AN: So uh, I realized that my author's note for chapter 1 didn't show up, and instead of just updating chapter 1 with it, I might as well just put it here for anybody who's been reading this far, so here it is now I guess? Hiya everybody, thank you for reading Chrysalis up until this point. Any and all criticisms/feedback/notes/juicy gossips/tales from the crypt/fun messages are welcomed, I hope to grow as a writer from people's reviews of my story. I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I have writing it. Thanks!
Argilla's eyes fluttered awake, his back sore from the night he spent on the couch. The time was ten in the morning. He sat up, taking in his surroundings and remembering what had happened the previous night. He had allowed Lynae to sleep in his bed for the night, but not before he had learned a bit more of her, although she wasn't too keen on sharing much about herself.
She was only fourteen years old, and she'd been alone for a few weeks. She had a bag of clothes that she brought around with her. Lynae's parents were gone, and she had only barely scraped by with money given to her out of pity by people on the street. In fact, she had even asked him if he could make her any food, and Argilla obliged. She ate ravenously, and soon enough, all of the food was gone.
Lynae had seemed incredibly happy following that, and Argilla offered his room to her for the night, to which she joyously said yes to. Oddly enough, Argilla felt a strange...warmth in his chest. It quickly faded away, however, and Argilla soon went to sleep, the warmth in his chest nothing but a hazy memory.
Argilla got up, moving to the bathroom to take a shower. He finished in a punctual ten minutes, brushed his teeth in exactly two minutes, and combed his hair back. He entered his room, finding Lynae sleeping. He had grabbed his clothes when Lynae suddenly stirred a bit in her sleep. She soon fell back into comfort, smiling as she slept. Argilla suddenly felt assaulted again by this feeling of warmth in his chest.
He quickly left the room, changing his bathroom, but this time the feeling persisted. Argilla sat in the kitchen, eating silently. The warmth in his chest wouldn't leave. It felt foreign, something Argilla wasn't used to at all. Why was this happening to him? For the first time in ages, Argilla didn't understand what was going on with himself. He finished eating, grabbed his scroll, and was quickly out the door. The idea of leaving Lynae alone in his home crossed his mind, but quickly left it as well. The warm feeling seemed to fade as he got further away from the house.
"Hey! Wait for me!" Lynae cried, chasing after Argilla as he walked down the sidewalk. Argilla did not wait.
Lynae finally caught up to Argilla when he had stopped at the corner of a street to answer his scroll. She couldn't quite hear any voice that Argilla was talking to, and she could see through his scroll that the contact didn't have any picture or name. Argilla didn't say anything other than agreeing with whoever was on the other line.
Argilla eventually hung up, placing the scroll back into his pocket. He looked back down at Lynae, speaking as if he was reading from a cue card. "It would seem that I am not required to go to work. Therefore, Lynae, considering the fact that you do not have any place of residence, I have elected to allow you continue to stay with me, should you so choose."
Argilla didn't wait for a response, instead he continued walking. Lynae began to chase after him again, trying to keep up with his brisk pace. "Where are we going?" Lynae asked.
"To the docks." Argilla responded.
"Why? Going… fishing?" Lynae asked again, trying her best to keep up with him.
"I like the docks." Argilla said.
"What about them?" Lynae asked, trying to think of any way to maintain a conversation with him.
"Nothing in particular comes to mind." He said. Lynae gave up at that point, and she continued to follow him in quiet. Soon enough, the docks were only a few blocks away, when Lynae stopped dead in her tracks.
"Whoa!" She said aloud, "I love this place! Can we stop here to eat?" Argilla turned around, as Lynae stood in front of a red neon sign, with bold letters that read:
Ruth's Diner
Argilla looked back to the docks, not so far into the distance, but his mind had told him to go back to where Lynae was standing. He approached the sign, staring at it for a few moments. When was the last time he too had been to Ruth's Diner? It must've been ages. The food was terribly unhealthy.
"C'mon! Let's go in! The food here is so good!" Lynae said. The thought made itself prominent in Argilla's mind. The food did taste good, perhaps he'll eat there once more. Argilla opened the door for Lynae, as she walked inside. "Yes!" She said excitedly, moving to a table.
"A table for two, please." Argilla told the waiter at the front. For some reason, he felt odd again, only it was different from the warmth before. He felt strangely energized, he spoke and moved faster than before, and when he sat down he felt the need to get up and move more.
They both sat down at a small booth, as the waiter brought them both menus. Lynae seemed buried in her menu, reading all of the items over. Argilla eventually broke the silence, "You seem far more open than last night."
Lynae briefly looked up from her menu, her eyes meeting Argilla's. "Is that a problem?"
"No, I did not expect you to open up as quickly, considering your interactions with me the previous night." Argilla said.
"I guess I'm just comfortable around you now, even if it was quick." Lynae said, going back to the menu. Fair enough. Argilla looked down at his menu, flipping through to view the items available. They were all so… unhealthy. He'd decided he'd stick with a small salad, and that would be it. He'd make himself more food when he got home.
Eventually their waiter came back, asking for their orders. Lynae spoke first, "I'll get the… uh…" She quickly gave a look back at her menu, as if forgetting what she was about to say. "I'll have the chicken fingers and a dust cola!"
"A great choice! And you, sir?" The waiter turned to face Argilla, pen in hand.
"I will be have a small salad and a glass of water, please. That will be all." Argilla said.
The waiter seemed somewhat surprised by Argilla's choice. "A-are you sure, sir? I think you'd enjoy any of the other selections from our menu!" He said, a bead of sweat forming on his brow.
"Yes, I am very certa–" Argilla was cut off by a loud crash through the kitchen doors.
"Excuse me?!" A voice called from the kitchen, out stepping a big, brassy woman. There she stood, in the flesh,
Ruth.
She marched up to Argilla. "You're just getting a salad? Are you crazy?!" She grabbed the menu from Argilla, opening it and showing him multiple different food options. "You won't get the beef stew? The brisket sandwich? Like I'd let that happen in my establishment!"
Ruth peered into Argilla's coat, spotting his two revolvers in their holsters. "What are ya'? A Huntsman? You gotta stay strong to fight off those Grimm out there, so you better eat a lot!"
Argilla's eyes remained firmly on the woman's before him. "I will be having a small salad and a glass of water, please," He repeated, seemingly unconcerned for Ruth's growing frustrations.
"You should try the sliders!" She said, her voice growing louder.
"No." Argilla responded.
"The matzah ball soup!"
"No."
"The mozzarella sticks!"
"Oh that does sound good…" Lynae pondered.
"No."
"The herring with a potato salad on the side!" Ruth roared at him.
Argilla was about to speak again when Lynae cut him off. "You should get the herring! I've had it before, and I really like it!" The idea planted itself firmly in his mind again. He suddenly felt that he too liked the herring.
"I will have the herring, then." Argilla said, feeling bizarrely confident with his choice. Their drinks arrived, and as Argilla took a sip of his water, Lynae asked the question.
"So… why did she ask if you were a Huntsman? Are you actually a Huntsman? I knew a huntsman! She was the coolest!" She beamed up at him, almost excitedly.
"No, I am not a Huntsman," Argilla said, opening his coat to reveal his revolvers, Scissor Sisters. "These are purely for self defense. It is best to be able to defend yourself, especially considering the gang activity in Lago."
"I guess you're right," Lynae said, sipping at her cola. They sat in silence a bit longer, eventually their food arriving at the table, hand delivered by Ruth herself.
"You enjoy that food now, ya' hear?" She said, looking at Argilla.
"Of course ma'am." Argilla responded, cutting into his food. Lynae wolfed down her food, and for a moment Argilla pondered on how a young girl could eat so much in such a short amount of time. Argilla felt the strong urge to begin eating as well. He found himself eating quickly, but trying his best to maintain his manners while he ate. Lynae had finished her food far before Argilla did.
She felt completely full, that is, until Ruth approached with the dessert menu. Lynae practically leapt from her seat at the prospect of dessert. Argilla clearly did not want any more food, but his brain had simply told him that dessert didn't sound like such an awful idea. They both ordered the same item, a chocolate pastry, and ate quickly.
Argilla payed, and soon enough they were back out on the street again. Lynae made sure Argilla paid a tip, and she thanked both their waiter and Ruth. Argilla began walking towards the docks again, Lynae following behind. She had realized at this point that there was no point in asking Argilla why he was going to the docks, he wouldn't give her a clear answer at all.
"Stop!" Lynae had suddenly grabbed Argilla and pulled him back. Not expecting this, Argilla quickly reached into his coat, his hand on one of his Scissor Sisters when he had seen what Lynae was doing. In her hand, she held a small caterpillar. "You almost stepped on it!"
Argilla's hand remained on the gun, as she began to move the caterpillar out of the way and onto a nearby bush. "You can't just kill something like that! Especially not something like a caterpillar, it hasn't even finished gone through its metamorphosis yet!" Argilla stared at the caterpillar a few moments longer. He felt an odd disdain for it, as he unknowingly tightened his grip on his gun.
"I know it may look ugly now, but just give it a chance. It'll be beautiful one day, and I think it should be protected." Lynae said, Argilla suddenly loosening his grip on the gun. The words felt soothing to him, and he pulled his hand out of his coat.
Argilla nodded, "Of course." He then continued past Lynae and towards the docks. Lynae had sat at a bench nearby, as Argilla stood at the end of the docks. He closed his eyes as the salty breeze blew through him. The water rippled, as he watched some fish dart around between rocks. He felt more calm, all of the feelings that had been pulling at him that day seemingly being washed away.
Argilla was pulled out of his calm by the sound of Lynae shrieking. He turned back, seeing Lynae jumping off of the bench. "A bee!" She screamed, "Kill it! Kill it!" Argilla felt as if something pulled at his face, but it quickly went away, walking back towards the now panicked Lynae.