leonxburch

[leonxburch]

“You know, the appeal of Halloween has always been odd to me. I mean, who even thinks of something like this?” A giant event full of people dressed in varying costumes and masks. Maybe he was simply deprived of it as a child, and struggled to see the fun it it, but it seemed more stressful than anything. 

@c23starters​

[leonxburch]

combustiibles·:

location: the satanic soiree participants: ciarán o’connell & open ( @c23starters· )

ciarán had made himself at home on one of club nyx’s couches, his feet resting on the table and his arms folded behind his head. the belt of his costume had come undone, revealing the boxers and white t-shirt underneath, but he was simply too relaxed or perhaps too drunk to care. “please tell me you’ve brought me a drink,” he smiled, not bothering to open his eyes to see who’d chosen to join him. “i’m absolutely parched.” 

Leon glances down at the person sprawled across the couch, seemingly no care in the world attached to just how much space he was really taking up. Leon had just escaped for some silence and that now sounded like an impossibly big ask. “Not unless they’ve decided to make me a waiter in the hour since I got here. And, last I checked, they hadn’t. I was just looking for somewhere to sit away from everything for a minute.”

[leonxburch]

screadail·:

location: satanic soiree participants: cassia song & leon burch ( @leonxburch· )

“well, isn’t this a pleasant surprise,” cassia smiled as she approached leon running her hand along his arm as she came to a stop next to him. “and what are you supposed to be?” she asked, her eyebrow arched as she looked him up and down. she could have ventured a guess, but she really didn’t care enough - not that she’d actually tell him that. 

“What, you didn’t think I’d miss Halloween, did you?” He would if he could, but that's besides the point. “Oh, come on. You don’t know the Men in Black when you see one of them? I think it’s the spitting image of one of those suits.” He smooths down his tie for sure. “And, I could ask you the same question, you know. You know how behind I am in pop culture.”

[leonxburch]

LEON BURCH is dressed as MEN IN BLACK for the SATANIC SOIREE. He’s matching with Anamika, and frankly, he’s glad that he was convinced of that because sunglasses and a basic black suit meant he didn’t need to go through the embarrassment of shopping for a costume. He still feels a little silly, but the things he does for his siblings. 

[leonxburch]

insatiablegreed·:

“It’s been lovely, thanks for asking!” There’s a sarcastic grin on her face, and she rolls her eyes. Having a conversation about anything that isn’t to do with work, is almost impossible with Leon. Her nose wrinkles at his words of encouragement. “I’m trying, but Maxine is a tough nut to crack. She’s a typical lawyer… Stoic and private. I’m almost certain that if I ask if she wants to get drinks, she’ll say no. It’s worth a try, though, I suppose.”

“A little warm for my tastes,” He muses, glancing at the window across the way, blue skies shining like a billion dollar smile. He’s always preferred the dreary days in the city, usually the ones that come in plenty when the weather starts to turn cold. “Well, I have no doubt you’re too proud to ask for help, but she needs to be convinced that you’re the person to confide in, you know who to ask.”

[leonxburch]

screadail·:·

“it’s been a tad lighter than i’d prefer,” cassia admitted with a sigh. she made great care not to offer up too many details - after all, one could never be too trusting. that and she wouldn’t be doing a good job if she revealed too much about her doings. “i will say i’ve had some interesting cases though,” she smiled. 

“Well, light but interesting is always something, hm?” He hardly knows what she shoots for in her business practices, but he can’t imagine having countless cases about missing dogs and child support dodgers is ideal. “Anything you can hypothetically share with the class? You know I’m too nosy for my own good on these things.”

[leonxburch]

insatiablegreed·:··

“It’s always straight to business with you, Leon. It’s okay to talk about the weather sometimes, before jumping in.” He’s always been the most practical one — the responsible leader. “I think she trusts me, yes. She allows me in her office while she’s reading cases, so I’d say there’s a fair amount of trust between us.” Honestly, she thought things would be a little juicier after the Brotherhood attacks in June. “I’ve found nothing exciting yet. I’m sure something will come up, though. She’s a lawyer, and us lawyers are nothing if not shady and secretive. Well, in my case that’s true, at least.” 

This is now the second time Leon has had one of the sins comment on his inability to have casual conversation but it’s just not in his nature. Still he can maybe try. “Okay, well, how’s the weather then?” It doesn’t sound quite as interested or genuine. as the other question, but whatever keeps the others happy. “Well, that’s good. I’m sure you can find a way to win over more of her trust.” He doesn’t know what exactly. Lawyers are secretive after all. 

[leonxburch]

pridepotential·:

         “other than you? you think you can beat my record?” not that said record exists yet, but… sora is confident enough that she can beat anyone here. with her eyes closed, even! “i guess we’ll see who comes out on top.” as it happens, her confidence isn’t entirely misplaced. the ride is harder to manage than she expects, but with a little influence cast out, she manages to keep herself from flying off for long enough to break the current record. with a few claps from the person managing the bull, she slides off and grins in leon’s direction. “your turn!”

Leon watches Sora carefully, studying her closely. It’s not as controlled at first as she led him to believe. But, eventually falls into a rhythm. Of course, Leon wasn’t born yesterday and he has his guesses on just how she managed such a thing. “Alright,” He says handing her stuff back to her. adding his own belonging to the pile transferred to her arms. It’s not as easy as it looks, that’s for sure. But, Leon’s determined, and controlled... and able to keep the controller from going to hard on the controls long enough to meet Sora’s time by a couple of milliseconds. “Not that bad for a first try.”

[leonxburch]

gluttcnous·:

“They’ve really taken the whole spy deal personally. Major trust issues,” they start talking, always a tad bit more around Leon. Mori almost wishes they could’ve stepped in sooner and really fucked things up but the brutal torture and live stabbing? Ezra could probably tear a rift in the group all by himself, “Swear you’d be a millionaire if the Brotherhood lot actually got therapy. Suppose there wouldn’t be a Brotherhood if they got therapy though.” 

“Well, that’s good for you, isn’t it? Makes it easier to get under their skin, fester those grudges for them.” He didn’t need to tell Mori how to do their job. They could handle it. But, it was part of his job, was it not? Lead. Encourage, maybe. “Well, if they weren’t such pieces of work, I’d almost say we suggest that. But, they’ve earned their fate.”

[leonxburch]

santi-de-leon·:

Santiago nods solemnly at Leon’s point, because it’s a good one. He tries to imagine any point in his own life where he felt the most physically and mentally capable, and it feels like opposing curves. Then again, he’s also never been anything like, say, invulnerable. “Honestly? You should,” Santi encourages with an unavoidable amusement. “But maybe that’s the freelancer in me talking. Still, though, imagine the fascinating things you might hear…” He trails off, then pauses and corrects himself, “Sorry, that’s probably a bit callous to say. I’m not trying to imply you should offer your services just to get the insider gossip.”

“No, no, you’re on to something there, my friend.” Probably a little too close to home for Leon’s liking, but it seems innocuous enough. Who was going to send a man like Santi to deal with a man like Leon, anyway? Still, he makes a note of it. Don’t let him get too close. “I have yet to meet a therapist who doesn’t love a little bit of gossip. The bonus is, there are legal repercussions for spreading it in therapy. So, it’s, in its own way, gossip without repercussions for some sessions.” Gossip. It sounds so childish to call it that. But, he wants this to come off as a joke. 

[leonxburch]

pridepotential·:

         “a girl can dream, can’t she?” she chirps, offering a sly smile. it’s true that there’s almost nothing she can do to get leon to cooperate with her scheme, but the thought alone is amusing enough. it’s a shame that the mind isn’t her area of expertise. things would be very different, then. handing over her things, she continues, “oh, i’ve never done anything with this machinery before… but training had something similar. you have to learn to fight in every environment, remember? even unstable ones.” especially unstable ones. “i was always good at that. even before linda took us in.”

Leon eyes the mechanical bull, not entirely convinced that this is as complicated as she makes it out to be, or as related to training. The colorful inflatable lining, and the faux cow skin draped across the slowly deteriorating metal beneath makes him wonder. It seems like this is just an interesting way to embarrass him in public. Of course, it’s not so simple when it comes to embarrassing him. The way that the man before Sora gets flung into the side of the wall. “Well, then you’ll be sure to show up everyone. Other than me.”

[leonxburch]

Cassia was an asset in a way Santi was not. But, Santi was harmless, so Leon saw no point in severing the odd friendship they had formed. Cassia’s entire job was tracking people. Her purpose was to learn secrets. And, while she was tight lipped most of the time, even a morsel of news about her cases could be enough to hand off to Linda as needed. “How’s the case load these days? I hope you aren’t running yourself too rampant around the city?”

@screadail​

[leonxburch]

“Cissy,” Leon says simply as he walks past, book in his hand. He settles a bookmark between the pages of the book, and snaps it shut. “How have things been? The lawyer, does she trust you?” Typical Leon, all business, all the time. Well, at least with the other sins. He could turn it on as he needed to. But the sins? Well, Leon didn’t figure it was worth wasting his energy to pretend to be anything but himself with them.

@insatiablegreed​

[leonxburch]

pridepotential·:

        “i’m sure you would, leon. and i’d like to see you soaked in the dunk tank. sometimes we have to settle for being realistic.” but even as she speaks, sora is already hoping for the chance. it would be humiliating! “if you’re so insistent on me showing you how it’s done, i guess i could give it a whirl. but i should correct myself… it’s easy to explain. all you have to do is hang on. not so easy to do once you’re on the ride.” unless, of course, you can manipulate the fabric of reality. it’s a walk in the park, then! “you’re going to have to hold my things, i hope you know.”

“Fat chance of that ever happening, Sora.” The only person on the entire planet who could get him to agree to anything was Linda. And, it wasn’t exactly like she’d be recommending a dunk tank any time in the near future. It wasn’t her style. The act of having fun in general wasn’t her style. At least, not that he’d ever seen. Side eyeing Sora, he holds out his hands to take her stuff from her. “And, where does your experience with this machinery come from exactly?” He can’t begin to imagine what she had gotten herself into that she seems to be so knowledgeable in how to successfully beat this game.

[leonxburch]

surelai·:

if there was one thing lai was grateful for, it was her lack of want to be the leader of the group. sora’s jealousy made her seem nothing short of miserable ( and nothing short of genuine when making fun of leon – five doing so in good fun, one doing so out of genuine spite ). leon seldom seemed to have the time for the same fun and games everyone else did. everything had to be about work ( and, while that was their destiny – their genuine purpose – being unable to discuss anything outside of it… what a sad existence ), that was his cross to bear. so these moments ? moments of shared amusement, even if coming about via swindling leon ? rare. cherished. and a reminder: thank god she was not the ‘leader’ of the sins.  “ yes, yes – she just seems too stubborn to not have a strong resistance. ” physical strength had nothing to do with it ! – though she would be lying if she said that that, combined with her alias, did not somewhat influence her view of ren after all those years. “ ever met anyone you couldn’t break ? ” that was the truly interesting question ! and, for all the shit they gave him, and for all the deception they pulled, she trusted his honesty. “ god, and that is not something you would assume just meeting them. ” they had an undeniable air of intimidation ( not to mention their assignment with the brotherhood )… yet managed to actually hope for the best for them all ! “ do you know much about their strike ? ”

~

“You know, that’s fair. Some of you are real pushovers,” He jokes. Two in one day! Clearly, Lai had caught him on a good day. Of course, what was there not to be eat least moderately excited about? They were taking all the right steps towards success, there was nothing and no one to be mad at. Linda had to be at least moderately pleased with their progress, so what else was there to do but take this as a small victory amongst the chaos? He could let himself have a moment of respite after all these years. 

“Not yet.” He has no doubt that person is out there somewhere. There are just too many mutations in the world for someone to not have immunity to his powers. But, he’ll have to continue hoping he never comes across that person, because he doesn’t have the desire to find out what it’s like to not have any easy time winning a fight with someone. “I’m sure there’s someone out there, but I’m not going to make any attempts to meet that person.” Mori was nothing short of ice cold to the eye. They had a way of carrying themselves that made them seem like the biggest asshole of them all. In reality, they probably were the most caring. Well, comparatively to the other sins. None of their emotions were entirely intact. “Not much. Just that the Brotherhood’s actions have fallen on their shoulders. Which, is fair, they’re meant to keep things in check.” It was not something he would voice, but he didn’t fully agree with the strike against Mori. But, disagreement was not an option. Linda knew what was best for them, anyway.

[leonxburch]

pridepotential·:

         “i wouldn’t say it’s sunshine and roses. more like coffee and cigarettes. still better than smoke and flames. or worse, children. thankfully, my students are mostly adults right now…” it’s a perk of being a combat instructor. more often than not, xavier’s isn’t in the business of weaponizing child soldiers. not like the government. not like her. it’s their loss. children are easier to mold into a proper image than those that grow up to choose their own path. “oh, you and your furniture,” she teases, nudging at him. “you know, they should throw these events more often. i could get used to you following my lead for a change.” the remark is treated a joke, even if it’s anything but. “but, i still think you should go first. it’s easy. all you have to do is hang on.”

“I don’t know, I’d like to see you babysit a bunch of children who don’t know how to throw a punch.” Leon can hardly remember a time before. He’s always been a ward of the Government. Trained and created to be powerful and nothing more. The emotions, the feelings, the trauma that all came with adults was too much for them to ever be as successful as the likes of the Sins. That’s why they were chosen. That’s why they were trusted. They were the next best thing to robots. “Well, having fun was your idea, not mine. I wouldn’t be so confident that it translates.” It’s said offhandedly, thought the matter of his statement is pointed. “And the challenge of that is... what exactly?”

[leonxburch]

santi-de-leon·:

“Yeah, I suppose that’s true.” Santi chuckles, his hands slipping casually into his pockets as they weave through the crowd. The press of people only seems to be getting thicker, as they approach the hour the Omegas and their team are meant to make their address. “I just hope they all have the support they need. I can’t imagine what it must be like to be on a team like that at all, much less in the wake of having lost a teammate. Being young might spare you a lot of the physical aches and pains, but I’d argue it can certainly amplify a lot of the mental ones.”

“I imagine that’s the difficult part of it all. Find that balance of being old enough to process those feelings and young enough to be able to have the capabilities for the job. I’d be shocked if they didn’t have a designated professional on site for that, but if not, well, maybe I should be doing some networking.” Maybe he should depending on what Ren brought back. If there was a lot of anguish there, and there was a need for these kids to unload, it would be an easy way to aid Ren in her job. He held his doubts that it would be that easy, but the possibility was there.