[Stocke trades watching the Sin and the road sprinting by like rolling a coin from heads to tails over his knuckles, slowly, deliberately. The skip of asphalt, smoother than Vandare's cobbles, still has his eyes flickering sideways every once in a while. Now that he's human, and with any luck it'll be made permanent...]
[Humans don't have the strength or stamina of a monster, do they? They need tools. And while he can do an automobile, it's not convenient for the narrower streets. So:]
You'll have to teach me how to drive one of these, [the former shade notes. He doesn't raise his voice, and with the loud growl of the engine making it hard to hear, you'd almost think it an aside to himself. But the 'You'll' gives that the lie.]
[Dante again, huh. The Hyde's eyes shut, then open.]
...put it this way. I can't tell you exactly what he's thinking, but you don't want to be near the human Dante unless you've an itch to be human yourself.
[The bike rattles to a halt; Stocke slides off, turning his head slightly at the sharp tap of Greed's boot on stone. Then his focus returns to the building. Yeah, he remembers this place. He wasn't out this way nearly as often as Greed, he thinks; Li's Greed's the same way Stocke's posse of informants are his, or maybe the same way Stocke... is? Was? His. But enough. He can use that, the Hyde thinks - ]
[Has only a moment to think, because it's been hours since the last time they swapped and suddenly he can feel himself inverting again.]
[Let it not be said Stocke, Hyde or not, can't think fast. Yeah, he was dumb for not thinking of this, but then he knows his un-Hyded self would have warned Greed anyway. So maybe this is for the best.]
[He doesn't say anything - instead, in the last few seconds before he's a monster again, he goes for Greed's back with a chrome-tipped syringe. He knows he won't get another shot before the demon's warned, and eventually Greed will need to be turned. Not to mention the Sin'll be an enemy again as soon as his monstrous self is done.]
[The Hyde doesn't make it, just barely.]
[The first Greed will hear of this whole thought process - it's the sound of shattering glass, just behind him. If he looks behind him, he'll see: Stocke, staring at his hands, dripping with cure fluid and broken shards. He's close enough to reach out and touch - or to have reached out and tried to stab, if it had been only a moment longer.]
[More notably - the shade's fingers are clawed again, eyes glowing white. And his tendrils, back, are jittering slightly - as if shaking.]
[It's the same scene Li will probably see coming out.]
i can't believe i took a month on this jesus (i'm very sorry)
[Humans don't have the strength or stamina of a monster, do they? They need tools. And while he can do an automobile, it's not convenient for the narrower streets. So:]
You'll have to teach me how to drive one of these, [the former shade notes. He doesn't raise his voice, and with the loud growl of the engine making it hard to hear, you'd almost think it an aside to himself. But the 'You'll' gives that the lie.]
[Dante again, huh. The Hyde's eyes shut, then open.]
...put it this way. I can't tell you exactly what he's thinking, but you don't want to be near the human Dante unless you've an itch to be human yourself.
[The bike rattles to a halt; Stocke slides off, turning his head slightly at the sharp tap of Greed's boot on stone. Then his focus returns to the building. Yeah, he remembers this place. He wasn't out this way nearly as often as Greed, he thinks; Li's Greed's the same way Stocke's posse of informants are his, or maybe the same way Stocke... is? Was? His. But enough. He can use that, the Hyde thinks - ]
[Has only a moment to think, because it's been hours since the last time they swapped and suddenly he can feel himself inverting again.]
[Let it not be said Stocke, Hyde or not, can't think fast. Yeah, he was dumb for not thinking of this, but then he knows his un-Hyded self would have warned Greed anyway. So maybe this is for the best.]
[He doesn't say anything - instead, in the last few seconds before he's a monster again, he goes for Greed's back with a chrome-tipped syringe. He knows he won't get another shot before the demon's warned, and eventually Greed will need to be turned. Not to mention the Sin'll be an enemy again as soon as his monstrous self is done.]
[The Hyde doesn't make it, just barely.]
[The first Greed will hear of this whole thought process - it's the sound of shattering glass, just behind him. If he looks behind him, he'll see: Stocke, staring at his hands, dripping with cure fluid and broken shards. He's close enough to reach out and touch - or to have reached out and tried to stab, if it had been only a moment longer.]
[More notably - the shade's fingers are clawed again, eyes glowing white. And his tendrils, back, are jittering slightly - as if shaking.]
[It's the same scene Li will probably see coming out.]