I balanced a spinning lien coin on the pointer finger of my left hand as I stepped up to Miss Malachite's bar, exchanging quick greetings with the guards at the front before heading it. Easily passing the coin across the fingers of that same hand, I headed towards my usual corner table, a few of the people in the packed place throwing a nod or hello my way.
Using my thumb, I flicked the coin to my other hand, quickly spinning it across those fingers as I took a seat.
The food, drinks, and everything in between. I still hadn't bothered with any of it despite how familiar this place and its people were becoming. I wonder if there was something to be said about most of the people around me being some kind of criminal.
As I rolled the coin across the back of my knuckles, I caught sight of Melanie and Miltia, already on their way over. They must have a job lined up already.
"So, you two fuck or something?"
The crass greeting honestly shouldn't have caught me off guard coming from Melanie of all people, but I ended up bumping the coin up a little too hard, the gold coin flipping above the table.
"Shame just isn't in your dictionary, is it?" I asked, catching the coin as it fell back down while the two stepped up to the table but didn't take their usual seats around it.
She just snorted. "So, did you? Cause Cinder's been a little less bitchy lately and I know one way to fix an attitude on someone like her is a good-"
"Stop talking." I said with a sigh.
"Didn't think the masked badass would be so shy about the deed." Melanie said, emphasizing the last word mockingly before taking a quick look around. "Where is that girl anyways?"
I shrugged. There wasn't much point in sharing what we were up to and she was bound to turn anything related to training into some kind of sexual innuendo anyways.
"You guys got something for me?" I asked before she could take things any further. For once it wasn't Melanie who answered.
"Not us." Miltia said, the two stepping away, a nudge of the head signaling for me to do the same.
This was different.
Table left behind, I followed the two, not towards Miss Malachite's table, the woman's usual spot empty, but to the door behind the bar. They led me through a kitchen, through another door, and through a narrow hall, only stopping once we reached a flight of stone stairs leading downwards.
Melanie took the lead while Miltia stepped aside, only descending once I was ahead of her.
Being led down a dark stairway with two people going out of their way to ensure I was trapped between them. All in the bar of renown crime boss. I would've called anyone putting themselves in this situation an idiot, but I wasn't concerned quite yet. We'd yet to pass anything or anyone that could flat out stop me from forcing my way out and from what I could tell, the only person waiting ahead was Miss Malachite herself.
We stopped at the bottom of the darkened stairwell, the wooden walling of the upper level replaced by carved out stone. With a grunt, Melanie pushed open a thick metal door, the thing remarkably silent despite the slight rusting along the edges of its dark steel. She held it open, and I entered, stepping over the metal framing running along the ground.
A mini bar stocked with drinks running along the very back, a square shaped table at the center of the room, and a few different sofas spread about, barrels and crates filling out the rest of the confined space. It was small, lit up only by a few chandlers hanging from above but between all that and its pure metal flooring, it looked like some kind of private safe room.
And Lil' Miss Malachite sat at the center table, one hand tapping its surface while the other held up a sheet of paper she was reading through.
Made sense for someone like her to have a space like this squared away. Whatever other purposes it might've served, this must be where she talked business she didn't want just anyone catching wind of.
As I stepped up to the table, the twins took up seats on opposite sides of it after closing the door behind them.
"Tell me-" Miss Malachite began, paper folded and set down. Not that it mattered by then, the thing just see through enough for me to get a good look at its contents while she had it up. Types of dust, weapons, and food, with numbers listed out beside them; it was some kind of list, maybe a count of supplies or a request for some. "-how much do you know about Mistral's black-market?"
"Other than the portion you control?" Which was most of it, few daring to make any sort of stand against Spider's far reaching web of influence. There was only one place she was contested. "I've heard there are caverns that travel all throughout the mountain the city's been built around and a place you can get anything is supposedly somewhere in there. Haven't had the chance to see if for myself yet."
If I hadn't been able to get into contact or things went south with Miss Malachite, it was a possible lead I'd planned on checking out. Keeping an eye on Cinder had also taken up most of my time too so the opportunity to go investigating never popped up or seemed relevant.
"Most of what you've heard of the place is likely true." Miss Malachite said, nodding along. "The government doesn't involve themselves with it. Too many different hands and lien flowing through it. Its considered neutral ground among those who conduct business there." She explained. "For now. There will be something of, lets call it a changing of hands, soon."
So, she was already positioned to take full control over every part of Mistral's underworld. Something like that would involve blood. A good bit of it.
"I won't be killing anyone for you." I said.
The twins' eyes widened, all of their attention twisted on me.
Miss Malachite only raised a brow, leaning back in her chair. "Not even for information on that faunus you're after?"
She had something already?
That…that changed nothing.
"No."
Miss Malachite held her stare for a moment before nodding. The twins, signs of surprise still spread across their faces, slid over a large orange envelope and a set of pictures. I reached down, spreading out the latter.
Pictures of a dead officer in some alleyway. One with an ugly purple gash across his chest.
"Files from a cold case the local police department had on hand. According to the hospital reports, the poison that killed that man matches up with those typically found in scorpion faunus." Miss Malachite explained.
"And you're just giving this to me?" I asked, taking a moment to look up from the photos.
"There are no end of people who claim to have principals. Those who stand by them when something they want is dangled in front of them are rare." She said. "You've done good work for me and that information is dated. You won't be finding anyone using it."
"But it does confirm he was here." I muttered, glancing back down to the photos.
"Possibly. Far as I've been able to gather, it's just a case of wrong place wrong time, too isolated to connect to anything else." Miss Malachite said, humming along. "This faunus of yours is proving illusive but I'll keep looking around. For now, just consider those files a token of respect."
Deciding that the conversation was over, Miss Malachite waved us off, the twins standing to open up the door. I gathered up the files and followed after them, Miltia leading the way this time.
"Not a lot of people got the balls to tell her no. Not too many get away with it either." Melanie said from behind. "The old lady really does like you."
XOXO
I swung my sword, standing at the center of my new room.
While it was still one big open concept space, the difference that lien could make was made prevalent by it. The central area was big, a majority of it reserved for a comboed bedroom and living room with a bunch of new furniture already in place, the place not skipping out on anything. From silk sheets, an actually comfortable mattress, the wide flatscreen TV, and all the up to date appliances I'd been missing out on in the counter separated kitchen, I could actually look forward to returning to this place.
But even with all that, the most important thing was space.
My unbandaged sword brought back to my front, I held it straight up, able to swing it about without trouble.
I took a slow breath, my aura changing from the nearly second nature rigidness of Glynda's, to matching Cinder's wild and restless aura in an instant. Heat began to waft off my blade. Soon that heat grew strong enough to show itself, the blade's edge taking on a glow. Just as quickly, that glow spread across the entire blade, turning so hot I couldn't help but squint as my eyes watered and the glow intensified.
A single slice from this thing, raw physical force and that unnatural heat working in tandem, could cut through any Grimm no matter how armored they were. Few would have enough aura to take more than one or two hits.
Swapping back to telekinesis, I focused on remapping the area around me as the heat faded.
Soon the blade was back to normal, no sign of damage anywhere across it.
I'd built this thing with a few people in mind, Cinder at the top of that list, the chosen metal one that could tolerate drastic changes in temperature so I could withstand both her semblance and the powers of a maiden before killing her. Of course, I'd always intended on copying the former for my own use, the replication of the latter something I'd long since given up on.
To think I was training the very same person I'd intended on putting down.
I glanced towards the pictures of that dead office and his wound, my hand tightening around my sword as I swung it about.
Cinder was a young girl still figuring things out, not the merciless kingdom destroyer I'd set my sights on. Helping her along to be something better or at least keeping her from doing any of that without taking her life, wasn't just some optimistic fool's dream but a real possibility that could already be taking shape.
That was not the case for Tyrian.
I'd be killing that man. Nothing would change that.
XOXO
Powerstone Goal = 400
(A/N: Lowkey, if it hasn't been obvious yet or I haven't mentioned it, Talon flat out sees Cinder as a kid which shouldn't be all that surprising. For my Cinder stands, I wouldn't be too worried about it. If she is to be paired up with Talon, people's perspectives can change so she herself can force a change through her own actions overtime but like I said in one of the comments, any possible progress with towards something like that is bound to be a slowburn since she's so difficult.
As always, the link for those who want to read ahead:
patreon .com/ thirdratewriter
See you in the comments? Maybe. I might be a little busy with some work I didn't ask for after I post this. Reality can be so troublesome.