Blooming Vendetta

Chapter 4: Masks

As Sharp and Mabel made their way through the city, they eventually stopped at a perfume store to mask their scents to make it harder to track them. They decided to get a matching set, to make it seem like they were both just one person instead of two. They picked out Cherry Blossoms, and just went on their way to an inn to stay the night.

Once they arrived, Sharp locks the door and puts up a "do not disturb" sign on the door. After he confirms they were clear, he goes over to the beds and loosens his tie slightly. "It seems we go them off our trail for now. Hopefully the perfume throws them off even more." He sighs and sits on his bed.

Seeing the pale alien so relaxed definitely wasn't making Mabel feel comfortable. Her face was as pink as her hair as she stared between his, now, undone buttons. Despite his profession and personality, he was quite toned where it counted. And this was also the first time these two specifically were alone together. Sharp could feel her gaze on him, which just made him look right at her. "Is something wrong?" He asked.

"Huh?!" Mabel snaps back to reality, and puts her hands up, waving her arms about in front of her. "No, no! Not at all! I just...well...I've never actually been alone with...a guy before... And seeing you like this... It's definitely an experience..." She says with a bright blush.

"Is that so? Would you prefer if I stay in another room?" He asked, completely misreading the situation.

"N-No! That's not the problem..." She mutters.

Sharp takes a moment to process what he's hearing. It takes a moment, but he soon opens his mouth in a surprised manner. "I think I understand now. I apologize. I've...never been good with emotions. Be they my own, or someone else's." He says.

"Really...? I always thought your cool head was a persona. A mask, you know?" Mabel says.

"No, that's just how I am." Sharp shakes his head. "Being someone who wears a mask so often, I thought you might have been able to tell better."

"What? Me? Wear a mask?" Mabel asked, pretending to be offended.

"Isn't that what you do? You always seem to flip through multiple emotions when it came to war council meetings." He says. "Like that one time you proposed an actual war crime, but then changed your mind after Claus denied it."

"I-I was just...!" Mabel attempts to defend herself, but couldn't come up with a rebuttal.

"From my observations of you, you always tried to look so confident. You would puff out your chest when someone questioned your position. You would fling insults to people who offend you, even in the slightest degree. But now, you seem much more open about yourself. Like the mask is slipping." He continues to talk.

Mabel was speechless. She had no words to retort his claims, so she grabs her blanket and pulls it over herself as she rolls into the bed. "I don't feel like talking anymore..."

Sharp could tell that she wasn't being truthful. She simply wanted to drop the conversation at hand. Despite wanting to talk more, he simply nods. "Very well. I'll sleep in increments to make sure no one gets the jump on us." He tells her as he sat in a wooden armchair, gun in hand.

As the night passed, everything went by silently. Sharp watched the doors and windows in case of an attack, while Mabel slept soundly in bed. The sun started to rise, and Sharp had not moved from his armchair until he saw the sunlight. One he realizes the time, he stands up and readjusts his suit, making himself presentable. He takes a peek through the curtains to see if anyone was on their trail, and it seemed that everything was still in order. Nobody was outside, it was way too early. The open sunlight started to pour into the room, which stirred Mabel to wake up.

"Mmh...?" She groans and rubs her eyes. "Is it morning already?"

"Yes. Let's head off as soon as possible. We don't want to be tracked down again." Sharp says.

"Can't we eat first...?" Mabel asked drowsily.

"I've already ordered room service. It should be arriving soon." He replies, as he hears a knock at the door. He checks the peep hole, then opens the door to accept the food. Before he presented it to Mabel, he checked out every dish ordered to make sure nothing was poisoned, spiked, or laced with anything. Once he was sure it was safe, he gives it to Mabel on a small wooden table over her lap.

"Yaaaaay...~!" The tired moth girl cheers and starts to eat like a sleepy child. "Are you not gonna eat?" She asked.

"I can't have it. Human food basically kills me." He answered.

"Booo..." She pouts and continues to eat. Once she was well fed, she was back to her hyperactive, childish self again. "Okay! Let's get going then!" She says.

"We're going to the Vollino Family residence, correct?" Sharp asked.

"Yup yup!" Mabel smiles and flutters out of the room. "C'mon, c'mon! I don't have all day!" She cheers and zooms down the hall.

Sharp simply sighs, and follows her out of the room, returning the key, and leaving the inn to meet with Mabel's sister.