Chapter 4: I only wish for some order

If there is something I truly despised as my worst flaw, it was how easily I would become a softie when I hear a solid sad story about someone going through hard times. It was a little something that had been there ever since my childhood, an event which I will not digress myself to explain caused this to become something of a terrible weakness of mine.

I had been used back during my school years, I had been used during my brief time as a sport player and then I found myself dabbling at the realization that I hadn’t truly taken a ‘polite and functional being’ within my humble abode.

Imagine waking up to prepare the breakfast, brain still failing to grasp the concept of ‘waking up’ as of yet and then… entering inside one of the messiest displays in which my poor living room could have been turned in a matter of a few hours spent by my unaware self in blissful and ignorant sleep.

It took me some monumental effort to not outright drop the large plate holding two steamy cups of coffee I had just finished to prepare. There were some cookies too, but I think my mind was experiencing the divine mix of anger and horror as I found the entire place littered with Blake’s clothes.

Well, mostly littered. The entirety of her clothes were all left in utter disorganization, scattered across couches and sofa while the ‘sleeping beauty’ enjoyed the lack of painful sunlight thanks to the curtained windows.

I could see her face, the Cat Faunus sporting a satisfied smile as she snuggled her face onto the pillow I was sure came from ‘her’ room, the sheets covering her lower body originating from the same room and… I froze for a moment as I realized a very shocking detail about her current state of sleep.

While the girl looked to be in heaven from the relaxed expression on her face, the sofa and the clothes she had decided to use as a sleeping wear proved that she had indeed gone through another terrible night cycle.

What truly got me particularly embarrassed, morality being a cruel mistress, was ‘what’ kind of night-wear she was still using. At first, I thought of it as a functional and slightly-conservative night-gown, having seen some distractedly while going through numerous shopping sprees in my life because of my mother’s and sister’s interest in fashion once or twice in a while.

Of course, that had been in the past and… I was proven that my first assumption was possibly the wrongest I could have ever guessed. In fact, I was stunned still as I realized that the ‘conservative pajama’ was none other than a revealing kimono that was partly unfolded to show… some curves.

The curves were evident, the pale skin-color bringing them up to an interesting but somewhat degree. I turned away from the embarrassing sight with a full-blush, my attention returning to the now shaky plate I was holding and I was quick to urge my unnerved mind to redirect the focus to the nearby small table.

I was slow, my pace a little stiffy as I settled the plate down and freeing myself of a limiting burden, one that had forbidden me until now to pick up a pillow in one of the couches and yeet it at the sleeping Faunus.

It slammed softly but true on her unfortunately unaware face, the sudden ‘attack’ being more than enough to get her to jump out from her pseudo-comatose state to a fully-awake and hyperventilating one.

Eyes wide open, darting from one side to another to try and see the cause of this unexpected disturbance, and finally she spotted me. Golden eyes bore onto my blue eyes and… she frowned in minor displeasure at the fact I was the sole possible responsible for this rough awakening.

“Wha-” Her words dying before those could even start to make a coherent speech, her reaction ended by the fact I now had my arms crossing close to my chest as my eyes turned to the closest of the two couches and Blake followed my stare to the ridiculous situation that was caused by her disorder.

Annoyance slowly simmered down at that new sight, in its stead a growing sense of cool realization washing over her sleepy body as she started to grasp the true reason behind her abrupt awakening. The Faunus looked nervous, possibly because she actually was a normally-ordered person compared to my first assessment and…

I genuinely hoped that it wasn’t nothing else other than that new guess.

She was silent for a while, her glance lingering longer through the ‘battlefield’ she had created and she sighed.

“I will fix this,” Blake replied to the mounting group of inquiries coming from my stern staring, her cat ears flapping down in discomfort. I could almost hear her add ‘I promise’ to that curt answer, but she caught herself from sounding too apologetic.

At least she had noticed how I dislike when people repeated apologies without meaning them. It was so unbecoming and annoying to have someone say ‘I am sorry’ and then go to make another mess after the one they made.

Hopefully, today was going to be as tame as it had been yesterday.

Facing another ‘Day One’ wasn’t certainly something I wanted to deal anytime soon, especially with how many expenses I still had to pay. The carpenter had gone to fix back the roof’s issue and I spent the time the man used to work on the damage to glare at the barely concealed girl.

Blake had taken ‘refuge’ in the very sofa she had turned up to sleep onto yesterday, trying to appear as naively innocent as she could. An act that ‘sadly’ didn’t get any more freebies out of me as I did mention that I would still take some money from her wage.

A solid 25% to be exact, the amount of the pay offered at the bar more than enough to have her survive even with that daunting drain for the problems she had caused in the last two days. It was almost impressive how someone could do so much of a grand issue as the one the Faunus had caused in the span of almost 48 hours.

“Why are you not sleeping in your room?” I asked with a somewhat calm tone, some of my irritation still passing through much to my inner chiding and the girl’s flinch. The lack of caffeine was a serious debilitation to my capacity to compose my emotions with how I planned to speak and right now, my anger wasn’t certainly hiding away.

I was just a little pissed, irked even at the fact I woke up to such a disgusting lack of capacity in keeping some orders. I wasn’t even mad that she had gone for the couch, with all due respect finding it unimportant compared to the state I found the living room mere moments ago.

“The mattress is too stiff,” She commented slowly, almost like as if she was keeping track of her words before giving them out. She was thinking before blurting and that was good in my book.

“You could have asked if there was another mattress,” I pointed out with a sigh, this time my stern posture breaking to allow me the chance of grasping the inviting cup of coffee. The first sip was enough to bring some more energy to my body. “I think I have two new ones lying around somewhere.”

She nodded, head slightly tilted towards in shame. “I didn’t want to bother,” Blake admitted with a frail tone. “I thought that it would have sounded a little… demanding from my part.”

I blinked, glancing at her in confusion as she averted her sight away from me. Now, that was actually a first.

“Did you forget what I said yesterday?” I found myself asking numbly. “I admit I went overboard with words and manners, I think you can easily understand why I had to be harsh and-”

I paused, flinching a little as she didn’t even bother turning her sight up to match with mine. I wasn’t expecting her to show defiance at my words, but I truly wanted to make it clear I didn’t truly hate her… completely. I was hating her for her recent actions, which had impacted severely on my daily life and put a temporary drain to my stable income.

This was difficult to watch in silence and inactively, and terribly familiar for how similar it did look to a certain painful instance of my childhood. I hummed, ignoring the little crave for a second sip from my mug as my free hand wandered over the untouched cup as I slowly walked up to Blake with it.

The Faunus didn’t react much at the fact I was approaching her, the only tale-telling sign being the way her cat-like ears were twitching. Attentive, cautious and somewhat curious about what I had planned for her to ‘endure’.

I sighed again, this time bending a little to offer the cup at the student and… she huffed.

“I don’t need it-”

“Please,” I pressed on with a tense but soft tone, feeling my little irritation vanish in a moment of… hesitation. “I understand you are tired and need some strength.”

She still looked a little reluctant at my offer, but now her attention was directed at the enticing mug waiting for her to be held and drunk from. A blink, then two and… still nothing. She was staring at it, with notable interest, but a general unwillingness to try and grasp it in her hands.

I sighed one last time. “I will help you fix things up,” I promised in an attempt to push her in the right direction. “I suppose I can spare some time for-”

“I-I don’t need your help,” Blake replied with a nervous note. “I… I know I did mistakes and- I’m glad that you are at least giving me a chance of paying back the issues I had caused.”

There was an uneasy pause as she let her expression relax just an instant, flashing a tiny grateful smile before returning her focus at the cup. Instead of resuming the stare competition with the object, her hands tentatively went to wrap around the cup, slowly but momentarily touching my fingers as I slipped my hold of the object to her and… she nodded.

“Thank you.”

Two simple words that gave me some relief as she then proceeded to bring the cup close to her lips, the girl taking a quick sip before flinching and let out a soft cough. I blinked, a simple snort leaving mouth cut short at the sight.

“I can bring some sugar if you want-”

“I-It’s fine,” She let out another quick cough. “I like it… bitter.” Finally, a small smirk forming on her face. “Still, thank you for the offer.”

It was all what I wanted to hear and, after that brief moment of genuine re-approach with each other, a finalization of the details that made our strange situation… strange, we proceeded to give a thorough clean-up of the living room.

Her clothes were folded in a thinly-made stack by the sofa. Stockings, vest, shirt, pants, ribbon, arm-wears and…

Underwear.

I was the one that found out personally that the girl was indeed sleeping without anything beside that revealing kimono. It didn’t help that she then caught me freezing me a moment with her panties before me, face flushing a bright red as she mechanically took them away from my hands and turned away from my mortified expression.

Now wasn’t that the proper awkward way to start this brand new day in Vale with someone as peculiar as was Blake Belladonna?

~Blake's POV~

If someone had told Blake just a week or two ago that she would have ended up living together with a ‘mostly’ complete stranger, the Cat Faunus would have easily scoffed at them, turned around, and waltzed away from their sight with her own eyes drowning in her little books.

It was certainly a sudden change that the girl had yet to stomach to the fullest, the fact that she was now forced to stay away from possibly the safest place in Vale. Beacon was homely but the reason that had driven her to seek out asylum there was because of the strong walls and good people ‘ruling’ over it.

The Headmaster was enigmatic with his mysterious ways, yet Blake knew of his diplomatic and appeasing tones from her father’s past talks about him. A curious elder that wouldn’t indulge much in breaking his own rules for the sake of something interesting happening around him.

Like a mature child with incredible political power and hold, Ozpin was still a trustworthy figure that certainly knew how to keep his own ‘fief’ well-protected and secured from any infiltration by external groups.

She could remember the annoyance displayed by Sienna when numerous attempts of that kind had yielded nothing if not backfiring results against the organization, the man being far too cautious to allow large teams with ‘peculiar’ upbringings and thus foiling any situation of the kind.

Yet Blake’s case had been particular and surely intriguing enough to catch the headmaster’s interest and subsequent intention of allowing her to enroll to the school. She could remember being captured after advancing the request for a secret meeting, panic surging when the officers sent to her temporary hideout said something about jail-time and a trial.

It had been some of the most difficult moments and she would be lying if she didn’t say how it had been a tense night at the police department back then, but then the man had decided to give her some trust and the Faunus was accepted in the Huntsmen Academy with some categorical conditions to keep up with, which she had been more than glad to uphold for the sake of not getting kidnapped back by any of Adam’s henchmen and brought before him… to face a trial for her unexpected ‘betrayal’.

Loyalists were everywhere nowadays, in the streets, in the docks, in the factories and in the farms, all ready to swear fealty to a ‘good cause’ like the one pushed by the White Fang. The lack of initiatives from the councils proving to be a good way to quickly recruit dissatisfied members of the numerous Faunus-led communities in their folds, increasing their ranks to a number three-times bigger than the amount present before Sienna had assumed the leadership.

Yet, just like her tenure in the group had soured before the violence and aggressive tones adopted by Sienna’s authoritarian rule, the little peace the girl had gained by becoming a member of Team RWBY was shattered in a moment of emotional distress.

As much as she had tried to keep things bottled up regarding her hidden features and her own origins, being around someone as pompous and racist as Weiss Schnee proved to be far more than the Faunus could have endured. It wasn’t just possible and her hopes of four to five years of minimal presence over the political landscape unfolding around Remnant were all crushed by the little faith ruined by the very cheeky moron she had allied with two days ago.

Sun was somewhat… easygoing. Kind of like Yang, but terribly easy to push over with how he was crushing on her. It was flattering to a fair degree, the attention he was giving her being rather acceptable compared to the obsessive one promoted by Adam.

Even in a topic of friendship, Sun felt more trustworthy and… less creepy than Ilia. The Chameleon Faunus was sweet and quite accepting of her different views, but she was still quite keen to give her some of the weirdest looks ever.

Something that had been a major thorn to any major ‘closeness’ they could have developed, but not enough to bring it all to a painful end. Cutting down her connection with Adam had left her hurt, but the path he had taken had been more than enough to get her to accept the need to put at end to that failing diplomatic approach.

But the fact that now Ilia could consider an enemy? The mere thought was enough to wager a large bit of her early-morning musings. Almost enough to even reduce the embarrassment of that rather unwanted discovery proclaimed by her ‘creditor’.

She blamed tiredness, yet she wouldn’t be lying to herself. Even when Sid had asked about the reason behind the mess she had left on his wake while folding her vest in a calm but steady way, the girl had been hesitant to give out the real motivation.

Nightmares had been a thing for a long time now, but not was much as they had been in the last few days. Her unconscious reaction was far stronger than the meek ones she would have back in her team’s room and the reasons behind such change was actually easy to point out from small details.

With Yang’s easy-to-hear snores, Ruby dragging her homework up to late, and with Weiss giving some annoying-to-listen lectures to the young team leader, Blake had never experienced a state of complete sleep at Beacon, her senses keeping a state of partial awareness of what was around her.

And that was until she had fallen onto that delightful sofa decorating the young man’s living room.

If Sid snored or not, she wouldn’t be having trouble to deal with it as his roof was still far from the living room, far enough to allow her moments of silent rest to be wasted in… bad memories that didn’t leave her alone for just a moment.

Vivid memories and altered scenes of her pasts that haunted her tired mind, keeping her from fully attaining a proper sleep in that perfect settlement she got in this ideally-good predicament. While she was indeed forced to work for some place in Vale, the lack of violence (human, Faunus and Grimm) was actually proving to be a decent change to her livelihood as her work was… easy.

It wasn’t dull enough as the shift was perfectly halved to allow some time to not lose herself in the tasks provided and the pay was nothing to truly scoff at. It was proof that Marcus Cobalt wasn’t racist, or that at least he didn’t mind having a Faunus worker and giving them same rights as human ones.

It was pleasant to be reminded that there were some good people in Vale, that the case provided by Cardin’s mere existence was actually an extremely-small minority compared to the large approval of equal rights with Faunus-kind. People were receptive for change, but there weren’t serious rules that established that.

Blake was fine with this, but she couldn’t help but be a little miffed by the fact she wasn’t guaranteed in a legal way, that her position was offered out of kindness and good-will. Her musings cut brief as the walk through Vale to reach the ‘Morning Sip’ was as uneventful as the last two times.

The owner greeted them both chirpily, Blake smiling at the older man while Sid merely granted him a quick ‘good-morning’ before they both went to the locker rooms. In a normal circumstance, the mixed area would have caused major problems because of their different sexes, yet the fact that the changing to the uniform required just a tiny bit skin exposure, made the experience bearable if not forgettable.

The human finished first, the elements of his clothes as a waiter being less than the one the Faunus had to put on. The uniform itself had been a surprise, part of her expecting for her to be subjected to some ‘Neko-Maid’ situation rather than being given a professional look and… she was happy about what she got.

It wasn’t the best work in Remnant, but she was happy to say that it was definitively better than boringly spending her days studying things she knew about in Beacon or being restricted by the limited air allowed by the White Fang.

Here she was Blake Belladonna, simple waitress in a morning-only bar. She was deemed a young woman, not a student, nor a fodder to waste in the ‘long and shining path of the revolution.’ She wasn’t a pawn to some mastermind and she wasn’t truly forced to do anything.

The girl chose this road and she was eager to responsibly go through this and… there was just a worry that had superseded anything she had been having nightmares about. A new concern that was as silly as rightfully proposed by her mind.

What happens when she was done with her debt? Would she be allowed to stay?

Naively, she had expected for Sid to bring up the topic either earlier in the morning or even before by yesterday’s dinner, but the young man had been mostly focused on the present rather than in the future.

While his intentions were genuinely good (or at least, she hoped so), he didn’t have any reason to worry about the time the debt she had for him was exhausted by the installments planned. And even though such situation wouldn’t happen anytime soon as of how ‘little’ he was taking from her wage, she couldn’t help but wonder about what would come next.

Would the Cat Faunus have her strained relationship with her team solved by the time? Would she have the means to ‘survive’ by the time this was all over?

Will this ever be over, the peace and the calm she was so happily enjoying?

She couldn’t help but appreciate the rather selfish need of preserving the new status quo, it was far too decent and acceptable, inspiring and endearing for someone as tired as Blake.

The girl sighed as she left the locker room with some heavy thoughts to develop during her mindless working, her hands pressing the door behind her close as she shifted her attention back to the now-open activity, going back to the counter as she prepared with Sid to accommodate the first clients.

She sported a tiny smile, her mind reminding her that she had to give a positive impression to those she was going to take orders from and… then her entire facade dropped in a shocked jaw-drop.

Gone was her composure, gone was her little calm of mind as the very first individual to walk inside the building was someone she was familiar with and very keen to avoid for the time being because of how she had ‘took care’ of him back at the docks.

Smiling eye-to-eye in a rather cheeky way, blue eyes exploring briefly all over the bar while he stretched his arms to the side and giving a full flex of his muscles, and abs freely exposed by his open shirt, Sun Wukong looked rather unaware of the incredibly (un)lucky predicament he had stumbled upon.

Maybe it was karma, she should have been a little less rude to the energetic Monkey Faunus and then, if things couldn’t get any worse in that very horrible development, Sid decided to approach the still-unaware Haven student.

“Good morning, sir,” The human said with a polite tone, catching the attention of the blond. “And welcome to ‘Morning Sip’.”

The smile brightened a little more at the polite greeting. “Thanks man,” He replied mirthfully. “I just wanted to try out this place as I’ve heard good things from some friends of mine and… is it possible for me to browse a little from the menu before-”

The paper containing the entire list of sweet snacks and other delicacies for that early hour was provided by Sid to the slightly-surprised Monkey Faunus. “It is actually how we prefer clients to pick,” The young man replied with his professional voice. “It’s best to know a little more about ingredients and the way some of the food is made for the sake of avoiding causing trouble to those with intolerance to any of the ingredients.”

Blake was quick to exploit the opportunity to get herself away from sight, ducking behind the counter and… getting a curious glance from Marcus, the man noticing her action and casting a confused glance her way.

The Faunus flinched and mouthed a ‘I will explain later’ at the owner, his eyebrow lifting in a curious fashion before he turned his attention back at the coming clients. Several were frequent ones but, instead of finding relief in the mass of people coming inside, the Belladonna felt herself paling as she spotted a familiar blonde cowlick standing uniquely among the other people and…

Yes, her eyes weren’t deceiving her as a slightly-annoyed Yang Xiao-Long made her way towards Sun. The Monkey Faunus pausing the interaction with the waiter to wave at Blake’s girlfriend and… getting a snort back from the fellow blonde.

“Morning, Goldi-”

“Can it, Monkey-boy,” The Xiao Long shot back with a tired sigh. “It’s too early in the morning to be this cheerful and… I’m not in the mood for any fun dates right now.”

There was a pause, the grin on the boy’s face widening at the comment. “C’mon, it’s not just a ‘date’-”

“Before you thrown in your crappy ideas,” Yang interrupted the fellow student, turning her lilac eyes at Sid. “Could you please get me a cup of coffee? I need something strong enough to kick myself awake.”

The young man nodded without much of a reply to the girl’s request, turning a moment to Sun. “I will take your order once hers is done.” He bowed a little as to apologize and accepting the quick nod from the Faunus before going back to the counter and… noticing what was going on with Blake.

He blinked once, then twice. “What are you doing?” He whispered with some annoyance, her whole face cringing at how close the two familiar people were to her current cover right now. That wasn’t the best scenario. Not at all.

“They are ‘that’ friends I told you about.” She replied quickly but still whispering, afraid of getting the two hotheaded teens on her trail if she was too loud. Sid blinked again but this time gave her a slow nod before picking the prepared coffee mug and walking back to the table.

The Cat Faunus had been distracted by the quiet discussion the two were having, Yang appearing rather deflated compared to her usual self, the cheeky tones and the easygoing attitude having disappeared from her current self. Quite surprising and… worth a quick flinch as her mind pointed out it had happened right as she had bolted away at the docks.

Her fault? Possibly.

Was it possible to mend the damage? She was unsure.

The blonde thanked the waiter before taking a long sip from her mug, eyes almost closing in bliss as she took in the bitterness of the normal coffee, a little smile gracing her face as she commented happily about the ‘best coffee she had ever drunk’ which was… rather difficult to judge about as a compliment.

Yang never took a cup of coffee in the last few weeks and her knowledge over her teammate was… incredibly limited. That’s why she just accepted it as a decent comment and ignored the detail altogether.

Then Sid went to take Sun’s orders, returning to the counter and, while the order was being prepared, deigned her an inquisitive look. It wasn’t difficult to understand that he wanted some more answers about the predicament she was facing, possibly also names and descriptions of people she was currently avoiding.

More work for Blake, but maybe it was about time for the girl some more details about her situation. The man had yet to show hints of serious disdain and his complaints were directed at legitimately damaging actions she had committed against him.

It wouldn’t do well for her to continue with her lone wolf attitude, denying herself an ally in those trying times would be akin to shot herself in the foot with Gambol Shroud. Speaking of guns, she had to see if Sid would take her to the nearby Dust shop to buy some ammo.

The girl was technically running on just a handful of magazines and she needed some munitions in case things turned… sour for everyone. Mostly for Sid, especially for Sid. He was an unharmed citizen that had been taken inside a storm in the making, one that she was possibly responsible for.

And thus, blissfully distracted by her own thoughts about the helpful man, Blake was unaware of the fact that Yang had approached the counter to spare some words to the waiter and the owner.

“Sir, I know that it sounds a little demanding, but can I ask you a few questions about a possible client you might have had?” The blonde started with a calm tone, drawing a curious look from Marcus, a kind smile on his face.

“If it isn’t anything personal, then sure,” The man said with a jovial tone. “And I think that the reason behind this request isn’t anything light or to dismiss so soon.”

The brawler nodded and took out her Scroll to show a picture of… Blake Belladonna.

“She is my partner at Beacon Academy,” The girl explained with a serious edge. “She ran away two days ago during a skirmish that happened by-”

“The docks?” Sid’s interruption was the one thing that took Blake out of her thoughts, eyes widening in shock as she noticed how close Yang was to her. This- This wasn’t happening!

The owner blinked at the picture and seemed to be putting an effort to not glance down at where the Cat Faunus was hiding. Instead the waiter was flawlessly pulling a poker face at the picture and Yang’s reaction to his interjection.

“There was a news report about it yesterday night, that means that you are one of the huntresses that went to deal with the theft led by Torchwick.” He twisted the topic, the flattering tone being enough to draw a smile on the blonde’s face.

“We are still students… but yes, we were there for… reasons.” She admitted with some nervousness, still smiling at the compliments. “Still, I know that the photo offers little-”

“Actually, it offers a lot… Miss?” He paused to ask, lilac eyes easing at the simple request.

“Yang, Yang Xiao Long.”

“Well, Ms. Xiao Long, the picture itself ‘says’ that you are searching a Cat Faunus with black hair, amber eyes and a skin-tone paler than many people here in Vale,” Sid pointed out with a polite smile. “I think that offers more than just a ‘little’.”

The blonde’s face… seemed to gain a little more color at that reply. “Really? Then can you-”

“Still, we would have noticed someone with those details and… I can assure you with utmost certainty that she never walked in this establishment,” Sid interrupted again, this time his smile being rather sad about it. “But if you want, we will keep an eye around for anyone like her.”

The suggested offer was met with a quick nod.

“That would be cool,” Yang said with some little irritation at not having any hints of her ‘close, but also not’ partner. “Also, can you tell me your name? Maybe exchange Scroll’s number or-”

“Ms. Xiao Long, I didn’t… expect to be subjected to this kind of flirting,” The young man pointed out, causing the blonde to freeze a moment and snort, amusement playing for a moment as her face flushed a strong pink.

“Funny guy too, ain’t ya?”

He shrugged, but still spoke. “Still, I guess you are right.” He passed the number of his scroll and then- “By the way, I’m Sid, Sid Tremaine. Nice too meet you, Ms. Xiao Long-”

“Hush with the ‘Ms.’ thing. Call me Yang and you allow me to the first name basis too? How about that?” She interrupted, bringing surprise to both the waiter and Blake herself.

While the Cat Faunus had pinpointed the ‘forward and expressive’ attitude of the young man as an act, she had certainly felt unexpected how her partner had reacted. Yang flirted light-heartedly with everyone and, it was strange to see her being ‘this much’ forward with someone.

Still, the young man nodded and soon the two students from different academies left the ‘Morning Sip’ without much of a warm greeting, leaving Blake to stand up and face the music she had set up on herself because of fate itself.

“So,” Marcus finally spoke as Sid went to deal with the new wave of clients. “You are a student at Beacon Academy, Blake?” He asked slowly, trying to appear mindful of how strong such an inquiry could be.

“I… am,” The Faunus admitted with a sigh. “It’s just… that things have happened. It’s a long story.”

The man sighed at the mysterious curtness but smiled at the last bit.

“Well, I think there is already plenty of time to chat, especially since I think Sid will not be minding taking some of your burden as we talk about it.” The owner mentioned, causing Blake’s eyes to turn at her ‘colleague’.

While the young man had appeared collected and calm by the time the ‘trouble duo’ had been at the bar, after they had left his facade had dropped to show a rather flustered individual trying to focus only on his job. She could see how he wouldn’t mind to have some more tasks to not ‘think’ about what had just happened.

Yang was attractive and quite keen to point this out so flamboyantly, thus it wasn’t difficult to see how someone as cool and calculative as Sid would have some trouble dealing with the full brunt of that comeback.

A cheeky smile crept on her face at the thought that, deep in that armor of irritation and simplicity, there was someone that was could still get embarrassed and teased on by someone like Yang.

It just made the future chit-chat on the way back to the flat even more… interesting, she supposed.