Colors of Remnant

Felix adjusted the strap of his guitar as he stepped out of the cab, giving the driver a cheerful nod and word of thanks before standing up straight to get his bearings. It was Friday night and he was ready to party! Today's particular party involved open mic night at an establishment he'd heard mentioned by one or two Beacon students before, Spades. From the outside it didn't look overly impressive. The brick facing lent it an air of classiness, but the impression he was getting was 'Dive Bar.' There wasn't a line of patrons waiting to get inside, though, so that was a plus! He made his way through the busy downtown sidewalk towards the door and stepped inside. Ah, love at first sight! The place seemed to be built around a stage that was currently being occupied by a thick standing crowd of people. The crowd eventually gave way to a seated area and a bar, but with two more tiers of seating up above, protected by cast iron railing. The walls were covered in knickknacks. At a glance he could pick out post cards from almost every kingdom of Remnant, posters of bands he recognize and, impressively enough, didn't recognize! There were tiny model motorcycles, guitars, and all manner of eclectic things decorating the tables. More than a few of the ambient lights were given character with coverings of instruments or people. It was a feast for the eyes.

A feast for the eyes, and a buffet for the ears! Apparently open mic night was a big deal here. The place was crowded, and there was a band up on stage playing a heavy punk song. He quirked an eyebrow at the trio. Was the drummer a ten year old girl? Their sound was dirty, grungy, and in your face, and the crowd was obviously enjoying themselves. The occasional whistle or cheer was hard to hear over the downright oppressive feeling coming from the band, but they were there. Equal parts nervousness and excitement itched at his stomach. Were there still any spots left to perform here? Was he really going to be able to just walk in and play?

Starry eyed Felix was shaken from his reverie as a pair of kids brushed past him as they headed out the door in a hurry, one looking as if he was trying to get away from the other.

"Didn't you get my email explaining the situation," the one trailing said incredulously.

"I skimmed it," the other hurriedly replied as they disappeared into the night.

Right, he'd just been standing next to the door for a minute here, he needed to go do something. He brushed the lick of red hair out of his face and started to pick his way through the crowd and towards the bar. Whoever was tending could probably point him in the right direction. He looked down at his clothing briefly, wondering if he was dressed properly for the occasion. Should he have dressed a little more punk? Was his look too clean? His white button up was free of wrinkles and well fitted to his slim body. His half jacket with the rolled up sleeves was the closest thing to punk he had, but it wasn't leather! There weren't any studs! Were the suspenders punk? No, they were probably a little too thin and lacking any pins or accents. Ah, he knew he should have looked this place up before he came out here on a whim! Even his pants were all wrong, not baggy enough, not enough pockets! Whatever, he'd just have to perform, right? People wouldn't care if he didn't fit the scenery if he could play, right?

Finally making it up to the bar, he flagged down one of the employees and briefly exchanged a few words. Sign ups were with the man in the trilby near the stage. Off he went, once again trying to make sure he didn't knock anyone accidentally with his guitar.

"Hey, you the guy I need to talk to for sign ups?" The man Felix was addressing was sitting down next to a small table with a clipboard on it. He was dressed relatively casually, a green and white plaid shirt, jeans, a grey undershirt, and joggers.

"Yep. Just sign your name and band name on the clipboard and we'll call you up when it's your turn." His tone was relaxed, and he seemed a little distracted by the performance on stage. Felix couldn't blame him! They were good! He wasn't sure how he was going to follow this act if he did end up getting called on next. He jotted down his name and set the clipboard back down. "Here, take this," the man handed Felix a slip of paper. "Good for a free drink on the house. Might take off some of the nerves if you've got 'em, kid." Mr. Trilby looked back towards Felix with a sardonic grin.

"Pff, what, me? Nervous? No. Nooo," Felix replied, managing to prompt a laugh as he overacted his brush off. "I've never been nervous before in my life. But, I will take the coupon. Thank you!" He took the coupon and made his way back towards the bar.

"What'll it be?" The bartender had a hot pink pixie cut, piercings in both ears, both lips, her nose, and her very visible belly button thanks to the crop top she was wearing. What a punk! He felt a little intimidated. He was more nervous than he thought he'd be. Felix considered his options for a moment, but shrugged, deciding on letting the expert pick for him. He slid the coupon across the counter towards her. "I'm feeling lucky. Just make me something that's colorful and has a lot of sugar in it." She chuckled. Felix felt a little less nervous. "Sure thing," and then she was off to the races grabbing bottles and mixing liquids. Right before his eyes she put together a rainbow in a glass. "W-...Wow, uh, that looks amazing," he said as she slid it towards him. "Thanks. Make sure you buy one after you're done up there, 'kay? I don't make tips off coupons," she replied with a wink. Felix felt a little more nervous as she walked off to serve someone else and he took the first sip. She was just doing her job. Bartenders were nice to you to get you to tip more. Don't think too hard about it, just enjoy the sugary cocktail and relax before going up on stage. This was probably going to be good. It was starting out on a high note, he'd gotten a free drink after all!

Spades. A lively, lovely little clusterfuck. The heart and soul of Vale's local music scene... so the owner, Ace, would claim. Honestly, Ax wasn't really sure how big of a deal the place really was. Sure, there were some fancy golden records on the walls and some jackets that allegedly belonged to some big names in music, but really... at the end of the day, this place was just a bar that would let just about any fool hop on stage and make a fool out of himself on a night like this. Sometimes it was a total meme and ended up impossible to take seriously. Other days, some of the eager souls that wanted to make a name for themselves would show up and practically light the place on fire. When someone good came on stage, Ace and his enthusiastic staff made sure everyone knew they thought it was good.

She'd always loved this place. The last time she'd been here had been just a few days ago - she'd brought Fuchsia, and she'd brought Nym here a hundred times before that. This time, though, Ax wasn't here to play. She was mostly there to listen, to drink, and... maybe to pass a little judgment on the new faces that showed up there. After all, Ax wasn't just any youthful pretty face in this place. Here, she was...

"The Queen of Hearts!"

Ax turned her head towards the voice from her lonely spot at the bar, smiling and raising a hand in greeting to one of the familiar faces in a small bunch of newcomers. It was nice having a rep. She still remembered when she was new here and no one gave a shit who she was. It was pretty crazy how just a little bit of recognition could bring her back here again and again.

She'd said her hellos to a bunch of the regulars when she'd arrived a bit ago. Here and there she'd make eye-contact with someone across the dancefloor and give them a nod. She was otherwise content to sit back and sip on her drink - a fizzy blue-colored cocktail that matched her eyes and her lightning-bolt earrings... minus the yellow lemon wedge in the glass.

"W-...Wow, uh, that looks amazing."

Ax rose a brow and cast a passing glance to her left. A few seats away there was a... person bonding with the bartender over a layered drink that looked like a little patterned rainbow. Ax eyed the drink thoughtfully for a moment, before glancing back over at the one who'd ordered it.

There weren't many people close by on Ax's side of the bar, so she was surprisingly able to pick up a little of Felix's emotional state. This blossoming musician seemed... excited? Nervous maybe. A mix of both, probably. Pre-performance jitters. It might not have been their first show, but it was probably their first time there at Spades. They looked familiar somehow. She felt pretty sure she'd seen them around Beacon. Or... had she? The red in this person's hair was what was throwing her off. She felt like she'd have recognized that.

"...first time, hotshot?" Ax asked after a moment, deciding rather whimsically that she'd go ahead and make a little conversation.

"...first time, hotshot?"

Felix turned his head to the right to see another total smoking babe. As if the bartender wasn't hot enough, so were the bartendees! He could have stared at her all day. He was sure he'd seen this girl before, the outfit looked so familiar, the prosthetic hand, was she from Beacon? But he didn't know her name! They definitely hadn't met. He would have remembered if someone as hot as an explosion of burn dust in the middle of summer had talked to him. He might not have remembered what they said, but he would have at least remembered them saying something!

"I've been nervous lots of times," he said while giving a single shot at Ax from his imaginary finger gun. She hadn't asked if he was nervous. Whoops. Well, that's probably what she meant, right? Apparently everyone in here could tell that he had some kind of pre-stage jitters going on. "But it is the first time I've ever performed on a stage in front of a crowd in public before, so it's the first time I've been nervous about that."

She could practically see the stars in their eyes when as Felix turned to look over at her. She recognized that look as one belonging to a person that clearly liked what they were seeing. She hadn't been trying to seem too smug or too inviting just yet, but she couldn't help but grin a little at the starstruck look in those turquoise-colored eyes. She had an idea of why this person seemed familiar. Between the splash of color in Felix's hair, the eyes, the sort of delicate, almost feminine features in his face... Ax was thinking of a similar-looking person from a class she had. She didn't want to assume anything but...

Regardless of who they were, she was sure that Felix couldn't be that nervous. A less confident person would've probably looked away the moment they saw the cool blue of Ax's eyes locked intently upon them. Interestingly, Ax seemed to not notice the hiccup in the boy's response - this was probably because she cared less about his response and more about the sound of his voice, which seemed to more or less sound boyish to her. Her eyes lowered briefly to his neck as he spoke before returning to his face. She could feel a hint of familiar, frenetic energy building inside of her when she looked over at him. She raised her glass to her lips and took a good swig to banish the feeling. She didn't skip a beat when she spoke up, apparently not noticing that he hadn't actually asked her question - the answer had more or less gotten to the heart of what her initial question had been about anyway.

She gave him a brief lookover while he talked. He was kind of cute, honestly. She briefly paused to wonder if this guy was from Beacon or Signal. He could've just been young? Maybe he hadn't yet developed a manface.

"Oh yeah? Well, it can't be scarier than the entrance exam, right?" Ax's shoulders rolled in a brief little shrug,

She had a point! The entrance exam to Beacon had been intimidating. Your entire future rode on your performance. Getting accepted to the most prestigious training academy in the world wasn't an easy task. Even if you really were prepared, it never felt like enough. You were competing with some of the most talented and hard working people on the planet. It was pressure! It was a lot of pressure! It was...something they'd both definitely gone through! Yes, he had to know her from Beacon, but he had no idea where in Beacon. She was smooth, too! He hadn't said anything about Beacon. She must have recognized him from somewhere. He should just tell her his name.

"Well, scary in a different way I guess. I suppose if things go badly in either one you might die, hah." He took another sip of his drink, partly to calm his nerves, partly because the drink was so damn good. "I don't know if I look familiar or anything to you, but I swear I've seen you around Beacon before. I'm Felix. Felix Satou. Yes, Telu's twin brother. Yes, that Satou Farms. Yes, I do get asked a lot." He did! It was always the same questions! If he didn't say Satou then they'd ask him about his sister. They shared a lot of similarities. Their noses, their cheeks, the way they looked when they smiled, the freckles...and he was pretty sure at least one person said their asses looked similar, but he chose not to think about that. Best to just get it all out in the open, and if the other person didn't actually have any of those questions to ask it was a conversation starter!

Ax rolled her eyes despite smiling at his answer. He didn't really reply to her question the way she had hoped he would. Her lips pursed to the side when he introduced himself at first... but when he added the last name it all clicked, recollection flashing in Ax's eyes as she rose her head a little.

"Aaaah," Ax nodded. She understood now. Satou. Felix had filled in the other pertinent blanks in her mind with his answer, thoroughly satisfying Ax's curiosity. She knew another Satou - the girl named Telu - as a particular pair of yoga pants that both she and Nym would routinely pause to steal glances at in the training area. Obviously, Telu was also a (probably) delightful and talented young woman under those tight black leggings too, since Ax routinely saw her in one of her afternoon electives. That gave her even more to go on. Twins were always the same age, so Felix must've also been suitable age for a first year. 17 or 18. So he didn't look androgynous just because he was young.

Ax had seen Telu enough to have a pretty good memory of her face. She and Felix must have been fraternal twins. They had to be, Ax had seen identical twins before. A resemblance was clearly there in the subtleties of Felix's face, but his features were clearly a little more on the... maybe not masculine side of things, but they weren't quite as feminine as Telu's and it was more than just a makeup thing. By the time he'd finished speaking, Ax had come to the conclusion that while they definitely had some subtle facial features in common, they still had different faces.

Boom. Ax felt like a detective out of a paperback novel. Maybe she had missed her calling as a detective! Knowing all this, Ax figured that this guy could probably handle an open mic at Spades. The place wasn't exactly the big leagues. Even if Ax was wrong and he ended up sucking, he seemed of sound enough body and mind to not get too discouraged. Ax raised a brow at his mention of Satou Farms - was that a thing she should've heard of before? She filed it away in case she got a chance to ask him or his sister about it sometime.

"I get it. I've... made acquaintances with your sister. I'm sure you'll do fine, man. You seem a little nervous maybe, but not like you're about to have a meltdown nervous. Bet as long as you didn't forget to tune that thing, you'll be fine."

Ax glanced down at her own guitar case resting against the side of the counter beneath her barstool, as if checking to make sure it was still there. She tended to bring it out of habit, even when she wasn't planning on playing. If he was anything like her, he'd be fine. Worst case scenario he'd bomb and everyone would laugh it off and forget about it. But she had a hard time imagining someone from Beacon getting this far and managing to somehow suck. He'd shown up to the event. Too late to back out now.

He really was that obvious if she was able to just glance at him and tell he was nervous, but not meltdown nervous. Or maybe she was just that experienced sizing people up. Students from Beacon tended to be quick on the uptake and sharp eyed, faunus especially. Still, nervous though he may have been, her encouragement was taken to heart. He didn't miss the guitar case that she had. If this hot musician was tell him he was going to be fine he could totally choose to believe in her, even if he had no idea who she was or how good she was! He was willing to do whatever it took to combat his nervousness. This seemed like a good way to do it.

"I don't actually have to tune it, it-"

"Felix Satoo?"

His head turned towards the stage. He hadn't been paying as much attention to it as he probably should have been. The previous act was already taking their equipment off stage while the man in the trilby stood at the mic and called his name. He grimaced at the absolute butchery of his last name, but he could forgive the guy. It wasn't a common last name. "Uh, well, I'm pretty sure that's me. Thanks for the vote of confidence," he said in a cheerful hurry as he stood up, took one step, then quickly turned around to grab his drink and chug down what remained of it before setting the glass back down and making his way towards the stage. Maybe it was the liquor, but his feet felt lighter as he took to the steps leading up. The lighting looked exactly like it did whenever he went to concerts. It was a little smaller, but it was all the same. His heart started to pick up the pace.

"It's, uh, Satou, Sa like sand and tow like towtruck."

Mr. Trilby leaned back towards the mic while making eye contact with Felix. "Felix Sand-Towtruck to the stage."

The crowd chuckled while Felix put one hand to his brow and wiped it down his face. Right. Well, humor was good, and he didn't like taking himself too seriously anyways. "Yes, thank you, that's me."

"Knock 'em dead, kid," he said with very little enthusiasm and amused smirk while he head back towards his seat by the sign up table.

Kid, hotshot, they were apparently really big on nicknames around here, weren't they? The thought didn't linger long in his head as he stepped over towards the microphone. "Yes, hi, thank you, I'm Felix." No last name, just Felix.

"Where's the Towtruck," yelled a young man with black, short hair parted in the middle, holding a beer on the second balcony. The crowd chuckled. Felix grinned and raised his eyebrows at the guy. Haha. Very funny. Felix and Towtruck.

"It didn't fit in the front door. Don't worry, though, next time there's an outdoor open mic night I'll be sure to come back with Towtruck in tow." A few more chuckles from the crowd.

He pulled his cherry red guitar up from under his arm, ready to play, and flicked a few switches on the back. "This song is written, recorded, and arranged by me. I'll be playing the guitar live, but the drums, bass, backing effects, I mixed all that myself." He pulled out his scroll, quickly connecting it to the wireless sound system and finding the backing track for the song he was about to play. "I wrote this song for the sole purpose of showing off. I hope you enjoy."

There were a few isolated whistles and claps from the crowd, as well as some laughter at his honesty, but they were quickly drowned out by the sound of the speakers as Felix began to play. His fingers moved across the frets at a blistering speed as the song came crashing out of the speakers and over the crowd. The cleaner distortion of his guitar was a stark contrast to the previous band's, his bright notes ringing out of the speakers and filling the entire venue. The speed at which he was playing didn't abate even a bit. As soon as the first solo seemed completed he began again from the top, complimented by the drums kicking in, double bass pedals giving the song a signature metal feel.

His jitters had evaporated, replaced by the cool confidence of someone playing a song that they'd played a thousand times. He didn't have to think for a moment about what came next, where his fingers needed to be, how much to bend the strings, where did the pinch harmonics come in, it simply happened. He willed the music to life and it sprang from the speakers. What had he even been worrying about when he'd stepped in the door? That the crowd wouldn't be impressed? No, he hadn't really been worried, he'd been excited and he'd mistaken some of that for nervousness. Well, except maybe the girls at the bar, they might have made him nervous.

The crowd was eating it up! With every novel lick came a series of cheers and whistles. It was an energy that he didn't know existed until then. By the time his song was approaching it's final crescendo he wasn't sure how long he'd been playing at all. Was it really the finale? It felt like he'd only been up there for seconds. He did have at least one parlor trick up his sleeves he could play without burning the place down. His hand flicked across the pickup switch in a motion so fluid it was nearly indistinguishable from a regular downstroke. His palm brushed against a small button near the pickups on the way back up, and as he entered the final, roaring solo his guitar began to vent flame dust from the frets giving the illusion he was shredding so hard his guitar had caught fire. The roar from the crowd was almost enough to drown out the speakers! As he manipulated the wammy bar to bring the final screeching note to a climactic end, the fire coming from his guitar went out with a final bang as it appeared he'd earned himself a standing ovation. He was sure the lights sparkling from his semblance were just as bright as the ones lighting up the stage, and the smile plastered on his face hurt from just how wide it was.

A guitar he didn't have to tune... that sounded a little like sorcery. That, or his instrument was pretty unconventional like her own. He probably had access to state-of-the-art dust tech if he was anything like his sister after all. Ax's curiosity was piqued. Not so much that she was annoyed at the interruption, though. Getting to actually see what he could do was probably going to be better than anything he could tell her about his instrument.

"Break a leg, Felix," Ax gave the newbie a subdued little smile as he politely excused himself. She was halfway to turning to face the bar again when she paused and gave the boy a double-take as he strode away to the stage. The sway of his hips probably hadn't been deliberate, but she couldn't help but notice that this particular guitarist had surprisingly girly, feminine hips. That, and a pair of skinny jeans that immensely flattered her- wait, his frame. She couldn't remember the last time she saw a guy with a rump like that. Actually, she probably had never seen a guy with an ass like that. She turned forward and stared into her glass intensely, a confused and almost disturbed expression on her face, her brows drawn together. Since when did guys get curves like that? Did the Satou folks all just have a 'dat ass' gene?

"Well well well, if it isn't our Queen of Hearts!"

Ax's head snapped up to look towards the man who had so jovially greeted her. Ace, the owner and manager of Spades, was an older looking guy, maybe in his 40s. He wore a fine outfit with a nice navy blue vest, his sleeves rolled up so that everyone could see his inked-up skin. Barely an inch of his arms was uncovered with ink.

"Lookin' good, Ace," Ax grinned.

"Glad to see you're still cheerin' on the newcomers!" Ace chimed, clapping Ax on her metal-plated shoulder.

"Hey, you know me. What kind of Queen doesn't look out here n' there for her subjects?" Ax lazily rolled her shoulders as she raised her glass to take a drink.

"Makes me think of old times. Can't believe it's already been... what," He tilted his head and glanced aside at the punk-looking bartender. She looked over at Ax, and then raised two fingers with a smirk. Ax pretended not to notice.

"Two years? Two years since this shooting star flew her way into my bar and blew us away on stage! Where the hell does all the time go?" The man took a seat beside Ax.

Ace was a likable enough guy, even if he talked enough to give Ax a headache sometimes. Still, he was good vibes. She'd met her share of entrepreneurs in Vale, but she'd yet to find a man more passionate and earnest about music than Ace. Well, that didn't play an instrument himself at least.

"You know, you should really brush the dust off your axe. Show everyone what you can do," Ax suggested playfully, interested in how he answered.

"Me? Oh hell no. Last time I broke a string on stage, blinded a guy. I still haven't financially recovered!"

Ax chuckled. Classic Ace. Every time someone mentioned it, he had a different excuse why he wouldn't go on stage. She continued to make some small talk with the guy, up until the next performer went up.

"Felix Sand-Towtruck to the stage."

Ax blinked, not nearly close enough to the stage to pick up on the context that made the joke work. It didn't stop Ace from letting out a hearty guffaw, slapping his knee. Ax had no idea how the guy was always this upbeat. Drugs, maybe? Hey, she didn't judge.

"So hey, Queen. Does this guy rock, or does he suck?"

"He... has not started playing yet," Ax answered, a blank expression on her face.

"That was a test, Ax. And you passed," Ace reached out to touch her shoulder again. She rolled her eyes and turned her attentions back to Felix on stage. The Towtruck comment got a snicker out of her, even though she still didn't entirely get the original joke.

"Felix and Towtruck, huh?" Ace spoke aloud. Ax shrugged, not bothering to look away.

"He seemed a little nervous, but not that nervous. Said it was his first time," she noted. Ace folded his arms over his chest, nodding and squinting at the boy on stage curiously. Ax was more interested in his hardware at first. That guitar of his was definitely custom, but it still looked like it had... fairly conventional-looking strings. He'd said he didn't need to tune it. She was curious about that. She narrowed her eyes, but she couldn't get a good enough look to tell much about what made it special from this far away.

At Felix's introduction, Ax turned her head to glance over at Ace. The man seemed impressed already. Ax was too. Playing something original for his first show... seemed pretty gutsy to her. He either had a lot more confidence than seemed apparent before, or...

"He writes his own-"

Everything else went out of focus the moment the music started. Ax immediately sat up straight, her eyes briefly going wide with surprise before narrowing sharply as she watched Felix's fretboard acrobatics. She watched his technique with a critical eye, and then she exhaled a breath of what might've been annoyance at what she was seeing. Oh, right, he'd been nervous had he? This was his first time on stage in front of a public crowd? Either this guy was absolutely full of shit or... actually, no, that was about all Ax could figure at this point.

"Wow..."

There were stars in Ace's eyes. Ax shot a glance over at him only to frown, before looking back over the crowd. People were going absolutely wild! A lot of folks who had barely been paying attention up to this point were now starting to get up and populate the area in front of the stage. A highly technically-skilled performer like this showing up on an open mic night wasn't unheard of, but it definitely wasn't common.

The excitement was palpable all around Ax, threatening to overpower her mild irritation at what she perceived as fake humility. Felix looked like he belonged on stage. Ax's fingers hurt just watching him play this song he apparently wrote himself. She couldn't imagine what might have possessed someone this talented to wait this long for their first public performance. How did someone write like this?

She couldn't help it. She started looking for mistakes. Problems with his technique, ways he could be better. She couldn't see all the details from halfway across the building, but she couldn't help it. Then a deep orange reflection of fire lit up her eyes, and she thought of her father. All the positive vibes from the crowd reacting to Felix's pyrotechnics crashed against Ax's mind like waves breaking against rocks, and she was unmoved as she remembered the blisters and cuts on her fingers born of the relentless practice and rehearsal that went into her first show in front of a real crowd as the lead singer for The Baby Blues.

"Holy smokes! I thought you said it was his first time! Did you teach him that trick?" Ace asked, awestruck.

"...s' what he told me. And that shit's all him, don't look at me," her muttering was too quiet to be heard over the performance. She glanced over and down at her guitar, her mind racing. She knew some hard songs. She knew some very technically demanding songs. She knew everything a great performer needed to know to be excellent, so...

She closed her eyes. Why was she feeling bad about this? Why was she thinking of trying to upstage him? And worse, what if she couldn't? Ax was a creator and all, and she liked to think of herself as a great songwriter, but... she didn't write stuff nearly this demanding! Ax knew more than just guitar, she knew music theory, and apparently so did Felix. Whether or not he was good wasn't up for debate. Was it really possible he'd never performed in front of a crowd before? This guy was either a plagiarist taking credit for a song someone else wrote, or he was a musical genius. A literal virtuoso.

But Ax didn't buy his claim that he'd never played for a crowd before. There was no fucking way. A guitar player that didn't show off the moment they did something complex or cool? Okay, they existed, but they weren't common in her experience. A kid's first show was supposed to be a lackluster cover of a rock song from a few decades ago at a talent show or a middling performance in a little building near a public park, with a crowd of... maybe several dozen teenage kids or something. No one Ax knew did this. No one sat alone on their own, only playing privately for years only to break out a song that sounded like it probably took years to write and rehearse to this point and become an immediate hit. Did this kid practice three hours a day?

Ax wasn't sure what bothered her more. The possibility that Felix was full of it and was lying either about the song he wrote or his lack of experience on stage, or the possibility that he was telling the truth, and that Ax was completely out of her depth when it came to talent. It was one thing to come to Beacon, see Nym in action, and see how much she had to learn... but she knew she was only so good at fighting.

At music though? After everything she'd gone through, how hard her father had pushed her, how hard she fought to take her passion back, she was... just not on this kid's level. She was envious. She was envious, like something had been taken from her. It wasn't impossible. Maybe this kid really was just that good.

She'd seen kids totally fall apart on that very stage. She'd even comforted her fair share, reminding them that it was okay to suck, that the crowd could be harsh, that there was always room to improve... and then there was this guy. Handsome boy with a girl butt, skipping the whole fucking line, playing a song more complex than a vast majority of not only Ax's original compositions, but also of all the songs she'd once played that were popular and received play on the air in her old band. She didn't buy it! This kid couldn't be this good without paying his toll in fuckups! She refused to believe it. These people didn't even realize how fucking big of a deal this kid even was, probably! No one here wrote music like this. Ax's metal fingers couldn't feel the glass in her hand as it cracked between her fingers.

"Well, what have we here? Fresh meat, new blood, but so refined! So talented! Why, I haven't seen a performer make a first impression like this in years!"

Ax's eyes widened, and the world came back into focus. She'd been looking over at Electra Heart, but when she whipped her head to look back on stage, Ace was up there, speaking into the microphone and gesturing with his arms at Felix nearby.

"Felix and Towtruck, ladies and gents! We have a new rising star here at Spades! What do you say, folks? Let's give him another big round of applause!"

Ax let go of her cracked drink glass, turning toward the bar only to notice the bartender giving her a murderous glare.

"...okay, okay, you can fucking bill me," Ax rolled her eyes, exhaling a huff of air.

"What's your deal? Aren't you happy the kid didn't bomb?"

"I-"

"Well, it just so happens the last person to give us a show like that on a day like this was our lovely Queen of Hearts! And you, my friend, will receive similar honors. On this day, I name you... hm. He looks pretty princely, don't you think folks?"

Ax blanched.

"Here we have it folks! This little diamond in the rough is our new prince! Our Prince of Diamonds!"

The enthusiastic heart of the crowd roared. Ax faced forward and ran herself through the motions. Her eyes looked around for key details. The multi-colored lights behind the bar, the pretty labels on the bottles, the date and time on a news bulletin playing on a television that no one was watching... things that would anchor her to the present moment. Maybe if she could stop thinking for a minute, the vibes would just drown out her negativity and she'd be back in her happy place.

"Ax? Uh, did you want another of the same, or?"

The bartender lowered down a little, trying to move into Ax's line of sight. The moody bird nodded her head and went right back to her main priority - emotion regulation exercises.

Felix could barely hear the words that the man standing next to him on stage was speaking into the microphone. He felt euphoric. It was a familiar feeling, but dialed up to eleven. He'd gotten attention for his music before, here and there. His parents and their friends that they tended to have over were always impressed. There were a handful of videos he'd uploaded to the net that had garnered a smattering of views and every thumbs up had felt a little bit like this. Hearing it firsthand, seeing it up close, it was the first hit of something that he had been a little worried about all of his life. It wasn't as if he didn't know he was good at music. He'd have to be pretty oblivious not to know.

"So Prince, got a little inaugural address ready for the crowd?"

What he hadn't know was how good it would feel to get recognition like this. He was suddenly glad he'd put off doing any karaoke or open mic nights until he'd already been accepted at Beacon. If he'd gotten a taste of this before he'd committed to being a huntsman, he wasn't sure he would have been able to turn away from it.

"Seems he's feeling a little star struck!" Some laughter from the crowd followed.

The laughter brought him back down from cloud nine. Red faced, he took the microphone sheepishly. "Uh, yeah, my favorite drink is anything with a lot of sugar and I'll be at the bar for a while!" There was a handful more laughter as he stepped down from the stage and made his way over to the bar, occasionally stopping to get a high five or a fist bump or a brief introduction. Felix and Towtruck? Ridiculous. Prince of Diamonds? Equally ridiculous, but slightly less embarrassing. He'd take it. And maybe he'd take a couple of free drinks with it, too as he sat right back down in the spot he'd had before, only to be greeted by one of the darkest, most evil looking beers he'd ever seen, two sugary looking cocktails, and a glass full of...sugar. He squinted at the glass of white powder before looking over his shoulder back at the crowd. A cat faunus with tabby cat ears raised his hand to his mouth and gave Felix a...cat call. Ah. Well, that solved that mystery. He turned back towards his drinks, red faced, and a smile plastered all over his face.

This was almost as exciting as getting accepted into Beacon!

The flow of cheerful feelings from the crowd should have been more soothing than it was. The fact that the crowd had eaten out of Felix's hands that way, though, bothered her. It was probably some irrational bullshit again. Her father's voice in her ears again, 'You're nothing if you're just another' again... the same old crap. Ax exhaled a breath and tried to visualize the foul bitter green smoke of envy leaving her lungs and dispersing in the air in front of her.

...no, it was perfectly natural that people would enjoy a show like that here. Felix's performance was technically impressive and all the metalheads and rock enthusiasts had every reason to enjoy it. Felix was a different breed of musician from Ax, from the sounds of it. He seemed passionate, if not a little eager to downplay his own talents, but that was hardly a crime.

The bartender set down another drink for her, which she took a few good gulps from before setting it down and letting out a sigh, tilting her head up towards the lights above. Just because there were other people here that were worth recognizing didn't mean she was somehow lesser. There was no need to show anyone up or turn it into a competition. She wasn't a dancing songbird fighting for a place in the spotlight anymore. Ax had all the recognition she needed. She was going to be a huntress. A damn good one at that.

It was fine to feel a little salty. Felix playing coy about his skills was annoying, maybe, but it was also harmless, and it wasn't like Ax could claim she'd never done the same thing. It was fine to feel insecure when it came to music because of everything that'd happened back in Atlas. Ax was fine. The emotion was starting to die down. She felt herself starting to slide back to baseline.

She flicked her eyes over to the guitar. She could sign up. Ace would probably let her cut and take an earlier slot if she wanted, but... she wasn't sure she wanted to throw her influence around like that. She could wait her turn. She rose from the bar, grabbing her guitar and throwing back the rest of her drink before she hopped up and started to journey over to the signup sheet for the open mic. There were still plenty of slots left, but a few other people would be performing before her. It'd give her a little time to decide what she wanted to play.

It didn't have to be a competition. She'd... show something new. Something fun. Something different. She'd play her way.

By the time she headed back to the bar, Felix was there too. The next performer was heading up to the mic. Ax strode over with full confidence, shrugging her case off and setting it beside the closest stool to Felix's right.

"...looks like you'll have to settle for drinks 'til Ace gets you your crown, Prince," Ax mused as she shrugged her case from her shoulders and rested it against the counter. She turned her head fully to face Felix, a small smile on her lips. She was determined to be cool about this. Just because she felt viscerally emotional for a bit didn't mean she had to act pouty about it.

Felix was too busy staring at the bounty the crowd had given him to notice Ax's approach until she was setting her guitar down. He'd been contemplating whether or not he should try and combine the glass of sugar with the evil looking beer to see if it would mellow it down when he turned to see who'd set the instrument down. It was the faunus girl from before! He hadn't gotten her name. He looked back up, meeting her eyes as she spoke. Red lit up his cheeks and ears as he looked bashfully back towards his haul. It was one thing for a guy to call him prince in a showy, theatric way up on stage. It was another entirely for an intimidatingly hot musician to say it with a mouthful of amusement right next to him.

"I think I would burst into flames if someone tried to crown me. Actual, real, deadly flames of embarrassment...maybe. I think that these drinks are going to be a suitable substitute for any fancy hats that might be coming my way." Prince of Diamonds? What was that all about? "I'd heard this place was a little eccentric, but I wasn't expecting that." It had been fun, though, he had to admit. Getting to be the star of the show and getting some recognition from...the owner? The DJ? The organizer? Just some strange man that everyone humored? He wasn't really sure about that.

Well, if calling him prince was going to make him react like that every time, she'd have to make a mental note. It gave her a sort of warm and fuzzy feeling that was kicking back against her bitterness. What was the saying? Something about a spoonful of sugar?

"Eccentricity is often associated with genius, intellectual giftedness, creativity..." Ax shrugged her shoulders with a knowing smirk. Her speaking voice was a pretty contralto, and she was an emotive and expressive speaker. She looked pretty at ease, and truthfully she was starting to feel a little more at ease. It was actually kind of funny how fast she could shift from upset to chill at times.

She'd remembered feeling a little like she'd found her people when she came to this place. The vibe was all over the place, and it was kind of a melting pot. It was a special crowd, a special scene, a positive atmosphere. Sure, people could still get rowdy... but it wasn't like that would ever be a real problem for Ax.

"Somehow Ace cultivated a mostly chill vibe here - for a hole-in-the-wall bar type place at least - where the indie hipsters and the metalheads and the punk rockers and the amateur cover artists can all get along. It's got heart, spirit. Even when it ain't open mic night, the music here shreds. I come here to play more than anywhere else 'cept maybe at home. Or, well, around Beacon in general. Same thing, basically, I guess?"

She shot a look over at Felix's arrangement of interesting... beverages and beverage supplements.

"So, what the hell is all this even? I mean, drinks is usually a sign everyone liked you, unless they want you to get alcohol poisoning," Ax teased.

He couldn't shake the feeling like he'd known this girl from somewhere other than Beacon. She'd felt familiar when they'd said their first greeting and he thought he'd figured it out when she alluded to Beacon, but there was a nostalgic feel to the sound of her voice and the color of her hair. Had they gone to the same grade school or something? He continued to wrack his brain for the answer as she ribbed him over the drinks.

"I think they liked me. I mean...these two are almost pure sugar," he gestured to the brightly colored mixed drinks. "One of them is strawberry flavored and the other is lemon and sugar. That one," he pointed to the beer. "I am pretty sure someone was being cheeky because I said my favorite drink was anything sugary, and THAT one," he pointed to the glass of sugar. "That one's definitely because I said my favorite drink was anything sugary and it's, uh...just sugar. I was thinking about mixing the beer with it, but, uh...I don't think that would help. You're welcome to it if you like beer, or...just feel like hurting yourself." His opinion of all beer wasn't that low, but this one just looked mean! "I know what I like, and it's something that goes down easy and doesn't taste awful." There was probably some kind of sexual joke to be made there, but he wasn't going to make it.

He was pretty sure that he'd figured out where he knew this girl from and he absolutely needed to get it out before he forgot to. "Say, uh, I'm sure I've seen you around Beacon before, but your voice sounded really familiar and..." He hesitated for a moment, a little nervous that this was going to come off weird if he was wrong but...well, fuck it! It would be really ironic if he didn't say it. "Did you ever, uh, perform a song that went something like..." Felix took a breath into his diaphragm and began singing, not quite loud enough to carry across the bar, but clear and in tune for just the pair of them and anyone very close by.

♪But the right words♪
♪Never come♪
♪It all comes out♪
♪Silly-dumb♪
♪And all the things I need to say♪
♪And all the big words seem to stay♪
♪On the inside♪
♪On the inside♪

He couldn't help but feel a surge of old, happy feelings as the words left his mouth. HIs sister could probably still sing these same lyrics just as well as he could even after all these years. This song was him and his sister, singing their eight year old hearts out into plastic cups they were pretending were microphones, jumping up and down on the bed they were imagining was a stage. He was just a little kid having fun. He'd been just an amateur, but it had been his first time seeing first hand just how much of an impact music could have on someone as his sister had gone nuts for it and he'd shared her enthusiasm. It was poppy. It was engineered to appeal to his sister and tangentially to him as well. He didn't really care! He'd like whatever he liked, whether it was bubblegum pop or the sweetest mixed drinks he could find.

Ax chuckled as Felix spoke up, her eyes following along as Felix explained the selection of boozes in front of him. She rose a hand to decline his offer of the beer.

"I've already probably loosened up more than I needed to with a drink of my own. Contrary to what some believe, it's usually not good to sing after drinking alcohol. Can dry out your voice, dampen your vocal range..." Ax shrugged, rolling her eyes as she recalled her old vocal coach and his advice. A little booze could also help with nerves, so it wasn't really as simple as it being outright bad for everyone.

Ax's eyes flicked back over to Felix as he hesitated. From up close she was getting a better read on the vibe. He seemed... maybe a little uncertain. For a second, Ax thought this guy was about to skip straight to asking her out. She visibly turned her whole body and leaned forward a little, her eyes narrowing and her head tilting with curiosity as he started to ask about a song.

"But the right words never come..."

Oh stars, it was happening again! Ax's mind flashed back to the heat of stage lights, the roar of a crowd, a girl with fake cat ears winking at her from across the stage while screaming fans begged for one more song... she swallowed the lump that started to form in her throat. That wasn't just any song. It had once been her favorite she'd worked on, her pride and joy. The best song her studio ever made, the first song she felt like she really collaborated on! The execs ended up going with a different one for their single, but...

Ax's lips curved into a broad grin. She hadn't expected him to sing the chorus to her, but he clearly knew the words well. She was idly a bit impressed with his vocal range. He was a pretty high tenor, probably, but not just any guy could sing that part and make it sound good. Fitting, given that he looked a little feminine compared to the average guy. More importantly, though, he was talking about her music the way only someone who loved it could. She could feel something like energy and giddiness inside of her as he sang, and it made her feathers strain against her jacket sleeve, trying to spread out.

She had a half-mind to start to sing along with, but the lump in her throat kept her from feeling confident. She licked her lips and exhaled a breath, trying to gather her composure. She had a fan! A really talented one, too! Any lingering weirdness about his performance from before was gone. Had her music played some part in inspiring him? Was there a piece of her artistic DNA inside of him?

"...mhm. Shhh," Ax raised a finger over her mouth after giving her confirmation.

"I... usually try to keep it somewhat on the downlow. It's been a long time since that was my sound, and... I..." she hesitated, and then shook her head and beamed over at Felix as if it was nothing. She didn't want to sound ashamed of her old work. Not when someone liked it. She cleared her throat and tried again.

"....ahem. You know, that was my favorite one. I loved that song the most out of every other one we released. I wanted it to be our single, but um... the studio thought 'Mine' would be a better song for promoting the album..." Ax admitted quietly hunched forward so she could keep the conversation between them. There were other people here who suspected, and there were even some people that knew who she'd once been, but a lot of people didn't make the connection for whatever reason. She knew that as notorious as her old songs had been once, the girl behind the music was a little easier to forget about.

He knew. Before she even answered he knew what it was going to be. Well, he didn't know, but he was so sure! That broad grin! He had been halfway there with the hair and the voice, but he wasn't surprised when she gave him a conspiratorial shush. His semblance was at it's peak. There probably were actual stars in his eyes! This girl was a real life star! She'd sung on real stages! She'd published music! He clapped a hand over his mouth to suppress an excited squeal. Yes, he was a fan, and he wasn't the least bit ashamed of being excited to meet the person he was a fan of.

"Oh. My stars. My sister isn't going to believe it." He lowered his hand and his voice. He couldn't stop himself from gushing, but he could keep from blowing her cover. "When me and her were eight years old that was her favorite album. We would have pretend concerts in our bedroom singing along to your vids on our laptop. You inspired me! That was the first time I ever saw how big of an impact a song could have on someone. I mean, I'd liked music before, but I'd never seen someone so entranced, or so excited to drag me into the kitchen to find something to use as a microphone. Plastic cups, by the way, they made a fun echoing noise we could pretend was from the concert venue. We had a lot of fun listening to Inside and Mine and Wild Hearts Never Die. I could go up there right now and play the whole CD from memory. I've always wanted to make music that could move people like all that moved us."

Adoration and a little bit of awe were written all over his face! He didn't feel too worried about coming off as a weirdo. They were both artists, right? The earnest nature of what he was saying would ring true, he was sure of it. "Inside was always my favorite. I liked them all, but that one was really the best." It was one of the first songs he'd written a rock cover of! Who would have imagined he'd be meeting the lead singer of one of the biggest bands of his childhood in a bar in Vale? The world was a lot smaller than he thought it was! "I...okay, I know this might be asking a bit, but is there any way I could take a pic with you to send to my twin? She'll never believe me if I tell her this happened without evidence." She would also be insanely jealous that he got to meet her, but maybe with a bit of luck he could end up arranging a meeting! Ax was a musician. She went to Beacon. She went to a cool bar that Felix was now getting attached to. Was this a budding friendship that he was smelling? Maybe! And if it wasn't, well, at least he'd always have the memories!

Ax's smile was small like she was trying to keep it under wraps, but she was far from immune to Felix's earnest enthusiasm. She felt her heart flutter a little as she contemplated the fact that the Prince of Diamonds and his pretty twin sister were both big fans. What luck! Her expression softened, her lips twitching a little as Felix started to gush. Her lips trembled just a bit into something that looked like a frown, but a smile was still in her eyes, which were starting to look maybe just a little glassy...

"When me and her were eight years old that was her favorite album. We would have pretend concerts in our bedroom singing along to your vids on our laptop."

Her mind was preoccupied suddenly with a vivid memory of a cheap, crappy boombox sitting on a table. She could still visualize the stickers she'd covered it in to try and make it look less like trash. She'd bought at a thrift store, and it showed. She'd plugged it into a electric outlet in a little enclosed space - one of the study rooms in her school's library. She belted out words loudly and off-key, a high pitched little girl trying to sing along with a punk song.

"You inspired me! That was the first time I ever saw how big of an impact a song could have on someone. I mean, I'd liked music before, but..."

Ax remembered the first time she saw an old recording of one of the old shows from decades past. A roaring crowd, a crazy pit... A low electronic voice growling ominous over the noise. 'I am Iron Man,' it droned ominously. How she wished she could have been there... a part of history. A part of this crazy awesome scene!

"We had a lot of fun listening to Inside and Mine and Wild Hearts Never Die! I could go up there right now and play the whole CD from memory. I've always wanted to make music that could move people like all that moved us."

A little tear fell down the side of Ax's face, and she hastily turned her head and raised her metal wrist to dry it, more or less hoping that Felix wouldn't be dramatic about it. This was pretty much one of her biggest weaknesses, so it seemed. It was so easy to remember the horror and the awfulness of how everything went down. Being reminded of the good she brought into the world just by being herself and doing her best... it made it hard for her to be composed and stoic.

"Sure," Ax agreed almost shyly, still desperately trying to keep her smile slight. This was all a gift to her. A reminder that it all had been worth something. Despite how it all ended... she had inspired people to be themselves, to chase their passions! What more could she ever have possibly wanted? It was a privilege to get to motivate and inspire people with her songs!

"Just um... heh, gimme a sec before you go bustin' out that scroll," Ax said, fully accepting there was no way to hide the emotion in her voice. She inhaled deep breath and breathed it out, raising her head and tilting her head back hoping that gravity would help pull her tears back behind her eyes. A second later she looked back over at Felix.

"...thank you for saying all that. You were... really incredible on stage. So hearing I helped inspire you is like... I..." she swallowed again and shook her head, helpless. She couldn't have a conversation like this! She smiled nevertheless.

"...it really means a lot. It makes me really happy," Ax wrapped it up. If he wanted a picture, she'd happily let him take one.

Seeing Ax's reaction to his praise made his year! Clearly she wasn't a larger than life figure who only existed in vids and posters and CD artwork, she was a real person who'd put real passion into the things she had made. He'd always wondered what would happen if he ever got to meet one of his idols and man, whoever had told him he shouldn't was full of shit! The single tear that dropped down her cheek when he told her how much her music had meant to him and his sister was something he wouldn't forget for the rest of his life. He wanted to go up on that stage again! He wanted to get famous and make amazing music and someday have someone on the streets of Vale say all of these things to him! Aaaaaaaah! Well, he could do that being a huntsman, too! He could make music and protect people. It was the best of both worlds, but when the fruits of one particular labor were so sweet and being so greedily devoured right in front of him it was hard not to want to chase them! He felt his own eyes watering too! He swallowed, hard, reaching into his pocket for his scroll, willing to give her some time to compose himself so he could hastily rub his own eyes and make sure that there didn't end up being any tears on his face.

They were close enough together that he didn't need to stand up to get a decent selfie. He decided to let his semblance give him a hand and just held the camera at the first angle he could find, throwing up a peace sign with his fingers and giving Ax a few seconds to do whatever she wanted before he snapped a picture. The elation would show. His sister would be able to recognize that his semblance was working at maximum overdrive the moment she saw the picture, but the look on his own face would be absolutely priceless!

It was a nice moment, but it was also kinda embarrassing. Really, of all places to be getting choked up about praise, here? At Spades? Shit, she was gonna go compromising this whole... reputation of her's that she'd cultivated here. She took her moment to sniffle it out, compose herself, and smile pretty for the camera.

Somehow more of her old self came out at times like this than ever. She knew this exact curve of her own lips because she'd practiced it in front of a mirror for a makeup commercial, and it showed up in nearly every picture she posed for ever since. She didn't get fancy with it. As soon as the scroll clicked, she all too eagerly leaned nearer to peer over Felix's shoulder and catch a look at the product. She was immediately impressed with how good it came out. The angle with the lights from the bar above them and all, she wasn't sure how he got that to work. Probably sheer dumb luck. Were those little blue lights real, or was it some kind of trick of the light? If she and Felix were closer friends, she could imagine herself gleefully posting this pic he took all over social medias.

It was back to business as usual on stage. Another fresh face on stage, this one clearly more nervous than the Prince, but no less hopeful to make a solid impression...

"Ah, see, that's what it's all about. Bringing musicians together. I've been tellin' Her Majesty here she should get a band together!"

Ace was back, a big ol' smile on his lips as he saw Ax leaned in close near Felix. He stepped on over to them, throwing his arms around both of their shoulders, grinning first over at the Prince and then to the Queen.

"I saw you're up soon," he said to Ax, which prompted her to give him a blank look. 'Soon' wasn't the word she'd have used compared to the rest of the list. She'd expected a bit of a wait. Ace seemed to immediately understand.

"I worked a little magic to get you up there sooner rather than later," he then turned to face Felix, his arm attempting to gently shake Ax in an excitable gesture, only to barely budge her. The rockatoo looked over at Felix before rolling her eyes playfully at Ace's display, sharing a little grin with her fellow musician over the owner's behavior.

"There's a reason we call her our Queen of Hearts," Ace continued cheerfully. "You ever seen her play before?"

"C'mon, Ace, don't talk me up too much. Haven't even decided what I'm gonna play yet," Ax said with a little sigh.

"Better figure it out soon, Ax! You're up after this one!"

'Telu! Check it out! It's the singer from The Baby Blues!!! She goes to our school AND I TOTALLY MET HER!!!'

The text was off to his sister in a matter of seconds, followed by another with the aforementioned picture. He barely had enough time to get it out before the showboating owner Ace had an arm around both of their shoulders, telling him he should start a band. Start a band? With her? A real, actual celebrity slash professional musician slash beacon student? He laughed nervously. Well, he wasn't about to suggest that idea just yet. Ax was a big deal and judging by her title she already had a reputation here. It seemed just a little bit too presumptuous to throw out the idea of starting a band just because he played a good song and recognized her from her pre-punk rocker days.

"Uhhhhh," Felix considered the question. Technically, yes, he had seen her play before, but not in the style that she probably played in these days if her clothing and demeanor were anything to go off of. "I'm pretty sure I would remember if I did," Felix replied with a non-answer answer. He looked over at Ax, quirking a brow. "Queen of Hearts? Is it for all the saccharin, lovey-dovey songs she likes to play?" He already knew the answer to that one, but he was glad that it got a laugh of the bar owner!

Ax smirked knowingly over at Felix, seemingly in approval of his deliberate wording in response. She then rolled her eyes at the question that followed.

"Funny you should say that!" Ace gave Felix a broad, toothy grin. "We get a lot of kids here that want to create something... cohesive, you know? Somethin' like what you did, just, you know, not nearly as impressive or as technical!" Ace patted Felix's back approvingly. "They get methodical, but they lose their spirit along the way, they get too safe, they end up sounding overplayed even with their originals," he turned his head just a bit to look toward Ax, pulling his hands away only to gesture with them both at her like he was introducing the next big thing.

"Our Queen of Hearts, though, she's always been artistry first and foremost! She's bold, daring! She takes risks, does stuff you don't see all the other metalheads and punks doing!" he exclaimed. Ax's lips were curved in a pleased-looking smile, clearly loving all the praise.

"Ah, Ace um... likes that my style can be a little unconventional at times," she clarified quickly, modestly. "But I play some conventional stuff too! I don't get that weird... at least not all the time, heh," she let out a brief, almost self-conscious sounding laugh.

"Nah, it ain't just that it's unconventional, though you do play some pretty odd shit up there sometimes, kiddo. Like that song you played when you brought that other punk chick friend of yours? The first one, the-"

"What, you didn't like it? That ain't what you said when I played it," Ax tilted her head down, giving Ace a dubious, mildly-offended look.

"Tch, you kiddin' me? It was awesome! But I like that shit that's too off-the-wall to get played on the radio!" Ace laughed. He then shook his head, looking back over at Felix. "You'll just have to see it yourself, my boy. Ax here, she's not in it for the money. Some people do what they do just for the love of it. You oughta know, Prince! I can see that same fire inside a' you!" Ace gave Felix a warm, toothy grin.

"Hey boss, uh, we got a problem in the VIP area upstairs on the balcony. Some dude dressed like a pirate just emptied a bottle of Fireball on some of the skater kids and I'm pretty sure they're gonna kill him if you don't step in soon," The bartender suddenly stepped in.

"Ahh, great. What do I even hire my damn bouncer for..." Ace grumbled, rolling his eyes.

"Welp, kids. Duty calls. I'll catch up with you later, 'til then, you two keep bringing those young creative souls to my bar, I'll keep liquorin' you up and spreadin' the good word!" Aces gave the pair a firm nod as he turned to step away.

"...well," Ax chuckled a little to herself. "That's... Ace for you! He can be a little much at times, but hell, I like the guy. He's encouraging and sweet. He's genuine. I can tell. I can read emotions with my semblance," Ax said, simply and matter-of-factly, as if it wasn't a big deal at all. If he was a Wild Heart, she figured his chances of minding that she had an empathy semblance weren't very high.

Felix couldn't help but blush at the compliments he was getting from Ace. Despite knowing how technically proficient he was, he was always a little worried that others would think his artistry was too mechanical or lacking soul or some other criticism that he definitely wasn't ever going to get and was only making up in his head. Hearing bold faced praise warmed his heart no matter where it came from. Somehow, he was unsurprised to hear that the lead singer of his favorite childhood band had managed to make a name for herself playing weird, experimental music. He would have been a little disappointed if she hadn't! He'd stuck to some very safe styles and genres as he learned, but everyone gets bored of the safe eventually, don't they? Sometimes you had to take risks! He had his own share of music that he was pretty sure wouldn't get aired on the radio either.

His eyebrows raised at the mention of an empathic semblance. Did she have a passive semblance like him too? "Well, it's not like I don't wear my heart on my sleeve anyways," he said, rolling up the sleeve of his left arm to reveal the veritable tapestry of tattoos he had. Music notes, bars, wild animals, guitars, splashes of color, instruments, it was a piece that had clearly had a lot of time and money poured into it. Halfway up his upper arm was a familiar looking, purple and indigo heart. "And yes, half the reason I got the tattoo was so I could make that joke." He could imagine others being worried about Ax being able to read their thoughts or know what was going on in their head, but why would he care? His emotions colored the air around him. He'd been projecting them for years. He did still have to know one thing, though! "Is it something you actively channel, or does it just always work," he said, an unusual amount of expectation written on his face.

The guy didn't even bat an eye at her note about her semblance. Good sign.. Her eyes immediately lowered to take in the sight of all his ink as he showed it off, clearly quite interested and even maybe a little impressed. The guy had quite a lot of work done, definitely more than she had. She'd been meaning to get more... the corner of her mouth curved into a light hint of a smirk as the joke being made clicked in her head. She played at disapproval, playfully cringing before letting out a brief laugh.

"Heh, nah... yeah, this shit's always on," Ax reached up and tapped the side of her skull a few times, "And I can't turn it off. Like a sixth sense, it is. It's pretty vague and misleading too, at times. Like, right now? Too many people to really get good reads. This place has what I'd call a generally... pleasant vibe, right now, though? There might be a few people here that ain't havin' a nice night, but seems like most are!"

"Ah, here's a name we all know and love. Ax L. Rose, c'mon up!"

The crowd buzzed. Not everyone here was a regular, but Ax must've had some kind of following, judging from the hoops, hollers, and wolf-whistles. Ax's eyes flickered from Felix over to the stage. With a smile she looked back, raising her eyebrows lightly, grabbing her drink and downing the last of it similar to the way he did.

"Mm, guess I'm up! I'll try not t' letcha down, Prince," Ax gave Felix a sly wink before she twisted where she sat, extended her long legs, and rose from her seat, picking up her guitar case along the way and pulling it over her shoulder.

"Queen of Hearts!" Someone yelled.

"Aaaaaax!" A girl screamed. Ax rose her hand to greet one person, and flipped another off with a narrow-eyed look (with a hint of a playful smile on her lips). The crowd practically parted to make room for her as she crossed the club. She soon leapt up onto the stage, Mr. Trilby moving aside, familiar with her routine. She gave the man a brief smile and grabbed the mic like she owned it.

"...hello, hello lovelies!"

The crowd enthusiastically returned her greeting. Ax smiled and let go of the mic to shrug off her guitar case. She unlatched a clasp, and the front of the case fell open. Within was a slick, shining blue chassis - some kind of menacing looking battle-axe. She pulled Electra Heart from its resting spot and let the case gently down to the floor, kicking it closed and shoving it away to the side of the stage where it'd be out of the way.

"Wasn't sure what I wanted to hit you folks with at first tonight, but then our pretty new Prince earned his title on stage, n' I felt struck with a bit of inspiration," Ax lowered the battle axe in front of her. Apparently this murderous contraption was also a guitar, judging from the odd, headstock-shaped pommel. It seemed to lock into place at waist level as she raised a gauntlet-plated hand out toward the bar, in Felix's general direction.

"How 'bout our Prince of Diamonds?" Ax raised her hands up a few times, gesturing for the crowd to give it up. They immediately obliged, more than a handful of people looking over toward Felix as they clapped and cheered.

"So... for those of you that don't know... I'm Ax. Ax L. Rose. Ace'll every once in a while call me your Queen of Hearts, so if you've heard his whole thing... now you can say you know what the hell he's goin' on about." Ax grinned.

"This little tune is nothing new. Few a' you might've heard me play it before. So, ladies, gentlemen, etcetera... lemme tell you about a boy. They call him The Devil's Son. Here's to you, Prince Felix," Ax winked over in Felix's direction, before lowering her hand to pluck off the white-gold, marble-looking trinkets dangling from her belt. She rose them up in the air and, with a flash, activated them with a tiny little spark of electricity. They floated up and out of her palm, blowing up like techy balloon-spheres. Panels in the front slid open, revealing what looked to be housed speakers. These strange floating devices drifted up to Ax's sides slightly above her, little blue lights on the tops flickering to life. Holographic projectors kicked in gear, generating an interesting visual; transparent, ghostly white wings spanning out so far they hovered a bit off stage at the edges.

Electra Heart flashed to life where it hovered. Long, wispy strands of soft blue light lit up her guitar, switching on like flickering neon lights. The moment she strummed her guitar and began to play, sparks flew up into the air, floating around her, defying gravity.

Ax launched into her performance suddenly, unceremoniously, the loud siren song of Electra Heart filling the venue. The little sparks coalesced slowly into swirling spheres, floating around her, flickering into being, little beams of arching electricity dancing between them. Some of them slowly faded away and vanished, some merged into bigger spheres, and some popped like little static shocks. The biggest electric shapes all floated high up above where anyone could touch them.

The speaker-devices projecting wing-like shapes seemed to function as a substitute for a band. Ax's robotic hand strummed in lieu of a pick, and her gauntlet-plated fingers handled the frets. The stage lights shifted colors, a bright spotlight shined down, and Ax came to life, slipping into the meditative trance that was a well-rehearsed performance.

She leaned near the mic and began to sing in a smoky, husky tone, her eyes falling shut.

"I was sleepin', late at night,
When I heard a sound that gave me an awful fright,
I looked out to my window to clear my sight,
There sat the Devil's son in the pale moonlight,"

Ax's eyes opened and she shook her head out, her long locks of hair whipping back behind her. She bent forward and bobbed her head along with the rhythm. Soon, all at once, every sphere of lightnings in the air popped all around her, making the audience collectively gasp and cheer as she began the next verse.

"And he said, "Hey baby, would you let me in?
You're looking awfully good, it would be a sin
If you were to be laying here alone tonight,
Just let the heat in baby, don't try to fight"!"

Every motion of her hand on the strings showered floating sparks of light that swirled around her like a gentle cyclone, the stage emanating an unearthly, vibrant blue light. Ax commanded the attention of the audience like she owned the place. The crew seemed to know what to do with the lights... that, or those floaking speakers of her were projecting more than just the shining wings, occasionally flapping in the air without disturbing the wind, purely illusory. Pure light show. The warmth of an enthusiastic crowd was like a sweet spell that calmed her every nerve and soothed every ache and pain in her body from training earlier that day.

"He hit the nail right on the head,
I was cold and lonely inside my bed!
I never thought I'd be the one
To fall in love with the Devil's son..."

Ax rose her head and grinned over towards the bar, a radiant smile that could and would melt the hearts of about half the audience. Even all these years later, the bird was clearly a star, a lover of the spotlight... a performer through-and-through. The song she played was far from a grandiose representation of her talents - hardly the offbeat style that Ace lampshaded - but still plenty distinct enough to stand out.

Ax was a model of composure, confidence. She swayed with the rhythm, lending the song a scandalous and sultry feel as she moved to the music. Her voice was so. Fucking. Powerful! She probably didn't even need a mic!

"He held me in his arms
And I fell in love with his devilish charm,
I didn't know it could end like this,
I fell in love with the Devil's kiss...

We're still together, me and you-know-who,
I didn't know what the Devil could do,
I should have never let him in!
Now I'm living life in eternal sin..."

A chorus reprisal later, and she soon launched into an upbeat, chipper solo, a broad grin on her lips as she bent her knees and played it out. The Queen of Hearts, it would seem, was a big hit. Even before she finally finished the last line of the song, people were already yelling for the next song. Okay, well... a dude in the back was, at least. Seemed to be a pretty big fan, judging from the stylized picture of the pink-haired woman on the front of his muscle shirt.

Ax's speaker-wings flapped one final time before they went dark, dimming on stage and shrinking back into the size of marbles. She extended a hand out and they floated into her grip as if magnetized to her gauntlet before she closed her fingers around them. Electra Heart glowed ominously for a few moments as the crowd showered her with applause, but gradually the shine of the blade's electric current shrank away and died out. The strings winked into nothing, and Ax pulled her axe from in front of her and held it out to the side, lowering her arm in an extravagant, theatrical bow.

In mere seconds, Ace had run back on stage. Ax was literally starting to try and step away before he snagged her by her leather sleeve and held her in place. She sighed and raised her shoulders in a dramatic shrug for the audience, prompting a few little chuckles from a few of the regulars, including the bartender over by Felix.

"Hey, hey, you can't just come up here, play a song like that and take off without an outro! I know we all love our Queen of Hearts, but let's give her a little more attention, yeah?!"

The crowd wasn't exactly here for any specific performer, even though Ax's performance definitely was in a league of its own. There was some more polite applause, a few hoops and hollers, a single, maybe sarcastic "marry me Ax!" that earned the crowd another chance to see the rocker roll her eyes.

After getting her ego stroked a bit on stage and gently, humbly departing with a "I'm here like every other week, come see me next month for my full solo act," she headed off stage. More than a few friends and familiar faces made a point to say hi, to catch up, to boast about new projects and generally socialize. Eventually, after a good ten minutes of schmoozing, she made her way back to the bar, eager to see if her dear Prince liked the song she dedicated to him.

She was up before he had a chance to gush on about his own semblance. That was fine. He hadn't seen this girl perform live when she'd been in his favorite band, but he was about to get to see her solo performance! Live! He laughed, blushing, wondering if he'd ever get used to people calling him 'Prince.' It wasn't likely. "Break a leg," he yelled after her encouragingly. If he hadn't already known who Ax was before she took to the stage he might have been surprised by just how much of a reception she was getting from the motley crue of Spades, but he was in the know. He knew exactly who she was and what sort of a history she had. There was a reason that he had never gotten to see her in concert, a reason her band had never come to Vale when he could have had a chance to see them. But it hadn't stopped her, it seemed! No, he wasn't surprised by the crowd's reaction at all, he was just that more excited to...

His ears turned beet red and he covered his face with both hands as Ax called him out from the stage. He could hear the bartender laughing behind him. "C'mon Prince," she emphasized the title. "You're gonna have to get used to it eventually!"

"Shut up, oh my stars, please shut up," he muttered back at her as she chortled evilly. He pulled his hands away from his bright red face in time to catch Ax's wink in his direction and boy was he glad that he did. He was able to distract himself from his seething embarrassment by watching her put her kit to work. Were her speakers floating? She'd built gravity dust fueled speakers? And her guitar was using electric dust? No, it was too static, she was using Hardlight Dust to make a guitar?! He instantly understood why she was wearing those gauntlets now. No fleshy hands would be safe plucking at those strings. It was a brilliant design. What was a guitar but a magnetic pickup and something to create waves with? Hardlight dust was an expensive way to make a guitar, but it did work. He was taking in all the details while she played. Maybe he'd be able to use some of this to improve his own guitar!

But he couldn't really concentrate that hard on it when Ax was playing so well! He'd been to concerts before. He'd watched professionals. He knew what the real deal looked like, and he was absolutely staring it in the face in this little dive bar! The exaggerated movements, the confidence, the way she grinned right at him with the right lyrics. He rolled his eyes at that little bit of theatrical expression, taking a long pull from his drink. Wasn't she laying it on thick enough? But he couldn't really look away. Every bit of it was well crafted, a masterclass in how to get the whole room's attention. Especially the dude with the muscle shirt's attention, wow! He could hardly believe she was about to just walk unceremoniously off the stage before the proprietor grabbed her and forced her to give a closing remark.

He turned back to the bartender. "Wow." She raised a brow at him. "Really? Just 'wow?' I saw your face, Prince." Felix huffed, feigning indignance. "Yeah, wow, it was fucking incredible, like I just got to sample a professional concert for free. And she's always like that?" The bartender nodded. "More or less. Sometimes she's a little screamier, but not any less 'wow'." Felix laughed quietly. "Wow." Thankfully, he was spared further ribbing. Those who'd been waiting to order until after the performance were coming back around and the bartender needed to relent for the time being.

When Ax finally came back around his face wasn't burning anymore and he was a bit more composed. "That was fucking awesome. Hardlight strings? Gravity dust fueled speakers with built in lights? And the performance, too, wow." The bartender called from down the bar, "Yeah, he said wow like fifty times." Felix shrugged, guilty as charged. "Okay, how's Best Live Performance I've Ever Seen, then?" The bartender mouth the word 'wow' at them before turning back to the busy counter. It was clear from the happy feelings radiating off him that he wasn't exaggerating. Felix was about as impressed as it was possible to be.

Soon enough, another beloved performer was finding their way on stage. While a few people were still focusing on Ax, the majority of the crowd was just there to have a good time and enjoy the music, the atmosphere, and of course the drinks and food. Ax made a point to greet a few people, show some gratitude to a few enthusiasts, and found her way back to Felix with a lazy, contented little smirk of pride on her lips.

Ax maybe shouldn't have been surprised that Felix had paid such close attention to her gear... but he was more astute than most. She plopped down in a spot beside the tall, handsome prince and nodded lightly, seemingly impressed.

"The hardlight strings suit me perfect. They're wired to a mini-dust catalyst that generates and maintains a stable conductive loop with the hardlight energy, so the hardlight energy only depletes as the strings are stressed. Pretty handy for ensuring I can play anywhere, anytime, without having to restring or tune," Ax noted.

She gave the bartender a grin. "Well, 'wow' is more or less what I was going for," she admitted. She waved a hand dismissively and looked away at Felix a moment later.

"Heh, c'mon, you've gotta have seen some other rock solid performers in your time. I'm good, but this ain't even me at full power," she protested sheepishly, clearly a little embarrassed at the high praise.

"But thanks, though. That's high praise, but if that got stars shining in your eyes, I'm gonna really take your breath away sometime if you come to one of my *real* shows," she glanced aside as the bartender stepped nearer with another drink for her, and bowed her head appreciatively.

"So, I take it you don't catch many live shows then?" she asked as she turned her attentions back to Felix.

Felix shook his head at Ax. "No, no, I've seen a lot of live performances before. I love going to concerts. I used to go to them all the time with my sister when we were growing up and even now I try to catch them when I can work around my schedule at Beacon." Now that they were actually talking about something, the crimson in his cheeks and on his ears was starting to fade, but the warm feeling of happiness wasn't going anywhere. "So, okay, I was exaggerating a little bit there, but your gear just really impressed me. And I'm guessing it's not just for putting on a powerful performance, right?" He was already imagining prying open the thing on a workbench and looking through it's guts. There was no way Ax would let him do something like that, though. No point in getting his hopes up!

"I've built a lot of guitars, I've even built a few guitars that function as weapons and I can tell a weapon when I'm looking at it. Well...a guitar weapon, anyways." If pressed, he would be forced to admit it was an educated guess. There was only so much that you could tell about a 'weapon' at a glance, but if the shoe fits...Ax was a huntress in training. What huntress in training would spent so much time and money putting together a guitar that used hardlight strings only to play it at dive bars from time to time? Sure, maybe she really just had that much time and money to indulge in that level of extravagance, but Felix was placing the bet that she wasn't!

Ax's smile all but glowed on her face at Felix's note about her gear.

"You got that right," She nodded vigorously, her smile soon sharpening into a prideful grin. "I'm glad you can appreciate it... this is all custom. Built Electra Heart here myself a few years back..."

She raised her glass close to her lips, a smile still playing on her features as she rolled her eyes. What had given her guitar weapon away...? The sharp metal edge? She rose her glass for a little sip of her blue drink before pausing to fidget a little with the lemon wedge on the rim. Maybe he thought her blade's edge was for show... maybe she'd get to show him otherwise sometime. Maybe he, like some others out there, preferred not to assume how easy it'd be to cause a fire with that lightshow of hers that came with her music... Ax came off a little like she was sizing him up now that they were really talking. Maybe it was just the icy coolness of her blue eyes that was giving her that sort of calculating air to her gaze as she spoke.

"My baby here's gonna turn a lotta Grimm into dust. Already has, matter-of-fact," she boasted eagerly, still far from immune to Felix's generally affable vibe. If he kept complimenting her all night she could probably brag for hours. After all, she'd spent enough of her life not being proud of who she was... better to puff out those feathers a bit and flaunt. She even swished her hair back to punctuate her sentence - it was a mesmerizingly pretty little gesture that was just as rich with star power as when she'd been a pop sensation. In that moment, it was that much easier to see a hint of that young performer from the past.

"Already has, matter-of-fact."

Felix chuckled, the little dots of light in the air around him twinkled. His favorite childhood musician had grown up to be a huntress. Well, huntress in training, but just one look at the weapon she had was enough to tell him all he needed to know about how successful she was going to be. She had a sophisticated weapon and the muscle to use it properly, a combination of brain and brawn that could only spell success! Was that wishful thinking? Was he, perhaps, putting his idol in a pedestal? He didn't really care to think too hard about it.

"Hah, ah hah, wow, heh," he grabbed one of the complimentary drinks lining the bar in front of him and took a steadying sip, thankful he'd chosen something sweet. "Whoever said you shouldn't meet your heroes was out of their mind." Meeting his was going much better than he could have expected. "I...How long have you been at Beacon? I'm only in my first year right now, and I've had a chance to fight a few Grim here and there on missions with third or fourth years or as part of a class with a professor, but...you've got to have stories." And he wanted to hear them! Ax hadn't inspired him to be a hunter, but who was to say she couldn't help inspire him to be a better one?

She'd already lit a fire in his heart once before. Lightning often struck the same place twice.

Okay... she definitely wasn't just imagining those, though. Those... soft little bits of blue light? They made her think of fireflies dancing in the air, except they were blue. Her eyes visibly drifted away from Felix to focus on one of the little glowing blue embers, her attention drifting for a moment. She seemed more intrigued than threatened by whatever she was seeing, her eyebrows raising with interest. She pursed her lips and curiously blew out a puff of air, curious to see if these soft sparks would move with an air current.

Her eyes flicked back to Felix next, a question in her eyes that went unspoken. Maybe he knew more about this strange phenomenon than she did. She was a regular here, and she was pretty sure she'd never noticed anything like these dancing little lights before. It seemed like they were sort of concentrated around his general presence. She smirked a bit at his words, though they weren't really the answer her eyes were seeking.

"I'm a third year. N' yeah, I've got as many flexes I could ramble about as I've got cautionary tales," Ax answered with a little nod of her head and a faint little shrug of her shoulders.

"Those little lights coming from you? 'Cause they're not mine, promise."

He knew the question that was about to pass from her lips before she even opened her mouth. It happened often enough that he knew the signs. The eyes tracking a whimsically moving object, the quizzical look, it was all very routine by now. The puff of air directed at one was new, but it wouldn't have any noticeable effect on the dancing lights. They never reacted to any interference save his own emotional state. "Yeah, those're mine," he affirmed with a nod. "It's a part of my semblance. The better the mood I'm in, the brighter and bluer they are. They probably don't get any brighter than this, though," he said with a lighthearted chuckle. "That's not all it does, though. The happier or generally more positive I feel, the luckier I am is the best way I can think to describe it. My semblance can effect random chance in the environment to a...certain degree. My luck with scratch offs and the lottery isn't ever going to be any better than yours, but I can do some neat tricks with it. To demonstrate..." Felix trailed off as he glanced back towards the bar and his scattered drinks. He picked one that had a few ice cubes in it and started to try to chug it. He had to stop halfway through to sputter a little and cough. "Hold on, I swear it gets better," he muttered sheepishly as he finished off the rest.

With the glass only holding ice now, he turned in his seat so his back was to the bar. "Okay, watch this." He grabbed a single ice cube from the glass, closed his eyes, and tossed it over his shoulder. It arced lazily through the air before landing into one of the other empty glasses. He retrieved another and flung that one as well. This arc was not quite so close and was obviously about to hit the bar top. With a single clink, it bounced off the counter and landed in another glass. One by one, the half dozen ice cubes found their marks. Not a single one went on the floor or skidding off down the bar. "It can't do the impossible though," he held up the empty glass and shook it. "Pretty sure this would end up smashed to pieces if I tried. But, uh...the mess would probably be contained to a trash can or something." He set it back down on the counter before turning back around.

"The...flip side of the coin is that the worse I'm feeling, the worse my luck is. Shoes untying, screws coming loose, things randomly breaking around me and then usually hitting me. It's uh...it usually makes it that much harder to break the cycle of negative thoughts when it does happen. And I can't fake it, either. Putting on a brave face won't dim the purple lights. Er, they turn purple when I'm feeling shitty. And as far as I can tell, there's no upside to it. I just instantly become worse at everything until I can get myself under control."

She nodded, a bit of a smile gracing her lips as Felix confirmed the source of the interesting dancing lights. As someone who all too often ended up spouting off exposition about how her own semblance worked, she felt intimately familiar somehow with the feeling that accompanied the Prince's elaboration. The link between his mood and his semblance, however, made her expression sharpen just a bit, her smile shrinking. A lot of things clicked together in her head at once even before he got to the part where he covered the downside.

Her semblance - Affinity - could be a pain... but the interplay between her semblance and others with strong emotional components could spell outright catastrophe. She remembered the storms within herself that Calli's semblance could make manifest around them. She remembered the uncomfortable synchronization of souls that happened with herself and Bartok at the beach. There were many examples she could think of that gave her reason to approach this topic with a new sense of alertness and caution. She really couldn't just flippantly charm her way through this conversation. She needed to manage the vibe, if what he was describing was accurate.

Her smile grew a bit as he struggled with his drink, but it was an expression born of habit and rehearsed practice.

"Alright, alright, I'm watchin'," she assured him.

She blinked at the demonstration that followed. It must have taken a lot of confidence to just... do something that. How did that even work? He could just do reckless things and it'd just... work out? One could frame it as a luck semblance, but she had no real way to gauge what extent active control was necessary, or if there wasn't some other set of laws or parameters in play here. She wasn't sure if the odd feeling that accompanied the ongoing explanation was envy at his semblance, or concern at the myriad implications of its function... or just an echo of his own nerves as he continued on to the cautionary part of the explanation.

...urgh, that was going to be a pain. It was hard enough to preserve boundaries, to say 'no' to things and risk being a vibe-killer for her own sanity at times. Knowing that confusing the emotions or communication between them could equate to a functional bad-luck hex on their surroundings didn't exactly make her day. She knew better than most that there was no force in the world more fickle than individual emotions. Feelings could change in a microsecond! Even her reaction here needed to be painstakingly deliberate, because as much as she wanted to give this guy the benefit of the doubt, she had no way to trust him to actually keep his feelings in check. Especially with someone he presumably once looked up to! What was the saying? Don't meet your heroes?

"So," Ax cleared her throat, doing her best to show curiosity rather than worry.

"Your semblance... more or less allows you to take insane risks. Like tossing random ice cubes blindly - something that I think most people would generally consider a bit of a faux pas..." And it seemed no one who was likely to be irritated had noticed this display either. He really was lucky. Ax was willing to bet the bartender wouldn't have approved of his trick had she not been distracted when he performed it.

Her eyes widened a second later.

"...more than that. It doesn't just allow you to... it encourages you to," Ax thought aloud, her eyes widening. This was a red flag in every sense of the term, but it was a red flag she could relate to. No one could be spared the storm of her own emotions... so she was reluctant to judge too quickly, but she couldn't help but be put on guard by this reveal.