Realistic or Modern The Conman and the Sneak Thief

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

Tea? What an odd response thought Persia. That was the second time she mentioned tea. Regardless, she made her way to the couch, sitting away from Hera. It felt like there was a rift between them, like the space between them now.

Persia wracked her brain for something to say, but all she could come up with was, "Were you just fucking with me? Or did I just misinterprete things? Why would you take care of me? I'm a stranger, I was your enemy." She was strangely aware of the wet spots on her sleeves where she dried her eyes. It was uncomfortable. Persia stared at the tea, though made no move for it, as she was more focused on the conversation. How would she even know if Hera was lying anyways? Could she be trusted? Persia didn't care, she liked being around her, consequences be damned.

 

[Araellion]

Hera blinked at Persia, a part of her grateful that the previous line of questioning had been dropped. For now. She had no doubt that Persia would bring it up again sooner or later. For now Hera would enjoy the extra time given.

"Enemy? Nonsense. I never saw you as an enemy." Hera had a small smile on her face, relaxing now that she could actually answer some of the questions properly. "More of a minor nuisance, really." That had been unnecessary to add, but Hera did so anyway in the spirit of honesty.

"As for taking care of you..." Hera trailed off, her smile slipping away once more. She didn't want to remember the state Persia had been in when she was hurt. The memories still haunted her. "Well, of course I did. You were hurt," she said as if the answer obvious. Because it was. To Hera there had been no other option.

 

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

Persia felt like one of her trains of thought from earlier was all but confirmed. She managed to keep her default features and tone as she said, "So you treat everyone like that? There's nothing special about me?" The idea of this saddened her. She thought it strange that someone would so easily take care of someone they didn't know, let alone a rival to their work.

Persia finally looked Hera in the eyes, as if she could pull the information she wanted from her simply with a gaze. Though she found she was no good at reading people. She felt like this scene made that increasingly clear. A sad thought crossed Persia's mind. Perhaps it was only because she was hurt that Hera cared? Sadness fell over her eyes for a moment before snapping back to her usual self as she waited for an answer.

 

[Araellion]

Hera giggled at Persia's question, mostly to try and get her usual energy back. This conversation was far beyond her comfort level, but then wasn't that her own fault? She had been the one who insisted on talking in the first place. It would be hypocritical to back out now. "Oh, there's plenty of special things about you."

Even as she was trying to stay chipper, this train of conversation reminded her of why she tried so hard to help people in the first place. That was something she refused to dwell on, even in the dark of the night. Not that she had much of a choice now that Persia had brought it up. Her grip on the cup tightened, but Hera gave no other indication of her unhappiness.

"I... I need to help people. Too many people are suffering and I can't stand it." She looked at Persia with pleading eyes, desperately hoping she would understand. Even though Hera was barely making sense to herself.

 

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

Hera's comment about Persia being special made her blush despite her want to remain indifferent. Though her following comment served to reverse the effect. She needs to help people? Persia didn't understand. She didn't want to understand. She wanted to hold onto whatever illusion she had of the situation.

Persia didn't know how to proceed. Should she just leave and keep things as they are now? "If I'm special, why won't you be with me?" The words just slipped out. It was unfair of Persia, but she didn't care. She gave Hera a determined, fierce look, as if to challenge her statement.

 

[Araellion]

Hera let out a disbelieving laugh at Persia's statement. It was just too ridiculous. God, why did she even have to explain this? Wasn't it obvious? "Darling, we barely got along as friends." And even calling what they had lately a friendship was a stretch. "How do you expect us being together is going to go?"

Hera set her cup down on the table, afraid she would break it. She half wished it wasn't tea in her cup, but wine or gin. Something to take the edge off. Of course she knew that was a bad idea though. The last thing she needed was something that would mess with her thought process. She could barely string together a coherent thought as it was.

 

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

Persia feared this moment. Hera's rejection. It had never been this hard to get with someone in the past. The fact all of her previous partners since high school were men didn't cross her mind. To her, it should just be that simple. She had heard enough though. She stood up to storm out. She headed towards her bag and coat. She planned on ignoring the plans on the floor. They were no longer important. She planned on leaving without saying a word.

 

[Araellion]

Hera froze as Persia stood, her mind trying to find something to say to make her stay. "I do like you!" It came out nearly desperate sounding, but Hera didn't care. If anything, a dark part of her thought, it would work in her favour.

"Don't go. Please." Her voice lowered until she was nearly muttering to herself, but in the absolute silence of her apartment Hera had no doubt Persia would be able to hear it.

Why was she so desperate for the girl to stay? She didn't even know. Some distant part of her did like having Persia around, despite or maybe because of everything they had been through. And Hera did appreciate her blunt sense of humour. Something about Persia's personality appealed to her, that's really what it came down to.

 

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

Hera's statement froze Persia in place. Hera liked her? She got goosebumps. What did she mean by that? Was it manipulation? Did Persia even care? Persia held her breathe, wanting time to stop moving. She half wondered if she imagined what she wanted to hear. Either way, she obeyed Hera's command, staying put. She was too frightened to ask for clarification.

 

[Araellion]

Hera slowly made her way towards Persia, cautiously approaching the lion despite knowing it was dangerous. But God, she didn't care. It wasn't like Persia could do anything worse than she had already done. And she doubted Persia truly wanted to hurt her anymore. Hera had nothing more to fear from her.

She wrapped her arms around Persia from behind, indulging herself. After the events of the day Hera needed the comfort that physical touch gave her. Even so, she was careful and her hold on her was loose. Laying her head on Persia's shoulder, Hera spoke softly. "I enjoy your company, ok? Please stay. I would love to hear whatever you had planned."

 

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

Persia was in disbelief. Was she imagining things? Was she that broken? Tears started to slowly trickle down her face. She dropped her bag and coat as she leaned back, melting into Hera's embrace.

Persia wanted to remain silent. Like a deer in headlights, she was afraid the slightest provocation would end the moment, and that was the last thing she wanted. She still couldn't help herself, the timing was too good. "I don't have anything to steal, Pickpocket," came Persia's light, playful tone. A smile crept across her face despite the continued tears as she enjoyed the warmth and company. If Hera was manipulating her, she didn't care. She was too weak, entirely incapable of resisting or disobeying Hera. Something she happily embrassed.

 

[Araellion]

Hera laughed into Persia's shoulder, relief flooding her. There was that humor that she loved. 'No, I think I already took everything' she was tempted to say, but that could be taken the wrong way and Hera didn't want to spoil the moment. It was clear that she had to be more careful with her jokes now that she knew how easy Persia was to upset.

She almost felt bad at how the girl melted against her. It felt like Hera was taking advantage of Persia's feelings, but what was she to do? Hera needed to be able to touch her friends. It was selfish, but was it bad if Persia enjoyed it? She shoved the thought out of her head.

"Promise me that if I let you leave now that I'll see you again. Please."

 

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

Hera's laugh comforted her. The feel of Hera's breath as shook with laughter, causing Persia to shake a little as well. Of course the answer to Hera's question was yes, but she wasn't going to answer. Not yet. She didn't want to move, didn't want the moment to end.

Persia closed her eyes. She tried to burn the memory in her mind. A couple of tears fell onto Hera's arm. They weren't of sadness, but of relief. The stress and tension leaving her body. If this was a manipulation technique, Hera was better than Persia could have ever imagined. She suspects it, yet is still powerless against it.

 

[Araellion]

Hera held on tighter now that she knew it was fine to do so. Persia was like a delightful little Teddy bear, soft and pliant in Hera's arms. She could feel the stress that this conversation had caused melt away, at least partially. There was still a bit of residual guilt stubbornly clinging on.

She didn't want to, but she had to pull away eventually. There was still things to be done today. Besides, Skimbles had started scratching at the bedroom door, a not-so-subtle clue that he wanted to be let out. With a laugh, Hera went to let him out. He trotted out of her room with an insulted air about him, making Hera laugh some more.

With a shake of the head, Hera turned back to Persia. "So, why did you actually come here? You said something about work?"

 

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

Persia felt like the world was right when Hera squeezed tighter around her. There were no more troubles in the world. She missed the warmth when Hera pulled away, though everything was all right now. Hera went to let her cat out and Persia used the opportunity to use her sleeves once more to dab her eyes.

Persia cursed the cat for the interruption. Or at least she blamed the cat. She made a mental note to strangle him later. Persia perked up at the question, excited to get back to the job. She donned her usual cold demeanor. She wasn't going to let Hera know her true intentions, using the Heart as an apology gift, so she set about showing her the details of the plan.

Persia mentioned they could walk in together. The place they split up. The hallway Hera had to distract the guard at. Five minutes would be ideal, but she could work with two. The route Persia would travel. The guard shack Hera had to pull a guard from, or distract him in a way that she could sneak by. She made sure both guards were straight and male, figuring that might play to Hera's advantage. How Persia would disable alarms. And finally, the Heart Hera would steal. The most expensive item in the museum, a beautiful melding of ruby and sapphire crystals that isn't seen anywhere else in the world, known as Two Halves of a Whole.

The heist was to take place in two days, when employee routing would be optimal for them to infiltrate, during noon. Shift changes, lunches, and ome of the busiest times of the day for them. Persia asked Hera if she had any questions, not changing from her usual tone. This was a real job, and Persia took it seriously, no matter how excited she was.

 

[Araellion]

Hera listened to Persia talk, trying to memorize as much as possible now so that she didn't have to go over the plans a hundred times later. It was difficult though, since something else always caught her attention. She had to shoo away Skimbles when he got too curious about the plans, for one. And then there was Persia.

She could admit to herself that Persia was distracting. It was just so nice to finally see her in her element. Making plans for grand thieveries, instead of bleeding out on Hera's couch. So if Hera found herself more looking at Persia than listening to her, then surely that could be forgiven. In any case, she got the gist of the plans. The details surely weren't that important.

Hera looked up from the plans at Persia's question, a cheeky smile spreading across her face. "You know, I don't usually make plans. I just go in and hope for the best." She wasn't sure why she was telling Persia this, but it felt right. And besides, Hera was now in a pretty good mood and felt like chatting.

"I think I can work with this though," Hera hurried to reassure. Because how difficult would it be to remember this? It wasn't like she had a lot to remember, and everything she had to do played into her specialties. Hera had a feeling that was by design, which made sense. It would be pointless to assign her roles she wouldn't be able to do after all.

 

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

Skimbled' actions redoubled Persia's wish to strangle the cat one day. She was so in her element that she didn't notice Hera's sly looks peeking at her occasionally. She was focused on the job.

Hera's comments on how she uses spontaneity to do her job cause a sigh to escape Persia's lips as she pinched the bridge of her nose. In a scolding tone she said, "You're going to get me caught." She let loose another sigh. It honestly didn't matter to her. She would risk getting caught if it meant working with Hera. She pointed one more at the blueprints, "Guard in hallway here, shack here, and heart in display case here." She raised a questioning eyebrow.

 

[Araellion]

"Hallway, shack, heart. Got it," Hera easily agreed, nodding her head vigorously to drive home the point. She knows she should be taking this seriously, but she couldn't help the amusement swirling in her eyes. Seeing Persia so serious wasn't anything new, but it was a different sort of seriousness and it made Hera want to push her limits.

Even so, the smile slowly faded from her face as what they were doing sunk in. Hera hated stealing from museums. It was the one and only thing she stayed away from, and for good reasons. First of all the security. And sure, if there were two of them it would be less risky, but still.

And then there was the prize itself. Just the thought of holding something so expensive and fragile in her hands made her shiver. And not in a good way. Hera was notoriously clumsy, unless she had a choreography memorised and practised. If she broke this heart she would never be able to forgive herself.

With a small frown, Hera looked up at Persia. "Actually, can't you steal the heart? I really don't want it."

 

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

Persia furrowed her brow showing her lack of amusement. "How have you not been caught yet?" Persia shook her head. She didn't care though. This job was important to her. Which made Hera's comment all the more infuriating.

"What the hell do you mean you don't want it?" Persia shouted, her demeanor lost once more. Something that seems to happen a lot around Hera. "Is it not good enough for you?" Of course, Hera didn't know Persia was getting it as a gift for her, but that didn't register in Persia's mind. It felt like her gift was being rejected. Persia doesn't deal with rejection very well, and it was evident as her features showed her anger.

 

[Araellion]

Hera let Persia's first question go unanswered, just for her own amusement. If it weren't for how obviously angry the girl was Hera would be laughing. But Persia's anger burned her—it wasn't quite physically painful, but it was close.

She held up her hands in a peaceful gesture, hurrying to explain herself. The last thing she wanted was another argument today. Hera had well and truly lost her patience for that a while ago. "No no, it's the opposite actually."

Clearing her throat, Hera continued, "See, I don't want to break it. There's a reason I stay away from stealing anything fragile and too valuable."

Hera dragged a hand through her hair, a nervous gesture she had thought she had gotten rid of years ago. "Not good enough, nonsense," she muttered under her breath. She wanted to reach out and grab Persia's shoulders so she could shake some sense into the girl. "It's too valuable to risk breaking, can't you see that? I don't trust myself with something like that."

 

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

Hera's answer satisfied Persia's anger. She realized now that Hera couldn't have known her plans. "Sorry," came the soft reply. Persia rarely apologized, and she wasn't about to explain herself either, that would give away her plan. Her features softened, she felt embarrassed now for her outburst.

Persia's cheeks flushed for just a moment before returning to normal. She replied automatically, "Fine, I'll grab it." Of course, she now had to figure something out. She normally wouldn't have agreed to a change of plans without some thought, but she was wrapped around Hera's finger, she would accommodate her any way she could.

She already set about thinking. Trying to figure out ways to make things work. She stared at the plans, focused. She lost herself, ignoring Hera for the time being. She went through scenario after scenario, imagining what would work and what wouldn't, as she lost track of time.

 

[Araellion]

Hera sighed in relief now that that burden was lifted from her shoulders. She gave Persia a grateful smile. "Thank you." Hera felt a bit guilty about Persia having to redo all the plans, but it was a small price to pay.

While Persia was busy with that, there wasn't a whole lot for Hera to do. It wasn't like she could be of any help when it came to planning. So she pulled out her phone in search of something to do. She could have tried to get more info about the museum, but she was so bored with looking at the floor plans already.

That's why she opened up some cat videos. The first video started with a loud intro, startling Hera and making her furiously tap the volume down button until the sound was completely off. She didn't even notice that she was breathing heavily. "Sorry about that," Hera cast an apologetic glance at Persia and put her phone away. Maybe she would try to reread the plans after all.

 

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

The sudden outburst from Hera's phone caused Persia to look up. She gave Hera a stern look, chastising Hera with her eyes. She felt like Hera was a child she had to keep on task.

With her continued stern look and a hardened voice, she points to the map, "Here, you'll make a diversion fifteen minutes after the time you were supposed to grab the heart. So, get the guard out of the shack, I'll," Persia thought about explaining what it was she was going to do, but then thought better against it, "do what I need to do. You'll walk down here," she pointed to the area near the heart, "and wait fifteen minutes, then cause a distraction." Persia raised a questioning eyebrow, not holding out hope for Hera any more.

 

[Araellion]

Hera shrunk under Persia's gaze, feeling like a chastised child. And fair enough, she did have some problems concentrating on the plan. But that wasn't her fault.

"I think I got it." Honestly, all the information was swirling around her mind, refusing to make sense to her. Hopefully she would figure it all out after actually being inside the building.

"Don't look at me like that, I'm not an idiot." Even though the words where harsh, her voice was soft and she was pouting. "It's easier when I don't have a plan. You can make as many plan Bs as you want, but if something happens that you haven't planned for, then what?"

 

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

Hera's pouting caused Persia to smile unconsciously. Once she caught herself smirking she quickly worked to return to her usual demeanor. She figured Hera was a thrill seeker. Someone who flew by the seat of their pants. This caused her eyes to wander in thought.

Persia thought Hera's question was an odd one. She had her answer ready though, as planned and practiced as her jobs, "Assess the risks and abandon the job if necessary." Persia tilted her head slightly in her perplexion. "I don't understand how you can just jump into things without a plan." The thought terrified her, but she wasn't about to share that bit. It's why she loved her plans. To try to account for everything that could go wrong. Whether it's effective or not, it provided security and comfort.