He frowned slightly, pulling out his small knife and slowly coming towards her from behind. *** She held the package close to her, her brows furrowed. "The orphanage."
She looked down at the ground for a moment before turning. The first thing he would notice were her eyes; striking robin eggs stared back at him, their focus darting from him to the blade and back to him again. She didn't seem afraid, more confused. She tilted her head with a frown, her brows furrowed, before her face smoothed with understanding. "Oh. I see. Is this a murder, then, or just a mugging?" * * * "The orphanage?" he asked curiously. "What's at the orphanage?"
He raises an eyebrow, watching her. "I'd like your heart, please." *** She looked down at the box containing the heart. "I have something to return."
She laughed slightly, shaking her head before folding her hands in front of her. "I'd love to oblige," she said with a small shrug. "But I don't have one. I wasn't born with one." * * * "You borrowed from an orphan?" he asked, sounding a little amused. "What did you take that you couldn't have just gotten yourself?"
He looked unconvinced, pointing at the bag. "What's in there?" *** She side eyed him with a frown. "I was repairing a heart."
"Pencils," she said with a small shrug. "And charcoal. See?" She held up her sketchbook, showing detailed drawings of plants and vague passerby. "I'm sorry to disappoint," she said, closing the book. "You wouldn't be the first one to feel that way about my lack of a heart." * * * He turned his head to look at her. "Huh. Do you do that often?"
He put his knife away, evidently surprised. "I.. I don't have one either. I've never met anyone else like that." *** She shrugged. "When I can."
She gave him a small smile, tilting her head. "We need to get you a better supervillain backstory," she said, the smile easy in her voice. "The whole 'if I can't have it, no one can' motive is a little redundant." * * * "Are you any good?" he asked curiously, slipping his hands in his pockets.
He glared at her. "Hearts are pointless to have. People don't realize that." *** "I like to think I am," she said, approaching the gate.
She seemed confused by this response, raising one eyebrow. “Maybe so, but why does it disturb you so much that people believe in a false reality? As far as faith goes, this one is fairly harmless.” *** “Hm. I’ll keep that in mind,” he said with a small nod.
"Harmless to those with flawless hearts. You should know how people feel about imperfections, especially if you don't have a heart either." *** She opened it, looking at him with curious, green eyes. "Why?"
She sighed a little, looking down. “Well... yes. Yes, I’m well aware of how they treat those with imperfections. But... I don’t know. I feel like their actions against me validate the quality of my real heart. They place so much value on these things that have very little consequence. I don’t.” *** He gave a small nod to the road behind them. “I work with the homeless population quite frequently. As you could imagine, they often are a little... rough around the edges.”
He looked mildly intrigued, his expression curious before he shrugged smoothly. "I suppose I'm just living up to expectations, then." *** She nodded slightly. "I saw. And.. I figured they would be."
“For someone who seems awfully intent on destroying this societal norm, you seem content to following their expectations. Don’t you think that’s counterintuitive?” *** “I could use the help of someone in your line of work. Are you interested?”
He sheathed his knife, a small smile on his face. "Well you see, the problem with that argument is I don't really care." *** She considered him. "I suppose so.."
She raised an eyebrow, amusement evident on her features. "You're kinda bad at this whole 'revolutionary' mindset." * * * He gave her a small smile. "Great. My name is Jared," he said, offering his hand.
"I'm not a revolutionary," he said flatly. "I just do what I want." *** She shook it gladly, her shoulders relaxing. "Harper."
"I see. And that includes threatening random girls in the woods?" * * * "Harper. I'll be seeing you soon enough. Good luck with your orphanage visit."
He showed her his empty hands. "You're not being threatened anymore. I just wanted your heart." *** She nodded. "See you soon."
“I see. I’m quite expendable, it may seem.” *** His smile was pensive and he nodded before heading back down the street.
