Vina Portleft

“Hrm? Of course, what would you like to talk about?” The Knight would say as he escorted the other to a more silent area to talk. Of course, he would simply follow them had they a better place to talk.“I am all ears. Did you need to go somewhere quick?”

Shaking his head, he continued to look to her as he hunched forward with his shoulders squared.

“It’s too late for me. I kill because I don’t want these people to ever get back up only to cause the problems they do again. And the others. They are unfortunates caught in a crossfire and the only thing left on my hands is the sinner’s life and many of the blood of innocents. But that’s alright. I’d rather become Demacia’s darkest demon if it means bettering this place. And.. Maybe at the end. I know it won’t even atone for all the lives I have taken, but I’ll willingly go to the gallows when this place is clean enough. When my work is done.”

There was an awkward moment of silence before he stood up and gently placed a hand on her shoulder.

Her expression had hardened suddenly, pushing youthful cheeks into hard lines and drawing brows together, making her seem more of a woman than a girl. No-one was beyond turning over a new leaf, of starting again once things were said and done. It was self-deprecating to think otherwise.

“I was told people band together when they meet an enemy they can’t fight on their own. I was told they group up, differences and fights forgotten. Maybe you’ll inspire that? Those with corruption in their hearts would clean up their act in their efforts to bring you down... That’s a strange way of looking at it.”

She stood up with him, and shook her head. Finding strength in her words and reasoning, she met his gaze with her own, defiance in her eyes and resolution in her tone.

“Hrm? Of course, what would you like to talk about?” The Knight would say as he escorted the other to a more silent area to talk. Of course, he would simply follow them had they a better place to talk.“I am all ears. Did you need to go somewhere quick?”

“I never once said that Demacia has not steered off the path of good. But that doesn’t necessarily excuse it from all the evil and pain it has caused. It’s roots are based in the good but a lot of nobles have grown fat with power. I know not why the wish to poison the way Demacia works, but I know very well that I will cut out this evil with my own hands.”

Looking at his own hands, not even thinking of the woman next to him. His thoughts wandered to his past. Of what could have been and what might have been. Grimacing his face, he placed his hands.

“The pain never goes away. I can only distract myself from the gnawing loneliness thinking of how my entire family had been executed that day. And instead of a disappointment, I can only feel hatred and spite build in me to the point it almost boiled over. But… That anger wouldn’t serve any purpose lashing out randomly. I hated how the nobles tricked my family. I hate how the current justice system binds our Demacia far more then it’s aggressors. There are issues when Noxus can be considered more “free” and tolerant so long as they have the strength to prove themselves.”

His hands went to his hair, the armor mysteriously settling into his flesh and allowing them to go unarmored.

“And it’s alright. The pain I feel would be nothing knowing if others suffered as I did and I’ll do my damn best to fix this city-state. They call me a villain. A criminal. And they want to see me hanged, and for good reason. I’ve killed so many innocent guards in my work and It’s only a wonder how many I’ve widowed. But, it still eats at my conscience and I can see them every night.”

"I think you're very brave to take that path. It’s a good thing to do...maybe the right thing, too. I would stand with you but... I... I don't think I would do very well. And- I'm sure I wouldn't be as happy. I don't believe I should stay too much in the past."

She looked the other way at the mention of criminality and punishment, choosing to instead stare at her hands as well, rubbing fingers into the calluses on her palms. She finally looked up at him again when he sat up - only to notice the sadness there. She redirected her eyes elsewhere once more, skittish still and wary. 

“Uhm.. I... I didn’t mean to... bring up bad memories. I... was just hoping for advice... maybe. On how to move forward.”

She bit her lip, and awkwardly stood, clasping her hands and then folding them, before just tucking them behind her back.

The mention of having an idea but not very much information about it peeked his interest because there was a definite opportunity there to persuade this woman to get work done. “Well, if you’d like to find out about how much it would cost or how much it might hurt, you’ve come to the right place. We can talk it through.”

She nodded and hurried over, hands pawing at her bag after a few seconds to retrieve a sketchbook, which she laid out on the counter. She flicked through the pages: Observational drawings, portraits, hotel rooms and landscapes... Until she stopped on one particular page.

“I... I thought maybe... something that looks like watercolour - you can do that right? Or... Or white ink? I’ve... seen white ink ones before. They’re... very pretty. On the shoulderblades...? One either side...”

There are tons out there, so tell me what you liked about mine.

Vina’s only 5'7, and she pales in comparison to Darius’ imposing build. She’s also scared out of her mind, but be it bravery or foolishness, she holds her ground.

“An airship? Well I don’t know how well I’d be at it, I mean I’ve never really done it before but I’ve made sure to keep reading on them.” The courier scratched the back of her head lightly glancing at her younger friend nervously. “Why do you ask?”

She was happy to welcome the other girl into her home once more smiling, “Artemis has gotten pretty big but she’s still a sweetie, would you like anything to eat?”

“Oh- only if it’s no trouble. I know you’re… probably busy? And things haven’t been sorted out yet, I’ve just been promised help with getting it. Uh- about the food - yes please. I’m kinda hungry, so uh- sure!”

The lives of the Seraph and Felix seemed to descend into turmoil and trouble far too quickly and far too often. Their lives in the shadows never held the security that her friends received… but things seemed to be the same as ever here with Iris, and Vina took comfort in it.

“Hrm? Of course, what would you like to talk about?” The Knight would say as he escorted the other to a more silent area to talk. Of course, he would simply follow them had they a better place to talk.“I am all ears. Did you need to go somewhere quick?”

“Many things I will admit, such as not knowing the struggles of the lower class. I myself was born to a nobles house, even if it was one of the lesser houses and not very well known. I will admit that, when I was young, I too wished to be a mage but it wasn’t simply meant to be. Father wished for me to be a knight and so it was. He was never able to quash out my dream of wielding both magic and the sword.”

Sitting down next to her on box, he offered a seat by simply lifting a keg and moving it to the side. He didn’t know exactly of her intentions but he could only assume that she wanted to her his piece on the situation. Or she knew more about him then even he would guess.

“There are some misconceptions, in my opinion, on the subject of black and white. They entirely exist as they are, but you cannot achieve the color gray without them. Whatever we do, whatever we feel and do are based in the mires of good and evil. But it’s by societal standards and for the reasons we do things that they make become smudged and hard to see. As either. And through all of that, it’s also easy to know what it is true evil and true good.”

A slight air of silence passed before he spoke again. He wondered if such a tale would be a good thing but he wondered that, if she would care to hear it.

“You’re the Pariah. Rumours travel pretty quickly... I don’t know. The state.. does make the people in it do a lot of things they don’t want to... through... culture and politics. I don’t see how Demacia can be a force for good when... when it hurts people like that. And if everyone has a reason behind what they do-- how can it be truly... evil? Truly good?”

More silence. Her thoughts wandered.

Vina didn’t know how to relate to him. Not only was she outright lied to, but she never had the money or the ability to even train herself in magic had there been an opportunity. She couldn’t imagine growing up in one of the houses she had delivered to either, all money and opulence, gilded furniture and too much fabric. She wondered if it was as cozy as the one she grew up in, if his family had just as much time to spend with him. But those weren’t questions to ask now, those were questions to distract her from why she was here.

She was wide-eyed and bewildered, to anyone looking on, and she gripped her bag as she began to just look around in general.

In this particular instance, the artist looked up as the woman entered the shop and knew from just one glance that she was among those foreigners that came in for a reason like that. The only difference was that she actually seemed interested in what she’d stumbled into. While he wasn’t overly fond of the nationality that she looked, he knew a business opportunity when he saw one.

"I- uhm. Sorta. But I kind of had an idea already. But I... I don't know how much it costs, or how much it hurts. I've never gotten a tattoo before - or even seen one being done. I only got my ears pierced a few months ago."