law was just about to exit the room,
"...If my-"
"...If your ex-husband was part of the equation things could have been interesting, but I would not dwell on it Ms. Cadarn for the results would have been the same albeit achieved through a different route. Of course, I cannot tell you how that different path would be forged. Because as I told Ms. Anderson I only deal with reality, and the reality is if Mr. Aelle cared enough to put resources into defending his son, he'd have cared enough to be in this room"
The slap had now struck twice, and Arthur physically turned away from the screen. Hating that he needed the word the lawyer just said to be true, "I don't care what Nimue's reason is for bringing this up as urgent evidence, none of what I have seen so far has anything to d-"
"You know Nimue doesn't care about your personal drama, and she certainly wouldn't hold back on showing you information just because it makes you uncomfortable", Ceinwyn moved her gaze back to glaring at her husband, if only to avoid having to watch Laura dart out of the room, "And even if that isn't the case, are you just gonna do what he says, let the Ascalons walk all over Laura and Gareth because you don't care"
He froze at the mention of both names, and even Ceinwyn found herself not being worthy to utter the first,
"I DON'T CARE, AND I CAN'T CARE", he snapped and his anger allowed him to make eye contact, but Ceinwyn didn't back down, or even look like she was bothered by the display, "Laura's better off just taking the money, and this way Garet-"
"What, this way Gareth's not in danger? This isn't about that", she sneered, but found herself guilt ridden all the same, "and if it is, then you're doing a shitty job keeping Amr safe"
He turns back around, and his anger shifted to hurt frustration,
"I do all I can to make sure you tw-", his blue eyes were eclipsed by Ceinwyn's brown as she took more and more control of the conversation,
"Then why are you still on the map, why are any of us? You think putting Amr and me in your own private military bunker makes us safe. That giving me a different name, and an Earth identity would make me harder to find if other people did show up?", she stared down the head taller man until he was on the floor, "No, you can't even bring yourself to do that because you're not a psychopath. After all a half the population of the nearest town knows where we live, Amr friends come to play, and he goes there"
"Ceinwyn I don't want to do thi-", he didn't even know why he bothered, getting in the way of his wife making a point was like trying to stop a hurricane,
"Well I do, and I'll do it as many times as I have too until I hammer the truth into your dense skull Arthur", he paced picked up and now the man felt like his ten year old son when he was being lectured for inappropriate behavior, "So if you don't care enough to disconnect Amr from the situation then that would mean you care about Gareth more"
"You kno-", once again his words did nothing against the wind,
"Of course I know you don't, because I know this is all the product of you being selfish, and don't you dare say I don't understand or that I'm a victim, because I am literally doing the same thing you are", her rant continued and her words this time silenced Arthur before he tried to tell her the situation was different, "You can use the excuse that you want them safe to cover up the fact your marriage was falling apart, and you can try to convince yourself that my presence puts Gareth in danger but at the end of the day you don't want to see them because you feel guilty"
His silence was all the answer she needed, and even as Vivian spoke up on the screen behind them, with the text indicating her conversation with the person on her phone was getting stranger and stranger, Ceinwyn and Arthur were far away from hearing any of that.
"You feel guilty because you're a lying cheating scumbag, and seeing Gareth and having to face that is harder than just hiding from it", unbeknownst to them the Danish exchange student conversation was also heating up, "So instead you just lie to yourself, claiming you're doing all this for the greater good, all why withering in your self-pity thinking those two are better off without such a horrendous person in their life"
"Were stopping this conversation now Penny", Velvet's words pierced the air, and Ceinwyn seem to understand them, but was far to occupied with her own anger to realize the importance of that
"Yet here you are Arthur, using both excuses to get the best of both your worlds. You get to live a life with me and Amr through the first one, and then turn your back on Gareth and lessen your guilty conscious revolving around Laura with the other" , Ceinwyn's pale face was filled with rage, but now small tears did emerge as well, although she was a far cry from...well crying, "But I can see through your act because I'm putting on the same performance"
Arthur remained quiet although he desperately didn't want her to feel his own guilt,
"Stop"
"You can endlessly repeat to me that my situation different, that I came here on accident", she now was yelling at two people in the room, still unaware she could understand a third, "but I barely even tried to bet back to my old life, just convinced myself I'm hiding that godsforsaken crown on Earth for the greater good while my old family still has to survive in hell"
"Stop"
"No, I won't Arthur! I love you and I Iove Amr, more than anything on this planet….but there are people back on Remnant I love just as much….and there are people I've betrayed too, but unlike Laura they still don't even know a half-truth", she didn't like it but Arthur wrapped his hands around her, neither wanting an embrace, but one coming regardless, "A-and I still care about them, even the people I've wronged"
"I said stop"
"So I know you still care. Even if you don't love her anymore you care enough about Laura that you want to throw Ascalon and his damn lawyer off a building for what he said. I know you still do love Gareth and want to see him, even if you're too scared to do so. Trying to hide behind your morals to grasp the fact that you're disgusted with yourself for missing him grow up", thoughts of her having to go through a similar event although underneath a shattered moon filled her head, as she still tried to use her anger to mask sadness, "But unlike me you can still actually face your mistak-"
"Unless you're coming to apologize, don't ever turn this scroll on again",
"Would you please just give me a moment!", Ceinwyn tuned towards the screen upset and speaking a tongue she's long since abandoned...but as that realization came over her, and as Arthur's own confused eyes made the connection as well, the reason Nimue sent the video became all too clear.
"...I don't care where George is, or the importance of his assignments. As of now he's on his way to this house to watch over Amr for the foreseeable future", military mindsets returned out of panic and shock, Arthur simply nodded along, "I'm going to grab my cloak and Hwyelbane, and when I get back you'll already have an aircraft set up to takes us to the base in New Haven. By the time we arrive Nimue will be waiting on the tarmac, and have used are flight time from Seattle to have full details of Vivian Anderson and everyone's she been in communication with since coming into contact with the Cadarns''
"Yes ma'am", whispering, all the senior Aelle could do was agree and state his acceptance at wife now monotone orders. Staring at the now upset Vivian, if that was even her name, as he realized his eldest son was becoming far more like him then he ever wanted or ever thought possible.
Having the door open and close on her command, his wife's own face would have mirrored his own. But with the very presence of another Remnant native on the planet...she had to distract herself by going from extreme guilt fueled anger to military emotionlessness, the back of her mind fighting against the fact she could now quite possibly find herself in an identical situation to her husband.
"While she's doing that, you're going to find out all you can about the suspicious activity without alerting the other facilities, because you've failed to keep your son out of this subtly", the unchanging nature of her voice cut deep, but only due to truthfulness, "and now we're taking the direct approach"
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Post Note (Normally don't do these but this chapter was a special case):
So first off, this was a chapter and a half, and by that, I mean it was like three. I know I keep saying this, but this one was by far the most fun one to write…and a lot of that has to do with this chapter's outline being what inspired the story to begin with.
That being said I do feel like I should bring some things up. I know some character may have appeared out of character, with the most concerning one being Penny. I would honestly like to apologize if it that's how some of her scenes and reactions came across. When writing fanfics my biggest fear is making characters act horrendously against their core morals or personality, because at that point I should just be writing a new character. Ironically this in in stark contrast to the greatest joy I have of writing fanfics, which is putting characters in new situation causing them to react somewhat different and new ways.
That's what Penny's behavior when interacting with Velvet was a result of. We never got to really know how she handle her death and then resurrection in the show, but from what I like to think her dad helped her through every step of the way, and more importantly she had a body to return to. On Earth that's not the case, and while she does have a social connection, and Velvet definitely has provided support in some areas that she struggles with…Penny's never been able to confide in somebody about that experience. The most she's ever gotten is when, like above, she thinks to Gareth as if their talking. Unfournanlty this does make her crisis even worse in many ways because she knows he can't respond. Because of this she is discovering the same things about being alive and sentient that she finds out in the show…but its through a less healthy and streamlined support structure forcing her into a position were she has to make the discovers or realization herself.
…more then anything I like writing all my characters to be human, and by that, I mean they make mistakes. Not just screwing up because they were put in an impossible position, but because they cave into selfish thoughts or emotions because their upset sometimes. These faults aren't meant to be justifiable every time they appear, more so untestable and somewhat real. Something that the reader or viewer can look at and not immediately villainize the character for, but also not jump to the idea they have to defend them.
That's what Penny's lash out to Velvet was all about, the goal was to write from the perspective of somebody feeling anger for the first time…who also had the mental capacity of a seventeen-year-old. It was honestly interesting to do, because throughout, Penny is viewing the situation somewhat logically, and knows what she's sayings not true, or rather only true to her in the moment, but she can't stop the urge to say it.
Also, for the characters I can control, that being the OC, I should point out Gareth's aura being unlock…it has relevance to the story but not in the traditional way. While I love Jaune, Gareth will never reach even his level of combat, and to be honest even with aura he'd probably still lose to Lance in a fight it just take longer. That being said it was unlocked for multiple reasons, most revolving around Penny's characters, he just won't be using it in the traditional sense.
Alright, sorry if this was long winded, and I certainly don't want people to think I wrote this to justify my writing. I'll be the first to admit constructive criticism can be hard for me to read sometimes, but I honesty not only appreciate it, but need it as well. I want this story to be good, and I also want to become a writer that's able to give the ideas I brainstorm and plan out to be written and presented to the audience the best way I can. Because of that I'm always up for comments and being called out if somebody thinks I could have tackled my writing a different way to better represent certain scenes and character moments!
