Back to the usual.

Void trotted out of a small fruit shop. He grinned as he bit into a shiny red apple. He had just taken it from the shop. It's good to be back in Manehatten. ,he thought to himself rather satisfied. He looked around before slipping a few bits into his saddle bag. That was it for this week. He figured he should find a job... or move back into the old buisness. No matter, he would figure it out.

The gentle clop of hooves on the road filled the air as shady ponies ducked for cover. Erika Darknight slowly patrolled the streets in search of misfits and cons, and she was certain she would find one. As part of the Special Force, it was important to deliver, and her superiors expected her to catch at least five while she was in Manehatten.

Not that she cared. It wouldn't matter if she did or not. The Force was too scared of letting her go, in fear that they wouldn't live to see the next day. Erika was extremely talented in hand-to-hand combat and archery, and if they made her lose the one thing that brought the mentally disturbed mare joy, they were doomed.

Erika usually followed through for the minute joy she got from the satisfaction of catching a criminal. When she received praise, she felt joy, the only tolerable emotion she had ever felt.

And so it was that she was searching, hunting in half-armor with her helmet resting on her back.

Void noticed a bunch of ponies ducking for cover. He laughed until he saw why. A gaurdsony? Here? He wondered why she had been sent. He was in trouble but they wouldn't send a gaurdspony after him in particular. No she was probrably just here to bag a few criminals and go home. Hopefully not him.

Void shot her a wicked grin. Might as well have some fun with her while he can. If things went south what was a murder on his record? "Evening sir." He said sarcasticly mocking her.

Erika looked down at the stallion. She was tall for a young unicorn, at four foot five, while the average for a pony was three foot six. There was a reason she was one of the youngest guards at age nineteen.

""Evening, sir.""

Too bad it didn't pester her. Annoyance was something she dealt with in other ponies. Not herself.

"May I examine your bag?" she asked dully. One might think she was bored, but her speech was the result of no emotion.

She motioned for his saddle bag.

Void kept the act up even though she seemed unfazed.

Her voice seemed quite lifeless when she spoke. "May I examine your bag?"

He had nothing to hide in his saddlebag. A few bits, a supply list, and a book on dark battle magic. "Why sure I don't see why not?" He said levitating the bag from his back and onto the ground in front of the mare. He took another bite of apple while looking off into the crowd. A few ponies he knew watched in awe as they passed. He had a huge record of being a thief and a liar.

Erika sifted through the bag with her blue magic, turning the book this way and that.

"An awfully interesting subject, dark battle magic, isn't it?" she asked, faking interest. "A subject they taught me in Battle School. Tell me: what is your name, and your occupation?"

This pony was acting suspicious in Erika's book. It would be nice to catch somepony already. Somepony the guards didn't even know of. That made it all the better: Erika's lack of emotion meant no guilt and sympathy in the possible injury and death of a target. In other words, she was a bit sadistic. They wouldn't miss one pony, would they?

She seemed to take interest in his spell book.

"An awfully interesting subject, dark battle magic, isn't it?"

Void smirked. "Yes I find it quite interesting indeed." He replied.

"A subject they taught me in Battle School. Tell me: what is your name, and your occupation?"

Void wasn't prepared for a question like that. He tried to keep the charade going but, telling his name was like a game over. His face dropped to his usual scowl when he realized this wasn't fun anymore. He sighed "Name's Void Rush. I currently have no job due to the fact I just returned from a rather long trip." He said back in his downbeat voice telling her as little as possible.

Erika couldn't help but staring into his eyes. Her unwavering gaze could bring the absolute strongest to their knees, confessing all their crimes and begging for mercy. She was unnerving him.

"Void Rush? It sounds quite familiar," she said, toying with the thief she knew he was. "I can't help but think we may have met."

Void looked into her eyes. She seemed to want him to so why not?

"Void Rush? It sounds quite familiar," "I can't help but think we may have met."

He grinned. "Maybe we have. But I think any stallion would remember your lovely eyes." He knew what she was doing. He had been questioned by more than just guards before.

Erika, of course, felt nothing at all for anypony, except a slight love-hate relationship with her sister, May. Love, hate, and joy were the only emotions she had ever felt, and that love was sisterly.

"Nice of you to note," she said anyways, playing along. Of course stallions would remember her eyes. They invaded dreams every night, casting their blood-red gaze upon one like a lamp.

Her eyes were also almond-shaped, betraying her Colterean origins, as well as her blue-black mane. She was, as far as she knew, an orphan, which didn't really matter, but it was the cause of her mental disorder.

She inched closer, her hooves tingling for her daggers, but now was not the time.

"Nice of you to note,"

Her response was not what he had hopped. Void noticed her reach for something. "Woah, woah, woah, calm down. No need for violence." He smiled as he inched closer until they where muzzle to muzzle. "I don't want to cause a scene here. I just want to go get some coffee and calm down. Would you like to join?"

He continued to stare into her eyes despite the crowd's chatter. He was enjoying himself. At this point he would either be under arrest or have a date with a guard. Either one was pretty bad at the moment.

Erika was quickly growing tired of her game, but it was worth it to trick this pony further.

She put a hoof on his chest and shoved him back with surprising strength.

"Not so close, Mister," she said. "You wouldn't want to upset me, would you?"

She slipped her helmet over her braided mane. It was Nightmare Moon-esque, resembling the helmet in shape, but it was durable and quite trustworthy.

Void smirked. "Relax. I'm not the one who's stolen a heart here." He teased. He could tell she was becoming angry. "Is that a no on the coffee then?" He couldn't help but laugh at his own joke.

She put on her helmet. He wasn't sure why. He had no intent on hurting her. Just the opisite really.

"I don't quite care for coffee," she answered, discreetly fiddling with the daggers strapped to her hooves. "The caffeine makes my head buzz and does nothing for my energy levels."

She had a brilliant idea. If she could get him to really fall for her... Oh, dear. This would be disgusting. So much fake emotion.

Fortunately, though she disliked it, the unicorn was great at faking it. She raised an eyebrow and looked him in the eye.

"Are you flirting with me?" she asked sweetly, "because tea's good, too."

Void looked her strait in the eyes again. "I may be." He smiled warmly trying to get a read on her. It apeared as though she was interested but, he couldn't tell. Void desided to just go with it.

"Well, tea could be good. Anything could be if you decide to join me." He said calmly backing off a bit to get a good look at her.

Erika whipped off her bow and shot somepony without even looking. The mare fell to her feet, the arrow stuck in her hoof, and her bag full of stolen bits spilled out onto the pavement.

"Excuse me for a moment while I take care of this," she said, hoof-cuffing the mare and using a bit of magic to teleport them to headquarters.

When she returned, the grin, a result of a job well done, was waning off of her face. She turned back to Void.

"Whatever you'd like," she said. "Now that that's taken care of, I've got some free time."

Void laughed at that poor mare. Her hoof must be in some real pain. "Well great." He replied as though nothin had interupted them. "I know of a great little place not far off. If your finished with my bag we can go whenever your ready."

He didn't want to take a chance at looking guilty by grabbing at the bag without her permission.

Erika hoofed over the bag. She did want to check for hidden pockets, but she could do it later. There was always later.

"Alright. I guess I'm following you," she said. Taking a quick look around, she waited for Void to go ahead and go.

Void put his bag on his back and trotted down the road. He looked back every so often to make sure she was still in sight. He also wanted to keep an eye on that bow of hers. She seemed deadly acurate. If she had reason to belive he was doing somthing wrong she would no doubt shoot him.

Void looked back at her. "Never did catch your name?" He asked curiously as he turned a corner.

She sighed. There was no point in hiding it, anyways. If Void turned up at the office screaming, they were too scared out of their socks to do anything about her. If he turned up dead... She still got a reward.

"Erika," she said finally. "Erika Darknight. You may know my sister; May may or may not have lifted something from you."

She eyed his hooves when he turned away, making sure there weren't any weapons hidden there.

Void puzzled a moment. "Erika Darknight? Beutiful name. Never met May though. I just recently came back to manehatten you see." He looked around and walked up to a tea house.

It was a small white building with a green roof. Void held the door open and alowed Erika to enter before following her in. Inside the walls were a creamy white and the floors were polished wood. The seats were wooden and covered in fabric pads. It was a rather new building that Void had only visited once.

Erika didn't show any sign of appreciation as she looked around the inside, feeling neither appreciation nor disgust as she looked around. There wasn't anything wrong or right to her about it, and it was of no concern to our careless friend.

"Try not to run into her. She'll probably drive a knife through your hoof and take your little bag before you can say, 'ow.'"

Void laughed a bit. "Sounds like an interesting girl. I assume your no longer in contact then?" He asked before trotting up to the counter. He alowed Erika to order first.

Erika thought about it for a moment.

"Not really. It was more that we were out of contact for the first twenty-one years of our lives. I only found out I had a sister at all a few weeks ago."

She wondered if Void realized how young she was for a female guard. Most guards in general were 26 or older, but by her skill and emotions (or, should I say lack of emotions), she had graduated from the school early.

"A decaf chai, please," she said flatly to the pony at the counter.

Void ordered himself a cup of tea with honey. He went to walk away before remembering who he was here with. He levitated a few bits from his bag onto the counter before turning to find a table. "Sounds kinda sad. The gaurdspony finds her sister only to find out she's a thief." He replied ignoring his flaw.