Fandom Into the fire (1x1 MzHyde/Gallifrog)

[MzHyde]

Fia nodded, knowing that what Rinaa said was exactly true. Its one reason why she always preferred the cinema trips with anyone but Kay. But then again, those days were when she was just not seeing anything Kay did as being 'for her own good'. Any nice thing her mother did for her was usually reacted to with negativity by her and she knew deep down it wound up John probably, but it's just who she was back then. She was stuck in her stubborn ways of not wanting Kay to know she was getting through to her little by little. She was surprised though that she never went to the cinema with Chas or Trish, figuring that she possibly would have done. She continued to listen to her explain that was mostly with her mates which made a lot of sense to Fia, considering Rinaa's life here in this timeline of hers. She smirked when she described how much popcorn they'd have between them, thinking that the mental image of a bath full of popcorn was both impressive, amazing and crazy. It was an insane amount of popcorn but one she could totally get behind.

"always an upside to have the right contacts for such things!" she chuckled back. She hoped that in the new timeline that would happen or if her timeline won out she would finally get some proper mates and find a way to be normal. Maybe when she went back to her timeline she could talk Leah into introducing her properly to people or find that Dean guy she once saw, using the chance at ranking him and apologising for borrowing his motorbike as the starting ground. Sure it would take a bit of secret researching to find him, but it would be something to do nonethess. With her kebab finished, she went straight for the rest of her chips, using the dips every now and then. "I actually haven't been to the cinema for a while come to think of it, might have to go when I go back to my timeline, no matter the film" she thought out loud.

 

[_gallifrog_]

As they'd talked Rinaa's body language had opened up and she'd draped herself more casually over the bench, one hand over the back tracing the various initials engraved into the wood of the bench, one foot wrapped around the side leg. After nodding her agreement at Fia's first statement she picked up some of the loose bit of meat that had fallen from her kebab and used them almost like bread to wipe the sauce that had dripped onto the foil. It had been really fortunate that her group had found out about this guy as they were all students who were just about managing to pay their bills and college fees. Therefore any discount they could get was a bonus. It had been the unprompted generosity of her friend's boyfriend and his willingness to use his employee perks on a group of ten people he'd only ever heard about that had the trait that convinced Rinaa he was a good bloke and an ideal partner for her friend. Though she did of course give the classic 'if you hurt the guy I basically see as a brother, I will hurt you' speech. This particular mate in question had been rejected almost his entire family after coming out as gay, so Rinaa was a tad overprotective even though said friend was four years older than her.

"Gods... I haven't been to the cinema in.... years I suppose when you factor in the time travelling." She sighed. "I've spent almost three years jumping through time- including six months in disguise in a prison that was a cross between a torture facility and a slave camp. In the more recent months- by which I mean the time on Attil it's all been work, recon, information gathering, learning what I missed out on and slotting the last pieces of the puzzle into place. Before that it was me making a reputation as a sophisticated heist master skilled, notorious and deadly enough to warrant being sent to the same prison as Jay- not to mention infiltrating the right places so that I could see what Jack was like. Add to that my little side project about reuniting Sykes with her body and the other person who makes up their connected consciousness..... it doesn't really leave a lot of time for real R&R. The stuff I did do was to help fit in- illegal fighting and racing mainly. Sure they're fun and all, particularly racing, be it cars, bikes or light spaceships it's damn exhilarating, but I'd rather do it with people I know, or at the very least under a name that actually FEELS like it's my own, as opposed to every single alias I use."

 

[MzHyde]

Fia had also relaxed, leaning back on the bench and stretching both legs out forward, crossing them at her ankles as she happily chomped down on the bag of chips. Rinaa's body language relaxing was of a slight surprise but not enough for Fia to show it outwardly, but it was noticable as she was certain that other than when they were taking Cliff's family dogs for that walk and swim, she hadn't ever seen Rinaa truly relax back like she was seeing now. She looked out at the canal, watching the boats go by every now and then, deciding that she really could spend a few hours in this area on a quiet nice day if she wasn't always so hunted. There was something truly tranquil about just sitting by water and eating food. She listened as Rinaa thought back to when she last went to a cinema, nodding in slight surprise at how long it had been, but when she really thought about it, with the whole time travelling back and forth she could udnerstand why it would be years and not just months for her. "Damn..that's crazy, you miss just doing stuff as yourself?" she asked, thinking how she personally would if she was in Rinaa's shoes. The idea of having to pretend someone one constantly and not just on occasion. With the amount of aliases Rinaa had, she could only imagine how she must be her alias more than she was her and in so many ways, how lonely that must be.

At least for Fia, she only used her self glamour spell to disguise herself when it was really warranted or she needed to sneak out to do a job she would be recognised at. They were rarer than the jobs where she wouldn't need to disguise herself, but there were times when she used it anyway just to play safe. Even in Rinaa's timeline, she found it sometimes hard to truly visualise what life has to be like for Rinaa. The idea of having to wear masks constantly, always be on alert incase another bombing was imminent, seeing most of London look like an utter warzone was just downright depressing and she had to give Rinaa credit for just acting like it was a way of life. She was certain that she would never be able to get used to this timeline as a life. SHe presumed why, it made this little oasis of calmness all the more special and why Rinaa liked being here to eat so much.

 

[_gallifrog_]

"I miss it like you wouldn't believe" Rinaa sighed, casting her eyes out at the canal. For her it had been a little over three years since she last sat on this bench and over that time she had forgotten how much she liked the spot. It wasn't the most aesthetically pleasing place that was for sure, the water was on the grubby side with large suspended dust and dirt particles that had been blown in from the crumbling ruins just about visible upstream. That particular area had been destroyed by one of the earlier, smaller interplanetary bombs. The large industrial ships en route the industrial sector were far from beautiful too, built to carry as much cargo as possible, not to be visibly pleasing. Yet despite all that, this particular bench had been a place of refuge for Rinaa, somewhere she went when she wanted to be away from people and mull in her own thoughts. In her timeline she could count on one hand the number of people who knew she liked this spot, so without knowing it Fia was now part of a rather exclusive club.

"I had two proper names even BEFORE anything went to shit- an English name and an Isogrii name. There's also my pilot call sign to add to the mix.. though that's a different thing entirely and by law of heritage, I'm entitled to an Attilian name, but I have no documentation where I ever used it. I stopped using Leah after... well... after I was burned, though it's still my legal name as trying to change my name- legally or illegally- without drawing the attention of the authorities to the fact that I'm not human is near impossible. So Leah is still the name on my bills, fees, educational qualifications, tax returns and the name the newspapers would use should I ever be mentioned for something. There was a whole variety of nicknames and pseudonyms between then and when I turned sixteen, at which point I met somebody who suggested Artemis, which I do quite like as a nickname, but as an everyday name it's a bit pretentious. For music I also used a pseudonym- not a very imaginative one mind you- it was 'Lee Quinn', mainly after Elliott but also a slight nod to the other Quin. For time travelling purposes I used Rinaa as it has no connections to Jay whatsoever, but it's also a sort of play on words if you combine it with the surname Tziyen." She gave a broad shrug accompanied by a sigh "at this stage I don't even know WHO I am, which makes doing things as myself and myself only a Hells of a lot harder."

 

[MzHyde]

Fia figured after she said the words that it was probably a stupid question, but she asked it anyway because she was genuinely curious but in a familial wanting to know about her 'cousin' s' life. She couldn't help but care about the other girl even despite everything they had put each other threw emotionally. She always felt like she needed...wanted to do right by her. To give her as many pleasant memories whilst she could have them of a Fia that wasn't an utter psychotic bitch. Even if it meant it got to be a bitter sweet thing because it showed her what life could have been like for her with her 'cousin'. To her, it was the least she could do for Rinaa, and if being there to listen to her whilst also knowing more about her was one of those steps then she was more than willing to do it.

Hearing she missed it more than anyone could know Needless to say wasn't much of a surprise to Fia, remaining silent, she let Rinaa speak more in depth about her life. She found it incredibly interesting that she had two main names (which she guessed may have been similar to Jay) but the most interesting was the fact she didn't have an Attili name even though she could technically be allowed to have one due to her heritage. It also made sense as to why she want to change her name of Leah, but due to what comes with doing that she could understand why she never actually did it. Especially if she's someone who is trying her hardest with Jay to act like she was very much dead by suicide. To Fia it wouldn't take a rocket scientist so to speak to figure out why trying to change one's name on everything important would create issues for remaining off the grid and 'officially dead' to anyone and everyone they knew. Then with all the nicknames Rinaa had ontop of all of that, it was amazing to Fia that she could even remember what names were used for where and when and not get muddled up at the wrong moment. Yet it wasn't surprising that Rinaa was starting to feel like she didn't know who she was anymore either.

She nodded in a somber manner, "I'm sorry my shit alternate family is partly to blame for creating that. I can't imagine how hard that must be to swallow at times. But for what it's worth? I think everything you manage to achieve no matter who you act as, it's impressive. I can easily imagine how easy it would be to go by the wrong name at the wrong time or something. I may only know you as Rinaa but that girl I know? She's damn awesome" she smiled.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Even Rinaa herself wasn't entirely sure how she managed to keep track of all her various aliases, it was getting (or more precisely had already gotten) to a point where she was relying on other people to say her name before she said theirs. The number of fake names she had was ridiculous and with the presence of a second consciousness in her head in the form of Sykes, Rinaa was not far off having some kind of multiple personality disorder or a full blown identity crisis. Even before her world had crashed and burned (literally) she'd struggled with who she was. Chimeras like her just didn't exist, that number of DNA strands was supposed to be too volatile to ever stabilise, she was an impossible thing. Now, as an adult of sorts Rinaa was aware that it was in no way healthy to compartmentalise who she was and assign the different aspects of her self different names like she did, but at times she felt this was the only way to stop herself from going crazy. As John would say, names had power, when others knew your name it gave them power over you, and conversely if you knew that name of what you were it gave you power over yourself (a bit like how when Kay discovered she was a phoenix, it showed her she had not been losing her mind/having some kind of continuous psychological break over the course of the past years).

She gave a faint smile smile outwardly at Fia's words, but inside she was emotionally conflicted. There was a part of her that not only believed Fia's words but felt they were one hundred percent truthful. The part of her believing this was the one part of her she'd that she'd never been able to squash down and properly get rid of, no matter how hard she tried. That part longed, yearned, for the approval of the other girl, for some kind of approval of her existence from Fia, who'd been held up on a pedestal as the example of a perfect daughter for as long as Rinna could remember. Logic told Rinaa she didn't need it, but emotions said otherwise and for some reason when it came to that particular side of the family emotions nearly always won. The cynical part of her was looking for an ulterior motive behind the words- was Fia trying to butter Rinaa up in order to get her way? If so what was the endgame? The most overwhelming emotion however was sadness- sadness that the only way she could have the friendly, fun, relaxed moments with her 'cousin' that she'd desired so much as a child was to meet a Fia from another timeline. It was far from fair.

"Well... glad to know somebody thinks that, even if I think that kind of attitude is misguided. I think out of all my personas the Rinaa-Sykes hybrid you've had to endure is one of the worst of them. The lines are so blurred I can't even tell whose hate belongs to who anymore. You deserved a hell of a lot better treatment than the incredibly shit way we... I treated you." She glanced at her 'cousin' briefly, letting the other girl see the depth of emotion in her eyes before returning her gaze to some point on the other bank of the canal. "I am more sorry than you'll know about that, know that I have the benefit of hindsight. If I had to pick a favourite version, it would be the one who runs and takes part in vigilante missions as well as search and rescue after the bombings. She's a badass, but one who actually has a heart as opposed to a seething mass of anger courtesy of a wolf whose turned psychotic due to being forcibly separated from their host."

 

[MzHyde]

When Fia said her words, she did wholeheartedly mean every single one she spoke. She didn't see any point in lying to Rinaa, especially about this situation and during this part of her life. She knew as well as everyone did that Rinaa didn't have much more time left, and the way she saw it if she just lied to Rinaa it would only bring more pain in the long run. She just hoped that Rinaa would see it as her telling the truth and only the truth, even if it would take a bit of time to accept it. She could only know only very very slightly about what it was like to not know who you were but at least she was told and had it explained to her time and time again until she could fully understand it by her father, (as she refused to listen to her mother). Unlike Kay who had absolutely no idea what she was until she met John, Chas and Elliott. There was no way she could (even if she wanted to which she most certainly didn't want to) try and fully comprehend what it must be like for Rinaa with that many aliases and nicknames. She also couldn't fully comprehend what it was must have been like growing up in the shadow of her alternate, as she was always deemed the perfect daughter, which was just utterly ludricous in her mind, because anyone who could treat Rinaa with such distain was far from the perfect daughter.

She noticed the faint smile come from her 'cousin' even if it wasn't initally directed at her as such, then listened to her reply to her, feeling so incredibly sorry for the girl who felt she needed to apologise yet again for how she treated her and her mother. The moment she looked right at her, she did see the sheer amount of raw emotion in Rinaa's eyes. She continued to let Rinaa speak, finding when she was done she said nothing in response. Instead she put her bag of chips down on her other side on the bench and just pulled Rinaa into a hug. A hug that quite literally said everything she wanted to but knew verbal words wouldn't be nearly as powerful. The hug said 'I accept your apology but I get why it happened and I've moved on from that so it's okay for you to do the same. I'm sorry that you couldn't have gotten this kind of interaction from people before now, and I'm sorry my alternate made you feel so worthless but you're not. You're amazing and a badass, even if you don't think so and I'm glad I could show you how things could have been, give you that moment you've clearly always wanted and as your cousin i'm so insanely proud of you'. All without saying a single word of it verbally.

 

[_gallifrog_]

This was one of those moments where actions really did speak louder than words. It wouldn't have been nearly as effective had Fia simply said what she wanted her cousin to know out loud. Just like with last time and with Max there was an initial tensing of Rinaa's shoulders and slight tightening of her fingers around her own bag of chips as her flight or fight instincts initially considered Fia's touch to be hostile and foreign. That initial reaction was quickly over-ruled and just like the last time Rinaa let herself sink into the hug. This time there was no doubt in her mind about the meaning of the action. Everything Fia was trying to convey was getting through. Max had been right, not that's she'd tell him that, she really did need to clear the air with Fia properly. Despite all her bravado and her willingness to stage her own sudden suicide, Rinaa didn't actually want to leave without tying up lose ends. And this alternate Fia was the loosest end of them all. Having the apology accepted was like weight of Rinaa's shoulders, she wouldn't have forgiven so easily had it been the other way. After a couple of minutes Rinaa lifted her head to look at Fia, the earlier maelstrom of emotions replaced by determination. "When you get back to your time, actually TALK to your Leah, or whatever alternate might end up replacing her. If they're anything like I am, then they'll want a friend, not some standard they're supposed to hold them too."

A few seconds after she delivered her request Rinaa's phone beeped indicating a message coming in. The girl wasted no time in taking it out from her trouser pocket and checking it, angling the screen away from Fia so that the other couldn't see the message. A proper grin appeared on her face at the text's contents. "I've got good news and I've got better news. Good news- as I suspected the cache DOES indeed have a suitable voice changer AND it also has the tactical suit components for the specs of your body I sent on. The better news is that the cache is coming to us so you can try it on beforehand and we can fix any problems with the suit before they even arise."

 

[MzHyde]

When Rinaa initially tensed up, Fia refused to let go as she just had a feeling she wouldn't be shrugged off and that was very proved right when she felt Rinaa just sink into the hug, which just made her hug Rinaa all the more protectively. Once upon a time not far in the past, Fia probably wouldn't have accepted the apology as easily, but it was proving that not only was Rinaa was slowly changing, so was Fia. She was being a lot more willing to accept other's apologies or just hear them out and actually be a better person for once. Just as Rinaa was learning and growing as a person, so was Fia and it was becoming evidently clearer to Fia that there was always a chance to change and grow. If she could start to see things from her mother's perspective from meeting her mother when she was younger then she knew she could with Rinaa as well. She also began to truly realise that life was far too short to hold grudges against people and she needed this just as much Rinaa did. Of course, there were some things said by Rinaa to her that would still linger as a little bit painful, but Fia knew she could get over it.

Fia leaned back ever so slightly to let Rinaa have more space to lift her head up and look at her again, giving her her request. Fia smiled knowing it was one that she could do more than easily enough, nodding in response, "I promise, I will will do anything I can to make her feel like she's wanted, has a friend and isn't my shadow." she replied. She even let go of Rinaa with one hand and made a cross symbol over her heart to show she really was serious about her promise and she would do right by Rinaa and whatever alternate version she ended growing up with when Rinaa was gone. As Rinaa's phone buzzed from going off, she looked away to give Rinaa the privacy of looking at the message, even though Rinaa instinctively turned the phone away from her. She wanted to keep the trust that was growing between them, so she kept one comforting arm round Rinaa and delved her free hand into her own chip bag, grabbing the last few chips to eat.

She glanced back at the girl when she told her they had good news and even better news, listening to the two pieces of news and smiled, "amazing! How long we gotta wait for the cache to arrive?" she asked her curiously. After the heart to heart she very almost let herself forget why she was even in Rinaa's timeline, so it was a good thing in her eyes that Rinaa got the text come through to bring Fia back to the reality of why she made this trip.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Rinaa gave another smile when Fia promised as solemnly and as seriously as she could that she'd make an effort with the other Leah when she returned to her own timeline. The gesture of crossing her fingers over her heart that Fia made wasn't one Rinaa was familiar with, but the meaning was never the less crystal clear. Rinaa knew that if her plan succeeded perfectly, Fia wouldn't remember this conversation when she returned to her own timeline. (Nor would she even remember this version of Rinaa). What Rinaa did know was that, just as seeing a younger version of her extended family had taught Rinaa many things, both about herself and them, it had also opened Fia's eyes and taught her things she'd never expected to learn.

"Already asking him" Rinaa replied, smiling slightly at the enthusiasm in her 'cousin's' voice. She was certain that whatever kind of cache Fia was imagining, it wasn't anywhere near the near thing. She typed out a one handed reply, using the other hand to reach for the remainder of her battered fish. The reply pinged in less than a minute later. "ETA five minutes he says" she relayed to Fia "so enough time to finish the last bits of our food, no need for us to go to him, he'll come to us." There was a slight edge of 'I know something you don't' in the girl's voice, which came across as being 'I don't want to spoil the surprise of this' edge as opposed to a malicious one.

Once Rinaa had finished her food she crumpled up the foil, chip packets and other bits and bobs, then threw them neatly into the nearby bin, each hitting the bottom with a satisfying thump. "Good to see I haven't lost my edge" she quipped before catching sight of something further up the canal. "Follow my lead" she told Fia as she unwrapped her leg from around the bench support and reached for her backpack. Coming towards them down the canal was another houseboat, with a black hull and green upper body. Emblazoned near the front was the boats name, an unremarkable name to those who couldn't speak Latin - Parabellum. As the boat drew closer to them Rinaa took a few preparatory steps backwards for her run up then launched herself upwards and out over the canal, landing in a perfect crouch on the boat's roof.

 

[MzHyde]

When Fia did the whole 'cross my heart hope to die if I break said vow' she didn't even think baout whether Rinaa would have been familiar with it. She was so used to everyone around her in her timeline knowing the unspoken vow that she just assumed Rinaa would also know it. However the fact that Rinaa didn't question her what she was doing, she figured she understood it at least enough to get the jist of what she was implying. She nodded even if she rose an curious eyebrow at the mention of it being a 'him' wondering who this cache was. She continued eating the last of her chips as Rinaa waited for the reply, only to get it a few moments later with the ETA of five minutes. At the tone of Rinaa's hinting she knew something that Fia didn't, Fia couldn't help but be all the more curious at who this cache was. She couldn't even begin to come up with an idea of who it could be but either way she was more than curious to find ou.

Fia finished only seconds after Rinaa did and couldn't help but snigger and smirk at the way Rinaa chucked her trash into the bin and declared she hadn't lost her edge. Unlike Rinaa, Fia actually stood up and walked to the bin, if nothing else to stretch her legs in the process and chucked her rubbish in the bin also before walking back to her. She made it back moments before Rinaa told her to follow her lead as she saw the girl grab her backpack, get up off the bench and take a few steps backwards to give herself a running jump as the sight of the houseboat that was clearly their meeting point came into view. She let Rinaa go ahead before she wasted no time and doing exactly the same. Giving herself a running start, she sprinted across the canal path, jumped at the edge and landed on the boat roof behind Rinaa, bordering on a pose not unlike something from Marvel's Black Widow. "well that's one more thing to knock off the to do list if I had one" she smirked. She just felt glad that due to her constant moving or dancing, she was more than agile enough to not even second guess about doing such a thing. "guess we should get off the roof?" she asked, standing up again onto both her feet, brushing down the knees of her jeans out of pure habit even if there was no visible dirt on them, it was a habit she would always do no matter what, whenever she would do a crouching land.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Rinaa was in no doubt that her cousin could make the jump, aside from being incredibly agile and physically fit, Fia would be able to catch herself with her wings if by some horrible accident she massively miscalculated her jump. "This boat is FAR more reinforced than it looks. but yeah, we should get inside, and not draw so much attention to the boat. Besides, the real attraction is inside." Rinaa replied with a smirk as she got up, though unlike Fia she didn't brush at the knees of her trousers. Glancing back she could see that Fia had enjoyed the slight thrill of jumping onto a moving boat. "And yeah, it is a hell of a lot of fun" as she grinned she flashed her fangs at Fia"- particularly when the boat you're trying to jump on is moving a hell of a lot faster."

The last part was said in a raised voice, directed at the wheel room of the boat. The response was a mock outraged "OI!" followed by a further remark shouted in a language that was distinctly not English. Rinaa's eyebrows scrunched together, the cogs and gears that were turning in her head visible on her facial expression as she attempted to translate what had just been shouted at her in Hebrew. After a few seconds she shouted something back, striding her way along the roof of the boat towards the wheel room. Unlike when she spoke in English, Attili or Jay's native tongue, there was an uncertainty and a stiltedness to the ways she spoke, this was a language she had only begun to learn recently. Rinaa swung herself down off the roof and headed into the wheel room.

"That was better, but your pronunciation still isn't quite right." The guy behind the wheel remarked. He had a riot of black curly hair,, half restrained with a bandana and was dressed casually in a check shirt and plain jeans. Even though he was in the boat he still had his mask around his neck. Rinaa made a slight 'tsk' noise of disapproval at herself. "Is this where I apologise for butchering your language and cheekily ask for permission to come aboard...." "As if you haven't done that exact joke a number of times before?" The guy finished Rinaa's sentence rhetorically and with a smirk. "No this is where I say that you take the wheel for a bit and I'll get out the kit for your co-conspirator?"

Spoiler: The boat driver is loosely based off this guy

This guy is called Alon and was on the Great Pottery Throwdown (think Bake Off with pottery) and I enjoyed immensely his work on the show immensely so I figured might as well use him as a face claim for the hell of it

 

[MzHyde]

Fia nodded and smiled back as Rinaa gave a full open mouthed grin. She wasn't even phased by the sight of her fang anymore as she had seen them before on Attil. The choice of wording By Rinaa also didn't go amiss on Fia wondering why she would say it like that. She couldn't stop the chuckle that escaped her when she aimed the very last bit of her sentence down toward the person manning the wheel, instantly knowing in that second that Rinaa clearly knew the guy well. She watched on as it was clear how Rinaa was trying to work out what was said to her, herself wo dering what was said as she hadn't recognised the language either. She said nothing as Rinaa managed to make a comeback as they both headed to the wheel room, Fia jumping down behind Rinaa, smirking at the conversation going on, somehow not entirely surprised that Rinaa would reuse a particular joke, with Fia jidt giving a little raise of her hand as if to wave hello to the guy.

She couldn't help but look at the guy Rinaa was talking with, taking note of his appearance and wondering if he was in her timeline or not. She couldn't recall knowing him or ever hearing if her Leah knew him but then again, she didn't fully know of all Leah's friends, only the odd couple of them if they were about on a job with Leah or similar. She remained silent as he called her Rinaa's co-conspirator which wasn't exactly a full lie considering that was what she technically was when it came this upcoming heist and she knew that whilst she was under a completely different appearance that's all she need to be. She had to admit, doing this kind of handover and such on a houseboat was definitely unique for her but one she wasn't complaining about and just very glad that she didn't suffer with any of kind motion sickness or sea sickness on any kind of boat. She also didn't want to risk talking incase this guy knew of this time line's Fia and recognised her voice. The last thing she wanted to do was screw things up for Rinaa, especially as she hadn't even been fully introduced to him yet.

She gave Rinaa a look as if to say 'you gonna introduce me or...not?' but it wasn't an impatient look or annoyed look, just a casual kind look. She figured if she started off mute and giving Rinaa looks to convey what she was thinking, Rinaa would be able to give her the okay on whether to talk, who this guy was or anything else.

 

[_gallifrog_]

The guy returned Fia's sort of wave with one of her his own, lifting his right hand off the steering wheel to greet her before launching into his teasing banter with Rinaa. The other girl caught Fia's look of 'are you going to introduce me?' and saw the other girl's silence as proof that Fia was indeed following through on her earlier promises with regards to how she was going to behave and act when it came to meeting Rinaa's friend. "Co-conspirator will do. This one" she indicated Fia "owes me a favour. She's not from round these parts so you wouldn't have met her before" this was Rinaa's way of subtly letting her 'cousin' know that this guy had never heard alternate Fia's voice before and so it was safe to talk to him. "It's a no names gig" this was directed at both of them. "We needed an extra body and she's experienced enough in the field in general, but when it comes to our specific scene she's a greenie." The guy nodded in understanding and offered a hand to Fia. With his sleeves rolled up it was clear he had no weapons concealed on his forearms. "Welcome aboard then."

Introductions now finished Rinaa wasted no time in taking over piloting the boat, as she stepped forwards the boat's owner stepped to the side then backwards. The overall result was a smooth transition, there was never a point where there wasn't a hand on the wheel. The guy gestured for Fia to follow him, "the gear is down below deck" he said as he exited the wheel room. Below deck was one long, continuous room (aside from one jutting out cube section which had been partitioned off to create a private bathroom). There was a galley kitchen at one end while the living quarters and eating area stretching along the sides of the rest of the boat. Overall it was disarmingly ordinary looking and clearly well lived in if the various personal touches were anything to go by. There was a hand knitted throw on the couch, a little pot plant by the kitchen sink, piles of textbooks heaped on the built in desk and a dirt stained sports jersey slung over the back of a chair. "Word of warning, I'd recommend standing in the kitchen, there won't be much floor area in a minute." The guy warned Fia.

He then walked over to one of the bench seats, used his thumbs to snap back the locks, and slid the whole bench seating sideways across the floor, revealing the concealed storage space below. It was arranged like a wardrobe, but one that was accessed from the top as opposed to the front. It descended into the bowels of the ship and neatly hanging on the rail were the pieces necessary to form a tactical suit- jackets, trousers, t-shirts (that upon closer inspection would be revealed to be wired with sensors) and thermal underlayers. At the far end were a set of handles which pulled up to reveal special shoe racks containing tactical boots, as well as various sizes of gloves, balaclava-like garments and motorbike-style helmets. He easily located the necessary pieces of Fia's suit, consulting the tags on each hanger. After that he walked over to the wall and placed his hand on one of the prints. It flashed, the image disappearing to reveal the biometric scanner beneath. It beeped as his print registered, then the whole wall sank into the bowels of the boat revealing storage racks that fit into the space between the outer wall of the boat and the internal cabin walls. On display were of neatly stacked, gleaming weapons weapons (knives, guns, swords, sabres, long thin almost cylindrical blades with no handles, collapsible Black Widow-esque batons, various calibre and sizes of guns, some archery equipment, two whips, some garottes and, tucked away in one corner, what looked suspiciously like a batarangs), communications headsets, grappling and climbing equipment, goggles and other tech pieces.

 

[MzHyde]

Fia let Rinaa take the lead when it came to introducing her to the guy and how to tackle it. She picked up on the subtle way Rinaa let her know it was okay to talk to the guy before getting the voice changer, whilst also continuing to let Rinaa explain enough that she deemed necessary. The fact that Rinaa said it was a no names situation made Fia just casually nod in acknowledgement, remembering that when it came to it, she'd need a code name and that she'd no doubt use the one she'd use in her timeline. As he pulled his sleeves up she did notice that he had no hidden weapons on him which as of a discreet relief to her as she stretched her own hand out and shook his hand. "thanks" she replied to his welcoming.

As Rinaa took over at the wheel, Fia made sure she remained out of the way until she was gestured at to follow the guy in question. Nodding, she followed him down below deck, taking in the whole layout of the boat, wondering how on earth he could have anything stashed away. Sure it was large, but it was still rather enclosed as well, even if it was nicely set out and homely looking. With the warning given, she stepped into the kitchen as advised, curiosity clear on her face as she watched him go through the process of revealing a hidden storage of what she could only call 'an vigilante wardrobe'. She had to admit she was impressed that such a boat like this could have such a compartment as she peered into what she could see as well as watching the guy checked all the labels to pull out what she'd need. She saw what a vast range this guy had and figured he clearly must do this a lot if he had such a variety of sizes in pretty everything. She then continued to watch him as he moved over and through biometrics, revealed a hidden scanner under a picture which she thought was incredibly clever.

When the weapons revealed themselves she couldn't resist leaning a bit further forward to see what there was, seeing the various blades particularly caught her attention as they were always her go to for fighting, even before her now beloved crossbow violin. Blades meant she could be agile, be either up close or ranged so she could also use her magic when required. As she glanced through everything she spotted the hidden batarangs and rose an eyebrow briefly before instantly lowering it again and making herself look around at everything. "quite the collection you got" she couldn't help remark as she noticed all the communication devices.

 

[_gallifrog_]

The guy gave a smile at Fia's undisguised impressed look. It was a reaction he knew well, as the keeper of the cache he took full responsibility for taking and keeping inventory of everything on board and always checked items out personally. The boat was his home, as well as a source of not-so-legal employment. Nearly everybody who'd ever been allowed to see this cache on board his boat had a similar reaction to Fia's. "That it is" he agreed with an almost proud nod. Converting the houseboat into a home had been difficult enough, finding space for and concealing all the various equipment storage modules (there were far more than just those two compartments on board) while maintaining the illusion of it being a normal houseboat had been an even harder slog.

"But this boat's name does literally translates to 'prepare for war, so it's more than fitting to keep a cache of all things necessary for one's line of... extra-curricular activities." He adds, removing three small pieces of equipment from the racks- two headsets and one other device. "Don't bother getting excited about those weapons" he told Fia with a sharp look, which made it quite clear he knew exactly what she was thinking. "It's a no casualties opp, so seeing them now is as much interaction as you'll get with them." A tap of a finger against some hidden switch or button sends the fake wall upwards again, concealing the arsenal from view. "Bathroom's over there. Try the suit and boots on for size- I've been told that you won't be bio-monitored so you can keep your regular top on underneath. Once that's sorted I'll sync up the voice changer and comm so there won't be a horrendous squeal of feedback every time you speak."

 

[MzHyde]

Hearing what the name of the boat actually translates to, she nodded finding it now made sense. "appropriate" she simply remarked back with a small half smile at the corner of her lips. The moment he told her not to get any ideas about the weapons, she knew he noticed her impressed look at them. Holding her hands up in a casual defence manner, she shook her head lightly, "I know it is, been told all that already" she reassured him. "I was simply just thinking it's an impressive collection. That's all" she added. Despite the look she had in her eyes, she really didn't get any ideas that she'd be having a pick of them in the slightest, she knew better than to try and betray Rinaa by sneaking any weapons onto her body and after they hadn't long had a moment of reconciliation, she didn't want to ruin that. She was fully aware how important a stealth no casualties operation or mission was, even if she did always get a little twinkle in her eyes at seeing such weaponry like a child would twinkle eyed at the latest toy being released. It was something she couldn't help, it's just who she was, no matter what face she sported.

At the mention of where the bathroom was, she looked over her shoulder to see where it was then looked back at the guy before nodding at his suggestions. "great, be right back then" she replied, grabbing the outfit and boots and heading to the bathroom. Stepping inside she closed and locked the door behind her and began stripping off her jacket first, then removed her own boots and jeans but left her t-shirt on. She perched herself on the toilet seat to pull on the given trousers, sliding them on with ease but not much ease that they were far too baggy. Standing up she did the typical normal little hop to fully pull them up into her waist, doing up the fastenings and tucking in her t-shirt inside the waistband. Sitting back down, she went for the boots next, unlacing them slightly to slip her feet in then retired them tightly but not so tight they cut off circulation.

The fit of the trousers and boots seemed pretty good to her, the boots particularly fitted incredibly well, though stiff but comfortable and had enough movement in them that she could remain flexible. She then proceeded to put the jacket on and do it up, it fitted pretty well on her but she did wo der if it could better. Grabbing her own clothes and boots, she stepped out of the bathroom. "where shall I put my stuff?" she asked.

 

[_gallifrog_]

While Fia had been getting dressed the guy had been running diagnostics on the two headsets and the voice changer. It was a deceptively simple process involving a data cable and a programme downloaded onto a laptop that officially didn't exist. He looked up as Fia exited the bathroom, now dressed from head to toe in tactical gear. "The chair over there will do for now" the guy replied, indicated the wooden chair by the study desk with his hand, before scrutinising Fia as she moved. It wasn't in a 'I'm checking you out because I think you're hot kind of way', this look was purely analytical and purely business. It was one of his duties as keeper of the cache to ensure that clothing fit the vigilante in question properly and there was something dodgy about the fit on Fia.

"The fit of that jacket is not quite right is it?" he asked rhetorically, pushing himself out off the bench seating and making his way towards the 'vigilante wardrobe' as Fia had internally dubbed it. He'd expected something like this to happen, unless the suit was a full body custom created specifically for that person, there was always going to be problems with the fit. He rummaged through the jackets, muttering slightly to himself before pulling out two others. "Try these, see if they fit better, though I think this one" he shook the one in his left hand "will be a bit too short in the arms.... but I'm no tailor."

 

[MzHyde]

Looking over, Fia saw the chair he suggested and nodded, walking over and taking the clothing to the chair where she proceeded to lay dit all down, placing her boots on top. She wasn't completely paying attention to how the guy was looking her over but she had already put it into her head that at some point somehow he or Rinaa would be checking out the fit of the tactical gear. So when he spoke up saying something wasn't quite right with the jacket, she looked at him and shook his head. "Nah, it's just a bit baggy in the wrong places" she confirmed to him as he went to go back to the hidden wardrobe to find her a better fitting one. She stayed out of the way as he did so before pulling out two other options for her to try. She took them both after he gave her the opinion that one might be a too short in the arms. She unzipped and shrugged off the one she was wearing before trying the one that was on the left first as that was the one he guessed wouldn't be right in the arms.

As he predicted it was a tad short in the arms, the cuffs coming about an inch above her wrists. "seems you were right about your theory" she half lightly smirked before shrugging that one off and trying on the other. 'Third time lucky' was a phrase that was indeed highly accurate in this situation as it was the third one that fitted perfectly. It was snug in all the right places but it didn't restrict movement in her arms either, with the sleeves finishing at the right left to not be an issue for her hands. "thanks for the help" she said to him, handing him back the other two jackets so he could put them away if he needed to. "how's the other stuff going? The comms and voice changer?" she asked, nodding toward where he was previously sat at the laptop.

 

[_gallifrog_]

"Practice" he gave a smile which showed his quiet satisfaction at having found the right fit, this guy took pride in his job of equipping vigilantes. To his semi-professional eyes, the fit of the third jacket was visibly better on Fia than either of the other two. "And you're welcome" he added, stepping forwards and taking the other two jackets back from Fia, slotting them back into place on the rail. After that it was simply a matter of pushing the bench seats back into place, a solid clunk could be heard as the locking mechanism clicked into place.

"Both are fully functional and ready to go." He told her, passing (not throwing) the voice changer to Fia. It was designed to be worn around the neck, and bore an unfortunate resemblance to a collar. "I've been told you're wearing this full time, so I can't just use a comms add-on. I'd recommend a scarf or something similar to cover it up when out in public. Once you're on the opp it will be masks and helmets which will conceal it from view. Put it on and we can mess around with the voice settings until it sounds different, but still works with the rest of your appearance, the last person who wore this was a bloke, so it might still be tuned to him..... Actually, I also need you to read a series of control phrases before I turn it on." He flipped around the laptop, bringing up a set of phrases.

 

[MzHyde]

After he took the other two jackets from her, Fia then stepped back once more to let him close up the compartments and slot back the benches back together. She nodded as he said the two other pieces of equipment she needed were up and running, ready to go, even if the voice changer just needed calibrating to her once it was on. She took hold of the voice changer from him, noting how it looked like some prison collar used by the likes of Arkham Asylum but she mentally attempted to shake that thought process out of her head so she didn't freak herself out. She also discreetly made sure she could suss out every single bit of material it was made out of, something that had been instilled into her from a young age by both her parents, and it was something she fully agreed with doing, not to mention just did out of instinct now without even thinking about it. It was a protective action that she would never complain about doing. She couldn't risk having anything on her that had even the smallest amount of iron in, as even the smallest amount would burn her incredibly badly.

Satisfied it was fine, she listened to what he was saying at the same time, nodding feeling more than okay with using some kind of scarf or similar to hide it. Putting it on, it wasn't exactly the most comfortable thing in the world but she knew it could be a lot worse at the same time. She looked over at the laptop when he explained needing her to read off some phrases to start the calibration so she didn't end up sounding like the bloke's new voice who last used it. As she read the phrases, she then spoke them out loud when she was given the a-okay to do so, making sure to not speak too quickly or too slowly, but just casually so he got an accurate read of her true voice.

 

[_gallifrog_]

The guy didn't raise an eyebrow at the way Fia scrutinised the voice changer, turning it over in her hands and holding it up to the light. He put her behaviour down to Fia having never seen one before and that she wanted to familiarise herself with it, maybe figure out how to put in on and tighten it without asphyxiating herself (a commendable approach in his opinion). As Fia carefully repeated the phrases, pronouncing each word and sound clearly he kept an eye on the corner of the software where the recording/analysing software was displaying the sound waveforms.

Even with all the necessary sounds recorded, it took him about ten minutes to find a voice that both were happy with. He worked sitting down on the bench seating, laptop propped on his legs, with Fia standing in front of him so he could take in the full affect of the changed voice. As he worked he displayed two distinct tics- biting the left hand side of his bottom lip and running a hand across his riot of curls- both indicating that the level of focus he was given to the task. The first few attempts were far too low (hilariously so) and the next two were both deemed too close to Fia's actual voice. When a suitable fake voice was finally reached the guy had her repeat the original control phrases again in full, then gave her a brief run-down on how to use the headset (it wasn't entirely dissimilar to a regular gamer headset, just more sensitive to sound and with more channels). "Well that's that sorted" he closed the laptop, setting it to one side. "I'd recommend changing out of the suit before you leave the boat, faux military might be very much the rage fashion wise, but that gear screams this is quality shit. There should be an empty backpack on the hook in the bookshelf nook."

 

[MzHyde]

Some of the different voice changes even had Fia laughing at herself which only got funnier as her laughter equally sounded too low for obvious reasons. She didn't mind that it took a good ten minutes before one was found that not only he was happy with, but she was also. She noticed his tics but like with most people, she wouldn't actually say anything about it. She just put it down to something she observed and that was that. During the time she was standing in front of him, she didn't really show many tics of any kind herself, just every now and then moved the majority of her body weight from one foot to the other like a lot of people when standing still in one spot for a while, or she just propped one foot out slightly, tipping her toes up and out, pressing her heel into the ground lightly. All casual positions to stand in.

She gladly said the phrases again and listened intently to hoe to use it, whilst noting how it wasn't all too different to one of her gaming headsets. At the recommendation to change for the time being, she nodded, "right, and cheers for this, appreciated" she replied to him, before grabbing her stuff and going to change back whilst also making a brief stop at the bookshelf and found the empty backpack, which she took off the nook then headed into the bathroom once more and got changed back into her normal clothing. She didn't have a scarf to hand and didn't know if Rinaa had anything spare, but for the time being she knew she could use her jacket if she did it up, as the way the style was designed, when zipped right up it created a turtle neck style collar sitting right up under her chin without rolling down. So that's what she did once in her normal clothing, zipping it up and then proceeding to tucking the tactical gear into the spare backpack, doing it up and stepping out of the bathroom once more.

 

[_gallifrog_]

In the time it had taken Fia to change clothes and store the tactical gear in the backpack, the guy had returned to his rightful position behind the boat's wheel and Rinaa had headed downstairs into the living quarters of the boat. The other girl was talking on her phone, twirling the comms headset in between the fingers of her free hand. The moment Fia exited the room coincided exactly with Rinaa giving a loud snort of laughter in response to something that had been said on the other end. Rinaa shook her head, an amused smirk on her face before glancing up and seeing Fia. Setting the comm on the cushion near her she indicated that Fia should sit herself down somewhere.

The remainder of the call lasted no more than three minutes, the saying goodbye part was drawn out, Jay not quite willing to let her daughter go just yet. After hanging up Rinaa regarded the phone with a soft, fond smile before turning to her cousin. "That was Jay and Quin. Unsurprisingly neither are exactly thrilled that you're taking part in the operation- to say Jay's fuming is an understatement of epic proportions. Buuuut both know there isn't another way and since we don't get another chance to pull off this heist, they've accepted your presence as a quote unquote 'necessary evil' to get the job done. There's a Hells of a lot resting on this, the SWAT operation is work related for Jay- forensic specialist work, not assassin killer work." The last part was added as a clarification, the girl had never actually asked Fia about what Jay in her timeline did for work when on Earth. (Jay did have the same job in both timelines- a specialist forensic consultant called in mainly on cases involving meta-humans, aliens and select high-profile deaths). "The keeper says you're all equipped?" Rinaa asked, changing tack, her eyes fixing on the plain backpack by her 'cousin's' side.

 

[MzHyde]

Stepping out in the bathroom, she noticed the guy was gone but instead Rinaa was around. She didn't say anything as she saw instantly that her cousin was on the phone and she didn't want to interrupt her whilst she was clearly busy. Instead she just silently kept out of the way and although she couldn't help but wonder who she was talking to, she knew it was none of her business, leaving it completely up to Rinaa to tell her when she got off the phone. But the loud amount of laughter that came from Rinaa did spur the majority of her curiosity, even if she always had the mindset of 'if i don't eavesdrop on their conversation, then those on the phone will give me the same respect if ever were to be in reverse'. It was a mindset she had always, no matter who she was with or when she was with them. Only time it was ever different was if she knew someone was calling someone else for answers not only they needed, but she did also, then she made no discreet motions in wanting to eavesdrop. She presumed in that regard she was more like her mother than her father, but she didn't want to think of her father in such a way, even if it may or may not be true.

As she waited for Rinaa to get off her call, she noticed the girl gesturing for her to make herself comfortable somewhere, to which she did so. Sitting on the end of the main couch, putting the backpack down by her feet as she did so. With the call eventually over, unable to not smirk slightly at how Rinaa's goodbyes were being drawn out which gave her an inkling it was family she was talking to judging by the goodbyes. With Rinaa confirming it was indeed Jay and Quin on the other end, she nodded not surprised that Jay was less than happy about her being on the op. She nodded as her cousin continued explaining what Jay's role was on this heist, the job ringing a bell for in her timeline also. "Glad they can see the logic in me helping at any rate." she replied, "Oh! Yeah, all equipped and set up, as you can now tell" she confirmed, still feeling a bit weirded out at hearing her voice sounding different, but she knew in sheer moments she would get used to it easily enough, but patted the backpack at her feet as she noticed how Rinaa's eyes were fixated on it. "Got it all in here as he let me borrow it. Took a couple of different sizes of jacket but we got there easily enough" she added.