Chapter 10
Calm
.:+:.
"... There is absolutely nothing to 'chat' about. I thought I already made myself clear-"
.:+:.
"... You what?"
Spirit grit her teeth, halfway hating herself for letting her tone drop as clearly as it did, and the other half of her feeling justified for it.
Her eyes flashed, red and glittering as she glared at the duo of the man and the woman standing before her- both older than her, both worn faced, dressed in formal, official garb, and grim and utterly serious as she stood there before the both, almost bristling.
Three hours and some minutes ago that man- the apparent Director of some secret Night-Hunters task group- had called her on her mobile and pretty much ordered her here. No reason, no details, just a time and a place and she had agreed even when she knew the instant she walked in and heard the story she was likely to end up where she was now, seething and angry.
The woman was a surprise- her title even more surprising- but no amount of authority nor how high up on the chain of command mattered for a damn thing after everything those two had explained, suggested, and asked.
Both of them seemed to grimace slightly at the clear amount of agitation in the No. 26's voice and posture, but they did not look surprised.
One half of Spirit's mind reminded her to be polite, but she didn't want to listen to it... But fucking hell, she would look like an emotional and hotheaded idiot if she let her anger get the best of her.
Not here Spirit, not now.
But shit!
"I understand what this would ask of you, Animal Spirit. But you have an advantage in this situation that other Pros will not." the woman murmured calmly, Spirit bristled more as the word advantage made an appearance.
Advantage my ass!
She bit down on her tongue, her jaw clenching tightly and her fists following suit at her sides.
Be calm-
"You are the most suitable person for this assignment, without a doubt." the woman went on softly, "You are a capable Hero, and you have proven yourself objective to whatever goal that is set before you. This is a dangerous thing we ask of you, in more ways than one- but we ask out of necessity, and not want."
"No." Spirit growled lowly, the refusal almost heavy on the air between them. The woman seemed to let out a silent sigh at the answer, but she couldn't argue. They had asked, it wasn't an order. "Find someone else. I guarantee you can find a Pro who will have an easier time with this than I would." Spirit muttered lowly, "Especially after I publicly condemned Stain and everything having to do with his actions, and anyone else's like his."
The man's eyes trailed toward the woman beside him as she nodded slightly, her arms crossed over her chest. "... Very well Animal Spirit... It is better to have your answer now, since we are so early in even putting together this assignment." The woman murmured, "... If you should change your mind however-"
"No disrespect ma'am, but my answer is always going to be no."
.:+:.
"-back in black~!"
Spirit swiped her phone up off of her nightstand viciously, growling under her breath as she got diverted from staring up at her roof in brooding, agitated silence. She'd come back to her apartment and just threw herself on the bed, still in full Animal Spirit garb from having changed into it earlier. She'd opted for coming home instead of going straight on to Patrol so she could just... Chill, and it hadn't done her much good.
I missed my window for sleeping today too... Gahh, fuck today!
And I seriously need to change my ringtone!
(Not that she expected she would, mind you... She'd just complain some more)
She pulled her phone up and in front of her face so she could read the number, half expecting it to be Death Arms, but an unknown number popped up for the second time that day and she blinked.
... What is with today, huh...? I'd rather be left alone...
She grumbled and clicked the answer button, ready to hear the voice of the Hosu Police Chief or maybe even fucking Dante.
"...hello?" She murmured, whilst somehow managing to keep her voice to a not so bitchy tone.
"Animal Spirit? This is Cementoss, from UA. Is now a good time to talk?" came the polite voice on the other end, and Spirit blinked.
... Cementoss... UA...Oh... Oh right...!
"Yeah, now's fine." Spirit answered quickly, her lingering agitation melting as she sat up in bed and adjusted to sit cross-legged. "Is there something I forgot to fill out on the paperwork?"
"No no, all of that was well in order." Cementoss replied with ease, "I'm calling now because most of the students have finished turning in their forms and we've started contacting the Heroes and Agencies they accepted offers from, or otherwise signed up for."
"... Ah." Spirit murmured, her mouth running even when her mind wasn't quite caught up yet.
That was fast
"Yes, so on that note I'm calling to let you know that one of the students you made offers to placed you as their top choice. The other student listed you as his second, but their first choice has already been Accepted and set things up, so there is no worry of overlap on that end." Cementoss explained, "Now that your offer was Accepted, I'll need to go over some more things with you about the student, the schedule you'll be adhering to, fare and other logistical things." Spirit was stiff though, her eyes wide and jaw dropped slightly as she just listened.
Wait a minute, one of the kids actually accepted...?!
This is happening...?! I didn't... I guess I didn't expect they would pick me, why would they...?!
S-shit...!
"You said you were alright with coming back to UA? I understand you were here yesterday, and I apologize for dragging you back out- truth be told we've managed to sort through most of these in very short time." Cementoss went on, unaware of the way Spirit was stunned (and maybe a little freaked out...) on the other end of the line. She swallowed, shaking her head at herself and hating the reaction- thank god her voice sounded steady (somehow..).
"Yeah, no problem. I can totally come back again, no worries." she replied, "Is today alright? I can be there in about an hour and a half or so..."
Not true of course, technically she could be there in like twenty minutes if she flew there, but she said hour and a half simply because she needed to get a few things ready beforehand.
"Yes, that'll work nicely." Cementoss hummed, "I'll see you in a bit, Animal Spirit."
"Yep." Spirit murmured, the phone falling from her ear as she cut the call off, and for a few seconds she just sat there on top of her bed in utter silence.
... One of the kids... Said yes...
... I'm going to be hosting an Intern for the next week... I'm gonna have to rearrange my schedule, and allocate the bulk of or even all of my regular hours for Patrol for the Internship instead... And decide what we'll be doing, and where we'll be doing it... And where we'll meet...
... I'm gonna have to call my boss and Jeriko and figure out what times I need to work the bar instead of my regular shift... What even would be a regular day for an Intern? Like 9 in the morning to 5 at night?
... That sounds right... But doing so means I have to work the shift at the bar from-
She stiffened, her face twisting in a grimace as her teeth grit.
"... I'm gonna have to work nights... I'm gonna have to work the shift where there's way too many people and way too many assholes getting drunk and when there's the biggest crowd and the most girls..." Spirit muttered aloud, a vein ticking on her forehead as she growled. "... And the biggest mess and the most bullshit and I can't just take a week off, I need the fucking money... Fuck me."
She let out an aggravated breath and swung her legs off the bed, standing up quickly and moving away from the bed and toward the (loosely labeled) living room and the desk there pressed against the wall. "... tch... I hate working happy hour... I hate crowds, I hate drunk people and I hate all of them and their god-damn lack of personal space and grabby hands..." Spirit kept on muttering to herself as she put her phone down on the desk and started to fish out a notepad and a pen from the drawers.
That's why I work the slow hours! There's hardly anybody at a Strip club at the ass crack of dawn and at lunch time!
I hate working nights... But fuck me I need money, and I'm not dragging some poor kid through the Graveyard Patrol hours from 5-5...!
"... Tch... Jeriko's gonna be extra interested in why I need to switch my hours with him for a week too... And nights aren't fun, to start with- and now Tenshi said the crowds have been extra 'handsy' lately... Gah...!" She kept muttering to herself, her thumb clicking down on the end of the pen in agitation one too many times. "...tch... It's fine Spirit, you can last a week on night shift. Money is nice, and there's better tips at those hours too... Even if the fucking men are more goggly and touchy and stupid and fucking drunk..." She mumbled to herself in a rather vain attempt to quell her agitation at the idea. "... You'll be fine... Don't get worked up about it... So if I work the Shift from 6pm to 2am I'll be back home by 230-3ish..."
She started scribbling down on the paper, mapping out the times as she tapped her fingers of her other hand against the desk top.
"...sleep from then until 8 or so, and I'd still be getting my usual number of hours of sleep..." Her voice dropped slightly as she kept writing and doing the math in her head. "... And then do the Intern thing from 9 to around 4 or 5..? We'll have to break for lunch in the middle, and maybe dinner too..." She stopped writing and her pen tapped pensively against the paper, grimacing a bit. "...mm... That's seven hours... is that too long? Patrolling usually goes that long but that can be slow... We'd have to avoid Villains as much as possible, the kid won't have a License so confrontation is a no-go... and I wouldn't wanna put him in a situation where he might get hurt, that'd be unpleasant..."
The pen tapped some more as her eyes dropped closed, and she started chewing on the inside of her cheek.
"... There's things I can point out and teach while on Patrol yeah? Things to look for, the logistics of the job, picking your own hours and then agency you work for... As much as I can teach on that last bit, anyway... I'm not a wealth of knowledge on how Hero Agencies work... But keeping in mind the location and the way your Quirk works is a good topic, yeah?" she mumbled, "... I could just ramble really, though I'm not sure how helpful that is... I can teach, right? It can't be that hard, he's learning what goes into being a Pro, and I'm one so I'm knowledgeable on that end... Maybe discounting all the stuff that would come with being in an Agency- but that's not important right now, right...? So I could just lecture on the more practical stuff and walk around, showing things, observing and seeing how they work out in the field? And avoiding any amount of real confrontation with any Villains... small things would be fine yeah...? Helping evacuate people, or setting up barriers until the police arrive...? Sorts of things you would do as a Pro but maybe not always think about..."
Her tapping of the pen against the paper ceased as she bit down on the end of it,
"... we could take time to go somewhere and train for a few hours on one or two of the days... Work on his Quirk and combat skills where needed... I'm fairly good with hand-to-hand stuff, yeah...? And I think I can handle finding ways to improve and build up his Quirk... though finding a place to do any of that might be a bit hard, I don't have an Agency, so I don't have a Training Center... We could hit up a Joint Center maybe... But those are usually pretty full... Maybe just an out of the way place? The Bakanei Park in Heiku is huge, and there's some pretty secluded areas... hopefully things with the Press and the public and everyone else will have calmed down by the time the week starts... It'd be real annoying to have to deal with all of that at the same time as keeping an eye on the kid and trying to teach him..."
She grumbled a little under her breath and paused, grimacing.
"... I'll have to bring supplies with me, since I don't have an Agency or a Building to store stuff at... I'll have to ask the Support Department for that thing..." she mumbled, "...mmm... So I'll need to go to the store... And probably might as well grab a few of those at Support too while I'm there..." She trailed off, frowning at the way her core seemed to twist in nervousness and apprehension the more she talked to herself- and the reality of the situation sunk in deeper.
"... This is a lot... I can teach yeah? I'm not like super social or anything, and I've never done this sort of thing before... But I can do this... Right...?" She asked aloud, her voice dying away and she sighed when the twisting in her core got worse.
...aaaaaaaaaaaaand now I'm maybe starting to freak out a little. Shit...
She forced herself to stop chewing on the pen and wrote a list of supplies from the store and a note or two about what she'd monologued and the things she needed to remember to ask for while at the Support Office. Her mind felt like it was racing a million miles an hour as she thought through about a dozen other things and questioned all of them a dozen times over, where to go, what to do, what she had to offer, what to eat, who she had to call and what other things she needed to get ready and settle for the week of the Internship- all in conjunction with the info and guidelines and whatnot she'd read from the papers the UA Principal had given her... Crap... There's so much I gotta take care of... Why didn't I start thinking about this before?
Oh right, I didn't actually think either of those kids would accept... I hate myself.
She jumped a little at the sudden buzz her phone gave off, her eyes narrowing in confusion at it as the screen lit up and a notification popped up across the lock screen. Her free hand reached out for her phone as she dropped the pen and folded up the paper she had written on before tucking it away in her suit, whilst simultaneously biting the inside of her cheek as she read the notification.
Hawkward: How about 'Kitten'?
Her phone buzzed again, and that message got replaced with the next;
Hawkward: and is your #1 Crimson Riot?
She rolled her eyes and grit her teeth, opening the phone and the app up as she quickly typed back a reply.
Hawkward
How about 'Kitten'?
and is your #1 Crimson Riot?
No, not Crimson Riot.
And I swear on every
god there is in this world,
if you even dare to try
and call me 'Kitten' I
will hunt you down and
maul you and spread your
limbs out over a forest,
never to be found again.
She hit her thumb against the send button and then dropped out of the app.
Hawks had been insistent in asking his questions and throwing out his suggestions throughout the day. Every half hour or so she earned a new message and a new guess of her #1 favorite Hero, and then a suggestion on what nickname he should have for her.
Among said guesses there had been Bryzair (not sure what sense that guess made, but whatever), Hound Dog (probably because of the animal related Quirks... again, no), Uwabami (snakes and animals again? He wasn't branching very far), every member of the Wild, Wild Pussycats (probably because cats, hmm? Because she preferred Shifting into a cat?), and then a number of other Pros who were either dead or retired and no longer on the circuit- and all of them (surprise!) having some sort of animal or transformation Quirk.
And as she warned him that he wouldn't be able to guess who it was- Hawks had not guessed correctly in all his attempts.
Now for the most part the nicknames made even less sense, and he was suggesting both plain and actual nicknames (like of the sort with how she had fallen into calling him Feathers), or going the more traditional approach and referring to her on incredibly familiar terms- and she was quickly getting exasperated with all of them... if her threat of homicide hadn't been an indicator of that.
Kitten (Hell. No.)
Spirit-chan (He's not my friend, why does he think he can call me that?)
Vixen (No. Just no.)
Ani-chan (Again, way too familiar- and too damn forward!)
Roo (What even the hell is this?)
Aka-chan (Still not friends... And of course he suggested-)
Ebony-chan (-conversely, and still- why does he assume he can call me 'chan'?)
Minx (ugh)
Juno (where the hell did this come from?)
Kuro (riiiight, cause you know... every Animal I Shift into is black.)
Kuneko (a conglomerate of 'black' and 'cat', so original... and so stupid.)
... All of which received a hard veto, and he seemed undeterred. At this point it would probably be easier just to give in to being called 'Sunshine', if only to avoid the incessant suggestions.
She cast off Hawks and his persistence as she turned her attention on dialing up a number in the phone and stood with her hand on her hip waiting for the other end to pick up.
"... Spirit, you okay?" The familiar voice of Death Arms sounded on the line in no time at all, and of course he sounded the slightest bit concerned. Why not? There'd been periodic calls from him to her since the Stain thing and with her being on the mend, but never from her to him. The fact that she was calling now probably made him think something was wrong- and while that wasn't technically true, her core was twisted enough that she felt 'wrong' could be an apt description.
"I'm fine, don't stress about me being hurt or whatever, that's not why I called." She told him quickly, and didn't pause for him to say anything back. "I'm calling for you to hopefully say something sage-like and make me feel less like an unprepared mess, and maybe assure me that I haven't lost my fucking mind."
"... And why would you have lost your mind?" He asked slowly,
"Your Agency does those Hero Internship things with UA, yeah?" she asked,
"Yes... I'm slated to have a kid from UA in the next week actually, why?" He replied, Spirit nodded slightly.
"Great. Now quick update- I think I might have failed to mention this through all the... Unpleasantness, from the Stain thing and when we went out for a drink." Spirit murmured, "I ran into UA's principal at the hospital in Hosu, and for some reason I still don't understand he handed me a file of the Hero kids and suggested I look them over and possibly make an offer to Intern a student. Long story short; I was bored and stuck in my house and I read those files and managed to convince myself to give the Internship thing a go- so I made two offers, and one of the kids accepted me." There seemed a stunned pause on the other end from Death Arms, but she kept going regardless. "Now I'm supposed to go to UA and set everything up, and while I would like to tell myself that I have everything under control and a good plan on how things are gonna go- I'm sort of maybe beginning to freak out, just a little. So my hope is I tell you what little I have planned and you tell me I'm an idiot and I shouldn't worry about it and assure me I have not lost my mind and I will not be subjecting some poor kid to a week of working with 'Animal Spirit the most unprepared and completely out of her depth No. 26 Hero!'. Sound like a plan?"
This time she paused and it was clear that Death Arms was either lost for words, or otherwise trying to sift through the slew of information she just blurted out in the course of about a minute. Spirit's fingers tapped impatiently against her hip as she waited for a reply, and the knotting in her core got a little worse.
"... Alright... I think I got all of that, but why would the Principal have offered you up for Internships? These are Agency things, and you don't have one." Death Arms said at length, and Spirit sighed.
"I don't know. I didn't ask at the time, and for the most part the whole I don't have an Agency thing doesn't seem to be an issue." She mumbled, "I just have to handle all the paperwork and stuff by myself... which I suppose would pretty much acquaint me to being my own Agency, just without all the permits and the headquarters and whatever..."
"I suppose." Death Arms murmured on the other end, he sounded less than on board with the turn of events and she knew he wouldn't agree all the way- seeing as how she hadn't planned any of this, and he knew that- and he had always preferred not jumping into things, him or anyone else... Well, too late now.
"So anyway, this is the part where you tell me I'll be fine and I'm not gonna muck up this Internship thing." Spirit murmured,
"... Spirit, you don't like kids." Death Arms pointed out calmly, she grimaced.
"It... it's not that I don't like kids, I just have a habit of not working or interacting with them." Spirit sighed, "... I have no issue with kids, I just might be a little out of touch with the younger generation... But that doesn't mean I won't be nice, or fail to keep an eye on him. I'm well aware that this Internship thing means the kid is my responsibility, and that I have to make sure he learns and feels fine and doesn't get hurt or anything. And it is in every way my intention of not letting something bad happen- and if something does, I'm fully prepared to do what I need to." Her hand moved from her hip as brushed her bangs from her face, "... Not to say I won't probably be awkward as hell the first few hours or even the first day. That's definitely gonna happen- but does being a bit fumbly in the beginning mean I'll suck the rest of the way through? And it's not like this kid is super young either, I'm only a few years older than him. Any student out of UA is old enough that getting along with them shouldn't be a problem, and they aren't mindless five years olds that need hand holding either- they're teenagers, and a few years of from being adults- why couldn't I do well with someone like that? I'm not entirely incapable of getting along with anyone... I get along with other people just fine when I need to."
She broke off for a moment when her phone buzzed in her hand, she pulled it from her ear and looked at the screen to see a notification from Instagram highlighting yet another message from Hawks;
Hawkward: oh but I think that one is cute! But I suppose I'd rather not get murdered ~
She shook her head, her eyes flashing as she sighed but otherwise left Hawks be, "... Besides, you said you were doing it too yeah? You did this last year when a UA kid signed on with your Agency, right? If you can get along with someone of the same age, why couldn't I? You aren't much older than me as it is." She pointed out, "And I think I can handle showing him the ropes of Patrols and talking to him about the details of working with the police and others Pros and whatnot. I have no problems answering questions and helping out, and I chose both the kids based off their Quirk and how well I might potentially work with their powers. So on that end, I have the experience and the type of Quirk that I'd be able to relate to what they can do, and help them tweak things if need be. And I'd only be taking him on Patrols and whatnot through Heiku, since I know it well enough to know what places to avoid and it's familiar territory. I don't intend on getting caught up in a dangerous situation and if it's unavoidable- we either leave or we stick to crowd control and evacuation, but only in minimal risk situations. And if we train or work on combat or anything, we do it out of the way in a secluded place- and I don't push too hard."
She turned a little and glanced up and out the only window in the whole of the space, biting the inside of her cheek still. "And I made the Offer under the terms that it would be part-time hours, so there won't be any need to make sure I have sleeping accommodations. He comes out and spends the bulk of the day with me, and goes home for the night- which works out well since Heiku is so close to where both of those student's addresses were listed, so the train ride to and from isn't terrible. And I'm going to adjust my Patrol hours from 9 in the morning to 5 in the evening for the Internship itself, instead of suffering the kid through my regular hours. I anticipate having to come up with lunch accommodations, and that's fine with me- I wouldn't even mind having to do dinner too, to be honest." She explained, "And seeing as how I don't have an Agency Building to retreat to, we'd also be moving around the city the whole time, so I would have to bring supplies with me... And that's not much an issue either, I can just ask the Support Agency to pull the bag they made for me out of storage while I'm there picking up my Uniform from getting repaired." She paused for a small second when there was yet another buzz, and the first message from Hawks was replaced;
Hakward: Ah, it's almost time for Patrol, huh~? You given my suggestion to Patrol together any thought~?
Spirit blinked, her eyes narrowing at the words as she bit the inside of her cheek. Truth be told, she had more or less forgotten about that whole Patrolling together thing... And being asked now she wasn't sure she had an answer.
But she had to worry about that later, she was busy right now and she turned her full attention back on her conversation with Death Arms.
"... And I realize you don't generally approve of the jumping into new things without planning ahead, and since I pretty much did that I don't expect you to be considerably happy with me about any of this... I know this is out of my norm and I probably am out of my depth, but I'd appreciate some sort of assurance or advice, since I can't really back out at this point." She added, placing a halt in her continual talking so he would have some chance at getting a word in edgewise. "... Ah, and sorry for the rant and all of this out of nowhere... Is this a bad time to be calling you...?" She added as an afterthought, she swore she heard him grumble on the other end.
"... I think you need to stop worrying so much, Spirit." He said at length, and she blinked. "You sound like you already figured out your plan and what you need to do. I think you might be over thinking things a bit, but it's better you figured all of that out now instead of later." He murmured, "And I'm not busy right now so don't worry about that last bit."
"Ah, alright. Glad to have your stamp of approval- even though I completely just thought up all of that in the last ten minutes." She hummed, there was an audible sigh from her friend in return.
"You might have lost your mind just a little when you decided to go ahead with this." He told her, she bit the inside of her cheek and smiled sheepishly. "But I'll blame the pain medication you were taking at the time. For now you really need to relax, even if this is something you've never done before, you should be fine. You'll just have to take it in stride, and don't overthink things- you'll stress yourself out more than you need to." He murmured, "I'll do my best to help you if you need it Spirit, but this is probably something you'll have to learn while doing." Spirit hummed a little with a nod,
"That, aaaand you'll be busy doing your own Internship, hmm?" She said softly, smiling to herself as he sighed again on the other end.
"Yeah." He murmured, ".. If you have any questions, you could call or text me. And I can try and go over things with you tonight, if you want." He offered, Spirit bit the inside of her cheek.
"... ah, I appreciate the offer, and I'll probably take you up on the text and calling portion at some point- but I might be busy later tonight... so I'm gonna have to get back to you on that." Spirit murmured softly, grimacing to herself and hating that she didn't have an answer. Like really hating, because she hesitated.
Why was she hesitating to just tell Hawks no? Even just remotely hesitating or musing over it?
It's not like I'm in the right sort of mood right now, and I have things to get ready for this Internship... I can't really think and plan with him talking my ear off.
And yet she still wasn't sure about saying no so quickly... What the hell is wrong with me...?
She might have asked Death Arms his opinion on the yes or no to Hawks for Patrolling together tonight, but as soon as the thought of doing so crossed her mind, in the very next instant she was reminded that they had already had that conversation before. Not in this exact context no, but more or less the same premise- working with Hawks.
If she were to bring it up now she was sure he'd tell her to go ahead and Patrol with the feathery-idiot. And while there was no automatic aversion in her core to the idea, there wasn't a complete yes at this point either.
... I'll just have to make my mind up after I'm done at UA...
"Alright." Death Arms murmured, snapping her from her thoughts again. "What kid accepted your offer, by the way? Are they one of the ones from the finals?" He asked, Spirit paused, blinking a few times as it dawned on her-
"... Ah, I don't actually know which one of them it is..." She mumbled, "... I forgot to clarify when Cementoss called..." She admitted quietly, shaking her head at herself. She swore she heard Death Arms sigh again on the other end. "... It wouldn't be one of the kids from the finals though, neither of the two I offered to was one of those..."
"... right. Are you headed to UA now?" He asked instead of scolding her for forgetting to clarify a pretty important detail. Which was appreciated.
"Yeah, in a bit." Spirit murmured, smiling slightly to herself. "Thank you for the saige-like wisdom and assurance, by the way~"
"It's not 'saige-like' more than it is rationality and common sense, but you are welcome regardless." Death Arms murmured, Spirit smiled a bit more.
"Hmm, good luck on your Internship by the way." She hummed, "Hopefully mine will go as well as yours inevitably will."
"You'll be fine, Spirit. It'll be a steep learning curve, but you can handle it." He assured her, she smiled a little more, but softer this time.
"Have I ever told you how good a friend you are?" She asked lightly,
"Several times." Was the easy reply, and she chuckled at it. "And you're a good friend too, Spirit." He added, and her eyes flashed as her core warmed a little. It felt nice to hear it, since she knew she could be a difficult person to get along with at the best of times... And he had never complained, and she'd always done her best to be at least half as good a friend to him as he was to her- and hoped she'd managed it.
Of anyone in her life she actually liked and even cared for- he was the one who knew her the best. And knowing that, he was probably all too aware of that small bit of insecurity she had about how likeable she was... Which was certainly why he made a point to tell her she was a good friend to him.
He is my best friend, without a doubt... Sometimes I wish he did know everything though... But not everyone knows everything about their friends.
That is incredibly true in my case... But that is how it has to be.
She hummed, nodding her head though Death Arms of course could not see it.
"Thank you, I do my best~"
.:+:.
Spirit bit the inside of her cheek as she scrolled through the list set into her phone- a shopping/To-Do List pertaining to what she needed, and needed done for the Internship she was slowly growing more uneasy about.
It had taken a little over and hour at UA and talking with Cementoss to clear everything up and settle a 'plan' away in some semblance of the word. You know- where she'd meet the kid, how long they'd spend a day together, where they would be working... Yeah, all the things she had hashed out (or rather ranted about) to Death Arms not long beforehand.
Oh, and she'd actually manage to square away which of the two students she'd offered to had accepted. And it was the one from Eraserhead's class, which made her a slight bit more uneasy, given what the man had said to her when they met.
"If you protect my student as fervently as you did Ingenium, then I have no problem with you taking them as an Intern."
... Which pretty much meant she had to make sure the kid didn't get hurt at all, lest Eraserhead would have a problem with her... He seemed really hard to please, even despite his (unexpected!) praise for how she handled Stain and-
She bit the inside of her cheek harder, and this time she tasted blood on her tongue and she growled at herself.
Anyway... She'd had Cementoss show her back to the school entrance this time around so she wouldn't end up lost like she had the first time. The school had been fairly empty given it was just a little after the school day ended, so they'd run into near one else on the way out (which meant no running into All Might, which was perfect).
Though there was this one small kid with unkempt green hair that they'd passed from the other side of the courtyard on the way out. And from the stifled squeal she heard him let loose across the yard, and the way he seemed to be barely holding himself together and back from rushing over- Spirit was fairly sure he was one of those who counted themselves among her fans... And maybe close to a fanboy, given how fast his head snapped around when he caught sight of her.
Seriously, he probably gave himself whiplash.
She sighed, shaking her head at herself as she thumbed the notification bar down and read the notification from Hawkward. And the one of which she hadn't bothered to answer since the last message.
Hakward: Ah, it's almost time for Patrol, huh~? You given my suggestion to Patrol together any thought~?
She glanced down through the leaves of the tree she was perched in, the park around her fairly empty and apt to stay that way. It was the park she'd wondered on earlier about being a good place for a training session, and it was. There was plenty of places off the beaten path that seldom ever earned even one person poking around, so if time came and she decided to quit Patrol for a while or even a day, this would be the place to go... It was probably pretty lucky there was a park this large in Heiku at all.
Spirit blinked, still in her spot and quiet as a bird suddenly landed on a branch further below from where she was crouched. It didn't notice her, and it clearly had no clue she was above it. She could jump down and lunge for the thing before it ever had the chance to take off, she could practically feel her claws sinking into-
Spirit stiffened, her eye twitching as she grit her teeth at herself and her stupid wandering animal thoughts.
You're not a cat, Spirit. You are human, and we are not hunting a bird. No matter how tempting- no, no, stop it!
She hissed at herself and quickly shifted, startling the bird on purpose so it would take off and leave her be. She settled her focus on her phone again to try and shift where her thoughts were, her thumb hovered over the notification for Hawks' message and she glanced at the clock.
5:45pm
Technically speaking she'd been out and on her Patrol Hours for almost an hour now, but she really hadn't done much in the way of Patrolling. And if she were to agree to Patrolling with the Feathery-Idiot for even a few hours?
I doubt we'll really do much Patrolling then either... Knowing him he'll just be talking to whole time.
Her eyes dropped closed as she wilted a little,
... and guessing things, as well as coming up with nicknames... Oi... Do I really have the patience to deal with him today?
Plus I saw him last night, and humored him through the whole Endeavor thing. I've fairly filled whatever quota there is for 'being social with Hawks'
Her thumb tapped against the notification and the app popped up. She started typing away and grimaced to herself,
... Aaaaaaaaand yet I say that, and I'm still saying yes... I have to at least humor Death Arms' suggestion to give Feathers a shot, and might as well get that done and over with as soon as I can so I can move on with my life.
I swear though, if I get stuck cleaning up his mess I will tear him to shreds... I'll tear him to shreds if he's annoyingly constant about asking who my favorite Hero is and throwing out even more ridiculous nicknames too.
Hawkward
Ah, it's almost time
for Patrol, huh~?
You given my
suggestion to
Patrol together any
thought~?
Fine.
But only for a few
hours.
And I'm not
doing any meet
and greet with the
Press or the public.
And you'll need to
tone it down on
your 'Public Persona'
if you want to Patrol
with me.
We stick to ourselves
and draw as little
attention as can be
managed, got it?
...
Where do you want
to meet up, Feathers?
For a brief moment she thought about putting the phone back in her pocket as she waited for a reply, but if his usual response time was any indicator- ah, sure enough. Almost instant reply(ies)... He lives on his phone, doesn't he?
Hawkward
Where do you want
to meet up, Feathers?
Oh sweet~! This is
gonna be super cool~!
Hanging out with you
in the field will be
great ~! Maybe I'll get
to see you in action
first hand~!
...
Ooh, or maybe it'll be
super slow tonight,
we could hit up a food
stand or something~!
My treat this time~!
...
Ah, and I'll just come
to you~! I'll be there
super quick, you're
in the park at Heiku,
yeah~? I'm gonna
wing it on over, see
ya in five minutes~!
Spirit paused, her eyes narrowing at the series of texts and in particular- the last one.
How in the hell does he know where I am...?
She reread it about three times, and each time her lips pulled downward in an even deeper frown.
Seriously- how the fuck does he know where I am...?!
She grit her teeth, glaring daggers at the phone in her hand as she stayed in her perch upon the tree branch. About a million different reasons he could know that ran through her head, and all of them made no sense, or couldn't be possible or she didn't dare think was right.
And the more she thought about, the more potent that suspicion and wariness she had felt about him that first day they had met became. His curiosity and his incessant asking of questions and 'wanting to get to know her' had already struck a chord from the getgo- but she'd eventually just come to the conclusion he was nothing more than a child, and his persistence was harmless. So, she'd let her guard down just a small, tiny fraction of the way- but now?
How the hell does he know where I am? And why?
Is that feathery-fucking-twat spying on me?
She hissed, her grip around her phone tightening as anger surged underneath the suspicion growing heavier in her core. She particularly disliked people sticking their noses in her business even on just a small (and maybe even harmless) scale, but people sticking their nose far enough into her business to know where she was when she hadn't told anyone where she was going? And further that that, someone she'd relented to telling them how her Quirk worked in more depth than nearly anyone else in the world knew? Few people were privy to the information that her Quirk altered her body on a DNA level, and she'd only told him that because she'd at that point assumed his wondering, and his knowing was harmless.
Because he was just a curious man-child, right?
Tch... Maybe that was all just an act. Maybe he's got an ulterior motive for this whole 'get to know Spirit' thing he's been doing... Damn it.
She had enough of people spying on her with Dante out there somewhere knowing everything about her, and she damn well didn't need Hawks spying too... And especially not after earlier, and what those two had asked her to do- fuck no!
She was in no mood for someone else to be prying and picking apart her life and trying to use her, or whatever the hell else. And she would not be tolerating it from him, not a chance. "... Fucking... I swear if he's been playing me..." Spirit muttered hotly under her breath, locking the phone and stuffing it inside her suit. Her hands dropped down and pressed against the bark of the branch she was crouched on, still scowling as her body got swallowed up in a fractured red-black haze of non-reality and she Shifted.
Her claws dug into the wood and her tail lashed once, the movement sending an array of glittering black pieces of ghostly glass energy to fall slowly toward the ground at the behest of gravity. Her fur and the edge of her figure wavered and blurred a few moments longer before her body seemed to sharpen and she sat silent on the branch for a few seconds, a cat now- and looking as ordinary as could be if someone were to stroll under the tree and glance up.
Well, ordinary if not for the way her ears were pressed flat against her skull and the piercing glare of her blood-red eyes fixed on the ground below. In cat standards, she looked much less than pleased, and her tail-tip twitched irritably in near constant rhythm.
... I do not have time to deal with someone poking their nose where they don't belong... Especially not someone like him...
Her eyes moved as she caught caught sight of something red fluttering nearby, and she needn't guess what it was. There was nothing else in this park that could be that stark vermilion hue.
She pushed herself up and jumped lightly down from the tree, her paws hitting the grass underneath as she watched the feather halt in it's movement. It took notice of her and she sat down at the base of the tree, her tail curling around her paws and motionless as the feather zoomed over toward her and circled her form. She paid it absolutely no mind and her ears shoved forward as she waited and listened for that familiar sound of wings on the air. The feather took a stationary place at her side, almost mimicking her posture as another minute passed by and the shadow cast by the tree grew darker as the shadow of Hawks and his wingspan fell over her.
"Hello Kitten~! Good to see you, ya ready for Patrol~?" Came the sing-song voice and Spirit bristled immediately. He landed lightly in front of her with a wave of his hand, smiling and carefree as he glanced down through his visor toward her. "It's gonna be fun-!"
"What did I tell you about calling me 'Kitten'?!" Spirit snapped, cutting him off abruptly and jumping to her paws as her back arched as she bared her teeth at him. He paused, before smiling coolly as he chuckled at her.
"Oh right~! You said you'd murder me~!" He laughed, "Sorry, totally slipped my mind~! Seeing you in cat form just made me say it without thinking~! Hehe, that's a bit of a bad habit of mine~!" He hummed, "Real shame though, I think it's a cute nickname~! Plus it totally fits, you're Shifted into a cat a lot, huh~? Like that's your go-to form, yeah~?"
Spirit bristled further at the question, her eyes narrowing to furious red slits and her ears pressing back against her head harder. Her lips pulled back in a snarl and her claws dug into the grass at the question- the prying question. The question that did not register as harmless in any way shape or form.
"Oh, and you were at UA a little earlier too, huh~? Any particular reason~?" He asked next, hardly skipping a beat as he rocked on his toes and bit with his hands in his pockets. There was an array of vermilion feathers slowly converging inward on their location and replacing themselves amongst the others in his wings. Where they were beforehand she hadn't a clue, and she honestly didn't give a damn- that distrust fanned anew was burning hotter, and getting heavier in her core- and it flared like an inferno at that.
How in the fuck does he know I went to UA?!
Her lips curled, fangs bared and a growl emanating in her throat as her fur stood up on end. Her tail lashed behind her as her posture grew angry and rigid, and his carefree smile faded slightly when he realized her anger had yet to settle out again. And in reality, it grew more fervent... and more so, there was suspicion and sheer distrust burning bright in those red eyes of hers.
"Uh...?" He breathed, his hands lifting out of his jacket pockets instinctively as he got glared down by the very much feline Animal Spirit.
"Hawks," She hissed his name lowly, and the sheer venom in it made him flinch a little. "How in the hell did you know I was at UA? Or in this park?" She asked, her voice a flinty growl that sent shivers up his spine and he swallowed.
A mixture of nervousness and embarrassment dawned on his face and his eyes quickly averted from her. His hand moved up and grabbed hold of one of the sides of the high collar of his jacket and he quickly pulled the fur-lined fabric over and across his face to cover his mouth- as if it was meant to stifle his words altogether.
For the briefest of moments Spirit's anger and suspicion died off in surprise to the reaction, and the rather odd movement and action. The sudden wash of embarrassment that spread over his features had her faltering further, and the gesture with the jacket and his mouth was so new she just stared, her red eyes flashing as he seemed to keep from looking at her and instead stared at the ground while his feet shifted across the grass.
She faltered for no more than a second more and her ire returned, her fur fluffing up further and tail lashing angrily behind her as she dug her claws into the springy grass underpaw.
"Are you spying on me?" Spirit hissed lowly, he flinched at how low her voice got and he peered at her tentatively around the collar he had covering his mouth, his eyes glittering. The failure to answer the question made her lips curl further, a low growl rumbling in her throat. Because he didn't move to deny it, and her anger flared, distrust and ever-buried malice rising in a wave like lava through her veins and her core. "Answer me, Hawks!" Spirit ordered sharply, and he jumped again at the loudness of her voice. He looked unsure of why there was so much anger in her suddenly, because even if she was a miffed with him, this was like... This was rage, and with it so much ire and suspicion that was so, so potent. She looked-
Her body got swept up in a black-red haze of rapid, spinning, volatile non-reality and suddenly that cat that has been staring him down was now the woman. Stiff-shouldered and straight backed, her red eyes blazing as her expression twisted. The look she set on him was nothing less than burning, simmering fire that was so hot it was icy cold, and he gulped, his feathers fluffing up in unconscious reaction.
-she looked terrifying.
She took a single step toward him, and it took a lot to keep from backing away from her when she did.
"Hear me when I say this, Hawks." Spirit growled, her fists clenched at her sides and her nails digging into her palms. "I don't take kindly to people sticking their noses in my business on a regular basis, but I can be patient when I need to be. But if you're sticking your nose in places you ought not to, and you're keeping tabs on me, or following me or whatever the hell else- stop. Right. Now." His eyes flashed, his grip on the collar of his jacket getting a little tighter as he stared, and Spirit glared at him for five seconds more that seemed to last an eternity... Before she let out a huff, and started to stalk away, clearly still fuming with that icy rage of hers.
B-but... But where the hell did all this anger come from...?!
"Now kindly fuck off. I'm done with you." Spirit muttered lowly, her voice filled with venom and he felt his heart sink into the pits of his stomach. "I'm not patrolling with you, and you'll be damn sure I'm not spending another second with you from here on out."
"S-Spirit, wait...!" He stammered quickly, his grip on his coat collar lost as he quickly made to move after her. "L-look, it wasn't like that, I swear...!"
"Don't. I don't care what it was like, any semblance of following me or keeping an eye on me that allows you to know where I was without me telling you- is still spying." Spirit muttered hotly, her back to him as she headed away at a brisk pace and didn't dare glance back.
"Spirit please! I wasn't spying on you, I swear!" Hawks argued still, Spirit heard his feet across the grass and she stiffened when she heard his wings flap downward. There was a split second of his shadow falling over her before she was forced to a halt when he landed in front of her, his hands up in what was supposed to be a calming gesture and eyes glittering. "Look, I understand that you like your privacy and I'm sorry if I invaded it, that wasn't my intention! I wasn't trying to piss you off and I wasn't trying to be nosy or weird or stalker-ish or anything...!"
"I don't want to hear it." Spirit shot back lowly, already shouldering her way passed him. "Back off, Hawks. I'm not going to say it again."
"Please just hear me out..!" He persisted, and his hand came down lightly around her wrist and Spirit felt a rush of sheer anger run through her at the contact.
Her muscles locked and her jaw snapped shut hard enough to crack teeth, her wrist twisted in his hand and she wrapped her fingers around his arm with a grip like iron. Her nails dug into his arm and his jacket as her other hand swept up to grab the top half of that same arm, she pivoted on her heel and turned, her body weight jolting forward as she jerked Hawks and his arm forward from behind her in one swift, deadly fast movement. She pulled him through air over her shoulder and he slammed in a pile of limbs and sheer red feathers into the ground, the breath driven from him and stunned as she shifted in the next second to stand over him. Her knee fell on his chest and her other foot pinned his right arm as she kept firm hold of the one she had grabbed to begin with. He coughed a few times as he fought to catch his breath and his shocked and slightly pained face only a few inches from hers as she suddenly leaned in.
He was completely pinned and on the ground in the matter of a few seconds, and she was so harsh- this... This was a Spirit he had seen when she went against Stain, and one he never imagined he would see with him- against him..!
His head was reeling as much as his lungs were from being slammed into the ground, and his arm ached from the steeliness of her grip and the slightly odd twist she held it in. He was surprised at how fast she was, and how strong. She just threw him over her shoulder like it was nothing...! Spirit is a thin lady!
"Today is not the day to test me, Hawks." Spirit growled lowly, her red eyes flashing and almost... glowing(?!) as she glared down at him and he couldn't move, not that he tried. The position was uncomfortable, with him and her both on top of his wings and there was a sharp ache of pain that was centered around the right side of his back, like he landed on something. But he was still lost, he didn't understand where all of this came from, at all. Because being miffed was understandable, but this level of anger? It gave him the distinct impression that there was something else behind her rage that he hadn't a clue about. And maybe about something that had happened earlier today, since she said 'today is not the day'?
... Maybe, but he also got the impression this was about something darker... deeper.
Dark and mysterious and secrets, right?
He swallowed back the lump in his throat and did his best to relax under her hold, he wasn't going to fight back, not even after she assaulted him. He'd really hate to piss her off more than she already was, so he relented to surrendering, and he didn't make the slightest move, he just held her blazing red eyes and he paused in order to allow a few seconds for them both to just breathe.
"... I wasn't spying on you, Spirit." He murmured softly, she looked unconvinced with the words and more agitated that he was still trying to explain himself. "I wouldn't do that to you, and certainly never with the intention of... of hurting you, or blackmailing you or anything, if that's what you're so pissed about...?" He added, his voice dropping a little more and this time her eyes narrowed to slits. That last bit was a guess on his part, since he hadn't any real clue what set her off about all of this- and with the way her eyes narrowed, he figured it was a good guess... and a guess that made him wonder more, but he wouldn't ask right then... or maybe ever.
"... look, it's maybe a bit of a bad habit, but I have feathers spread out around over several of the different wards and sections of the city." He murmured, still holding her eyes steadily. "I keep tabs on a bunch of different places all at once, watching out for trouble and Villains and all sorts of other stuff. I pick up on things, people talking and rumors and sometimes I notice people I know- but I'm just watching a general area, I'm not focused on anyone specific, and I'm not really spying either."
Granted it sounded a lot like spying, and maybe in a way it was... but it wasn't so he could use the information he gathered as leverage or anything. It was just habit and it made getting to places and stopping Villains and handling rescue all the faster, because he was aware of what was going on before anyone tried to call him on his phone.
But at any rate, it was not how he figured she thought it was- as in stalking someone, sending a feather to stick to that person and follow them wherever they go in secret and see (in the metaphorical sense) everything they are doing and everything they say. And he did do that, sometimes, but always on a Villain or an assignment or something... never on another Pro and certainly not on her.
Spirit didn't say anything, and she certainly didn't interject again in order to tell him to shut up, so he took that as sign she was at least humoring him for now.
"It helps me pick up on trouble super fast, so I can head over straight away and lend a hand without waiting on the police to call and ask for my assistance. And sometimes I can even stop something from really getting going too, and make it so no one gets hurt and there's not a lot of damage done." He mumbled, "But it's all just chatter, okay? It's the same sort of info I'd get if I was just walking down a street and just keeping an eye out as I pass people and places by." He let out a small breath, searching her face and her expression for some change or hint that her anger was dying away and that maybe she was believing him and what he said. But her expression didn't change, it stayed angry and rigid and he sighed internally. "... I overheard some kid on the street tell his friends that he'd seen you at UA today." Hawks mumbled, "He was that green-haired kid that made a mess of himself at the Sports Festival. And one of my feathers was runnin' up and down the street he was on, I usually have one in that area after the whole Sludge-Villain thing with All Might, so it was a 'right place, right time' sort of thing."
This time Spirit blinked, and he swore he saw her anger wane by a small fraction as it got replaced with recognition.
... The kid that gave himself whiplash when he saw me...?
"... At a guess, he was walking back home from school." Hawks went on, slowly, carefully almost. "And the park thing was the same sort of deal. One of my feathers picked up on these two ladies chatting as they were leaving this park, and I heard them mention seein' a black cat walking around here." Spirit's eyes narrowed further again and he paused, "... I sort of just assumed it was you, since Heiku is your home-base and all... and you didn't correct me when I asked in the message, so..."
There was deadly silence as his words trailed away into nothing, and neither of them moved. Spirit kept him pinned where he was and those heat-filled red eyes of hers stayed glued to him, her expression still twisted and suspicious.
Her heart and her head and her emotions and her better senses- everything said not to believe him. Do not take him at his word, do not trust him, he is lying. Despite what he says, or anything else- he is spying, and on everyone. 'Chatter' or 'keeping an eye out' or whatever the hell else, it's bullshit. He is watching people and he is eavesdropping, and he is keeping tabs on so many people and he doesn't see the issue with that. And that's only if what he said was the truth, and how the hell was she supposed to trust that it was?
She didn't
She didn't trust people, or anyone- and she sure as hell didn't trust him.
And it infuriated her like nothing else, because that was what he wanted her to do with saying all of that, and trying to explain himself. He wanted her to trust him and what he told her, she could see it in his face and his eyes.
But he had no right to ask that of her, or expect it, or even look for it, damn it!
For the second time that day, she failed to remind herself to stay calm, and actually listen to it. Only this time she lost enough control she turned violent, and she couldn't give a damn right then.
Does he expect me to just believe all of that? And like it?
Does he even realize that he all but admitted to spying on hundreds of people all over the city and the other wards? And he doesn't see how invasive that is?
This feathery fucking-
"... I'm sorry if I stepped over a line, Spirit." Hawks apologized quietly, breaking the silence again. "... I didn't realize you'd be so wound up about this, I didn't mean to set you off... I'm sorry. The last thing I want to do is give you a reason to hate me, or stay away... I just say and do things without thinking, and I didn't think how you'd feel, or how any of it would be an invasion of your privacy." His expression softened slightly, and he was still searching her and her expression, and she hated it. "... I won't do it again, and I'm sorry I did it at all."
Damn it, she didn't want him to sound so fucking genuine!
Part of her wanted to stay pissed, and a part of her wanted to hold on to her anger and her distrust and keep it in her heart and her soul because she knew better. Part of her didn't want to trust anyone, let alone him, and a part of her just wanted to believe that's what this was- a good reason to stay away from him and a reason not to let herself relax around him. She didn't trust people, she learned not to several times over. And what few she did trust, she never trusted them all the way, or even enough. She wasn't looking to add anyone else to the list of 'sort of trusting', and she wasn't looking to find a reason to do so.
She didn't play nice with others because she didn't trust them to be anything other than just another person to screw her over. She didn't join a Hero Agency or get along with other Pros, or have a life or anything of the sort with anyone- because she couldn't trust people. Life taught her that way too many times and she never bothered to shake that habit off, if even that were possible.
She didn't want to believe in him and his story and his fucking sincerity because she didn't want any reason to give him another chance. She'd given him plenty of a chance already and it had gone farther than it ever had with anyone outside of Death Arms- he had his chance Spirit, and now he's ruined it! He spies on people and he acts like it's normal! And fuck it if it's for being a better Pro or arriving quickly to a crisis, it's still spying!
And he just admitted he does it and shit like it without thinking! He's gonna decide to spy on you some day on a fucking whim, and that cannot happen!
I'm not dealing with this flying fucking idiot spying on me at all, or in any way! 'I won't do it again'?! The hell he won't, he can't help himself! He's a fool and a child and he doesn't know when to quit!
Better to drop him now and stay away- because you can be damn sure he'll stick his nose in something you can't risk him knowing about some day!
You tried Spirit, you tried to be nice and you tried to give him a chance- and now this can end, right here! That is the best plan, this way nothing happens and nothing ever will! Everything will be easier and better that way, end it now and just let it be!
This is the better plan. This is rational, this way will be better for both of us. You know that.
Spirit's jaw clenched, her eyes glittering as she continued to glare at him and the silence fell heavier this time around. And he just held her gaze, and he stayed there where she had him pinned, submissive and patient and calm... And unwavering.
... So.. Why...?!
She swallowed, her teeth gritting harder and her anger burning brighter- but not at him.
She knew it would be better to end whatever 'relationship' she had with him right here and there... it was better and it was safer that way. She knew it was better to tell him to stay away and make him believe it. She knew she could force him to do it if she was serious enough. Do it now before anything goes further and we both end up better off- that was the rational answer to this, and she knew it. So why-
... why in the hell am I hesitating...?!
Shit..... shit!
.:+:.
Hello everyone, I hope you enjoyed the chapter! (Even if it's a bit on the boring side)
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