Shen leaned onto the balcony's railing, of the beautiful, yet modest house they had rented out in Leon Mexico. He wore a three-piece black business suit and held an icepack to the left side of his face, his left eye swollen badly and a bruise covering most of the left side of his face. Yet, despite the injury he suffered, he seemed as calm as usual, staring with an empty gaze into the gloomy sky.

The door to the balcony swung open swiftly, and Malincha sauntered onto the balcony, wearing a baggy white Puebla blouse, and a pair of jeans. She walked up beside Shen, stretched briefly and yawned, and then leaned onto the railing, sighing. "Hey, can we talk?"

Shen didn't take his eyes off the sky, though it didn't even really seem like he was staring at the sky. It was more like he was staring off into space, as if he wasn't even there with Malincha anymore. After several seconds, he parted his lips just barely to respond. "Why not."

She glanced at her nails, and then started to nibble on them before speaking. "How old are you, again?"

"Is that relevant?"

Maliincha nodded, continuing to nibble at her nails, and Shen spoke once again. "I'm 17."

"17...that's sort of sad." She responded, taking her eyes off of the sky and her nails to glance at Shen from the corner of her eyes, who didn't even bother to look at her.

"And why is that?"

"You're the most lifeless teenager I've ever seen in my entire life. I mean- I haven't once ever see you smile or show any sort of positive emotion. You're always just so, solemn, and serious, and it's like, you always sorta keep to yourself...it's just so..." Malincha struggled to find the right words as Shen stared out into space, without any sign of acknowledging what she had just said.

"Do you even have any goals? A hobby? Friends- maybe?" Shen's eyes drifted away from the sky, and he shifted slightly towards Malincha.

"My goal is to help Banjo reach Moloc's Labryinth so that he can grant my wish. No, I don't have any hobbies or friends. There's nothing I enjoy, and there's nothing I paticularly dislike doing. It's just I'll do whatever to help reach my goal, and that's that." He replied in a reserved, flat tone.

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"Even evil things?" Malincha asked, and the both of them turned fully to face each other, and Shen slowly nodded his head.

"Yes...I'll do any sort of dirty work, even if it means killing people, or blackmailing people as I had to do with Mr. Andone." Shen answered, and Malincha couldn't help but smile slightly.

"But I'm guessing you don't enjoy it? Maybe you even feel guilty about it?" She quiered further, and Shen froze up slightly, before shaking his head.

"I told you already, it doesn't matter to me. I don't enjoy it, and I don't hate it either. So no, I don't enjoy it, if that's what you're hinting at." Malincha's question had seemingly gotten to Shen, as he was getting slightly offensive, and his grip on the railing tightened.

"That'-"

Shen whipped his head around, his eyes narrowed and his tone cold. "If you think you can find a kindred soul in me, then you better give up. There's a difference between us, you lie because that's all you're good at, it's your only talent. I do the same shitty work as you b-"

"But you hate the person you might become in doing so? Someone who lies and manipulates and kills to further their own goal, despite those that might be harmed by your actions. Is that it?" Malincha smiled at Shen, who just stared back at her, unsure of what to say, or how to react.

Shen paused for a few seconds, his mouth hanging slightly open..."...I-...yes. I'll use any means possible to reach my goal, but...I hate the person I'll have to become to do that. Someone who views everyone around them as disposable tools just too further their own goals, and-"

"That's why you didn't do anything when Andone socked you? Felt like you deserved it?" Malincha seemed to have finally found what she was trying to say, and she smiled brightly at Shen, who seemed to be struggling with the fact he was similar to Malincha in ways.

"Stop doing that, it's weird." Shen muttered quietly, and Malincha just giggled. "Yes. I saw that as a representation of the justice that will strike me down for all the sins I'm going to and have to commit. After all, every dragon eventually has to be slain right?"

".... I don't know." Malincha looked up at the clouds. "I know that I'm an irredeemable person. I've all done much, much worse things in my own respective past, compared to you, who just started to walk down this path. I don't think you're evil, or a monster, or a dragon. But a boy who lost his way." She smiled down at Shen.

"This is coming from a lady who thought a quartet consisted of five people." Shen curtly replied, looking down at the floor, and Malincha just laughed again, much to Shen's irritation. "So, what the hell do you even want anyways?"

"For you to know that you're not too far gone yet. And for you to know that, if you need someone to talk too, you can always come to me. We're sort of similar; you know." Shen glanced at Malincha, trying to think of some sort of comeback, yet could find none...although he didn't want to admit it, she was right.

"Got that, kid?" She pressed further, smiling.

"Don't call me that."

Malincha snickered again, and Shen shifted to the side, the two of them on the balcony, staring out into the sky silently.