It was a chill morning.

A frigid wind proved tentative and capricious, blowing with biting force one moment, only to die down a few minutes later.

Leaves swirled about here and there. Passersby hugged their coats tightly against themselves, trying to conserve warmth. The clouds were low and pregnant looking-they promised rain.

Hopefully the crowds would be small at his destination.

Sousuke's mission was a very important one. There was no back-up covering him. There would be no communications. The price for failure would be steep- very steep.

February 14.

St. Valentine's Day.

Usually, in Japan, only the women would present gifts. Men were expected to reciprocate on March 14, "White Day". But, Kaname had spent a fair amount of time in the United States. She preferred that nation's incarnation of the lovers' holiday. That meant that

Sousuke would prefer her view, if he knew what was good for him.

He had already bought a number of boxes of sweets-Belgian truffles, Marzipan, and Kaname's favorite candied fruit slices. That bounty was safely hidden in his room. Kaname had not discovered the hiding place-if she had, the trap would have been sprung, and she would be wearing red paint for a day or three. Likewise, since the flash-bangs were still intact, she had not gone looking for the small and simple necklace he had picked out with Kyouko's and Ren's help.

That left the flowers.

Kaname loved roses. Long stem red roses. Large bunches of them.

A brief sprinkling of rain blew against Sousuke's face. He shook his head. At least he didn't have any classes today. Kaname did, and that was in his favor. He should be able to strike quickly…… purchase what he wanted…… then return before Kaname was through with classes for the day.

While it was never put into writing, the professors at the University preferred that the two of them did not take the same course at the same time.

The damage had been minimal first and second semester, in relative terms. No one had been killed. No buildings would need to be condemned. The student health services had been able to handle the resultant minor injuries and panic attacks.

Sousuke had not been in to visit with anyone in the Mithril Finance Division lately, but he knew that they might wan to burn him in effigy, if not in person. Lt. Cmdr. Kalinin had said that he could not guarantee Sousuke's safety. It had probably been a joke.

Probably.

He looked both ways before running across a busy intersection.

Sousuke would have ridden his bicycle, but that would prove impractical with a large long box of flowers. He would take a taxi on the way back, glad that Kaname would not be there to use her favorite method of signaling a cab. For now, he would walk, stretching out his muscles, and enjoying the sights, sounds, and smells of the city.

He felt the weight of his weapons in his overcoat pockets, a small hindrance on his stroll. He had considered leaving them behind, as Kaname was not with him. But, he had been in a hurry.

Finally, he reached his destination. The flowers in this store were top notch. Because he had rescued the young ladies who worked there from a robber once, he received a large discount when he shopped. But, since the store had required significant renovations, the owner went into the back to lay down whenever Sousuke walked in.

"Mr. Sagara, so nice to see you again. I am certain that Mr. Kasiwara would have been honored to greet you, but he just now had a phone call from his sick mother. How may we help you?" The young women competed to see who could stand at the counter in front of heir erstwhile savior.

They had still not gotten over their crushes.

"May I have a dozen long stem red roses, please. Wrapped with fern and Baby's Breath." Sousuke knew exactly what he wanted.

"Oh, I'm so very sorry. But we are out of red roses. Would you be interested in white, pink, or yellow? Other cut blossoms?" One young woman looked saddened. The other had gone into the back room.

"No, red is a necessity. I hope that you have a fine day today. Perhaps I will be more fortunate next time." As Sousuke turned to leave, the other young lady came running, carrying an open can of paint.

"Wait. Oh, please wait! If you like, I could paint the white roses red for you..." In her great hurry, she missed sight of a large fold in the carpet. Catching her foot, she fell, flinging the paint can upward.

Paint spilled as the container tumbled.

Sousuke's reactions were swift, the sign of a true professional. He avoided most of the paint. Most. A long streak of red ran from the middle of his pressed grey shirt down to the belt loops of his favorite European style slacks.

This was Kaname's favorite outfit on him.

The day was not starting off the way he had hoped!

"Oh. Mr. Sagara. I am so-o-o-o-o sorry!" The clumsy young woman began bowing repeatedly, backing away from Sousuke. Not looking where she was going, she was headed for a tall free-standing shelf displaying aristic arrangements of cacti and succulents, including a good number of grafted plants with red tops.

It was apropos.

Red is the color of danger.

"Wait, Miss…… behind you." Sousuke moved to stop the store worker. He was too late. The shelf unit split in two, spilling a spike-rich avalanche of plants down upon the well-intentioned young soldier. Dirt covered his head and shoulder, the potting loam emitting a strong earthy odor. Needles and spines stuck out of his exposed forearms, making him look like he had porcupine blood somewhere in his family tree.

It was uncomfortable, to say the least.

The young woman was mortified. Her co-worker did her best to conceal her amusement. She knew who the young man's favorite must be now. Sousuke assured both that he was OK. They offered to run out to a rival flower shop and buy the roses for him, but he told them it was unnecessary. He must respect the safety of that shop.

These girls were dangerous.

The soil brushed off and the needles extracted, Sousuke continued on his journey undaunted. He ignored the curious looks he received from onlookers. His luck changed for the better. He avoided the water that fell from a window washer's rig. The growling dog chose someone else's pants to savage. The woman who was too intent at staring was the one who fell down the open man hole.

There were the sounds of a commotion coming from a block or two ahead.

Sousuke could hear shouting. Then he heard the sound of loud laughter, and small metallic wheels turning. He turned quickly. A group of truant teenagers, with punked-out hair and neon clothes, rode quickly down the sidewalk, shooting the pedestrians and cars with paintball pistols.

This is way too dangerous! Sousuke thought. Best I put a stop to this immediately.

The young Mithril soldier took up position behind a tree. There was no way he was going to get into any more mishaps today. Whipping out his pistol in a smooth practiced motion, he placed shots with metronomic timing.

Bang!

The front wheel was shot off of the first speeding board.

Bang!

Another board, another wheel gone.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

A third board cracked in half down the middle.

Bang bang!

A small tree limb fell from a sturdy maple, tripping up another boarder and sending him airborne.

Not a single paintball was fired in Sousuke's direction.

All Hell broke loose in rapid succession. The first board scooted on its own into traffic, catching an elderly woman by surprise. Reaching frantically for the brake pedal, she stomped on the accelerator by mistake. Fortunately, after passing through the bistro window, the vehicle stopped before it ran down the first table of startled diners.

The first punk bowled over a young boy carrying a rather agitated young cat.

The second board rolled harmlessly down the street. Its rider wind-milled his arms, trying to regain his balance. He stepped on the fleeing cat and stumbled into traffic, his eyes growing unbelievably large when he saw a large truck bearing down on him. The vehicle's driver hit the brakes hard, bringing the truck to an emergency stop.

The car behind him was not so fortunate, plowing into the rear of the cargo hauler. The impact snapped a number of restraining wires, allowing the truck's cargo to fall free. Three portable toilets slid off the back of the transport pallet, spilling their contents on the car and the surrounding street.

The cat, splashed, was none too happy.

The third punk's momentum left him running forward. He ran hard into the tree Sousuke was using as a shield. Bent over and breathing hard, he noticed Sousuke's fancy loafers. He hated fancy loafers. Smiling, he took a can of spray paint out of his backpack.

"One pair of psychedelic shoes coming up, Mr. Big Man On Campus College Boy Jerk!"

Before he knew it, he was flung streetward, landing in a spreading puddle of raw sewage. The irate cat hissed and scratched him across the cheek. The last remaining Port-a- Pot, teetering on the edge for all this time, finally lost its battle and fell, clobbering the stunned miscreant.

The fourth troublemaker landed on a small wheeled dumpster, just about to be loaded onto a waiting garbage truck. The container rolled down the sidewalk, picking up speed with every passing moment. It veered out into the street, causing car after car to weave, honk its horn, or slam on its brakes.

Cars rear-ended each other. A motorcyclist was launched skyward after running up a broken bench on the sidewalk. He bounced off the roof of a city councilman's limo before coming to rest in the arms of a famous city statue.

A bus knocked down the fancy iron gate of an upscale Apartment building. A young girl let go of her balloon. Two frightened pigeons took to the wing, leaving a sloppy calling card on the head of a man walking his dog.

The dog caught sight of the streaking cat and pulled himself free.

Their parents should be reprimanded severely Sousuke thought. All that trouble because of inappropriate behavior. They really should be in school.

Glad to have escaped unsullied, the young operative continued his walk down the sidewalk. Walking towards him, the pizza delivery man carried too many boxes to see the danger in front of him. Sighing with relief at the sight of his destination, he considered himself blessed to have carried the ten boxes as far as he had, without having both arms break off at the shoulders. Putting his weight on an unseen skateboard, he slipped backward, launching his boxes.

Pizza and toppings rained down from the sky.

Again, Sousuke's reactions were marvelous, resembling something out of 'The Matrix.' No one else could have avoided looking like a walking commercial for Pizza Hut. Still, two sloppy slices came crashing down on his shirt, continuing the damage started at the flower shop.

If Kaname were here, he thought, she'd probably blame me for everything that happened. And, she'd dress me down for getting my shirt messy. Looks like I'm going to have to stop at my place and change when I'm done. I had better hurry.

Sousuke took off at a brisk jog. To his good fortune, he was gone when the police arrived. No one had taken good notice of him.

Authorities were soon looking for the cat.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

The walk to the next florist went without any further untoward circumstances.

The bell rang cheerfully as Sousuke walked into the ornately decorated establishment. He had ducked into the restroom at a convenience store to clean himself up as much as possible, but he still looked somewhat stained and disheveled. The anteroom was crowded. A number of people looked at Sousuke and snickered.

A couple of older women stepped back in concern.

"I'm sorry, but we do not allow vagrants in here, young man. If you are looking for handouts, please do so away from this shop." The woman behind the counter picked up a telephone, in case the scarred young man put up any kind of resistance to her request. "We do not sell alcohol, if that is what you are looking for. This is a florist. We sell flowers."

"Madame?" Sousuke was puzzled. He often looked worse than this after missions…… or when he forgot to get Kaname flowers.

No matter.

"I am quite aware that this is a florist. It is why I walked all of the way here, to purchase a dozen long-stemmed red roses. Unfortunately, I have run into a string of bad luck-doused with paint, covered with potting soil, nearly caught in the middle of an accident, and pelted with pizza."

"You're not here to cause trouble?" The woman still looked skeptical.

"Furthest thing from it, Madame. I'll be in trouble if I don't get the flowers!" He showed her the contents of his wallet.

The woman stared at Sousuke a moment longer and decided to take him at his word. She sent one of her assistants into the refrigerated room to collect the roses. "So, these are for your young lady, I take it? She has high expectations of you on Valentine's Day?"

"She has high expectations every day!" Sousuke made an attempt at a smile. He was working on that. "Some days, it proves very wise to live up to those expectations." Sousuke grimaced when the woman pulled out a few of the cactus spikes still caught in his left arm.

"Ever try and kiss a porcupine?" Sousuke asked the woman.

"Can't say that I have..." The woman smiled. She knew exactly what he meant. There had been times when she had suddenly grown a coat of quills.

"I do not recommend it." Sousuke looked over at the returning assistant, her hands empty. That was probably bad news, unless someone else in the back room was wrapping up roses.

The assistant whispered into the ear of the woman behind the counter.

"I'm afraid that I must add to your list of woes, young man. We are out of red roses, and don't expect a shipment for two days. I am truly sorry. I hope you manage to reach your next stop safely." She gave Sousuke the name of another flower shop further down the avenue.

Before Sousuke could put his hand on the door knob, the door pulled open quickly.

A large man dressed in denim pants and a tattered martial arts robe pushed past the younger man. He walked quickly towards the young woman who had checked on the flowers for Sousuke.

"Yuri. I knew I'd find you here. I told you if you didn't come back by today, you should keep on running! Let's go." Without warning, he slapped the girl, then grabbed her roughly by the arm.

The woman behind the counter slowly reached for the phone. The angry man took notice and produced a sai out of his robes. "This is none of your business. Do you want to make it your business?" The crazed look in his eyes froze her.

The violent man looked around the room. "Anyone here want to get in my way? It's a good place to do it, if you have any stupid ideas. They can pick out the flowers for your funeral while you're laying on the floor." No one made a sound. No one moved.

Except for Sousuke.

"Do you wish to make a phone call, Madame?" Sousuke made eye contact, nodding. "I assure that the man will not bother you while you do so." Sousuke turned to the frightened young assistant. "It is not my intention to get caught up in your personal squabbles, Miss. But, I will say that the statistics regarding women and abusive partners is very unfavorable."

"There's always one in the crowd." The man took a tonfa out from under his robe. "Before long, there is always one less. I think I will do you left-handed. It won't be much of a challenge if I do you right-handed."

Smiling, the man struck swiftly, lashing out with the tonfa. Missing a dodging Sousuke, the club went on to knock a large wooden panel loose from the door. "Let's do this sportsmanlike. You stand still, so I can beat the living crap out of you without working up too much of a sweat."

"Sir, might I suggest we step outside. The people in here have done nothing to you. You seem to have a grievance against me, not the shop." Sousuke opened the broken door.

The man ignored him for the moment.

"Says who? They let her work here. That's enough for me!" The man pushed his ex-girlfriend hard against a glass case, fracturing the window. He made a kissing face at a quivering old woman, causing her to collapse to the floor in fear. Picking up a vase, he cocked his arm back, intending to throw it at the woman calling the police.

Sousuke grabbed his wrist.

"I must apologize, Madame. I do not wish to cause any further destruction of your fine shop." Sousuke was very skilled, but the man was too strong and too heavy to immobilize effectively. Things were going to escalate rapidly. If he were willing to kill the man, things could be resolved in a short time, with little collateral damage.

"But, if I stand by idly, who can say what might happen next." His words were very grim.

The angry man proved he was by no means a slouch at the martial arts. Executing sutemi waza, a sacrifice technique, he used Sousuke's momentum to his own benefit. Attempting to perform o surama, he began to pull him into a wheel throw around his waist.

He would attempt to break Sousuke's neck with the tonfa when he hit the floor.

Thrown off his feet, Sousuke struck a dapper gentleman, knocking him into the other room, not seeing him land in a large pile of cut flower stems.

The crashing sound of a nearby table full of vases was punctuated by the tinkle of breaking glass.

Sousuke caught the descending stick in his two hands, flexing his wrist to disarm the larger man. Coffee trickled off of his hair and sleeve, courtesy of the cup the well-dressed man had dropped.

"Oh ho, the little dog has teeth. This might be interesting after all. Might." Before he had finished talking, the man upended a large display of gifts and flower arrangements, sending a heavy wooden table towards Sousuke, intending to pin him against the far wall.

Timing things well, Sousuke swung up and vaulted over the table, using the "Tiger's Mouth" fist to ram the knuckle of his first finger hard between his opponent's eyes. The crazed assailant stumbled backward, cutting his arm badly as he crashed partway through a fancy stained glass window.

"You die, now! " The angry man shouted, blood tracking down his arm. He took a wicked hook knife out of his robe. Bunching his shoulders, he signaled his intention to charge.

"That is incorrect." Sousuke took up his pistol in two hands. He shot the knife from the man's hand. Flipping through the air, the knife embedded itself in the polished countertop.

The tip of one finger missing, the violent man grasped one hand in the other, grimacing in pain. There was something new in his eyes, and it was growing in intensity.

Fear.

He got down on his knees, intending to plead for his life. No words came out when he opened his mouth. Sousuke put his taser to good use.

"Madame, were you able to reach the police?" Sousuke sighed, looking at the coffee stains.

The stunned woman nodded her head.

"Good. They should be here shortly. This gentleman should be out until them." Sousuke paused briefly, noting with slight disdain that his shirt was torn. "If you wish to ensure even greater safety, I suggest that you bind his arms and legs with that strong twine you have over there. Running a line from around his backwardly flexed legs to his neck might prove effective. You might wish to wrap his finger, so the blood does not stain your nice floor."

The woman nodded her head again, unable to speak.

"My apologies for reacting defensively. I did not wish to kill the man. It no doubt prolonged the damage occurring to your shop. It is certainly a burden to be civilized. But, there are benefits to being domesticated. Or, so I've been told..."

With that, Sousuke left the shop and headed on his way.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

The walk to the third shop was uneventful.

That is, unless someone were to consider a confrontation with a bunch of drunken yakuza noteworthy. Sousuke did not.

Gangs were becoming rather passe.

The third shop was out of red roses too. The young Mithril sergeant, still seeking his fragrant Holy Grail, left that shop unharmed-he and the shop, both.

Finally, just as the clouds grew tired of waiting and released stinging torrents of rain, good fortune smiled on Sousuke. Water pouring out of his pants leg, he walked into the fourth shop, a small but quaint room tucked in between an adult book store and a steam Laundromat. His loafers squeaking, he approached the counter with some trepidation.

Not only did he have to deal with the rain, but he also was running out of time.

"Sir, would you perchance have any long-stem red roses?"

The man looked at Sousuke and smiled. "She must really mean something to you young man, coming out in a deluge like this. I wish I could reward dedication like that, but I just sold my last dozen a couple of minutes ago-…… just before the clouds opened up. I don't wish to dampen your spirit further….. but, had you considered asking to have the flowers delivered?"

Sousuke hung his head. He felt as if he had been hit across the back of the head with a lead pipe.

Delivery.

Why hadn't he thought about that? Probably because it brought him personal satisfaction to do things in person. But, he could have contacted a lot of shops by phone, instead of taking so much time to stop in four stores.

"Yes, Sir. But I hadn't thought that I'd run into any difficulty. Once I got caught up in the search..."

The bell of the front door of the shop rang. A man walked in.

"Hey, Matoko you old cheapskate, have any need for more roses?" The middle-aged man pointed outside to the flower delivery truck idling at the curb, blinkers flashing. "I have a couple dozen left over from the shops up town. They're not moving much stuff today."

The shop owner chuckled.

"It's a shame you asked me first, Hideki. I'll take what you have, at the usual price. But, if you had asked this young gamecock first, I bet he would have given you every penny he had."

When the initial transaction was accomplished, the shopkeeper sold a dozen long stem roses to Sousuke. "I have some sturdy plastic in the back. I ought to be able to make something that will keep the rain off the flowers." True to his word, he returned ten minutes later with a box of flowers wrapped in clear clinging plastic.

Sousuke smiled. All it took was perseverance. That, and a stout heart. Things were looking up!

Somewhat.

The store owner called the taxi service for him, but the dispatcher reported that no cabs were available: most had been caught up in a traffic jam caused by some skater punks.

Bracing himself, Sousuke headed back out into the rain. He clutched the roses as if he were carrying the most valuable cargo in the world.

Or, the most dangerous.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

It had been a while since Sousuke had seen sideways rain.

The wind tugged strongly at the large plastic wrapped box he carried, but he tugged back stronger still. His shoes were filled with water. The trickle of rain down his neck and back no longer registered. If he had to swim home, he would gladly swim. He had what he wanted.

No.

He had what he needed.

What was it that pilots often said? Any landing you can walk away from is a good landing. He could appreciate that sentiment. He couldn't wait to get his wheels on the ground, figuratively speaking.

Still, there was a good bit of walking left. That, and a good bit of weather. The rain might not have been an impediment, but the new onset of lightning was ominous. Sousuke felt somewhat uneasy when the first thunderclap rang out, shaking the loose windows of a nearby café.

Glowing bolts of electricity snaked their way to the ground just beyond a distant row of buildings. Their intense light left an afterimage in Sousuke's vision. More thunder rolled across the sodden city blocks.

A few blocks further along his way, Sousuke heard a loud noise that was not thunder. A frightening impact followed the sound of automobile horns. Approaching the next intersection, he noted that the stoplights were dark, no doubt related to the electrical storm.

Someone had approached the crossing without the caution such a situation required. As a result, a tangled mass of metal marked the spot where two cars had collided, joined by three others. Gasoline ran down the water filled street, forming a rainbow-colored coating on the fast moving gutter streams. One horn called out with a non-stop plaintive cry, its mechanism jammed. A wheel cover spun down the road, buffeted by gust of wind and rain. An arm hung limply out of a shattered side window. An engine began to smolder, broken fuel pump spraying petrol on hot metal.

There was no time to call for emergency assistance.

Sousuke moved quickly to offer assistance. He placed his box of flowers on a city bench and ran to the most heavily damaged vehicle. The next minutes were a blur to him, as he checked pulses, carefully removed bodies from cars in danger of catching fire, applied first aid, and helped direct traffic around the deadly accident. His day's adventures suddenly felt insignificant. He would be happy just finding Kaname alive when he made it to her apartment.

Of course, he would be happier-and she would be happier-if he made it there with the roses.

Ambulances and fire trucks arrived with the flashing of lights, the din of sirens, and the great honking of air horns. One rescue vehicle had been driving too fast, unable to stop in time when a Good Samaritan stumbled into its path. Veering, the small truck missed the concerned citizen and demolished a row of benches.

His clothes covered with other peoples' blood and other body fluids, Sousuke walked over to the damaged benches. The flower box was buried under a pile of wood, metal, and extruded plastics. Moving the rubble, he found the box was somewhat tattered and torn, but generally intact. The plastic was very much worse for wear. A couple of crooked and broken stems stuck out through the punctured covering.

Taking temporary shelter under a large tree, Sousuke carefully examined the box and its contents. Three flowers were completely ruined. The other nine were in decent condition.

Sloshing through the water once more, Sousuke kept repeating "any landing you can walk away from...any landing you can walk away from..."

He looked at his watch and shook his head. Even if he ran, he might not make it in time.

Kaname's last class should be over before too much longer.