Fandom Distorted Mirror [IC]

[MidwayLives]

"...Splendid. Your taste is impeccable. Now get off me."

"In a moment, Watts. Since I have you in such close proximity, I simply must tell you what's been on my mind."

Holding his tail up high, Tyrian sighed.

"Eve, the one who travels with us. She seemed angry and I attempted to intervene, thinking I might have been able to reach out where others could not!!"

Tyrin sniffed.

"She gave me nary a response but her back and these words: 'Go back to your owners' I thought long and hard about this and I've decided...I'll defeat her in combat and make her our friend!"

He hugged Watts tighter before letting him go and hopping back. "Thank you for listening, my dearest leader!"​

 

[Schnee Corp Lawyer]

"Damn, new girl."

"HAH! Pfffft-" Emerald doubled over in a fit of giggles that was completely involuntary as she witnessed the first instance of someone shutting down Mercury's male model crap not perpetrated by her or Neo, the hand she clapped over her hand to try calm herself down like a dam trying to hold back a tsunami. She somehow seized enough self-control to extend the other in Yang's direction for a high-five. "Okay, I wasn't sure about you before that, but now I think you're cool. You can hang with our team if you ever decide it's not too weird."

"I guess." Mercury seemed a bit more ambivalent, sloooowly inching away from Yang's lean where he'd seemed more eager to inch into it before. "So this us back home, I take it you're not a big fan."

Yang's laugh at his response mixed with Emerald's with far more genuine giggles than the airhead flirt she'd been projecting moments before, and she gave Mercury a light slug on the shoulder as she wound it down. "Aw, don't be so sensitive Merc, trust me when I say that other you had it comin'. Because yea, you could say I'm not a fan." She said, the smile drifting a bit "You guys, well, the other ones, they were a pretty big part of why Beacon fell. But..."

She glanced over at the extended hand, and weighed her options for a second before she gave an almost defeated sigh that didn't match the wry grin on her face and slapped the high five that she was never gonna be able to resist, considering it was for her own joke.

"...You guys seem alright. Like they say, don't judge the son for the sins of the father and don't judge the... clones but not really cuz its an alternate world timeline...thing.. yea nevermind you get what mean" She eventaully rambled off, letting that simile die in its cradle. "So-"

"Pfft." She snorted, greatly amused by that. "Well that sure seals it. If you couldn't even handle a Yang, you sure don't want to press your luck with me, kid."

Yang glanced over with an at least mildly offended snort as she put her hands up.

"Hey, uh, rude? In case you forgot, only one of us died there, auntie Vernal." She drawled, feeling comfortable making that joke given that there seemed to be a mutual agreement between them that the other vernal had made some pretty terrible life decisions.

Throughout their whole little back and forth, her eyes were locked on whichever one of them was speaking at the moment. The whole time she seemed nothing more than amused. When it was finally over, she gave them both a mocking slow clap for their performance.

"Oh trust me kid, the only mark I see here is the bullseye you're painting over your own back the longer you run your mouth. Really, you're what? 16? 17, at most? You saunter around like you're the coolest thing around and throw your weight around with some clever mocking words. What's worse, you actually believe you are the coolest, toughest guy in any room you walk into. Why? Because you walk around with a popped collar like some pretentious hipster asshole? Because you have some idiotic mint-green haired groupie ready to back you up in confrontations too much for you to handle on your own? Or maybe it's because you're just that full of yourself?" Vernal smirked, giving a half-shrug.

"Hell, I don't know, maybe it's even all of the above. Anyone want to place bets on which it is?" She asked, looking around at those close by. "Consider it open invite!" Her attention returned to Mercury. "But hey, since we're playing this game?" Vernal made a show of giving Mercury a dissecting look, reading into his very soul. As if she hadn't already had him pegged once she actually took a good look at him.

"...lemme guess. You came from a rough childhood. Daddy dearest, or maybe mommy, or both even? They didn't love you enough, and all that left you with a big chip on your shoulder. That's why you strut around with an attitude, trying so desperately to pretend you're something you're not. Cry me a fucking river." Her blue eyes shifted over to Emerald, studying her in turn. "And you. I'm figuring you grew up on the streets, never really had a home? That's where you got your smart mouth...and that's what left you so needy for someone to care about that you latched on so tightly to the first person you could. Tell me, are you afraid if you let go, you'll lose him?" She smirked, so sure she'd hit the nail on that head.

"Am I close?" She may have been a maiden by accident but she was also a bandit by inclination. It was the life she'd chosen. No bandit gets far in that life without knowing how to read people, how to spot the weak targets in a crowd at a moment's glance...or how to deal with some punks who got too full of themselves. And Vernal had gotten very far in that life. Enough to be the number two to a disgraced huntsman.

You know what wasn't comfortable? All of that. Like none of it. Yang rubbed the back of her head with a wince as Vernal let it all out, and she found herself wearing a small, protective frown by the end of it, despite who exactly Vernal was pointing at, or rather who they were on her side of time. Here they were just a pair of kids, two years younger than her, that had been tossed into the same ridiculousness nonsense she had after Beacon.

"...Hey. Maybe cool it with the-"

Mercury rolled his eyes and turned around to deal with this, holding up an indulgent hand. "Okay, let me save you a little time. You don't know me, you can't get to me, sure to all those things, whatever helps you get over it. And actually she's not a groupie, she tears me down more than you could ever hope to with a dozen of your little speeches like that, so-"



Oh this was still going. "C'mon, lady. What did I, strike a nerve?"



For as much as he was trying to give this crazy bandit the brush-off, his jaw clenched. He held his ground without any tell otherwise, but Emerald's eyes flared wide open. "Are you for real?! Look, we just called you a poser, so don't-"



"-Don't you dare talk to him that way-!"

Mercury still didn't twitch.



Emerald's eyes went even wider, and her voice cracked. That did it. Now Mercury moved, and it didn't take any kind of combat genius or world-beating bandit to guess what his intentions were as he strode right for Vernal with a look that, despite everything, wasn't angry or frustrated. Mercury wasn't losing control or anything. No, the look on his face was calculated, the look of someone who had simply decided he was clocking you in the face and putting his mind to work figuring out how to best do it as he pulled his fist back and-

"...aaaaaaaaaaaauuuuuuuuuuUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE-"

Emerald's ribcage cracked in half like a stale breadstick, and the girl started to float. Her spine folded over on itself with a sickening crunch and pop to accompany every single disc that came loose. Her jaw came unhinged, mouth opening wider than any living creature's had any right to. Her eyes were the worst, a bulging, pupil-less white slowly being stained red. Her neck started twisting around in the same moment her internal organs and entrails started to lash out, living, coiling tentacles that wrapped around Vernal's arms and legs, and the jagged, fractured remnants of Emerald's ribs started gnashing and snapping in the vein of teeth as they slowly tugged the Spring Maiden towards that gaping maw, a million eyes like grimm's opening to receive her and a smile that spread wide beneath them all. It was gruesome. It was more horrifying than any Grimm. It was the most terrifying thing any of them had ever seen.

It was every horror movie Emerald could recall off the top of her head, and only Vernal saw it.

The entire scene disappeared from the bandit's mind's eye, replaced with a sight no less potent as an absolutely furious Emerald jabbed a finger in her face, having barged right past Mercury as he approached.

"Shut your mouth! Just shut it! You don't know who we are, you don't know what we've seen, you have no IDEA what's going on in my head, and there are things up here that would terrify you, so BACK OFF!"

She was hoarse by the time she finished, and Mercury was so taken aback it completely shocked him out of his whole tough guy approach he was doing as he instead put a reassuring hand on her upper arm, trying to steady her breathing.

"Hey! Em, it's cool. She's not worth it. I could go back and forth with this chick all night playing who-can-pick-each-other's-soul-the-best, but honestly that sounds really lame. Besides, I've got her pegged. I can pretty much sum her up with one more word."

He looked her over, and the look wasn't impressed as he wrinkled his nose in a sneer.

"Bitch."

And with that, Beacon's Team Rocket departed.

Two feet over to where Yang was, meaning to straight up freeze Vernal out of the conversation the way only the most popular two kids in school really could.​

Of course there was an important difference in dynamic here than back home. Yang adored team RWB. All of them, if to slightly different degrees and from really, really different angles in each case, but her devotion to them was as strong as it was humanly possible to be. They were her family.

They were also a bunch of goofy freaking noodles. Ruby was super mature in some ways and absolutely not in others, and the idea of anyone bullying her made Yang's thoughts go feral. Blake had spent years apologizing for who she was to a bunch of thankless jerks, and Yang was about two steps away from dumping that racist in Atlas in the trash before Weiss beat her to it. And Weiss had been through... a lot in life. It had hardened her in ways Yang really hadn't understood until after Beacon, and watching her soften as she spent time with her was one of the warmest feelings Yang had ever experienced, but it had come with a bit of the Ice Queens sharp witted edge melting over the years.

Not Yang. She was tough, or at least she certainly liked to think she was. If someone was back talking her team, and if they were trying too hard to be nice, or were too hurt by the words, or too scared, Yang had no problems stepping up and doing the smack talk for them.

That uh. Clearly wasn't necessary here, and she was slowly edging away again as Vernal got that slightly glazed look on her face as she saw... whatever she saw.

....thaaaaaaaat said, this was a maiden they were poking with very sharp verbal sticks, and so she swiftly threw an arm around both the dynamic duo's shoulders when they slid next to her to lead them off at a brisk pace, perhaps foolishly not trusting the nonetheless deep power inherent in their combined cool kid aura to freeze the spring maiden out before she froze them all way, way more literally.

"Hey so we're gonna go this way we'll talk later auntie vernal but you should go talk to Cinder and make sure she doesn't accidentally blow us all up the next time she tries to shoot fire bye!"

 

[MyrtenRose]

That self-satisfied smirk never left her face throughout their scattered replies. If anything it only got more pronounced as they both kept chiming in. "Eyup, had you both pegged--"​

"...aaaaaaaaaaaauuuuuuuuuuUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE-"

Emerald's ribcage cracked in half like a stale breadstick, and the girl started to float. Her spine folded over on itself with a sickening crunch and pop to accompany every single disc that came loose. Her jaw came unhinged, mouth opening wider than any living creature's had any right to. Her eyes were the worst, a bulging, pupil-less white slowly being stained red. Her neck started twisting around in the same moment her internal organs and entrails started to lash out, living, coiling tentacles that wrapped around Vernal's arms and legs, and the jagged, fractured remnants of Emerald's ribs started gnashing and snapping in the vein of teeth as they slowly tugged the Spring Maiden towards that gaping maw, a million eyes like grin opening to receive her and a smile that spread wide beneath them all. It was gruesome. It was more horrifying than any Grimm. It was the most terrifying thing any of them had ever seen.

It was every horror movie Emerald could recall off the top of her head, and only Vernal saw it.

The smug expression didn't last.

The life of a violent bandit wasn't one for the squeamish. The people you'd have to dominate, those that would try to resist against people preying upon them...if you didn't do what needed to be done, you could hardly be considered a successful bandit. Many times the things that needed to be done to force them into line weren't pretty, but she had done them many a time. And the Grimm that would come in after, attracted to all the negative emotion festering in a spot they'd just raided...there were some truly terrifying beasts out there they had to avoid. The kind that chilled her blood with even so much as a glance. She had the tribe, she had her weapons...she even had power most could only dream of.

But the creatures of grimm and their ruler most of all...they were fear.

Never was that more apparent than in that moment. The disgusting sounds as bones broke, that girl's body opening up in ways humans were never meant to...the nasty tentacles lashed out and pulled her in close, boots grinding against the dirt and grass below...all of that left her a trembling petrified mess that barely resisted the tug of the tentacles, so overcome by dread that the thought of using her power didn't even pop into her head. There was only that overwhelming terror in the face of some inhuman impossibility. Vernal couldn't even scream, the muscles in her throat clenched too tightly. It was upon her now, a dark smile as she fell into that endless dark abyss that it called its mouth...​

The entire scene disappeared from the bandit's mind's eye, replaced with a sight no less potent as an absolutely furious Emerald jabbed a finger in her face, having barged right past Mercury as he approached.

"Shut your mouth! Just shut it! You don't know who we are, you don't know what we've seeen, you have no IDEA what's going on in my head, and there are things up here that would terrify you, so BACK OFF!"

She was hoarse by the time she finished, and Mercury was so taken aback it completely shocked him out of his whole tough guy approach he was doing as he instead put a reassuring hand on her upper arm, trying to steady her breathing.

The illusion was so convincing that she didn't know it had passed until she heard Emerald's voice, having shut her eyes before the thing could take her. One of them cracked open to see Emerald jabbing a finger in her face. Slowly the other one opened too, and it was all she could do to take several haggard deep breaths, her normally tan face pale beyond belief. Vernal dropped to her knees, not saying a single word back to any of that as she looked towards the ground that her hands were splayed out on. Solid, comforting ground...not a dark void...​

He looked her over, and the look wasn't impressed as he wrinkled his nose in a sneer.

"Bitch."

The bandit maiden was still eerily silent. Eventually she managed to unsteadily climb back to her feet, still not saying a word or even looking in their direction.

She'd pegged them so wrong. As soon as she felt she could, she quietly trudged forward. The sooner they got where they were going, the sooner this would be all over...and the sooner she'd never have to see something like that again.​

"Hey so we're gonna go this way we'll talk later auntie vernal but you should go talk to Cinder and make sure she doesn't accidentally blow us all up the next time she tries to shoot fire bye!"

Whether she acknowledged that at all was hard to say, given how unresponsive she was to...just about everything else. Still, she was getting closer to the other maiden, so...….perhaps?​

 

[MyrtenRose]

He had the grace and courtesy to at least kneel halfway to allow for Cinder to whisper into his ear conspiratorially. His mouth knit into a furtive frown as a solitary hand cupped his chin to approximate the thinker's pose. His eyebrows alternated in contemplation as he took a moment for himself consider the carefully exacted question with a reply equally done in return.

It was then he glanced sidelong to Cinder and nodded with affirmation. "Without issue, Little Red."

Though, that whole altercation betwixt Vernal and Team Rocket drew his attention, drawing him back to full standing as he gazed on over curious. "... Maybe you oughta keep our Spring Maiden occupied." He mentioned as an addendum.

"Okay but would you though..." Cinder added with barely contained excitement and all her focus on Hazel in that moment, though she was quick to look over in the same direction as Hazel, spotting Vernal once again...as she just wordlessly walked right past them without looking at or acknowledging the pair in any way. The fall maiden scratched her head, confused before she looked up towards Hazel. "Uh did I miss something? I feel like I missed something."​

 

[Gus Gungus]

....thaaaaaaaat said, this was a maiden they were poking with very sharp verbal sticks, and so she swiftly threw an arm around both the dynamic duo's shoulders when they slid next to her to lead them off at a brisk pace, perhaps foolishly not trusting the nonetheless deep power inherent in their combined cool kid aura to freeze the spring maiden out before she froze them all way, way more literally.

"Hey so we're gonna go this way we'll talk later auntie vernal but you should go talk to Cinder and make sure she doesn't accidentally blow us all up the next time she tries to shoot fire bye!"

"Hey, okay, I know we said you could hang with us but you're coming on kinda strong-" Mercury started in surprise, the murderer's son so skilled at reading people ironically completely oblivious to the kindness Yang was trying to do them by dragging them away from the bandit they'd just traumatized who wielded a power that could crush them all without a struggle. He cut himself off as his attempts to wriggle out of the blonde's (weirdly strong) grip had him catch sight of Vernal again. Now on her knees. With the same, haunted look.

He slowly glanced over at Emerald, who was conspicuously silent and biting her thumb with a nervous air now that the emotions had died down as she visibly tried to force herself not to look back too.

"What'd you make her see?" He asked, trying to wrap his head around the thought that his partner might have just broken the brain of what was basically a goddess.

Emerald avoided his gaze, and the guilt her eyes was evident as she shifted them down and away from anyone who might've been looking at her, voice hoarse and alarmed when it eventually emerged.

"...The worst thing I could imagine."​

 

[Gus Gungus]

Out of respect for her uncle, she didn't press the matter further. In truth...she didn't really want to think about a different Summer, let alone find one out here. She didn't want anything to tarnish the memory of the mom she'd lost. Supermom, as Yang used to call her. Instead she followed Qrow's gaze to Raven, and the following sentence and sigh got her to look back towards him. Even without both of those she felt she would've noticed something was bothering him.

"...What's the matter? Did she say something wrong?" Ruby asked, the look in her eyes expressing both concern and a determination that said any attempt at deflection or avoiding an answer wasn't going to fly.​

Qrow stiffened, unaware he'd been telegraphing his emotions that much. "Nah, nah, it's not that. Hey, wanna see a magic trick?"

 

[MyrtenRose]

Qrow stiffened, unaware he'd been telegraphing his emotions that much. "Nah, nah, it's not that. Hey, wanna see a magic trick?"

"Uncle Qrow."​

 

[Gus Gungus]

"Uncle Qrow."

He turned into a bird and disappeared.​

 

[Schnee Corp Lawyer]

"In a moment, Watts. Since I have you in such close proximity, I simply must tell you what's been on my mind."
​

"No, no, now would be good." he protested as he tried to squirm out.

"Eve, the one who travels with us. She seemed angry and I attempted to intervene, thinking I might have been able to reach out where others could not!!"

Tyrin sniffed.

"She gave me nary a response but her back and these words: 'Go back to your owners' I thought long and hard about this and I've decided...I'll defeat her in combat and make her our friend!"

He hugged Watts tighter before letting him go and hopping back. "Thank you for listening, my dearest leader!"​

He winced as the grip tightened, and unfortunately he couldn't even feel relieved as he was released. He sucked in a deep breath as he clapped his hands together in front of his mouth.

"...Glad to be of service, but, allow me to continue that service and suggest, as team leader, that you-" he said as he pointed the still together hands towards Tyrian

'-Do literally anything but that. In fact I forbid it, as team leader. Do not fight the dangerously violent terrorist. I'll even say please."

 

[MyrtenRose]

He turned into a bird and disappeared.​

Unfortunately not fast enough for Ruby "Turbo" Rose to speed after and snatch the bird out of the air before it got far, holding her unclebirb firmly with both hands. "Uncle Qrow!"​

 

[MidwayLives]

'-Do literally anything but that. In fact I forbid it, as team leader. Do not fight the dangerously violent terrorist. I'll even say please."

"..."

Tyrian's smile finally vanished.

"...Are you implying I can't take her? Is that it?"​

 

[Gus Gungus]

Unfortunately not fast enough for Ruby "Turbo" Rose to speed after and snatch the bird out of the air before it got far, holding her unclebirb firmly with both hands. "Uncle Qrow!"

"-cawRUBY DON'T DO THAT!" Qrow absolutely roared as he shifted back into human mode after a few seconds of frantic wing flapping, sending them both awkwardly tumbling to the ground.

 

[MyrtenRose]

"-cawRUBY DON'T DO THAT!" Qrow absolutely roared as he shifted back into human mode after a few seconds of frantic wing flapping, sending them both awkwardly tumbling to the ground.

"THEN DON'T TRY TO RUN AWAY FROM A SIMPLE QUESTION I JUST WANT TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENED AND OR HOW YOU ARE DOING!!"​

 

[MyrtenRose]

"..." Raven halted once again, turned around to take a look...and immediately turned back to continue on, shaking her head in disbelief. How could they all manage to make a walk to a train station so complicated?​

 

[Gus Gungus]

"THEN DON'T TRY TO RUN AWAY FROM A SIMPLE QUESTION I JUST WANT TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENED AND OR HOW YOU ARE DOING!!"

Qrow huffed as he sat up and slicked his mop of hair back with a hand, regaining his composure.

"...I'm doin' good. How're you?"​

 

[MyrtenRose]

Qrow huffed as he sat up and slicked his mop of hair back with a hand, regaining his composure.

"...I'm doin' good. How're you?"​

"Don't make me ask Raven."​

 

[Indolent]

"..."

Tyrian's smile finally vanished.

"...Are you implying I can't take her? Is that it?"​

Tyrian's quivering form spoke volumes to Hazel even from a distance, prompting the gargantuan student (former?) to stride over with a hand clasping a shoulder with a grip that meant to instill calm.

"You know that is not what Arthur is saying, Tyrian. Your desire to help her is admirable but she is volatile and better left to someone else who already has a rapport with her. Unfortunately."

His gaze veered downward as he suggested. "Guard our rear, the vanguard's more than covered. Please."

 

[MyrtenRose]

Tyrian's quivering form spoke volumes to Hazel even from a distance, prompting the gargantuan student (former?) to stride over with a hand clasping a shoulder with a grip that meant to instill calm.

"You know that is not what Arthur is saying, Tyrian. Your desire to help her is admirable but she is volatile and better left to someone else who already has a rapport with her. Unfortunately."

His gaze veered downward as he suggested. "Guard our rear, the vanguard's more than covered. Please."

"Yeah, Tyrian, what they both said." The young Cinder wisely agreed, pointing at both Hazel and Watts in unison to make it a 3 against 1 team vote. "Let me fight her instead." : D​

 

[Gus Gungus]

"Don't make me ask Raven."

"We've just been talking! About all sortsa stuff!" He finally relented with a grimace, dusting his shoulders off. "Sheesh, Beacon turned you into a little busybody... It's... well, we've been talking a little too much, honestly. I already have a sister named Raven. And she's bad news."​

 

[MyrtenRose]

"We've just been talking! About all sortsa stuff!" He finally relented with a grimace, dusting his shoulders off. "Sheesh, Beacon turned you into a little busybody... It's... well, we've been talking a little too much, honestly. I already have a sister named Raven. And she's bad news."​

"...That's it? That's why you tried to fly away???" Ruby held her hands up in pure disbelief. "I don't see the problem with talking, Uncle Qrow. I mean, she has a brother named Qrow too, and you've been going on and on about how not great he is. What's the issue with just talking??"​

 

[Indolent]

"Yeah, Tyrian, what they both said." The young Cinder wisely agreed, pointing at both Hazel and Watts in unison to make it a 3 against 1 team vote. "Let me fight her instead." : D​

"You know, I should carry you seven, it'd make for less disruptions I think."

Naturally the first person he hoisted onto his sweeping shoulders was Cinder.

 

[Gus Gungus]

"...That's it? That's why you tried to fly away???" Ruby held her hands up in pure disbelief. "I don't see the problem with talking, Uncle Qrow. I mean, she has a brother named Qrow too, and you've been going on and on about how not great he is. What's the issue with just talking??"

"Because eventually we have to go back, Ruby." His voice was as firm as it was heavy-hearted, the elder huntsman picking himself up and offering Ruby a hand in turn.

"We can't let this become our reality. This is... this is just for now."

...

"And I tried to fly away 'cause you were being annoying." :|​

 

[MidwayLives]

His gaze veered downward as he suggested. "Guard our rear, the vanguard's more than covered. Please."

"Yeah, Tyrian, what they both said." The young Cinder wisely agreed, pointing at both Hazel and Watts in unison to make it a 3 against 1 team vote. "Let me fight her instead." : D

Not only was his partner asking him to stand down but Cinder as well. Though the image of her fighting Eve would certainly be a delight and the prospect might have normally tickled him silly. But not this time. Still, he wouldn't let his friends see the disappointment.

"...Okay."

Tyrian's tail resumed it's place as a quasi-belt around his waist as he made his way to the back of the group. He had understood what Hazel meant but perhaps it was a combination of the group Eve was from or what she'd told him. But he wanted to show her that she was wrong. That these were his friends and no human ever had him under their thumb.
​

"You know, I should carry you seven, it'd make for less disruptions I think."

"....Mememememememe!!!"

Tyrian nimbly hoisted himself atop one of Hazel's shoulders after the three had seen him running back full force.

"Onwards! From here I can watch the rear!"​

 

[MyrtenRose]

"Because eventually we have to go back, Ruby." His voice was as firm as it was heavy-hearted, the elder huntsman picking himself up and offering Ruby a hand in turn.

"We can't let this become our reality. This is... this is just for now."

...

"And I tried to fly away 'cause you were being annoying." :|​

"I don't think any of us don't know that, uncle." Ruby countered as she got up. "But that doesn't mean we can't...talk. As long as we're here...we should try to be a team. For as long as now lasts. And hey!" She objected to that by lightly punching him in the arm.​

 

[Schnee Corp Lawyer]

"Hey, okay, I know we said you could hang with us but you're coming on kinda strong-" Mercury started in surprise, the murderer's son so skilled at reading people ironically completely oblivious to the kindness Yang was trying to do them by dragging them away from the bandit they'd just traumatized who wielded a power that could crush them all without a struggle. He cut himself off as his attempts to wriggle out of the blonde's (weirdly strong) grip had him catch sight of Vernal again. Now on her knees. With the same, haunted look.

He slowly glanced over at Emerald, who was conspicuously silent and biting her thumb with a nervous air now that the emotions had died down as she visibly tried to force herself not to look back too.

"What'd you make her see?" He asked, trying to wrap his head around the thought that his partner might have just broken the brain of what was basically a goddess.

Emerald avoided his gaze, and the guilt her eyes was evident as she shifted them down and away from anyone who might've been looking at her, voice hoarse and alarmed when it eventually emerged.

"...The worst thing I could imagine."​

She heard the sounds of squawking and the battle cries of roses in the background, and was briefly dismayed she'd already gotten emotionally invested into this situation and was missing out on family fun time

"Nah bud, this isn't coming on strong. That was you about two minutes ago. To me : |"

That said, once she glanced back and saw Vernal wasn't coming after them in icy vengeance, she began to slow their pace and took her arms off of them, taking a few more steps forward so she could pivot and be facing them both. She walked backwards at a much more relaxed pace that was a bit at odds with the concerned frown on her face as she clasped her real arm behind her back and rubbed it slightly.

"...She'll be fine" She offered with a glance again towards Vernal as she walked on ahead. "You guys were all going at it pretty hard. emotions get high, I get it. I would've punched her real face instead of her mental one if she'd been talking like that about me."

She figured that was about about as much big sister energy that she'd be able to point towards these two before they collapsed under the sheer weight of cringe, so she made herself perk up into a grin as she raised an eyebrow

"...Soooooo... it seems like you and the goofballs trying to make a mistralian gymnastics team happen over there are kinda taking my teams' and our friends' place in all this... which means I gotta wonder... which one of you boys showed up to the Vytal dance in a dress?"