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Post by Caleb Haus on May 27, 2009 1:10:22 GMT -5
His fingers slipped easily over the nice white marble-handled knife that was placed carefully amongst others to attract the casual viewer. He, of course, was not the casual viewer - he was a little thief, and he was quite good with a knife.
Lifting it from its place, where it merely glinted in the sunlight, he tested it's weight, rolling it over his knuckles and palm, tossing it up into the air. As it came back down, blade's point facing down, he plucked it from the air, very nearly clipping his hand. A little smile touched his face. It was a very well made knife, and he was determined to have it.
The blade was long enough to be held and thrown, like his current blades. But it was... prettier.
His fingers slipped over the blade end, and for a moment, he felt the sting. Red welled along his pinky finger, and, though he was no fan of either cutting, or blood, the ease with which the steel passed through flesh made him grin. Slipping his undamaged hand into his pocket, he produced a kerchief, wrapping it around his finger.
"Sir, could you show me that one?" He asked, pointing at the knife in the top right-hand corner of the man's display.
As he fiddled with the lock of the glass case, and his back was turned, the boy vanished into the crowd, the knife having vanished into his pocket when he reached for the kerchief. "Sometimes I wonder." He murmured, a half-amused smile touching his face. After all, there he had a new knife, he'd won his first battle in Romeo City, and things simply seemed to be perfect.
Things could not be better.
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Post by darkdiety666 on May 28, 2009 1:41:49 GMT -5
Dmitri walked into the shop, a high pitched bell ringing as he enter the premises. Enigma, as he was known as around these parts, was the regular over at this shop. Apparently, the only man who he would ever let touch his gun works at this little shop as a gunsmith, selling guns, knives, swords and other various weapon accessories. His prized colt .45 was a treasure to the young boy, the only thing he ever took from home when he left. It had been with him from the very beginning, when he killed that bastard mafia boss, when he killed that serial rapist and when he killed that bandit just the other day. Through thick and thin, it was the only partner he truly ever had, next to Diploguns.
The gun made a slight screech as it slid across the table to the other man at the counter, an elderly man with short gray hair and a pensive stare, as if he were staring into the very pit of your soul as he shot you a look.
"Hello. Enigma. What do we have here?" The gun was picked up and examined just be observing it and holding it.
"Hi. Nico. I need this recalibrated and a new trigger, the same one as before. It seems to be shooting off balance, I'd say calibrate by 3.2 degrees."
"No problem. I'll have it done by the end of the day." The man said with no hesitation, despite just receiving a gun from a young kid and being told to fix it. Yes, Dmitri was known for helping keep bandit levels down, by being employed by the Romeo City Police Department to stop zoid bandits.
As he was about to leave, a certain someone caught his eye. Now, who exactly was it? Ah, that was right, he never gave Dmitri his name. Not like it mattered, Dmitri didn't particularly care for the guy either, considering he had just the oddest feeling about him.
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Post by Caleb Haus on May 28, 2009 6:38:34 GMT -5
A soft narrowing of his eyes - he knew this feeling. Not precisely a sixth sense, but certainly a sense everyone got when they had eyes upon them. It made him temporarily nervous - after all, he was the child of the leader of a powerful raider, and was a very, very good thief, himself. He'd never been caught before.
But that was because he was a tactical person. He listened to his instinct and he took the appropriate course of action, all based on quick thinking and logical deduction. It was why simple rarely worked for him. Ideas and machinations filtered through his mind almost too fast for him to keep up with him.
He stopped at the furthest wall - eyes taking up another glinting blade. But his focus was not on the knife, it was on the boy from yesterday. The one with the gun, whom he'd every intention of befriending - after all, he really did enjoy people, even if they were targets.
Turning lightly on his heel, he smiled brightly at the boy, who had left his gaze stationed on him. "Hullo there. We didn't properly meet yesterday. What'cher name?" He asked, his voice full of cheer and some form of excitement.
Of course, remaining here meant he'd have to buy the other knife - the one he'd asked the man to look at. That or feign sudden disinterest - but the first rule to theft was to deflect all suspicion, and the easiest way to do that? Actually buy things.
Still, he hadn't been expecting to spend any more money today. That was a depressing addition to the things he'd be doing. Ah well, at least he'd meet a new friend...
Even if his right hand was loose at his side, ready to retrieve and throw a knife in his own defense. He'd seen the gun, and he had no doubt in his mind the proficiency of the other.
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Post by darkdiety666 on May 28, 2009 17:11:49 GMT -5
Discontent, that's the only word to describe what this kid made him feel every time he was within his presence. Like it's been stated before, something seemed a bit corny and fake about this kid. He had no reason to dislike or distrust this kid, but he did have an odd gut feeling.
"Oh hello." Dmitri's eye scanned the boy, looking for any sign of a threat or move against him. Since he had thwarted many bandits and because of that, many people have hostility towards him. He had already stopped three assassination attempts just that week, all resulting in the deaths of his assailants.
The boy was kind and seemingly curious of Dmitri, about who he was and what kind of person he was. To anybody who wasn't as cautious as himself it would seem like an innocent interest, but Dmitri was more suspecting than that.
"Usually it's customary to give your own name before asking of someone else's." He put it pretty bluntly, coldly, and rather rudely to say the least. It's not that he was being rude, but rather him being himself.
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Post by Caleb Haus on May 28, 2009 18:00:04 GMT -5
After a second, the tension that he felt was gone. If there was going to be a brawl, it wouldn't happen just yet. That was a good thing, in his opinion - jumping straight to a fight was kind of boring, and didn't necessitate learning things about someone else. He grinned, eagerly, and nodded. "Customary is boring - but I'm Caleb." He stepped forward, that smile remaining. Hand extended, fingers splayed in customary greeting.
No - he wasn't one for fighting that wasn't necessary to gain something. After all, a fruitless struggle made very little sense, and he wasn't someone that liked not making sense. Of course, the sleeves he wore kept his knives hidden - that was the point of sleeves, as far as he was concerned.
Whether or not he took his hand, he'd take stock of Dmitri. There was no doubt something bad had to have happened to him in his past - but for now, he'd leave it be. He couldn't pry into the life of someone he'd just met - even if he was more or less unaware of the threat he seemed to pose to Dmitri.
He half-wondered what he'd say to the shop keeper guy about why he vanished after asking to look at a knife, but, it was probably easiest to say - he accidentally cut himself, and had to get a band-aid! That was not exactly a lie, so it would roll easily off the tongue.
"So... what's your name? And I don't wanna hear that 'enigma' thing, tha's not a name." He said, grinning from ear to ear.
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Post by darkdiety666 on May 28, 2009 21:50:42 GMT -5
Dmitri reluctantly held his hand out in return, his forest green eyes staring into Caleb's measuring up his character gazing into them deeply as he shook the hand. If one didn't know any better, they would've thought that Dmitri had something "going on" for Caleb, but that clearly wasn't the case.
"Since you've told me yours, I guess I'll tell you mine. I am Dmitri. But everyone calls me Enigma, that is the name I go by around these parts. You must not be from around, I suppose."
Dmitri quickly let Caleb's hand go, trying not to be rude, but also showing him that he was not going to easily let him get too close to him. Once people get close, that's the cue to screw you over, leaving people always at a distance protects you from any unnecessary harm. Whether it be physically, emotionally, or economically, by being cautious with others you can protect yourself from misfortune by the hands of others.
"Besides, customary was just another way to say that it's apart of good manners." He wanted to leave the conversation at that, but he first had to find out what kind of person this Caleb guy was, so that he mind could finally be put at ease.
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Post by Caleb Haus on May 28, 2009 23:19:19 GMT -5
"Got that in one. I'm from further west - Outside a little village. Never heard of you, other'n around here. 'Sides, Dmitri is nice; enigma's just a cover. S'the same way people call me Rush. In the cockpit, tha's fine. On the streets? I'm just Caleb." Even if 'Just Caleb' was a little more than your average person. Stealing from the rich to give to himself - hell, stealing from the middle-classmen to give to himself. It was all a way of life, and how they chose to live theirs.
Different, but the same, in a respect. Both of them had a funny sense about the other, that they couldn't quite put their finger on. Both of them seemed to be thoughtful, even if it was in a different form, having a different function.
As his hand was let go, he tilted his head a little bit. "First day to Romeo was yesterday when I met the guy. Jason. I won." He added, a little cheerfully. "Though it was close. I was kin'a nervous." He finished, with a little nod. "So, what're you doin' here?" He asked, peeking around, as though he couldn't figure out the exact reason. "Your gun looked pretty okay yesterday, though I don't really know guns. Gettin' a new one?" He finished, remaining as rambunctious as when the conversation began.
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Post by darkdiety666 on May 29, 2009 0:48:42 GMT -5
It seemed that Caleb had won the match against that Jason kid after all, just like he had predicted. Then again it didn't look like that Jason was going to put up much of a fuss against him. Either way, Dmitri could tell that the match was going to be in Caleb's favor and that the match was probably one sided, regardless of whatever tactic the other kid could think of. Jason really did look like newbie, not much of a fight against someone who knows his way around the controls, even if it that person isn't that much skilled, it was still an edge.
"Hm? My gun needs some adjusting. Every time you fire a gun, it puts stress on it, which causes some minimal wear and tear. With that in mind, when you want accurate shots, you can't pull them off because you didn't have your gun recalibrated to the most accurate settings. It's important if you need to pull off those crucial shots, so I find myself coming here to get it tuned and fixed often. I won't let anyone else but Nico touch my gun, he's the only one I trust to handle this job."
It seemed as if Dmitri had went off with the mouth more than he wanted, he had already said too much. Why exactly was he explaining himself to this odd kid? Was it because of that corny, yet cute smile he kept wearing? Damn, it was so infuriating, how he could get him to talk so easily even if he was mentally conditioned so well.
"And you and your knives? You have some fascination with sharp objects?" Dmitri assumed that the kid had a collection of knives of sorts, only someone who knew their way around a blade would be inspecting them so thoroughly while shopping. That and it wasn't often that you see a kid in at a weapon smith, looking for a knife to buy.
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Post by Caleb Haus on May 29, 2009 0:56:58 GMT -5
It was as if Caleb were surprised - his eyes widened, and his eyebrows lifted. He hadn't ever met someone who had deduced his ability with knives - then again, he'd never met someone while hunting for a new one. After a second, that smile returned, genuinely glad to meet someone quick witted and intelligent. His past worries about him melted away. It didn't take much to impress him, it seemed - and Dmitri seemed to have a lot.
"Wow! You're really observant - most people'd never know I was in to knives." His smile eased a little bit, to just a regular grin. "My dad hates guns, but my dad really believes in being able to defend yourself. So he taught me how to fight with knives - I can swing'em like a pro, and I can throw 'em like a marksman." He changed his voice, so it sounded gruff and grumpy.
"My dad was kind of funny that way. Still, I like knives - the way they feel when they're in your hand... it's like they mean something more than anything else you could hold. And a really well made knife... balanced perfectly, smooth..." He blushed at that point, a little bit of a rant on his part, as well. "It's pretty much just the way I learned to live. I'm sure you're the same way - just with something else."
Needless to say, Caleb, though he might be a tactician, still valued people. He liked Dmitri - anyone who could read another person was a valuable individual indeed. "But I guess a well cabilerated gun is like a well-balanced knife. If it's off just a little, it makes you have to work harder to get it where you need it to go."
Needless to say 'calibrate' is not a word in his dictionary.
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Post by darkdiety666 on May 29, 2009 1:13:19 GMT -5
Observant? That was true to extent, but anyone could tell he was "into knives" considering how hard he was staring at them and analyzing them. Sure, Dmitri was no idiot, but hell, this kid was throwing him plenty of bones. Despite Caleb's lighthearted demeanor, Dmitri could clearly see that there was more to him that met the eye. If only Caleb knew that patting him on the back on a simple observation wouldn't get him any nearer to his heart.
"Hm. I guess.. It's not like I live a rough life. I just do my job and that's it. Sometimes that's how it is. Forget about everything and do what do best, despite how many people line up to prevent you from doing it."
Dmitri cold eyes tore away from the other boy's gaze quickly, had he himself been blushing as well? What the hell was with this kid? It was obvious, he had said too much about himself, but Caleb seemed to live like an open book, at least much more open than himself. It could've been possible that Caleb was actually getting him to open up, just a bit, but it was happening.
It was odd, maybe this is what friendship is? Or was this just some kind of mind game of sorts? At this point, it didn't matter, Dmitri just felt anxious to leave.
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Post by Caleb Haus on May 29, 2009 1:22:27 GMT -5
"Sometimes - you have to do what's best for you, not just what's best for everyone else. Otherwise you're not you anymore." He said, a hint of concern touching his eyes. He didn't like the idea of him living only for his job - after all, there was so much more to life than just working - even if it did benefit people in the long run.
"C'mon, Dmitri. Does the recabileration take very long? If it takes a little while, you'n me should go get some ice cream. It's hot enough to kill a camel outside, so it's perfect. My treat, 'kay?" More money out the door! Ah well, it didn't matter - the people of Romeo City were generous, and he was excited to have a new friend, as reluctant as he might be. Stepping backwards towards the door, he waited, for Dmitri. It might take a little while for him to open up to the idea of friendship, but it shouldn't take him long to open up to ice cream.
Everyone loved ice cream! Except the lactose intolerant. But they weren't real people anyways.
"It'll be fun, and it'll be something that has nothin' to do at all with your work. That's gotta be at least a little 'pealing. C'mon, Dmitri." He offered, once more, tugging the door open just a bit. Needless to say, he could sense a no - which was why he'd asked twice. If he asked again, he might have to literally attack him with ice cream.
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Post by darkdiety666 on May 29, 2009 1:43:40 GMT -5
Ice cream? He hadn't even tasted ice cream since he was a kid. Wait, sometime Dmitri forgot that he still was technically still a kid. It's just that he had been through so much, seen so many things and had buried so many bodies that he had to grow up quick. Maybe that's what he does like about Caleb, the fact that he has an innocent smile and a cute, innocent aura about himself. It was possible that he couldn't accept that such a blissful existence was real.
"Sure." Dmitri said in a very calm, cool voice. Not very enthusiastic, but it sure would keep him from making that face while he asked again. "I'll pay." The little mercenary always had cash, money was always in good supply, unless the job didn't pay well or if he did a job for free. That's how life was, you get some, you lose some or nothing happens at all.
"Besides, my gun won't be ready until tomorrow. Not like I'll need it. It's mainly for show." That was a bold face lie, but hopefully it would put Caleb's mind at ease. Little did the other boy know that he was always carrying a hefty amount of one-shot darringers on his person at all times. Quick, easy to maneuver, yet still lethal, especially when he used custom bullets.
As he walked out of the shop, he could see the eyes on him, some of admiration, others of pure disgust for his presence in town. Yes, he brought both good and bad to the town, but again, that was his life. Looking over at Caleb, he motioned him to follow.
"I know of this ice cream place, I don't go there, but it's always crowded...I don't like ice cream much...but I will come with you."
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Post by Caleb Haus on May 29, 2009 1:51:25 GMT -5
He seemed temporarily satisfied at that answer - he was one for current problems coming first. The first problem was getting him there, the second was getting him to try some ice cream. There was a flavor out there for everyone, and he was certainly going to find Dmitri's, if it was the last thing he did. "S'okay. I've got my knives." He smiled, happily, at the idea of the two actually getting ice cream. And, he was curious as to how observant he really was - he'd let him pay, and slip money back into his pocket. Kind of weird, as he was not typically someone to return money, but it would be a change of pace.
He seemed cheerful, as they moved along. "You know - if you don't eat ice cream with me, I'm going to feel bad. You can't let yourself be miserable on account of the SCOWLS..." He turned sharply, facing a rather irate looking man who'd been grimacing at Dmitri. The guy looked startled by being called out - and by the weird look on Caleb's face. After a second of staring - his eyes became dull and reflective, as if he would drive a knife right into him - he stuck his tongue out at him, and turned back on their path.
"... or any other reason. Everyone likes some kind of ice cream, so it'll be up to me to figure yours out! That's what friends are for." And there it was. The open declaration of friendship - and the way he said it made it obvious that there wasn't going to be any questioning of the friendship. They were just going to be friends, and that was the end of the argument.
His eyes were cast around - he was trying to spot the ice cream store before they made it. Unfortunately, it seemed as though there were no giant ice cream cones or anything he was used to to identify the place. Perhaps that was the fun of being a real city - you found places, and everyone had their own way of getting there.
His own upbringing had taught him enough about secrets, hiding, and the like, that he could respect the adventure involved in finding a new store. "So how far away is this place?" He asked, curiously, neatly sidestepping a crack in the sidewalk.
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Post by darkdiety666 on May 29, 2009 2:06:53 GMT -5
Scowls? Dmitri didn't really care if they were looking at him or not, the fact of the matter was that he was making a difference in the community and there wasn't going to be a single person to stop him. That's exactly how he's always looked at things, steadfast, true to his word and forever vigilant in every pursuit. Maybe that's why they were so anxious to run him out of the town and out of the region, because they knew he would accept every job that he knew would help defeat those who prey on others.
Though, the stares of this cold, cruel boy were usually enough to deter most, it had been quite different on this occasion. He wondered exactly how bold these bandits were going to get today? Since he wasn't being paid for a job at the moment, he had no obligation to take them, thus, making them safe men and women. Well, at least for the moment.
"...friends.." That word had finally caught his ear. A friend? Was that how Caleb perceived their relationship? Dmitri was a bit taken aback, a bit surprised about how casually he had said this. Dmitri hadn't even accept Caleb to be his friend, barely an acquaintance at that. How was this so called relationship they had supposed to be friendship when they know nothing about one another?
"..tch.." Dmitri winced a bit and decided just to ignore the last part of Calebs statement. "Only a block more, at the end of the corner. I never really leave this part of town...everything is always close by..." Dmitri led the boy to the ice cream parlor, where the air conditioning saved them from the relentless heat.
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Post by Caleb Haus on May 29, 2009 13:59:16 GMT -5
He tilted his head slightly, turning around so that he was walking backwards, as Dmitri said 'friends' so casually. As though the word were unusual and suspect, rather than one someone should be glad to hear. It made his brows furrow a little, made him wonder just what might have happened to make Dmitri so closed off to the world. Quiet footsteps - even walking so awkwardly - would make not a noise as he moved.
"Don't be so worried, Dmitri." He grinned, then, a smile like his others. So full of life and energetic - he was so used to being able to thaw people out quickly that it was almost strange to feel such quiet antagonization from Dmitri. "This part of town is nice, then - if everything is so close. My apartment is not too far away, either!" He cheered, turning on his heel as the door opened, signaling his turn with a blast of cool air.
Tugging his sleeves a bit, he sniffed, as if he might be able to get a smell from the place. Unlike baked goods, there was no aromatic qualities to ice cream, so he'd be free to figure it out himself. "So... what... do you like, icecreamwise?"
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