April 1st - Arrival

[cartesio]

Arrival

It feels more like waking up from a very restful night, instead of the jarring feeling of waking up in an unknown bed. That feeling may not last long, though, because you're definitely not looking up at any ceiling you're familiar with.

It's some kind of motel room -- maybe cleaner than you'd expect from such a place. There's a comfortable bed, a trunk with a military uniforn and a gas mask and enough space to stash whatever you get during the next two months, a closet with a familiar outfit or two...no other belongings in this room, and certainly no answers as to why you're here.

There's one thing that may bring more questions than answers: a calendar. Today's date is marked there: April 1st. Happy April Fools day? The entirety of April and most of May is empty, but the week from May 21st to May 25th is filled with one word:

END

The moment you step out of your room with AC you're hit by the warm, sticky air of Cartesio. Today is a rather dry day. You're not the only one who seems to be lost -- other people come out of their rooms. At some point, once you get to the lobby, you find a few things of interest: a guestbook, a rack of maps, and a note pinned to the wood of the counter:

"Meet me at the Lodge in two hours -- The Sergeant"
You now have a place to go to in two hours. In the meanwhile, how about you get accustomed to the motel and the town?

Links

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Guestbook
Room Assignments
Locations

Comments

[amburere]

[ The deadpan expressions stays (it might actually get more intense tbh), but Hawks does get the slightest eyebrow raise at the clothing removal. Jeez, don't you know how to grin and bear it with wearing winter clothes in warm weather? Dabi was wearing his current get-up, long coat and all, during the summer camp raid and was just fine— get on his level! ]

Guess stripping is part of your charm. [ But moving onward while continuing to stare because this is his default expression anyway. ]

Keep goin', you're doing a great job of convincing me that you're on our side, Hawks. 

[icariot]

[Just because someone has only two outfits and chooses them both to be winter proof in the middle of summer doesn't mean everybody needs to be like that! Give a bird a break.

Hawks winks, but his face immediately fades back into a flatter expression. After another moment, his wings resume an idle wave.]

Very funny, your jokes must be your charm. [A shrug just a touch too aggravated to be the casual he normally goes for.] Not sure what you want me to "keep doing," since I doubt the answer is "strip."

[amburere]

[ Never.

Good choice there Hawks, 'cause he's not in the mood to play too much either. He does manage a grin at the faux compliment though. ]

Sorry, I'm not Toga. [ ...that's a morsel of information that he wouldn't have offered were it not for the circumstances, and he's immediately irritated at himself for it. ]

What part of villain screams saving that brat? He's already proved himself useless to us.

[icariot]

[That name and tidbit gets filed away, but...Looks like it's back to that special song and dance. Hawks grits his teeth and can feel his shoulders tense before forcing them back down.]

Surely as smart as you are, you should know know about "indoctrination." Even Stockholm Syndrome. A little bit of kindness can be twisted pretty easily to more devious means. This [a handwave to encompass everything around them] is obviously not something the League set up, even an angry prejudiced brat could tell that. Help him now, or at least let me make the token effort. He's already trained to trust a "hero" when they offer direction, isn't he? Time will let the rest fall into place.

[If Hawks sounds bitter, it's not something he's forcing too much. There is some bitterness at his own situation from too many years ago now. Different circumstances, but close enough to shoehorn into it.]

[amburere]

Didn't stop him from trying to convince himself otherwise. [ Dabi has little patience for idiots on a good day, let alone dealing with a stupid brat when shit's like this. ] He's your problem. I never thought he was worth it in the first place. [ And you can bet he'll be watching to see just how much "Stockholm Syndrome" this turns out to be. ]

Kid like that will self destruct with or without your help either way. [ ...he would know. ]

[icariot]

As long as you can be an adult and not roast the kid, fine. He [and you] will be my problem.

[As much as it pains him to say it...] Yeah, if left unchecked he probably would self destruct. Good thing none of us plan to be here long enough to see it happen. We should get more information later, at whatever that ‘meeting’ is supposed to entail.

[There was a calendar in Hawks’ room with only two months available too. If that’s not something as ominous as he worries, they might just be able to stick it out as well. That would only be a last resort though, no need to be sitting ducks if they can just find a way to leave.]

[amburere]

Optimistic, Hero. [ To both things really—the first time he met Shigaraki comes to mind, but he shakes it off. ]

Right, right, you've never been to a villain run meeting before. [ Just rubbing it in, all good. ] If it's like the rest, it'll end with at least something or someone embedded in a wall.

[icariot]

[That was the ‘you’ of six months ago! If Shigaraki could grow so much in that time, someone can hope Dabi did too, eh?]

Well, time to put yourself to some use then. Why don’t you lead by example on how two villains conduct a meeting. I’m sure it’ll be educational.

[amburere]

[ Of course! In the span of just six months he's gone from committing petty crimes to burning people alive causally like it's his job (which tbf it is). ]

You encouragin' me to set this whole place on fire, Hawks? 

[icariot]

[but did you do your job before it became your job because that’s dedication]

Are you saying all you’re good for is fire? Here I was thinking you knew how to use your smart mouth, not just run it. Or did you not earn your leadership of the Vanguard?

[Time to really play with fire. Goading Dabi will either hopefully get him to contribute some kind of expertise that isnt just burning things or standing and looking pretty, or get him “fired up” a hell of a lot sooner and aimed at Hawks.

Guess he’ll learn the answer the hard way.]

[amburere]

[ Is it still dedication if he created the position.

As the seconds tick by, it might seem that Hawk's plan isn't going to work at all. Dabi offers neither helpful insight, nor does he move to instigate a conflict. He just stands there, hands in his pockets, posture slightly bent, smirk relaxing into a neutral expression. And that's probably not all too surprising given his usual muted demeanor and how he tends to handle most situations. But like most things in life, there's always a flip side.

Hawks has seen it before during their brief fight over High End—that flame that's flickering one moment and fully ignited the next. Lucky him to see it twice, because even Shouto Todoroki doesn't earn this type of response. Maybe Hawks is special, or maybe he's just way too aggravated over the collected events of the day. Hard to tell. Either way, all the winged hero gets is a second of warning before Dabi is closing the distance between them—his left hand already alight in blue flames.

There's as much instinct as there is experience at play here, though Dabi can already tell that something about his quirk is off—but hopefully that goes both ways. He knows Hawks is fast, but he'll harness both the element of surprise and the wherewithal to play dirty(he'll grab any part of the hero he can) to keep him from flying away. Whether he manages to pin Hawks up against a pile of scrap or not, he'll stop just short of actually setting him on fire, though his left hand remains ablaze. ]

I earned it by getting idiots like you to shut up.

[icariot]

[It's close enough.

As the seconds tick by, Hawks feels tension crackle along his back. Even with his relaxed demeanor, Dabi usually would have said something by now, if talk was all that would happen.

When the villain finally surges forward Hawks tries to propel himself backwards, buy enough of a moment to then go up or sideways. The unnatural amount of fatigue from the earlier flight must be getting to him though, because he stumbles over his own discarded jacket and gets pinned in place. He's barely keeping his balance, wings slightly spread but too close to junk heaps to effectively use without risking bringing it all down on them, and has an arm trapped in a vice-like grip. The flames dance in his glasses' reflection--too close to risk shedding feathers. Hawks is fairly well stuck unless he risks more than he might like this early into this weird situation.

Hawks also really isn't sure if this is better or worse than if he hadn't opened his mouth. He can't even call Dabi out on his response being a lie either--he certainly did get Hawks to shut up for several fraught moments, just like he said.]

I guess I'd call that a pretty effective demonstration of putting your words to actions.

[amburere]

Thanks for noticing. [ The fire in his palm flares in tandem with the heat in his chest, making for a considerably toasty atmosphere with all the metal around. It's a good thing Hawks took off his jacket, cause Dabi's flames are still as excruciatingly hot as ever too. But as uncomfortable as this situation might be, it doesn't seem like the villain is going to go any further, even if he hasn't loosened his grip any. ]

Don't forget your place, birdie. A cage is still a cage, and this time you're trapped with me.

[icariot]

[If Hawks thought the sky was hot, this is new heights of uncomfortable. His wings twitch, wanting to blow some of the heat away, but he works to still them.

Thankfully, fried chicken doesn't quite seem to be on the menu just yet.]

The reverse is true then too isn't it? You're stuck with me too. Shouldn't that be a hint to not roast your probable ride out of here?

[Hawks is also probably going to end up covering for Dabi to at least the exploding brat, if not someone else if they have a problem with the "villain" title. Mutualistic relationship, and all.]

[amburere]

Could just give you a quick char instead. You've already shown me that you don't need all those feathers. [ The flame surges brighter in his hand, but after one, two beats, it's extinguished with a close of his palm. ]

Maybe later. [ The fire may be gone, but until he sees how the hero responds he's not backing off completely. ]

[icariot]

[Hawks waits several more moments after the fire is extinguished before he lets his muscles relax-- his wings settle into a resting position against his back and his arms move as much as they can to follow suit, given that Dabi is still holding the one.]

You can let go now, you know. We can always chat more later after we've seen what this place wants from us.

[They've reached their impasse, had the pissing contest, let's get on with the professional part of the day.]

[amburere]

Oh, hadn't noticed. Don't know what I'd do without you, Hawks. [ They've had their pissing contest, but Dabi's still irritated over everything. Nothing a good fight can't fix, but that'll have to wait til later. With a sneer he lets go of the pro heroes arm, and starts to walk away. ]

Here, after the sun sets. [ Gotta keep in theme with shady meeting places and times. Now he's off to scout more and get lost in his head (thanks Cian). ]