[Deleted]

Amora saw Sonnet look over at the couple Amora had been watching.  Sonnet asked if they were friends of hers and Amora shook her head.  "Never seen them before," she said.  "I guess they're not friends of yours, either.  Maybe they're just bored and like to watch people."  Amora was certain they thought nothing of Sonnet.  In Sonnet's line of work, one typically didn't become a public figure.  The days of Capone were over.  Crime was different these days.  People were different.  There was no going back.
    The drinks arrived and Amora took a sip of hers.  Sonnet was pouring hers into a glass and asked about Amora's work.  "I take what I can.  I don't really need the money, I just enjoy the work.  So there isn't really a stressful part to it.  As for exclusivity," she paused, thinking this over, "yes and no.  I don't discriminate when it comes to clients, aside from what I can find out with, say, a background check, or talking to them beforehand.  Like an interview of sorts.  I always get to know my clients beforehand.  But you're probably thinking that they could lie, and that's true.  But I can take care of myself if there is a lapse in civility at any point.  I didn't get this far by being stupid."
    She took another drink and smirked.  "And you're right.  Not always this exciting."  She cleared her throat and leaned forward a little.  "When you hear the term 'escort' you might consider it synonymous with 'prostitute' and under typical circumstances you would be right.  But that is not what I do.  I'm basically a date-for-hire.  Or whatever reason.  My skills are varied, and I can perform in many different ways.  A prostitute is not one of them.  The term just kind of stuck with me, and I lack an alternative for now."

[Sonnet Matsuda]

In the end everything collides

420

@amora

Sonnet shrugged, "Maybe, there's always someone nosy, although no one has ever bothered me in here. One of the reasons I come here so often."

That didn't stop Sonnet from considering the pair a second longer. At least this time she didn't feel an edge of anger, as she had when she'd first seen Amora. In truth, that edge of anger was still, there, just simmering below the surface. It was taking something of an effort to be more than civil with her in truth. There was something about this woman that put Sonnet on edge, perhaps the fact that she had been hiding her metahuman abilities, not that she could blame her. Sonnet didn't exactly advertise hers either.

The Yakuza Lieutenant raised an eyebrow at Amora's comment on taking care of herself. She had seen. There weren't many metahumans that could take a bullet at that close range and walk away without a scratch. Frankly, the thought that Amora couldn't look after herself would have been more amusing. She'd lifted a man into the air with one blow. Admittedly it seemed to come with some drawbacks, like the increase in size that had shredded her outfit.

"I can believe that you can take care of yourself. I did just watch you take down four assassins."

Amora leaned forward, and Sonnet did as well, strangely feeling suddenly interested in what the other woman had to say. When she realised what she was doing she relaxed back in her chair, but the change in posture was clearly abrupt, unnatural.

"I won't lie, I was sure you were there to entertain the European both during and after the deal. It's just the kind of thing Kenshin would do to close a deal. I suppose it's lucky that things went the way they did, I'm not sure what would have happened otherwise."

She had finished the glass she'd poured, so she poured another. It wasn't particularly good alcohol, but it wasn't quite the worst stuff that was on offer. Either way it was strong, and cheap, and Sonnet felt that after tonight she'd need a buzz, however long that would take. Still, she had been given a task by Kenshin, and she should at least appear to attempt it, no matter how much she didn't want to spend more time with this woman.

"I'm sure you'll say no, but powers like yours aren't that common, you could make a lot more doing other things, and you wouldn't get the constant comparisons with hookers."

My childhood spat back out the monster that you see

► kaigra ◄

[Deleted]

Amora sighed, thinking back over the events of the evening.  While unfortunate, she reasoned that the outcome could have been far worse.  Sure, Sonnet would have been able to get some of her people out of there, but the clash would have likely ended in worse bloodshed.  Amora was glad to have been the shield.  When Sonnet brought up how she had taken down four assassins, confirming that she was capable enough to take care of herself, Amora thought about that for a second.  "The way I look at it, if I hadn't, they would've hurt someone else.  You, your boss, a random person that just happened to be walking to their car, whoever."
    After shifting in her seat, Sonnet said the events of the night were lucky in a way, as there was no telling what would have happened with the European afterward.  "I think so, too," Amora said.  "I mean, if he tried anything with me afterward and I had to," she paused, thinking of the right word, "rebuke him, he might've come after Kenshin later.  That could've been bad.  With there being so many variables at any given time, I agree with you."
    Sonnet finished another glass and poured again.  Amora wondered if she could drink indefinitely.  But instead of taking another drink right away, Sonnet reasoned that, given the uncommon nature of Amora's powers, she could make a lot more money in a less stigmatizing venue.  While Amora did enjoy her work, the comparisons did surface from time to time.  She liked helping people, but it did not take much to tarnish one's reputation these days, no matter how many lives were saved.  All it took was one bad thing to taint the hundreds of good things, it seemed.  "That's true," Amora said.  "I've thought about it some.  I like helping people.  I like making them feel good.  It's a lonely world out there."  
    Out of the corner of her eye she saw the man at the table point and Amora followed his finger to the television behind Sonnet, hanging in a corner above the bar.  On the screen was a commercial for Sephora eyeshadow and Amora recognized herself despite the mask she wore on the screen.  But on the screen she was known as Titania, her name in the Hero Program.  She propped her chin in her hand, fingers tapping her cheek, looking back to Sonnet.  "What kind of job do you think I should get?"                                                                                                     

[Sonnet Matsuda]

In the end everything collides

272

@amora

"I suppose it was a good thing he attempted to kill us when you were there. The element of surprise that another meta brought only helped. I don't think he expected one, let alone two."

That the Yakuza on the East Coast possessed a meta was not particularly secret, that the metahuman was female was. It was rare enough to have females in the Yakuza, particularly in leadership roles, clearly the European had thought the chances slim that the woman at the meeting had been a metahuman. Or anything other than Kenshin's arm candy perhaps. It would not be the first time someone made that assumption, despite her efforts, and in fairness his, to the contrary.

Amora's words could have been so easily twisted, had Sonnet been so inclined. Making people feel good was exactly what hookers did so well. She sipped at the glass in her hand, although to call them sips would be stingy. "It is," she agreed.

Amora's wandering attention once more caught her eye, and she glanced up at the TV screen that had apparently distracted the escort. She froze as she recognised the eyes on the screen. Her eyes flickering back to the eyes of the woman in front of her before she regained control of herself and finished the glass set in front of her. She used the pouring of another glass to conceal her confusion.

"Well with a power like yours you could definitely go into Hero work. Not that I'm saying you should. My organisation would certainly pay an awful lot to have someone like you in their corner. Just how tough are you?"

My childhood spat back out the monster that you see

► kaigra ◄

[Deleted]

Sonnet turned and looked at the commercial on the television and shifted back around to take another drink.  Amora was pretty certain that she could make a connection.  She was betting on it far more confidently than Sonnet just fulfilling some curious urge to see what Amora had been looking at.  And her assumption was everything but confirmed when Sonnet said she could join the Hero program or, if she really wanted to make some money, join Kenshin's crew.  The mention of the program was what caught Amora's attention.  They were obviously opposed to the likes of Yakuza.  And she was sure that Sonnet would have some things to say if Amora brought up her true connections.  But to keep acting as if it were a secret, that was likely problematic on its own.  Besides, Amora had just saved the Yakuza from slaughter.  That surely had some weight to it, even if they felt like they had been working with the enemy.  Would they think she was being dishonest with them?
    "I don't think I would be a good fit for your organization," Amora said.  "I'm not sure I possess the right temperament, if that makes any sense."  She glanced around and said in a softer voice, "Yakuza are not exactly known for their charity, at least by the common man on the street.  That being said, I'm not going to play dumb."  She gestured to the television.  "I saw you looking.  Yeah, that's me.  But I wasn't here for Kenshin.  Everything concerning my meeting with the European was true.  So take that as you will."  She took another drink.  "As for how tough I am," she shrugged.  "I don't know.  That depends on your opinion of me.  Or Kenshin's, even.  As I said, my argument is not with your organization.  But I don't think it would be wise to say much more at the present time."

[Sonnet Matsuda]

In the end everything collides

483

@amora

In truth, Amora was right, the Yakuza had once had a reputation as a modern day Robin Hood, helping the ordinary man on the street. They had even rebuilt some of that reputation after the 2011 earthquake in Japan. The Yamaguchi-Gumi in New York had sent money and supplies overseas that had then been transferred directly to victims and survivors of the disaster. The Yakuza still called themselves ninkyo-dantai, humanitarian groups, but they had strayed very far from their charitable history.

Ultimately they were still criminals though, they made their money running drugs, guns and people in and out of the countries they operated in. That and high-level financial crime. Sonnet only really had fingers in two of those operations. She'd not shown much interest in human trafficking in particular. Though not through any particular distaste she assured herself.

The goodwill from those actions would not last forever though, and mostly the Yakuza kept to themselves in New York. They ensured that crime taking place in their neighbourhoods was stopped swiftly. Shops paying protection money would not be bothered, nor were tourists. After all, tourists gambling, drinking and sleeping away their money was a major source of income for the Yamaguchi-Gumi in New York City, and the promise of brutal retribution to anyone who harmed them on Yakuza turf kept them safer than in many other areas of the city.

"No, I think most do not appreciate us. But we are a necessary evil."

She drank from the glass again, so her attempt to hide her realisation had been a failure. Her denial was no surprise, of course she would say that. Although the thought that she was genuinely working as an escort for the night was strange, somehow Sonnet found herself believing her. She drained the glass this time. Clearly something about this woman was putting her off her game, she would have to report her true identity back to Kenshin, he would be very interested to know that the escort he had hired was in fact a member of the Hero Program.

She spoke as she poured another glass, "No, perhaps not, no-one has bothered me here before, but then I do not normally bring business to the bar. I forgot that for you, this is exactly that."

It was strange that a woman in the Hero Program, who had sponsorships already and surely was being offered more, would still maintain a job as an escort, surely that wouldn't be good for her image if it got out. Kenshin would certainly be interested in that angle, Sonnet could almost see the expression on his face, and had to crush a sudden inexplicable surge of anger. She stared at the bottle for a moment, was it stronger than she'd thought?

She raised the glass as though in toast, "At least we can be business partners then, rather than enemies. For now anyway."

My childhood spat back out the monster that you see

► kaigra ◄

[Deleted]

Amora kept watching the television.  On the screen was news footage of a field out in the Midwest somewhere.  A tornado was tearing up the earth, dust and debris swirling around the black swirling mass.  Then the image shifted to a man walking toward the twister.  The man, his back to the camera, raised his arms and the camera panned back.  The tornado began to slow and the debris flew off, chunks dropping to the earth as if invisible fingers dropped the pieces all at once, and the twister slowed and dissipated into a cool blue sky, sun breaking through the black clouds above, followed by a clear blue sky.  Amora looked away from the excitement once the reporter appeared back on the screen.  Sonnet was pouring another drink, saying she had forgotten that this whole thing was only business for Amora.  Amora was ready to blame it all on Sonnet, but she held back, saying, "Well, it's a little difficult to make it about anything but business.  We know nothing about each other beyond superficial things, and some of what has been said tonight might not even be true."
    Sonnet raised her glass in a toast.  Amora did the same in a half-hearted gesture.  "To business partners," she said, not bothering to hide her sarcasm.  "Or worse."  And she took a drink.  Sonnet wasn't making this easy.  Amora was tempted to just head back and tell all she had learned and have some other heroes come back with her and take everyone out.  But she wanted to give Sonnet the benefit of a doubt.  "If not friends, better enemies than liars, after all," she said.

[Sonnet Matsuda]

In the end everything collides

272

@amora

It was clear to Sonnet that the other woman was not entirely enamoured of this experience, perhaps it was because she wasn't drinking, perhaps this kind of bar simply wasn't her scene. Or maybe she just didn't enjoy associating herself with people like Sonnet. Sonnet couldn't blame her, but she needed to keep her here, after all, Kenshin expected her to get information about the woman. While the knowledge that she was a Hero was important, he would likely want more. And while she would never admit it to herself, she wanted Amora to stay.

"Well then let's make it more honest. I swear that any question you ask that I am able to answer I will do so honestly"

She raised her glass a little, then tilted it back, letting some of the amber liquid flow between her lips. "Obviously some things I can't or won't tell you. But if that's the case I won't lie, just tell you I can't answer."

Shrugging, she continued, "I suppose you don't have to believe that what I say is true, but I can give you my word that I won't lie, and criminal or not, I won't break that."

Sonnet didn't know whether that would be enough for Amora, but she hoped it would, inexplicably. She reminded herself that Kenshin had ordered her to take this woman and find out what she knew, and as much about her powers as possible. That was what this was for, nothing more, nothing less. Maybe if she revealed some truths about herself Amora would reveal some of her own. That was why she was here. Right?

My childhood spat back out the monster that you see

► kaigra ◄

[Deleted]

Amora closed her eyes, partially out of annoyance, partially out of boredom.  She opened them soon enough that Sonnet might have thought it a slow blink than anything less respectful.  Sonnet offered Amora the option of asking her anything and she would answer honestly - even if the response was that she could not answer for whatever reason.  Amora thought about that.  It was rich, coming from someone with upstanding connections such as Kenshin and his ilk.  Sure, they had hired Amora for the night, but her actual criteria was met - though not in the way Kenshin had hoped.  They really had no other reason to keep her around.  However, she was certain that the only reason she was sitting here with Sonnet was because they wanted something else out of her.  Otherwise they were throwing their money away.  But, if they wanted to go this way, Amora would play the game for a little while.  
    She sat back in her chair and took another drink and set her glass down, but did not release it from her fingertips.  She studied Sonnet.  She wasn't going to try to tiptoe around trying to figure out Sonnet's game.  She had better things to do.  "Okay," she said.  "Then why am I here?  Why did you bring me to this bar?  And don't tell me it's to have a friendly drink unless you're the one I'm really dating tonight."  She pointed at Sonnet's throat.  "And tell me how you got that scar."
    Despite what Sonnet had said, Amora did not expect her to give an entirely truthful answer.  Yes, what Sonnet said could technically still count as the truth, such as "An accident" or "I was attacked," but she did not think Sonnet would reveal every detail.  Like she had already stated, Sonnet would simply tell her she couldn't answer for whatever reason.  Which did absolutely nothing for Amora.

[Sonnet Matsuda]

In the end everything collides

704

@amora

A people person Sonnet was not, but she was no idiot. Amora might still have an agreement with them, but she was clearly wondering why she was still here. After all, Sonnet herself had been less than welcoming when the escort had first arrived, and yet here she was in a bar with the woman, acting as though she wanted to learn more about her life. It didn't take a genius to spot the glaring flaws.

Sonnet wanted to just let the woman go, allow her to leave. Why should she care? After all, it wasn't as if they required her services anymore, and it could certainly be argued that she had more than fulfilled her side of the bargain when she'd knocked the European unconscious, fine print be damned. Still, Sonnet had expected at least a little more breathing room before she went straight to the heart of the matter, but Amora was clearly aware that she owed her nothing.

She would answer the question honestly, but something kept her from doing so immediately, she didn't quite understand it, and her mind rebelled against the unconscious desire. Even so…

She lightly fingered the scar on her neck. It looked raw and pink, almost as if it was fresh. In truth it was now nearly a year old.

"A man tried to cut my throat, we… the Yakuza like to think we are honourable, and in some ways, we are. That does not change one of the primary methods for ascension though. One of my subordinates thought he could do a better job than me."

She put her glass down, tracing a finger idly around the rim as she recounted the story.

"It was after the Event. I was still learning how my abilities worked, I'd only had them for a few weeks. No one else knew what I could do. It's probably the only reason I'm still alive. I would have liked to have seen the look on his face when I disappeared after he tried to slit my throat... He was supposed to be a friend..."

She dropped her fingers from her throat now, toying with the half-filled glass on the table. "I went home, ruined my mom's carpet, and she got me to a doctor."

It had been a shady, off the books deal, but the man had been good at his job and he'd saved her life. If he'd been any less effective she'd be dead.

"Apparently if he'd gotten the blade a millimetre deeper he would have done more than nick the carotid, and I wouldn't be talking to you now."

There was a strange tone in her voice as she continued, it had been then that things had really started to change, that Father Matthias' words had seemed to grow more relevant.

"He's dead now, I couldn't risk that he would try again, and honour dictated I defend myself. You know how it is."

She drained the rest of the glass, letting it clink gently against the table as she put it down. She'd avoided the first question. It was bad enough that she had, but her honour would not allow her to go back on her word, and nor would Amora she had no doubt. Screw Kenshin, he could have come to talk to the woman, he was better at this sort of thing anyway.

"Kenshin ordered me to. You're a metahuman, and a powerful one, that's rare, and valuable, he wanted to know if we could use you."

Perhaps they could, the woman was a Hero, her reputation may not be that important to her, but it would be important to the Program, the fledgling organisation would immediately distance itself from any scandals, certainly non-family friendly ones that might arise if information got out about what Titania did in her spare time. No doubt Kenshin would use that information, or at least threaten to.

She doubted the woman would react outwardly, she had seemed fairly controlled all evening, even under the attentions of the European. Clearly she was used to controlling her emotions.

Sonnet stared at the glass in front of her, not really sure what to say and wishing that Amora would just go. Even so, she didn't ask her to leave…

My childhood spat back out the monster that you see

► kaigra ◄

[Deleted]

"Yeah, I know how it is," Amora said.  For once, this was something she could agree with Sonnet on.  And she believed Sonnet's story.  She figured something so life-changing would be useless to fake.  What could Sonnet get out of doing something like that?  Sympathy, sure.  Pity.  Amora lowering her guard, perhaps.  But she had asked and Sonnet had answered.  It was a telling story, if fake it was one Sonnet had likely practiced and shaped over time.  But Amora wanted to believe she was telling the truth.
    Sonnet told her why she was here, on Kenshin's orders, trying to recruit Amora due to her show of strength earlier.  Amora said nothing.  She sat back in her chair and looked at a place above Sonnet's head.  "You know," she said after some silence, "when the Event occurred I was in an airplane, heading out of the city.  Someone set off an electromagnetic pulse and another just disintegrated the plane right there, before it could really begin to fall out of the sky.  And there I am, hurtling toward earth with everyone else.  And when you've reached terminal velocity and see that earth reaching up to you, it gives you time to think.  I thought about a lot of things in that brief amount of time that seemed to stretch on for eternity.  One thing I really focused on was all of the mistakes I had made in life and how I never got to make up for them.  And that was the saddest thing to me.  Not never saying goodbye to my parents or anything like that.  No, it was the thought that I was going to die and have absolutely nothing to look back on in the brief time I had left except to see one thing: regret."
    Amora looked at Sonnet again.  "So after I had hit the earth, just carved this massive trench in the dirt and grass, I heard everyone else hitting the ground all around me.  I got up, clothes torn away.  Didn't have a scratch on me.  And this guy just slams into the ground right in front of me.  Just explodes.  And now I've got this guy all over me and I can't get him off.  Trying to wipe the blood off, pick his teeth and pieces of flesh and organs out of my hair.  And I just..."
    Amora trailed off and looked out the window for some time.  "It's the screaming.  The sense of helplessness those people had as we fell.  And I'm the only one that walked away and I didn't even have a scratch on me.  Those things wake me up at night.  I know it's silly to think I could've helped them.  So I decided to help other people instead."  She looked at Sonnet again.  Her demeanor had changed.  "Please tell Kenshin I'm not interested.  I have no doubt you'll tell him everything we've said here.  So you tell him that after tonight I want nothing to do with him any more.  Because I've seen what his kind do to you.  Do to others.  And sooner or later his kind wind up lying in the street as they drown in their own blood.  Get out while you can."
    Amora stood up.  "Look me up when you've had enough.  Though I doubt your pride will let you.  The offer stands, nonetheless.  You're wasting your talents here.  And it's a shame because I think I'd like to get to know you in another life."

[Sonnet Matsuda]

In the end everything collides

593

@amora

Amora had been awfully silent after Sonnet had come clean, and the Japanese woman had found herself unable to look up from her drink. She shouldn't have felt this way really, ashamed perhaps? After all she had been ordered to do this, and while Amora's presence had been helpful, Sonnet hadn't needed her there. If she hadn't been a metahuman she would have been a liability, as it was she had just been able to care for herself. Sonnet didn't owe the woman anything.

After a moment the other woman spoke, and Sonnet started, almost surprised by the sudden break in the silence. She stayed quiet, listening, stealing the occasional glance at the other woman as she told her story. Sonnet's discovery of her abilities had been relatively peaceful, other than the sudden sense of panic she'd experienced, no one else had died, and as far as she could tell she'd never been in any danger. Other than the sudden increase her appetite had undergone and the large amount of weight she had lost in those few weeks.

Sonnet didn't know why Amora thought her story would matter to her, they were other people, individuals she had never and would never meet. Individuals she had no reason to care about. Amora's tale was both sad and gruesome, traumatic, she imagined, for someone who had lived through it. It didn't affect Sonnet. So why should she care?

Sonnet met the other woman's eyes for a brief moment, defiance steeling her gaze once more, feeling as if the other woman was judging her for her reaction to the story, seeing some weakness, some flaw. She didn't respond as the other woman stood up, her eyes simply following hers as she moved from the booth to the floor beside it. She smiled faintly at the woman's last words as she walked away.

---

"Nothing?"

"Nothing"

The exchange in Japanese was flat and emotionless, to both voices it was simply a matter of business.

"Impossible, everyone has an angle, everyone has leverage."

"Not her, she's in the kind of career where she's used to people attempting to degrade her. Even if there was an angle, what did you think I might find in a casual conversation?"

The first voice continued, strangely grey in it's tones, as though it were simply recording it's observations of an interesting species of butterfly.

"I feel that you have made a deliberately inferior effort, this is not the first time you have failed when another metahuman was involved."

An edge appeared in the tone of the second voice, wounded pride perhaps, or anger. "I'm not a PI. If you want her investigated get one of ours to do it. It's a waste of my time."

To those unfamiliar with the grey voice they would have noticed no different, but those who knew it, who had studied it's moods would have detected a sudden chill in the air, as of a splinter of ice being silently filed to a sharpened point.

"Be careful shateigashira. Do not forget your place."

There is a sound of shifting weight, and the rustle of cloth as someone bows.

"My apologies, Kumicho. I will of course obey your instructions."

The rustle of papers.

"Go, you have other things to deal with, you are right, I will task another with this assignment."

A pause of indeterminate length, and a sound as though someone has looked up, surprised to see that they are still in another's company. Then a sound like a gentle inhalation, and the papers rustle once again.

My childhood spat back out the monster that you see

► kaigra ◄