Two men faced each other. One set behind a desk, hands clasped to his chin and eyes narrowed in contemplation as he observed the odd intruder. The general had been hoping to spend these few moments of free time alone, the company of a hot cup of tea perfectly suitable in his old hands. Instead he had to stare down his brightest commanding platoon officer, a pink paper slip of his depressing resignation guided under his nose, mocking him that this was beginning to become the inevitable.

Takumi Usui, lieutenant of the 32nd platoon stood straight, green eyes sliding slowly closed when the general sighed in reaction to his attempt at a swift and silent escape as commanding officer of the most promising Seika combat squad.

"Usui…" he began carefully. "What do you want me to do with this?"

The question hung in the air. Usui and the general knew each other too well to misunderstand the true meaning of this situation. Usui lifted his gaze, meeting the general's eyes with a flat tone. "Humbleness aside, General Kaidou, I would prefer if you signed it, sir."

General Kaidou sat back, hands leaving the place against his jaw as he leaned into his chair, nearly letting his motionless expression cave into one of pity. That was the key reason they had always managed to get along with each other. On the outside, they were identical to the world, invisible of emotion. On the inside…

"I want out…I just want out."

Takumi was falling apart. It was hard to see right away. A nineteen year old boy already promoted to rank of lieutenant, head of the 32nd frontline platoon. It would be a disgrace to wish for an escape now at the peak of his success. Not that you could manage to without earning thorough demerits or an immediate court martial. Entering the Seika military was permanent. The secrets you learned on the inside were just one of the many sacrifices you paid for the life you would lose on the outside. Takumi knew that and yet he still came to him, the one person who the boy was aware identified with him well. Almost ridiculously too well.

What a rut he had driven himself into. General Kaidou shifted through some miscellaneous documents on his desk, a particular yellow slip of paper catching his eye. He slid it carefully from the pile, smiling slightly when the picture paper-clipped to the corner still hung there, the odd occupant of the photograph gazing up at him mute in reply to his obvious mirth.

It was an applying recruit, specifically stating a wish to be placed under the frontline combat sector, Usui's sector. "I will sign your resignation," he stated simply, standing up with the application in hand. Usui's sodden gaze lit at the sudden approval, then narrowed, cautious. Kaidou stepped up to him, holding the paper out for the lieutenant to observe. "If you have a talk with a certain applicant for your sector, I will consider your resignation. She's been a little…stubborn."

"She?"

Usui tugged the photo free, eyes flickering wider for a split second before his lips settled into a quiet smile. A woman applying for the frontlines was unreasonable. That specific combat sector only allowed men to enter, and even then only if they had undergone specific training needed for the special rank as a frontline soldier. They were the ones hit first, the ones hit hardest. They burdened the rough of every hush-hush mission. Deterring her from applying would earn him the freedom to finally escape from the military.

Misaki Ayuzawa

Usui slipped the picture inside his left front suit pocket.

"I accept."

Okay. Yeah. Truthfully, I just wanted to write Usui. But I figure, hey, let's throw some sort of plot in there too. Although I'm not entirely sure about this story, I tried my best to correctly use military ranks and terms. It's a lot more complicated than I first thought. For the sake of you as readers and my sanity, I'm just going to use basic ranks. General, colonel, lieutenant, corporal, sergent, private, ect.

General: The big boss. He basically runs the entire army. He's an Oc. I couldn't think any adult figures besides Misaki's mom that would fit the part.

Lieutenant: Usually in charge of a platoon (16-50 soldiers). But in this story, I'm specifically labeling them as Frontline Platoon, or Artillery Platoon, as some examples. Usui is in command of the frontline soldiers.

Chapter two is when it gets more interesting. Let me know if I completely failed or not.