#atomicutting

It was time to return back to headquarters. The task of the day had been easy - there’d been absolutely no task at all, apart from run rampant in the streets of wherever the hell one wanted. Even though current HQ was in Mahogany Town, that didn’t stop Will from teleporting to his old stomping ground to cause trouble and earn a few bucks. Nowadays, he didn’t have to sit on the corner, acting as a street magician day-in and day-out….no. Nowadays, all he had to do was threaten someone for their money. He was small in stature, sure, but everyone knew that that big “R” meant, and few people were willing to haggle with a boy who was levitating them six feet in the air, invisible hand around their neck, cutting the path to their airways. It really didn’t take much, and it wasn’t as if Will would actually hurt them for real or anything. It was just intimidation. A cheap thrill for fast cash.

Anyway, the day was over now, and Mahogany Town’s peaceful aura was welcome after the hustle and bustle of Goldenrod. Honestly, though, that peace was only welcome for a while, to Will. It could get boring after a while. In addition, most of the other Rocket grunts weren’t necessarily friendly, but it was assumed that that’s just what came with being in a large crime syndicate. As Will made it to the building that was Just a Souvenir Shop, he nodded to the “sales clerk” before moving the gold cabinet that hid a set of stairs. Will continued down them, moving the cabinet back without a touch, and then towards an old, silver elevator that would take him to the bottommost floor. There’d be other grunts there, and hopefully they wouldn’t try to get any money off of him.

For a moment, Will gazed at his reflection in the silver of the elevator - his hair was a mess, and the woozy surface of the elevator didn’t help anything.  He would have said “oh, how the mighty had fallen,” had he ever even been mighty to begin with. Unfortunately there’d never been anything might about him - even the destruction of the orphanage had been foolish, and there’s no way that act could have been construed as heroic or...mighty. He appearance merely reminded him of the scum he’d been, and the scum he remained. He brushed gloved fingers through his hair as the elevator dinged open and he stepped inside.

The lift was filthy inside. It nearly always was until the rare occasion that someone deemed to wipe a rag over the surfaces, something that apparently hadn’t happened in ages. Will sighed, leaning against the rail lining the enclosure, his mind going to the cash and wondering how much he’d actually gotten. He still hadn’t counted, and he probably wouldn’t be doing it anytime soon if he could avoid it. Too many other people around down there. Maybe he if just checked his pockets really fast while he was still on the elevator…

Right as he began to slide his hands into his pockets, and right as the elevator door was closing, there was another loud ding. The doors reopened. As soon as Will saw who was standing outside, mask meeting those sharp eyes, the boy panicked and thrust the money back into this pockets.

From the very beginning, Will could tell he wasn’t going to like that asshole. He just looked like an asshole - that was the only way to describe his appearance, really. There was nothing about the man that said otherwise. Narrowed eyes, upturned nose, hair of an atrocious color. No...from the very moment, there was nothing about him that was friendly, even if he acted otherwise. Will could always tell when someone lacked sincerity, and well….

“..................”

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atomicutting

sleepingpsychicqueen

I can’t believe he’s making me go to this stupid thing, Clair grumbled, removing her favorite Dragon Fang earrings from her ear and setting them on the dresser.  I hate parties, he knows that!  She looked at herself in the mirror, at her made-up face and styled hair, and scowled.  There was a reason she wore it in a ponytail—it was long, and therefore it got in the way.  But now, thanks to one of the Elder’s wives, her signature bangs were braided back intricately into meticulously-curled ends.  Clair snorted, grabbed a loose piece, and pulled it forward.  At least some of herself would show tonight.

"Come along, dear.  It’s time to get dressed," the elderly woman said, putting her hand on Clair’s arm and turning her around.  The Gym Leader complied with a groan, doing everything she could to make putting on that ridiculous dress as hard as she could.  “Miss Clair, please behave… You’ll rip it if you keep thrashing so.”

"I’m not going, Elizabeth," she asserted, crossing her arms under her chest as Elizabeth zipped up the last of the dress.  Clair raised an eyebrow, twisted her torso and lifted her arm to see the back.  What?!  She rushed to the mirror and looked at herself from behind.  No!  Impossible!  "Elizabeth, I am not going out in this!  You can tell Grandfa—”

Elizabeth tutted and shook her head.  “I’m afraid you have no choice,” she interrupted with a small smile.  She removed a box from a pocket in her robes and handed it to the shell-shocked Clair.  “You look wonderful, dear.  Put these on—there.  You’ll make the whole Clan proud!”

Clair rolled her eyes as she fastened the diamond bracelet around her wrists.  What was she, some kind of plaything for their—for Grandfather’s—entertainment?!  Was he making some kind of statement, making her wear this?  What, did he think—

—Wait a second.  That’s exactly what he’s doing!

Upon seeing her recognition, Elizabeth hurriedly exited the room, leaving Clair to seethe by herself.  The young woman thrust her arms to her sides, her knuckles as white as bone.  “That horrid man!  Grandfather, I’ll, I’ll—This is the worst—How could you possibly expect me to get a, a, a date at this dumb, ridiculous event?!” she shouted to no-one in particular, her voice echoing through the halls.

She roared in frustration and strode to the door, nearly tripping over the folds of her dress in the process.  Clair growled, picked up the ends haphazardly, and, without wearing any shoes, left her house on a rampage, muttering and cursing the entirety of her clan.

Her dress swished in front of her in a way so similar to her cape, but yet so different, that it infuriated Clair.  She’d been forced to go to the past "get-together", but, as it was known to all of the other "exclusive guests," she easily was able to make a mistake after being counted as present.  Now that it was being held in her hometown, her Grandfather had done his utmost to make sure she stayed put.  And to top it all off, she was in this lovely dress that was sure to grab as most attention as possible.

"Despicable man," she muttered darkly, wandering off the path and heading towards the stream.  Her toes slid into a small puddle of mud, and for the first time since this morning, Clair felt somewhat comfortable.  Remembering the dress in her arms, however, Clair rolled her eyes and lifted it higher, raising it above her knees to prevent any of the beautiful material to be ruined.

Just as she was about to make it by the riverside, the young woman spotted someone standing by the bank.  Nobody traveled this far south of the city to be by the river.  Nobody except for her, that was.  Frowning, Clair tried to sneak up on the figure, but to her dismay, she stepped on a stick, breaking it in half with her heel.  Great, she thought with frustration.  Just great.

The stranger turned his head, staring at her from the corner of his eyes.

Oh, sorry, I was just making sure you were as bleached and hairless as the job description demands.  The fun’s over, though, so get back to work and follow everyone on the Masterlist!