Batista cursed beneath his breath as he walked down the sidewalk with Lynn . It was just another sunny day in Las Vegas, the heat was on and life was picking up around town. It seemed year after year there'd be more and more new faces moving into the city. It was better for them, more homes and people to pickpocket and rob! Things were looking brighter, especially after being recently nabbed for trying to con some schlub.

He'd glance down at his wrists, rolling them some before rubbing at them. Both of his wrists scratched and bruised by the squeeze of a pair of handcuffs. 

"That damn cop, he really slapped those cuffs on hard.. Can you believe they didn't even give me anything to eat!" 

Batista kicked an empty bottle across the street, shattering against the opposite curb, just in front of the post office established there. Batista slowed his stride, a smile curling at the corners of his lips as he'd zone out in thought. The place had to be crawling with money, hell, they could even make off with some packages and fence them for some cash!

He'd continue on the thought, plotting in his mind how exactly to go about the operation. He definitely wouldn't be able to do it alone and wouldn't have to, seeing as he had Lynn with him. Batista began to chuckle softly as he envisioned a bountiful payday from the operation. A shit eating grin perched upon his lips as he returned to reality, and glanced over to Lynn, pausing in his steps.

"Hey, you know how you wanted that purse back there we saw in the window? We could get it.."

Batista arched a brow as he lingered his gaze a moment longer upon her before glancing over his shoulder toward the store they had stopped to look at. The two were always up to no good. However, much of the blame was on the lack of parents and the shitty system the were forced through as an upbringing. Batista was in and out of homes, mostly kicked out due to attitude and run ins with the law. A stack of juvenile delinquent papers that would serve as a heavier weight than cement shoes!

He'd laugh as Lynn would roll her eyes at him. She's heard it all before, each and every time it seemed he had a good idea, it showed to be quite the opposite. Batista would dismiss her negativity with a wave of his hand and laugh softly.

"No really, hear me out! It's not like any of the little runs we did while in the orphanage. The post office. They're always getting money for sending out things, and the packages in there.. We could fence some property, make a bit of cash. We'd be good for the rest of the year from this one score."

Batista bit at his bottom lip as he looked to her, hoping for the look of approval. However it wasn't all too common he'd see it, though it did occur every now and then! He'd glance over his shoulder to the post office, seeing all the foot traffic going in and trucks dropping things off in the back. It seemed like a gold mine, prime for the picking. 

He'd sink his thumbs behind his belt, a little revolver tucked away behind his shirt. He wasn't much of a shooter, and had piss poor aim but it certainly served as a pretty heavy intimidation tool to anyone not too familiar! The little piece was picked up after a recent bloody day across the nation. There were men and women being shot all over it seemed in a take down. He wasn't too keen on the specifics, nor did it matter. He wanted a piece of the pie though, and he figured if he made enough noise he'd be an associate soon enough!

Lynn chuckled to herself as Batista expressed the soreness in his wrists. She was there, she remembered what happened. Well she remembered Batista try to rob the guy, who keep in mind was talking to a police officer at the time. She tried to warn him but he was stubborn and didn't listen. It was nothing new, he always did stupid stuff like that around her. Which she really never truly understood, it's not like he needed to impress her. They knew each other well enough to be past that stage.

"You don't have to tell me, don't you remember I was there with you?"

A slight puzzled looked came across Batista's face.

"I'm the one that busted you out... yet again..."

With a shrug she watched as he kicked the bottle across the street.

"Was that necessary? That's a great way to bring more attention to us, not like there aren't enough eyes on us when we walk down the street to begin with."

That's when Batista cut her off and mentioned something about a purse. Her complete train of thought went out the window.

"Yeah, that purse was fabulous. Wait, whats going on in that head of yours? I know you nor I have that kind of money to buy that."

She listened as he began to explain his plan, there were many things that could go wrong but the outcome seemed well worth it.

"Well you know, I'm usually the first one to tell you when something is stupid but you got me this time. I would look amazing with that purse, so yeah let's do this."

Dubliner sat motionless in line waiting for the methodical calling of "Next!" from the Post Office workers. His damn Grandma had yet another birthday and in order to maintain his role as favorite grandson, a letter must be sent on yet another wonderful year of having her in his life. He was in it for the inheritance. Dub was favored by her over his father and this next level attempt at kissing up has a great payoff when the time comes. What could he say? Times were hard after the stock market crash. His grandma was one of the few New Yorkers seemingly unaffected by the crash and he would do whatever means necessary to secure a future for himself. Even if it meant playing the shell of a loving grandson. Dubliner was no doubt a child of the 20s. He'd spent all his cash on lavish parties, women, and booze. Now a dead beat looking for work wherever work would arise. 

He stepped up to the counter upon hearing the ringing voice the teller cry "Next!". He handed the woman his letter wrapped in a blank white envelope and sealed. 

"That'll be 5 cents." Dubliner reached into his pocket feeling nothing but lint. He turned to check his other pocket and rested his elbow on the counter appearing to looking nonchalant in his embarrassment. 

"Well, dear, I may be fresh out." The woman slides the card back to Dubliner with a blank, unsympathetic look on her face... 

Batista was still a bit of a young buck, learning the ways of this life. It wasn't too long ago he was invited as an associate, but he wanted more. He wanted to be invited into the inner circle, one of those men who earned their bones. However, to get to that point he needed to be noticed. At this point he was earning for the operations in Las Vegas. This was an opportunity to earn if he ever saw one. 

"Well, I mean.. It's just a bottle."

He'd curse beneath his breath. She was right, as usual, calling out his lack of common sense and his big dreams to bring him back to reality. She was a bit of a ball buster but it kept them alive and them out of the joint, most of the time anyways. Batista watched her curiously as she gave his idea some thought. He'd begin down the sidewalk, assuming she'd shoot it right down, however to his surprise she began in the opposite direction. He'd pause in his stride and glance over his shoulder to her, a grin perched upon his lips.

"Wait. What? Really?!" 

Batista stumbled some back in a fit of laughter, shocked by her decision. It seemed his skills were on the rise as he worked his hustle for the operations in Las Vegas.  He'd turn back to her and wrap his arms around her in a brief, tight hug, excited no doubt. Batista laughed, and even punched at her arm, playfully.

"Let's just go in there? Roll with it as it happens? What do you think?"

He'd tug at the blue bandanna wrapped around his neck, lifting it some and preparing it to be used as a partial face mask. Batista glanced over to the post office, noting a good amount of foot traffic entering the facility. It wasn't going to be the cleanest of grabs but, it'd be one hell of a pay day!

"Wait, hold up a second. We can't just roll up in there, not yet at least."

Lynn looked Batista up and down. He already had his signature blue bandana pulled up past his nose and his eye's were locked on the post office. She watched as he began to take a couple steps towards the post office, with a grip grasp of the back of his shirt she gave him a little jolt back towards her.

"Dude! We can't have a go at it just yet. Take a look around."

Directly next to the post office was a donut shop, one which was frequented by cops. Lynn look up at the clock that was sitting on top of the post office and pointed to it.

"Look it's 12:35, lunch time. Hence why all those cops are in the donut shop. If we made a move now we would probably get shot and I don't know about you but I really don't want to get shot today."

Lynn nudged her head in the direction of a bench just a couple feet away. It was in the shade and was a perfect place to watch from a distance.

"Come on, let's have a seat and wait for them to leave."

Batista took a step toward the street yet was yanked right back! He'd tug his bandanna down and tuck it beneath his shirt as he heard Lynn out. The girl made some sense. He'd glance over to the doughnut shop, a couple police cars were parked just out front. Fuck, he was so caught up in the thought of making off with all the cash that he failed to scope the area out completely. Tunnel vision. All he wanted to see was the cash!

"Oh shit. Look at you, always saving my ass. What would I do without you?"

Batista watched the doughnut shop for a few moments more before he'd go along with her and take a seat at the bench. He'd look to her and glance over to the doughnut shop every so often. Seconds felt like minutes, minutes felt like hours, and hours never seemed to fucking end. Batista groaned as he'd shift some on the bench.

"There goes one. Do they really have nothing better to do?"

Batista glanced over to Lynn, and gave her a nudge before looking to the post office. The traffic in slowed, and it appeared it was near empty. There was still a pair of coppers next door, but the odds were in their favor as long as they made the right moves! Batista slouched some.

"You know, the times in the orphanage were rough. All those mysterious floods, that time we were moved to the 'Maniac Mansion', remember? I barely slept there because of the stories of that monster or dinosaur or whatever the hell the called it. Was that thing even real?"

The orphanage, it was a place of many bad memories and lots of cold scary night. Lynn's eyes opened extra wide the moment Batista mentioned the dinosaur type thing that lurked the halls of that mansion. She inched slightly closer to him on the bench as a chill went through her body.

"Stop! That thing was real, I swear. I saw it that one night, scared me half to death. That place was horrible."

She sat there motionless on the bench, playing that night back in her head. She remembered waking up cause of a strange noise, figured it was nothing and tried to go back to bed. The moment she closed her eyes she heard it again then again. Now the caretaker always told the kids to never leave their quarters at night or they may never come back. It was always something they thought was said to deter them from roaming at night. 

She remmebered getting out of bed and walking to the door, giving the knob a slight turn releasing the lock from the door jam. Peeking out the door all she saw were a pair of yellow eye just down the hall. 

"Lynn... Lynn..."

Before she could finish her flashback she snapped out of it to Batista calling her name. He was pointing to the doughnut shop, the last of the cops had finally left.

"Come on Lynn, let's go do this..."

He grabbed her hand and pulled her right off the bench. He pulled with so much force she almost fell over. 

"Alright, alright let's go do this. We shouldn't go in together though, might look overly suspicious. So I will go in first, wait online like an average customer a minute later you come and that's when we hit. Sound good?"

Batista nodded.

"See you in there." Lynn said with a smile on her face. 

She waited until she was able to cross the street and marched into the post office and got it line.

Dubliner chuckled nervously to himself and his face began to flush. He slowly reached his hand out to take the envelope back from the woman. He turns away ashamed and heads for the front door. He opens it just as another woman stands outside. He steps aside and holds the door for her as she enters. 

"How do you do?" Dub said cordially. She walks in past him without batting an eye. Dub steps outside and onto the sidewalk as he sighs to himself. He sits down on a nearby bench next to a gentleman. 

The two sat silently for awhile as Dub tossed around the envelope passing time and thinking to himself. He needed a job. He looked towards the man, "Time's been tough for you too?" he asked rhetorically. Times were hard on just about everyone. Except for the bootleggers, prohibition was still in effect although there was rumors that it was being voted on to be repealed in Congress. He waited in suspense hoping to strike up a friendly conversation with a stranger in order to forget about what happened in the post office. How embarrassing... 

It was true, the orphanage was to blame for placing them in several homes where terrible things happened. Children went missing, drowned and were shifted to the dreadful basement. The thoughts still plagued his mind today, and would give him the occasional chills when they surfaced. Batista chuckled softly to himself as he listened to Lynn as she was recanting her memories, most of which they shared.

"I know, I was there with you, except when they sent me to that weird couple, the man was a realtor.. Fuck, what was his name? Fenrick? I remember one night he came in with his pants pissed! He must've had a rough night."

Batista looked to her, noting that she had zoned out. A smile curled at the corners of his lips as he'd lean over to give her a nudge, calling to her before she suddenly snapped back to reality. He'd shake his head some as she'd get right back to their mission. He'd pause mid stride, catch her from stumbling further.

"Whoops, sorry. Getting a bit excited about getting this done.."

He'd guide her some up the stairs before she shared the plan of her entering first. It was probably the best way to go about things, and he wasn't going to question her logic, it usually saved their asses from some unnecessary heat.

"Sounds good, see you in a few minutes."

Batista offered a playful wink as he loosened the bandanna around his neck, readying it for his run inside. He'd step back, slowly working his way back down the stairs as he watched Lynn walk away before slipping into the post office. He'd chuckle to himself and bite at his bottom lip before turning to sit on the bench.

It was only a moment later that another gentleman came out of the post office, and soon enough joined him on the bench. Who the fuck was this guy? He'd narrow his brows as he heard the man speak. Batista glanced to his sides a moment, ensuring it was him he was speaking to. Clearly there wasn't anyone else around. Batista looked to him, and gave a bit of a shrug.

"I'm alright, just making it at the moment. It's not easy to scrape an honest penny around here, but.. There are other ways of doing business, you know?"

Batista cracked a grin as he looked to the man, and offered him a pat on the shoulder as he'd stand. He'd then pull that blue bandanna up, covering the lower half of his face. He'd share a chuckle behind the veil and a half-ass two finger salute before making his way up the stairs to the entrance of the post office.

He'd draw in a deep breath as his right hand moved to clench the pistol grip, removing it from his waistband as he'd storm inside the building. Batista first looked for Lynn, a wave of confidence filled him as he caught her standing in line as planned. He'd then raise the pistol, firing a shot into the ceiling, plaster and concrete debris came crashing to the polished floor. 

"Attendants! Let me see those fucking hands! The rest of you, on the ground!"

Batista cocked the hammer back as he'd lower the pistol to train upon each attendant. 

"Your lives are worth more than that money, don't do anything stupid. Start throwing all that drawer cash in a bag!"

He'd growl as he marched to the barred windows, the first attendant an older lady, shaking and seemingly 'stuck' as she began crying, unable to move. 

"Listen, just throw the cash in the bag and you go home. That's it lady."

Batista lowered his tone for her, hoping to de-escalate her fear. It would work, too. The lady snapped right back to what she was supposed to do, taking a burlap bag from beneath the counter and emptying bills and large collections of coins. He'd reach for the bag as the lady attempted to hoist it up and over the counter. Fuck, these things were going to be heavy! Batista glanced over his shoulder to Lynn and nodded toward the other side of the service windows.

"Let's go, gorgeous, that purse has your name all over it!"

Dubliner sat, now alone, on the bench outside the post office. Other ways to make money? Dub didn't even look over to the man to see the bandana he'd put on. He sat reflecting for a few more moments until he heard a gunshot pop inside the post office. Dub stood up to his feet like a meerkat looking for predators. He slowly crept up the stairs towards the front door and opened it. He saw the man he was just speaking to holding a gun to the face of the attendant who refused to send his letter. Dub also saw the woman he bumped into at the door standing on the other end of the room pointing her gun at the civilians laying flat on the floor.

As the door closed behind him, both robbers sharply turned their heads towards him. Dub held up his envelope. "I wanna deliver a letter..." he said sheepishly and as calmly as he could manage. The two robbers stared at him in shock as Dub seemed completely unaware at the gravity of the situation. As Batista and Lynn got the money from the civilians and the tellers, Dub walked up to the teller that Batista was standing at and slid the letter under the bars towards the attendant. 

"Uh, yeah. That'll need a stamp and also I think the prices have dropped drastically since last I was here a few minutes ago..." Dub said trying to be as intimidating he could be but obviously still shaken, uncomfortable, and unfamiliar with the situation he was in. Dub looked over to the man next to him as the lady began to process his request. Dub laughed slightly to try and break the awkward silence engulfing the room.