Insult: speak to or treat
with disrespect or scornful abuse.
The ability to walk, was something you had taken for granted greatly. Your crutches had been removed this morning and now you felt like you'd never sit down again. At every opportunity you were bouncing around, making the most out of the strength in your muscles. The positivity radiated off of you, and the rest of your guild could tell, it lightened up your team when you all decided to take a job together that day.
The description was simple, the magic council had recently eradicated some dark guild but a few members were still about hiding in a small town. The mayor had hired you and your team to weed them out and get rid of them for good. Easy enough, you just had to find them.
The town had a cute nature to it, it was almost like Lavender Town before the fire, with dirt pavements and cottages with thatched roofs. On a Saturday afternoon, one would expect it to be filled with carts and stools, and families with excited children. The sort of place you would likely have a livestock festival placed at the end of the month, and have walls covered in posters for circus in the next town over. Each house window sill was covered in potted plants of various colours, some had vegetables, all had small accidental piles of soil beneath them, adding to the natural glow of the streets. Each little home a title, not a number, a title, like 'hill view house' or 'caramel cottage', giving every single home it's own individual feel. Even the street names were cute and warm, like Mayfly Road or Poppy Avenue. You would consider living here, if you could bare the smell of farm animals at every turn.
Today however, the streets were rather quiet, I guess the little town wasn't so used to bad things happening. So everyone was shut inside, hiding themselves from some low level bandits. It's a good sign that nothing really happens in this place.
"If I was a bad guy where would I hide?" Marie pondered, leading the group as she walked around casually, her back completely straight and her knees hardly bent, almost like a robot. Not sure what she was trying to achieve by walking like that other than proving that she was childish. Akira paced beside her for a while, copying her until she got bored and returned to walk beside her brother.
"In some dark basement?" Riko was slouched over as she walked, she did feel the energy radiating from your positivity, but was also getting sick of walking. "Can we take a break?"
"Probably somewhere nobody lives," Akio shrugged, he had his hands in his pocket but other than that, moved around like a normal person.
"This is an agricultural town, maybe there's a barn or something they're hiding in?" You followed up on Akio's comment, he was making an effort to walk next to you and turn to smile in your direction as you spoke. He agreed immediately while Riko had all her comments ignored.
"That's a good idea!" Marie pointed a finger in the air as she spun around to face the rest of the team. "Lets go ask someone where we can find some barns!" As Marie spoke, Riko began to stand up straight and pay full attention, as if her sulking had been banished. Geez what an obvious crush.
You wandered around a little longer, asking directions to all the creepy abandoned barns or buildings in the area. There was only one, and it wasn't exactly creepy or abandoned. Just empty, the guy who gave you directions told you that the old owner had recently moved away just before the dark guild arrived. And when you got there, it still looked relatively well-kept, which was anti climatic.
"Who puts a locks on an empty barn," Riko poked the door a couple of times as if it was going to open it. The doors to the barn was twice her height and looked relatively heavy. The entire barn was painted red, but bits were chips off in various places, there was an obvious attempt to cover this up, as various chips were filled with s slightly different shade of red. The bottom was brown, mud stained from years of muddy puddles and clumsy animals, while the top was the most faded from all types of weathering. In the middle were the doors held together by a padlock.
"Someone who still intends to sell it?" Akio answered, trying to be clever maybe.
"Or villains!" Akira cheered, almost proud of the fact her idea made more logical sense than her brother's. "Go on, open it!" She urged him, knowing for sure that he had the strength the break through the lock, but you could too if you wanted, and you could bet Riko and Marie could give it a go.
Akio glanced around, making sure you were all prepared for whatever was one the other side of that door. Marie and Riko glanced at each other, you could tell the two of them were already formulating a plan together, using their powers in unison.
Without a second more waiting, Akio kicked the door and smashed the lock with the help of his magic. In the moment, there were gasped from the other side of the door as Marie and Riko shot in, giving you no chance to evaluate the situation as they cornered one person each. In front, no one even noticed the last 'villain' making an attempt to climb out the back window.
"These must be them," Riko glanced over at you, Akio and Akira who were still just entering the barn, below her was a delinquent looking teenager, looking frightened and puny leaning against the wall on the floor. Riko had the heel of her boot pressed firmly against this shoulder, he wasn't going anywhere. Meanwhile, Marie had managed to knock another one over, and proceeded to try and tie her to a supporting pillar of the barn.
You had hardly anytime to notice Marie and Riko's movements, there speed ability made them both completely unpredictable. But their ability to work together shocked you more, Riko was the stubborn type, but the fact she worked so well with Marie surprised you, almost confused you. It was as if some out of control forced pulled the two together, that even between character differences, they could still work side by side. Or maybe it was something else.
"There were three," Akira, who had safely hidden behind her brother when he knocked down the door, poked her head around the side of Akio, revealing herself. She continued to point to the back. "He climbed that way."
This time, you and Akio glanced at each other. "We'll go get him," Akio commented preparing himself to leave, "watch these two and Akira, hopefully we won't be long."
"Maybe I should go too." Riko didn't flinch as she suggested her idea.
"We'll be fine," Akio looked at her as if she was stupid, "we can manage without you."
"But-"
"We all saw your fight with Itzal, you just stay here and manage what you can." Akio's tone barely changed, but Riko flinched. Recently, you noticed, she was expressing more preventable emotion. And to your surprise, she didn't challenge Akio like she usually would, instead taking out any rage on the boy in front of hers shoulder.
You and Akio exited the barn.
"You didn't have to be so mean about it." You gave a half glare at Akio as you stood outside.
His face soften suddenly, and only after your words did he start to feel regret. Maybe more at the fact he was disappointed you, than upsetting Riko. In fact, the only reason he'd made Riko stay was so he could perhaps share some moments with you alone.
"Your right," he glanced down, "I'll apologise later. He couldn't of gone far, we can split up and go either side of the barn, meet him down the back."
You nodded and without another word you slipped away. Around the side of the barn and towards the back. Before you could even reach the end, you could see a man in the distance, limping to get away from the barn, but still in view.
From the left, you watched Akio dive to punch him. The shock of the attack knocked the last of the dark guild members over and onto the grassy floor. This was followed by the swiping metal sound of your sword being pulled out of it's case and suddenly held at the man's neck.
The look on his face was terrified but he was clearly one of these men who struggled expressing it. While he tried to hide his fear behind a grin, it was crooked and sweat poured down his face.
"Are you going to hand yourself in or is this gonna have to get bloody?" You commented,
"I'd pick the first one if I were you." Akio stood behind, there was something about the way he said 'you' that was pretty much prideful.
The man chuckled on the ground, he coughed a little bit too, feeling the effects of the poison in Akio's punch. "Ooh, good cop bad cop." His grinned widened. "I bet I can guess who wears the trousers in this relationship."
Akio realised what he was implying straight, but it took you a couple of seconds to start mumbling a justification. "What! No! Relationship?! You're out of your mind. You know what. Bloody it is."
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With the job successful and all remaining members of the dark guild apprehended, you and your team made your way home. The mood still relatively light (thanks to the cheerful Marie and Akira) but had dropped a little bit. Mainly out of exhaustion of a hard days work but also due to fact Riko had been relatively quiet since the insulting incident earlier. But no one seemed to pay her much attention.
Marie and Akira made the most noise, having a conversation between them. You strolled a long beside them, having a mental conversation of your own. You had many things crossing your mind, but right now, one thing stuck. You wondered when you would see Rogue again.
You had all this fate, and magic tied to him. Although you'd decided not to kill him, a lot of you hoped that this wouldn't be the end of your relationship and that you would see him again. You wanted to see him again.
"Hey."
You almost jumped at Akio's voice, you weren't expecting to be pulled out of your thoughts so suddenly, he almost scared you as he moved to walk beside you.
"So, um, theres, um." You hoped he'd be out with it soon. "There's an ice cream place opening up tomorrow in town and since you wanted to come last time, and um, Akira said that she likes you, I was wondering, if, um, if you wanted to go with us tomorrow."
You shrugged, "sure why not" not quite sure what the big deal was.
"Great!" He coughed, "I mean, cool, that cool. We'll go about lunch, so we'll see you at the guild before than alright?"
You nodded, and let Akio awkwardly scurry away from you to talk to his sister and Marie, you paid no notice.
You were almost home now, making your way through the iconic arch that symboled the fact you were entering Lavender Town and trees turned into shops and houses. The amount of people increased the closer you got to your destination of the guild. This time in the evening, the main demographic of people out were traders returning home and kids running to get inside before their curfew. The sky dimming to purple was a sign that the day was almost over, shadows lengthened across the street and the low light made it harder to see.
So that's why you weren't so sure when you saw the older women with the purple hair and blue eyes in the corner of your vision. There for a second and then gone. Vanishing from your focus as soon as you noticed.
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Drag your sister along for your unofficial date, that's how you do it Akio.
Sorry it's been awhile (feel like I say this a lot) and I feel like this chargers a bit confusing and all over the place. Let me know if anythings hard to understand (cos it's a bit disjointed) and maybe I can edit and rephrase a few things.