thief's respite

“Emer–” but she’s quick. She’s already moving to pay and to sit. damn. She must be avoiding her because of what happened a few days ago. Mariko does feel bad. There’s no denying it, but….She knows she did the right thing. She wants to know what Emerald’s been up to. She has SO many questions, but can’t seem to find an opening to go about it. 

She’s working on the cappunccino when the door opens and the little blue bird chime rings. When the officer approaches her, she knows immediately. He didn’t have to ask about Emerald. Mariko just had this feeling, and judging by Emerald’s reaction in the distance, her feeling was correct. 

She answers the officer with ‘no sir’ and that she’d keep a look out should she find anything off. It was short quick. Mariko had asked for the officer’s office number with a ‘i’ll call if I see anything’ and with that, it’s done. The officer leaves, Mariko sighs silently and turns to look at one of her employees. With a nod on both part, Mariko is making her way toward Emerald. 

“Hey,” She greets, Cappuccino in hand, “here’s your cappuccino. You mind if I sit here for awhile?”

“Yeah, but that won’t stop you, will it.” Emerald reluctantly reaches out and takes the order. Though a petty part of her wants to knock it over and brush the woman aside, she’s supposed to be playing the part of a customer. The police would certainly be back if she were to make a scene. She grips it, tense, and doesn’t drink. 

“It’s me.” And Mariko can’t help but smile at the other. She wonders if Emerald remembers the brief meeting back in the hospital. That day, they had gone out to get something to eat. Mariko had treated her wound before that. She wonders if she still remembers that. Or…does Emerald only remember the meeting during that strange event. 

“How have you been Emerald?” Of course she’s worried. Has Emerald been keeping out of trouble? She wants to ask all the questions, but….There’s a line behind Emerald. “What can I get for you?” She decides to ask quickly. 

Emerald wants to slip away. She even glances towards the door, past the cafe windows, to where the streets were being searched by authorities. No, it would only make it more suspicious if she were to run now. 

“...I’ll have a cappuccino, thanks,” she says dryly, feigning the minimum politeness. She wonders if the woman will say anything when she scans her phone for payment with money that was questionably obtained. Before the woman can ask her anything else, Emerald leaves to sit at one of the cafe tables to wait her order.

As luck would have it, the purse Emerald lifted today had something inside with a tracking mechanism, and not a few hours later, the authorities were on her tail. As she gave them the slip, she dug through the purse and started chucking anything that could be electronic into nearby trash bins, never mind the loss in profit. Then Emerald traversed another dozen blocks and ducked into a cafe, thinking she’ll lay low for a while. Inside, she acted like any other customer - standing in line, looking over the menu, and putting on a friendly smile to order.

    ♫ “Your real name, hm? Well I don’t know that for sure, but just a feeling.” Emerald had been so begrudging in tone in her response that Dorothea had drawn her own conclusion. But the songstress’ interest in the young woman was only from a place of good intention in the end, inspired by her own experience and reminded by some of the children she’d grown up with that hadn’t been as fortunate as herself.

   “You’re preaching to the choir. I was only able to escape the streets because I was giving a chance. More than one to boot, but I don’t believe whether or not someone has a right to succeed should rest on how beautiful or talented others claim them to be. Maybe it’s unrealistic, but I’d like to create a world that doesn’t breed the unfortunate like you and I.”

“That’s a nice thought and all, but you and I both know a world like that’ll never exist.” Emerald shrugged. She didn’t bother to hide her cynicism. This wasn’t Beacon where she had to smile and pretend around students who could never understand. Dorothea knew exactly where she was coming from. Though the other’s persistence was vexing, Emerald could appreciate that she didn’t need to keep up a mask around her but could wear her annoyance and weariness openly.

         with a single motion, sun steps closer and into the shade. the mention of apps and hilarious videos pique his interest, and the monkey faunus is looming over the other, attempting to get a better view at what was supposed to be his device. without getting a proper glance, she shoves his not-scroll scroll back into his hands which fumble on the receiving end. still, it doesn’t even occur to him to double check her words – to even take a glance at his scroll before heading off.

         ❛ twenty minutes?! ❜ his voice rises in panic, a tail fidgets, and his gaze flies, searching for the mentioned dock, or harbor. but from this height, he can’t find anything. so he turns back to the kind person; one more question couldn’t hurt. 

         ❛ aaaand one last thing. can you point me in the right direction? i’ve never heard of this golden ward thing. first time here and all. ❜

“Oh, it’s just that a way. See that tall red building over there? Past it are the docks.” Emerald pointed her finger in a random direction and picked a building that looked reasonably far away. She put on her fake smile. “Safe travels!” 

After the faunus disappeared to hunt down his non-existent vessel, Emerald let her practiced smile drop and groaned. She could feel a headache settling in. Usually this only happened if she overused her Semblance, or attempted it on one more than one person. Must be an off day or some weird effect of this place. She staggered away from the scene and found a small cafe selling drinks. Emerald bought herself a drink and sipped it, nursing her headache and taking out the scroll-like device she’d just snatched to see if she could crack the passcode for the hell of it.

“It’s difficult to explain, but you’ll see what I mean when everything comes back to normal.” When was that going to be, she wasn’t sure. She wasn’t even sure if people would remember the situation that’s happening now once everything became normal or if they’d forever be at the age and timeline they were in right this moment. Would she be stuck in this timeline? She’s not….entirely sure how she feels about that, but she doesn’t voice it. 

“I’m just someone trying to help you on the right path. I….I’m no one special to you, but…” Ah, she really did want to be Emerald’s friend. Still does. Wouldn’t that sound so cliche and weird for someone of her age to say that, though?

“I don’t expect you to trust me or believe anything I say….I don’t expect you to even listen, but your actions have consequences. It may not affect you sometime, but it could with someone else.” 

"You don’t even know me.” Emerald’s eyes narrowed, feeling unsettled by her words. When everything comes back to normal? She wanted to think the woman was talking nonsense, only Emerald did sense something was off. She’d woken up and found herself in a city she didn’t know, after all. 

❅ : it’s understandable that she doesn’t just up and join her. weiss knows the world doesn’t present itself in black and white absolutes, nor is she foolish enough any longer to believe that most anyone else would themselves operate under such ideals. still — she’d had the faintest sliver of hope that a little talk might have led to something greater. perhaps she’d been taking too many notes from ruby’s playbook.

she draws myrtenaster upward to deflect, but quickly finds the reflexive defensive gesture unnecessary, as the shots zip harmlessly past her. it’s not entirely certain whether emerald is missing on purpose, but certainly something in her seems to have been shaken. perhaps there’s more to talking this out than she thought. again, she lowers her rapier, slowly shaking her head from side to side.

‘but i’m trying to understand. why do you fight for her?’ a sigh heaves itself up from within her chest, colored by both exhaustion and frustration. she expects the worst, but it wouldn’t be right to at least give this a momentary effort, even if it’s for the slimmest of opportunities. ‘salem is trying to destroy everything… everyone. maybe there’s something in it for you now, but what happens when everything is… over. what happens then?’

‘my weapon is right here. you’re just going to have to make the first move.’ she’s steeled herself for a fight one way or another, the grip on myrtenaster whitening her knuckles beneath the gloves. now, it’s just a matter of determining who the real enemy is here.

“I – ” Emerald’s gaze flickered to the Seer Grimm. It pulsated, waiting for her answer just as much as Weiss. She must have hesitated for a moment too long because Salem’s voice cut in, calm yet chiding in a way sent chills down Emerald’s spine.

“Well? Tell her why you fight, child.”

Her heart pounded in her chest. Emerald couldn’t say it with Salem’s eyes and ears on her. She couldn’t say that she never cared for Salem’s goals. That it was Cinder who she fought for and who she owed her loyalty to. That she was horrified by Salem’s destruction, and the longer she remained with Salem the deeper her doubts grew. She felt her hands grow clammy with sweat as she gripped her weapons, still raised at Weiss.

“Salem has promised us everything! We win this thing for her, we’ll never have to fight for scraps again in her new world.” They were Mercury’s words, borrowed in panic. Emerald didn’t know what Salem’s new world looked like, but she imagined there would be more Beacon academies, more senseless loss of life. 

    ♫ “Oh? It sounds like you just issued a challenge? Do you really think you can get my wallet off me that easily?” Following after, Doro smirked herself. “I’ll tell you what. If you can do that by the time we pay for our food, I’ll leave you alone for the rest of my stay. If, however, you do it without using powers. I don’t know what you can do, but your mischievous eyes tell a tale of ability.”

   She was confident because she knew all the tricks herself. But that was why powers were off the table.

   “But how about we start with names then? My name is Dorothea Arnault. And you? An alias is fine, but don’t try to give me a fake name.”

“I’m...Emerald. Let’s go with that.” She’d leave it vague and have the other guess whether she was being honest. Dorothea seemed perceptive. Without powers, Emerald knew it would be difficult to lift her wallet. The singer’s persistence was unusual, though. Usually when someone learned of her past, they would react with distrust, not try and get closer to her. 

“And if I fail, you’ll hang around to give me more chances? Thieves aren’t usually this lucky. To have someone take such an interest in me... I’m charmed,” Emerald bantered, an attempt at lowering Dorothea’s guard as she falls into step beside her.

She messed up. She knew this was….something about going on with Spirale. When you’re here for as long as you’ve been, nothing really surprises you. The initial surprise does happen when something just starts, but eventually you come to terms with it. During these situations there’s not much you can do other than ride it out, help whoever the best you can. In this situation, Emerald does not know Mariko. This is her younger self, just as this body of her own is her as an older self. It’s still weird, but….

Anyway, she messed up. Maybe she shouldn’t have said her name because now either she’ll have to be honest and get a list of reactions OR she can lie and just say she’s psychic. Has she ever really lied before? Just the thought of it makes her feel uncomfortable, but maybe it’ll be the best course of action? If and when everything turns back normal Emerald will come to know. Would she be fine of the fact that she was lied to? No matter how small? Mariko doesn’t want to give Emerald any reason to not trust.

“I’ve been in Spirale for a good while now,” She begins, “As you can see, Spirale has all kinds of different people and I’ve already met you in the past.” She didn’t know Emerald had such a….past. Had she always been hungry? It just goes to show you really can’t judge people. It wasn’t that Mariko had always assumed Emerald was fine. She had a feeling there was a story, but damn. 

Another eye opener, isn’t it? Mariko never had to worry about going to bed on an empty stomach, she never had to worry about when her next meal was going to be or where she was going to be able to sleep in next.

“I’m not going to report you…I just want you to return that ring.” There’s a pause, “I’ll come with you if it’ll make you feel better. I’ll help you.”

“You’ve met me in Spirale? That’s funny, because I’ve never set foot here before today.” Emerald scoffed. She was sure this was their first encounter. Back in her world, she’d been alone. Sure, there were people she would hang out with. Mostly other street thieves and homeless kids, people who she would call accomplices but not friends. They stuck together to survive, used each other to their advantage, and quickly shed one another when the authorities came along to arrest them.

Emerald ignored her request, her fist clenched tight around the ring. She’d certainly remember meeting a meddlesome woman trying to coax her into returning her stolen goods.

         her voice – though foreign to sun – spoke those words as if she too is from remnant, not that he’s completely convinced that he’s not still there currently. so of course, that confidence and hint of familiarity immediately cause a wave of relief to wash over him. the corners of his lips upturn into a hopeful smile, and not thinking too much into her request ( then again, when did he think? ), he graciously hands over his not-scroll scroll. sun always gave others the benefit of the doubt, always expecting the best out of people – regardless of how long or short he’s known someone. this is no different. 

         unfortunately for him.

         ❛ oh sure! thanks for the help. call me an old soul ‘cause i’m still not too good with this whole tech thing. yeah i can make calls and texts, but i’m more of a face to face kinda guy if you catch my drift. ❜

Emerald held back a smirk as he handed over his device. As if to see the screen better in the sun, she casually backed a few feet into the shade of a lamp post. In reality it was only so she could duck out of his line of sight for a moment. In that time, she deftly slipped his scroll into her pocket and replaced it with a wallet she’d emptied from an earlier heist. Then it was simply a matter of using her Semblance to make him see the wallet as his scroll. 

By the time he finished chatting, she was beckoning him over to take a look at his scroll and the app she claimed to exist.

“Oh yeah? Well there’s a lot of neat apps on this thing, my friends send me hilarious videos all the time. I’d show you but...gosh, looks like the last ship to Vale leaves in twenty minutes! If you hurry to the Golden Ward docks, you might just make it.” Emerald shoved the disguised scroll back into his hands, urgency in her voice. Once he took off, she planned to make her getaway before he realized what he was actually holding. Her brow was already knitting from the pressure in the back of her head. Using her powers never tired her out this quickly before... 

Doesn’t look like she’s going to give it up that easy. “No, I wouldn’t….But I wondered if you could go to sleep at night knowing that there’s a chance that he wears his wedding ring in remembrance of his wife.” She can only hope that’s not the case. THAT his wife is still alive and well. Still, one doesn’t know the story of someone else. Her demeanor is still calm, soft even. “God forbids that’s ever the case….but we don’t know what a person is going through. These are things you should think about before acting.”

Of course Mariko’s goal isn’t to make the child feel bad, but to hope that she understands and thinks about what outcome can unfold. 

“I’ll ask again….Will you be giving that back to the man, Emerald?”

“Trust me, I don’t sleep well at night. It’s a bit hard to when running on an empty stomach,“ Emerald snarked back, ignoring how the stranger’s words dug into her uncomfortably. Because everything the woman said was right, she just didn’t want to think about how her actions affected other people’s lives. She looked after herself first and foremost. 

Emerald took a step back, then another, preparing to bolt when the woman’s next sentence caught her by surprise. Her eyes widened, her mouth opened and closed as she tried to think of where the stranger could have learned this information.

“How do you know my name?!”

Just like she thought… Her clumsiness got her into trouble again. Sayo only nodded as she hastily gathered up her things. The last thing she wanted was to pathetically stay crouched down and become a burden on other passers by.

It may just be an illusion of her mind, but she can already feel their harsh and judging stares.

Her anxieties are broken away when the same stranger starts asking questions, and she seems to relax a bit.

“Um… I got those ones from a university library. There’s a lot of good classic mysteries there, but I think there’s lots of other genres too. It’s in… What was it called again? … Ah, the Golden Ward!”

“The Golden Ward...mind showing me there?” Perhaps she could find an atlas and finally figure out where in Remnant she was. Not that Emerald was in a rush to return to where she used to be. To an orphan with no attachments, anyplace was the same.

Emerald handed the book she’d picked up back to the girl, now taking a closer look at the titles that had been scattered on the ground.

“You sure read a lot of mystery. I prefer adventure myself, but I read whatever I come by.” 

She’s been watching for awhile. The officer had used the word loitering, and it did bother Mariko, only because there was only ONE being here. It wasn’t a group of people, right? Maybe her definition of loitering and his were entirely different. Anyway, that’s irrelevant. The man hadn’t noticed, but as an passerby who watched everything unfold, Mariko witness how easily the child was able to just swipe someone’s wedding ring. 

She shouldn’t be impressed by that, but she has to admit she was impressed. 

Ah, she’s been spotted, too. “Are you going to give that back to him?” Hold on….

Isn’t this….Emerald? This must be her younger self?

Emerald closed her fist around the ring protectively. Of course she wasn't willing to give up her prize. From the sound of it, the woman had caught her in the act. That meant it was too late to deny what she had been doing or try to lie her way out of it. She gritted her teeth.

Usually she was more alert than this, more cautious when she stole in public. Her moment of gloating had backfired on her. She felt irritated, but also tired. It had been a long and confusing day and she still had no idea where she was.The last thing she wanted to deal with was this woman trying to arrest her.

"What, are you going to report me?" She challenged, shifting her weight on her feet and getting ready to dart away when she found a good opportunity.