Levia - Disposer

Brandish didn’t expand, it was still raw. Everything about the war was still raw - the good and the bad. 

Such enthusiasm, Brandish wasn’t sure exactly how it made her feel. Even though she had been rather cold to the other woman, yet she was still delighted for her to join her. “Tea and cakes…sounds good.” She answered, still overwhelmed, but inside, it felt rather nice.

Brandish didn’t seem ONE HUNDRED PERCENT sure on the whole cake thing- in fact no, she seemed surprised? No . . . Off-put by something? Well, that wasn’t too usual for Levia. Most humans ended up like that around here.

But that was o.k! She would rectify that with the delicious treats. It’d be nice to actually treat someone for once. Levia reached out for her hand grabbing it as softly as she could, she didn’t want to forcefully pull her along but she did want to go as soon as possible. “Excellent! You’ll love them I’m sure!”

“She wasn’t playing.” Maybe Brandish has deserved it, for turning her back on the emperor but she couldn’t follow orders when it meant the death of so many people. 

 “…Okay.” She wasn’t really sure what to make of the other woman, she generally found such cheery people annoying but she was hungry and really couldn’t see the harm in joining her for a bite to eat. 

“What did you have in mind?” Maybe she would grow on her, maybe not. Brandish wouldn’t lose anything by going, perhaps she could even get some answers. 

“Oh, well. . . If you say so.” Levia didn’t know her friend or the situation she was in, it sounded like playing to her. But if Brandish said it wasn’t, then it probably wasn’t.

The rush of air from Levia’s dash wakes Noire out of her fearful daze.  She quickly pulls her hand out of the manhole, finally, and stands up facing the threat.  Thankfully said werewolf-ish monster, after seeing both girls are not helpless after-all, limps down the alley and away from them.

As the monster disappears around a far off corner, Noire exhales a breath she had been holding.  ‘Goddess.  Why did I have to try and show off with this shitty shortcut.’  Head turned away, she starts to apologize.  “I um.  I don’t mean to be a burden.”  A soft sniffle is heard, but Noire pretends to be fine.  “S-sorry for making you fight that thing on my behalf…”  She continues to keep her face hidden from Levia as she begins walking back where the two came from.

“I uh.  Um.”  The black-haired goddess pretends to wipe her brow, but her hands hover around her eyes afterward.  “I don’t… know if you still wanna…  Uh, h-hang out?  B-but I guess if you do we’d better… just call a cab.”  Defeat rings from every syllable spoken.  Her shoulders sag as if the monster had, moments ago, killed her, and she was now a ghost limply hanging onto this world.

Noire gets out her phone and slowly searches for the cab number.  She knows the taxis aren’t cheap, but she was far too sad to walk all the way back to her own apartment.  After a screw up like that she figured it would only take a few blocks before she broke down into tears, and a meltdown like that would be extremely embarrassing.  Best to save the tears for a more private taxi ride.

Levia loosened up as the creature began to retreat, part of her mind didn’t want to let it go away, in fact she was almost going to chase it. That was her job after all, but then Noire spoke snapping her back to reality.

“A-A burden!?” Levia, put away her scythe and watched as the girl started to walk back to the street. “Y-you’re not a burden you’ve been nothing but kind to me!” She seemed pretty upset by the event- oh no? did Levia do it again? Did she scare her? She was pretty sure she didn’t hurt her. . .

She hadn’t really been in this situation before, running over to her as she pulled out her phone. Levia reaches out and holds her phone-hand in both of hers. “Why wouldn’t I want too!?” She looked determined, she had finally found a nice human! She didn’t want to say good-bye like this. “I don’t know what a cab is or if its upsetting you! I don’t care if we take a shortcut or run into ten more of those things. But I definitely still want to spend more time with you Noire!”

He stretched his arm towards his back, snapping the thing back in place in the process. It was much easier to do it with something like a wall or stick but he was on a train and didn’t want to risk falling out the door if it opened again. Sure, he’s a risk taker, but he’s not willing to get cut in half by a train door.

“Oh, don’t worry about that, gorgeous.” He always used compliments for his partners in crime, or in this case, adventure. “I’ve done it all my life!” Every single goddamn day of it, too. Well, when he was a simple core, he didn’t have to sit at a wall. The management rails provided charging anyways, so he could go out and adventure wherever without losing power. Now with this human-like body, he could barely get in some crazy real adventure going.

He took his hat off and put it on her head, patting her a bit. “We’re partners in adventure now and I trust you with my life.” He laughed a bit, giving her a few more pats on the head. Did he want his hat back? Yes, absolutely. Would he rather build a strong connection with his new adventuring buddy? ABSOLUTELY!

“So, where’s our stop?” He just couldn’t wait!

‘Gorgeous?’ She didn’t mind the compliment, rather she wasn’t sure what to think of it- she had never really been complimented before. “Everyday? That seems like a hassle. . . Although I guess it’s just sleeping isn’t it?”

Her eyes widened in surprise as the hat was placed on her head. “Uh. . . Uh. . .” She wasn’t sure what to do about that. No one had ever so casually interacted with her. “T-thank you??” She wasn’t sure if that’s what she was supposed to say but it seemed more or less right. She raised a hand to cautiously touch the hat, it was pretty basic but there was something nice about it.

Brandish looked at her, catching the last part. Maybe she did have a point. Maybe this was an opportunity to change a little. Still, it scared her. 

“The only person who called me her friend tried to kill me because I refused to kill someone…because I realised that our war was nothing but genocide…” It had been more complicated than that, yet she could still feel where Dimaria’s blades had cut her, the feeling of her life seeping away.

Brandish looked from the ground to Levia’s hand. She hadn’t been the first one to try and make friends with the mage, a man she had met when she first came to the city also wanted to be her friend. Brandish couldn’t understand why. She tried to push him and Lucy away, yet they just tried harder. 

She heaved a sigh. “Brandish.” 

“Oh?” This seemed to bother Brandish, the killing thing. She supposed it was a little weird for a friend to try and kill another one. “Are you sure they just weren’t playing? My parents played with me like that all the time when I was young.” She couldn’t know any better, even if she wanted too. She was raised for genocide, and her mind wasn’t quite ready to process how that might not be o.k.

Still! she was making improvements, it seemed like she was even warming up a little! Levia took her hand back holding her hands behind her back, she didn’t mind at all some people just didn’t like touching.

He took a moment to think but shook his head. He was more fine with passing out in front of her than missing the train.

“I don’t think we got time for that.” He headed towards the train, taking big steps and maybe doing a bit of a jog. Once they had gotten in, he checked how much he had left. Sixty percent huh? Good enough. He could probably find something and get out of there as soon as possible. Who knows what kinds of cool adventure stuff was awaiting them?

“If I pass out, though…” He didn’t like giving such personal information away but, really, he didn’t mind. In this city, he had a roommate. The apartment was shared and so what’s the point of keeping it secret if someone else he didn’t know was living with him? “Bring my passed out body over to R-5. Put me on the couch then-”

He tapped his back three times, a panel coming loose. There was a big tear on his lab coat, much like someone took scissors and tried their best to make a hole, giving up halfway. It was definitely the case. Rick didn’t want to take his coat off when charging. It made him look less cool!

“You just do that. There’s a little charger thingamajig in there. You take it out, sure not to take the plug out of me, then just plug it into a socket and you’re all set! Leave me on the couch or floor or whatever of the living room.”

Levia let out a small gasp as his body opened? She was pretty sure that’s what it did- she was also pretty sure that wasn’t normal. But she had never really examined a human’s back herself before.

“Pass out?” That was a little worrying. She understood the instructions just fine. She was pretty sure she knew where R-5 was. Well, she knew the sector was at least. That was probably good enough.

She examined his back carefully, it looked a little dangerous. She took a deep breath. He was going out of his way to help her on this little adventure after all- the least she could do for him was this.

“You got it Mr. Rick Adventure.” Oh, she didn’t know his last name- well that was probably fine. “I’ll just. . . Leave you there. . .?”

Her head tilted to the side as she said this allowed, losing herself in thought for a second. Was that really fine? Just leaving a guy plugged into a wall?

He didn’t seem quite impressed when the girl flexed, his inner self attempting to hold back the idea of rolling his eyes. Jotaro was trying to be kinder…and it was…kind of working? He himself didn’t quite know if it was working or not. 

Maybe being an absolute asshole was just his destiny.

“Do I look like some kind of punching bag to you?” He snapped back, but not before removing his cigarette from his mouth, taking another puff before dropping it and crushing it under his heel. It was then he felt a hand on his shoulder, it squeezing the area with tension. The ravenette looked down, only to find that his stand had chosen to silently call him out, a warning. As quick as he looked, it had faded. 

She looked far too small to be worth yelling at…and the delinquent was sure he wouldn’t quite hear the end of it from his own guilt if he made her cry or upset in any way.

Okay, he was an asshole, but he wasn’t a monster.

Before he let the other make a proper response, he spoke up again. Jotaro loosened up slowly, but made sure not to let his guard down. No one could be trusted here, and that he knew extremely well. You couldn’t trust anybody. “Fine.” He murmured, tipping his hat with a small grumble.

“I’ll help you, but you need to make it quick. If I look like I can take a beating, I’d personally like to see you try to do some damage.” Not only did he have things to do, but at the same time…he only was allowed to have his stand out for five minutes. If something happened, where the situation got too out of hand, he’d be playing it riskily. Sure, the ravenette could absolutely taken a beating, he’d fought many men before, but it didn’t change that he was still a high school kid, and that the muscle he had didn’t prevent him from breaking a couple bones.

He needs to be careful here.

Punching bag? She wasn’t really sure what that was, but it sounded nice. Although, going with the name she also assumed a human would not normally want to be one.

She was about to reply that she wasn’t sure if he looked like a punching bag or not- but then he answered her question. Her face lit up immediately, what a nice guy. She didn’t want to kill him, but she also needed to learn how much was an acceptable amount of force to use on humans.

“Wonderful! Thank you!” She nods as he continues to talk. “Don’t worry it’ll be fast, maybe like three punches at most!” She could control her own power extremely well after all. It was just finding the right percent.

“O.K.”

She immediately took a fighting stance, one arm out in front, one lowered down by her waist. They said her overall strength was reduced to a third of its original but she didn’t want to accidentally injure him. So maybe a little under half power. She drew her lowered hand back farther, her face changing, losing the happy smile becoming  much more neutral.

“It’s simply nature.” Being such a powerful mage, it was natural that Brandish would eventually end up on the top. Coupled with the death of her mother and the isolation she suffered when Aquarius was returned to Layla Heartfilia. 

“I don’t need friends…” She stated, averting her eyes. Dimaria was perhaps the closest thing she had to a friend and even that wasn’t a really a friendship in the normal sense of the word, rather an affectionate toleration was more appropriate. There was no one she missed, no one she wanted to see. It was simply the matter of her powers that gave her the desire to return home. 

“Nature, huh. . .” Levia had a nature too, she avoided it at all costs. If it hadn’t been for the scientists she might not be too different from this person. Maybe that’s why she felt a need to talk to her. “You could fight against it.” She adds on, its quiet barely a whisper.

“You don’t need friends?” Something like that shouldn’t shock Levia at this point, but it does. “I. . . I don’t know if everyone needs friends. I do know they help though. Sometimes it’s hard but, they help.” Harpy, Nata, Tina, Violet. They all flashed through her head- and of course how it was before she knew them.

“That’s another thing.”

Raven hummed and played the twinkle twinkle little star on the cords, her lips twitching in a soft smile. Once the short piece was done she looked up.

“You can do one of two things. Get creative and mix your own sound, or follow music that’s already been written. That’s a piece called Twinkle twinkle little star. It’s regarded as the easiest one to learn. Want to give it a shot?”

The music didn’t sound familiar to Levia at all, but it was still nice. She was happy at least this person was being patient with her. A lot of other people were not so kind back home.

She nods vigorously as she watches her play. “Absolutely!” If it was the easiest one surely she’d have no problem learning it. “I will master this one song! At least!” She always tried to be enthusiastic if nothing else.

“Nothing at all! All I need are my bare hands and this here hat.” Was it a green or an orange jumpsuit? Hard to tell with that old model, now. A lot more things were broken when he was that. Come to think of it, being human-like wasn’t the best upgrade. It was quite the downgrade, really. All of these tastes, emotions, sights, and smells-he just couldn’t keep up!

“You’re human, right?” Humans needed things to survive, especially clothing. Clothing was an absolute must; Rick couldn’t count the times when he’d wish he had extra clothing to cover up something, or someone, shamelessly showing off what they’ve got. “We should get you some things to eat. Oh, and a power bank or something for me to charge with.” Who knows how long his battery was gonna last out there? A full battery could last him a day or two, with minimal movement, but now he needed all the movement he could get. 

“They sell those in this city, right?” He couldn’t tell. He wasn’t here for long and, judging from what he’s seen, they have a higher chance at getting a live tentacle than a power bank. 

“Impressive! It seems like real adventurers are always ready.” He seemed to kinda go back-and-forth a lot but, as far as she knew most humans were more or less like that anyways. Humans, right.

She laughs a little nervously at the question. Levia is aware that there are plenty of people who are not entirely human in this city. Some of them are proud of it, some of them are indifferent. She, still doesn’t know though, its too much of a shock going from hated to no one caring.

“I’m n-not actually human. . .” She isn’t exactly sure what to add onto that. “I’d rather not talk about that though, if that’s o.k.” Her face brightens up at the mention of food- she did love eating. Even if she was horrible at cooking, and didn’t really know much about food in general but. . . “A power bank? You mean like. . . Batteries? Yeah they have batteries. . . Somewhere.”

“Sound waves! When you pluck a cord, it vibrates and makes the sound.”

Raven reached down and plucked one of the cords, bringing focus to how when the cord moved, sound burst forth! she placed a finger on it, stilling the cord and cutting of the noise.

“It’s how beings have made music forever after. Vibrations are key to hearing and feeling.”

Raven took the others hand and placed it on the guitar. plucking a few strings and allowing the white haired woman to feel the vibrations produced.

“That’s how you feel them. It’s pretty cool, huh?”

“I see, yes, that does make some sense!” There was actually something comforting about the gentle hum that generated from the instrument. Now the real question was, how people strung them together in a more pleasing way. ‘songs’.

Brandish’s confidence certainly bordered on arrogance, yet she had never lost, unless she had meant to. Even with low powers, she had ever belief that she could handle anyone who crossed her in one way or another. 

“Sometimes it’s the only way to survive.” Not to mention the luxuries it had afforded her back home being one of the twelve most powerful mages in the country. 

“Not everyone is meant to be kind and care for absolute strangers.” 

“Don’t you hate the idea of living like that though?” Levia certainly did, she knew people who were always at the top. Always had to be the best or the highest rank. She had seen what would happen to them. “Always aiming to be the strongest, always wanting to be the best, do you have a reason for wanting that? Survival is one thing but. . .”