NIGHT SHIFT / breakdown

[michael t.]

Michael honestly didn't know all that much about Greed. Oh, he certainly knew of the other large feline, considering the stories that Roxie had recounted for him in the past, but as for a personal meeting? None had really happened. His sister had continued promising him over and over that he would eventually get to meet the father of her cubs after some time had passed, because surely he was going to be back soon. It had honestly kind of broken the bobcat's heart, seeing his sister, who was usually so smart and confident, clinging to a notion that very much didn't seem to be true. The thief wanted to believe that people could change, but... ultimately he knew that they often didn't, instead just manipulating and hurting those in their way. Hell, he knew it was a bit hypocritical of him to be making such judgements, considering he had stolen, murdered, and kidnapped in the past, but at least he had never left the mother of his children behind without another word. That was a cardinal sin in his mind, leaving behind someone that you loved, along with all the responsibility that you had heaped upon them. At least when he had "died" he hadn't been leaving Trevor with five kits, and he had ultimately done it for the other's safety.

Now that the cubs had come along, Michael had definitely been able to see the edges of his sister's facade cracking slightly. She had been overjoyed at first, so caught up in the bliss of having her new babies with her and having them all be safe, but as the days had continued to go by with the cubs gradually growing and opening their eyes... there was no Greed in sight. Michael had spent most of his time after the cubs had been born with Roxie, helping her out in whatever small ways he could manage while also often grappling with exhaustion and his own responsibilities back home. Thankfully there were plenty within the Typhoon that wanted to offer their services, which meant he didn't constantly have to be around, but when he was... he could always notice that gleam. That faint shine of sorrow and hesitation that was hidden in Roxie's gaze as she looked down at her and Greed's cubs, clearly filled with emotion. In those moments, he had always just wanted to go over to her and hug her until that gleam faded, slipping away from her eyes in a wash of relieving tears. However, most of the time Roxie would just look at him and smile, giving him some task or pointing attention to the cubs when she noticed him catching on.

As the days dragged on, and Roxie grew to have more and more little signs of her inner sorrow emerging, Michael felt the signs of his anger bubbling beneath the surface. He had never been a particularly calm male, but generally he had been mellowing out more as of late, and hadn't been prone to the bursts of anger that had come often as a younger bobcat. Now, however? That anger had returned with a vengeance, growing and twisting within him like a wicked thing whenever he saw Roxie glancing out the window. If he ever saw Greed... he was going to rip that bastard limb from limb, and feed him to Kal. Greed was making his sister miserable, and that was an unforgivable offense to Michael. The fugitive had spent so long in his life without a family that gave a single shit about him, and now that he had others who he cared about and vice versa? There wasn't a chance in hell that he was going to let anybody hurt them, intentionally or not. And as far as Michael was concerned, this had to be intentional. What kind of guy just disappeared off of the face of the Earth when his kids were about to be born? A deadbeat, not somebody who had something urgent to attend to, or somebody who was in danger. Greed was just another selfish bastard that hadn't wanted to deal with what would've been a good life.

Usually whenever Michael got up early, it was because he was searching for something to steal, rather than any sort of pure motivations. However, this morning was different. It wasn't exactly uncommon for him to have the occasional bout of insomnia, brought on not by any particular thing, but generally just a plague of anxiety that trapped him inside his own mind, unable to properly get any rest. He'd been having one of those unfortunate nights when he emerged from his home, stretching his short limbs out and carefully closing the door behind him as he exited. He moved down the shoreline slowly, still a little stuck in his own thoughts as he focused his half blind gaze downwards, at the grains of sand. He finally rose his head, however, when the scent of his sister came to him. His heart sank when he saw Roxie and Eulia together, an unpleasant twist striking his insides as he watched the tears slipping down Roxie's cheeks. Moving over after a moment of hesitation, the oddly naked bobcat pressed gently into his sister's side, without any of the usual metal of his jewelry between them. As their pelts brushed together, he mumbled softly, a heavy sigh leaving him as he kneaded at the sand, "Roxie... Rox, I'm sorry. You know we're here for you. Everyone here is... things are gonna be okay." He technically didn't know what she was crying about, but it hardly took a hardened detective to catch on after how things had been going for weeks now.

[glow=#75603C,1,000]" oh, it's a setup, no, no, we won't fall. "[/glow]