Well....That happened.... [Closed/Fayte/Nines]

[Nines]

Here it was, Era, home of the magic council. Or so Matthew thought. He grumbled as he dropped his sack filled with armor on the ground and stared at the damaged city of Era. Man he had a god damn house on that side of town. “Of course it had to be blown up in the war, life would have it no other way wouldn’t it?” Matthew complained as he stared at the wreckage and the people working to repair their lives.

He stared at the city on the horizon and scratched the back of his head. Sometimes he really hated the fact he had to chase a madman for nine years. He gave himself a moniker to symbolize his incompetence in his goal of life to protect those who can’t protect themselves, the reason he became a magic council member. It was something he would call himself to remind himself that he should not obsess over things he cannot control, no more disappearing acts from Nines Evercross.

An important part of changing who you are as a person is changing your outlook on life, instead he would change his name, then himself slowly over time. Maybe that would make him a better guardian for the people.

He stood there staring at the city of Era wearing his crimson colored uniform, the sleeves rolled up to his elbows and the gold finery inlaid in it slightly tarnished from the multiple years of wear and use. He was going to need to find a Magic Council based Tailor at some point, and hopefully here was where it was going to be. However from the looks of the city, and the lack of progress put into the reconstructions. He guessed the Magic council may have moved.
Only one god damned way to find out for sure.

He wiped the back of his forearm across his forehead to get the sweat off of it as best he could, then bent over and picked the sack filled with armor up again, and flung it over his shoulder. He untied the sheath from the back of his hips and tied it around his left wrist as he lugged the sack with his right hand, and started walking.

It was only a few hours till he hit town, however the sun would be going down by the time he got there, most likely it would be sunset before he entered town itself. One foot in front of the other was a method of observing progress. Progress was in its very essence the flow of life, and that was always how Nines knew he was still alive. The shit he had seen while chasing his brother once made him wish he was dead, even more so after killing the monster, however he still put one foot in front of the other. Originally not for his sake, and more for the people he knew he could protect if he continued to progress through life.

Then he met people like Atrum, and Fairy Tail. They were indeed a rowdy bunch, however they were good people at their core. They were his friends in his mind, and he would live because it’s better to progress and move forward then it is to hesitate and stumble through life.

It took him a few hours, but eventually he walked on the well paved road of Era. The capital of Fiore, his former home, he had a life here for a long time. He remembered taking care of this road as a squire, back before he was allowed to take missions by himself, back when he was a recruit, and a greenling.

He missed this road. This road was brutally ruined after the town gates. He stopped and stared at the city he once knew in its glory. The beautiful houses were ramshackle, people rushed around, some of them guild types, others, actual working men. However there was no way to control the amount of people in motion. The amount of work that needed to be done was nowhere near the amount of work being put out.

Nines couldn’t stop the tears. This was pretty much his home, and he didn’t even get to help defend it because of his stupid brother. Once again, the bastard ruined everything Nines cared about in a way. He lugged the sack higher up on his shoulder and started walking down the ruined roads, through the streets of a proud city trying to rebuild itself.
The city was shit.

Pretty much the best description Nines had to describe the way it was going. A lot of the area’s near the center of town and the early part at the entrance looked “Better” but it was no where near what it used to be. Nor would it probably ever be what it used to be. The people of Fiore were not going to be the perfect phoenix metaphor. Era was ruined, and lives were ruined, or claimed in the events that caused this nation to shift from a near golden age into this, steaming pile of shit.

The looks he got were mixed of respect and extreme cold hate. The mixed emotions and messages he received from the citizens of the city confused him. He had never done anything to them, infact he recognized some of them, and some of them recognized him, they were most of the respecting glances.

However he could feel it. This place was no longer safe, Magic council were no longer the standing force in Era, they had indeed moved. Which meant one thing mainly to Nines, anyone could be in Era. People of any character, murderer, monster, villain, hero, savior, vigilante. This town was no longer a place he could call home because of whatever the magic council did while he was gone.

It was time for answers, and Nines had the best way to get them.

He walked into the center of town and dropped the sack he was holding on the ground, and spread his arms out wide.
“WANNA START A FIGHT!?”

[Fayte Scarlett]

Fayte had heard the rumors. The man whom she hated was in Era. Perhaps that wasn't quite right; the sentiment wasn't strong enough to be considered 'hate'. It was more like a dream, an ideal, something she sought after, a hunt after a target that she wanted to hate. However, Fayte knew she still lacked the strength to defeat him. He had killed Master Xian Fei, and Fayte was certainly not as strong as her master. But there were other methods of revenge available to her. Although she lacked the strength to kill Mordekai, she was certain there were plenty of other ways to make his job more difficult.

At least he had never seen her human form. The one time she attacked him, she had been in her full takeover form. So even if, perchance, she stumbled upon her target in Era... he theoretically would be unable to recognize her. So Fayte spent the day wandering, listening, checking out her sources in Era. So far, her efforts hadn't been very successful. She had confirmed that Mordekai had once been in Era, something to do with Fiore's bank. But if he was still there, or why he'd come in the first place... the details were lost on her. So she needed a plan.

Somewhere along the way she'd decide that she needed to get her hands on a Magic Council member, and interrogate them. If she was a good actor, she could've simply walked up to one of the soldiers and pretended to be a fan of Mordekai von Argon..... he certainly seemed popular enough among the girls, that her questions likely wouldn't have aroused much suspicion. Yet that option and thought seemed so utterly repulsive to her, Fayte knew she could never act the part.

She needed to find someone in the Magic Council. Someone who could disappear for a bit before they realized he was gone. Someone she could beat a few questions out of, the old fashioned way. Unfortunately Era was still a fairly populated town, despite its half-ruined condition. And the Magic Council pro-sentiment was higher here than other towns, considering they had once held their base in Era. Fayte needed to be discreet about her personal mission. Each time she found someone wearing a Council uniform, they were never alone. In pairs of two's or three's, but not alone. That was something she'd rather not get involved in, even if she could win.

That's when she saw him. He had the uniform of the Magic Council, but the uniform was worn and in disrepair. He was tiny, at least tiny compared to her 6'0 frame, and he looked barely competent compared to his colleagues. His face seemed unfocused, looking around Era is if he'd never visited before. Like he was lost. Fayte was near the town square when she saw him, wandering around without a particular purpose. Abruptly he dropped his stuff, spreading his arms and shouting,

“WANNA START A FIGHT!?”

To which Fayte's gaze quickly turned away from him, pretending that she had not been staring. Had he noticed her? Her eyes flickered back up to the Council seeker, but he seemed to be challenging the world, rather than her specifically. Silence met his challenge. A few of the locals moved away from him nervously, unsure of his intent.

Hm. So he was idiotic too. Slowly Fayte's head turned back to the man. In such a crowd, it would be hard to fight him here. But it would also make tailing him easier. She would wait for him to reach a more secluded place... and then... she would strike. He was the perfect target.

[Nines]

A single man walked up and looked at Nines with a large grin. “Dude, you should calm down”
“The problem is I am calm” Nines replied, he bent back over and picked up the sack of armor. “Very, very calm” He muttered as he threw It back over his shoulder and started walking down the road. He needed to make sure of something while he was here pissing people off, and scaring innocents around him.

Wasn’t quiet the reaction he expected, but it was the one he wanted. The civilians here were passive not aggressive. Meant they wouldn’t attack him for almost any reason, they cared more about their families and their lively hoods to piss off a member of the magic council. It’s not like nines counted himself as a member of the council at this point, he had been gone for nine years, and was pretty sure they no longer thought him alive.

He stopped walking and stared, then raised an eyebrow. His house was in front of him, surrounded by rubble, but it barely had any damage. “…..what…” he muttered confused. He walked up to the front door and knocked. There was no response. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a key, it was small and dirty. He stuck the key in the knob, and twisted, with a pop noise the door slid open.

By now it was full nightfall, and the lighting in Era was dark, with a few street lamps still operating, but mostly the moon lighting the area. “Hello?” he asked leaning in.

No response, this was starting to get creepy. He tightened the grip on the strap of his blade, and lowered the sack he had on his shoulder, then walked inside. It was dark, untouched sense he left. Cept for parts of the kitchen, and the hall that led to the guest room.

He crept down the hallway as quietly as he could, and opened the door and looked inside the guest room, to see a small girl and her even smaller brother in the bed snuggling. Refugee’s probably orphans. Nines knelt and looked at the guest room door knob, no scratch marks, which means they didn’t pick it. He stood up and walked back into the kitchen, lightly putting the sack of armor down, and leaning forward to look at the window sill. The lock was pried open, this was their point of entry.
Nines sighed, he was upset. Whoever orphaned those children in his house he hoped they were dead. Which was never a good thought to have. He knelt down by the sack of armor.

Six foot, black everything, quiet, obviously did quite well at blending in to crowds for him not to notice already. He was being followed. He looked at the armor, and went against it, they would notice. Worst part was if a fight was to break out here it would wake the children.

However….

He wondered as he looked around. He scooped up the sack again and chucked it over his shoulder, exited the building and locked it behind himself. He then walked down the steps to the door and walked around the corner, a blind spot. He stopped and leaned against the corner, if she was really following him she would run right into him. The alleyway around the house was too small for more than two people to squeeze past. It was the primary reason he picked this place to live in, the other reason was his bedroom window was facing this alleyway and he preferred an escape route that way.

If he confronted her, he would ask what she wanted from him. If she wanted a fight, he would ask her for a more appropriate location, he wouldn’t risk the lives of the children in his house.

[Fayte Scarlett]

The day slowly passed as Fayte continued to follow her target. Evening soon fell upon Era, and the crowds began to thin. Although Fayte was skilled as a Shadow Hearts operative, extended stealth and secrecy were not her primary abilities. She began to suspect that the Magic Council member knew that she was following him - if nothing else, it was a bit hard to hide her stature. He headed into an even more remote section of Era, with Fayte still following a fair distance behind.

She was starting to think he was leading her in a secluded spot on purpose, especially when he approached a lone house amidst the rubble. Patiently she waited for him, not daring to approach in case he had lead her to the house on purpose. And so she waited. And waited. He didn't seem to be coming out. She frowned, wondering what the Council man was doing in there. It couldn't be his own home, could it? No, she doubted he would have knocked and called out like that if it was.

She waited in one of the darker corners until at long last he emerged. ... This seemed like as good a place as any. Fayte jogged a little to close the distance, but he turned around the corner. She rounded it sharply, running straight into her intended target.  "...!" Fayte backed away quickly, but it was pretty clear that she'd been following him now. Fine then. Her gaze darkened at the Magic Council man before her. The alley was narrow, but she adjusted herself in a clear fighting stance.  "Stray Council dog....." She hissed, her fists clenching. The transformation overtook her. Light shone on her back, in its place, a pair of blackened wings. Her fingernails became longer; sharper. No, he was not even a dog... it was insulting to dogs for her to compare him to that... He was something lower.  "You may have found me... So here I am. I hope you are prepared......"

She took a deep breath, as if preparing to say something else. But it was not words. When she opened her mouth again, the most earth-shattering screech ripped from her throat. It would probably wake up any nearby sleeping residents... although in such an abandoned section of Era, Fayte doubted anyone would be nearby. She had no interest in what her target might say... did not care to enlighten him of his plight... She would capture the stray and make him talk before killing him completely.

MP 190/200:

[Nines]

The screech was loud, enough to make ones ears bleed if they were too close. He reacted before the screech however, as soon as he saw the woman undergo the state of transformation he chucked the sheath of his blade at her face while he caught the sword. Then kicked off the wall to the other wall, kicked off that and was blasted with a sound wave from hell.

The kids would be awake now, and he had to relocate this fight before someone got hurt. Not hesitating even because of the sound he chucked the sack of armor at the window, it broke right through and he jumped in after it. Hit the bed and rolled off, while scooping the sack up. He sprinted across the hallway, and used his sack again to break the other window in front of him, and he dove out onto the roof across the way.

He grabbed the sack again off his neighbor’s roof, and took off across the rooftops. He didn’t have magic, it wasn’t a natural thing for him, he needed his armor, but at the same time the innocents came first. He stumbled a few times due to the lack of balance, he hated when an enemy busted someone’s hearing. He had other ways of making this work, he had prior experience.

His enemy was a bird, take over magic obviously, she would no doubt find him in an instant, he was on a roof, and this was her territory. Wouldn’t surprise him if she was following him and watching. However, he lived here, at one point, and had something of a photographic memory.

He dropped off the third roof he was running on into an alleyway, landed on some scaffolding and continued sprinting. Up ahead was what he wanted, as he unbuttoned his uniform jacket, and dashed inside the incomplete building, it was a tailors shop and he grabbed a model and used his sack of armor to break right out the window on the other side.

If the bird hunting him didn’t know where he was, she knew now. He dashed into the next building, connected to the tailor’s shop the only thing separating the two was the small alleyway he burst through. Charcoal and chalk littered the area. He smashed through most of the art supplies of the art shop threw the doll in the corner with his coat on it, then rammed his sword into the side so it was hunched over behind the stack of papers he rammed it behind.

Shirtless and covered in black charcoal he ran at the wall across from it, kicked off and kicked each leg into a wall and propped himself up in the shadows. His sword behind him pushed against the wall, to block out any chance of it reflecting, his arms holding two gauntlets from his sack of armor which was next to the dummy wearing his shirt.

Birds were strong sight reliant predators. This was her advantage, especially if she took the form of a nocturnal animal. However, the one thing hunting birds sucked at was dark areas, they needed light to see, and in this building there was barely enough moonlight to make out the training dummy, let alone him. He made sure the gauntlets were strapped on correctly then closed his eyes, the ringing in his ears going away and being replaced with a dull thudding of his heart.

He smelled the air, it was filled with chalk and charcoal, inks, paints, and fresh paper. He breathed slowly, calmly, he never panicked that would give him away.

[Fayte Scarlett]

The Magic Council man had caught her in the act... had caught her following... Fayte had said nothing to deny it; was prepared for the inevitable consequences. But she did not expect for her opponent to be such a coward... Many things were the Magic Council, but straying from a fight, was not one Fayte expected. She hissed as her opponent threw the sheath in her face. Her long claws swiped it away, thrusting it to the ground. She prepared for his subsequent follow-up attack, but none came forth... instead her opponent turn and ran...

She might have been impressed by his option of choosing the window, if he wasn't fleeing for his life without bothering to fight her. Swiping the sheath had taken up a few extra precious seconds, ones she was determined to make up in the subsequent chase. Ignoring the glass shards, Fayte jumped in the window after her prey. The chase was on, her footsteps only a few beats behind the Council man. Right as she prepared another spell, he again broke through the other window. Back outside...

The magic died from Fayte's body. She flung herself after him. The climb was easy, her powerful form easily scaling the brick to the top. Her opponent continued to flee, but instead of pursuing outright, Fayte took an alternate path. She followed silently; quickly, but not quite trying to catch him yet - although she could have used her Haste to catch up, even if she wasn't faster than him to begin with. Where was he going...? She wanted to ensure she didn't walk into a trap. When he dropped onto the ground path, she instead remained on the rooftops. Watching him smash through yet another window, then continuing onto the next building, causing more destruction to everything he touched.

She hopped onto the rooftop of his current location. The jump was long, but she practically seemed to glide across. She crouched and waited, waited for him to come out so she could put his running to an end. He had cornered himself. Yet instead of her prey exiting, Fayte could hear strange sounds inside. So noisy. What was he doing? Some elaborate trap? "........" She waited until everything went completely silent. He still wasn't coming out. Was he trying to hide, or make his stand there? ...It didn't matter. She would find him, regardless of where he wanted to hide.

Fayte rose, no longer crouching. Taking a deep breath, magic concentrated in her wings, raising behind her. With a great gust, her wings slammed concentrated wind energy against the rooftop. The entire shook, the spot where she hit cracking and crumbling. The slipstream was strong enough to push a hole through the roof, the moonlight streaming into the dark room. She peered inside sharply. Not all corners were visible, but it would leave little place to hide. "Why do you run..." Fayte said, just loud enough for someone inside to hear her. "Are you scared of me....?" She waited this time instead of launching into an attack. Perhaps she would both hear her opponent out... and also flush him out of his position...

MP 180/200:

[Nines]

(wayback before we even had fancy spells and stuff, back to being a holder for the duration then~)

“Why do you run?”
“Are you scared of me?”

Nines couldn't say he was scared, he was just unprepared, fear wasn’t at all what drove the man to his madness. He reached around his back and knocked the sword hilt out of the hidey hole he put it in behind his back and the wall.He was sliding down the wall slowly, however not slow enough to stop the sound of movement from the action. It was subtle but still there. the blade fell and hit the ground with a loud Clang, plink noise. The noise echoed quite well in the room and escaped through the hole above the Bird woman.

As the sword hit the ground, Nines dived into a roll. He landed a few feet away from the bird woman, and on a wall no where near where the sword landed from where it was dropped.
Why was she chasing him? More importantly why was she even after him?

Questions like this were answered later, after the obvious threat was no longer a threat.

He crouched and he waited to see what she would do to the response of the weapon dropped.

[Fayte Scarlett]

Fayte's eyes narrowed. She could hear him moving, but it was hard to pinpoint where exactly. The sword clattered against the ground. Her eyes naturally moved to it. That was not an option she had anticipated. Even though there were other methods to which a wizard could fight with, the action was symbolically clear. He didn't wish to fight her. Yet he hadn't completely surrendered himself to her mercy, instead choosing to hide amidst the shadows. A peace offering, then? This was the same man who had shouted for a fight earlier. It was nearly laughable. She was a dark mage. Based on principle alone, she should kill him.

"You asked for trouble," Fayte reminded him, also implying just how long she'd been stalking him. "And now I am here. So which is it, then?" She remained perfectly still. The sword was still in plain sight, but she made no move to take it. Instead she let him choose, in case he decided to change his mind. "I am looking for Mordekai von Argon..." She said, voice completely dead. Moreso than her normal flat intonation, which probably spelled out clearly why she sought him. The man was famous, popular amongst the ladies especially... but that was not why Fayte wanted to see him. Maybe it was an obsession, but the polar opposite of the lovestruck fools. "I know he was in Era. Answer my questions and I will let you go. Refuse, we shall fight, and I will force them out of you before you die."

[Nines]

Mordekai? Von? What?

“I’ve never heard such a name” Nines said walking out from around his box both his armored hands in his pockets. “Nor do I know such a person” He finished. “However you are correct, I did ask for trouble. Its a bad habit of mine. I prefer to feel that, if I ask trouble to find me, I can solve it faster” He nodded. “I assume from your form your a Takeover mage, and you specialize in bird related things?” He asked.

“What did this Mordekai do?, and when was he in Era?” Nines was asking for clairification. “I haven’t been home in….Gee...Something like Nine years….Todays my first day back” He raised his right hand out of his pocket and looked at the armor. “A pretty good one if I dont say so myself, till now” he sighed. “Since you in a kind of ‘murder’ Mode your probably going to assume I’m not telling the truth. That I’m hiding something from you. I can understand that, you really hate this Mordekai person, I can tell from the tone in your voice, from the glint your eyes make when you said his name. But im sure you can tell, being the people person you are, can tell even without the enhanced senses your magic is giving you right now, I’m not lying.”

“My name is Matthew Evercross, I left in pursuit of a dark mage nine years ago. I returned to find my home in ruins, and the people of it hating my guts for trying to protect them. I only really have one question, is Mordekai Von Argus a Magic Council member? Because if he is, he may be the reason the people hate the council, and if that is true, then I want him to meet you….as much as possible.” With that last sentence Nines flashed a smile.

[Fayte Scarlett]

Hadn't... heard.... of Mordekai von Argon? Fayte stared at the man. The pointed kind of stare that physically felt like a dagger. He had guessed right - she didn't believe him... at first. The more he talked, the more she started to suspect that he was telling the truth. It was a ridiculous story... and yet, something about his stance, his tone, the way he was explaining everything... she started to believe him more than she disbelieved him. She still accepted the possibility that he was lying, but she accepted that he was telling the truth more.

This Matthew Evercross had been (still was?) in pursuit of a dark mage. Maybe that was why Fayte felt like she could believe him... because they were similar in some ways. Just that their roles were reversed, and that Fayte was looking for a Magic Council member. Even after Matthew had finished talking, when he flashed the smile, Fayte remained silent. Eerily so almost, staring at him. The words had gotten through, but she was considering her options. It was defeating, in a way. He'd defeated her before they even fought. This was a dead end... there was little he could tell her, or help her. His last words showed even more ignorance. If he'd truly been gone nine years... that would certainly explain his garb... and his naive outlook on Mordekai von Argon.

"Evercross," she finally said. Using his name, it was accepting that he was telling the truth - this was part of his identity. Giving out her own, however, was another matter... and one she didn't plan on taking. "Nine years is indeed a long time, and would certainly explain your strange uniform. Mordekai von Argon is an elite member and war hero of the Magic Council. Mordekai von Argon is the son of Cornelius, the ruler of Fiore. Crossing him would brand you a traitor to your country." She suspected he would not want to do that. "I don't have a strong enough reason to doubt your words. I will let you meet with your people, and you and I can become enemies in the future. For now, I no longer have a reason to pursue you."

[Nines]

“No longer have a reason to pursue me huh?” Nines said with a grin. He pulled his right gauntlet off and tossed it into the bag of armor. “Well thats a relief, i'm happy we have some sort of arrangement.” As he said this he took off his left gauntlet and tossed it too into the bag. He then used his left hand to push the bangs out of his soot covered face. On the back of his left hand literally glowing through the soot, in bright violet was the symbol of the Dark Guild Shadow Heart.

Nines realized it himself a bit too late, apparently his bandages had fallen off. He cringed as he dug the wrap out of his bag, now all sorts of tangled up, and he started the rapid process of wrapping the bandage up his wrist to cover his hand up to his fingertips. He couldn’t tell her where he got the Guild tattoo, that would be too suspicious. Especially since it wasn't his it was his recently departed brothers. He put his left hand in his pocket and just hoped she didn't notice it.

“So why are you in Era Ma’am?” He changed the subject and shortly realizing he never got her name. “Looking for Modekai Von Argus?, or did you have another more important reason?”he asked giving her one of his larger grins, and then held up a sack of jewels and put it down on the ground. “In any case that should cover for the windows and the charcoal.” He commented.However i now find myself broke

[Fayte Scarlett]

Fayte remained expressionless while Nines joked about them having an arrangement. While she wasn't going to actively attack him now... Fayte hardly saw it as an 'arrangement'. One false move, and they would be at each other's throats. Or, more just like she would be the one attacking. It was still quite fascinating that this man was actively trying to avoid combat, after looking for a fight earlier. He was still talking when she noticed the mark. It glowed somehow, shining through the darkness, to a point where Fayte wondered how she had missed it earlier. Or maybe it just glowed to her. The Shadow Heart tattoo. A mirror image of Nines's tattoo marked Fayte's own side.

Her eyes widened slightly. This man... he was part of Shadow Heart? While it wasn't completely unheard of for one to belong to the Magic Council, and feed Shadow Heart information... Fayte was fairly certain such members lacked the Shadow Heart tattoo - for safety reasons, mainly. So what was he, then? Shadow Heart? Or Magic Council? The clink of money brought her back to the conversation. “In any case that should cover for the windows and the charcoal.” He was giving her money.

The silence reigned for another uncomfortable amount of time. Fayte made no move towards or away from the money and Nines. She wasn't sure what she should be feeling. Grateful that he feared her so much, that he wanted to beg for amends? Offended that he thought jewels were some kind of key to her heart? Wary that this could be some kind of elaborate trick, and she might be dealing with a high-ranking Shadow Heart or Magic Council member? "I have no need for money," she told him flatly, deciding on the truth. She didn't want it. "That mark on your hand - what are you? A Dark wizard? Or part of the Magic Council?" She had barely heard the other questions, and honestly, she didn't really care about answering them. Now that she had seen the Shadow Heart mark, she needed to know if he was one of them or not. Even though she had asked directly, she probably wouldn't take his answer as complete fact.

[Nines]

Nines looked at the back of his hand, now covered by the bandages. She was referring to that, she had seen it. “it was a gift, from my brother” Nines said with a grin. “So a little bit of both dark wizard, and Magic Council, however if you were to search my corpse you wouldn't find a Magic Council tattoo, just that one.” He sighed “As for the dark wizard part, wouldn’t telling you outright also allow you to attack me? If you were hunting dark wizards what would I do after making this kind of truce between us? Admit that i'm a dark wizard and most likely a spy? What if you were a Council Seeker, and I admitted to treason, that would be grounds for either a painful death, or prosecution. Ive had a pair of anti-magic cuffs on myself before, I wish to never feel that feeling again thank you.” Nines replied crossing his arms and closed his eyes. “I will tell you though, is that if I do have dark magic, I don't use it. Hence the armor, its holder equipment.” He commented. “I only live to help the citizens of Fiore, not to hurt them.”

“And now that i’ve told you a bit about me. Including the fact that I have no reason to use what magic I may have, and that I consider myself completely disarmed. You should tell me a little about yourself.” Nines said with a small hint of a smirk forming at the corner of his mouth. “If you want to know more all you have to do is ask” He continued to ignore the fact that she thought the money was for her. He was leaving it for the shopkeep, it would be rude to break his windows and not pay for them. Nines was already prepared to pay for the other public windows he had broken, and replace those in his old house.

[Fayte Scarlett]

A gift from his brother... Fayte had never heard of their guild tattoo transfering from person to person. Could it be there was some kind of other magic within it, something as a last resort? She doubted that her brother had given it for Nines's welfare. People didn't just walk around with dark guild tattoos to wave about. She thought his hypothetical response was odd... Who else could Fayte be, if not a dark wizard. Few were gutsy enough to attack the Magic Council. There were a lot of rogues upset with the Council's decisions, but they attacked in packs and made sure those individual Councilmen never saw the light of day again. Fayte could act like this because she knew Shadow Heart would help her out if she needed it.

She trusted him less when he mentioned that he was here for the citizens of Fiore. That was too good of a response. Something that people said in the movies, or in books, to make themselves like a hero. Heroes didn't exist in real life. Now Nines was asking her to return the favor and talk about herself. "I am a dark wizard. I belong to the group whose tattoo you wear," she pointed out. The reason why she knew it to be a dark wizard tattoo was because she herself was part of it. There were plenty of obscure craftsmen tattoos, that people usually didn't look twice about. But then, he was a Magic Council member, or a dark wizard; at least one of those two. "I suppose that means you should arrest me." It was almost a challenge; as if telling him to make a decision... another option for the two of them to fight... Or perhaps he truly knew nothing about Shadow Heart after all.

[Nines]

Nines smile never faltered even when she said she was a part of the dark guild his brother was a part of. He thought his brother was a leader in it, something important. He guessed not now. “You know Ma’am, you probably shouldn’t just tell that to people, even if they do want to know more about you, in curiosity” Nines had gotten what he wanted though. She was part of the guild, he had wondered that since she asked the question of where he got it, obviously she knew it. “And no, i'm not going to arrest you, I would look like a bloody idiot” He said that with a smile. “Who knows how many friends you have in town, not to mention your guild acts like a proper guild when it comes to defending each other, I respect that. Theres also no way in hell you would come peacefully.” He sighed. “Besides, you’ve done absolutely nothing wrong in my book.” He nodded. “I broke the windows, and ill help replace them, you put a hole in the roof, and i'm going to help repair it. However, you’ve done nothing wrong. Your attack was in response to me being an idiot in the town square, I asked for combat. That was a mistake, and now this has happened.” He waved his arms around to emphasize his point about the damage. “You have committed no crime, only exploited the law of self defense.”

“If anyone should be arrested it’s me, as I’ve actually done a crime.” Nines chuckled as he put his hands in his pockets. “However It’s interesting to meet another dark guild member who doesn't have a hair pin murder finger, like my brother did” Nines smiled as he admired the hole she put in the ceiling. “I want to help you.” He commented, “I just don’t know how, I don’t even know your name”

"If you really wanted to fight, you wouldn't have stopped to debate about it when I stopped hiding. You would have ended me there. However if you're still curious about us fighting, I would gladly spar with you...." Nines paused as he turned to look at her. "However a spar is between acquaintances, or Friends....I doubt I could be considered either." He smiled at her "The look you give me is one of suspicion, and mistrust." He pulled out his left hand and clenched it. "However the fact that you trusted me with the information of you being in a dark guild, means that you're honorable in some way, both to your guild, and polite speech." He chuckled.

"The fact you rolled your eyes, even a little when I mentioned the reason I do what I do, means you find it a lie." He sighed. "I killed my brother, and he killed every member of my family. I hunted the man down for six years, relying off of tips the countrymen gave me, out of kindness. It was Fiore that allowed me to find him, so it was Fiore he hid from. It took me three years to find that man in the woods and put him down like the rabid bloodthirsty dog he was." Nines had dropped his happy tone, and face, he was now giving her a deadpan look. "After that I framed my own death out in the woods, incase any of his guild members, who I thought he lead, tried to pursue me." he clenched his left hand again. "After that I came here, hoping that I could go back to my original goal, of becoming a paladin, and helping the people, helping whatever traces of family or friends I could find." He replaced his hand back in his pocket.

"However now that I know the public hates us because of the people in charge of the council, I find myself saddened. They helped me in my time of need of revenge, to put down a man who was killing children so he could perform profane rituals with a being that he wanted to bind to his body so he could be immortal." Nines looked at the ground. "I killed the last person of my family besides myself, due to the peoples help, if anyone is my family now it is them. I desire to help them." He looked back at Fayte. "Thats why I say cheesy cliche one liners like that, and actually mean it." He shrugged his hands in his pockets.

"So Miss, Dark Guild member. My current goal is to learn more about you, broaden my horizons, make some friends, acquire a deeper understanding of those I consider my family. So if they need me, I can help them." He continued. "If they hate the magic council, whose to say they don't love your Dark Guild. If thats so, maybe im working for the wrong people."

[Fayte Scarlett]

Fayte knew she shouldn't tell people about her dark guild affiliation... there was a reason why she hadn't been caught or silenced, after all. But as much as she wanted to hide it, there was another part that was quite proud of her family. Especially when it came to the Magic Council. She wanted to be part of an organization that could challenge them in the open, one day. Plus there was the matter of what Nines would do with the info... if he would attack her in the name of justice, or if he would do so for personal reasons to find out more about Shadow Heart. If what Nines said was true, then he had no Magic Council friends to back him up right now. But neither did Fayte have immediate allies nearby, either. Their fight would come down between the two of them, if it came to that.

Nines still refused to take the bait, however. "Hmm. I haven't done anything wrong in your... book, despite being a dark wizard?" It was true that Nines had caused a lot more public property damage than she had. But then, there were far worse offenses. 'Dark wizard' was a rather vague term, simply referring to those who failed to meet the Council's standards. Technically the guildless were dark wizards, during the time of the ban. Nines would have no way of knowing how atrocious Shadow Heart could be. Except that his brother had been part of the group as well. So maybe he did know something about it. Her stern gaze softened ever so slightly, if only in amazement at Nines's ... admirable stupidity? She honestly didn't know what to make of him.

He had offered to help her (she took it in reference to Mordekai, or otherwise might have been offended), then explained his last ordeal with his Shadow Heart brother. "If the two of us fight, I want to kill you," she said truthfully. Letting him live would inevitably cause problems. It was technically problematic now, but she wasn't overly eager to initiate the fight herself. Maybe in a way it was absolving her of his blood, if he decided to attack first... which she was fairly certain he wouldn't do now. "So... it was for revenge," she repeated his stated reasoning. He could have said it was for some noble cause, since he liked to think of himself as a hero. But there were plenty of 'evil-doers' in the world, but only one that Nines had chased for so long. The admission of revenge was a surprisingly honest response. And one that was easy for her to understand. He added something about the need of the people, but it almost seemed secondary. This was the same ideal that she sought to achieve herself...

"Of course people hate the Magic Council. They take what they want through force, and use the law to place themselves above punishment. You can seek revenge, achieve it, and return home a hero. But if your brother had been part of the Council? Achieving the same would make you the worst villain, even if his deeds were identical to his time in our family," she said, in case he truly did not understand. "Mordekai von Argon is one such man. Honorable intentions, hailed as a hero, for committing genocide. I'm not sure you and I can understand each other. I certainly can't claim to understand you. But if you do have more you want to know about me... I will answer honestly." That's the best she could claim for now.

[Nines]

Nines chuckled, “I figured you’d respond like that, if you want to know, I’m not going to tell anyone of your affiliation, thats your choice. Justice is blind my lady, as for who serves it, who is to say.” His hands in his pockets he looked back up at the sky through the hole in the ceiling. “I know the magic council didn't used to be like that, I remember when we helped the people, because we could. We didn’t have too, we weren't even a part of the country once.” He sighed. “Apparently a war had happened while I was gone, and everything changed.”

“I understand your intent as well as I can, it’s why I won't attack you for some silly notion like justice, or the greater good. I am no hero. I’m an out of date remnant of the older council. I believe the people should be allowed to choose who their hero’s are. If thats your dark guild, then so be it, maybe its time the Council stopped being what it is today, and started being something different.” He made a hmm noise, “Maybe what we were before.”

“I must tell you, if we must meet in battle, I wish to be at your side, rather than as your enemy. However if it must be as your enemy, so be it. I would rather strike you down, then let someone else do it. Only because I consider you a good person, one I can respect.” Nines looked back at her as he said this. “You’re part of the people of Fiore too, just as much as any other guild member. Even the darker guilds are people of my home, my country. I miss a time when judgement was passed fairly, not as it is now. Where people are just hauled off to jail for simply being guildless.” Nines sighed deeply. “I understand what they were trying to do, but they did it horrendously and it backfired. Hard.” He pulled his left hand out of his pocket. “What befalls the council is none of my responsibility, until it threatens the peace of Fiore.” He clenched his fist, and winced as if in pain. “At that point I will personally be involved to keep the peace.” He sat on the floor and stared at the sack of money in front of him.

“I am a seeker of the magic council, hunter of dark guild members, that is my responsibility. However I was always told a seeker only captures, they never pass judgement, we are only the hand of judgement, we aren’t actually judgement ourselves.” He closed his eyes. “As such we serve as the scouts of the council, we locate weakness, we locate prey. We do not move on such things without orders from the paladins. All this wanton killings, and enforcement are not good for the public. Even if they are dark guild members.” He looked her in the eye. “Even if you all believe in something different than we do.”

“You're still people. You’re still family to someone, I regret killing my brother, but I would never take it back. For that I apologize to you, as he was in effect a member of your family. In a way, I owe you eternal servitude in some customs." He paused a grin crawling up the side of his face again. "I have sworn to never kill again, unless absolutely necessary, and even in that case, if someone else were available for such a thing, then to let them do it." He sighed “Because whether a fellow guild member or not, we have no right to take that away from you without some form of trial of guilt.” He stopped, He knew what she meant by such things. "So As I am as a person, if you could prove Mordekai von Argon's guilt, then I would be unable to stop you for claiming this revenge you seek. Murder is illegal, I see no reason to kill Dark Mages. Only monsters are fit enough to be put out of their misery by such a means."

“I hunted my brother who was part of your guild because I knew he was guilty of what he did. When I found out what he was doing, I knew it was my responsibility to kill him, for it wouldn't stop otherwise.”

“I feel you, yourself, know better than that. If you must make the country bleed for a greater purpose, keep the bloodshed to the guilty. The innocent have no meaning in this feud between your family, and the power I serve” Nines emphasized his position of serve, it was clear he held no close ties to the council as it was now. “I only wish to know one thing further of yours, before you leave.” He closed one eye, the other one lingering on her as he asked, “What is your name?” In actuality it was more a desire then a Need. She had a very down to look view on what needed to be done. She would kill him if they fight because he was a threat, and part of something she saw as the villains in the country. Nines could understand that, he felt the same way, it's just he had been through so much for the council. Bled for them, given so much for them. Lost so much for them, he no longer had a purpose to leave. If she was going to kill him, he would die as a villain for her story.

There always needed to be a bad guy for other people, was what everyone believed. Someone who you could blame things on, hate on, vent your frustration on, take out their anger on. If that had to be the council, so be it. In the end, he had served Fiore for a long time. He wouldn't die happy, but then again he was only happy once in his life, and his brother had ended that quickly. Since then Nines has been a very negative man. She may consider him stupid, due to his lack of attacking her, or accusing her of being a dark guild member. But good and evil were never black and white.

He would rather trust someone who was willing to admit they killed their family with the fate of the nation, more than he would trust someone who would spare their family with it. The former would get things done, help people, and pass judgement the way it was meant to be passed. The latter would abuse the system, let things happen and never learn a lesson.

Fayte was one of the former, he believed. So if she ended up in power, Nines wouldn't mind that so much. If She led Shadow Heart justly, rather than let people like his brother run rampant, like the current leader, this "Shadow Lord". He could see Shadow Heart becoming a strong guild, maybe even someday a legal guild.

[Fayte Scarlett]

Fayte was not a good person. Whether she was being judged by the world's standards or her own, she was pretty certain she didn't fit the 'good person' category. Although she didn't consider herself evil, she still recognized that she refused to be bound by many moral standards. Certainly Nines would know this, what with her decree of being dark wizard. Although... his words about even dark wizards being citizens of Fiore struck home. Dark wizards were citizens who weren't content with how things were being run. In the end, they were still people - people who were discontent enough to protest.

Nines had killed his own brother. But in some way, perhaps there was justice behind it. Who else would be able to pass judgement better than someone of the same blood? Fayte knew she should feel anger against Nines, for killing a member of Shadow Heart. Even though she was fairly certain she had never met his brother, it was beyond the principle. Shadow Heart was family between its members, too. Hurting them meant the individual called on the wrath of everyone in it. "...." Even Fayte was momentarily taken aback when Nines mentioned the family relationship between herself and the unmet brother. Somehow this man had known her thoughts before she even spoke them.

Now Fayte had met others in the past, those who claimed to understand her, or outright dissuade her. She even had some that had tried to convince her not to be a dark mage, like her path was somehow less desirable or honorable than their own way of life. Nines somehow had a method of respecting her, despite their differences. He wasn't trying to change her path, in a way, it almost seemed like he wanted nothing more than to stand equal with her. They had very different ideals and Nines wasn't prepared to back down from his... Fayte preferred it this way. Although she had her doubts earlier, she was surprisingly beginning to respect him more. He talked a lot, maybe too much for Fayte, but... she didn't necessarily hate him for it.

"...I believe you," Fayte affirmed. Perhaps that was the biggest compliment she could give him. She didn't feel like he was trying to cross her or make up some ideals just to impress her. There were clear conditions of what he thought was right and wrong, and being a dark or council member made no difference. "And I wish your superiors thought along the lines that you do. You don't need to concern yourself with Mordekai - it sounds like you have much more pressing problems to address than my personal agenda," she paused. It seemed the possibility of a fight was much slimmer now, and both were preparing to go their separate names. "My name..." It normally wasn't something she would give, at least not fully. But perhaps being found again by Nines, would not be so bad. Perhaps it would even lead to an interesting encounter. "It's Fayte Scarlett." She turned, preparing to leave...

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