Meeting On The Cliffs [Rita/Vanyel]

After taking the card Vanyel gave her, Rita's eyes lingered on it, reflecting an expression of intrigue. To her, they both had the means to further operations and push things along with Gracen Arms with the Vadenreich. It would take time to send over the capital and arrange things for a building, but that could be done with time. No, what was more interesting to her was the person he was trying to save.

It wasn't the first time someone from a horrible situation was brought to her doorstep, and it wouldn't be the last. Knowing that, Rita pocketed the ground and chuckled softly before she patted Vanyel's shoulder.

"Well, arrange a meeting with us, and I'll poke her head. Not the first time I took in a stray, but I do have to know what she is bringing to the table so I can figure out what to do with her."

Rita's words hinted at her pragmatism and willingness to give someone a chance if they were helpful.

Right. Of course, that was just logical. Vanyel breathed a quiet sigh of relief at that. It wasn't an instant hire, expecting something like that was just wishful thinking, but, he had gotten Vi's foot in the door. So, with a soft nod, Vanyel leaned back a bit, still fidgeting lightly in his lap. This was good news. He'd help out Vi for the meeting as best he could.

"Yeah. Alright, good."

Part of him couldn't help but think of the worst case scenario, unsure of what he, or Violet, would do then. But, he couldn't focus on that. It wouldn't help anything. Hope for the best, prepare for the worst. He'd leave the problems of tomorrow for the him of tomorrow. Vanyel took a deep breath, calming himself down.

"Right. Where do you think I should start for the City of Lights stuff?"

FORTUNE FAVORS THE BOLD

MASTER OF RESOURCES, MISTRESS OF FATE

Rita pat the head of Vanyel and grinned. He wasn't good with hiding his emotions, so she felt apt to address his worries.

"Don't worry, I'm not gonna chew her out. I just gotta make sure I know who I'm letting on my payroll. Of course I trust ya recommendations."

With an earnest nod, she then tapped her chin and seemed to have a spark of light come through her eyes when it came to his second concern about where to even begin with the City of Lights.

"Well, didn't you say you had connections in the city with Lilith? If so, perhaps we can just start there and make a partnership with her. Either you or myself can approach her, but you have my approval to do things for Gracen Arms if it'll help our reach in the world."

As if she’d already anticipated this moment, Rita’s expression turned coy. She pulled a sleek black business card from her bosom, flashing a smirk.

"Company credit card comes in handy, eh?"

Yeah. He knew that she would just chew Violet out or anything. He was just...worried over nothing, right? Vanyel sighed, bringing his hands to his face as he gave a soft nod in response to her. As far as starting with Lilith, that seemed to be as good a place to start as any. He pulled out the business card from his wallet, tucking it away separate in his pocket before he turned to see Rita's expression, causing him to raise an eyebrow...

...Only for her to pull out a company credit card, and he chuckled as she smirked.

"Yeah. Thanks, Rita. If I'm bein' honest...this girl, Violet, I wanted to find a way to keep livin' with her in the City of Lights, so, I thought, figurin' out a way to bring work to the city would be best."

Vanyel didn't realize that he was smiling as he told her. He liked spending time with her. She was proving to be a fantastic student, both in cooking and martial arts, but...he still really enjoyed the time they spent together outside of that. Him showing her movies that display the martial arts he knew or taught, telling her all sorts of fantastical stories from the mythos of his home...it made him happy.

FORTUNE FAVORS THE BOLD

MASTER OF RESOURCES, MISTRESS OF FATE

Huh. From his expression, the way he talked, and how he felt, there were a few subtle clues for her to pick up the hint. After rubbing her chin, she then put her hand on his shoulder and looked him dead in his face.

"So you like her, huh?"

Not even batting an eye, Rita spoke frankly and with a smug expression on her face.

"Far be it from me to stop you from using company funds to house your sweetheart~"

Both joking and serious about that statement, she trusted Vanyel enough not to do anything retarded with the money. If he needed a place to live in and travel while making roots in the city, that was a win in her book.

As Rita put her hand on his shoulder and looked him in the eye, Vanyel's smiled faltered for a moment, unsure of how to react from that...only for such a blunt question to come out. Immediately, his jaw dropped open and his cheeks flushed red, a hand rising to cover it.

"N-No! Well, I mean...fuckin'...agh!"

Anyone who saw that could tell he was lying, and fumbling to try and make excuses. But, with such a blunt callout, and her following up to sink him even deeper, Vanyel couldn't really try and keep that up.

"Well...k-kinda, yeah. I've been helpin' her out a lot lately, and...well..."

Vanyel's hand slowly went from his mouth, to rubbing the side of his neck, his face still lit up with more color than an average Lunar New Year.

"I...don't wanna be away from her."

FORTUNE FAVORS THE BOLD

MASTER OF RESOURCES, MISTRESS OF FATE

"Ah, your so cute when you are flustered~"

There was a wide, toothy grin from Rita as she saw Vanyel gushing over the mystery woman. In that moment, she couldn't help herself and pinched his right cheek.

"If that's what you really want, then you have my support. It was only a matter of time before someone scooped a cutie like you up. I had half a mind to keep ya to myself."

A brief flicker of aqua light danced behind Rita’s eyes. Her words were a mixture of teasing and sincerity.
"Well, besides helping her out, what is she like? What made ya want to give yourself to her so much?"


She had a habit of mixing humor with genuine care, but this time, there was a clear warmth behind her teasing. It wasn’t often she saw Vanyel this open.

"Sorry, I'm a gossip queen at times! I have to know all the details."

Grinning, Rita let out a playful laugh. Her curiosity was genuine, but she also enjoyed the rare chance to poke fun at him like this. Vanyel's reactions were a treasure, and it only fueled her desire to learn more about his mystery love.

The first comment only served to make Vanyel want to hide his face even more, despite how impossible that was becoming with how red his face was becoming. The follow-up was little better, especially for someone who didn't really know how to process real compliments. But, the ending part did catch him by surprise, and alleviated the fluster a little bit.

He never knew that she had seen him in that regard. Then, she asked about what she was like, allowing him a moment's reprieve. His face was still red, but he was far less flustered. There was certainly embarrassment, but there was also a sense of wistful joy to those crystalline, zircon-colored eyes.

"God, where do I even start...at first, I was just stayin' with her since she wanted to learn martial arts from me. We'd watch movies together when we'd finish to unwind and have some fun, but, then...she had a really bad day, and she ended up going through a really...really rough patch for a bit.

That night when Violet had come home, high off heroin, still was able to make that joyful expression falter. Even if they hadn't known each other for a terribly long time, he had seen how bad that stuff could affect someone, and he didn't want to see it ruin another life.

"I got called away to Germany to help fix a distribution problem with the company, and, the whole time, I was worryin' about her, ended up keepin' track through her phone's GPS. She ended up in Japan, somehow, and I went to pick her up. She was...really beat up, so, I brought her to my place to help nurse her back to health."

Despite how injured she was, that smile returned as he thought of the good times they'd spent together during that point.

"Once she was back on her feet, I started teachin' her how to cook, and, one time, she did this thing, i-it was so fuckin' cute. When she was measurin' milk to make a mix for French toast, she drank the excess to get it back down to the proper level."

He kept going on and on about Violet, eventually coming to a stop, that joy fading into a more relaxed, but still upbeat and positive look to him, compared to the serious expression he always wore when on the job. Rita, of all people, knew how important his work was, and how seriously he took it.

FORTUNE FAVORS THE BOLD

MASTER OF RESOURCES, MISTRESS OF FATE

Rita's face grew from mischievous to mellow as she let Vanyel talk about all he had been through with this mystery girl. It seemed he had really found someone with whom he clicked and had been through a lot. It was a lot to process and she had started to tap her chin; as if mulling things over in her head; giving occasional nods to show she was still listening and digesting Vanyel's words. Eventually, her teal eyes would lock in on Vanyel when she felt apt to speak her mind.

"You need to be with this girl then. I had half a mind to keep to you to myself, but if what you said is true, you have a chance at a romantic bond, and you should make this girl your partner."

Rita’s blunt words were laced with warmth and sincerity. There was no dancing around it in her mind—either he needed to step up and make this girl his or rethink the whole thing. If they had as much chemistry as he claimed, it would be a waste to let that potential love slip away.

"Trust me, you don't wanna be my age and fail to act on the chance for finding someone you really connect with. Go for it, dude."

With that, Rita gave him a playful nudge on the shoulder, her expression softening into a knowing smile. She leaned back, crossing her arms as if to signal the ball was now firmly in his court.

Vanyel hadn't expected Rita to be so serious and emphatic on the matter. As she emphasized confessing to Violet how he felt and officially making the two of them an item, Vanyel's face turned a bit red, looking away from her with a bashful smile as he rubbed the side of his neck.

"Well...I did have an idea for a date with her. If we schedule her interview on the same day as the one I schedule with Lilith for this endeavor, it could... "

Vanyel trailed off, his thoughts immediately delving into what all he could do to make that night special. He'd definitely have to make something she liked, that was a definite. He didn't want to just have it at her house, so...maybe he could try and rent out the pier on the beach where they met. He had also secretly bought her that dress she was eyeing the one day, so...maybe everything could come together.

But, hearing the mention of Rita's age snapped him out of his thought process, causing him to give her a gentle nudge in return.

"You're not that old, Rita. Hell, I'm not even that much younger than you."