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 Posted: Wed Jan 02, 2008 3:22 am
It was a friday. A perfectly ordinary, regular friday.
And it was his day off! Woo hoo! The commanding officers of the African army Sir Aquifer and Bolthor had ordered Flashcharge to take a day off, because he seemed 'too stressed'. While Thomas had protested THAT, he hadn't quite protested the day off he was going to get! Woo hoo!
Now what to do with that day? That wasn't quite so hard actually. He flew back to the US within two hours, taking it easy and picked up a nice bouquet of flowers for Ruri. Er-- just as a courtesy! He was just-- just--- going to drop by and visit! Not that he was worried or--- he sighed. He had to stop kidding himself. Still, he pushed the issue away. He wanted his day off to be a RELAXING day. Yeah.
He rang the doorbell, whistling some tune under his breath and watching the blue sky. Not a cloud to be seen. He supposed it was to be considered a cold day, but a nearly invisible blue haze around himself prevented him from feeling that, just like he sometimes kept out the heat of the desert. He was casually dressed, black jeans and beige shirt and sunglasses were once more perched in his hair.
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Posted: Wed Jan 02, 2008 3:38 am
There wasn’t a cloud in the sky, because all the black storm clouds were currently swirling around the house; courtesy of Ruri. There was a very angry woman storming around the house, as she had for the last two days, making for a very dangerous and loud household. No item, including her favorite vase, had escaped her wrath.
Raleigh was currently curled up on the couch, covered in blankets with a hot chocolate in his hands, and a confused Ai sitting in his lap. Besides giving a brief account of what had happened he hadn’t spoken much, but he was feeling better and was a little annoyed that she was forcing him to stay off his feet.
Yeah he felt kinda crappy, but he wasn’t an invalid.
“WHEN I GET THAT WOMAN…!” was yelled for the three-hundredth and fiftieth time.
Then the doorbell rang.
There was silence, then the sound stomping feet before the door was forced open. “What?! This had better be good!” A very angry Ruri stood in the doorway, clearly a force to be reckoned with. But when she realized who exactly was standing on her front step her furious expression changed to one of confusion.
“Eh…” She blinked. “Oh.”
Reaching up Ruri patted down her hair, straightened her clothing and gave a smile. “Come in.”
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Posted: Wed Jan 02, 2008 3:43 am
Thomas had blinked when Ruri, radiating nothing but fury, appeared in the doorway and then raised an eyebrow when she calmed herself and smiled.
"Er... is this a good time?" he asked, a bit confused and a bit uncertain. He stepped inside at Ruri's urging and handed her the flowers. "I brought some flowers for you, if you'd like them," he offered.
Heh. Ruri had seemed mighty impressive just now. And very hot, although she probably didn't realise it herself. "So Ruri, what got you all twisted up like that?" he asked, pulling her closer. "Would a kiss help to make it a bit better?" he asked, smirking seductively.
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Posted: Thu Jan 03, 2008 12:38 am
Ruri still looked a little huffy but now that Thomas was here she couldn’t seem to find the energy to scream the place down anymore. She slapped his arm playfully. “No, it’s a terrible time. I was working myself up into a mighty rage and you ruined it.” Accepting the flowers she admired them while lamenting over the fact that her vase was currently in pieces on the kitchen floor.
Keeping the flowers carefully to the side she leaned up to give FC a fierce kiss. “The place is a big mess. I’ll just put these flowers in some water. Go in the lounge room, that's where the kids are.” She strode off down the hall to the kitchen.
For once in his lifetime Raleigh was actually glad to see Flashcharge. Craning his head over couch he gave Thomas an almost grateful look. “Thank god you turned up. I think she was about to burn the house down.”
“I heard that – Ouch! Stupid vase pieces.”
"'Lo!" Was Ai's loud contribution from Raleigh's lap, impatient to see Thomas.
Ruri appeared a moment later, her temper clearly coiled just below the surface, waiting for the smallest thing to make it rear up. She righted a chair as she walked over to Raleigh, her angry expression becoming tender. “How are you feeling?”
“I'm fine.”
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Posted: Thu Jan 03, 2008 2:46 am
Tom watched Ruri go with a fond look in his eyes. He then shook himself free from that and entered the lounge, smiling, quite pleased with himself.
However, upon seeing Raleigh all stuffed on the couch as if sick, he nearly did a double-take. Raleigh?! Allowing himself to be weak?! What the HELL?! Thomas stared for just a second before he came over to the kids. "Hey Ra, hey Ai. What's up? You ill?" he asked, brow furrowing slightly with worry.
Was this why Ruri was so mad? But-- no, that was hardly likely. Why would she be so terribly angry if Raleigh was just ill.
He grinned at Raleigh's remark while he came over and crouched down with them. "Well, well, looks like you're actually pleased to see me once," he told Raleigh smugly. He reached out and picked Ai up and cuddled with her while he observed Raleigh closely.
"What's going on with you guys?" he asked both Ruri and Ra. Ha! If there was anything wrong or bad, HE'd help fix it!
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Posted: Thu Jan 03, 2008 9:54 pm
“Just a little.” Raleigh admitted, trying to ignore the fact that Ruri was straightening up his blankets lovingly. If it made her feel better to pamper him then he’d let her. “She usually invites the mailman in for tea, but today she tried to throw a pot plant at him.”
“Hmph. You make me sound so violent!”
“You are.”
When Thomas persisted in actually asking what the source of the problem was Raleigh looked away, brow furrowing and jaw clenching. Ruri’s fist came down on the couch top with surprising force.
“THAT woman! THAT DAMN WOMAN!” She clearly wasn’t going to be doing any explaining anytime soon. “Charles won’t tell me where she is, damnit! And neither will Raleigh!”
“You’ll only get yourself hurt.” Raleigh muttered.
“I’ll tear her to pieces, I-“Putting a hand on her chest, Ruri took a deep breath and in a quieter voice said, “Tell him Raleigh. I... I need some wine.” She stomped off to find some sort of alcohol.
Raleigh took a while to say anything. When he did his voice held no emotion, but his gaze was in the far off world of a bad memory. “I refused to do a mission as requested; Perfume Tell got angry, took away my powers with a collar and locked me in a jail cell for nearly two days.”
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Posted: Fri Jan 04, 2008 1:04 am
Thomas had lost that playful look during the initial exchange, worry creeping up more and more. What was going ON? What women? Charles was involved? Huh? He was very much alarmed now, both by Ruri's reaction AND by Raleigh's reaction.
When Raleigh told, Tom's eyes seemed to darken near instantly, even as his anger became very much apparent. It was as if an oppressive feeling filled the room entirely, making it hard to move, to breathe.
"She...did.... WHAT?" Tom hissed, "Collared you? That Tell woman?!" He rose fluently to his feet, glaring hard at the wall. Oho. She was going to PAY! He then was reminded of a squirming Ai, who did not quite like the room or the atmosphere, not being able to move... or breathe... and Tom seemed to calm down somewhat. He rocked Ai a bit, then turned and called for Ruri.
"You'll be coming with ME, then, Raleigh," Tom had turned back to him while waiting for Ruri. He had regained most of his calm now, although his eyes were dark and flashing with anger. "And we're going to show that b***h exactly what kind of BIG mistake she's made." Talking about it made his anger come back, but he controlled himself again, simply because Ai squirmed again.
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Posted: Fri Jan 04, 2008 1:19 am
Raleigh was surprised by the reaction. He leaned back in his chair, staring at Thomas as the room around them became heavier and his breath seemed to come in more labored. A frown appeared on his face and continued to grow. Flashcharge was angry.
Ai protested and made an unhappy noise at the treatment she was getting. She sure liked hugs but she also liked being able to reach out to grab a hunk of hair… and being able to breath was a bonus too. She wriggled.
The wine didn’t even get a chance to be opened. Hearing the tone of FC’s voice Ruri left the bottle on the counter and hurried back to the lounge room. She took in the situation and then got Ai from Thomas’ grasp, to which the little girl was grateful for.
“What?” Raleigh stared and then gave a small smile. “Alright.” He wasn’t sure what to think of this, but he pushed off all his blankets and stood.
“Hmph. Raleigh gets all the fun.” Ruri had a wicked little smirk on her face. “Get her good for me.”
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Posted: Fri Jan 04, 2008 1:35 am
"You take care of Ai, Ruri," Thomas told her. He kissed her cheek quickly and then shepherded Raleigh out the room. They were going to GET that b***h. NOBODY messed with HIS family, even if said family member might be a pain in the a** sometimes.
Once outside he had simply scooped up Raleigh and jumped off. He made sure to keep the pace low and easily enjoyable. A small blue bubble around them, keeping the strong and cold winds away from them.
They arrived at the Tell HQ just a short while landed, landed easily and then Thomas took in a deep breath, told Raleigh to look intimidating, yeah-- like that-- and to stay behind him when he'd start against Perfume as to not get hurt.
And he drew himself up to his fullest, but on his best serious superhero face, made a faint blue haze around himself, to illuminate him and make him look even MORE scary and then strode in, a definite angry air around him.
The first thing he did, was throw open the door to the soldier barracks in such a forceful way that it slammed against the door and half broke apart.
"None of you will intervene in my meeting with Perfume Tell," he ordered them.
The soldiers had jumped up, ready, and then looked confused and THEN saluted half. One of them spoke up. "Sir, madam Tell's orders are--"
"I'm overriding her orders as a superhero of the NSA," Thomas barked back. "You will all stand down and do not get involved. Is that clear?"
The soldier had stiffened and then saluted, "Yes sir!"
Thomas turned around then, shepherding Raleigh along once more, up the stairs, to Perfume's office.
"You ok, Raleigh?" he asked, pausing just before they entered Perfume's office.
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Posted: Fri Jan 04, 2008 2:11 am
Things were moving extremely fast for Raleigh. He didn’t say a word even when they finally reached Tell HQ. During the first few hours of being in that jail cell he had thought of various ways to maim and kill Perfume. Now he was going to have a chance to give the woman a piece of his mind and he was feeling a little swamped.
As they swept through the barracks Raleigh couldn’t help but be impressed with how Thomas’ handled himself. He had that distinct air of command and he made it clear that anyone who stood in their way wasn’t going to be treated leniently.
Raleigh took in a deep breath. “Yeah. I’m fine.” He squared his shoulders, found his anger and prepared to step through the door.
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Posted: Fri Jan 04, 2008 2:20 am
"Good boy," Thomas muttered, drew himself up even taller, donned an even scarier superhero face and then threw the door open so that it slammed into the wall and left an imprint there.
Perfume Tell was already on her feet, giving them their deepest glare. Her hand was moving down, obviously wanting to press some button to take away their powers but Thomas moved so very, very quickly. One moment he was standing with Raleigh, the other moment Perfume was slammed into the wall, Thomas' hand on her neck.
"What's this?" he hissed, "Taking out the powers of an on the job super?" He grabbed Perfume's arm and spun her around suddenly and then threw her forwards so she fell to the floor. She didn't get up, instead her eyes were shrewdly watching Raleigh now.
Thomas had moved to stand besides Raleigh and was looking very angry and offended down on Perfume.
"I believe you have something to say," he hissed at Perfume.
Perfume huffed. "Can't deal with me without your superhero protector?" she sneered to Raleigh. "What happened to dealing with your own problems, hm?" She fell silent, because Flashcharge had taken a very threatening step forwards.
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Posted: Fri Jan 04, 2008 2:29 am
Raleigh was surprised by the sped at which FC moved. He stepped into the middle of the room and watched the show, his expression rather calm for the situation. Hands in his pockets he watched Perfume carefully, his emotions swirling.
To see her on the ground before him wasn’t the nicest feeling but he felt a glimmer of satisfaction. He took a step towards her, bending at the waist and leaning forward slightly. “Hm. I know my own limits.” He glowered down at her. “So I had a friend give me a hand.”
Raleigh paused and then straightened. “I don’t find what you did to me particularly amusing. I would like an apology.”
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Posted: Fri Jan 04, 2008 7:03 am
"I was perfectly right in what I did," Perfume sniffed. She managed to still look authorative and graceful, despite sitting on the floor. "I had every bit of authority to do what I did!" she challenged, her eyes meeting Flashcharges. "You see," she explained slowly, as if to a child, "If a superhero fails to obey, punishment is being given o--" Perfume gasped, the air had turned very hard to breath once more.
Flashcharge had taken one step forwards now and was looking down at Perfume with utter disdain and rage burning in his eyes. When he spoke, his voice was actually quite calm. "Punishment?"
Perfume hesitated, also noticing that rage. "Well, not punishment per se, but... measures to ensure..."
"To ensure what?" Thomas challenged.
"Um..." Perfume faltered.
"To ensure we keep in line? To ensure we hate the government? To ensure that we start to AGREE with Solarduct's views? To kill us? To hurt us? Torture us?" Thomas challenged back sarcastically.
"No-- To ensure--" Perfume faltered again, her eyes taking in Flashcharge. Was that fear that entered her eyes? She was confused. Why had she done what she did again? To ensure perfect obedience! Yes, that's why! Then, why did that sound like such a crappy reason now that she was face to face with an angry superhero? Instead, Perfume fell silent, not wanting to speak up.
"To play out your own pathetic power fantasy," Thomas scoffed. "Face it, lady. We are the future. We are the heroes. You can play whatever you want, but in the end you're nothing but some desk worker and WE are everything. We risk our LIVES to save yours. So if I ever find out you've collared one of us again, it'll be the end of you. Is that clear?"
Perfume glared up at Flashcharge but had to cast down her eyes after just a few seconds. He was just too intimidating.
"Is. That. Clear?" Thomas repeated slowly, dangerously.
Perfume's angry eyes met Thomas' again and for a moment she looked as if she was about to shout. But she knew better than that. She knew when defeat was inevitable and it was better to give in or to retreat. To live to fight another day. "Yes," she ground out.
"Yes, what?" Thomas glared. He had to make it that woman perfectly clear as to WHO the one in charge was here. And it wasn't HER. Not when HE was around. Technically speaking, superheroes were around the very top of the hierchy, with only Charles above them. Only for formality's sake they obeyed the orders of people such as Perfume. After all, a well coordinated machine ran best with someone that had all the facts and oversights. Something a superhero just did NOT have when out in the field.
"Yes, sir," Perfume told them in a fake, adopted cheery tone of voice. Her eyes were still raging at the both him and Raleigh.
"I believe you owe my partner an apology?" Thomas added coolly, not in the least bit affected by Perfume's glares. Hah! If you had stared down Solarduct, not much else could scare ya!
Perfume was beyond angry now. The humiliation! To APOLOGISE?! To the BRAT, no least! She wouldn't! She didn't want to! She-- She had no choice.
Still, Perfume knew when to do something right. So she took a deep breath and -- it wasn't a glare, but only barely -- looked up at Raleigh.
"I apoligise for the discomfort I have caused you by my own foolish actions." Hah! If she phrased it as cold as possible, it wasn't so bad! "I overstepped my boundaries while trying to ensure my troops' loyalty. It will not happen again. My apologies."
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Posted: Tue Jan 08, 2008 1:31 am
Raleigh’s gaze was cold as a block of arctic ice. He knew Perfume’s apology would be less than sincere. Right now he was confused. While he felt a great deal of resentment towards Perfume for what she had done to him, he wasn’t a vengeful person, at least not when it came to himself. Seeing her on the ground, he almost felt a sense of pity.
That feeling didn’t last long. Raleigh sent his memory back to the pain and agony of having the collar around his neck and the humiliation of being locked away. He hadn’t been able to do anything at all. Now here she was, in a degrading position, placed there by a wrathful superhero. Perfume’s pride must really sting.
The corner of his lips tilted up in a smirk and he spoke in a low, amused hiss. “Make sure it doesn’t happen.” Then he looked away from her, body slouching lazily. “Can we go now?” He asked Flashcharge, in the voice of a person who was casually asking the person standing beside him for the time.
"Oh, wait a second!" Raleigh stood up straighter and then strode over to the desk. He looked almost cheerful. "Have you got any scissors?"
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Posted: Tue Jan 08, 2008 1:34 pm
Flashcharge cracked his knuckles. "Yeah, maybe Ruri has lunch made by now!" he commented casually, yet enthusastically. He completely ignored Perfume and watched Raleigh curiously. "In the desk, I guess," Flashcharge tried, glancing at Perfume.
She ground her teeth. "In the second drawer."
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