I Die as Augustus Had, Drowning in Chocolate.
*Cinder and her "team" are all sitting in their room, using the quiet time to ponder and plan their next move.*
Cinder: "It would be best to distract Arc for the next operation."
Mercury: "Arc? The blond guy with Nikos? Why does he matter? He's a nobody."
Mercury: "Uh... care to explain it for the rest of us?"
Cinder: "He is a nobody, as you say. But he is surrounded by close figures that seem to care about him for some reason. If he is hurt, they will tear the world down to find the culprit. It's infuriating, but it would be best to keep him safe for now. At least until our plans for Vytal are complete."
Mercury: "Fair enough, I guess. Nikos could probably rip us apart if she stopped holding back, so better to keep that from happening."
Cinder: "Exactly. Which is why Emerald will grab and maintain his focus until we're ready."
Emerald: "Understood." ... "Wait, what?! Why me?! Why not the midget?!"
Neo: *Tosses a small knife past Emerald's head, cutting some of the strands of her hair on the way.*
Cinder: "She is many things, but neither subtle or patient are not one of them."
Neo: *Shrugged, knowing she was right."
Emerald: "Okay, that's fair. But then why not send Mercury? You know, some bro-connection thing guys do."
Mercury: "You don't get guys. Guys can not talk to each other for years and still call someone his bro. Not really what she's looking for."
Emerald: *Blinks before it hits her.* "You want me to seduce him?!"
Cinder: "Why is this a surprise? Femininity is a weapon that works exceptionally well against young men."
Cinder: "You have your orders."
Emerald: "Ugg... Fine! I'll... figure something out. I guess."
Cinder: "That's better. I don't care how, just make sure he stays out of the way."
Emerald: *Groans as she thinks how that would even be possible. She paused for a moment and considered her options. Selfies usually worked. If nothing else, it might get his little harem to confront him over it. Or come after her... Either way, out of Cinder's hair.*
Emerald: *She hesitated. Was she really going to do this? Just... put herself out there because Cinder told her to? What does she get out of this? Why does she care?*
Emerald: *Shook her head, determination in her eyes.* "I can do this! It'll keep his eyes on me and out of Cinder's hair. Eyes on..." *She paused before steeling her will.*
Jaune: *Finished setting up his bed and letting out a sigh.* "Okay. That should do it."
Jaune: "Hmm? I wonder who it is." *He looked at the number, seeing it's Emerald. He remembered getting her number for a project a couple weeks ago. They hadn't talked much. So when he saw what was on the feed, he nearly bugged out of his brain!*
Jaune: *Nearly choked on the very air before him. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. Was life real? Was anything real?! He took a deep breath and tried to make sense of it. But his brain was caught on the scene before him.* [I am, but where is this coming from?] *He could feel the uncertainty and confusion in his words. He knew that could be a turn off, but like... he was genuinely confused at this point.*
[Emerald: Maybe I wanted to try my luck. See if I have a chance.] [I get I'm coming on a little hard here. But I'm not really a patient girl at times.] [So, what do you think?]
Jaune: *He blinked before he could answer. When had that been typed out?* [I don't know if I can. I can't find words to express what I see, but something I can't find sense in myself to believe. Like a statue of chocolate, undeniably beautiful but difficult to express your thoughts on.]
There was a long pause, Jaune feeling he said something stupid.
[Emerald: Beautiful chocolate statues, huh?]
Jaune: [Uh... yeah? It's not something you see every day, but it's the best I could come up with. Sorry, I'm not used to... this.]
Jaune: [Want a coffee or something?]
[Emerald: Sure, I don't mind. Don't really have money though.]
Jaune: [I can cover you. No worries.]
[Emerald: Cover me, huh~?]
Jaune: [You know what I meant!]
[Emerald: Alright. I'll be nice this time. See you in a bit.]
Jaune: *Took a breath to calm his nerves back down.* "Oh boy..."
Emerald: *Blushing from ear to ear as she placed her Scroll down again. 1) she can't believe she did that. 2)... she can't believe she was looking forward to it.* "What power does he possess?"