Cinder really wanted to burn something really bad late the next morning. The reason being the cocky asshole that was in front of her at this moment.
"So, you want to collaborate with my group on one of your little get rich quick schemes." She said calmly.
"Exactly, Dollface." The white hair man said with a Italian mafia accent and a cocky tone. "Together, both our organizations will get richer then we can imagine."
"Our organiztations?" Cinder said with a raised brow. "You don't have anyone working under you. Oh, and if you ever call me dollface again, I WILL hurt you without hesitation."
"Hey, lady, I'm more than enough to make an organization all by myself." The man replied with a frown.
Cinder's eye twitched at his statement. 'This guy is so full of it.' Cinder thought to herself as she glared at the man.
"Aw, what's with the look, toots?"
"Your really full of it Mr. Giles, and I will not expend any resources or people to help you." Cinder told him firmly.
Giles frowned. "Aw come on!" He exclaimed. "I'll give you ten percent of the money!"
Cinder rubbed the bridge of her nose in irritation. "No, I'm not going to help you on something that will most likely end in disaster." Cinder told him.
"Why the hell not?!" He exclaimed.
"Because part of that get rich scheme was to literally storm right into a high security bank!" Cinder told him in a peeved tone. "It's a half baked plan and I'm not going to waste my time on a idiotic plan and the idiot person that thought it up. Stevie could at least think of a semi-decent plan." Cinder explained, throwing up in her mouth a little for giving Stevie a compliment of any kind.
"Thanks, Boss!" Stevie said as he walked by, tossing his banana peel in the doorway.
Cinder made no indication that she heard him. 'I just know that I'm going to end up slipping on that peel.' Cinder thought with a mental sigh before turning her attention back to Giles. "Anyway, I don't think we have any reason to talk about this anymore." Cinder told him as his face contorted into a furious expression. "I think that you know how to get out of here." Cinder said with a smirk.
"This ain't over, lady! I'll get ya back for this!" Giles snapped as he rose to his feet.
"You can try. Now get out." Cinder told him with a serious face.
"Um...Miss Cinder?" Harry poked his head into the room.
Cinder looked at him in surprise as Giles turns to look at Harry with a scowl. "Who's the brat." Giles said rudely. Cinder responded by launching him across the room with a blast of fire to the chest. Giles yelps as he hits the wall and slides down. He quickly stood up and clutched the spot where her fire hit him, which was now a ashy substance with little particles gathering to the spot and healing him. He looked up at Cinder, wincing. "Lady, you could've burned my ashes away!"
Cinder narrows his eyes at him. "That was a warning shot, next time you call him a brat, I will not be so merciful."
The man scowled. "Whatever...I'm out...You're gonna pay for this, you bitch, you hear me?!" He storms out the room and takes a quick glance at Harry before he leave the room. He already knew how he was going to get his revenge... He smirked evilly as he walked out the building, already forming a plan in his mind.
Cinder, for her part, turned to Harry. She breaths in and out to calm herself before saying anything to Harry. "How may I help you Harry?" Cinder asked him calmly.
"Um...The cooks wanted me to tell you lunch is ready..." He said softly.
Cinder smiles and gets up. "Alright then, why don't we go to the dining area together?" Cinder told him with a kind smile. After two minutes of walking, they finally arrived to the dining room where Emerald, Mercury, and Stevie was sitting at the table. Cinder's eyes widened in remembrance...She had managed to avoid slipping on the banana peel Stevie had tossed earlier!
She smiled in victory until as stepped on a banana peel that Stevie left there after breakfast and slipped on it. She lets Harry's hand go in shock and landed on her back. One of the chefs tripped over her, and a bowl of tomato soup flew out of his hand and came back down on top of her face. If it weren't for the fact that her flame based semblance made her heat resistant, the fact that a bowl of hot soup splashed on her face would be making her scream in agony right now. Instead, she calmly grabs the bowl and pulls it off her face, revealing her irritated expression. Her entire head was covered in the red liquid, and it was dripping onto the floor.
"Hey miss Cinder! You have soup on your head." Stevie pointed out the obvious with his usual goofy smile. Then he proceeded to reach down and eat some of the soup off of her head. "Mmm! Yummy!"
Cinder looks at him in irritation. "Get away from me Stevie." Cinder told him with a murderous undertone.
"Sorry!" Stevie replied cheerfully as he returned to his own meal.
"Thank you." Cinder said as one of the chefs came over and handed her a towel to get rid of the soup off her. After that was done with, the young woman joined them in lunch. It was a meal that consisted of Grilled cheese with turkey slices and tomato soup. It didn't take long for everyone to finish.
"Man, that was good." Mercury stated while resisting the urge to belch.
"Indeed." Cinder agreed. "Did you enjoy your meal, Harry?"
Harry looked up at her and smiled. "I did Miss Cinder." Harry told her.
"I'm very glad to hear that." Cinder replied with a smile.
"So how did the meeting with Giles go?" Emerald asked her leader, causing Cinder to frown.
"We won't be doing business with him anytime soon." She replied.
"That bad?" Mercury asked her earning a nod from Cinder. "That man's arrogance was limitless and his plan was worse." Cinder explained.
"He just wanted to bullheadedly rush in, didn't he?" Emerald asked.
"You read my mind, Emerald." Cinder replied.
Emerald giggled. "He won't last that long in this business." Emerald said.
"I give him six days before he gets put in jail." Mercury agreed. They both started laughing as they started speculating what he will be thrown in jail for. Cinder shook her head with a smile and turned to Harry.
"I'm free for the rest of the day, what would you like to do?" Cinder asked him.
Harry blinked and looked at her with a tilted head. "Oh...Um...I'm not sure..." He replied softly.
Cinder chuckles and pats his head. "It's alright, we can just hang around for now." Harry smiled as she picked him up and held him. He placed his head on her chest as she started to stroke his head. Then she blushed and realized what she was doing. Cinder looks up to see Mercury and Emerald giving her knowing looks. Stevie, however, was staring as a fly that was buzzing around his head. "Um...Well I'm...going out for a while..." Cinder said curtly, moving out of the room at a brisk pace. Emerald and Mercury looks at her retreating form in confusion.
"Was it something we said?" Mercury asked when they heard a smacking sound and a crash. The fly that Stevie was looking at landed on his forehead and he attempted to smack it but missed and ended up falling backwards in his chair.
"Did I get it guys?" Stevie asked when the fly landed on his head again.
"Let me get that for you..." Mercury said as he picked up his chair.
"I'll help." Emerald agreed as she picked up her own. They go to his sides and smashes the chairs into Stevie's face, killing the fly.
"Thanks...guys." Stevie thanked before losing consciousness. Emerald and Mercury high-fived.
Meanwhile, Cinder was still walking with Harry in her arms. "Now, you're sure there's nothing in particular you would like to do?" She asked.
Harry shakes his head no. "It doesn't really matter what we do, I just want to spend it with you." Harry told her, causing Cinder's heart to melt.
"Well then...I'll take you to my bedroom and see if I can find a book to read you..."
Harry smiled and nodded. "Okay." Harry said happily as he enjoyed being in Cinder's arms. Cinder had the warmest hugs... Within moments, they arrived at the room that belonged to Cinder. Cinder gently placed Harry down in her bed and sat down next to him.
"Stay put while I find a book." Cinder told him while she went to her small library and looked for a book to read him that was age appropriate. She blushed when she saw Ninjas of Love on the shelf. 'I better hide that before Harry sees it.' Cinder told herself as she looked for a little bit longer before she stopped at a book with a light blue cover. 'Cinderella, that'll be perfect.' Cinder thought as she removed the book from it's place and went back to her bed. "I'll just settle on a nice, classic fairy tale." She said calmly. She took a seat next to Harry and pulled him to her lap. The little boy smiled and nestled in closer. When he was comfortable, Cinder opened the book and started reading the words under the pictures.
"Once upon a time, there was a beautiful maiden who lived with her Father." Cinder started, with Harry already fully enticed with the story.
Harry suddenly found himself realizing he and Cinderella weren't so different. As she read on, he realized more about how much He and Cinderella. Having to live with relatives that treated them like dirt, wanting to have a better life, and ended up getting it in the end. Before long, Cinder reached the end of the book. "And she lived happily ever after." Cinder read out, ending the story and closing the book.
"Just like me..." Harry said softly.
Cinder looked at him in confusion. "Who's just like you?" Cinder asked.
"Cinderella...She's just like me..." Harry replied softly. "She had to live with relatives that didn't like her, she wanted something better, and someone helps her wish come true." Harry explained.
"Someone...made your wish come true..." Cinder breathed. "You mean me...?" Harry smiled and nodded. "Harry..." Cinder breathed. She felt an uncomfortable warmth flow through her chest. She hasn't felt this kind of warmth before and didn't know what to make of it. And when she looked at Harry's smiling face, it got stronger and stronger until she felt like her chest was going to explode. Instinctively, she hugged Harry as close as she could. She had felt tingling in her chest when she was around him...But never this ridiculous amount of warmth... It felt even more warm then her flames.
Harry snuggled into her and yawned, felling sleepy. Cinder blinked and looked down at him. She smiled. She'd best get him to bed... "I guess it's time for your nap." Cinder told him as she picked him up. Harry looked at her for a moment...then dozed right off in her arms. She smiled as she left her room and headed towards Harry's room. She slowly opened the door, then placed him in his bed, nice and snug. She smiled at him and brushed a few hairs away form his eyes. "Sleep tight Harry." Cinder said before heading onwards the door and gently closes it, looking at him for a few moments before closing the door.
Little did she know, after she had left, ashes began to flow from a crack in the wall...