Lasting Impressions on a Second Encounter (Private)

It had been three months now. Three months since the events that had occurred in Era. Three months since a young Kara Matheson had moved in with Marick. Sure, it wasn't ideal, but it wasn't like either of them had a choice at the time. Marick couldn't let her live on the streets, and Kara couldn't find her father without Marick's help. As time had gone on the two had actually become quite close. However there was just one issue; Marick barely got any time to himself. And so here he was, stood on Serene Cliff overlooking the ocean below. His eyes were closed and a smile crept across his face as he breathed in the tang of the salty sea air.

A lot had changed for Marick in the past 3 months. He'd become responsible for the first time in his life, and it mostly felt good apart from the inability to get completely hammered. He'd begun to help Kara find her magical capability, and was now beginning to consider his own future. As he opened his eyes and stared out at the horizon before him, he began to remember the words of his master. "Crazy old fool...bet you would be laughing in my face right about now eh?" he mumbled to himself. It was true after all. The 8th Solitaire had often told Marick that one day he'd have to be responsible for someone other than himself. Of course, Marick had been young and naive at the time and merely laughed at the thought. Lo and behold the crazy old man had been exactly right. If he was right about that, then what else was he right about over the years?

Three whole months had passed since the occurrences at Era, and Matabei had been doing soul searching since then. Matabei had tried to start a fight with a man named Marick during the events, but both had been knocked out after a blast. Matabei had been out cold for a while, and the man had left her under a pile of rubble. Matabei questioned why one like himself would leave her there and she came with only one answer, she wasn't worth saving. Matabei had gone into a slight depression, and barely made contact with anyone other than her master.

Matabei came to the Serene Cliff in order to calm herself and relax, but that plan was blown as soon as she saw him. Her blood started to boil as she remembered him leaving her there to die almost, not even wondering if she had made it out okay. Matabei stood there in silence for a while before deciding to act like she wasn't angry, but instead happy to see him. She walked slowly towards him, allowing her hips to sway as she moved closer.

"Well if I'll be damned! Marick! I thought I would never see you again my good sir." Matabei said with a fake cheerfulness she did not feel. It made her feel even more hollow, but she would be damned if she showed weakness to anyone.

Marick had begun to follow his train of thought when a voice broke his concentration. The voice was all too familiar and reminded him of that day in Era, although the surroundings couldn't have been any different. Marick turned to face the owner of the voice and couldn't help but smile again as he saw Matabei, although he could sense something was a little off with her even despite her happy appearance. "Miss Goto! So you survived after all. I thought you'd been hit by a blast from that dragon or had left me behind after that blast...was pretty certain I wouldn't end up coming face to face with you again, that much is for certain." he replied calmly before turning back to face the ocean again.

"So...what brings you here? Come to get some space and clear your head like I have?" he continued. His eyes closed as a breeze blew through his hair and across his face. He was relaxed right now and nothing was going to change that. At least not easily. He chuckled before he spoke again, turning his head to face the dark mage. "Or perhaps you saw me here all alone and decided to keep me company."

Matabei's smile softened into a softer version, the man didn't know about her ordeal or seem to have any clue. She would simply sigh and look out towards the ocean along with him. Matabei licked her lips in order to place some moisture on them and she would sit down right next to him. Matabei did not like men in any sexual way, but if she did then Marick would have been on her list of ones to get. He was well built, and had a lady killer look to him. Matabei sighed, and simply adjusted her beret on her head.

"I am just here to be at peace for once." She admitted, not really having the cheerfulness in her voice she did earlier. I have been.....at unease recently, and thus I came here to relax." Matabei put on a fake smile and turned to Marick again, trying to hide her depression again. "How have you been Marick?" she asked him, curious as to how his life went since the confrontation the two had.

Marick was slightly surprised as Matabei sat herself down beside him. Last time the two had met had certainly been under very different circumstances, and they were just moments away from potentially causing a lot of harm to one another. Now it was as if none of that had happened. The atmosphere of their surroundings seemed to leak into their very essence and their very conversation, leaving all previous events strictly behind them. He listened intently to what the younger woman had to say and nodded slowly as she finished speaking.

"I've been...well I suppose. I'm living with a teenager at the moment. The girl I was trying to find last time we met. We've been searching for her father..." His reply was as calm as before, but now he turned to look down at Matabei with curiosity. "At unease you say? Why's that? I didn't really take you as someone who'd find things uncomfortable." he asked with a slight chuckle. Surely all unease and discomfort would have been during that event three months ago, not now the deed had been done? After all, she'd been a part of the force that had helped to destroy Era. Hell, if Kara were here now he'd be having to hold the young girl back, although he highly doubted he'd be able to. Of course, Kara didn't remember much from that day thankfully so it wasn't a topic that was often discussed at home. Marick had never had to mention Matabei, so perhaps the Dark Mage would've been safe even if Kara were here after all.

Matabei froze a bit, but sighed again when she noticed Marick had picked up on her slight hiccup. She always painted a picture of being a superwoman who rarely got rattled by anything, but she wasn't that. She was as vulnerable as anyone else, and the fact she was left to die before she could achieve her goals was troubling. She wanted to strangle Marick right then and there, but she refrained. Besides, he was no more at fault for her predicament than she was, and he had someone to go take care of. Even if she was psychotic sometimes, she was only that when a lot of death happened. Matabei just put on another fake smile, and answered Marick's question.

"I am just like anyone else good sir. I just have had some troubles in the past is all." Matabei turned towards him, her smile turning devious. "So your living with a teenager alone? How devious of you Marick! I did not know you liked them so young!" Matabei said while giggling. She wanted to change the subject somehow, and this seemed to be the easiest way.

Marick slowly lowered himself to the ground, leaning right arm on his right knee as his left leg merely hung over the edge of the cliff. He didn't feel comfortable talking to Matabei while he was stood and she was sat. He wasn't superior to her, so why should he stand taller than her? He looked out at the ocean again as she spoke, although he was disappointed that she didn't tell him more. Then again, he'd have been daft to have expected her to suddenly open up to him. "Most of us have a past we're not necessarily proud of, some worse than others. You'll figure out where to go in time." he replied, chuckling at how true it was. However, when Matabei spoke about Kara living with him, he suddenly became rather flustered as he thought of a way to defuse what she'd said.

"It's not like that! Her father was away on business when everything happened in Era, and I'm the only person she trusts, so I've taken her in while we try to find her father! I've no other interest in her than as a friend!" he spluttered, before quickly attempting to compose himself. "Besides...I'm trying to change. Not that I have much choice, seeing as how she prevents me from getting drunk. Which is probably a good thing given my drunken tendencies..."

He turned to face the Dark Mage, a slight smile on his face as he spoke. "I didn't think you thought so lowly of me after one meeting."  he joked. Perhaps she's not really as bad as she first made out back in Era...maybe...just maybe she's similar to Kara...

Matabei laughed insanely hard as Marick tried to tell her the real reason he had the young teenage girl with him alone in his house. Matabei had noticed she was laughing harder than she ever had before, and then she almost fell over the side of the cliff while laughing. She managed to not fall, but she wiped a tear from her eye before she spoke to Marick again.

"I think lowly of all men. But you are a special type of man Marick." Matabei looked outwards towards the ocean again, before she sighed once more. "I just wish I could be like....." Matabei started before her eyes widened and she clamped her hands over her mouth. She had almost spilled a secret to a possible enemy! Matabei never felt so stupid in her life! Matabei shook her head and tried to change the subject briefly. "So uh, hows this girl doing? Is she getting along with you well?"

Marick looked across at Matabei for a second. Did she just call him...special? "I'm not sure whether that's a good thing or a bad thing" he said with a chuckle, before turning back to look out at the ocean. "But you're certainly unique yourself. I'll be honest, I half expected you to start a fight with me when you popped up behind me just now. But...I guess there's a lot more to you than our first meeting suggested..." His tone now was soft and genuine. "Whatever it is that's bothering you, I think you can overcome it in time."

When Matabei mentioned Kara again Marick couldn't help but chuckle for a second time in a short span. "I don't think I'm prepared for parenthood yet that's for sure. But we get along. She's beginning to learn more about her own magical capability and appears to be enjoying it, so that's something. She's a pain in the arse, but I guess at first I just thought it was due to not having her father nearby, and now I've gotten used to having her around so it's just never really bothered me." he replied with a shrug. He quickly reverted back to a smile as he continued to speak/ "The other possibility is that I'm far too laid back for my own good." he laughed.

"So Miss Goto... if you don't mind my asking, what kind of thing is it that's bothering you? I'm not asking for your life story...but if there's any way I can help then..."

Matabei frowned, she did not want to answer Marick's question at all. She wanted to tell him off, and then continue to just sit and watch the ocean. She wanted to do all of that, but for some reason she could not. She could not bring herself to do anything of the sort. Her inner goody goody wanted her to be nice and kind to the man, so she would not be able to tell him off completely. However, she would be able to try and dissuade him from asking anything further. "I-I don't know if you would understand....." Matabei muttered, bringing her knees up to her face to cover it. "You aren't like me. You don't have my problems." Matabei continued to mutter, she wanted to tell someone about what was going on but she knew he would immediately try to turn her towards the light. Becoming a goody two shoes was something Matabei feared worse than anything, seeing as how she would be at the beck and call of the magic council. And Matabei hated the magic council more than anything in the world, so that would be a huge problem. Matabei looked at Marick out of the side of her eye slightly. "And knowing your type of person, you would tell me to do the thing which i hate most.."

Marick was watching Matabei's movements. She was uncomfortable, almost battling with herself. It was a peculiar sight to see considering what the woman had been like just three months before. "...you don't have to tell me. I understand. There are some things that are best kept to yourself until you know exactly what it is you need to do, or at least how you want to end up after you've resolved those problems." His voice was once again soft, not patronising or condescending, but understanding. "Whatever it is that's bothering you Matabei Goto...I wish you all the best with it. Just stay strong until you can figure it out."

He now got back to his feet and stretched. He'd not been sat for very long, but given the fact he'd been working his ass off non-stop for the past three months, his muscles were all a little on the sore side. "I'm honestly glad you made it out of Era...the first impressions did you no justice." he continued, before pulling out a card and casually rolling it between his fingers.

Matabei chuckled sightly, she was amused that he cared that she was alive. Matabei was going to do evil....evil things if she ever found what he was looking for, and then she was going to kill him afterwards. What type of guy forgets all about that and appreciates the fact someone who could have made his life a living hell made it out? Well, she would just chuck that up to him being such a good guy. "I'm glad you made it out as well." Matabei admitted, she was glad he didn't die there. It would have been such a shame that someone who could stand up to her died by something other than her own hand. What would her master think? "It would have been a shame for someone of your caliber to die there." Matabei sighed and laid back, wanting to relax a bit. She let her beret fall onto the grass behind her, not caring about it at the moment. "This world needs more people like you, otherwise i wont be able to survive for much longer." Matabei joked slightly, as she chuckled again. She was telling a bit of the truth, she needed more people to be like Marick and be able to calm the raging beast which is her insanity. Her master could only do so much for her, and it seemed like Matabei was getting a bit better at holding back. But it was still too much for her to be comfortable with.

"Someone of my caliber? You didn't even get to fight me hahaha!" Marick couldn't suppress his laughter, but he took the compliment nonetheless. Upon being told there needed to be more people like him, he just shook his head. "There's only one of me for a reason. If there were more people like me then things would be a little chaotic. And if there were more than one of me...well, you'd get bored of me quickly." he continued, before squatting down. "As for not surviving much longer...I'm going to assume you won't tell me what you mean. However...I can offer you some memories to take with you just in case...I'll be busy for a while, at least until I find Kara's father. But afterwards, perhaps we could go out on a couple of jobs together? I'm going to need the money after all, since I'm being out of house and home, and maybe the new experiences might help you with your problems."

He had no idea why he was being quite as friendly towards Matabei as he was. After all, they'd been all set to rip each other to shreds the last time they'd met. But then again this dark mage was showing a very different side. Something about her was intriguing to him, and he was willing to do what he needed in order to find out more about her. "Of course, you're more than welcome to turn me down and throw me off this cliff right this second if you so wish, although I wouldn't recommend it. After all, as we've established, there's only one of me!"

Matabei started to laugh at Marick's joke, even though she originally came with the intent to harm him she could not find the strength to do it now. Matabei felt more at peace around him, for what reasons she could not understand. After calming her laughing down she looked back at Marick with a soft smile now planted on her face. It looked natural even though it felt anything but to the ink-make user. "Sure. Let's go on a mission someday, hell i might even open up to you more." Matabei spoke in her normal delicate tone, but without any of the malice that would normally plague her voice. Instead it sounded more calm and refined, like how one would talk to a close friend or a family member. Matabei sighed and looked into the sky, her eyes slightly glazing over. "It would be nice to be able to open up..." She muttered absentmindedly. She did not think about who she was talking with or the fact that he could clearly hear her. Matabei shook her head and sat up again, sighing as she looked out towards the ocean.

Marick smiled back at Matabei, feeling content for the first time that she was being completely genuine with him. She was a difficult one to read for the most part, so for him to feel this comfortable was a good thing where she was concerned. "It's funny how fate works. Were we to have fought in Era, one of us may not be here now." he said with a slightly chuckle. He took one last look out at the ocean and then turned back to face Matabei. "I ought to get going. I have work to be getting on with if I'm going to get Kara out of my house." Marick got to his feet and then offered his hand to help the young woman up. "I wasn't expecting to see you again, least of all here...but I'm glad we met again."

(Matabei needs time to work on this some other time)