Quinnitiation (Tempy & Charity)

[Andreas Ivaring]

I know those bitches.

The both of them.

They think they're so smart. So intelligent. So great at what they do. Oh. Let's pick on people who are a bit slower than we are. That's a great idea.

But they're nothing. They're nothing at all. They rely on barraging you with-- with a whole cornucopia of words. The two of them. Alternating back and forth. But what will they be when they find out someone holds out on their own, without any backup? Nervous. That's what they'll be.

And I'm going to seize that moment. I'm going to seize that moment and finally put them in their place.

But he wasn't going to initiate. No. He was going to look like the martyr, the victim, the one who was only defending himself, even if it was just verbally. He set himself up to look like a pretty deliberate target. It was him, eating alone in the cafeteria, in his own seat. Predators liked to pick on those that were alone, he learned that one from experience. And the 'fairer sex' bull was what protected them from a lot of backlash, if he had to hazard a guess.

Nah, he wasn't afraid of lashing at any girls, why should he be? If they deserved it, they deserved it, as good as any. And, the way Andreas was figuring, the rap sheet of things to make fun of him for were long enough to draw anyone like flies to a buzzer. Anti-social? The one time he stretched his power too far for the purpose of training, and wound up laughing and crying up a storm all the way back to his dorm? Hell, if one was petty enough, they could go down to how he dressed.

And he was ready. He told himself he was ready for this. The last thing he'd need to happen while he set this in motion was for someone like Dr. Neville to just figure out what he was thinking. Because that would not only end things, but honestly be a bit embarrassing for him.

Come on, you can't resist it, you little she-devils...

[Deleted]

It was true that the girls picked their targets very carefully. Temperance would scan the area, pick out someone, and Charity would either agree or disagree. Easy targets, indeed. Find someone with that subdued posture of low confidence; clear signs in their appearance that would be cause of self-image and -esteem issues; age could be a factor, though it was funner to get the better of older students; most importantly, they had to lack the will to fight back yet still provide a satisfying response.

After all, they were bored and this was for entertainment. Nothing more.

The fact that they picked the one they did was just coincidence. There had been many options, many potential targets and the girls basically flipped a mental coin which landed them on exactly the one who wanted to be found.

That is to say, this boy wasn't all that special expect for maybe being "lucky".

With their own lunches in hand, the two girls strolled confidently through the refectory, in a matching jeans and shirt combo. This was one of the days when they went out of their way to look identical, with nothing at all to distinguish the two of them. Upon finding their target, they moved in tandem with each other until they reached the table. Then, in a synchronized movement, they sat down at the same time, Charity on the boy's left and Temperance on the boy's right.

That was all they did though. For the moment.

[Andreas Ivaring]

It didn't entirely surprise him, what they'd done. He figured they'd do all of their scoping out from across the room, like cowards. But here, the sharks swam forward, without so much as releasing the tightness in their jaws. Over the time that he had 'studied' them, their tactics, especially with that one girl however many months ago, Andreas came to realize what he should do.

Dismiss, then bite back. This wasn't something that was really unique to the Quinns, he'd done this more than a few times prior. Bullies always liked to see the fruits of their labor. They liked to see frustration, anger, anything. But all Andreas would give off over the next few minutes? Boredom. He'd show them they not only have no effect on him with their 'bouncing back and forth' effect, but he was just entirely unfazed.

But the second issue to that tactic really only depended on the recipient. There were those who tried to hard to be 'bored', but really just came off silently flustered. That's what people went for, that's what people thrived on. Andreas got really good at only being angry when he wanted to (Though, he wouldn't admit, those who /knew/ him could get under his skin. Accidentally, too.)

He lifted his sandwich, a simple little BLT. One glance to his left, one glance to his right, and he just took a bite, business-as-usual. He wondered if that would start up their words, if now was the time that they'd want to go for it. He kind of wanted to hear it first hand, how they did things knowing they had a twin with the same thought pattern on the other side of them.

That 'twintuition' that people liked to talk about? Andreas was aware of plenty of gestalts here. The Bishops, the Quinns. They all displayed it. Finishing each others sentences was second nature, and could probably be done from across the institute, if he had to guess.

[Deleted]

The girls started their meal silently, seemingly ignoring the boy centered between them. They were still subtly gather intelligence, after all. Since they had picked their target, they now had to find his openings, those sensitive and vulnerable spots that he would no doubt give away under the pressure of being sandwiched in between the mischievous duo.

He seemed a poor boy, under those sad excuses for clothing. Quiet and non-confrontational. His choice of lunch wasn't anything special, but not really something unique enough to slight.

It was probably a full three minutes before one of them opened her mouth to speak. "Excuse me, but why are you still here? Can't you see you're in our way?"

"You have our permission to take your leave. Now scurry off, like your fellow vermin."

Not once did they raise their eyes from their meals.

[Andreas Ivaring]

"Sorry, this isn't your rich daddy's house in England." He replied, taking another bite out of his sandwich. Maybe one of the first in the school, he wasn't at all intimidated, his mood didn't seem to waver one bit. He swallowed the mixture of bacon and a few vegetables and sandwich spreads.

"But I like the attempt at a royal attitude. Were you royal, you'd still only be as important as the man who presents you." It probably would have sounded incredibly sexist, but really, he didn't care at this point. Such concepts were just going to be more reasons for people to demonize him. As far as he was concerned, being a girl didn't make you free from insult.

Again, he took a bite of his sandwich. Not once did he show the desire to get up from the table, nor did his brow twitch from the 'vermin' insult. As far as Andreas saw, he was in control of this one. He initiated, they reacted.

As in, he initiated by being there. They reacted by sitting by him, insulting him, hoping to get under his skin. He initiated yet again by ignoring them, followed by a quick, biting insult at their value and station in life. They seemed to have a bloated sense of self-worth.

[Deleted]

To be fair, the Quinns fathers were not rich nor did either of them come from particularly rich homes. They were, however, very hard workers in their respective fields. One was an artist, a painter, and so was able to spend his time at home with the twins and raise them. The other a broker who, while still worked long hours during the week, was at least able to show his affections through showers of gifts. They lived in a moderate sized home for their family, had a dog, two cars, and a lot of time on their hands.

The girls rarely ran on emotions in their bullying. While they did have them and expressed them often enough, especially where the other twin was concerned, they were not ones to let the uncooperativeness of their victims perturb them. The Quinns simply got bored and moved on. If they could not find their entertainment one place, however brief, then they would find it elsewhere.

Their first thought upon hearing this boy's response was that he was trying to goad them into an unseemly bout of defensiveness. How pointless. Though they would give the child an amount of credit for his attempts. It was more than many others did. "Look at that. The rodent can speak."

"A brave one, it seems."

"Unfortunately, a rat will always be a rat. No matter who it presents."

"Indeed."

"Even one which performs tricks like a circus mouse."

"Especially those, I say."

They still did not regard the nuisance with a glance.

[Andreas Ivaring]

Their attempt at derision and belittling was actually really entertaining. He didn't know these girls, but if they attempted to claim that they had any sort of humility, that they were humble at all, he'd have to laugh in their face. He did let out a chuckle, just to let them know that what they were trying wasn't going to work, though, depending on how stupid the target, they'd sometimes take that as a 'keep going' green light.

"You're worse than that Stafford guy." He simply replied, with another snide chuckle. "Do you come from some sort of status, or is this to just make up for something?" He knew what that tactic would have sounded like in an emotionless light. There was such a bad habit that people had, they would respond to any bullying as a moral crusader. Andreas? No, he knew that was ineffective and laughable, he just analyzed people, and verbally took notes.

Their accents obviously showed that they weren't from here. His very first guess was some sort of homesickness, maybe not for the place they lived, but for their family. That happened, sometimes. He wasn't going to let any theories out just yet, or it'd seem like he was fishing for some sort of reaction. It'd be way too obvious. The best bet with people like these was to react, but only just enough. Just enough to show off that hook with the bait, and bring the fish closer to it.

God, he really needed a hobby. This was how he had his fun. Instead of doing something like the Chess Club, or more casual reading, he instead spent it hunting down the Quinns, keeping notes on them like they were some sort of wild animal and he was Steve Irwin. Oh well, Andreas figured, better to just let these efforts come to fruition.

[Deleted]

They made no comment over the comparison, especially since the boy did not specify which Stafford brother he meant. However neither, in their eyes, were worth the Quinns affection. One looked like a 30 year old student while the other tried too hard. They may have been born into money, but that clearly did not buy them class.

The boy's next question, and assumption, was incorrect as well. However, Charity could see why he might think so. These few exchanges had learned the girls that this particular victim was no victim which indicated that their efforts should thus cease. Charity didn't even bother sending her dumb sister a glare for not properly weeding out this target that was no target. However, she would have to forgive him, for it seemed he had at least some sliver of intelligence and sense. Not like the red-haired chocolate-loving freak who thought that laughing was the most effective way to respond. All that did was label her as a fool, too much of one to even realize she was being disparaged.

Temperance slid an eye across to focus on her sister for a moment, then shifted back to her meal with a barely noticeable scowl. How was she supposed to know this guy was a troll? Gestaltism gave them intelligence, not the ability to read minds! "Neither," she said reluctantly. She wasn't happy with what Charity decided and stood from her seat, grabbing her tray and leaving. Temperance dumped the rest of her barely eaten food in the trash and exited the refectory.

Charity never looked up as she left. That girl had gone and embarrassed herself by throwing such a tantrum. It did not even deserve recognition.

"You're clever," she stated. "Apologies for our misreading." She set down her utensil and took some of her drink.

[Andreas Ivaring]

He took another bite of his unsubstantial, forgettable meal, he tossed a brief look as one of the two up and left. It was funny to him, really. For all of those introspective moments of how sad it must have felt that this was his only way of really having fun in life, these moments made it far too worth it. It was really easier than he thought, a few smart comebacks and they were already about to abandon him like he was covered in bubos.

"It looks like the great and powerful Quinns aren't really all they're cracked up to be, huh?" He first replied, really just kicking the downed dog, so to speak. Right in the ribs. "That didn't really take long at all. I thought you'd at least put up some more insults, some more of a fight. I guess I was wrong." He shot her a false frown.

He was rather taken aback at the apology, though. It wasn't exactly an apology in the typical sense. It was more of an admission of being wrong. His notes didn't account for that at all. For all of his studying, these two seemed so true in their convictions. But then again, he only really saw them when they were piranhas on a carcass incapable of dealing with them. And the only tactic anyone tried against them was the typical anti-bully stuff that just never worked.

"Yeah, whatever, thanks." Was all she got in return. It brought him a great deal of pride, but pride was a deadly, and oh-so-exploitable sin. He'd always try his best to hide it, even if it never /really/ worked. He'd just do his best to deflect people trying to take advantage of it, and go punch a wall a few hours later.

"My suggestion to you." He spoke up, not even sure if the girl was staying around. "Is to get a little bit better at the 'defense' side of things, or else people will latch on to that and eat you alive. Just my two cents."

[Deleted]

Had Temperance been the one to receive that comment, she most certainly would have said something foolish. That was why Charity insisted she leave. The more outspoken girl had already been caught off guard by their "target's" way of fighting back, was subjected to her sister's disappointment, didn't agree at all with Charity's approach on the matter and so was silently asked to leave so as not to cause a scene to further disgrace the diabolical duo.

"There is no pleasure in engaging in a conflict that will, at best, end in a draw." This boy was clearly trying to egg her on, to try and incite a defensive response. No, since the offensive had not proved effective, it was best to let it be, lest he draw out of them more than they wished to reveal. It was always fun to induce a response, but the Quinns were not gamblers and did not fight battles they had no guarantee of winning. Some may call that cowardly, but to them it was smart. There was no point in engaging just to satisfy a threatened ego. If only some of their victims could practice such behavior, they might have been left alone sooner.

Charity smiled as he gave his suggestion. Clearly he'd nailed their weakness quite easily. She was right in labeling this one a smart one. The casual stuff would not work for him, oh no….if they wanted to punish this little boy for his impotence, then they would have to depend on strategy rather than the usual direct approach that they were known for. "Dually noted. Your input is much appreciated." Charity made no effort to move from that spot, determined to take the loss gracefully and complete her meal before bidding her lunch companion farewell. She would not storm off in a huff like her obscene sister had.

[Andreas Ivaring]

She talked like she had such a stick up her ass. It was really kind of amusing. It was that egotistical tone, the one he was so familiar with using. That, even in defeat, even in a moment of humility, it had to be used to save some face. Too many times he failed, and had to go ahead and use that. So, when she mentioned that what he said was duly noted, he just chuckled. They'd either evolve and try him again, or just leave him alone. He was really assuming it was the latter.

Because that's how pride worked when it was damaged, as far as Andreas saw it, every time he failed, every time someone brushed him off, he wanted to engage them further. He wanted to get that reaction, or he wanted to find a way to beat their defenses down. He was going to watch himself around these girls. It was a sort of rivalry. Ivaring and Quinn. And he was going to be glad, no, /honored/ to have it.

Because everyone here was far too easy, so far. The few people he messed with either gave that tirade of typical anti-bully sentiments, about how he was spoiled, or neglected. And he hazarded a guess that they went through the same thing. He hovered the sandwich in front of his mouth, and took another bite.

"You have my permission to take your leave~." He stated, heavily mocking their accents.

[Deleted]

For smart ones like this, should the girls choose to engage, it would take a lot more planning than just the simple, straight-forward approach. Already Charity's mind was in the works, assessing her new enemy, for that indeed was what he was, and enemy and one who seemed intent on making a fool of the girls. Temperance might easily fall into that trap unless she was properly prepared. Charity was far more composed than her sister.

Charity merely smiled when he gave her permission to leave, amused by the simpleness of his mockery. It was so low-level, really Charity hoped he could do better than that.

She did not, however, make a move to leave until her plate had been cleared. Because wasting food was also unsightly. She'd have to have a talk with Temperance about that too.

When she finally did rise, Charity kept her head held high and the gentle smile on her face. "It was nice chatting with you. As a parting gift, here's some advice for yourself," she started, panning her deep brown eyes down on the rugged boy. "They say the best defense is a good offense. You might want to work on yours." She gave a final nod before stepping away with all the grace of a debutante.