#[[That Little Kiss You Stole It Held My Heart and Soul - Hayate x Maggie (mcuntainbcrn)]]

[ever-winter]

@mcuntainbcrn continued from [X]

Honestly, usually he'd suggest they get as far from crowds as possible, but last time they'd gone he'd actually found himself enjoying it...and maybe he just wanted an excuse to have some time with Maggie again. They'd been through hell and back that year, they had come such a long way - yet there were still so many years laid out before them. An eternity in which to make new memories...would she ever grow tired of having him by her side?

"It'll be nice to spend a little time in a different climate too. I may like Sumeru - but the sticky air can get irritating", he frowned slightly, summoning a small breeze to wash over them, the air still warm but at least it was something. Turned out that the summer time inside a rainforest was not fun at all. But it was quiet here - that's what he liked - that and Sumeru now held the majority of the memories that he truly treasured - those with Maggie.

"Alright, lets leave tonight then. Much cooler weather and gives us time to talk with Buer too". It was best they didn't just up and vanish on the small Archon, after all.

[ever-winter]

Shipping Tag - @mcuntainbcrn

[[That Little Kiss You Stole, It Held My Heart and Soul - Hayate x Maggie (mcuntainbcrn)]]

[ever-winter]

He'd only been attempting to fill the silence, but her honest answer left him a little surprised. Usually with such questions there would be the usual response of watching something or reading a book - something that seemed socially 'acceptable' for the hour in question, yet Maggie was admitting that she might even just drink herself to sleep. With the night that awaited him, he might actually follow in her example.

"It's rude to listening into phonecalls, you know", he smirked slightly, sitting back with a sigh, "I mean you've met him - he's an annoyance to deal with the majority of the time...but he's also one of the best manager's out there...", as his mother liked to constantly remind him. Honestly - he didn't even want all this fame. It'd just been expected, and now he was stuck in this dumb role with no sign of any way of which to escape from it easily.

"Let's see. I'll go home, argue with mother until her girlfriend drags her away", he tapped on the cover of his phone as he spoke, gazing off as though picturing everything he was saying, "Then I'll grab a drink, my sister no doubt will complain about that, so I'll storm off to my room and either play a game or watch something till I pass out...oh. Guess I should at some point message Niwa too. No point keeping him up all night". Well, she'd been perfectly honest with him, and so he'd just decided to return the favour. Manners - just as his 'dear' mother would expect. "...you though should get some sleep. You've looked tired the last few times I've run into you..."

She wasn’t all that surprised to catch him staring - it was natural after all; the scar was quite blatant after all…to her, it was almost amusing how despite the best efforts of makeup teams and hours worth of effort, all it took was discarding a few pins to undo it all.

The tablet made another appearance as he took a call, pulling up her drafts to begin editing the pieces down…while doing what she could to tune his conversation out - it would seem her impulsivity had gone and stirred the pot to make his night unnecessarily complicated, though she couldn’t help but notice that Hayate said he…and that his mother was easier to deal with…the caller was Niwa so, was he referring to Zandik Dottore?

Interesting…she would have to make a mental note of that.

“Not particularly - after this, I’m most likely going home myself; I may do more work on your collection, work out a bit…or simply drink myself to sleep - the night is young, so I suppose I’ll be playing the evening by ear.” she gave him a wry smirk over the lip of the tablet, “How about yourself? Anything other than dancing around your manager’s wrath?”

[diverse-hearts-ocs]

"...he insists that all security staff has some dumb app installed on their phones - so I started using multiple phones and yet he still bugs them somehow...I'm not that fascinating of a human being!", he glanced over the list that was appearing on the screen, rolling his eyes slightly as the list just continued to grow, pulling out his personal phone and setting it to the side to be checked next. Even if he felt as though he knew for certain that one had been with him all this time - it was better safe than sorry.

Meanwhile, Hayate had taken a seat near the laid out food, happily helping himself to the warm food to have just arrived, still not quite sure as to why he'd been taken along to the office like this but honestly not minding at all. It was much more peaceful here - and though Niwa was making them both flustered, he still found it cute to watch the way in which colour flooded Maggie's face.

"Things are pretty hecticbut I bet things are just as busy for you", he finally said once he'd felt a little more full, glancing over the food for his next victim, "...these are pretty nice", he paused, "You've had time to eat though, right?", he asked, eyes narrowing slightly as he gazed across the room, Niwa laughing lightly - "Aww, you two are sweet. Are you coming to the concert next week?"

She took the device and pulled out a drawer, plugging it in to a laptop dedicated to locating spyware and started the scan, noting an almost immediate response, the list of spyware quickly growing - Mr. Zandik certainly didn't waste any time, "Well, at least you had the foresight to think to check...after I get whatever programs he's utilizing off your phone, I'll see about updating the security scripts and adding password requirements to make it at least somewhat more difficult for him to do so again."

At the comment about missing the idol currently trying to use his coffee cup as cover, her freckled face took on an obvious pink tinge - she couldn't even say she hadn't as that would be lying, "Th-that's neither here nor there, Mr. Niwa." her ears were starting to burn at this point and she went out of her way to avoid making eye contact with either of the men in her office.

Thankfully, the kitchen staff arrived with trays of proper luncheon foods - if nothing else, it was a well timed distraction tactic, "At any rate, help yourselves - I'm sure neither of you have been able to eat with any regularity...best to take advantage while you can."

[ever-winter]

With the need of always having to be observant, he had noticed the scar before, but he hadn't been this close to her - and now he couldn't help but to stare slightly, glancing quickly away as his phone loudly cut through the silence of the small enclosed space, Hayate clearing his throat as he quickly answered the call. "Hey - yeah I'm with her now. Hmm? I know, I just didn't want to deal with his bullshit right now. Is he mad? Yeah, thanks Niwa. I'll get dropped off at home. Mother's easier to deal with. Yeah, yeah - I'll make it up to you later". Sighing, he hung up and leaned over to give his address to the driver, before sitting back and watching the night pass on by. He maybe shouldn't have stared - hopefully he hadn't caused too much unease...though why was he even caring if he had? He'd pretend it was about keeping up his image, but he felt Maggie had seen through him long before now. Silence was usually a rather calming environment for him, but for some reason it only made him feel uneasy, as though he should be saying something to fill the void. Weird that.

"...I hope I'm not holding you back from anything important...". As conversation starters went, that had to be one of the lamest he could have come up with, inside flinching as he quickly gazed back outside again. Maybe the uncomfortable silence had been better after all...

The sound of the car engine could barely heard over the screams of the idol’s adoring, somewhat feral, fan base as it quickly pulled away from the rear of the venue; there was no denying his star power, that was for sure, even if she may have unintentionally picked up on the truth of his current circumstances without ever truly meaning to.

That said, when he smiled, when he laughed now…somehow it felt far more genuine than it had when he was on stage, and a strange twisting sensation gripped her from somewhere inside her chest; odd…what on earth was that?

“Eh, I’ll put it on your tab.” a small smirk curved the corners of her lips as he pulled himself up into a seated position and she pulled out her cellphone to send a message along to the idol’s head of security to let him know that his charge was safe and that her people would see to his safe return home; a soft hum left her as she relaxed back in the seats and kicked off her shoes, “Let Ryuuji know where you need to be dropped off and he’ll take you straight there - I on the other hand will be making an effort to not hear anything I shouldn’t.”

Fingers were already at work locating and removing bobby-pins from her hair, allowing more and more of her unruly locks to flow freely down her back and over her shoulders; it always felt so pointless - her stylists always took such great pains to dress her up for affairs like these when there was just no point…she would never be any great beauty, the efforts made to hide her unsightly scar and blind eye from the cameras was more or less useless to - all just a waste of resources and manpower in her opinion.

With most of the pins removed, and the floral hairpiece discarded on the floor, she raked her fingers back through her hand, exposing the ugly blemish that cleaved through the right side of her face, “Hopefully the remainder of your evening will be somewhat peaceful.”

[ever-winter]

Ame couldn't help but to giggle at the 'charming mother' comment. She was quite aware of how difficult it was to get along with her mother on most occasions, nevermind if it was another strong woman and they'd met in such a manner too. She knew her mother could feel rather entitled to certain favours, given her place within the industry, but that also placed more stress upon herself and her brother in giving the 'correct' public appearance. It was rather exhausting having to act the entire time you weren't behind closed doors - but she'd found Maggie rather easy to speak with, though wasn't sure as to why. Most woman that carried themselves like her mother, scared Ame in one way or another.

And why was she even thinking on this? A small polite bow was given as Maggie moved to leave, a warm smile forming, "Thank you very much for coming. I'll make sure to pass along your message", and which that she hurried over to where Niwa and Yae were waiting for her, her mother having vanished to who knew where - no doubt there had been something about the concert that she wished to nit pick over...

Hayate had hurried out the back exit as soon as he'd spotted his mother heading in his direction, pausing long enough just to grab his bag and phone, before stepping out into the chill of the night. He was quite aware he couldn't stay there for too long - it wouldn't be the first time that fans had climbed around to the back of a venue, hoping to find a way inside somehow - but given how cold it felt, he'd been somewhat counting on no one being there. No such luck though - and why should he be surprised? When was the last time that Lady Luck had greeted him with her presence? The idol quickly leapt over the low fence, having the idea of hurrying towards the car park and to the safety of Niwa's car - but that plan was soon ruined as more fans poured into view. How the heck had word got to them as quickly as that? Ah, what a pain. He had to act all shy and nervous as he backed away, muttering apologises - though at some point he'd felt himself be grabbed onto.

His eyes sharpened at once, but the words he was about to throw out were swallowed back as he met Maggie's gaze, yelping instead as he was tugged inside the car. This was the second time now that she'd helped him out like this. "...we really have to stop meeting like this", he laughed weakly, carefully untangling himself from where he'd fell against her lap, sitting upright with a sigh, "...thanks".

"Indeed." her tone was somewhat vague, as though lost in thought as she had already begun to scour over the notes she'd taken, leaving annotations to refer to later; she had to wonder, given what she observed, if the performer's heart was really in this - his smile had a manufactured, mass produced air, his movements were graceful and well practiced, but still...something was decidedly off here.

There was no point in speculating - such a thing would make her no better than a run of the mill tabloid reporter farming for gossip, "I think I've managed to get what I need for now, and gave enough of a public appearance to sate my PR team, so do give your brother and your...charming mother my regards, mm?" she gave the young woman a light nod as she rose from her seat and made her way towards a side door, firing off a quick message for her car to come around for the pick up.

The evening should have ended there, with her returning home to begin compiling what she'd gathered into a proper first draft for the pieces she would create for his collection, her thoughts remaining solely focused on precious stones and metals...so why...why did she become aware of the idol being swarmed as the vehicle rounded the building? ...why, for that matter, did she instruct the driver to pull in close? Why did she open the door, reach through the crowd of screaming fans to take hold of his arm and drag him in to the backseat with her when this was none of her business?

"Go. Now." why...why was she doing this?

[ever-winter]

He'd still felt a little confused as he parted from Maggie and his sister, wondering to what she might mean - but as soon as he was on the stage, he felt as though he knew what it was. He was used to having the eyes of the world on him, of course, but this time there was extra pressure points from the crown, not just from his mother or manager either. So, she must be watching him rather carefully then? She certainly took her job rather seriously, most of this could no doubt be observed from video alone.

As soon as the music started, he was like a different person, blocking out the world as he concentrated on the act. Fake smiles, singing towards the cameras, acting cute - it was all second nature to him by now, but under the added examination, it somehow felt even more fake than normal, such was the world that he and his family lived within. Still, he was able to finish with no mistakes, Ame cheering rather loud for her brother as he walked off from the stage. "Isn't he wonderful? Oh, do not tell him I said that", she laughed to Maggie, obviously having rather enjoyed the few songs that had just been performed, a glance sent in her mothers direction, but it seemed Ei had already left her seat and gone backstage.

"I suppose you'll find out." she gave him a light nod as he walked away, quietly readying the camera on the tablet in her hands - there was a chance that perhaps the idol would be immune to it, but considering this wasn't her first time working on a project like this with a similar theme, there was also the potential he wouldn't be; a gaze like the laser sight on a sniper rifle - such intense focus that it was unnerving, unsettling, frightening, insert synonym here.

Given whom had raised him and his sister, and the current head of his management team, perhaps he wouldn't falter or flinch when she tracked him from one end of the stage to another, taking pictures, color samples, recordings to make notes of ways he moved that were unique to him that may be an inspiration source to how to make the pieces flow - he was accustomed to being observed through a microscope; still, better to warn him preemptively.

The relaxed posture remained until the group was announced and the lights dropped in the venue, shifting to those on stage - the change being almost immediate; fingertips tapped the screen, pressed down to take a short clip, tapped again, her line of sight remaining focused on the idol as she tracked him, cleaving away the world around the two as she made mental notes as he performed.

[ever-winter]

Ame nodded along as Maggie spoke, making the urge to strike his sister grow just that little bit more, though of course such antics couldn't be done in public - and the little witch knew it too. Just wait till they got home...he'd hide away all her favourite plushies! "I've always said that to his manager but the mans as grumpy as they come", Ame sighed lightly, shaking her head a little. It was obvious that she was rather interested in the design progress, Hayate giving a slight smile as Maggie spoke about bringing her work with her. "Honestly, I get that. If I can escape focus for long enough, I'm the same way". Always carry around a notebook. You had no idea when inspiration would strike, and now with this project ontop of his usual workload, he was actually trying a little harder than normal to kick start his brain into being creative. Sometimes there were even small signs of success....Ame might be helpful...but he needed to get back at her first, before he asked her for any type of help. "Oh, yeah I should actually get going soon for that...I guess". It was rather surprising that no one had been over to disturb them yet, a glance sent in the direction of where his mother sat, her glare speaking volumes. Ah well, least she wasn't making some type of scene, "I'll keep that in mind - but I don't see as to why it'd be uncomfortable? Hopefully you enjoy it", with a slight bow, he turned and hurried off, Ame giggling lightly as she watched after him. She'd never really seen her brother looking shy before. It was kinda cute.

"Do I now...mm, I've noticed that in the majority of your professional photos they tend to go with darker lighting and shades with you; however, such things tend to dull, or mute the actual colors of things." she offered the young woman a small smile before shifting her attention back to the vocalist, "That said, I can't rely on them for accuracy, so I've actually been doing what I can to take a proper look at you when I do have the rare in person meeting, pulling up gem references and selecting the ones I feel are the closest."

A faint chuckle escaped her at Hayate's response, "Truthfully? I did - generally speaking, I find affairs like this frightfully dull and rather tedious, so if I can't send one of my Public Relation Representatives, like today, I'll tend to always bring my work with me to keep me occupied...it has the convenient side effect of ensuring I don't fall behind on custom orders or projects like this."

She turned her attention back to the tablet, a faint hum leaving her as she began working on yet another piece, a ring this time, pulling stone colors from Hayate's sister this time, "I'm glad that the conversation has been somewhat illuminating for you - that's good to hear...I know I'm repeating myself but it's never meant to be a point of stress; putting that aside, I do believe overheard that you'll be performing this evening...knowing that, I'll be certain to put my work away prior to you taking to the stage; who knows, perhaps hearing you will inspire me to take a different approach with your collection."

Golden locks spilled over her shoulder as she peered at Hayate over the top of the device, "That said, if it makes things a touch too uncomfortable, tap your cheek and I'll take that as a cue excuse myself."

[ever-winter]

Was it illegal to murder your sister when she was trying everything in her power to currently embarrass him? Ame clearly looked as though she were enjoying herself as she watched the way in which Maggie used her ipad with such ease, Hayate sighing lightly. He knew what she was doing - but he had to admit that there was something rather enjoyable about watching this whole process - how such ideas could be pulled from something as simple as his cat. All she had to work with was white a green, yet the pieces she'd quickly came up with were rather nice already. Maybe he'd change the shade, maybe something a little less blinding...but he was beginning to realise something.

"...you use brighter colours than other's tend to", he finally spoke up after being shown the pieces that had been conceptualised this far. Even before she'd learned about Nahida, the colour palette wasn't as dark and bleak as he'd seen other's form in the past, and part of him wondered as to why that might be the case, Ame smiling softly, "Oh I like the bracelet already - it matches with his eyes. How'd you manage to do that so quickly? Do you take colour samples from pictures of him?". Ame tended to warm up to people rather quickly, but Hayate was also too aware that his annoying sister was doing this on purpose too. Sisters...who would have them?

"Ame - stop pestering her so much", he sighed, "Sorry, I'm sure you didn't come here to work", a small laugh unable to be held back as she made the comment about their living environment, even Ame giggling slightly, "That's one way of putting it", he admitted, smiling though as she told him to phone her, "I think I'm already learning something just from this exchange...thank you". Least it didn't seem as though she was making fun of him for being this confused over something that must be rather easy to others who'd she'd worked with.

@mcuntainbcrn

A cat, mm? She decided to open a separate tab on the tablet, not being shy about allowing both siblings a full view of her screen as she did so and search using a few key words - the singer's name, the animal's and the animal and there she was, a small, white, fluffy creature with some of the largest green eyes she'd seen in awhile, "...she's very cute." even as she spoke, she was pulling a few of her favorite images of the animal into the program and taking color samples from her eyes and fur, and quickly drafting up a rough sketch for something that could be seen as either a bracelet or choker with a large green central stone.

She shifted her chair towards the two allowing for a better view as she cycled slowly through several open tabs featuring a few secondary, cleaner CAD designs for rings, necklaces, earrings, and bracelets, each of which she paused to give both Ame and Hayate a full 360 view of, "This is what I've conceptualized so far - I'm not quite at the point of pushing any of them through for the first round of prototype fabrication, as I want your brother's input - if there are any edits he wants to make, taking care of that before producing protypes makes the process easier, as then we can hash out the finer details for next round."

Now that she was even closer to him, there were more things to perceive and observe - the length of his eyelashes, the different shades and hues within his eyes and hair, all things that could be used to further personalize the collection; not that such things were the only factors to take into account...she wanted this to be more personal than that, but until he had a breakthrough, this was what she had to go on.

"That said Hayate, don't push yourself too hard...I imagine that the environment you've lived in has been a bit cloistered..." a look over the shoulders of the siblings - good, both Madame Raiden and Zandik were otherwise occupied, "...without much room for you allowed to discover such things on your own, so by all means take your time, and feel free to contact me at any point should you make any such discoveries about yourself."

[ever-winter]

Well, compared to the other points of stress, he rather liked having the chance to focus on their collaboration, it was the least stressful of the lot, even if it was helping him to realise just how much of his life was controlled. He really was like a puppet, pulled from place to place, strings pulled at the right times to appeal to those around him. It wasn't as though he'd been totally blind to it before now, he'd just believed he had a lot more freedom and say in things than he truly did. It wasn't a fun thought. Even now, he was only just informed of his performance later, when he'd been under the impression he was just there as part of his family.

"Are you working on his project at the moment?", Ame asked after a short while of watching the woman, and the lack of move from her brother of striking up a conversation - moody as always, "Why don't you compare notes on what you're already thinking this far? Maybe it'll help guide him in the right direction". Oh. He was going to kill her later for this, Hayate rolling his eyes ever so slightly, giving in to his sisters whims and turning in his seat enough to face Maggie.

"I suppose - well in the past projects like this have usually been done without any type of input from myself, so I never really thought on the process that goes on behind the scenes", he frowned slightly, "Something that may help is perhaps knowing what pieces your thinking will work best?", he gave a small shrug, "Otherwise, outside of basics like favourite colours and things like that, I'm honestly at a bit of a loss". He decided just to say what was on his mind, though was hopefully speaking low enough that Zandik wasn't able to listen in from his side, Ame smiling brightly, turning around in her own chair and grinning at Maggie.

"He loves his cat! She's called Nahida - gets fur all over the darn house". She'd been only seconds away from saying that he was fasinated by Maggie, but she wanted to live to at least see thirty...

A familiar voice - ah...the Raiden family and their entourage; it made a degree of sense, really - while nothing had been announced publicly yet, there were still murmurs of a potential collaboration flittering about, so the fact that those running the event saw fit to seat her [or rather, what was meant to be her public relations representative] near the prolific family; the glare Ei fired at her, however briefly, wasn't lost on her, nor were her lawyers distraction tactics, or her daughter's amusement, "Ah, Mr. Zandik...I wasn't originally intending to, but my PRR is presently indisposed with a personal matter that took place last minute; leaving Steinnmetz's seat empty at a charity gala would be rather poor form."

The idol's avoidant behavior wasn't lost on her either - no doubt he was actually struggling with the project she'd given him...it wasn't unexpected, but still, it wasn't anything she couldn't understand; the only thing she was truly passionate for would most likely have her forcibly placed in a mental hospital, if not outright arrested for conspiracy to commit murder if any happened to be aware of as much...no matter how much of a knack for jewelry fabrication and innovation she might possess, it didn't mean for an instant she was passionate about it...she got up each day for one reason only and the public face of her family's business was just a means to an end.

It was small, but she offered Hayate a smile, "Really...good to know - just remember, its not meant to be a point of stress; merely something to perhaps open your mind and eyes to things you may have been unconscious of prior - have fun with it, in whatever form that enjoyment might take." she extracted a tablet and pen from her handbag, tabbing it open to get back to work on the drafts for his pieces...ironically, even with the photos she had of him, it was easier to make parallels to gems with the man in front of her again where she could properly see his eyes...it was strange how oddly striking she found them, but she had found herself bouncing from one stone choice to another since seeing them.

[ever-winter]

His homework was proving to be as much of a disaster has had been expected. Trying to think on something that he was passionate about was actually rather difficult, which only irritated him, as it just made him realise more and more how much of his life was controlled by those around him. Something he was rather used to, but still, there should be something that he was passionate about without their input...right? He heard the make-up artist sigh again, and tried to force himself to relax and to stop frowning so hard, glaring at his reflection instead. This shouldn't be as difficult as it was proving to be!

The Gala event that night had actually been something he'd forgotten about, when he usually tried to keep some track of the bullshit that he'd been signed up for. His mind had been so focused on his homework lately that he'd been running on auto piolet even more than usual, which may have been picked up on a few times now. Even now, he was lazily watching the crowd as the family made their way to their seats, smiling and waving as though strings were being pulled, but otherwise a million miles away. It was only when Ame nudged his shoulder and pointed out the figure sitting near their own seats that he somewhat became a little more focused. Even with how different she looked, he could tell at once that it was her...and his sister was quite amused by just how much more awake he suddenly seemed. "Mam, I wasn't aware you too would be here", Zandik was the one to speak up first, Ei shooting a glare in the other's direction, though her attention was quickly pulled away by Yae who drew her attention towards something she'd apparently seen on stage, "It's delightful to see you again so soon! Hayate's been working hard on the task you set him. Hopefully the results will be to your liking". Working hard? Hayate almost scoffed at the idea, but instead just gave Maggie a small wave. He'd be performing later too, but at least for now he'd get to just relax...though with Maggie right there, how could he not worry about his homework all over again? How to explain that he just wasn't passionate about anything?

If there was one thing she allowed herself to feel even a modicum of pride about, it was her capacity to multitask; by that evening, she had sent the harbingers on their way with a new ring and a stern warning, gotten a few rough sketches of designs for the idol project underway, received the final shots for the Midsummernight's Dream collection promotion [as predicted, she was so heavily photoshopped she was hardly recognizable] and sent along the approval notice...and gotten a considering amount of headway on her extra curricular activities.

A few she knew to be on Murkoff Corporation's pay roll had visited the newest location, no doubt wanting to celebrate the next stages taken with the biometric security conglomerate's with their hidden agenda; and given the footage she'd pulled, she had a feeling that many more than the patient's she had observed being tossed into the jaws of the machine known as the Morphogenic Engine had been forced to pay tribute to it's machinations...no doubt, if she remained patient, bided her time, she would one day see his face on the feed - at that point, all it would take was a few decryption tools to give her approximate coordinates of the facility he was being housed in.

The knowledge alone was almost enough to allow her to sleep peacefully the following night, putting her in a decent enough mood over the course of the following weeks that allowing herself to sink comfortably into the role of creative director and CEO was far less of an energy drain that normal; so when her usual PRR was unavailable for an upcoming gala event, it didn't strum her nerves quite as much as it may have...it was amazing what a bit of progress in the right direction could do for a person's mood.

Not that it made fittings, arrangements to conceal her face as much as possible, or coordinating with a hair stylist any more comfortable - it wasn't a perfect fix by any means, just the start...the beginning of the end, if all went well; perhaps that was why she was able to remain as calm as she was, despite the cameras flashing in her face as she exited the vehicle, her name tumbling from the lips of ravenous media outlet employees as she made her way towards the entrance.

A glimmering gold dress and accessories of her own design [that would be far better suited to any one of those in attendance in her own opinion], an ornate half mask to match, hair arranged to allow temporarily tamed curls to softly fall over her right eye; even with a clear line of sight, the makeup and styling teams had done their work well - there would be no clear shots of her face that night.

[ever-winter]

Being referred to as Mr Raiden was rather strange, even if others had done so before in such formal settings, for some reason he felt it was weird coming from her...or maybe it was just the mix of the feeling of her being formal but also friendly. It was something he wasn't too used to and being told that he had the freedom on this project was new too. He glanced towards Niwa for a second, the other giving a small shrug, Hayate glancing back at Maggie. Huh. This was going to be something that was rather new to him...it didn't sound as though it would be as boring as he'd felt it would be too. The freedom to find what he loved and was passionate about? That was the tricky part.

"I...", he was about to ask just what she meant, as foolish of a question as that might sound, when they were interrupted once again by the assistant, not quite able to hide his surprise at the name to part her lips, a glance towards his manager showing little of the same shock. Maybe he'd heard about her from him in the first place? Either way, Hayate was suddenly feeling rather uneasy when only moments before he'd been beginning to relax, "Ah, yeah that sounds like a good idea...". He rose to his feet and followed after her along with Niwa and Zandik, keeping his gaze firmly on the back of her head.

By the time they made it outside, it felt as though he'd ran a marathon, so many different types of emotions had rushed through him in such a short time, making him lean slightly against Niwa once they'd managed to make it outside, a deep breath of air taken in. "Who'd know that this place was linked with the Fatui?", Zandik chuckled slightly, leading the way back towards the waiting car, acting as though he'd been oblivious to the fact, Hayate rolling his eyes slightly. Still, his mind was soon thinking over the 'homework' that had been set - what was he passionate about? Heeh, wasn't it a little depressing that he had no idea where to even begin with such a task?

"We can talk it over once we're back home", Niwa muttered, a comforting squeeze given against his shoulder as Hayate climbed into the car. Oh. Back home - cause that wasn't going to be a hive of drama all on it's own...wasn't it?

Well, that all but confirmed her suspicions - this was about to be a far more interesting endeavor than she originally thought; she raised her mug to her lips once more, draining more of the bitter liquid before speaking again, "Mr. Raiden...you really don't have to try all that hard - if anything, you can treat this collaboration as a challenge of sorts for yourself." the mug was set down on the desk as she rose from her seat, crossing the space between herself and the idol until she stood directly in front of him, folding her arms over her chest as she leaned forwards just enough to catch his gaze with her good eye.

"For the duration of this project, I want you to ignore outside input from your stylists, management, and family...and focus purely on discovering the things you enjoy...what colors and shapes catch your attention and hold it, but don't limit it purely to aesthetics - collaborations like this do best when you allow yourself to tap into the things in life you genuinely love and find passion in...that is your homework from me; we can reconvene in a month to see what you've managed to learn about yourself, and, of course, you're welcome to contact me at any point."

A knock came at the office door once again, her personal assistant entering the space again, "Pardon the interruption but, Regrator Pantalone is here." the announcement was met with a hum as she motioned for Hayate and Zandik to follow her out of the office, "Let's wrap things up for today, mm? Go home and get some rest - and remember that this is a scenario where you get to be wholly selfish...speaking of which..." she trailed off, a cold smile crossing her lips as the figures of two new men waiting in the lobby entered her line of sight; clearly upper rank members of Snezhnaya's Fatui dressed to the nines and greeting her formally, one a bit more sheepishly, and with good reason as she parted company with the musician.

, "...greetings gentlemen - you've been expected, though I find it a touch amusing how you were in my establishment only two weeks prior." there was a venomous edge to her voice, directed squarely at the redhead as she motioned the two to follow her, "I do hope that you didn't manage to misplace a five carat sapphire down someone's throat - it's not exactly the kind of publicity I'm looking for; I'm sure you understand."

[ever-winter]

Huh. She really meant him, didn't she? He glanced towards Zandik, half expecting for him to make some type of a protest, but he seemed happy enough over the numbers that she'd quoted - and that was all that he really cared for at the end of the day. Still, he was quite surprised by how quick everything seemed to be - but still in a time frame that showed she generally seemed to care for the end product. A breath of fresh air if he was to be honest. "Hayate should be rather easy to work with, though of course we'll have to take his schedule into account", Zandik finally spoke up again once he'd finished looking over the numbers once more, "Our next major concert isn't for another six months...if the work can be done for then I feel that would be ideal for all of us. I had been a little worried that may have been a bit of a short notice? The concerts take place in Mondstadt too - so something that reflects that nation would make for that added personal touch from those fans...ah but trendy fashion isn't my strength", he added with a small chuckle, Hayate rolling his eyes ever so slightly, taking a sip from the flask he held.

"I've never really had much say before...but I shall do my best to be of help", he finally spoke up, a weak smile given, before he fell quite again as Zandik started to ask random questions about the business - such as were materials were sourced from.

"There will, naturally, be different price tiers that will be entirely dependent on the materials used - for the titanium pieces with synthetic stones, a price point of around twenty five to fifty, with the full collection running around a hundred, for gold with synthetic stones, around two to three hundred with the full collection being at about a six to seven hundred; which leaves the set in premium materials with genuine stones - these pieces will start at around the six to seven hundred, with the full collection running around two to three thousand." it really was amusing to her, noting the clear physical changes once the matriarch had been removed from the equation...ahhh, it was no doubt to be quite the spectacle when they returned to wherever they called home; she almost felt sorry for them.

She turned her attention back to the focal point of the hour once he spoke up unprompted - the idol, the subject of adoration of millions, and potential collaborator...judging by his demeanor, no doubt her remark of him having full creative control fell on deaf ears; or perhaps, he believed her words to be empty - after all, there was a very good chance that he was allowed little to no input on how he was dressed, which would track given the industry he worked in...it made her choice of words in regards to the answer that much simpler.

"Well, that all depends on yourself - as stated, you have complete creative control here; if you are pleased with my rough drafts, then I would move forward with CAD, and from there to fabrication of a protype...the entire process, should we work well together, should be about three to four months, give or take, before moving on to large scale production." a small smile crossed her lips, far too serene given the tension that had polluted the air only moments ago as she brought a coffee cup to her lips and drained a bit of the contents before continuing, "However, should you find fault with the initial rough drafts and want things adjusted, then that could delay things...not that such a thing matters to me; I'd much rather have production delays than push out a piece a collaborator of mine doesn't genuinely care for and would never wear again."

[ever-winter]

She certainly seemed rather different from how she'd been only a few moments before, though that was the usual reaction when his mother had left the room. Even Zandik looked a little more at ease now that it seemed as though Maggie wasn't about to cut off the deal, the manager glancing over the details to have been presented with a lot more care than Hayate seemed to show. He knew that he didn't have much of a say in any of this, no matter what the woman before him was saying. He just had to wear whatever was given to him.

"His audience is quite varied, I'm glad to see that you've done as much research as you have - I had taken along my own documents but I can see that yours almost seems to match them. It seems as though you will be a rather enjoyable woman in which to work with", Zandik said, leaning back from the monitor as he thought over what was being said, "What do you expect the overall price range to be?"

Hayate looked over the screens quietly too. These type of collaborations were usually used as excuses for designers to show off, rather than thought given to the overall affordability of such items - it's why so many cheap imitations tended to end up flooding the market. "How long does a set usually take to put together?", he found himself asking, glancing towards Maggie as he spoke. She really did look so different every time that he'd seen her this far. He didn't know that was quite possible without an entire make up team trailing after your every movement.

The smile the youngest among them threw her as she passed didn't go unnoticed, and was actually returned with one of her own as she calmly spelled it out that 'the Childe best take better care of their toys, lest they permanently lose the privilege' in regards to the ring replacement, wrapping up the call with the Snezhnayan mafioso by setting up an appointment later that same day before re-entering the office, and finding the number of bodies remaining far more to her liking.

"Now then, I do apologize for the interruption." her posture was relaxed and open now that she was no longer going on the offensive, "Putting that aside, I do believe it's high time to get this meeting underway." a tap of a button had a screen lowering from the ceiling, blinking to light, "I've done quite a bit of digging into your demographics and you're quite popular - people from all ages and walks of life seem to be drawn to you, so my thoughts were that we do what we can to market to as many as possible, without skimping on the quality or making the price points unreasonable."

Several photos and video still appeared, though they didn't focus on Hayate's face, but rather the jewelry he wore most often, "Given yours, or your stylists proclivities, it wouldn't be too difficult to create several full collections that will be attainable to those within every wage class without wondering how they'll be able to afford rent or food - one being cast with titanium, high polished or anodize and lab created or synthetic gems, another with gold with the former stone options and finally, a set with gold, platinum, and high grade precious jewels."

Gloved hands were folded on her lap primly, "Of course, I will allow creative control and input through out the CAD and fabrication process, so nothing gets finalized or pushed through without your express approval, Hayate."

[diverse-hearts-ocs]

Hayate couldn't help but pull a slight face as he was referred to by such a name, slipping past Maggie to go and examine what food was on offer. One of the bad things about this time of year was how people seemed to think that all festive foods had to be sweet in nature - but he picked out a few dark chocolate items, even if it may have been better to start with something a little more filling. "Well, as we somewhat discussed, I would like a few details concerning security...but it also seems I need my phone debugged too", Niwa sighed as he pulled out the device, handing the thing over to Maggie, "Honestly, I just got it replaced a few months ago too...working with Zandik is near impossible at times" "That's why you should just ignore him", Hayate said, pouring out a coffee for himself and Niwa, handing the cup to his friend as he walked back over to join them, "So his phones bugged then?" "Maybe?", Niwa shrugged, "That aside - I'm sure you two have been missing one another - Hayate's been barely free these last few weeks - it'll just get worse when December hits".

He paused to let that claim sink in, Hayate half hiding behind his cup, suddenly rather intent on the contents, shifting slightly nervously from foot to foot - obviously he didn't want to admit to any of this.

She sighed to herself - there was no doubt in her mind that the jab had been purposeful...though, all things considered, he was the only one who actually knew of the shift in their relationship and given the lack of press on the matter, he'd clearly kept that information to himself...even if she had no intention of saying as much to his face presently, she was quite grateful for his silence.

...and as embarrassing as it may have been, she was happy at the thought of seeing the singer again.

Knowing their arrival was pending, a brief call was made to the kitchens to have food and drinks sent up to her office - given what little insight she had in regards to their respective work schedules, there was a good chance neither had had a chance to have much more than a few sips of water and perhaps a coffee if they were lucky.

She'd returned to working by the two were rung in, and gave the two a quiet greeting as the doors were shut behind them, "Well then Mr. Niwa, Mr. Raiden - to what do I owe the unexpected pleasure?" formal greetings all around - even if it wasn't wholly necessary for one of them, she was nothing if not a professional.

[ever-winter]

Considering how badly the day could have turned with the mood that his mother had been in since early that morning, overall, it wasn't that bad as he finally flopped onto the surface of his bed with a soft groan, Niwa's voice fading away into the background as he closed his eyes and let his tired body just freely throb with the pain of the days activities. He already knew though, that the chance of him actually sleeping were next to null, but at least the next day was looking pretty free. "Hmm what?", with a little effort, Hayate pulled himself up to sit on the edge of the bed, watching as Niwa paused in his pacing. "...you weren't paying attention to anything I was saying, where you?". A sheepish grin is given as a reply, before their phones buzzing catches both of their attention, Hayate falling back down on his bed after he read the message. There went his free time, not that it should have been much of a surprise.

"Can we kill Zandik and make it look like an accident yet?". He was only half joking, Niwa giving a small shrug, "...maybe? I now have work to do...", he continued muttering away to himself as he walked off, a small meow being the next sound to draw Hayate's attention, the idol picking up Nahida, flicking through his phone to the picture he'd taken earlier that day. She really was appearing everywhere... or maybe he was just slightly more paranoid than usual due to haven't slept much for a few days now. "Seems like it's just us two now", he turned on the tv as he curled up in his blankets with the small white kitten, lazily beginning to flick through the channels. Honestly, he was half aware he'd no doubt just use the sound as background noise and end up playing one of his games or something at this rate, but he had to at least go through the ritual of attempting to get some shut eye.

Allowing Nahida to play with his fingers, he was beginning to feel sleepy enough that maybe the exhaustion would win out over the insomnia for a change - before a familiar face caught his attention, Hayate sitting slowly upright as he paused in his pointless channel surfing. That was her. A younger version of her, sure, but that was the same woman, and now, thanks to this sports channel, he had her name too. Where had he heard the name Stein before? Hadn't Zandik been saying something about some collaboration with them? Fallen star...he couldn't help but wonder what may have happened, pulling Nahida silently into his lap as he paid attention to the show.

It felt a little wrong, for her history to be displayed before him like this, well at least how the media knew of the events, but that came with the fame, he guessed. Ame might actually know more about what happened, a yawn passing his lips as he finally switched off the screen, frowning as he gazed up at the ceiling. That degree of a tragedy had happened in her life - and seemed to be well known too. His own had been buried with the help of so many complications, but he'd rather that than to have his private trauma displayed for the world to see. No wonder she said she didn't pay attention to the media - yet was he any better? Scrolling through websites for reports on the murders to have happened, looking for even small bits of information about the woman. He was turning into one of his fan girls at this rate. With a sigh, he tossed his phone off to one side.

"...she really is just popping up everywhere. If I was the religious type, I'd have said it was some type of sign or some other type of bullshit", he spoke to Nahida, who yawned as a means of a reply, thin rays of sunlight starting to sneak their way inside his bedroom. It really didn't make too much sense why she'd managed to leave such a lasting effect on him, but hopefully it faded soon enough.

One irritant out of the way, but of course, three more slotted themselves in its place - if it wasn’t another lead turning out to be a dead end, it was another corporate giant attempting to throw their weight around and trying to navigate around her clearly articulated boundaries and legal clauses, and another gala charity event trying to coax attendance from M. G. Stein; anonymity was her greatest weapon, the public perception of her existing in seclusion only worked to her advantage…hard pass.

Another round of scheduling for her chosen PRR, throwing herself into training to work out some of the fresh rage that roiled in her until she was too worn to feel anything, and waking several hours later to her phone ringing off the hook - it never ended…but this was the path she’d set for herself; endure it - all she needed was one solid lead, after all, and then…none of this would ever gnaw at her every waking moment ever again.

A teleconference with new investors from several outlying nations trying to stealthily include subsections that undermined her own company’s ethical practices, and preservation efforts, casually laid bare, much to their dismay and subsequent embarrassment as the documents were fed into the shredder live with instructions to take their time to properly rework the contracts if they wished her to even consider thumbing through them a second time, the coldest of smiles on her face as she hung up and ended the video call.

Another work day done, and it was time for her to start her extracurriculars, pulling up the feeds from her newest location, turning on the television for background noise as her halved vision flitted between camera views, frowning when she heard her own name coming from the flatscreen behind her; pausing the feed, a cursory glance was given the TV at her back, a ‘Where Are They Now?’ segment on a sports network featuring the ‘fallen star of competitive gymnastics, and heiress of Steinmetz Diamond - Margaret Gwendolyn Stein’.

She shouldn’t be watching this - seeing how brightly she used to shine, the passion still burning intensely in her eyes, the joy that still existed when she lived for the thrill she found in competition and coming the closest a person could to flying without wings…but footage of her family both stayed her hand, and set it into motion to record the segment; there hadn’t been any photographs spared from the carnage, her own memories tainted from the psychological pain, and unable to summon up their faces when they were still alive, happy, and not contorted by the agonizing ways they met their end.

That night, she found herself rewinding and replaying a ten second clip from the segment over and over again, soaking in those smiling faces that had been lost to her for so long…all of this, every effort made, was for them…for the lives they hadn’t been allowed to live to their appropriate ends, for all the goals they never were able to achieve - they deserved their vengeance, and she would see it through to completion; this would end…by her hands, she would seek out the monster who saw fit to make them the focus of his misplaced feelings, and unjustified fury.

It was the first rays of morning sun that broke her out of her trance - a night had been lost…she had gotten distracted and she couldn’t afford to allow that to happen again; thankfully there were no meetings today and she was well within her rights to work remotely and multitask, filtering through the camera footage and working on the campaign for her newest launch - apparently the marketing department was very keen on collaborating with an Inazuman idol for the televised and internet drip marketing…but she would have to see about personally vetting that herself, considering the type of diva behavior she was accustomed to from that sort.