[center] [img]https://i.imgur.com/PVXYWf6.png[/img] [img]https://i.imgur.com/qAakc1A.gif[/img][/center] [center] [color=7DBC89]Race:[/color] Yuan-ti [color=7DBC89]Class:[/color] Rogue Arcane Assassin [color=7DBC89]Location:[/color] The enchanting bathroom [color=7DBC89]Interactions:[/color] [@princess] Phia [@Oso] Talis & Liana [color=7DBC89]Mentions:[/color] [color=7DBC89]Equipment:[/color] [hider=Full Equipment List]🌸 A finely crafted katana 🌸 A concealed dagger laced with paralytic venom 🌸 Throwing needles coated with different poisons 🌸 Black silk combat outfit reinforced with hidden Mithril chainmail 🌸 Soft-soled boots that allow for near-silent movement 🌸 Smoke bombs and illusion charms for quick escapes 🌸 A set of forged documents under multiple aliases 🌸 A tea set and an assortment of teas 🌸 Incense[/hider] [color=7DBC89]Attire:[/color] [color=7DBC89]Gold Balance:[/color] 71 [color=7DBC89]Injuries:[/color] None currently, but has numerous faded scars on her body [img]https://i.imgur.com/phiFSQQ.png[/img][/center] The moment the black mist curled through the room, Meiyu’s expression flickered, not with fear, but recognition of a shift in the room’s balance. Danger didn’t come with trumpets. It came with silence, and cold air, and the scent of old fire. She watched the woman form—elegant, theatrical, [I]deliberate[/I]—and rage stirred low in her stomach. [color=7DBC89][I]How dare she.[/I][/color] Upstaged. Interrupted. Dismissed. This wasn’t just intrusion, it was a theft of narrative. Meiyu had orchestrated this encounter with precision. And now here stood some hooded [I]apparition[/I] hijacking her stage, commanding attention with smoke and blade and prophecy of bombs. Her fury was ice-cold, the kind that sharpened clarity rather than dulled it. She didn’t move. Not yet. She watched. Analyze. Assess. Control. First: [I]The woman could be telling the truth.[/I] The signs were there—the confidence, the timing, the complete lack of urgency in her tone. A bluff wouldn’t need such detail. But if it [I]was[/I] true, and she still stopped to monologue? Then it wasn’t quite imminent, was it? Second: [I]The redhead woman.[/I] Meiyu’s gaze slid briefly to the stall. A bomb-hunting phantom with a personal interest in the redhead? Curious. Very curious. Whatever Talis was hiding, Meiyu had been right, it was more than nerves. Something worth potentially killing for. She wanted to know [I]what[/I]. And third: [I]Her own life.[/I] The intruder hadn’t attacked yet. Hadn’t turned on her. That meant she wasn’t the target. Not [I]yet[/I]. Which meant she had time. A sliver of it. She could still use this. Phia stepped in front of the stall. And Meiyu, who seconds before had nearly brushed the girl off entirely, suddenly reconsidered her value. [color=7DBC89][I]Hm. Useful.[/I][/color] When Phia made her bean comment, Meiyu blinked once. And then she laughed. It was a sharp, incredulous sound, like she couldn’t quite believe the audacity of the moment. But her expression never lost that simmering calculation. She took a step—not toward the hooded woman, but at a curve, careful not to trigger aggression. One hand lifted lightly, palm out, as if calming a volatile beast. [color=7DBC89]“You must forgive her,”[/color] she said silkily, voice smoothing into something polished and unbothered. [color=7DBC89]“She’s not in the habit of letting terrified young women get carved open by strangers with a flair for drama, I've gathered."[/color] She let her gaze sweep the newcomer from head to toe now, unabashedly appraising. [color=7DBC89]“And [I]you,[/I] darling...you’ve certainly made an entrance.”[/color] A small tilt of her head. [color=7DBC89]“Theatrics aside, if you truly meant to kill her, you would have done it the moment you appeared. Instead, you decided to take the time to warn us. Which makes me wonder...”[/color] Her smile curved, sharp as a blade dressed for a gala. [color=7DBC89]“…what’re you [I]really[/I] after?”[/color] Meiyu’s tone shifted then to something subtle, but unmistakable. A shade more serious. Less mocking. [color=7DBC89]“You came for her. That makes her interesting. That makes her [I]mine[/I]—at least for now.”[/color] She tapped her chin, watching the woman closely for any sign of reaction. [color=7DBC89]“And as much as I love a good bloodbath, I prefer to know why before the painting begins.”[/color] But despite her words, Meiyu did not move to stop the woman. She made no overt threat. No suicidal challenge. Her stance was open, her posture relaxed, but behind her eyes burned ruthless calculation. If the woman moved to strike, Meiyu would [I]absolutely[/I] retreat. She wasn’t about to get herself killed over pride or theatrics. But if she could stall her long enough to learn [I]why[/I], to figure out what made Talis a target, then the risk was worth the edge. Just not too much of a risk. And if Phia died buying her that information? Well. That wasn't her problem.