It was the leading edge of February, the winter weather was starting to fade away; spring was coming around the corner and things seemed to be looking up. Ty had returned, and their relationship seemed to be doing well, and Tses was feeling happier even if her emotions were still rather unstable since her rescue. She still suffered from mild panic attacks, but with Ty spending much of his time loitering around her apartment anyway they didn't seem to build much strength. Tses was starting to feel like things would be ok, like a glimmer of sunlight was breaking through the darkness.

But sometimes, that little glimmer is just an illusion, the twinkling reflection of light in the oncoming storm.

Tses was home for the day, and the moon edging its way towards the New Moon she was taking it easier than normal, avoiding getting into trouble for once. Ty was at the sanctuary, sent home at her insistence, and now she was shuffling through the kitchen trying to find something to eat. There were a few packages of noodles left, a half drained gallon of milk and the faintest sliver of butter left on a plate that would only butter half a toast. It looked like a small animal had raided her home, leaving nothing but crumbs in it's wake. With Ty hanging around so much, there wasn't much left in the cupboards or refrigerator, so after grumbling for a few minutes she grabbed her jacket and headed for the door. Planning on stopping down by the corner market to pick up a few things to get by, she shoved her arm into her coat, then paused, palm still resting on the door handle. Ever so distantly, she could have sworn she heard movement, and then nearly jumped out of her skin as a knock lightly sounded on her door.

A mild rush of panic filled her veins as she cautiously looked through the peephole. After the past few break ins, she was perhaps a little skittish when it came to visitors. The sight she saw wasn't reassuring however. Through the slightly distorted glass she could make out a pair of eyes and the rough shape of a face that were familiar, although free of grit and grime she hardly recognized where from.

"Can I help you with something?" She said sharply, scanning the man from head to toe. If she had run into him on the street, she probably wouldn't have thought twice about connecting him with the fellow robber from the bank. But from their confrontation last time, she'd know the eyes, regardless of what filth he'd been covered in.

“There’s a problem Ladybird,” Sledge said, crossing his hands in front of him. He hadn’t been complacent after the bank job. Not that it had finished once they had left the building. There were always loose ends to tie up, and he needed to be the one to do that. Sledge doubted that his fellow robber had thought to do so. A network of informants had been set up, using the people that society tended to not pay attention to. Little old grannies often catch a good amount of gossip, and they seemed to love a cheeky little monkey like himself. The homeless that he had disguised himself as heard and saw things without people even glancing the other way, and gaining their trust was a simple enough matter. “Someone’s looking into our little business venture.”

His implication was that Ladybird was in trouble and not himself. Of course once the police found out that Tses wasn’t the only one in the bank that night he was going to show up on their radar. If she was caught, Ladybird could point the finger at him, probably saving herself a little trouble and making any sentence given to her that much lighter. It was important that before that could happen that Sledge find her. And while he might be chatting to her as though she was a daft apath, he wasn’t pushing his way into her apartment. “Have you seen the paper lately?” he asked. Yet another resource that Sledge used that got overlooked. News was taken in either by those tablet things he saw people with or through the telly. Printed news was costly and couldn’t be updated as quickly as other methods.

“I expected that there would be some sort of investigation,” Sledge said, examining his thumbnail briefly before looking back up at the Ladybird. If he was going to keep her from talking he needed her to know that he was in charge. That was why he had tracked her down to her apartment rather than finding her out on the street. Interrupting another job of hers was risky. She had been caught by surprise the first time, and he had gotten lucky in grabbing onto her fists. Casually showing up at her apartment meant that at any time he wanted to, he could find her. Time to push that fact a little further “You could use a boost to your home security. Anyone could make their way in here.”

The statement was thrown out there casually, and he gave it a moment to sink in before acting as if he remembered what he had been talking about in the first place. “In the newspaper there was an advertisement. Seems a private investigator is looking to have a few special mutants help him look into crimes like you’ve pulled. Ones that are psychic, can see the past, tha’ sort of thing. You might have taken out the camera, an me the alarm, but neither one of us can rewrite the past.”

The words "There's a problem" are something you try hard to avoid in life, especially when you make a living off illegal activity. Tses never really worked with people in the past though, so she didn't have that issue. But now there was a figure standing in her doorway, casually alerting her to problems with a bank venture he had so rudely invaded, Tses was forced to realize how chilling that sentence could sound. That bank job was in the past. It was several months in the back of her mind, heck, hardly days after Ty and her had met. For it to come up now, of all times, seemed like a cruel twist of fate, and her mouth curled into a frown.

"Someone's looking into it, how do we know they're gonna find anythin?"[/b] She said coldly, crossing her arms. She glared him down, protectively standing on the other side of the doorway. She made no invitation to welcome him in, and her stance was like a tiger guarding her territory. He may have found where she lived, but her posture clearly said that entering her home would be a different business entirely.

As he asked about the paper, she shook her head, and inwardly flinched at the comment. Yet another form of the written word she couldn't read. A paper did as much good in her hands as a crayon did to a cat. "No, I haven't seen the paper. Although apparently you have, so I guess I can just wait for the audio delivery." She quipped. She felt slightly confident by her retaliations to his authoritative nature, but then his next comment caught her off guard slightly, and a low snarl formed in her throat.

"My home security is just fine. I can fend for myself, and i don't need some fancy camera to throw out trash like you." She growled. She clenched her fists tightly, the knuckles slightly white with glimmers of green around the edges, and she felt them shaking ever so slightly, but she couldn't tell whether it was from fear or from anger. After the bank robbery, her house had been broken into more than once, the last even resulting in an abduction that had shaken her more than she would care to admit. His little appearance only made her secret concerns of her apartment's safety that much more prevalent.

As the conversation moved back towards he reason for being there, Tses felt her curiosity peaked ever so slightly. As she listened to the list of sought after mutants, her mind lingered on the middle power: seeing the past. Ty had an ability something along those lines, although she doubted he would ever work for the authorities. "What do you expect me to do about it? If they can see the past, they'd know you were there with me. I ain't gettin my ass thrown in jail. You could probably fit in though especially with your disguise from that night." Her sentences were short and defensive, some of her concern leaking through into the sentences. She acted tough, but felt like a cat puffing up it's fur and trying to look taller. If he was perceptive at all he would see through most of her mask.

“Don’t you think it’d be best if we discuss the hazards of your occupation inside, where there are less ears to listen?” Sledge asked, raising an eyebrow at Tses, expecting her to give way for him to enter. Much to his surprise she did not give in to him. He always got what he wanted with these Yank women, one way or another. It might have taken a bit of time with Seyta, but she had opened up to him thanks to his charm and sexy accent. Then again Ladybird didn’t even pick up that he was British the night of the bank job, only that he didn’t talk like a hobo. Ladybird didn’t move to let him in, and he sighed. Enough was enough. Sledge had tried being polite, not entering her home without her permission, and she hadn’t been considerate enough to even let him step past the door. So instead of standing out in the hallway, Sledge let himself into her flat.

“Let’s put it like this, there isn’t a prison in the world that could hold me. You might have those little glowing marbles of yours,” Sledge said, looking around and then settling himself down on her couch. With his legs stretched out in front of him, crossed one foot on top of the other, Sledge seemed to have no problems with making himself at home. There were of course ways that he could be held within a prison, and like Tses, should his hands be restricted in their movement, his powers were less then helpful. “But don’t forget, someone who dinnit even know you could keep them from helping you out.” At this point Sledge leaned forward, as grave as a tombstone. He might have been boasting about his own escape prowess, but he was being authentic in the risk of a jail cell.

“You think that you aren’t going to be caught? You’re dumber than I thought Ladybird.” Insults weren’t going to win her over, but he needed to break her down. “Always, always assume that you’ll be found. Best to minimize the damage before police catch whiff of you. That’s why I wanted you to take the camera out and why you would have done well to keep that mouth of yours shut tight. Banks often have a silent alarm system so iffin there’s a hold up police can be called without alerting the robbers. You wouldn’t want someone who broke in to run off before they can be detained.” Sledge knew the risks involved with taking the breaking and entering job for the Sanctuary, but he did not trust there to be any support to cover him when things went south. Kaitlyn would probably enjoy seeing him wiggle. And as much as Tses’s incompetence as a criminal irked him, Sledge saw the potential in her.

“So, I have come with a little business proposal for you,” Sledge said, picking at the arm rest of her couch, once more taking on the relaxed air. “You and I build up solid alibi’s for this, keep the investigator off our arses, and I’ll cut you in on some of me works. Even my lower end money schemes get more cash flow then the piddly bit you lifted that night.”

Tses stood with her arms across her torso and glared at the man outside her door. When he asked if he could come inside, she'd made no move to let him in. This was her home. Her territory. He wasn't just going to waltz in here and boss her around! If she had a tail, it would have been lashing with irritation. But he seemed to throw all her outward displays of hostility aside, and he let himself into the apartment. It was a quick movement, enough that she mostly just felt a slight shove that pushed her backwards a step, and then he waltzed over to her couch and sat down like he belonged there. Snarling slightly with rage, she kicked the door shut and prowled over to him.

"I don't know who you think you are---" She started to growl in a low voice, but then he continued speaking, and her face lost it's color. In every fight she'd ever been in, Tses had never had someone exploit her weakness like he had. Something as simply as holding her hands together had made her virtually powerless, and he was both quick enough and manipulative enough to try it again. The look in his face was dangerously serious. Her mouth clenched shut, her hands clenched and her anger caused the green tendrils of energy from her powers to flare and crawl their way up her arms like snakes, curling along her forearms. "Even without my powers, I can fend for myself." She said defensively, but there was a small amount of fear that trickled into her voice. Memories bubbled to the surface of the last time someone had bested her. She was claustrophobic just thinking about it. She wasn't going to be caged again. She wouldn't let that happen.

Cold determination filled her face, and it was enough to keep her from lashing out at the man's insult. She just glared at him coldly with a dark expression that was borderline murderous, but controlled. She took a deep breathe, and exhaled it through her nose, then crossed her arms slowly, the green light of her powers creating shadows across her face that made her expression that much more intense. "I may not be the best robber when it comes to banks. Never tried it before, so sue me. But I'm not dumb. Maybe you can break into banks. Whatever. But I have my own skill sets and don't you dare underestimate me." She didn't mention that she'd already been caught once; the memory of that incident was still burnt into her mind. After their failed bank job, police had showed up at her apartment when they associated her with several police murders. That had been a case of mistaken identity, but the results had been unpleasant. With the record of thefts she had, a trail that went back to her childhood, she was the type of mutant they would be glad to get off the streets. But there would be hell to pay if someone tried to take her again.

The light slowly melted back into her skin, her face slightly calmer, but her eyes never left the figure on her couch. He was calculating, experienced, and far too dangerous to ignore. She was taking him as a very serious threat, and whether she wanted to admit it or not, his help right now could be useful. His 'proposal' was enticing, and she relaxed her stance, tilting her head slightly. "I'm listening. If I agree to this, what do we have to do?" She tugged at her arm bands, straightening the fabric around her elbows and covering up the scars that had started to peak through. Money, as useful as it was, was never her primary goal when she stole. She did it for the challenge and the rush. Colt had offered to pay her to stop stealing, but now here was a proposition that included something less than legal. In a sad way, it was far more interesting for that reason.

“I think that I’m the one who’s out to save your pretty little neck,” Sledge snapped back, keeping his face calm, but letting his anger through, “Doesn’t matter if bank jobs aren’t your usual thing, because you still did one, and you still need to learn how to do it proper. That means knowing when your skill sets aren’t going to be enough and backing out.” Her destructive powers were enough to get her into any building that she wanted, much like Sledge’s own, but she needed to learn how to use them most efficiently. There wasn’t any point in breaking into such a high security place to get such a small amount of money. You could get as much as he saw her lift by pockets on the street, probably even more, with just a little bit more effort. Sure it might take longer, but the risks were smaller and the punishment significantly less. Most people didn’t notice that they had been pick pocketed until long after their wallets or purses had been lightened.

“If you think that I’m underestimating you, then you’re ignoring how you are overestimating your own skills.” Sledge’s fedora was taken off and placed gently on the couch beside him. In his mind it was worse to think that you were capable of something that you weren’t, than to think that whoever you judged was incapable. Giving too much credit was an easy way to crash. “You just admitted that the bank was beyond your skills, yet that night you went in there so sure that you would get away without everything going pear shaped. Don’t you think that you might be thinking the same thing with escaping persecution?”

Time to make known how they were to proceed. “Have you an alibi that can’t be picked apart easily? Something to make the investigator question what they might find?” Sledge was already thinking ahead, trying to figure out what sort of story he could invent for Ladybird that she could use. Lies and the truth were often interchangeable, and as long as there was nobody contradicting you, there was no difference what so ever. Tell a young child that the sky is green and that grass is blue, and they will believe it until someone proves otherwise. His own alibi had been created prior to sitting outside the bank dressed as a hobo. His cellphone showed a call that would have lasted most of the bank job, and should someone have had a bug on it, and listened in, they would have heard a conversation he had participated in. Of course his cell had been left in his flat, where he’d normally be, and the one that had called was a recording of himself, chatting with a girl the day before. After he had gotten out of the bank, his wardrobe had been changed, a takeaway meal picked up, and he showed up at the door of the one he had “talked” with.

Oh, he sounded so chivalrous now. He comes her knight in shining armor, complete with fedora and British accent. She was pretty sure it was British at least. It sounded a little bit like Serena's accent, and she was pretty sure the girl said she was British. Not that she really understood what that meant anyway. It was another country, she knew that, but her geography was a little lacking outside the Manhattan and Chicago areas. Sure, if she knew how to read she could probably look it up on the computer. If she had a computer.

She really needed to start stealing stuff that was more useful.

One way of the other, her pretty little neck was offended he was trying to get involved, but she also knew how much she hated the idea of jail. There was a point where her pride and her self-interest clashed, and she battled between the two emotions and tried to decide what to do next. He kept talking, in the meantime, and she listened with a scowl on her face. It was like trying to swallow lemon juice. His insults stung deep and made her bristle irritably. "I think the difference between you and I is you take everything so seriously. I'm not exactly trying to build a career on criminal heists." Stealing was a game to her, which would be evident in the manner she spoke of it. But she tried her best to mask her casual indifference

"Have to admit, wasn't really thinking. Kinda sucks the fun out of things. I just enjoy the ride." Her smart ass comment faded, and she sighed, untucking one of her arm bands and tightening it slightly on her arm. "The little old lady next door's the only real alibi I have. She saw me come home earlier in the evening, the security cameras downstairs would show the same, and they'd both say I didn't leave until early the next morning. Never been any cameras on the fire escapes, so no one would show anyone coming or leaving that way." Few people would think to check the fire escapes, but she wouldn't put it past a nosy investigator, especially one using mutants. That could be problematic, and her face showed a small trace of emotion and she considered that loophole.

"You're right, I do take this seriously," Sledge said. Not so much to grant Tses some credit, but to prove a point. It bothered him that she just admitted that she didn't take this as what it was. A little criminal activity to her was just a way to get her jollies. Had she never had an empty stomach that could only be filled by lifting a meal at the grocers? "But that's because this is serious. Iffin you have no need for a career of criminal activities, then your face should only be seen in a bank to make a deposit. Live a life that's all good behavior and don't get in the way of those getting what is due to them."

If you elect a life of crime, you have to commit to it fully. Especially when you go for high punishment costs. A bank job was something that could ruin your life when you get caught. Sledge, who had devoted his life to crime, had himself chosen to not participate in them as much as possible. He wouldn’t have taken on a robbery of a bank if not for the good of the Sanctuary. Maybe it had been him still trying to avoid any future guilt for what he had been planning prior to that dream. “Oh, and iffin you think for one moment that you can sneak one past me, best think again. You won’t even see the blow that ends yeh.” Sledge was bluffing, he’d never actually kill anyone. Murder was strictly against his policy, even more than bank jobs. It was a fact that was known in the Sanctuary. The man who could smash your head in without your seeing the fist being made, had decreed that nobody’s life would end at his hands. Said with confidence though, his threat could be taken as something more. To prove his point Sledge drew from his coat pocket something that had been vibrating. A cellular phone, but not his own.

“You ‘ave a voice mail,” Sledge told Ladybird, as casual and collected as someone who hadn’t just issued a death threat would have said it. He gave her his most wicked grin, and started to scroll through her limited call history and contacts list. He hadn’t even been in the states all that long and his own contact list was probably ten times more full. As if simply fiddling with her cell phone wasn’t enough, he turned it around so that she may see that there was indeed a voice mail. “Now, you said that you ‘ad an alibi, but someone who can see into the past will be able to give away in a heartbeat that you went out through that window.” Of course they would also be able to tell that he had come to her flat, and that he had spoken to her about the bank job. However, on a review upon what he had said thus far, there was only the implication that he had played some part in it. Sledge had said nothing about him actually being there.

This conversation was going no where helpful. Since the moment this man set foot in her apartment building, he'd been nothing but trouble. Heck, since he set foot into her life he'd been nothing but trouble. The smug little foreigner with his smug little accent..... and his fedora. If she could, she'd blow up that dumb little hat. "Stealing for survival doesn't have to be serious. Just because I have fun doesn't mean I didn't do it to survive." She was talking her way in circles, dancing around the conversation in an effort to get free of the snares his words had created. She hated it. She hated how trapped he made her feel, how silly, how young. She was a thief, and a darned good one in her own eyes. but he belittled her, knocked her right off her little pedestal and took the only thing she'd really had. Stealing was all she felt confident doing; it was all she knew, the only lifestyle that suited her. Why would she give that up? The angry color on her face just continued to grow, and when she saw her phone in his hand, she snapped.

"Keep your grubby little mitts off my stuff and keep yer ass outta my business! What I steal, what I don't, where I go, and what I do is MY business, and if you think you can step in here and threaten me, ye got another thing coming!" Her words slurred in places, almost sounding like an accent slipped in, one caused by her anger. With a wild dive, she snatched the phone from, the mans hand, and made a run for the window, but not without one last swat at his stupid little hat left on the couch. Yanking open the window, she was down the fire escape in two jumps and a back flip, taking the 6 stories of the building with the speed she grew up with on the streets. Then she was down the sidewalk, angrily trying to punch buttons on the phone so she could listen to the voice mail. She shoved new yorkers out of the way as the voice came through, and her heart continued its endless plummet.

"Tses, it's Ty. The good news is, I got that job. The bad news is we're in trouble. Meet me in that abandoned building not far from your place, the one we jumped off of on Christmas. I can explain when when get there."

Well this was just lovely. She didn't know how to get to the building without Sledge trailing her, and she glanced over her shoulder to see if he was following. She'd bolted a few blocks already, but she had no idea if he was as fast physically as he seemed to be mentally.

Sledge had expected Ladybird to have some sort of reaction. Rule one of being a con man, listen, don’t speak. You often find out information when you let someone ramble on, and people are more inclined to trust you if they think you are invested in what you have to say. Usually Sledge said his piece, then let the target respond. Doing so let him find a way to massage their fears into a reason why they needed to trust him. It had been a delicate balance, pushing Ladybird in specific ways, trying to avoid saying exactly what part he had played in all of this, and getting her to understand what he was saying. She didn’t see why he took the life of crime so seriously. Did she really have her life depend upon it the way that he did? It was hard for him to believe that anyone could have a lifestyle that secured itself in remaining hidden would do something so risky for fun. Admittedly, when he had to make up a plan as he went, Sledge could not help but feel a thrill that wasn’t matched any other. That was enjoying the moment, but it wasn’t the same thing. He didn’t just attempt a crime because he had nothing better to do. Even his quick money fix was taken seriously, and it was probably the most fun that he ever had. There was just a simple pleasure in manipulating the cards so that they defied people’s expectation.

His current expectation had been for some smart and snappish remark from the Ladybird. In Sledge’s not so humble opinion, Ladybird spoke a little too freely, and when something left her mouth it was with more anger than necessary, given that he only told her useful advice. So when she had erupted so violently about the cell phone he was quite confused. It was just a little bit of technology and he had done nothing to harm it. So he had lifted it without her knowing. She should haven’t been so shocked about it. He met her while robbing a bank for cripes sake. Sledge let her take back the cell phone, more because he was shocked over the rapid fire that had poured out of her mouth. Her business? HER business? At what point did the bank job become exclusively her business? She had not been alone in that bank, though if she had this entire disaster would have probably ended on that night. Ladybird would have been snatched up with her hands still going for the small bills.

You should just let her get caught, Sledge thought to himself, plastered to the couch partially out of anger. There would be one less bumbling fool mucking up my work out on the streets. He had already issued a very real threat to Ladybird. When he took her cell phone it showed that he was no slow coach, and she had bared witness to the devastation one punch of his could wreck. In addition, his turning up on her doorstep, as it was, proved that without any knowledge given to him, he could find her. That fight or flight instinct seemed to be set to flight in Ladybird, as she made her way to that fire escape that probably served as her exit point the night of the bank job. More than a little miffed at the attack on his fedora, Sledge shoved it back onto his head and started giving chase after her. However he halted with his hands on the doorframe.

Wait, take a moment to think. There was an investigation. When he had told her the list of powers that were being advertised for, the only one that she really had anything to comment on was one who could see the past. Alright, so he only mentioned two options, but why nothing about the psychic thing? Seems to him that people would be concerned about having their private thoughts pried into without their consent. Why did she argue about the power to see into the past? Did she know something that he didn’t. What was her tone when she had talked about it. Aggressive, as he would have expected, and a little guarded. Was it just that he had made his way to, and into her apartment? Highly likely, though Sledge wasn’t going to count out the possibility that she may be aware of a mutant who could see the past. “C’mon. I’m just trying to make sure you’re safe,” he said, well aware that Ladybird wouldn’t hear him as she leapt away. Time to play act for anyone who was watching. He lifted his fedora slightly and ran a hand through his hair, his face a mask of concern. Sledge scavenged about the flat, trying to find something that he could leave a note with. Hunching over the scrap of paper he scribbled down a few brief words. Are you innocent? Please tell me so. The paper scrap was small enough that he was able to crumple it underneath one hand. Crumpling the note made a fist, and having a fist meant that when he pulled his hand away, the motion of destroying the note would be hidden in the speed. Perhaps a waste of a punch, but if a past seer were to say he wrote a note, the lack of it would cast doubt on the testimony.