[Leo Kaiser]

Light squeaking would herald the arrival of a young man with a messy cut of white hair. Leonard Von Kaiser was on his own again, things pretty much did not really change from his time in the slammer. He was alone there, he was alone now. It looked like only his cell changed. As suspected, he was being isolated the moment rumors of his past started spreading around. Not that he mind much in any case.

He fixed his tie and grabbed the first available spot to lounge around on his lonesome, all the while remaining fairly visible. As part of his... "extracurriculary" duties, he needed to have a hero come by and... guess check on his rehabilitation, perhaps help him "integrate" into society. What a joke. He would never be able to integrate in a society that already decided he was a monster. In any case, he wasn't really interested in what some hero had to say. He was just going through the motions, borely nod until he clocked in the required hours and then promtly either ditch the guy or just straight up tell them to f-off and go do something else with his life.

So there he was. There he waited, watching as people passed by, some shooting him those looks he knew all too well. Watched as the huge clock ticked and tacked. Man, whoever it was this time sure was late. He was alrady lounging there for five minutes without even realizing. Perhaps they just wouldn't show up. Wouldn't that be an absolute treat? Spare him the hassle.


skald

[skald]

Rehabilitation.

It was far more important to her than any other way of dealing with a villain like individual than any other instance. Death was a waste, locking them up was a waste, destroying their lives or restricting their quirk? Also was something she felt was without a doubt absolutely a waste of talent. Individuals with quirks like the one that she had managed to… Save? Could she say that? Were important to her and the community.

She had agreed that while her interactions with the ‘villain’ were going to seem forced since she was the one that arrested them… The other heroes that she had asked to help with his rehabilitation had declined. Stating they had more important things to do. What was more important than saving lives?

Saving this life that had led to villainy?

Of someone that had been always viewed as a monster? She understood that since not everyone liked mutants or held them up to the same regard. She’d look down at her hands for a moment as she trotted along.

She was running slightly late, more so because she didn’t realize how late it was. Arriving on the scene she saw leo from a distance. There was a flash of concern on her face and then she’d raise up her hand calling out his name as she approached.

”Leo~~~! It’s good to see youuuuuuuuuu!”

Her voice cut through the air like a knife through butter, the utter cheer that was in it was so unfathomably genuine that there was no mistaking she was happy to see him and that she wasn’t the sort to just drop him. She was going to make sure that he was well taken care of and as she approached she’d grin wider, popping up her glasses and looking him over.

”You look good! Sleeping okay?”

[Leo Kaiser]

Leo heard a shriek in his name and instinctively jumped. Was there trouble? Was he under attack? Wisps of dark flickered around him as he was ready to pull a weapon out of thin air and plunge it into someone's chest. His frown only deepened as he found the source of the call.

The fox.

Of all the people. Was the government up to some sick jokes today? That damn animal beat him up, tazed him to the floor with her damn quirk and then happily dropped him off to the slammer. It was pretty clear that young Leo was not as happy to see the "legendary" pro hero Skald as Skald herself was to see him. He remained on guard as she approached, glaring dagger all the way through. The nerve of that hero. Coming near all happy go lucky like nothing had ever happened.

"What do you want, fox." He replied curtly. "Why are you here?" He would soon add. He kind of knew the why, but he hoped there was some other reason as to her presence. He did not want to see her. He did not want to be near her and he most certainly did not want to have to listen to her whims while doing this whole "rehabilitation training" he was forced into doing. Hell, a couple of years back in solitary he just wanted to straight up kill her for getting him stuck in a small concrete box with a nice collar around his neck to disable his powers. He couldn't beat her then, couldn't beat her now. He had lost his "necklace" but obviously the government wouldn't just let him out without making sure he was still shackled tight. As long as he had those two damn quirk suppressors around his wrists he wouldn't be able to raise much of a fight against her. So at some point he just... didn't care for revenge anymore. He just wanted to stay away from people and clock in the remaining hours until probation was done but nooo. He HAD to have regular meetups with heroes so that he would be reminded of his problems.

Defiantly holding his head up eye to eye, uncaring about the fact that Skald was pretty much towering above him in height, he kept on staring daggers at her. "If you are here to oversee training today, skip the fake smiles and let's get to it."

[skald]

There were hundreds if not thousands of heroes in the heroing business but none of them seemed to share the same sentiment that skald herself did. None of them felt the need to overtly go about things like this. She had yes without a doubt been the reason he had spent that time in prison. She had done the paperwork quickly and had pushed hard for him to undergo the rehabilitation program. A rarity in the business. She understood the fact that he was likely not happy to see her; the glaring was definitely something she expected too.

”I’m here cause it’s part of the rehab program! The list of heroes that do this is so short that it’s me, another guy and someone that’s stuck in cleveland.”

Skald sighed a little bit at that last one; they had been grounded for quite some time actually! If they were closer she’d probably mess with his hair or check out the tie by looking it over but instead she’d put her hands on her hips and grin ear to ear. Her outfit was clearly meant to instill that she wasn’t a threat to him. She noted that he was wearing the suppressors and tutted softly.

”Fake smiles? Nah none of that, these aren’t fake.”

She’d take both of her pointer fingers, pulling her lips apart and showing that she still had fangs. Teasing in almost a sense and then let out a soft laugh. A genuine laugh with no hate, no malice, no anger. No negative emotion of any kind.

”So! I was thinking grabbing some icecream or maybe a movie, got anything you’d like to do?”

Skald cocked her head to one side, tipping her glasses up so that she could see the other without that red tint that they cast on everything. Her eyes flicked to the quirk suppressors and there was a slight frown.

”They’re still making you wear those?”

[Leo Kaiser]

Leonard pouted slightly. That was exactly the reason why he loathed this "rehabilitation program". He didn't need rehab he needed to be left the hell alone instead of having to spend time with his captor. At the very least the hero was a modicum of nice, but still not enough to get the young white haired man to stop staring with seething suspicion in his two ruby red eyes. She did not mention training, funnily enough. She wanted to... see a movie with him? What was on her mind.

As much as she tried to be nice, too much of it was going to set off Leo's suspicion even more. He wasn't used to nice things. Usually when people were nice it was to get something else from him, which is why he jumped lightly on the defensive the moment she showed her fangs, relaxing back to his regular stance the moment he figured out there was no aggression going on. She asked about the suppressors, seeming surprised he still had them. "...to think I got my ass beat by someone so naive." He mumbled, stepping closer so he could be within reach of the hero. He couldn't say no to her being there anyway, so the faster he clocked in the hours the easier it would be for him to rush back to his room.

"Of course I have them. They won't let a villain go around other kids his age without them. Wouldn't want the 'Little Devil' to harm them now." The sheer amount of vitriol he spat out with that sentence could kill in its own right. He was still rather bitter about the whole thing. Nevertheless, there he was squaring the kitsune. Since she did offer things he might as well take the free stuff. "I'm fine with ice cream. No movie. If we need to go somewhere, we can just go walk somewhere not crowded." He told her. At least it was something she could work on to get through to him.

[skald]

Skald knew that the program needed some work, it was young. Underfunded and horribly needed attention from every angle. But it’s because of those things that something like this needed to happen too. She’d tilt her head to one side as she could see that he wasn’t buying what she was saying. Or at the very least he seemed skeptical of her intentions. As transparent she was being.

She knew for a fact she could probably beat his ass again if she needed to; but she wasn’t here for that. No she was here to make sure that he had a good time and that he could see what life was like without things being a problem. Hearing his reasons for having them she’d ponder for a moment and hum.

”Well you’re not a devil or a villain. So how about we go grab that ice cream and then we can go to the park. I’ll take off those inhibitors when we’re there so you can stretch some.”

She remembered having to wear the same inhibitors during some training regimes with the police academy since they wanted to see what she was capable with her quirk and hated the sensation they had on her. She’d motion for him to follow her, padding along and humming a cheerful tune.

”There’s a lot of places around town we could visit. Lots of places with less of a crowd. Don’t worry! Everyone needs time and space. Even people like me.”

[Leo Kaiser]

"I thought all heroes were the pompous types who dreaded having moments where no one is groveling at their feet." Leo mused, walking to Skald's side as she turned around and repeated her invitation for ice cream. She mentioned taking off his shackles, thing that would more than likely be appreciated, but the meaning in between the lines was not lost on the rebellious youth. "Hmpf. I've been replaying that fight in my head for a couple of years now. Pretty sure I could take you right now and give you no small amount of trouble. I don't know if its naivety or overconfidence but take a hint from someone who lived a few years off in the deep end. Kindness like yours will get you killed, fox."

Truly his power had been honed further since that day a few years back. Not only that, but he did know about her and her powers now. He knew how to deal with them. Wouldn't be a stretch to think he hadn't contemplated revenge. Aspire to maybe not only beat her, but even kill her. At first most probably, when the loss and the hatred was still freshly burning in his chest back in solitary confinement. Nowadays he had a new outlook on the kitsune. While he still knew he somewhat hated her for putting him in this situation, she did also grant him a modicum of normalcy. A small bit of freedom, even if most of it was just appereances. Something is better than nothing though, so he was at the very least a little grateful for that.

As they walked, the famous pro-hero would suddenly feel her right hand-paw grabbed by a smaller hand, her arm being tugged lightly. As much as Leo tried to look uncaring and aggressive to others, deep down he really did not like having to deal with people at all. So, the moment they stepped into a more crowded part of town there he was dragging Skald to the less crowded back alleys.

[skald]

”Not all. Though some admittedly do have their heads very far up their rears.”

Skald snorted a little bit as they trotted along; she was more inviting the idea to stretch his theoretical limbs. Knowing that having your quirk suppressed was so ungodly uncomfortable. Flicking her ears she’d turn to stare at Leo; her smile that followed had lost none of the warmth that she held earlier.

”It’s neither, if you really want to ruin your chances at a life where people don’t think you’re a villain or call you ‘little devil’ you could do that for sure. I wouldn’t hold it against you. As for the fight… ”

She’d continue along stretching a little bit; she felt a crack and she’d let out a soft sigh. She had grown a bit since their fight sure, but she also knew that the two of them had different outlooks on life. So they’d grow differently. She wasn’t wanting to fight him anyways. Feeling her hand grasped by the other she’d blink and would go along with Leo into the back alleys.

”Not feelin it?”

There was genuine concern in her voice and she’d pad along with him; she’d let him steer where they went. His comfort was paramount after all!

[Leo Kaiser]

"Hm." Leo hummed, happy to see that the fox was just content following him and not fighting against his pull. "We're being watched, fox." He said nonchalantly as he kept weaving her around. "Followed actually." He would add, glancing up at her. "I am surprised your nose doesn't pick up any scent."

He was a little more on the defensive now, Skald could already see some wisps of darkness forming into small orbs and begin to orbit around the teen. Suppressed quirk or not, he still gave a rat's ass about people considering quirk usage in public a felony. He was probably blowing the thing out of proportion, but his breathing seemed a little more erratic and his steps slightly uneven. The young ex-villain was having a panic attack of sorts, trying his best to remain calm. It was probably the quirk suppressor. Usually he would have no problem with people jumping at him but having his powers gimped left him in a bad mood.

Then it happened when they rounded a corner.

A bombardment of flashes suddenly stunned the young man as reporters jumped at the opportunity to surround the famous kitsune hero the moment the couple rejoined the streets into a main thoroughfare. They started bombarding her with questions and things, also moving their blasted cameras towards Leo who instinctively shrunk down near the hero. As they became more pushy and insistent, especially after someone recognized him and began asking questions you could tell that the young man's old habits would soon take over should Skald not deal with the problem, as Leo seemed ready to use his quirk to literally cut his way away in the crowd of paparazzi.

[skald]

Skald’s ear twitched a little bit as the other stated that they were being watched. She always felt eyes on her so maybe this was one of those times that she hadn’t noticed it quick enough. She’d cock her head to one side and at the mention of her not picking up the scent…

”Unfortunately because the city stinks it’s really hard to get a read on any scent unless you spend a lot of time in one place. As for that…”

There was a soft crackle of lightning along one of her arms, harmless but naturally playful the little bit of lighting would dance away from the two of them as the other grew more defensive. She knew how his quirk worked but she made sure her lightning was a little… darker than usual. Something that took visible effort to do.

The bombardment of flashes caused the fox to blink slowly and she’d sigh somewhat. Ah yeah, reporters or paparazzi. She was masterful at handling their questions, answering them crackfire one after another; literally no issue until she noted that Leo shrank away from them and her icy blue eyes flicked from the reporters to her charge. Without much of a word she’d hoist leo up; knowing that the two of them had broken that personal boundary with him tugging her along.

”sorry but he won’t be answering any questions, his rehabilitation is going well and you are encouraged if you have questions pertaining to him to request it at the local police stations or the primary agency handling his care.”

Given that she was the one that was going to be handling it primarily this was the nice way of her telling them to go away… But to add to that? She was gone in a flash, with their back to a wall more or less she simply just ran up the side of the nearby wall. Skidding to a stop near the top before zooming off across the rooftops.

”Sorry I didn’t ask, but I did say the park; I’ll getcha that ice-cream too~”

She’d smile a little bit, it seemed as though she didn’t struggle at lifting the other what-so-ever but that could be a dozen of different reasons there! Give or take five minutes the both of them would skid to a halt outside of the park where she’d set him down and exhale softly. She already had some jerky in hand and if leo wanted there was a link offered for him too!

[Leo Kaiser]

Leonard could only hum in protest and surprise as the Hero simply decided to hoist him up and go. Not that he could voice his concerns, by the time he instinctively grappled around her neck she was already up a wall and running. The sudden vertigo hit him hard but thankfully he still had not recieved his ice cream. So there he was for the next five minutes without being able to do much but keep himself huddled up to the fox, which took a great deal of trust for him to do. He was uncomfortable. He did not know how to deal with this.

He hated being vulnerable around other people, he needed no saving.

Thankfully he was let go soon enough, the young man setting his feet down on the grass, looking up at Skald lost and confused. She still talked about ice cream like they were best buddies, or like siblings. He did not quite know how to process that.

He just decided to answer her with a nod and find a place nearby where he could just chill, hopefully without nosy people around. Skald will be back in no time anyway, if her show of speed earlier was any indication of her speed.

[skald]

Skald was genuinely thankful she was able to remove leo from that situation; people that were not used to dealing with media or the coverage they wanted would often panic or do something rash. She wasn’t willing to put him into that position and have his rehabilitation take a hit. Feeling him huddle against her she could tell that he wasn’t exactly enjoying the situation as a whole. Seeing him look at her like that all she could do was give a cheerful smile.

”I’ll be right back leo don’t worry.”

The park thankfully was quiet and once he was seated skald zipped off. She knew of a few icecream places nearby and would return with two cones, one for her and one for him. If he didn’t like the flavor or didn’t feel up for it that was fine too. She’d take a seat next to him and offer one of the cones.

”Sorry about that. I deal with them on such a regular basis I didn’t think about them. Next meet up we have maybe somewhere much less public.”

She couldn’t help but want to apologize to him; if it wasn’t for her… well. Fame to a degree he wouldn’t have had to deal with that at all. Sometimes success was good, othertimes it hurt situations like these.

[Leo Kaiser]

Leo was somewhat relieved to now be able to take a breather. As he figured, the fox was out and back around in a few minutes with the ice cream he promised. He carefully took it from her paws, looking down at the cone. "...why." He asked after a moment, taking a tentative bite out of it. Cold, as expected. But Yummy. "Why do you do all this. For someone like me." He would add, still trying to piece out everything this hero was pulling off in his regard. Her kindness truly was almost disarming.

"I barely know you. I tried to kill you for fuck sake. Yet you're here just...acting like nothing ever happened. Like we weren't some kind of sworn enemies before. Hell, I am pretty sure I left a scar or two there. What the hell is your problem?" He got a little more and more heated the longer he spoke, simmering back down soon after. He was conflicted. Part of him did not want to like her, but the other side of him was feeling like maybe. Maybe he could lower his guard around someone this time. Then when he hesitantly tried, his first half started screaming. He really did not like to appear vulnerable. Like with what just happened. He basically almost looked like he was completely at her mercy.

"I don't... I don't get it. What's in it for you? What's it that you really stand to gain for this? More fame for redeeming someone like me? Know that you're better than others?" He was trying to so desperately find the second end to her action. He was sure there was one, just not what it was. Everyone has personal interests. It was just how things always were in the end...

[skald]

Skald took a few moments to enjoy her icecream, hearing the other ask why she’d blink slowly. Why did she do something like this for someone like him? Why would she go through all of this for someone that had tried to kill her? Left a few scars? One of which she knew where it was at; not really bothered by the fact. Pausing she’d adjust and lean back against a tree.

”Not everyone needs saving the same way as others do. Not everyone has the same problems, lives or the like. Not everyone interacts with everyone else the same way. My job as a hero is to save people, more often than not that requires me to fight people time and time again. But…”

Skald paused and let him continue; what was in it for her? What did she stand to gain for it? More fame? Knowing she was better? She’d blink a little bit and rub the back of her head; managing a small if not cheerful smile. Yeah that would seem like the case for many yeah?

”People aren’t born villains, people aren’t born to hate, to hurt. They don’t… they don’t start like that. Something leads to it. We weren’t sworn enemies; hell we weren’t even really enemies then and I don’t think we ever were.”

She’d take a moment, enjoying her icecream, though unfortunately she was finished with it quicker than most due to the serving sizes being… a little less than what she’d like.

”Nothing. Nothings in it for me other than knowing I helped someone. Someone that clearly was hurting but had no idea what to do about it. I don’t care about fame, I don’t stand to gain anything, maybe a friend at the end of everything. I don’t… do my hero work for fame, I don’t do it for money or anything. I do it because I want to save people.”

She’d look up and place her hands on her legs; smiling a little bit and sighing after a few long moments. Her tails swishing every which way.

”If I hadn’t stopped you, you would have continued on in the hurt. You would never of had the quiet moments like these where you can just listen to the birds or the sounds of the city in the distance. Many people that are called villains are hurting or confused, or have had their life harshly treat them… and it’s not fair to just answer that with senseless violence all the time.”

She’d pause a bit and then smile at him, this big warm fuzzy smile.

”So I guess you could say I stand to see what you could do if given a chance.”

[Leo Kaiser]

He did not ask for philosophy, but he was given an answer and he would have to live with that. He quieted down, mulling over what she said. Some of it sounded naive, as per usual, some of it was clichè. Well...if you wanna be completely honest it all sounded pretty clichè. It was something pretty in character for a hero to say all that stuff. Many would say they fight for honor or for others, it was a dance as old as time. In the end, the victor write history and all the atrocities they did to get there get lost to time. As they say, the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Yet there was a big problem in Leo's reasoning.

As clichè as it sounded...it also felt genuine. Either the fox was really good at lying or she was really meaning all of it.

The hand holding his icecream trembled lightly. Leo looked down at his feet and gritted his teeth slightly. He stomped closer and sat down in front of the much larger fox. He looked pissed, which for Leo it usually meant he was struggling to remain in control of the situation and it was something he did not like at all. Those two sides of him were fighting and fighting hard. He...kind of wanted to let go, to just let someone else deal with his problems but his past experiences told him otherwise. If you show weakness you get hurt. But hell, deep down if the fox meant what she said then he could also stand to see what she could do if given a chance. Besides, would it hurt to just test the waters? He didn't have to swear himself to her or anything.

"...If you are lying I will fucking kill you for real this time." The vitriol was back again, but it was more Leo's subconscious once again making sure to keep him safe and push people again before they could harm him than him meaning most of it. It was just his reaction in the heat of the moment. He paused, looked at the melting icecream while sulking. "...sorry. I don't... trust people that easy like you do." He said, trying to not let his usual aggressiveness do the talking, taking in a few deep breath to calm down the half baked panick/anger attack.

"...and I want a rematch." He stated after a while. There was still that thought in his mind. He still couldn't accept that he really needed the help or any help. He still felt like the last fight ended with just a stroke of luck in her favor. She just happened to have a quirk that had an advantage over his and he was taken off guard. "I want to fight you again. For real, not some half-hassed thing. Part of me still hates you. Thanks to you I was slammed into five squared feet of concrete for a couple years and have to live with shackles around my wrists in some twisted kind of half freedom. I always stood on my two feet by my own strenght, then you came and ruined everything. You either rise from the deep or you drown in it in my world. Kill or be Killed. If you want to help me then fight me as hard as you can like last time. Prove to me you're better. I wanna know this was really meant to happen. I wanna be sure I couldn't have just beat you and carried on like I did. That you did really have the strenght to end me for good but you decided to do something else instead."