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[b]Time: The Next Morning
Location: Shangri-La, Paris[/b]

The suite David had largely to himself was the picture of privacy, luxury and definition of sparing no expense. Two floors, soft cream and gold colours - beautifully symmetrical Parisian interior design, marble bathroom amenities of a deep soaking bathtub and walk-in shower. Private terrace with a beautiful view of the Eiffel Tower - darkening with the rising of the morning sun. The winding staircase went down to the bedroom from the main entrance. 

Evidence of the night before was spread from the front door to the bedroom, the room was dark as the curtains had been pulled closed - strangely, cracks of light were absent, the darkness was total. Shoes neatly tucked into the closet, neither of the occupants wanting to scuff them. Alongside the black Prada purse was David’s wallet inches from a pair of wine glasses half full. The bottle not far from reach on the glass coffee table. Her dress a pool of fabric over the stairs down, his belt not far from the dress. The rest of their clothes scattered around the bed, where both Odette and David slept under crumpled sheets, messily thrown duvet, a few pillows stripped of their covers, the knotted covers around the bedposts. The bedside tables held vases of fresh flowers, a crystal glass ashtray, and their respective cell phones.

Naturally, slowly stirring from sleep Odette’s mess of blue hair across the pillow, she began shifting. She rolled to her side stretching out fully, shoulders popping satisfyingly. Small red marks across her collarbone, other telltale signs of her night spent with David were all over her body. Shuffling out beneath the covers she felt across the floor for something to put on, finding his light blue dress shirt not bothering to button anything up, to make her way to the bathroom. Her makeup was a complete mess, faded and smudged. Running some warm water she found the makeup wipes to clean up her face before using the toilet. Feeling the slight throb of a wine hangover at the forefront of her head. With the water running she whispered a spell to relieve it. Poking her head back out of the bathroom she checked on David, he was still fast asleep - as far as she could tell. Softly drumming her fingers across the door frame she looked to the stairs back up to the main floor, this would be the perfect opportunity to dig for some more information on her date. Hardly knowing the time she stepped quietly back to her nightstand scooping up her phone.

Messages, notifications, a couple missed calls from friends. She checked the time, it was 5 am.

Considering him, she smiled admirably - fondly running a hand over her clavicle where his hand had found a perfect fit the night before. Sneaking past him, up the stairs she stepped slowly - lightly. Setting her sights on his wallet. They had spent more time perched on the couch talking as they did over their last glasses of wine before stumbling their way over into bed, talking of what they wanted, setting basic boundaries. She remembered clutching at the hem of her dress, anticipation sharpening her focus. Odette couldn’t with a straight face say the date was anything like she had experienced before.

Others had tried to romance her in the past, wine and dine her as it were - often mistaking that they were not apart of her web of social intrigue. While there had been similar endings, it was hardly comparable. Something about David Blackwood pulled her in, his showmanship was impressive but it was not the source of her piqued interest. Odette attempted to understand why she found herself wanting what he maintained, the various aspects of what he exuded and she knew she had a similar effect on him as well. The exact reason as to [i]why[/i] was just out of her reach, none of it was new or unexplored. She knew something wasn’t quite all it seemed with David, the only evidence she had thus far was his reaction to the banshee. Plucking his wallet up, she listened to hear if David had stirred before perusing through it.

David remained positively still, except for the slight heaving of his chest.

The wallet, on the other hand, did not have much to go upon. No credit cards, no business cards, no valid I.D. of any kind… the thin wallet only carried several hundred euros, in cash. Odette frowned looking for more pockets - anything and it turned up squat. Putting the wallet down, she tracked over to the closet next looking through the various pairs of designer shoes. He had good taste, that much she already knew.

Suits hung in protective clothing bags, some casual shirts, jackets - differing colours largely on the cooler shades - finally switching on her phone’s flashlight she began rifling through the pockets. If this business savvy man didn’t carry a business card in his wallet then maybe he had some stored away in his pockets. Recognizing the jacket he wore the other night, she tugged the jacket off the hanger - stopping the clang of the hanger before it could bounce about. Making a face, pausing to strain her ears for movement again, she slid a hand inside the pockets, clean and empty once again like the wallet. Putting the jacket back onto the hanger, doing cursory sweeps through his other pockets - they were all empty. No picture ID, she wondered where his passport was but that could have been kept somewhere more secure than leaving an empty wallet with some handful of cash. Turning off the light, she tapped her phone against her lip in thought. 

Clearly the next logical step in invading his privacy was to check the safe. Padding over to the room safe, it was behind a utility closet door bolted to the ground. Crouching down to examine it, not touching a button knowing the sounds it would make. It was a small silver safe, with a digital keypad. Instead, she opened her phone library of notes, scrolling through the various spells and incantations she had recorded - ones that never warranted the need to be memorized. 

Pressing two fingers against the safe, the tips of her digits lit with pale blue light as she began her incantation, willing the safe to fail, “[color=thistle][i]Votre temps est écoulé, alors que tombent les grains de sable du sablier - vous aussi. Commencez votre utilisation, commencez votre fonction.[/i][/color]”

Repeating the incantation three times, she heard springs come loose, hinges creak as if their weight was too much to bear any more. Numbers flashed across the tiny little screen before static crinkled across it, the plastic warping slightly. The door no longer sat straight, tugging lightly on it she was able to jiggle it open. Smiling she shone her phone’s light into the safe only to find more cash, a jewellery box with his cufflinks, some watches and [i]nothing[/i] of actual import. Her smile fell.

Sitting back on her hunches she crossed her arms for a few moments. Trying again, she tapped her hand around inside of it see if there was anything else in the corners, but the sound rang hollow. . . Stopping she lightly tapped the bottom of the safe. The bottom looked to be the same colour as the rest of the safe but it wasn’t metal. Removing the jewellery and cash, setting it aside she pushed down on one of the corners lifting the bottom up. Quickly removing it she looked further - finally finding what she knew was some answers. Small bundle passports, she flipped through them finding a variety of names but the same face - they were incredibly well forged. America, Russia, Germany. In a slick black case, she eased open the lid to find a contact lens case and a small nearly translucent earpiece. Feeling validated, more than shocked. Her instincts not leading her astray.

Plucking it - holding it up. Putting the lens case aside, using both hands to rub the earpiece down with his shirt not wanting to share earwax with him. 

Tucking the earpiece into her ear, without any expectation to get a response she quietly said, “[color=thistle]’Allo?[/color]”
[hr]
David moved across the ceiling, not a trace of a sound that could be registered by the human ear. In the near-perfect darkness, he was virtually invisible to the naked eye, allowing him to more or less comfortably witness the scene. A part of him was slightly shocked by the very gall that was on display, but when it came to building any actual indignation he soon found he couldn’t manage to work up any. He was a thief, not a hypocrite.

In actuality, he found watching her work kind of fascinating. His heart briefly skipped a beat when she brought out a notebook. Was she some kind of mind reader? 

No! She was a bleeding magician, apparently! What kind of power set did this woman have?! She had barely touched the safe and already his record was shattered!

The thought of intervening struck him. It was the smart thing to do. The [i]only[/i] thing to do. And still, he remained a passive observer.

[i][colour=lightslategray]‘Maybe I’m just sabotaging myself,’[/colour][/i] he thought as he watched her rifle through the superfluous items, [i]‘[colour=lightslategray]I died and came back with these awesome powers, and I’m dealing with it by making things unnecessarily hard aaaaand fuck my life, she found the fake bottom.[/colour]’[/i]

The evidence was enough to perhaps confront him, but still, he felt like he could handle that kind of heat. What he did not expect, however, was her total lack of respect for boundaries to match his own, as she spoke into the microphone.
[hr]
There was a pregnant silence, momentaneously disturbed by the broken intake and exhale of breath before being quickly muted, erasing all trace of its presence.

Her brow furrowed, a quick lick of her lips, “[color=thistle]It is okay.[/color]” She said, quietly - eyes narrowing.

“[color=thistle]He is asleep, I just-[/color]” Feigning a sound of mild frustration, rolling from her knees to lean up against the wall, noting sadly, “[color=thistle]I just want to know who he is. Please, whoever you are - you are someone he trusts, non?[/color]” 

“[color=thistle]I want to know if this wasn’t a huge mistake.[/color]”

The silence went on for a little while longer. Then in came the deep, distorted voice.

“Okay…the fact that you’re on this very line, asking these questions, does very little in terms of convincing me of your trustworthiness. Quite the opposite, really.” 

“[color=thistle]You can trust this stays between you and me.[/color]” She replied, sweetly. “[color=thistle]You must be the voice of reason, the tech-savvy man to the charming front. I have a few ideas of what this is about.[/color]”

“[color=thistle]The only reason I found this little earpiece, I’ll admit it... I am paranoid.[/color]” She began, sighing - continuing the lie, “[color=thistle]I have, I have been [i]hurt[/i] in the past. He was the perfect date, too perfect do you know what I mean?[/color]” Sucking in a quick breath, chuckling nervously.

“[color=thistle]I don’t know what I thought I’d accomplish with this insanity, I am sorry - please… forget I said anything? I won’t say a thing if you do not either.[/color]” She whispered, sounding small - defeated. Wiggling the earpiece out of her ear, slowly - clumsily with a sigh.

For a moment, Deep could almost relate. He understood the uncertainty, the constant worry, and he knew how disarming the thief could be, with his empty smiles and flawless timing, always seeming to know the right thing to say.

Then, he realized he had seen David do the same kind of thing she was doing to him right now a million times and, frankly, felt rather insulted. It was also a stark reminder that she belonged to a vicious, superpowered criminal syndicate. He took a deep breath, his partner’s words echoing in his head. Just like a prank call. Just like a prank call...

“This conversation was over the moment you decided to use that earpiece,” the distorted voice came through, and despite its alien and almost calm tone, there was clearly underlying anger to his words, “You want to avoid getting hurt? Stop digging into matters that are far beyond you, stay as far away as you can from him... and never contact me again.”

Another moment of deafening silence.

“[colour=lightslategray]Found what you were looking for?[/colour]” David’s voice came out of nowhere.

He was almost hard to see at first, the thick darkness giving him cover as he stood close behind her, seeming to tower over her petite frame.

Odette winced, thinking of a dozen ways to wiggle out of this. Failing to appeal to the man over the communication link - she had a chance with David to somehow salvage this morning. Hopefully without explaining how the safe had managed to break. Gently placing the earpiece to the side, “[color=thistle]I knew you were hiding something,[/color]” She began, “[color=thistle]I am relieved, actually. Found some IDs, a mysterious voice, and a false bottomed safe.[/color]”

Pushing herself to stand up, tucking a bit of hair behind her ear, “[color=thistle]I was expecting a gun.[/color]”

Taking a shot in the dark, she adjusted her tone not to sound accusatory, “[color=thistle]You’re a spy,[/color]” She turned to face him, “[color=thistle]It would explain a few things, like the strange men and women staring us down. The purposefully vague nonsense, no paper trails, no credit cards. More than enough money to throw around, not a very good spy...but a spy nonetheless.[/color]”

“[color=thistle]Saying it out loud is about as ridiculous as it sounds, please shed some light here.[/color]”

He raised a brow at this. It was perfect, and she was prepared to believe it. All he had to do now was sell it. He smiled, the act barely visible in the darkroom.

“[colour=lightslategray]For the sake of argument, let’s pretend for a moment that I am a spy,[/colour]” he noted, slowly inching closer, “[colour=lightslategray]You just busted my safe and went through my belongings. What do you reckon my first instinct should be after being compromised in such a candid fashion? Perhaps you missed the gun,[/colour]” He caught a strand of blue hair with a finger, setting it aside. His fingertips ran down her neck, his thumb and index gently pushing her jaw up to level her gaze with his own,, “[colour=lightslategray]Or perhaps I just like to get close and personal.[/colour]”

She hadn’t flinched, knowing a bluff when she heard it, her own hand pressed against his - increasing pressure, “[color=thistle]I ‘reckoned’ that you liked me enough to talk first before acting, I was right.[/color]” She said staring him down. “[color=thistle]Your man on the other line warned me to stay away, [i]you[/i] are giving me a generous warning right this very moment.[/color]”

“[color=thistle]I was relieved that my instincts did not lead me on a goose chase, now they’re telling me,[/color]” She gambled again, “[color=thistle]Some part of you is impressed that I have proven to be more than just a pair of soft pointe shoes.[/color]”

Pressing up against him, her hand resting against his chest, “[color=thistle]Your secrets are safe with me, remember?[/color]”

His heart practically screamed with glee: this was far better than anything he could’ve orchestrated on his own. Still, he stayed in character, stoic features regarding her menacingly as his grip tightened, his body mass forcing her to step backwards as he moved forward. “[colour=lightslategray]I do not believe you grasp the gravity of your situation, Mademoiselle Favre. Even if you had not just utterly betrayed my trust, there are protocols one must follow in these types of situations.[/colour]”

Involuntarily holding her breath, waiting for his decision and readying a spell to stop him in his tracks.

He held her there for a moment as if considering, then let go. “[colour=lightslategray]You [i]stole[/i] my secrets,[/colour]” he emphasized, a very faint touch of indignation to his otherwise cool act, his tone becoming almost dismissive, “[colour=lightslategray]Fortunately for you, I’m more interested in learning yours than in killing you. You want to know who I am? That is a two-way street. You can start by telling me how you practically disarmed the room’s safe without barely touching it,[/colour]” his tone grew almost condescending, “[colour=lightslategray]As a sign of good faith, mostly, I’m going to find out one way or another.[/colour]”

[i][color=thistle]If only you knew how close you had come to death, Monsieur Blackwood.[/color][/i] She thought idly, her eyes narrowed at his tone. Taking a few moments to breathe, seemingly playing the part of calming her nerves. A civilian was only as bold when their lives weren’t in danger, anyone else would have probably been terrified.

Adding a small quiver in her voice she responded, “[color=thistle]M-my secrets?[/color]” She cleared her throat, “[color=thistle]May I provide some context, as I am sure you overhead me speaking to the man over the earpiece. I was not lying when I said I have reason to be paranoid, not as many as you do - clearly.[/color]”

She touched her neck, not quite feeling bold enough to touch him again, not yet. “[color=thistle]Had you spent more time researching me you would have no doubt dug up certain details of my reputation.[/color]” She had no real intent opening [i]that[/i] particular vein of conversation, but she needed something he could verify for himself and here the truth would work in her favour. “[color=thistle]The dance community around the Opera House is quite close-knit, we all attended the same university, see each other more than our own families.[/color]”

Casting her eyes down, somewhat in shame, “[color=thistle]I have a string of exes, I had a terrible habit of playing games with their hearts. Using jealousy, lies - rumours, affection, tears, all to my advantage. It was fun, but my own games double-backed on me and caused a bloom of paranoia. I-[/color]” She flicked her gaze back up to him, then gestured to the safe,  “[color=thistle]These hotel safes are standard and it is not the first time I have broken into one. Naturally, it all blew up in my face. I sabotaged the one relationship where I actually cared for them and after…[/color]” She shrugged a shoulder, frowning, “[color=thistle]I gave up. I focused on my dancing and everyone in the company warned whoever even so much showed the slightest bit of interest. It has been years since I gave up on dating.[/color]”

Her cheeks were rosy with embarrassment, she chewed at the inside of her cheek. It painted a different picture from the well-liked, accomplished dancer to the social pariah among her peers. None of which she regretted but took issue with sharing it. Being forced to share it to hide her magical safe breaking. A one night stand with secrets of his own, it could be worse. 

“[color=thistle]Old habits have a strange way of bubbling back up.[/color]”

David could not have been more delighted as he listened to her, juggling half-truths with outright lies. Had they met by chance, her words might’ve given him some reason to pause, but the fact he knew who she really was made them almost moot. Of course, he maintained a serious face throughout the whole thing. When she was done, he deliberately rolled his eyes.

“[colour=lightslategray]Well, boo-fucking-hoo. So you’re what your people call a ‘femme fatale,’[/colour]” he shrugged, the last word leaving a bad taste in his mouth, “[colour=lightslategray]I could’ve told you as much. And please, don’t insult my intelligence by pretending that what your nosy ‘friends’ at the ballet think about you is any kind of impediment to doing what you actually want to. I thought we’d already established that.[/colour]”

He sighed, regarding the ruined safe. “[colour=lightslategray]Even if I wasn’t trained to smell your bullshit from miles away, [i]which I am,[/i] I know for a fact that you’re lying. You want to know how? Because I can’t figure out how you’ve opened this safe, and I know [i]every[/i] way to open it. In fact, I took very specific precautions to prevent anyone but the most skilled of master thieves from being able to do so.[/colour]”

Technically speaking, nothing he had said was a lie. His skills did heavily overlap with what one might expect of a spy, after all, which is what made it such a brilliant, if somewhat dangerous, cover... and he genuinely hadn’t the foggiest idea how she’d done it, which irked him to no conceivable end.

“[colour=lightslategray]In fact,[/colour]” he continued, beginning to walk up to her, “[colour=lightslategray]This strikes me as rather bold behaviour for a paranoid, wouldn’t you agree? I’m not saying you don’t have trust issues, mind,[/colour]” he clarified, now standing close to her, a string of fingers running down her figure as he regarded her, close enough to almost feel them but never really making contact, “[colour=lightslategray]But this… this is the work of someone who thinks she’s untouchable.[/colour]”

She scoffed, he rolled his eyes at her bait, continued to call her out and stubbornly kept to the subject at hand. 

Her meek and humble facade was gone in a blink, she pinched the bridge of her nose, “[color=thistle][i]Fine.[/i] You want the truth?[/color]” The truth was always relative, there was a way forward - he could get a glimpse and believe whatever she wanted him to believe, “[color=thistle]Watch closely.[/color]” Pushing his hand away. She crouched in front of the safe again, removing her phone to read the next incantation to fix the safe. A spell she often used to cover her tracks, when she wasn’t caught.

Placing both hands on the safe she began her incantation, “[color=thistle][i]Réorganiser le temps, retour au début par ma volonté et parole. Réparez, connectez, coulez.[/i][/color]” Speaking softly, her hands glowed light blue casting cold light over her features, the clang of metal, springs, and other bits audible as magic willed the device back to its original state. Repeating the incantation once more, three times in total the safe was back in one piece once more. Sighing the light faded, idly she placed the items back inside, slotting the false bottom back in place. She closed the door and with a beep, it was locked up once more. 

“[color=thistle]I was [i]trying[/i] to keep it a secret, metahumans were on the block by terrorists. I can break and repair things, I use words to help focus my powers,[/color]” Folding her arms, with a pout, “[color=thistle]Quid pro quo, a secret for secret.[/color]”

David frowned. She had admitted to being a meta-human, but it didn’t add up with what he’d seen her do. Perhaps she was more powerful than she wanted to let on, and had some kind of mayor physics bending powers?

He filed that in the ‘scary thoughts’ archive and, after a moment’s consideration, straightened out his hand. “[colour=lightslategray]Hand back the earpiece.[/colour]”

Dangling the earpiece between them she gently placed it in the palm of his hand, holding her breath once more - waiting, “[color=thistle]It didn’t do me any good, your man in the chair did not reveal anything.[/color]” She commented, “[color=thistle]So, what now?[/color]”

David put on the earpiece.

“[colour=lightslategray]It’s me.[/colour]”

“Have you [i]lost[/i] your mind?” Came Deep’s voice.

“[colour=lightslategray]I am sorry for what happened. The situation has been handled.[/colour]”

“What do you mean the situation… Ugh! She’s there with you, isn’t she?”

“[colour=lightslategray]Affirmative.[/colour]”

“This is the last time I help you with any of your stupid antics, you hear me?”

“[colour=lightslategray]...No, you don’t have to worry about her anymore.[/colour]”

“No, you’re not listening to me! I know you’re putting on your little play for her but this… this behaviour has to stop! Ever since what… whatever it is that happened to you, you’ve not been the same! I know it’s a lot to deal with. But you’re impulsive and reckless and... and... and I was just on the phone with a psychopathic killer, for all I know!” the man stopped to catch some air, or perhaps to sigh, “I don’t know if we can keep working together if you don’t respect the rules. We made them for a reason. Get your shit together, or we’re done professionally.”

“[colour=lightslategray]Understood. It won’t happen again. Business as usual then?[/colour]”

Deep cut the line.

“[colour=lightslategray]Very well.[/colour]”

He turned to regard her, a sly smile on his face. 

“[colour=lightslategray]Well, now that that’s taken care of, I believe there was some mention of returning to bed. Don’t get me wrong, I still have a million questions, but they can wait,[/colour]” he took off the earpiece, tossing it aside as he approached her, “[colour=lightslategray]After all, I intend to keep a close eye on you, Mademoiselle Favre.[/colour]”