When the night falls

Jay leaned onto the railing of the roof as he took a look at the night air. He missed the city view and how the cars and street lights would basically be at a standstill in his eyes. But now, all there was in front of him was snow, clear white snow and an open field. It didn’t matter though because Jay could let the vision of the city lights and cars envelope his imagination as his thoughts drifted to many things that would come to mind back when he had these moments where all he could do was think, not letting to cold air bother him since he was so used to it already.

In his ears, was a pair of earphones that were playing the contents of his music player, which was mostly an instrumental with a hook. The instrumental was not like Jay’s regulars which mainly revolved around bass and snare, this one had a bit of a more night fall feel to it, mixing a bit of the urban style with just a splash of techno to go with it, this might have even been appropriate for a rave party if they were a bit calmer than usual.

Jay just let his head bob a little to go with the rhythm of the music, the perfect type to think with. Without realizing it at first, Jay’s thoughts drifted towards a girl he once knew a long time ago that he got along with quite well, but she sort of… lost herself. These memories started to drift itself into verses as he couldn’t help but express himself through them when listening to instrumentals like this, usually by means of rapping, but this time, it was almost like he was singing.

“When the night falls
She had the call of the street life
See the flicker of the street lights
Wanna know what it be like when it be right... there.
Black lipstick, tattoos of the peace sign
Plus the mark of the beast sign oh night please be kind
Baby girl has no... fears.
Tight clothing…
Blowing cigarette smoke in slow motion
Heart full of love potion but it’s frozen
Thinks the world´s so insincere
Now she dancing with strangers
She don´t know the name of
The city has claimed her but she doesn´t care....”

The wind blew sharply along the roof of Briggs as Daigoro Ito stood atop it. He looked over the horizon and smiled. He loved it here - he really did. It was a beautiful place, and despite the cold, he enjoyed the isolation. That, and the woman he loved lived here too. He walked along the roof, until song flew over his ears. His eyes perked up, and he recognised the figure leaning against the railing. It was Jay, their head of Defense. He smirked, and walked over to the man with a small smirk, leaning on the railing next to him. He laughed slightly, and tilted his head, inspecting the other man's face.

"You have a good voice - why are you in the military? I mean, you could go out and perform, you could tour the world." He laughed softly, and nodded at the man, before turning around and leaning back against the railing.

"Your voice... It sounds sad. As if you loved and lost years ago, y'know? Oh, sorry for prying. I didn't mean to..." He sighed, and stood back up straight, taking in the sights that had marvelled him a number of times. His eyes were drawn to the mountain where they had hidden the Philosopher's Stone, it was easily recognised by him, and would always haunt him. If they needed it again... He sighed again.

As the music continued to play with Jay pretty much completely lost into it, he soon started to hear what seemed like muffles to him that he was sure wasn’t coming from the instrumental if the guys who made it knew anything about recording. Feeling someone beside him, Jay let his eyes drift over to the left side without moving before going back to the view in front of him, turning down his music so that he could hear the words being spoken to him clearly. He couldn’t help but let out a light chuckle of the situation ‘The irony…’

It was none other than the rumored “lover” of the General of the Brigg Brigade. The one who told him that he should think of working a bit better before making a pass at her. This place was just dripping with an ironic atmosphere all of a sudden. Jay didn’t bother to get upset or anything, at least not yet, his late night mellow attitude couldn’t bear the disturbance perhaps he could put this guy to the test soon enough though.

The young solder just let out a sigh as he said with a low voice “Being in the military was never really my own choice…” JAy really did want to preform in alot of places and maybe get his usual genre of music to the fame it should be but it was either be in the military or die so he pretty much chose the military, as for his past friend... well, that wasn't a subject Jay liked getting into with people he barely knew so he was going to ignore his statement. Jay would then go on to receive an idea on how to confirm his suspicions though. “By the way… you and the general, word on the street is you guys are pretty tight. Like real tight, if you get my drift. That how it is?”

The redhead turned to Jay questioningly. He knew exactly what he meant. He didn't want Jay to mean it that way, but it seemed that he wouldn't have the chance of changing his mind. Jay knew something. Dai's eyes narrowed. What did he know? He leaned onto the railing, and looked over the edge, a small smile on his face. No, there was nothing between them. No matter how much he willed it, only action would capture the General's heart. And he was too scared to even face that. Dai yawned, and then looked at the man, serious in his words.

"Reila and I are friends. That's all. There's nothing going on between us, and we aren't 'tight', like you say we are..."

"That said..." The Ishvallan rolled out of his mouth naturally, and he sighed deeply. Leaning over the railing, hanging his arms over the edge was something he did often, and something he enjoyed doing. But this was getting on his nerves.

I may love her, but how do I know if the feeling's mutual? I mean, she could hate my guts for all I know...

Jay didn’t really show much bodily response to being told that he considers them to be just friends. It wasn’t that it made him particularly happy nor did it raise his suspicions at all. Dai’s response did however give him a bit of curiosity in a sense though but that was another matter. What were his feelings on the general? He didn’t know her at all or anything like that so it wasn’t like he had any real ties with her so why was his curiosity so peaked. Jay shrugged it off for the time being, the subject will show back up when it would be most convenient.

For now, Jay’s only movements were just placed his hands in his pockets, not taking his eyes away from the sites in front of him. It was then he heard something else from him in a native language. Which one was that again? Oh yes, Ishvallan. Jay wasn’t all that fluent in it, but since his mother had Isvallan in her family tree, it would go down to the generations and she would use it at times, letting Jay sponge off of it since he was a child so though he didn’t speak it, he understood the language quite well. “What about being said?”

He turned slightly towards the man. So, he understood Ishvallan? Fair enough, that mean that Xan wasn't the only other one. But he didn't seem to speak it. Again, fair enough. He smiled softly, and leant back against the railing once more, looking up towards the sky. With a small sigh, he spoke, the Ishvallan ringing clear into the night sky.

"She may not know it, but I'm horribly in love with the General. I just... don't know how to put it in wods, or understand what her reaction might be. I may sound like a hypocrite, especially after I warned you off her in the first place, but I don't know anymore. I want to say something... But I can't. I just can't..." He hung his head, and shook it. Explaining things to Jay? That was a real downer. He smiled to himself and sighed, before standing up and walking into the middle of the roof that they stood atop. He needed to clear his head, he really did.

Some might think that Jay should be shocked at news like this in the situation as it was now. At first, Dai just shrugged off an earlier question like it was nothing and was now claiming that he was madly in love with her. But in all honesty, Jay wasn’t upset, angry or even shocked at the news. As a matter of fact, Jay simply smiled as he slowly but surely put the words together in his only semi Ishvallan head. Jay wasn’t exactly sure if his reaction was that of a normal one or that of just someone who’s confused but he couldn’t help but do it.

Time just went a bit further as Jay’s smile turned to that of a chuckled and then on to a full blown laugh, not hysterical but it was a bit more than a chuckle. Once he was done, Jay took It upon himself to lean on the rail, taking a quick turn to see the man behind him and then going back to watching the sites in front of him. “If you truly mean what you say then you don’t know the first thing about love. It’s a lot more than just meeting a hot girl and then knowing her enough to see you like her personality and what she stands for.”
Jay shook his head as he leaned in a bit further. “It’s about a connection that truly means that you two cannot be apart for too long. It’s like finding your other half and the competition of your life by just looking at her.” Jay just let out a pretty deep sigh as he turned around once again, keeping his right hand on the railing as he took another look at Dai, giving him a quick nod with a serious expression on his fate. “But if you truly believe what you say, fight me right here and now.”

"Fight me right here and now."

He turned towards the man, confused slightly. A fight? He chuckled. Especially since Jay's idea of Dai's love was completely and totally WRONG.

"You may not know that much, seeing as you haven't seen enough of our battles, but Reila and I... have been though so much together. I don't know how to describe it, Jay. I really don't." He shook his head and laughed.

"And we've gotten out of it with our heads held high. This isn't a silly crush. It's not infatuation. And I'll prove it to you. You want to fight? I'll fight you. And I won't go easy..." He pushed back from the railing, and took a few steps back. Pity - he hadn't stocked wolfsbane today. He sighed, and stood up straight, taking a fighting post.

"You're welcome to use your Alchemy - in fact, I'll expect you to use it..." He grinned. If it was to defend his honour, and a way for him to prove his love for Reila.

They say... that you need to fight to prove yourself. I guess this is one of them...

Once Jay had made his challenge, he was already at the assumption that his challenge would be met with acceptance so he had already started cracking his neck when he heard more speaking about his love and how he didn’t understand, the usual stuff you see and hear in movies and shows. Jay had tuned most of it out though, he believed actions spoke louder than and this chick flick was about to get some action in. Jay pulled his right hand behind him to get his internal white gloves from his back pocket and already started to place them on his hands.

Once Dai had gotten started on talking about the fight instead of his love life, Jay’s senses stared to react again automatically. By now, he was going for external biker looking gloves and knuckled up his hands. Getting into a basic fighting stance that seemed similar to a boxing style, Jay hopped around a little to get his blood flowing. It’s been a while since he’s battled so he was hoping not to get too rusty. Even though his face had turned from all fun to all business, Jay was still his usual eager self, the continuous small hoping in his stance making that a bit noticeable. “Yeah yeah, we gonna get started or what?”

Daigoro smirked as Jay began to circle him. Heh. He decided to simply stand there, watching the man carefully, not getting into any form of a fighting stance. He kept his hands down by his sides, and clenched his fists. Alright, it wasn't because he was confident, nothing like that. It was because he didn't actually know any fighting stances that could be of any use... He sighed, and kept watching Jay's movements carefully. Any movement would bring him to have to fight back. His eyes narrowed - alright, this was getting boring. He was just gonna make some sort of move... With a small sigh, his body suddenly coiled, and he pushed up with his shoulder to try and knock Jay back, before moving around and attempting to barrage the man with his fists.

I've... gotta... win... prove... Wait, what am I saying? It sounds just like something out of a movie - I just want ta kick his ass... He grinned, thinking through how he could do this - Alchemy or no.

The first thing that Jay noticed as he kept making those small bounces in his step was that Dai’s fighting style didn’t seem to exist, he just stood there like they were still conversation or something. Either that or he didn’t this would take too much effort but considering that he had already implied that he wasn’t holding back, Jay doubted that. Jay just kept bouncing and looking on, waiting for Dai to make a move as he watched his every move, the tension in the air seemingly rising with each waking moment that they just stood there, waiting for the start of the match to begin.

As Dai started getting ready, Jay sensed that that moment was coming real soon as Dai ran over to him and start pulling through with a pack of punches. Jay’s earlier theory of Dai not being officially trained in any fighting style became more apparent as the punches seemed more random than focused. Jay simply moved his head from side to side as he dodged each punch, parrying a few of them with both his hands until he dodged over to the right, the momentum of his punch leaving Dai wide open as Jay took advantage. The split second one of Dai’s punches missed, Jay used his speed to quickly through a weak punch aimed at the right side of his ribs to stun him just enough so that he could catch him with a right hook.

If the punch indeed caught him, Jay would keep his stance without a hint of difference from when they started. “I’d like to take this match seriously now. If you’re not too well in hand to hand combat, might I suggest Alchemy?” Jay would just say the last part of his statement with a slight smirk as he would then use his index and middle finger to indicate Dai to go at him for a second time.

Jay had seen right through it - and Dai had competely let his guard down. As the punches covered him, the redhead slid back slgihtly and grinned. Hell, it wasn't hard to take Daigoro out in hand-to-hand fighting. Even easier with Alchemy - as his wasn't exactly suited for fighting. He sighed, and stood back from Jay and shaking his head.

"Sorry, mate. I'm not going to be able to fight you properly with my Alchemy. I'd love to be able to... But still, you're welcome to use yours..." He smirked, and decided to adopt a more defensive stance - something he'd seen someone or rather doing at some point in time, it might have been from one of thos Bruce Lee DVD's he'd seen. He smirked, and stood there, waiting for Jay to make the next move.

I just need to beat him, or go down fighting. If I can prove it to him... Ach. It's gonna be difficult. Bloody difficult... His eyes narrowed, and tracked every move that the other Alchemist made...

Jay continued on with his rather unorthodox stance, seemingly hopping in place while keeping his hands up as Dai started to talk. Once he was done explaining as much as he did, Jay started to observe him. His stance seemed sloppy, like he was trying to copy something he had seen in the movies or something of that matter and according to him, Jay could guess that his alchemy wasn’t supposed to be used for something involving direct offense. If that were the case, then questions would start going through Jay’s head, giving him a slight headache as he looked on.

After a few seconds, Jay dropped his hands and his stance all together as he said on of his thoughts out loud, knowing that this match wasn't going to get anymore fun if he started using alchemy on someone that can't properly utilize hand to hand combat or even an offense style of alchemy. “So, lemme get this straight, you can’t use hand to hand combat and you don’t use offensive alchemy.” It was probably apparent that his enthusiasm had died down a bit as he stopped hopping as well and just stood still. “If that’s the case, then exactly what are you here for? Like what are you good at that brings you over here?”

As Dai noticed the man slow down and stop, Dai began to relax too. What was he asking? Something about... his purpose at Briggs? He thought for a few seconds. He did have some purpose, right? Of course - that was it.

"My alchemy has use on the battlefield, it's just not a hand-to-hand based strength. As a matter of fact, it's more suited for sabotage and espionage." That said... Dai smirked, and clicked the fingers on his right hand a few times, before forcing electrons through his right, auto-mail arm. Instead of simply magnetising it, as he usually would, he used his Alchemy to keep the electrons mobile, therefore creating an electric charge. The small sparks zipping between the joints of his automail were proof enough that something was different.

"I'm not really a fighter - I'm a strategist. I work out our enemy's weakness, and mobilise specific forces to do specific jobs. It's quiet simple really." He smirked, and moved for Jay again, throwing a hook with his right arm. If it connected, Jay should get a shock. A pretty bad one, too.

As Dai started to give Jay a basic explanation on what kind of alchemy he was packing, the head of defense slowly placed his hands in his pockets nonchalantly to give him that sort of comforting feeling. Quite frankly, he wasn’t really getting what Dai was trying to say but it did give him a sort of overview on what his older brother was into. Using alchemy as a defensive and supplementary thing to trap opponents to exactly where he wanted them or something of those lines. Jay’s seen him in battle though and he was starting to get it but it was still a bit vague.

For a second though, it sort of reminded him of how he een found the military in the first place and all the people he was trying to find for about a year now, but Jay brought that out of his mind because he didn’t want to start thinking about that too much just yet, he was more focused on what was happening before him than what could be happening out there. Jay just looked on at the arm of the man before him and noticed a few sparks escaping it, holding no emotion at first but then, just a tiny hint of a smirk escaped him.

To Jay’s guess, Dai started to explain part of his job, something his brother could probably do in his sleep, and probably would due to his laziness though no offense to Dai. Once Jay caught his movements, he noticed something being thrown at him. Taking this note, Jay quickly pulled his left hand from his pocket, making a quick snap on the way and grabbed a hold of the blunt part of the item, the specially designed electrical resistant gloves making his hands immune to the electricity pouring from it. “That ain't no excuse.”

With that, a slight electrical discharge escaped from Jay’s glove and both the electricity from his hand and from the hook discharging from the bursts of electrons suddenly making contact. “If you really want to be worth something, you should be able to turn your style into offense at any time. I know an alchemist, his alchemic style does absolutely nothing to harm you directly, but he could probably beat me blindfolded if he tried. You should really think about getting better-rounded if you truly think you’re ‘in-love’ as you so claim.” Jay then threw the discharged hook back to Dai. “You sure you want to keep going, man? Cause, not to sound cocky or nothin’, but I don’t think you got much of a chance unless you got somethin’ batter up your sleeve.”

Dai watched the man's hands carefully and grinned. So, he was using his Alchemy now. Perfect. Daigoro listened to his drabble, and sighed. He watched him pull back the hook, and threw it at Dai. The man thought for a couple of seconds - a couple too late, that was. He put his right arm up to block, and suddenly realised what Jay's plan was. But he was too late, and the hook connected - and shortcircuited. Dai yelped, and smelt burnt metal, looking over the marks on his arm. Damnit... He'd only just cleaned it! He looked up at Jay, and sighed once more, standing back slightly.

He couldn't win hand-to-hand, he couldn't fight with his Alchemy... He could! He looked around his person, and grinned, diving for the metal piping that he'd seen, picking up the object. He clicked the fingers of his left hand about ten times, and forced the electrons into the object, taking it to the point of instability.

"Fine. Get this." He said softly, throwing the piping at Jay. It got close, and then exploded. He'd made it the weakest possible explosion, so it wouldn't injure him much, if at all.