The streets of Florence always have pockets of life, here and there. It’s why he finds himself out of a bar with indecision keeping his feet stuck in place on the sidewalk. Would it be smart to drink his sorrows away? No, it wouldn’t be. But is the thought an appealing one? A couple shots of Jaeger, maybe a warm body to bring home, and a throbbing headache in the morning might do him some good. The idea of vulnerability is what keeps him in place for too long. Janus cannot afford any more loses, and who knows who is keeping track of his movements right now. It is foresight and not paranoia to think that he is under a microscope instead of behind it for a change.
And then, Satan herself crosses his path. Leo wonders if this meeting is fated, too, or just incredibly bad luck. Probability errs on the side of the latter.
“Funny, I thought I smelled brimstone.” Leo’s eyes are lazy as they look her over, an uninterested glance from her heels up to her face. Despite his comradery with Noelle and the remnants of a friendship with Julian, there is no lost love between himself and Valentine. Leo always thought her involvement with Ervig was strange. He could never figure out what the elder saw in her besides a pretty face and nice rack.
Valentine is a force of nature on a good day. Today just happens to be a bad one, and if she wants a fight, Leo is more than happy to oblige.
Her outfit to the funeral is distasteful, and it leaves the seeds of anger to foster in Leo throughout the day. Even after gun run with Javier, meant to be a distraction from it all, he still feels the grief and anger under his skin. Leo is not the type to pick a physical fight, though. A battle of words and cutting intention are far more his style.
Oh? So this is how it goes. Suddenly, she realizes she is alone in this struggle, and her nerves start to fray. None of it. She offers Leo a gentle smile as she straightens up. "Is that a line you learned from Evrig?" She can feel the rage flare up within every fiber of her being. Who was Leo or Janus to place judgment upon her? As if they could possibly understand what their family had done to destroy her.
In response, she narrowed her eyes in the direction of the man in front of her. The tension in the air could be sliced with a knife. Before Leo's obvious desire for attention from Evrig led her to distaste him, she had once respected him.
"It must be so easy for you to think you're justified in your anger. A red dress is nothing compared to what he did to me. Wouldn't be surprised if you were involved with that too."
She feels herself grow by two feet. Ready to devour whatever could be found left of Leo. He represented everything that matched her pain. The never ending love for the dispicable Evrig. Noelle had advised Valentine to keep her head down. A bitten tongue can only be tamed for so long.
Her emotions near take over. The fear, the pain and the abuse. Evrig is forever engraved in her mind.
“So...” She pauses. She wants to say it. Scream it at the top of her lungs. Fuck you and your family. Just say it valentine!
“Don’t worry the last installments of my supply have been paid. Consider it part of your inheritance, asshole.”
vaporwave
stormborns
romaincrisis
turnnoffyourmind
