What Defines Us

A.B.T.

Leon Afreds was lying back on his twin size bed with his hands behind his head and his eyes closed. A pair of black headphones pushed his straight blonde hair tight against his head and all outside noises away. His head nodded lightly to the steady, pulsating beat of his music and one lock of his hair broke free from it's restraint, falling in front of his head and bobbing before him. So distracted and in the moment of the music was he that he didn't notice when the door opened and Ryuko Matoi stepped in, looking somewhat battered and worse for wear.

"Oi, Leon. I'm back," she said, flipping her red highlight out of her face and frowning when she didn't receive an answer.

"Seems he doesn't hear you. Lucky for him," Senketsu said with a sarcastic smile in his tone. Ryuko rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, fuck off," she replied, and the sailor-suit chuckled before going silent. She took a few steps into the room and closed the door with some force, but the loud bang still didn't rouse Leon from his music. She clenched her fist and thought about leaping over the cluttered coffee-table to rip those headphones off his head but didn't. For one she didn't want to make the mess that was Leon's apartment any worse than it already was (though she wouldn't be the one cleaning it, that was for sure). For two, she knew that tackling him would only lead to to things she was too tired to be in the mood for. Instead, she let off an annoyed sigh and set the bag that was over her shoulder next to the door and walked through an open archway into the small home's kitchen. Leon still made no motion or sound to suggest he knew that she had arrived. With another sigh the girl pulled open the small, white refrigerator and peered inside at it's contents – a bottle of ketchup, a half-stick of butter on a small white plate, a half-full bottle of spiced rum, and a white box filled with beef lo-mein. It was this last item she was after, pulling it from the fridge and turning, closing the door with her foot and picking at the cold, grease covered noodles with the white plastic fork that was already in the container.

"He doesn't take very good care of himself, does he?"

"Well it's not like he's been here that long. Besides he's American – this is probably normal," she said, stabbing the fork into a piece of beef and bringing it to her mouth as she looked around. The kitchen was the biggest room in the house, but even then it was surprisingly small. There was enough room for the fridge, the electric stove next to it, and a small counter separating the kitchen from the living room. A microwave sat precariously on the counter with it's door just open enough to keep the light inside on. The sink, positioned against the opposite wall, was filled with soapy water. The stack of plates next to it, still dripping, told Ryuko what Leon had been doing before she arrived. At least he was keeping busy.

"Well, it's not like he's spending his time fighting for his life or anything," she thought, twirling noodles around her fork, "shit, it's all I can hope that he's in the dark about all this. The less he knows the better." She put the Chinese food on the counter and sighed, resting her hands on the counter as she felt the weariness, and a realization, hit her full force. This was something that affected the whole world, and she knew that, and even if she were to just call it quits and break ties with him completely, this was something that he was going to be a part of whether she wanted it or not. The thought scared her, and made her wonder why she ever got involved with him in the first place.

. . .

"Ryuko. Did you think success would be like this?" the Kamui asked, but Ryuko didn't have an answer. Things had changed in the Mankanshoku household, and not just because they had begun moving up in the twisted world that was Honnouji Academy. She could see it clear as day, and it didn't matter how big the mansion was or how much money they had – she didn't like it one bit. Feeling restless, she suddenly sat up and started getting dressed in a spare tee-shirt, pants, and her white shoes.

"Going somewhere without me seems a little risky, doesn't it, what with everyone gunning for you?" Senketsu asked, but Ryuko merely answered by twirling her scissor blade, in it's shrunken form, around her index finger as she left. The sailor-suit merely sighed and let her go.

An hour later Ryuko was walking through the Zero Star section of town. Suddenly the place felt more like home than the glaring mansion up above her. What was happening was wrong, and she needed to do something about it.

"And I think I've got the perfect plan," she muttered, eyes on the ground and hands deep in her pockets. A stiff breeze passed her by and she noted how odd it felt to be wearing something other than Senketsu out in the open. It wasn't like she felt naked or anything. Quite the opposite, she felt like she was wearing too much, and somehow that forced her into feeling more vulnerable than ever. She was tough, she thought, but still. She was happy she brought her blade.

"Hey where do you think you're goin'?" she heard from nearby, and expected the worst as she turned to face her would-be attackers. However, as she looked around her, the one that had called out was nowhere to be found. At the sound of blows connecting with flesh she started running, looking for the cause in a path that took her down the street and through an alleyway.

At the end of the alleyway Ryuko found the problem – a group of One Star students had cornered what appeared to be a Zero Star. He was down on a knee with his arms around his midsection. His face was hidden under long blonde bangs but it was obviously contorted in pain. One of his attackers reached down and grabbed him by the collar of his white button-up shirt, lifting him up off the ground.

"You know that Matoi chick's been causing all sorts of problems ever since she got here. And to top it all off she's going after club presidents!" the student asked. The blonde stayed silent, which only earned him another strike to his gut.

"The last thing we need is another transfer making things worse," the student said again, preparing to strike again. Ryuko, scowling and stepping from the shadows with her scissor blade over her shoulder.

"Hey," she called, and the group turned to her, the speaker from before dropping the blonde back to the ground, "if you've got a problem with me then say it to my face!"

"It's Matoi! And she's not wearing her uniform either!" one said, stepping forward and cracking his knuckles.

"This is our chance!" said another. Ryuko held her blade before her and got ready to fight, but her scowl was replaced by a wide-eyed look of disbelief. The blonde was back on his feet, and with a tap on the shoulder one of the other students. When they turned they were met with a glare from dark green eyes and a fist, knocking them to the ground.

"Oh you stupid son of a bitch," said the downed student, quickly jumping up and punching the blonde back with all of his strength, knocking him back against the wall to slump down to the ground, unmoving.

"Now where were we?" said the student, turning back to Ryuko.

"Right about the part where I kicked your ass," she replied angrily, and in a moment she closed the gap between herself and her opponents. All it took was a couple of swings and they were down, a heap in the middle of the street. Shrinking her blade down and rotating her shoulder with a bored sigh, Ryuko stepped up to the blonde, squatting down and shaking him lightly on his shoulder.

"You all right? They didn't kill you did they?" she asked, brushing the hair out of his face. A trickle of blood came from his nose and she could tell from the crooked way it sat it had been broken. She reached behind his head and didn't feel anything wet there, meaning he hadn't cracked his skull open or anything, and when she pulled back he began to rouse with a pained groan. His eyes flickered open and looked around like he wasn't sure where he was. Ryuko wasn't surprised by that at all.

"You should've just stayed down and let me take care of them. You got a death wish or somethin'?" she asked. His mouth moved like he was trying to say something but what came out was gibberish in another language. Sounded like English.

"Yep, didn't get that," she said, working to lift him up from the sidewalk before draping his arm over her shoulder. He was a good head taller than she was but surprisingly light. Either she was way stronger than she thought or he had absolutely no mass to him.

"Come on, let's get your dumb ass off the street. I got somewhere safe for now," she said. The blonde struggled against her for a few moments and said more gibberish words to her while shaking his head groggily, but she ignored him until he eventually gave in, letting the girl practically drag him along in his stupor. Surely Mako wouldn't mind, right?