Scene #5151: Graceful Charity (not the card)

Owner	Pose
Velvet Crowe	It is early evening at Charity's manor. Finding herself restless, Velvet began pacing, looking for something to do. Silence on her radio made her begin wandering the manor for a quiet corner. Then dinner rolled around. She's hungry, that's nothing new. She figures she should probably eat something, at least to keep her body going. And so the daemon has had the kitchen vacated so that SHE could cook. Before that, she cleaned it, spotless. The room has never been cleaner in Charity's entire stay. Then she started cooking, from memory entirely. Before long, everything's assembled. Butter, eggs, cheese, leeks, mushrooms, onions, some herbs, cream, some sauces and oils. It smells... alright? Not great. Not bad. And then there's quiche. A lot of quiche. The finished products are laid out on the dinner table, but she hasn't called anyone over to eat. She doesn't look too happy either. Sad? Disappointed? Pre-emptively certain she messed the recipe up? The quiche looks like it should, at least! Still, despite keeping this under wraps... Shin might recall Velvet talked to Samantha about Charity. And Samantha might have business with Charity. Plus it's Charity's manor. This won't stay a quiet dinner.
Shin Tokuyama	With little explanation as to why it's happening, one of the windows explodes in a spray of glass and wood. Shin Tokuyama comes through the window in an action-hero dive, landing in the dining room and then rolling to his feet and taking a kung fu stance, "Hyah!" He points at Velvet, "The appointed hour has arrived! I have come to settle what we left unfinished!" He adjusts his stance a bit, continuing to point at her before very carefully bringing his hands up, "Prepare yourself. We have much to discuss, Protagonist Girl."
Samantha Middleton	Trying to talk to Charity about anything is getting frustrating! Samantha is in the house, and hasn't even had a chance to start talking when there's a loud crash, and something smells nice for a teenager who often forgets to eat. Peeking around the corner, she looks at the resultant scene of food, window crashing, and all that. "... hi, Shin. Hello, Velvet. Um... is this a private encounter?"
Charity Whiteheart	Sigh. There goes the window. Charity follows right after Sam, rubbing her temples. She's mildly annoyed by the entrance, so she actually shows her vindictive side... subtly. "If you're going to be entering an ally's house like that, Tokuyama, I'm going to teach you how to properly walk through walls." She knows this isn't a thing she can teach. Her vindictiveness is manifest this way. Because it'll be fun, for her, to watch Shin slam into walls over and over.
Velvet Crowe	There is glass everywhere. And dirt. Under normal circumstances Velvet would have immediatly lashed back, but luckily for Shin her temper is currently tempered by having just cleaned and cooked, some of the only things that let her relax. Unluckily for him that switch is still flipped. "I /just/ cleaned the room! And take your shoes off." Samantha drops in. Charity arrives. Velvet rumbles That facade is already starting to crack. "No, this isn't private. If you're done destroying perfectly spotless dining rooms, there's food on the table. No promises on the taste." That apron suggests she cooked, but it's surprisingly pristine.
Shin Tokuyama	"I WAS GONNA TAKE THEM OFF," Shin shouts back at Velvet, slipping out of his shoes and then placing them under a nearby endtable, "God. I'm a Japanese martial artist, not some American. I know how to take off my shoes." Having taken off his shoes, Shin waves at Charity and Samantha, "Hi! No, it's not private! I'm just here to bother a fellow protagonist! Unfortunately for me, she's like FOUR MONTHS AHEAD OF SCHEDULE AND ALREADY DRESSED LIKE A MAID WAIFU." Shin looks exasperated, "This is rookie. It's Bush League." He looks to Charity, "I don't need to learn to walk through walls! I can kung fu through walls! It's much more cinematic! Anyway, why I'm here." "You're gonna be my new love interest. The others keep kinda vanishing to go do their own plotlines," Shin waves his hand, "I lost the Tsundere Nerdgirl Villain, the creepy Yandere, the Kuudere Death Knight Girl who was Emo. But I have a good feeling about you." Shin wags his finger, "See. I know how I'm gonna arrange the dynamic. I'm gonna pursue you, and you seem like the type who's going to tell me she has no time for silly things like romance, because you have to do your duty. Or get your revenge. Or fulfill your mission." He waves his hand, "Something like that. But then over a series of comical events, I'll warm your cold heart and you will reluctantly admit to enjoying my presence."
Samantha Middleton	Samantha backs away... and takes off her shoes. Tiptoeing through the kitchen doesn't work as well when one foot is metal, but she tries it anyway. Samantha is giving both of them weird looks, now. "You fixed dinner? Um... thanks, Velvet." Glancing at Shin, totally not sure if he really believes this, Sam plops herself down in a chair and places hands on the table. "Nice to see you again? Guess you've gotten more clothes. Did Haven give you that?"
Charity Whiteheart	Siiiigh. Charity shakes her head, but she yanks a chair out to slide into place as well. "I really wish you'd met Fairchild, Shin. She spoke your language just fine." She grumbles soflty about teens with attitude, then turns at Samantha and mumbles, "Sorry, no offense intended. Anyway, I guess we're having a dinner party now." She flops back. "Welcome to Rivernest! Won through the hard work and blood of murdering the shit out of the corrupt aristocracy to send a message to the Emperor. Now a small trading city. Looks like you have a wacky companion for your journey."
Velvet Crowe	Velvet stares at Shin. Half of that went over her head, the other half is still being processed. Eventually she gives a flat reply: "I do have time, I'm just not interested. Besides, I'm a daemon, not a human. If you're willing to fight the Abbey you can tag along, but that's as close to me as you're getting." This will probably only encourage him. If only she knew the depths of Shin's vision. A glance down at her apron, then towards Samantha. "No, I took that here. Yes. I need to eat too, and I haven't touched a stove in three years. I was curious if I remembered." It turns out she did! "I used to make quiche a lot, so..." Let's get that out of the way: it is OK. It's too salty, there's not enough pepper, and overall flavor is a bit on the light to bland side. But it's perfectly edible! The problem is probably not the recipe. Velvet sits, and eats, but she's not chewing much. Going through the motions, mostly? Polite enough not to speak with her mouth full, just between bites. "How'd you convince an entire city to accept new leaders like that? Murdering's pretty easy, but the politics of it can't be fun."
Shin Tokuyama	"Hm..." Shin thinks about it. Inside his head, a dialogue option appears in relation to Velvet. Accept Compromise. Reject Offer -> Pickup Line "I do believe you're a daemon, since your ass is monstrously fine." Shin gives her this line delivered with complete confidence, no hesitation, and also he is giving her fingerguns while he says it, "But sure, I'll come along for your journey." And then he turns towards Charity, "Oh. Murdering corrupt politicians, taking over a city for a greater good. Sounds like you had a heck of a quest."
Samantha Middleton	Munch. Samantha doesn't comment on it not being great, but she does add a dash of pepper if it's on the table. "Hm? I didn't know that. I'm kind of after vengeance myself. Sort of." She isn't sure who knows her story here! The youngest girl of the trio here does still have enough knowledge to give Shin a stare though. Like, who actually tries a line like that? "So what exactly happened, anyway? Not just you, Miss Whiteheart, but with Velvet? I mean..." She looks at Velvet. "What's your story? Why are you after this guy? I wanna know what's so different than the line they fed us."
Charity Whiteheart	Charity waves away the comments about Rivernest. "It wasn't all that hard comparatively. I mean, yeah, not that it was easy, but we sort of hit this hard and fast to make a point. At first, people were too terrified to work against us, but the boss was pretty adamant of being understanding and trying to make things better. Given how awful the people here could be, it wasn't too hard to win them over after the war." She looks at Samantha, then Velvet. Shin, she measures up with a curious look. "Well... remember that if they're being cast as the heroes, a lot of genuinely good people will be helping them because they think it's the right thing to do. Be careful your rampage doesn't hurt people who might want to help you if they could be turned."
Velvet Crowe	Another flat stare at Shin. Unfortunately for Velvet, being a daemon didn't strip her of shame entirely. And she's finally starting to feel the weight of Shin's remarks! She's feeling just a bit self-conscious. "I know it's a compliment, but I've devoured people for way less than that. And it's not this quiche that'll make me stop being hungry." It is a threat! But also kind of not. Spoken casually, not entirely hostile. A glance away from Charity, as she finishes explaining how she took a city and made its hers, to look at Samantha as she digs into her circumstances. Velvet chews slower, before setting her fork down. "Arthur. Artorius. He killed my brother. Whatever he did that night, three years ago, when he "saved the world" and allowed humanity to see and form pacts with malakhim, he had to kill someone to make it happen. For him it was reason above emotions. One life for millions, so that humans could fight back against daemons. For me it's my world he destroyed, and I lost my arm trying to stop him." Not entirely correct, but not entirely wrong, either. "That's all. So I'll kill him, avenge Laphicet, and then... I don't care what happens. To me or the world. That explanation work for you?"
Shin Tokuyama	"Perfect. You're nailing this part." Shin says as he gives Velvety a thumbs up when she kinda casually threatens him. He seems completely at ease with the threat. Perhaps it plays into his planned narrative for Velvet? Who knows. "Still..." Shin crosses his arms and nods his head a bit, "Guy sounds like a dickbag. You've got every right to go after him for that. I'm in. Count me and my kung fu as totally on your side for this revenge quest." Shin says as he kicks the air and causes a pretty decent gust of wind from the force of it alone. "I'll totally help you take that guy out."
Samantha Middleton	Samantha frowns. "Well.. do you know he had to kill him to do it? I mean... I feel sorry for what happened to Blakely, but I still think she needs to die for the good of the world, too." She stops and thinks for a second... "He never came back to talk to you about it? Sounds kind of like a jerk," she admits. She hasn't decided one way or another, but she's definitely empathizing with the whole idea overall.
Charity Whiteheart	Charity kicks back. "There's probably some big picture stuff to think about, but I'm not really the best at that," she says. "I've said my piece. Try to keep the ones tricked into it out of it. Something about this entire thing doesn't sit well with me..." She rubs her temple again, then takes a bite. "Meh. I'm not really the judging sort. I've done my share of dirty deeds and all. Just trying to, you know, make sure nobody else makes my mistakes. At least Shin here seems to have gotten a focus and he'll make sure you don't do anything monstrous. Probably."
Velvet Crowe	Part? Velvet sighs and rubs over her eyes. This man is a headache, but if he's muscle she can count on she'll... learn to deal. Or do what she threatened to and solve the problem. As if it'd be that easy! But she can dream. "Sure. Thanks." To Samantha and Charity then, a clarification. Actually, more than that. Velvet gets angry. Her bandaged arm slams on the table, though luckily doesn't go all people-eating mode or anything. "Artorius PUT me in that cell. I turned into a daemon that night. I'm not PEOPLE anymore, he doesn't owe me a damn apology in his mind! I'm just another victim of the Scarlet Night and the daemonblight. Maybe keeping him alive was his way to apologize or pity me, and that's why they kept feeding daemons to me so I wouldn't go hungry or mad, but I don't CARE! I'll topple the Abbey if I have to. 'The good of the world' isn't my concern. His successor can sort that mess out!"
Shin Tokuyama	Content with the arrangement of things, Shin goes to sit down at the table and begin eating the quiche. He actually seems... pretty content with the flavor, though he tilts his head a bit, "You should add some nutmeg to this next time. And maybe some minched artichoke hearts. That would really flavor it up! Still, this is the best food I've had in weeks!" He seems mostly sidetracked and focused on the eating thing, but when Charity says he'll stop Velvet from doing anything too monstrous, he does look up and give a thumbs up before shovelling food in his face again.
Samantha Middleton	Best food in weeks? It's certainlu edible, and Sam is grateful for that much! She swallows her mouthful and looks between Velvet and Charity having their argument, not to mention the snap at her. Then she swallows. "Well do your thing, and I'm pretty sure some of us will be looking into his behavior. Because if the's oppressing thinking beings like that, then he's pretty much a bad guy in our eyes." True enough! She thinks. She'll have to talk to Terra about this.
Charity Whiteheart	Charity holds up a hand. "Hey, I'm not going to tell you how to approach it. Just saying you should think about it. This guy ruined your life and you want to make him pay. I can understand that. Sounds like a real stick up his ass, too." She shrugs, grabbing a drink. "Look. I'm letting you stay here for a while so I clearly don't really have a problem with your plans. Just try not to make it all you think about. You're not stuck in that hole any more. Enjoy your life a little. Plan your next move. Hell, if he's heard you're out he's probably sweating right now... let him sweat."
Velvet Crowe	"Artorius is a beast of reason. This 'greater good' crap is all he thinks about. 'Bad guy' is a label more likely to cling to me. I'm not going to tell you what he did didn't make the world a better place. I just can't stand the price he paid for it, so I'm going to make sure he gets what's coming his way." She withdraws her hand from the table, though still seems pretty pissed off. "I don't tell you how to live. Don't tell me not to think about my brother." A huff, and she tries calming herself a bit. "Still, I'm not stupid. I don't know how big the Abbey is, but he's probably surrounded by thousands of devout guards. I couldn't beat him when I got these powers, I might not be able to now either. I'll find other things to occupy myself until I am. Maybe I can get stronger. The daemons in jail weren't very strong. Probably calculated meals to keep me from growing. I just have to go nuts." Eat people, get stronger. Easy! She glances back towards Shin. "Nutmeg, artichokes, sure. You'll have to be my tongue, because I can't taste a thing. Well... one thing. Blood. Just blood."