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SABL (Ashen Wolf x LittleCloud)

The debrief with the rest of team SABL went smoothly enough and compared to the biting winds of the tundra the heated meeting room with its round white table and matching see-through plastic chairs was downright luxurious, there was even coffee waiting for them when they arrived (it was probably a good idea to keep Lilac away from that). Henri stayed quiet and let Sable do the talking to explain their half of the mission and nobody thought this was particularly weird, he was the leader after all. The rest of the debrief?

That's when it got weird.

They did and they didn't find the missing Dust shipment, the Ursa ate it and not only that but the monster had somehow managed to metabolise the substance, not only weaponising it but rendering immune to the same and that was before even getting into its stubborn refusal to start disintegrating after it was defeated. After all was said and done the team were told to keep everything that they'd discussed to themselves before being dismissed, which for ABL meant that they could finally retreat to their dorm but for Sable it just meant....

"Sable! It's so good to see you!" Penny squealed brightly as she saw Sable approach, throwing her arms open to embrace him in a too tight hug and practically lifting him off of the ground "I hope you had a fun time with friends, Ciel can't wait to hear all about it!"

Of course behind the door Ciel Soleil was looking far less enthusiastic than Penny had implied, regarding him with cold professional indifference from one end of the briefing room's table (this one had no coffee at all), her pristine blue and white uniform marking her out as some other part of Atlas' bureaucratic machinary. "I'm sure you already know why you're here." She began, Penny take up a position standing behind her "Care to explain yourself?"
 
"...Something... like that..." Sable groaned, feet dangling above the tile. "Bleh..."

Sable could swear he could hear his spine shattering in two places. His redheaded supervisor didn't seem like much but her strength could move mountains when she got into it. Unfortunately for him, she really enjoyed getting into it. The small mercy here was that nobody was watching; he was sure that Lilac still thought that he and Penny were dating, and there was no doubt the purple-haired shortstack wouldn't let such an intense hug slide--especially since Sable was kind of leery about people touching him without permission.

His toes touched the ground and his torso hung limply and breathlessly, not entirely used to supporting itself once again. He stretched his back by drawing his elbows behind him, straightened out his wrinkled uniform, and walked in.

"Wow. Not even asking how my day went? Cold," Sable quipped dryly as he pulled up a seat at the table. She was one of Penny's teammates, but Sable was only passingly familiar with Ciel Soleil; Penny was the monitor who worked most directly with him. No doubt she knew more about his case file than he knew about her. She was pretty though. Shame about that stern expression on her face.

"Well, Operative Tortuga did say to keep my mouth shut about the mission," he smirked, "And good soldiers follow orders, am I right?"

A beat passed.

"Worth a shot," Sable shrugged. He leaned back in the chair, hugging his arms behind his head nonchalantly. "Someone decided to pick a fight, so I clapped back. Can I go now or are you just keepin' me here 'cause you have a thing for bad boys, Miss Soleil?"
 
Ciel observed Sable with an impassive expression that somehow still managed to convey a sense of superiority, it was a look that he would have seen a lot since being sent to Atlas, all she really wanted was to be done with this debrief as quickly and as smoothly as possible but it looked like Sable was going to dash those hopes in very short order. Letting out a sigh she steepled her hands in front of her and sighed.

"And that someone was not a target authorised by the Academy or by Operative Tortuga and your location means that the number of people who fit that designation is severely limited. We both know the particulars of your specific 'arrangement' so I would appreciate it if you could please cut the bravado and cooperate."

She purposefully reached under the table and produced her scroll, activating the glowing rectangle and letting one hand rest on the touch screen, she didn't really want to have to do anything that was going to make this interaction any less pleasent for either of them but Ciel Soleil was a very busy woman and she would if she had to and she wanted Sable to know that too.
 
"Yeah? Well, when your boots are on the ground and the snow's in your eyes, a sword to the face looks kind of like a pen on a permission slip," Sable shot back snidely. He never liked that look, even when it was coming from a looker like Ciel. Alas, it seemed that even his roguish charm wasn't enough to subvert the beret-wearing operative. Rather than any multitude of cute, funny, or otherwise agreeable reactions, Ciel Soleil decided to bring out the big guns: a scroll rigged to the control panel of his collar.

"You're no fun, Miss Soleil," the faunus crossed his arms. Sable's poker face was impeccable, but you didn't need to be a skilled gambler to tell that he had no cards here. Every single one was in the hands of the dark-skinned operator seated across from him. "But you do know how to make a very Mantlesian argument."

"So? What do you want to know?" He paused, then shook his head. "Actually, screw that-- You've probably read all my teammates' files. So here's what I want to know: how come I'm the only one with the collar when I've got a teammate who's willing to stab her leader at the drop of a hat?"
 
"So it was Miss Bronze." Now they were getting somewhere. Ciel's fingers danced across the glowing screen of her Scroll, no discplinary shock was forthcoming, instead she was simply taking notes, maybe she'd have enough time to finally eat something after all. "The Academy is aware of her...condition. Given the nature of the situation this isn't going to be held against you, however neither you or her were reported as having any serious injuries and that's despite your unsactioned actions. All we need is an explanation of what occured between the two of you and confirmation of your teammate's current..." Ciel paused for a second, she had absolutely read all of SABL's files but they didn't exactly come with a glossary "...demeanor. Then you're free to go."

Of course the answer to Sable's question was very Atlasian, money and status, the Bronze family were not only wealthy but their arms manufacturing business gave them a direct channel to the upper echelons of the military. Of course their little girl didn't have to wear a collar, even if she had a body count of her own.

While this was all going on Penny was unusually passive, simply standing by Ciel and watching the pair of them talk back and forth, only the rising and falling of her chest and the occasional blink giving any sort of indication that there was anything going on behind those bright green eyes.
 
"C'mon. If that was the kind of shit you wanted to know, you could've just talked to the big guy," Sable grumbled. If Tortuga was in his chair, everyone would've been much happier. Being a bit peckish didn't bother the faunus all too much, but having to answer the government's annoying questions did. It made him feel like a snitch, even if he was only snitching on himself.

"'No news is good news', am I right?" he muttered sarcastically. Now here was where things got a touch more difficult. No way he could just tell them that he face-fucked her into submission, but there were enough sensors in the band around his neck that he couldn't just play it off so simply... Or could he? Sable shrugged carelessly. "As it turns out, we have a lot in common: we take the same classes, we like long hikes in the snow, and we've both got plenty of blood on our hands. Not each others', of course," he raised his palms and shook out his jazz hands. "A murderess can be very agreeable when you're both surrounded by big guns and bigger teeth, but a gentleman doesn't kiss and tell."

He winked at Ciel. Although he played it off as a joke, it was actually the closest thing to the truth, sort of.

"Anyway," the bemused expression on his face dropped. He put his elbow on the table and leaned his cheek against his palm. "She's fine. I mean, have you seen her? She looks like a mouse could knock her down, let alone a Grimm. Pretty sure Seaweed would've put it in his report if she started stabbing folks in the Bullhead." He started to get up from his seat, unilaterally confident that his explanations were good enough to allow for his release. "You sure you want me to go, Miss Soleil?" he asked, unable to resist trying to fluster his warden. "I have my lunch hour free~"
 
Ciel tapped away at her Scroll as Sable explained his side of the situation, barely bothering to look up from the glowing screen while she was drafting the bones of the report that would eventually find its way on to some superior's desk, except to shoot him one last appraising looking and was that the beginning of a smile forming at the edge of her lips? Whatever it was it was quickly stamped out, replaced by that professional mask that members of the Atlasian hierarchy all seemed to be so adept at, either way she seemed to buy what he was selling.

"You can go now Mr Grey." Ciel quickly rose to her feet, snapping her Scroll shut and readjusting her beret "And might I suggest that you reread the Academy's regulations on fraternisation? Penny you can show him out."

"Yes Ma'am!" Sable's warden suddenly sprung back in to life, offering a cheery salute as Ciel made for the door herself "Lets go Sable!"

The whole debrief hadn't been completely text book but it had gone smooth enough for the operatives liking, though she very much doubted that Sable was actually going to take her suggestion for reading material seriously which was maybe why the rhythm of lessons and homework and sparing of the next few days would be interrupted by a message on his Scroll. The contents of the message wasn't too remarkable just a link to a section of the Special Operative Cadets Operations & Regulation Manual but perched at the top of that rather innocuous message did come the Scroll handle for one Ciel Soleil...
The remainder of the week went by with nothing much to comment on, at least by the standard of a military academy for heavily armed super-powered children but soon enough it was the weekend and it was time to claim the spoils of Lilac's victory over Alex, a trip down to Mantle! Meeting down at one of the Academy's hangars Lilac and Henri accompanied their leader, one in a baggy hoodie as gleefully pink as her own cotton candy hair and the other in a floor length skirt and green cardigan giving her the look of a nervous librarian, still clutching her cane close like a security blanket and as for 'Ms Aegean'...

~Flashback~

"So I can finally get some peace and quiet to myself or I can come slumming it on the ground with you? Oh you're serious, let me laugh harder."

~Flashback~

"Hey guys! Over here!" Wanda called out, waving excitedly by the open door of a cargo Bullhead flanked by the rest of her team (except for Daisy who was leaning against the hull of the airship and chugging from a thermos of coffee) "Ready to have some real fun?"
 
As the trio approached, Sable typed out a text message onto his scroll: Stay close. Avoid trouble. Click. Send. Henrietta's scroll buzzed. She got the message, and she'd get the message.

"I dunno, Wanda," the faunus glanced up from his device and tucked it in his back pocket. "Did we fill out enough paperwork to have fun?"

Everyone knew what he meant, but while most of the others had to fill out all the fun and engaging standard release forms that Atlas Academy required for off-campus excursions, he (and Henrietta, he wagered) had a much more daunting mountain to summit. Even with the collar around his neck feeding positional, biometric, and who knew what else straight to the scrolls of Penny and Ciel (and who knew who else!), he still had to sign off on all the creative threats and consequences that legalese could muster, provide an in-depth report on what his expected itinerary was, compose a report on what he actually ended up doing, and so. Much. More.... What a nightmare!

But that was a problem for the Sable of the past and the Sable of the future. He was Sable of the present, and Sable of the present was ready to spend a weekend outside of the hallowed halls of Atlas Academy. He still had his misgivings about going down to Mantle, but at least he didn't have to worry about being recognized. There were plenty of very good reasons for this, but the most important one was his outfit.

Unlike the others, Sable didn't managed to pack a new set of clothes while he was chilling in a detention cell, so the school supplied him with some. Unfortunately for him, If it wasn't the clothes he was wearing when he got caught, it was something out of the school store. Thus, losing the tie and replacing his vest with a school sweatshirt was the extent of his casual dress. Needless to say, he felt a bit frumpy and overdressed. 'Brothers, I'm just asking to get mugged,' Sable thought. 'I feel sorry for the poor bastard who tries.'

"Sadly, our fourth decided to come down with something instead of coming down with us," he joked, gesturing to the empty spot where Meg ought to have been. "Ironic, I know. You'd think someone who wears a mask would take better care of herself." He climbed into the Bullhead first, slotting himself right between Alex and Daisy.
 
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