| The Last Visit at Juvie | ||
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"That was really terrifying and I've seen some rough looking Carnivores. It's been how long since the attack?" "A few months, at least. The doctor keeps making progress with Anthony, he says, but I don't like that look in his eyes," replies the canine cop wearing a casual button-down shirt. Pina and the receptionist should know each other by now, at least. Pina sighed. It was his own decision to come here so frequently, but the whole procedure of getting his visit was undoubtedly rather annoying every time. The mandatory pat-down and bag search especially. The first time he came, he did not have the foresight to pack light, so it just took -forever-. He had learned since then though, and he now generally only brought a small waist-pack, although he made the style-conscious decision to instead wear the thing over his chest, strapped to his shoulder. Apart from the pack, he was outfitted casually- Though with his usual amount of flair. He was wearing a ribbed, forest green turtleneck, and tight jeans. "Good afternoon, Georgina~!" The dallhorn sheep did not hesitate in butting into their conversation, all the while completely ignoring what they were talking about. He put on his best charming smile, and continued. "I'm here for a visitation- Though you doubtlessly already knew that. It should be the last one though, if Riz continues to behave himself.." Both the giraffe and domestic dog look over at the same time. "Hello, doll. Here to visit your friend again?" asks the receptionist. A very familiar greeting akin to calling Pina 'sheep-chan', but it's meant to acknowledge the sheep's dazzling presence. Georgina looks over to the dog. "We can discuss it later over udon, Brady. Let me get Riz's friend taken care of before lunch." The plain clothes officer lifts a hand to wave to Pina in a far less familiar fashion, but speaks up anyway. "You be careful, now. Doctors say he's fit to leave soon, but he'll be stepping into the life of an adult with a record. Lots of predatorial offenders buckle under the stress and the last thing we need is him finding you tasty." The giraffe waves the dog away and offers an apologetic smile. "Brady means well. What he's trying to say is your friend is going to need emotional support putting pieces back together." Pina can't help but grin at the woman's greeting. "You got it. I think I'm going to miss you~" He teases- Though not in a seductive way. Pina finally acknowledges the officer, nodding and smiling politely. "Thanks for the warning, officer. I am quite prepared, though." Though his pleasant tone was unwavering, there was the slightest chilliness to his last remark. He stepped closer to the desk as Brady would walk off. "Oh, I understand. He's certainly very serious though.." Pina comments. "Emotional support, Hmmm?" Georgina folds her arms atop her desk and lowers her head to be at least a little closer to eye level with the Dall Sheep. "Well, this isn't your first time here. You've seen some of the other youth cells in passing. You've seen the news and I know you wouldn't visit so often if you didn't care, but statistics don't lie, doll, and most juvenile predatorial offenders don't recover." She leans back and turns to tap something on her keyboard. "Riz may seem calm, but I think he's more fragile than he wants to let on." The giraffe turns her head at just the correct angle to peer down over her glasses at Pina. "I wish we had more Herbivore visitors that are as brave as you. Now, let's get you sorted, shall we? I'll call over Walken for the check and escort, if you'd like." Walken is a Red Panda and a bit small, but far tougher than he might appear to be. "I think you might be overselling me, Georgina-chan.." He responded, his bright smile dimming somewhat. He initially went into visiting Riz with the intention to suck up to him, ensure he wouldn't harbor any ill will when he got to leave- For his own survival. If he'd repeat that sentiment now, he likely would not be entirely genuine. He had come to appreciate the bear's company, if only a little. "Hrm.. 'fragile'.." The word lingers for a moment, before the handsome sheep continued. "Yes please~ Walken is an interesting guy, and the additional safety is always appreciated.." The giraffe seems amused, if not flattered, by Pina's cheeky use of honorific. She smiles and gives a little shake of her head before adjusting her headset and tapping in a three digit number on her deskphone. There's more going on behind the scenes than what might be apparent, although Pina has learned a bit about it from the bear. While Pina awaits the red panda, the alert of a visitor means that Riz is going to have to be prepared. Muzzle attached, shackles for wrists and feet; it makes the bear seem far more dangerous, even though he's lost quite a bit of weight from his detention stay. Walken steps into view while speaking into a small radio, then gestures with a wave to have Pina approach. "You again? I see you more than I see my wife," he jokes. It's not the first time he's said that line. "Can't tell which is prettier anymore. Been spending too much time with these kids." What a dramatic sigh follows. "You know the drill, right? Don't make me have to fetch the rubber gloves. My wife would leave me." That's also not the first time that's been said. Walken the Red Panda still seems to think the lines are just as funny as ever, though. Pina waits around for a good few minutes, for Walken to well, walk his short self into the room. Pina is always amused by the man, even if his jokes are seemingly as stale as his intimate life. That is, if his jokes are to be believed. Pina's ego is stroked ever-so-slightly by the Panda's admission of Pina's beauty. That's how the sheep interpreted the joke, anyhow. "Go easy on me, Walken-kun~" More teasing, as he raised his arms for the pat-down. He would not be carrying much, his smartphone, stuck in the back pocket of his jeans, some keys, and a wallet. In his small bag, he was carrying not one, but two bottles of perfume, a bottle of water, a small bag of chips, and a nail-clipper. Only the absolute essentials. The red panda inhales deeply before letting it all out in a sigh. "Kids these days. Okay, over here," beckons the short stack as he hops up onto a stool next to a rolling cart. "Tsk, you know the rules, kid. Phone is okay. No glass. No blades. Drink is... Well, that's fine, but just leave your stuff in this bin and we'll lock it up for you here until you're done. Do I need to repeat the rules of visitation or do you know them well enough? I know you enjoy the sound of my voice, but I'd like to save some breath for when I get home to my wife. If I'm lucky, next Tuesday." It's the same as ever. Walken is nothing if not habitual, but maybe that's from his line of work. Some kids simply don't listen; ask him and he'll tell you as much. Of course, his wife doesn't listen, either, apparently, so where does that leave him? If you've done this twice, you've done it twenty times. Nothing changes. Same routine, same jokes. It's part of the...experience? "When you're ready and all set, just follow me and we'll head down to the cell. If you have any questions, now's the time. Feel free to be thoughtful, such as 'why does visitation overlap with lunch break', 'do you get paid enough to deal with awkward violent children', or 'do you even remember your wife's face'. I try to think about it now and all I see are sheep." Siiiiiigh. "Kids these days." "Understood, sir." He responded simply as the check concluded. He left his keys, wallet, and nail-clipper in the bin. "You're certainly not wrong about that, Walken-Kun. But I do believe that I remember what's expected of me, yes." Pina stretched out, yawning. "Would you please be my escort, then?" Pina would never want to be like this red panda, in a seemingly unhappy marriage -and- boringly repetitive. All the more reason not to marry, he thought. "You're not the first to tell me that, Walken-Kun~" In reference to the man's joke about perpetual sheep-seeing." As they walked, the dallhorn would decide on humoring the red panda, looking down and asking. "So, why -does- visitation overlap with lunch break?" "Okay, kid. Follow me." With a little hop, the red panda jumps down and begins to wander off in the expected direction. The place isn't a prison. There aren't barred gates blocking the way at every junction. There are a few secured doors to walk through, all of which open with a keycard easily enough, which soon leads to a hallway with a familiar door down the way on the right. "Well, it's all based on the conflict of new versus old schedules. See, back five years ago things were a bit more lax because we didn't have kids trying to take bites out of each other all the freakin' time, yet here we are and the reformation of policy dictates that visiting hours had to be shifted backward by two to maintain daylight hours with no risk of nightfall due to season, but the hours for meals stayed the same. Now, if I'm lucky I'll get to take a lunch sometime around dinner, but the kids we keep locked up here for their rehab -- you better believe they get to eat on time every d-" "Hold up," commands Walken as he stops. Down at the end of the hall, two figures round the corner. One is a rhino, the other is a bear. Only one is wearing manacles with a no-biting muzzle strapped to their face...and it's not the rhino. The bear doesn't even notice the red panda or the sheep at first. He's busy following the instruction of the rhino. However, when the brown bear does notice Pina down the way his expression seems to brighten, which makes him linger, which earns him an insistent push toward the open door and an annoyed chastisement. The bear likely offers an apology before disappearing within along with the rhino. A moment later, the rhino exits and the way is clear. "Just came from lunch," jokes the rhino. "At least he won't feel hungry." "Hoooh, interesting.." Pina mumbled in the middle of Walker's very long-winded explanation. The one interesting part about it was that the situation had seemingly gotten worse recently. Pina felt relief when the panda was interrupted by the big Rhino. At Riz's wave, Pina raised his hand as well, waving with his fingers, while putting on a smirk. They disappeared for a little bit, and the sheep smiled when the Rhino stepped out again. Said smile then vanished, at the officer's joke. "You should have a little faith in Riz-Kun, y'know.." He shook his head, wordlessly stepping past the man and into the visitor room. "Hey Riz, did you miss me?" He sighed, as he once again observed the partially restrained state of his friend. "It'll be nice to talk without you having that thing on.." Sure enough, there sits Riz the Brown Bear in his minimal yet high-visibility orange-colored detention clothing. Even with a muzzle strapped securely to his head, his resting smile can be seen through it, although it certainly feels genuine. "I didn't know if you would visit before the release date," he mentions, sitting upon the resting bench as usual with his well-trimmed clawed hands secured together on his lap. "But, I'm glad you did. My counselor has been hitting me with a bunch of questions that I 'should be thinking about'." The bear's head droops slightly, body language being very calm and passive especially with Pina present, and he idly rubs the fingers of one hand against the fingers of the other. "I, uh... Well, some of them involve you. I missed this year's Coming of Age Ceremony in January. But, uh..." Riz is being very reluctant to mention something, but Pina probably has a very good idea of what it might be. "Would you go to the next Fang Purification Ritual with me?" Something about his tone of voice makes it clear that this is something weighing heavily on his heart. "Be happy that you've been graced with my presence once more." With Pina, it can be hard to tell if he's kidding when he says stuff like that, but the sly wink seems to indicate that, in this case, he is. Without hesitation, the sheep walked over to the resting bench, plopping down next to Riz. "I can imagine, you're being bombarded with them, hmm?" Pina acknowledged, leaning the elbow of his slender arm on his thigh, and using his hand as support for his head. Pina seems amused at the bear's bashfulness, but lets him finish what he has to say. His brow furrows, and his legs cross when Riz gets the words out. "Hmm, that superstition?" he pauses, and closes his eyes. "..Yeah, okay. I'll help you out. It sounds important to you." It's obvious that he's not very invested in that event personally, but is willing to do it for his friend.. "If nothing else, I will look darn great in a Kimono~" "Why is it important for you?" The big bear seems to just stare down at his hands. "Well. I hurt you." That much is obvious. He did it in a way to manipulate that wolf, even though it didn't really work. "And you would only say yes if you forgave me." Riz turns his head to look down upon the sheep with his woolen locks. "Right?" That probably sounds selfish, or so the bear figures. It's not like it changes anything that happened. "But you don't have to, you know. There are going to be more important things to worry about. It's funny, isn't it?" The big guy looks away once more before sliding a foot along the smooth floor. "All I could ever really think about was getting out of here, but now that it's going to happen I kinda feel like I want to stay." Pina nods, though looks a little uncomfortable at the tense atmosphere. "I suppose so, yeah.." the sheep responded. "For what you did to me, at least- I'm not particularly bothered by the other things." He never was, really. Almost to an odd degree. By all means, he likely should be more disturbed by Riz's first crime, but he had always been able to almost brush it off. With another sigh, Pina spoke in his smooth voice. "Nah, it's fine. I should have the time anyways." The dallhorn shrugged, though then raised a worried brow. "Really? Are you nervous, or..?" For as much he is a great talker, Pina is less-great at heart-to-hearts "Well, you can't. And even if you could, I'm not gonna let you." A warmth spreads over Riz's face and his shy tension slowly ebbs away leaving the ever-chill big bear back to his usual relaxed self...at least around his friends, although Pina is the only one who ever visits so he can't imagine anybody else thinks highly of him anymore. He doesn't blame them. He's a monster, but at least he's comfortable with that knowledge now. "I thought you'd say as much. I have a parole officer assigned to me now. We're working on getting a job lined up for me, but I only want to work evenings and weekends so I can have time to go to school." Riz is far too relaxed at that notion, perhaps, compared to how reserved he seemed in discussing the Fang Purification Ritual. "My scholarship hasn't expired and the officer thinks we might be able to make it work." He hasn't specifically mentioned which school, though. "Do you think you'd come with me for my appointment with the Headmaster? My parole officer will be there, too, as a liaison." "A job, hmmm?" Pina thinks, inquisitively raising his head. "If that's what you want to do. It doesn't sound like the -worst- idea." With a chuckle, he looks toward the bear. "School though, yeah- Probably important. Do you think you can handle doing both at once? Sounds like a hassle.." Raising one of his slender legs, he crossed it over his other. Taking in Riz's words with a raised brow. "Hrmm..." Casting away his gaze for a few seconds, the handsome sheep hesitated. It sounded like a lot of work.. Thinking back on the words of Georgina, the reception lady, he sighed, and turned back. "Sure, I'll be there. Just let me know when~" Back to his usual charming self, it seems. "Why do you think that'll help, though?" "Well, you know me and you go to school there already." Riz can't possibly be talking about what he's implying, is he? There's no way Headmaster Gon would allow Riz to attend school at Cherryton after what happened, right? Even after detention and rehab? At one of the area's only remaining cohab schools between Carnivores and Herbivores? This is a monumentally bad idea. "Most of the students that knew me have graduated already or are fourth years. I've been keeping up with my studies here, so I can get instated as a fourth year, too." It's such an awful idea, yet the big bear seems oddly optimistic about it all. Even if Gon said yes, Riz would be facing more than just homework on work nights. He rubs his fingertips together as he rests his forearms on his thighs and offers the sheep one of his simple smiles. "You don't have to be there. I can understand if you wouldn't want to be. Chances are I will be laughed out of the school. That's okay, you know." His voice is soft yet direct. "Feared and hated as a dangerous Carnivore. It may be on my record now, but it's not new. Still, it might be best if you didn't see such humiliation. I still feel like I need to try." "Oh..." As the realization settled in, Pina kept silent with the rest of Riz's words. He smiled awkwardly, trying not to diminish the bear's optimism. There's no way the bear could manage that, right? Pina considered if he should try to convince him to pursue a different path.. But, no- He decided that would be too much effort. "W-Well.. Okay!" A non-confident sounding chuckle. "D-Do your best.. Don't be afraid of being humiliated in front of me, though- It's not going to change our friendship~" Trying his best to sound reassuring, he continued. "Naturally, I'll put in some good words for you.. Should be a breeze with me, really! People tend to have a hard time refusing me~" The dallhorn was mostly joking, though he knew that this could end poorly. But nonetheless, Riz was prepared to be refused, and that did put some of Pina's worries at ease. "Anything in particular you want me to say, when that time comes?" Drama students. Riz laughs a little and shakes his head. "I've had a long time to think about what I would do after getting out, but some things can't be rehearsed." There's a rattle of the wrist shackles on Riz's arms as his hands move over closer to Pina. One hand opens broadly, palm upward; his hands are huge. Sure, the bear is one of the larger stronger Carnivore families around, but being able to directly compare something as simple as hand size helps put things in tighter perspective. Riz is lonely. A desperate attempt to become closer to the first animal he truly cared about ended in tragedy. It was an animal that ended his loneliness, at least in part, and despite rehabilitation and medication it remains as one wound that won't ever fully heal. His guilt only makes the loneliness worse. Then there's Pina. For some reason, the sheep had taken the initiative to become closer to him. The visit given every other weekend has been a big blow against the monster of loneliness that hides deep inside the brown bear. Riz looks to Pina. Surely, Pina can see in Riz's dark eyes that the bear sees reflections of Tem with every glance. Tem and Pina are very different in personality, but the experiences shared between Riz and Pina have helped to lead to self-realizations. "I think you should say anything you think is best, when the time comes. I won't be allowed to join the clubs, I'm sure, but I was still hoping that if we went to the same school we could...hang out more?" Is Riz scared of being alone in an all-Carnivore school instead? Is that really such a terrifying thing? Pina has the slightest, instinctual urge to lean back as Riz's large hands got closer to him, but he resisted said urge. "Right.." He responded, somewhat sadly. The sheep's head was bowed down, ears drooping as an uncomfortable silence took hold for a fair few seconds. He looked back up toward Riz when the bear started talking, and pushed out a bright smile. "Well, I am in ~very~ high demand.." With a teasing tone, the sheep looked away, looking smug as he closed his eyes. "But -I suppose- that we could, yes. Otherwise you wouldn't have any friends! Now that would be sad, wouldn't it?" Pina winked coyly, before stretching his leg. "Very popular with the ladies," Riz agrees. It's one thing that Riz has never been known for. "But it's been so long that you've only seen me wearing this anti-bite mask. Would you even recognize me?" jokes the bear. His hand remains open, held out, but after a moment Riz gets the feeling he might be coming off as something less than friendly. Pina gets a short period in which to respond, though, when something unexpected happens. The lights suddenly go out. It's not just the lights. The low hum of ventilation becomes absent and the lights on the powered door locks go out. With a click. Riz glances toward the door in confusion at first, since the lights are controlled from outside the room. Pina, on the other hand, may have a hard time seeing anything at all. It's dark. There are no windows. The only light that makes it into the room are from underneath the secure door. In all of the times that Pina has visited, this is the first time that something like this has ever happened. Riz looks from the door to the sheep beside him. "Hrm? Yeah, I don't think I would have trouble- Ah?!" Pina emitted in surprise, his herbivore eyes unable to see much more then the the slight ray of light coming from below the door. "Lets hope everything is alright out there.. I don't much feel like getting stuck in here.." The sheep tried to remain calm, but he felt uneasy, nervous. "Has anything like this happened before?" Pina asked, subtly scooting a few centimeters away from Riz. It wasn't much of a conscious decision. It just kinda.. happened. The brown bear's gaze immediately notices the way the sheep pulls away from his close presence. It's a perfectly normal response from Herbivores. His manacled hands withdraw, no longer offering a hand to hold, while turning his head back toward the door. "Not that I know of," answers Riz regarding Pina's question. This is all very new. There is a rattle of chain as the bear stands up. Funny. In all the visits he's had with Pina over the months, he's always remained seated upon the sheep's arrival until his exit. This would be the first time he's risen, but the lights are off and darkness is blinding for Herbivores. Pina would at least be able to hear the big bear walk softly over toward the door, if just from the manacles on the bear's wrists jangling about. Riz does not open the door. He listens. At first, silence. Eventually, sparse talking down the hallway. The talking turns into feverish bootsteps as a few police animals run by heading in the direction of the front of the detention center. What few words are spoken don't really reveal much about what is going on. "Hrrmm..." The dallhorn grumbles, standing up as he hears the bear move- He can't exactly see in this darkness, yet he opts to follow the sounds of steps and manacles that follow the big bear's stride. Reaching out in front of him blindly, his hand eventually comes upon Riz's arm- where it then rests. He'd rather know where his friend is after all. Pina listens with Riz. He's not quite as close to the large door as his beary friend, but the heavy footsteps manage to reach his ears, and he lowers his voice to whisper to Riz. "...I think you'll agree that that sounds ~rather~ bad, no?" Pina's slender fingers curl into the bear's fur a bit more firmly. "I think we should wait it out.. This place seems pretty safe." Riz really doesn't want to risk leaving the confinement of the visitation room and be accused of trying to escape. Not when he's so close to actually being free. His lower jaw droops a bit, going partially slack as he feels the touch against his arm, but he doesn't have the time to smile. Instead, the dismal quietude of tension and mystery blanket the building and the small room within thicker than the darkness itself. It's hard to hear anything else. The walls are thick and made for holding the strongest of young animals; it's why Riz is here. They do a good job at muffling the details that come from the from of the juvenile detention complex. "You're right," agrees the bear with the smallest of frowns hidden by shadow and the bars of his muzzling anti-bite mask. "Whatever is going on, they'll be back to check on you soon." Check on Pina. The visitor. Not the convict. Somebody yells something unintelligible. KRAK!! A gunshot, muted as it may be, still rings true. In an instant, Riz is upon Pina. Hands bound as they may be, bear arms attempt to be flung over the sheep's head and horns as the bulk of the bear's body leans and turns in a way to protect his Herbivore friend from any danger. Unseen, the bear's eyes have widened. His chest heaves as he draws in more air. His body is thinner than it used to be, but his form is still a bit of a furnace. Elsewhere in the building, whatever danger is confronted is chased away. There is no more gunfire. No more yelling. Only silence and the dark and the sound of heavy breathing. Pina's ability to observe anything is considerably more limited in comparison to Riz, so he's naturally inclined to rely on the large bear's instincts. "I'm sure they will." Pina responded simply, still keeping his ears peeled. A soft sigh escapes the sheep's mouth. "What a pain.. I feel like I've wasted my time coming over here now.." Thinking aloud and without much of a filter, the sheep speaks. But he flinches noticeably as the muffled 'bang' rings through the detention center. His hand clenches around Riz's arm tighter, right before the large bear makes it his duty to protect Pina in his very direct way. The sheep tenses up, as large arms press against him. He doesn't exactly feel 'safe' here, but he remains motionless as silence comes to fall. While Riz's breathing is heavy, Pina's is almost nonexistent- Though not quite holding his breath. "H-Huh...." He finally grunts. A few more seconds pass. "...I think you can let go now." Follows. "You know, you could have just -asked- for a hug- I might have even indulged you, if you were lucky.." Despite the circumstance, Pina opts to joke. "Still though.. What the hell was that about?" Pina's banter is heard by the bear who stares down at the sheep in his arms, but the full scope of what is said may not completely register just yet. After but a moment longer, the lights come back on. The ventilation kicks in. The door locks beep twice, though not at the same time. The bear's face still holds some of that widened-eyed seriousness, although it quickly fades as Riz realizes just how closely he's holding poor Pina against his orange jumpsuit-covered front. He blinks twice, seems to relax a moment, then is about to say something in reply to the question presented...yet he is interrupted by the sound of quickly approaching footsteps. The brown bear tries to untangle his arms from around the sheep, but the chain on his manacles might get caught on the curvature of the sheep's horns in the hurry. If it's a danger, he has to be free to defend his friend. If it's a guard, he absolutely cannot be seen doing this. "Ah- Just hold still, let me--" As the bear somewhat clumsily tries to pull up his arms, the manacles scrape against Pina's large horns. "Careful, you idiot!" With some careful maneuvering, Pina twists his head in such a way as for the clanking chains to have a free route upward. He is still reliant on Riz moving his arms away from him, but when he does, Pina would break away from the bear's orange jumpsuit and take a calculated pair of paces away from the bear, so that they are at a 'safe' distance- Hopefully just in time for whatever is coming down the hall to not have seen their little struggle. The footsteps stop in front of the door just as Pina retreats a short distance away leaving the bear to be right there when it opens. He stands there, arms loosely resting at his lower front, unsure what to expect. His eyes have to lower. It's Walken the Red Panda! Riz looks relieved. The Red Panda notices. "All right, all right. Back up, bear." The panda doesn't enter. He observes from the doorway and clearly seeks to peer over to gage Pina's status even as Riz takes a step back and to the side. "You okay? Sorry to leave you two unattended. Something came up. Guess lunch break is going to have to wait a bit longer. Well, my lunch break." "Is everything okay?" asks the bear. "We heard a gun." "Ah, Walken-San. Thanks for coming to our rescue~" Pina muses half-jokingly, though pauses for a moment. "For real though, what the big boy asked- Everyone out there okay? That sound scared the bear half to death, I believe." Even if he had the subtlest smirk, the sheep's question was a genuine one. "But, yes, I am perfectly fine, thanks." Walken takes a moment longer -- just a beat or two -- to examine the youths with a professional eye. No jokes; just genuine observation. He nods to himself, hands resting at his belt, before pulling a hand away to point over to the seating bench in the visitation room. "All right, I need you to take a seat. Just humor me." The protective bear complies, slowly and predictably moving, sitting once again with a creak of protest from the barely cushioned platform. "Right, right. There was a bit of an incident. Nothing to worry yourselves over. I'm going to stay here until Mathisen returns." That must be the rhino. "Then you can decide if you want to continue your visit or not. When you're ready to leave, though, and -- it's up to you, but you should listen to me, even if my wife doesn't -- you should let one of our officers drive you to your destination." Riz glances between Walken and Pina with some amount of worry despite wearing gear that makes him look so menacingly dangerous. "It's okay if you want to go now. Just be here when they release me in a week?" | ||
