[attr="class","jaytop"]

[attr="class","littlejay"]

his gaze slides over to her.

[break][break] 'stupid, indeed.'

[break][break] but jayden was not in the practice of questioning the syndicate's actions. now, or ever. he was a rocket by blood, loyalty born and bled into his veins.

[break][break] still. he couldn't help but feel a little annoyed at being forced to act as a front for what seemed like a terrible menial task. not only did he know that he had better uses of his time, but he felt that Marza Volchitsa did as well. they could be doing something better. like training, or something. inquiring if she had any interests in pursuing BEAST — she certainly met the qualifications.

[break][break] "what makes you think i'd tell them?"

[break][break] he blinks at her, smiling placidly at a small child that screeched in his ear and begged for a toy that he had no business understanding. what was roblox?

[break][break] the admin glances at his watch briefly. time ticked terribly slow today.

[break][break] "thirty minutes."

[attr="class","ooc"]

Marza Volchitsa

☉

Maybe there was a bigger meaning behind this, but after everything that had happened on the mountain, this simply felt like punishment. Even if she still found herself somewhat tired after it all, she still pushed beyond the point of pain. That was how she'd been taught. Either die or do better. She'd done the prior and still yet to accomplish the latter, fucking typical.
[break][break]
It felt even more insulting likely for jayden cross , who had done nothing to deserve this bullshit and had all the power to pull rank but didn't. Granted, the guy was stoicism defined. Emotional constipation that made her own look like a mild stomach ache. It was humorous, even then. "Of course," She said with a simple snort.
[break][break]
Thirty minutes, she could do that. It was just handing out candy canes as children passed, all the while she prayed for something to go wrong so they could quit playing pretend and actually do something already.

[attr="class","ooc"] jayden cross | trapinch who stole xmas [break]

[attr="class","jaytop"]

[attr="class","littlejay"]

Marza Volchitsa was not much of a talker, but that was also jayden appreciated her presence. it was why he considered her to be more of the capable grunts that were under rocket.

[break][break] still — it made him curious.

[break][break] how did she and fern delaney become friends?

[break][break] then again, he supposed, perhaps one might say the same of him and mint frost.

[break][break] he handed over a candy cane as one child passed by, watching as it promptly broke it and had to go to the back of the line. in the absence, jayden turned to the other.

[break][break] "what do you think of your training?"

[break][break] he was curious. plus, this could be something easily masqueraded as her 'job' training.

[attr="class","ooc"]

Marza Volchitsa

☉

She tended to judge words dependent on what was spoken. Very little value was placed on most things people rambled on about. Respect was earned through capability and strength of character. It wasn't quite what her father taught her, which was to value only strength itself, but it turned out her father didn't know shit, in the end. Then, of course, there was fern delaney who just loved to hear himself talk and she blocked out about 75% of what he said.
[break][break]
The line had thinned out significantly, which didn't surprise her. The fact people still went to the mall for santa bewildered and confused her. She paused as Jayden spoke. Admittedly, he was probably of the percentage of people who she listened to when he spoke. He was young, but he didn't get to where he was out of dumb luck.
[break][break]
"It's..." She paused, not quite obscuring the sigh. "Sufficient, I suppose. At least most would think so, I'm sure." Considering it was his job, she wasn't about insult rocket's training methods. For the organization, it worked and that was all they could expect of it. Her own definition of training was a history of brutality that most didn't have the cruelty to mimic. "Any faults in my progress lie with me." 

[attr="class","ooc"] jayden cross | trapinch who stole xmas [break]

[attr="class","jaytop"]

[attr="class","littlejay"]

"that's commendable."

[break][break] most grunts had opinions one away or another about their training, but they fell into several different categories. there were the new ones who often felt frustration at their lack of progress, or annoyance at the regimen itself. there were seasoned ones who could see flaws in the machine, but did not wish to do anything about it.

[break][break] understanding both were crucial in making sure that the training protocol - and rocket - didn't crash like the titanic.

[break][break] "what would you saw your flaws are?"

[attr="class","ooc"]

Marza Volchitsa

☉

It was not always easy evaluating herself, but it was not difficult to criticize. That came naturally, after years of never being quite good enough to earn it. It was always luck or pity. You got this far because you were too lucky to die. In some ways, that was an accurate assessment. She survived oftentimes because she was too stubborn to lay down and die, but that wasn't necessarily a good thing.
[break][break]
She huffed, an almost laugh. "My flaws..." She supposed it depended on who asked. Her father would've said it was because she was weak, of course. "I was taught that death is preferable to weakness. Progress means pain. So, I am only content when I am dying and satisfied when I'm in pain. Impatience, impulsiveness, and I don't play well with others. To name a few."

[attr="class","ooc"] jayden cross | trapinch who stole xmas [break]

[attr="class","jaytop"]

[attr="class","littlejay"]

the pool of rocket candidates is endless, but it never fails to bewilder jayden when he comes across a diamond in the rough like Marza Volchitsa. it made little sense that she would not have climbed up the ranks sooner, given both her family prestige and her capable nature.

[break][break] was it, perhaps, a lack of ambition? complacency?

[break][break] "i wouldn't call the first a flaw," he said, as he hands off another candycane to a passing child. "if so, i would have to reconfigure much of rocket's regimen." was it not something father had said to him? whether it was a decree of rocket, or a decree of their house, it was still true in every regard. death being preferable to weakness, loss being preferable to love. after all, what was the point in living if not to have something to live for?

[break][break] "as for the impatience and impulsiveness, there are times - too - when those are as sharp and useful as a knife."

[break][break] when he reaches into the bag, however, he finds it empty. jayden blinks, then realizes that he has to fetch another. he re-appears a moment later, the bell on his hat jingling as he walks.

[break][break] his lip curves into a smile.

[break][break] "i believe you have more potential than you admit to, volchitsa." the curve of his galarian accent leaking through. "hopefully the next time we get together for a mission, it won't be so..." a pause, as he makes sure no one is around. "civilian."

[attr="class","ooc"]

Marza Volchitsa

☉

jayden cross wasn't an easy read, which was definitely intentional. Whether or not there existed something more than the Rocket executive underneath it all, frankly didn't matter to her. She had been in Rocket too long to consider the motivations of others. She had done her job, that was it. For a long time, that was how she survived. Eventually, it meant less. Maybe it was her father's death, realizing she'd wasted her life waiting for affirmation that now would never come, she didn't know.
[break][break]
"There are disadvantages in it." She said simply, shrugging. That was something taught by experience. Weakness could be carved smooth, death wasn't improvement. "I have far too much left to do before I die and I will decide who is deserving of it."
[break][break]
She smirked at that, despite herself, "Seeing as that's something I find difficult to change, I'll use that as an excuse authorized by you." This wasn't an ideal job, but at least she was not paired with someone she couldn't stand. There was also a lot of advantages being paired with an executive. Though maybe not for this.
[break][break]
Glancing back at him, she was silent for a moment. Potential was good, she would take that, not that she would admit to enjoying those words. "You hardly know me, Cross. But I would look forward to proving you right."
[break][break]
She looked back, wondering if this mess of a distraction was over with yet.

[attr="class","ooc"] jayden cross | trapinch who stole xmas [break]

[attr="class","jaytop"]

[attr="class","littlejay"]

he blinks.

[break][break] "i trust you to not use my name in vain."

[break][break] though normally for someone else, jayden would have felt more cautious about her statement, he had read her file. he knew exactly what she was capable of and what she wasn't.

[break][break] the conviction in her voice told him all he needed to know about her character; he didn't think that she would misuse his name simply for her own selfish desires. if so, he would have had a word to speak on her about the matter.

[break][break] even so, jayden doesn't bother correcting her when she says that he doesn't know her. as far as he's concerned, the data is all there — if there's more to be divulged, he's sure he will find out at some point or another.

[break][break] "very well. i will take you up on that offer one day." he pauses, finishing up tying up the bag, and glancing at his phone. their time is almost up, their mission almost complete.

[break][break] he glances at her.

[break][break] "and you may call me jayden, if you like."

[attr="class","ooc"]

Marza Volchitsa

☉

"Relax," She added with a smirk, "I don't give excuses, only results." That was the rocket thing to say, the only appropriate answer someone like her father would accept. She was of the same mind in that, after all, Marza wasn't one for dramatics and would sooner prefer silence to excuses anyways. Usually, unnecessary and prosy language was better left to her partner.
[break][break]
As much as she'd prefer to remain stoic and mysterious, Marza knew she was not a hard book to read. Probably pretty elementary at best. She didn't think she was necessarily dumb, but she didn't value her own intelligence all that high from experience. Her motivations had always been simple, get work done. Her pride was keyed to her work, but she felt herself grow either somewhat restless or weary from it.
[break][break]
"Good." In truth, she wasn't sure what to think of Jayden, but he seemed reliable at least. "Alright then, Jayden. Our time is almost up."

[attr="class","ooc"] jayden cross | trapinch who stole xmas [break]

[attr="class","jaytop"]

[attr="class","littlejay"]

an acceptable answer, so jayden has not much more to say as a result of it.

[break][break] though missions like these are hardly as thrilling as the ones that require him superceding the league in some way, are hardly as satisfying as being able to dismantle the system that rocket as a whole fought against, these missions were still useful in their own way. jayden enjoyed partaking them with newer recruits, because it allowed him a low stress option to examine their view — both on their world and as rocket as a whole.

[break][break] other times, he merely cornered grunts in a sauna and threatened them when their loyalty was questioned. (see: mint frost)

[break][break] "so it is."

[break][break] surely enough, their little front had done it's work. glancing briefly out the window, he can already see the getaway car of the thief team zipping away, likely stealing the merits of the very thing he and Marza Volchitsa had been protecting.

[break][break] "let us go then."

[break][break] with a wave, he descends towards the exit — his little elf hat bobbing on the way.

[break][break]

[attr="class","ooc"]

Marza Volchitsa

☉