Author's Notes: I've been sitting on this one for waaaay too long! Please enjoy.

The days with Yuri Lowell seemed endless. Sometimes it was frustration, but more often than not, it was something that Flynn relished. There was no two ways about it. Yuri could be a handful between his day job and his night job, but he always had the energy to go toe to toe with Flynn, whether it be an argument or a jujitsu match. But some days they got along so well that it was dream-like. He hoped today would be one of those days.

Flynn had the day off, his first in nearly two weeks, and he and Yuri were going on a date. Even after a few months, that thought still made him feel a little giddy inside. Maybe it was silly of him, but better excitement over the slightest brush of lips or chance to spend a few hours alone together than the thought of all this being doldrums. If it had anything to do with Yuri Lowell, though, things were never dull. And Flynn liked that. He supposed that was one of the perks of dating a super hero.

But there were disadvantages, too. Lots of them in fact, and they were often hard to overlook the nights when Yuri had to rush out of whatever they had been doing to go defend the city of Zaphias. That the a job for the police, for Flynn. But no amount of begging or concern ever stopped Yuri, and Flynn doubted that it ever would. He was stubborn, but that was some thing Flynn loved about him. Today, though, he wanted to put all that out of his mind.

The smell of the Comet Cafe was enticing, fresh baked pastries and hot, smoky coffees, tea and sandwiches. The warmth of the ovens drove off the autumn chill, and the cafe was busy as it always was in the early afternoon, filled with the chatter of locals looking for a bite to eat.

"Hey there, Officer." Yuri bumped his hip up against Flynn playfully as he bustled past a table and toward the counter. How Flynn had missed him, his arms covered in empty plates and his clothing stained with patches of flour, he wasn't quite sure.

Flynn drifted up to the front counter, waiting patiently behind two people who were struggling to order from the dark marker board menu above, that clearly spelled out what everything was and how much it was. Judith stood at the register, her kind smile not betraying any annoyance she may have felt about the situation. Yuri shoved the dishes into the sink, and fiddling with one of the coffee makers for a moment afterward.

"You gonna be able to handle everything while I'm gone, Judy?"

"Oh, yes. I'm quite sure I'll have no problem. Now run along."

He yanked off his apron, tossing it haphazardly into a basket beneath the sink. Stooping, he retrieved his necessities, and vaulted over the counter, beside the customers who looked at him in an amusing sort of outrage. The first one huffed, a sound that only grew more pronounced annoyed when Yuri shot her a smarmy glance and trotted up to Flynn. Some days, it was a wonder that Yuri kept any customers. He did very little to bow to their whims.

"We'll be back later, Judy!" He grabbed Flynn by the hand and drug him back out of the warmth of the cafe and into the chill of the city streets.

The simple warmth of their hands together was enough for him, but Yuri wasted no time leaning in for a hasty and hot kiss before dragging him down the sidewalk. Flynn was eager to get him alone after that, but had to suppress the urge to pull Yuri into a dark alley or restroom stall for further play.

Their bedroom habits to this point had been pretty tame, aside from the few times that Yuri had invited Flynn to stay the night at the apartment he shared with his twin sister and younger brother, when they were forced to play the quiet game in order to get up to anything at all. Not that it wasn't exciting in its own way, but Flynn much preferred the safety of his own locked door where a younger brother couldn't stumble upon them accidentally in the middle of things and they could make a much noise as they pleased. But sometimes, when they managed to get some private time, Yuri would get called off for an emergency. It was how their first date had gone, and a slew of others before now. Flynn could only hope that this date would be a peaceful one.

He wasn't quite sure at first where Yuri had lead him. It was several blocks away from the Comet, on a block that Flynn didn't pass through during his usual patrol, and he was left wondering why they had come all this way. The area wasn't one of their usual haunts.

"Here we are." The surprising contempt in Yuri's voice was like steam from a crack in a pipe, and his dark eyes were narrowed on a shopfront across the road.

"What-?"

The facade of the building was nothing special, panels of shining windows, a glass door, the same reddish-brown brick that all the others buildings in the area shared. Over the scrawling purple neon signed that read 'Aquarius Cafe' was a white, vinyl banner with red lettering that stated 'grand opening'. There was a long line outside, winding down the cracked sidewalk and past several other store fronts.

Yuri muttered under his breath, a long string of profanities that Flynn had to strain to hear before they were followed up with, "I can't believe that purple twat would open up this close."

"Yuri, what are we doing here?"

His question was left unanswered as Yuri unceremoniously yanked him across the street and to the end of the line for the cafe.

"Yuri!"

"What?"

"What are we doing here?"

"Oh. We're here on recon."

"Recon?"

"Reconnaissance? You're a cop. Don't you know what that means?"

"Of course, I know what that means! I wanted to know why we're in the line for a new cafe for reconnaissance purposes."

"I'm here to check out the competition." He leaned back against the brick front, and looked at Flynn at a slant. "I want to see what I'm up against. This being here could be bad for business, but I have to find that out for myself."

"So, you use our date to do that?" He wanted to be mad. He really did, but the most that he could bear to give was a resigned sigh. While he was annoyed, Flynn couldn't exactly blame Yuri for wanting to keep an eye out for what sort of moves his competition could make. That was a standard business practice. But Yuri was treating the owner of this establishment as some sort of villain.

The line moved with some speed and thankfully they were soon inside. The lavender tinted walls to the cafe were lined with gleaming, stainless steel machines, pumping out steaming hot coffee into the waiting cups of the queued customers. They were free standing, unmanned, self sufficient, like shining examples of the future when things like minimum wage baristas wouldn't be needed. But while shining, there was something cold and austere about it. There was nothing like the warmth of the Comet. It was almost inhuman.

Yuri picked up a Styrofoam cup, as purple as the walls with the cafe's name in a dark shade around it. He wasn't amused, and moved to the first machine. A series of buttons took his order, something heavy and sweet and fluffy, the way Yuri seemed to often take his coffee. Flynn was right behind him, putting in his order for something much less cavity inducing.

A little slip of paper printed out with each of their orders, and just as the customers before them had, they took them to the scanner on the other side of the cafe to ring themselves up. Yuri picked up a shrink wrapped brownie as he went and let the machine scan the bar code on that as well. Overall, he seemed largely unimpressed, and the two of them found a little table near the front through the cafe thick with people.

Yuri took only a sip of his coffee before he set it at the far edge of the table, and ripped open the brownie and had only a bite. It joined the coffee and he stuffed his hands under the table, into his pockets.

"Aren't you going to finish it?" Flynn asked. Yuri had paid for them, but seemed to be turning his nose up at them. It's true that they weren't as good as what Yuri made at the Comet, but the convenience was something that couldn't be ignored.

"Shit like this? No way."

A couple of customers side-eyed them hard, but kept to themselves. Yuri glanced around the cafe, avoiding them and Flynn while he seemed to be scanning, looking for something. A second later, his eyes fixed on a camera above the sandwich case that was pointed on them. The biggest shit eating grin that Flynn had ever seen crossed Yuri's face while he remained staring pointedly at the camera.

"What is it?"

"Oh nothing." He waved it off.

Flynn was allowed to finish his coffee in relative peace, Yuri staring at the camera with that grin the whole time. As Flynn was finishing up his cup, a tall man approached, his stark blond hair nearly as long as Yuri's, but much straighter, and the harsh glow of the florescent lights made it so that the glare from his glasses nearly hid his purple eyes.

"Good day."

Yuri spoke before Flynn could. "Hey there, Barista."

The man went a shade red, his lips tightening angrily.

"Oh wait, that's not right. It's Garista. Barista would only be fitting if you actually made your own coffee."

"Yuri-"

"I see that you haven't changed much, Yuri Lowell."

"No, not really. I see that you got your nose fixed though."

Garista adjusted his glasses, a smirk playing off his lips. One of his hands caressed against a nearby machine, sending a shiver shooting up Flynn's spine. He did it again, but the tremor was less terrible this time, but still unnerving. Something about this person didn't sit right with him and he was having trouble discerning if that was because his cop senses were tingling or because Yuri seemed to dislike Garista so much. Either way, something was wrong, but he had no proof. There was no indication that Garista was anything more than a private citizen opening up a business who happened to have a connection with Yuri, and who happened to open his cafe around the block from the Comet.

Yuri's lip curled back in a sneer as he glared at Garista, caressing his coffee machine.

"How much sketchier can you get?" Yuri asked.

"I have no idea what you mean."

"You've got henchmen just sitting in here like it was nothing." He pointed over to a table in the corner that Flynn hadn't taken notice of before.

Clad in black coats and wearing gas masks with thick red lenses, the five there looked over them, with a bit of a smirk. It was the Red-Eyes, and they weren't even attempting disguise. Flynn honestly thought they had all been arrested with Zagi, but apparently he was wrong.

"Dress for the job you want, man," the first Red-Eye said, slumping into a ridiculously over cushioned arm chair next to his compatriots.

"Either way," Garista said, turning their attention back to him. "My cafe is perfect. With these machines there are no errors. There is no need for a flawed human factor. They're perfect."

"There's one error. Your coffee fucking sucks."

"I can't even consider the likes of the 'Comet Cafe' competition," Garista sneered. "Not a homely little hole in the wall like that."

Yuri jolted to his feet, pushing the table so hard that it skidded and threatened to topple over if Flynn hadn't stopped it. "Let's go, Flynn."

Flynn was on his feet before he knew it, following Yuri out of the Aquarius Cafe and back to the streets. Yuri was moving at such a furious pace that Flynn was having to rush to keep up. When he got close enough, he grabbed Yuri by the wrist to stop him.

"What was all that about?"

Yuri turned back, his eyes alight with rage. "I know that windbag is up to something and I'm going to find out what."

"Just take it easy, Yuri-"

"I will not. He's plotting something and I know it. He wants to drive me out of business. Maybe you've forgotten, but the Cafe is my livelihood. My sister and I have a kid to take care of, and if you can't understand that, I'm cutting you off."

If he hadn't known better, everything Yuri had just said came out sounding like a daytime TV slug-fest. Everyone standing in the streets around them seemed to think that, and it was up to Flynn to try and save the situation. He felt an unstoppable wave of red filling his face and he tried to urge it back . "Don't let it get out of hand. The Comet's not going out of business. Your food and coffee is way better."

Yuri relaxed a little and pulled his arm away gently.

"Can we go on enjoying our date?"

"Yeah," Yuri sighed. "I'm hungry. I need something to wash the taste of creep and crappy coffee out of my mouth."

Thankfully, a little ways down the road was the Black Hole Bistro, a place they found themselves frequenting on their dates. The food and the service were goods and it was a place that they could simple relax and enjoy each others' company in. But eventually, enjoying each others' company always went down the same path. Today was no different.

Food hadn't done much to ebb Yuri's appetite for other things. Flynn was perfectly fine with how hungrily Yuri kissed him or left the indentations of bite marks down his neck. All of these things only fueled Flynn's fire as Yuri pressed his weight against Flynn, causing the cushions of the couch to sink and the whole frame to creak.

Yuri growled as Flynn's hands passed over him, pulling him in further, the tingle of that skin beneath his fingers like a million tiny sparks, building friction, building energy, and need. And Flynn needed this too.

The ringing in his ears from the rush of blood to various places side from his head was annoying though. He could do without that. the problem was that he quickly found it wasn't just in his head.

Yuri was pulling his phone out of his pocket, the source of the ringing.

"Yuri, no."

"It could be important."

"Yuri."

He answered the phone anyway, rocking back on Flynn's thighs. "What's up Judy?"

Flynn sighed, sinking back into the cushions.

"Okay. Got it. I'm on my way." The phone went back into his pocket and Yuri's weight and warmth slipped away. "I've got to go."

"What is it this time?"

He watched as Yuri transformed, a white glow surrounding him and changing his normal tight t-shirt and jeans into the costume of True Knight. If he wasn't so annoyed, then he would have been even more turned on. He knew that Yuri had a job and a responsibility. that didn't mean that he liked it.

"Some trouble on the east side. Bank robbery." His costumed boyfriend leaned down and kissed him. "I'll be back soon."

"All right." Pouting wasn't going to change things. "Be careful."

Flynn no sooner said that when Yuri was gone, probably having dashed down the fire escape like usual.

Some days, it sucking having a super hero for a boyfriend.

And other days it really sucked.

"Hey, not so tight."

"If it's not tight enough, it'll come loose. So stop whining."

"I'm not whining."

"I'm trained in first aid. I know what I'm doing." Flynn pulled the bandaged a little tighter, both out of need and a bit of satisfaction he got out of Yuri's wincing. Yuri was lucky that the gunman's bullet had only grazed him.

Yuri flexed his arm a little, rotating his shoulder to check on the amount of mobility the wound striping across his collar left him.

"I wished you'd be more careful."

"I am careful. That's why it only grazed me."

He didn't like that answer. He didn't like the fact that Yuri got hurt doing his night job. and he was quickly coming to the truth that he didn't like Yuri's night job.

Being a super hero wasn't glamorous. Yuri had to hide who he really was. If he got hurt, he couldn't go to the hospital like a normal person. And he was a normal person. He didn't have any super powers to aid him in his quest to fight crime. Sure, he was fast and strong, but human strength and speed had its limits. It was too often that Yuri had come crawling back to Flynn's apartment, after stopping a criminal and had to be patched up. If Flynn wasn't the one leaving the bruises on that pale skin, they didn't belong there.

"Thanks." Yuri kissed him, looping an arm around Flynn's neck and pulled him backward onto the couch "So, ready to pick up where we left off?"

Something about fighting crime always made Yuri so much more interested in a toss of the sheets, and Flynn hated to admit that in the True Knight outfit, Yuri was hard to resist. So he didn't and they made love on his sofa. Flynn was mad, but he wasn't above expressing his frustration with his hips and mouth and drawing out ecstasy as long as he could to the point where Yuri was getting annoyed. He got some small satisfaction out of that, but it by no means, solved the larger issue at hand.

Yuri untangled himself from Flynn's arms, padding into the kitchen. "Want anything while I'm up?" he asked, leaning into the open fridge.

"I want you to stop."

"Stop what?"

"This reckless vigilantism. the police should-"
"I'm not dignifying that with a response."

"Yuri."

"Fuck off. You know what my thoughts on that are."

"I only say this because I'm worried about you. Tonight, you may have only been grazed, but next time, it could be a lot more serious."

"I can take care of my self. I'm not stopping, not when Judy and I are actually making a difference."

Flynn should have known that there would be no talking Yuri out of anything once he set his mind to it.

"If you don't stop, then let me help."

"Absolutely not. Out of the question." Yuri popped open the milk jug and drank directly from it. "You don't have any powers."

"Neither do you." Flynn moved into the kitchen also, the air from the open fridge cold on his bare skin. "You've got a fancy bracelet that gives you a costume." Yuri had said as much himself once.

"Not the point. The answer is still no." He put the jug back and marched past Flynn right back toward the couch. He gathered up the pieces of his costume that lay strewn about the floor in the wake of their passion and started pulling them back on.

"What are you doing?"

"Going out. I've still got patrol to do."

"Yuri."

"See you later." As soon as his shirt was back on, Yuri slipped out once more, through the fire escape and disappeared into the night, leaving Flynn alone again with his frustration. It wasn't supposed to be like this.

Flynn wracked his brain for days. Most the time, his regular beat was peaceful, save a traffic ticket or the like, so it left his mind time to wander and he hated it. He had see Yuri in passing the past few days and every encounter only brought his frustrations straight back to the surface. Yuri couldn't be reasoned with. Nothing Flynn said was gong to be good enough. He had to find another way.

Even though he tried to avoid it, he found himself at the Comet for dinner, cursing himself for being a creature of habit. He entered anyway, too hungry to bother finding another source of good for his dinner.

Judith was at the counter, fiddling with the coffee machine that was so often in Yuri's touch. Karol was helping out in the cafe that evening, clearing dishes from tables and wiping them down. Yuri was no where to be seen. It was a small relief, even though Flynn could have liked to see him.

"Good evening, Officer," Judith chimed with a smile. "I'm sorry but if you're looking for Yuri, he's out this evening."

"Oh, no. I mean..." he swore internally. "That's fine. I'm actually here to get some dinner."

"Of course." She smiled in her knowing sort of way that was always somewhat unnerving. "The usual?"

"Yes please."

He was left standing around uselessly while she threw together the daily special for him, humming as she moved from counter to counter.

The tromp of heavy feet came from the stairway through the kitchen. Flynn knew the creak and groan of the wood as he had been up those steps a few times. As that sound trailed off, the sound of boots across tile followed and soon Yuri emerged from the kitchen doorway, pulling on an apron.

Yuri stopped abruptly and stared at him, a perturbed look on his face that would have been more effective if his left eye wasn't swollen over and bruised near black. It was an injury from a fight, probably fresh from this evening patrol.

"Yuri-"

"Absolutely not. We already talked about this." Of course, he was referring to their argument from a few days before.

"I just came to get some dinner." That was the truth, right? He had still been worried about Yuri and the results and consequences of his evening action, but starting another argument here was pointless. "How's your shoulder?"

Yuri drooped a bit, relaxing and letting his guard down when he found that an argument was no quite so ready on Flynn's lips as he surely thought. "It's better. Thanks."

"I'm glad." The truth was that the black eyes cemented for Flynn what he needed to do. He couldn't let Yuri go on like this.

As soon as his food was packed up, Yuri handed him the bag, pushing away his money with the other than. Flynn still dropped it in the tip jar, even as Yuri grumpily muttered the usual 'I don't need your money.'

"Are you busy tomorrow?" Yuri finally asked.

"I'm off work at three o'clock."

"Let's do dinner." Had Yuri forgiven and forgotten that easily? Or could he just have been working to mend the snag?

"Sure."

With a short kiss and a little wave, he was off into the dusk with his dinner, but home wasn't his first destination.

He looked at the pieces spread out before him and could only think that this was simultaneously the best idea and the worst idea. What were his options at this point, though? As a police officer, his actions were limited, but as this he could know the freedom that Yuri had, the freedom to protect his his city more than ever.

Admittedly, now that he had gone and bought the costume, and was looking at it, the idea seemed rather silly. Yuri would, without a doubt, have a few choice words on the subject if he were to find out, but Flynn would just have to make sure that he didn't. It wasn't going to be easy, but he could do it. Yuri didn't need to know who was behind the mask and Flynn could actually prove to be helpful beyond cleanup after all the hard work was already done. Yuri kept the police two steps behind his work, but now, Flynn could be right there in the action.

Flynn had, of course, garnered a few wary and suspicious glances during his shopping trip, especially when he stopped at a collectible shop for a sword. It wasn't a real one. It was a blunted display sword, very basic in decoration, but it would serve its purpose. After all, his purpose was to be backup for Yuri .

He put the costume on and felt almost as silly as he looked, but the longer he wore it, the less of an embarrassed blush filled his face. He took the sword in hand. It was heavy and awkward compare to the sleekness of his issued handgun. Yuri was so good at wielding his,

but it was a svelte and curved blade, a precious weapon, not a clunking mass of unsharpened metal made for a display, or at the very least, sheer bludgeoning. It would do.

Flynn sat around in it, stretched in it, did small things like basic judo moves or swinging the sword around, growing used to the feel of the fabric and less concerned with how it looked. It stretched in some places and constricted in others, and was overall comfortable and provided him enough mobility that he could get around.

"I guess I still need a name," he said aloud, looking at the masked face that didn't seem like his own. He felt different. He even sounded different.

The costume he found was some sort of strange metal armor with swan motifs that the shop owner started had been said had been used in a play by a theater group for their production of Swan Lake. He wasn't sure why but it was pretty well constructed and would prove to protect him from at least some danger. Unlike Yuri's flimsy fabric costume. Yuri did have the advantage of being able to transform, where Flynn had to physically 'suit up'. This would serve it's purpose though. Just in case, he was sure to put on his bullet proof vest.

With this, he could finally help Yuri and all he had to do now was wait. Luckily he didn't have to wait long.

The buzz of the radio alerted him and a slew of codes poured out of its speaker from the girl at dispatch. Diciphering them was second nature to him, letting him know that there was a alarm tripped at a local museum with suspects spotted. And he knew that True Knight and Valkyrie were already there.

Flynn rushed the few blocks there along back alleys to keep his visibility to the public to a minimum as much as ease of travel. Updates from his radio kept pouring in from the officers responding to the scene. Within moments, he was there, standing beside the art museum, where the theft was taking place. True Knight and Valkyrie were both there, thrashing the living day lights out of a group of Red Eyes. Camera crews and cops were huddled around the scene.

He crept in from the side, avoiding detection as best he could, and slipped into the building. No doubt there were Red Eyes further in, but what was their goal here? Their boss, Zagi was still in police custody after True Knights last defeat of him. Not that Zagi seemed the type to have much respect for the arts.

The wood and marble interior of the museum was silent other than the echo of the fight raging at its columned entrance. Glass exhibit cases and hanging antique paints all seemed to be where they should and undisturbed. No one in their right mind attacked a museum without an objective, although the contents provided plenty of prospective targets. Flynn waited and watched and walked the exhibits and the halls for any sign of trouble.

Just as he was beginning to think that all the action might be going on outside without him, where he should have been helping Yuri, the whispers from one of the side rooms drew his attention. He peeked in, watching from one of the side rooms drew his attention. He peeked in, watching from the corner of the door.

Two Red Eyes were trying to wedge the thick glass case off of a display of a sword in the medieval exhibit. They were struggling, the weight of the glass too much for just the two of them. This gave him the perfect opportunity, although it left him wondering what they wanted with an ancient weapon in the first place.

"Halt!" He slid into the doorway.

The Red Eyes scrambled instantly, one dropping his edge of the glass casing, which quickly dropped onto the fingers of the other.

"Who-Who are you?"

Flynn readied his sword, pulling it form the leather sheath at his side. "I'm White Knight."

He received a reaction he had not been expecting: laughter. The one who hadn't had his fingers near crushed was doubled over laughing and once the other removed his hands from the case, he was, too.

"Dude, is this that cop? True Knight's boyfriend."

"Oh man, holy cow, I think it is."

"What are you going in that?"

"You look ridiculous."

Anger flushed his cheeks and he gripped the sword tightly. He didn't know what they were doing here, but they had to go. He wouldn't lash out in anger though.

While their guards were lowered, getting their fill of laughter at his expense, Flynn charged forward, extending the sword out to hit the first one.

The sword was heavier than he expected and his footing slipped up as he tried to hold tight and control the motion of the blade as it followed through. The Red Eye dodged, but only barely, and Flynn swung back. He missed again.

They got another quick laugh at him, but he kept focused. He should have practiced before throwing himself into the fray, but it was too late to think about it now. If he could hold them at bay until True Knight arrived, than that would be some help.

The second Red Eye taunted him and Flynn moved to strike. He was getting used to the weight and balance of the blade, but his opponent ducked. The blunted edge of the sword slammed into the glass case, the impact shattering it easily. Splitting the air of the museum, a burglary alarm started to buzz and the Red Eyes panicked.

"Cheese it!"

The first Red Eye grabbed the displayed sword and before Flynn could go after them, they were off.

"Dammit!"

He wanted to say that, but Yuri did instead, dashing in from behind. With a single hand, he knocked Flynn aside and moved to pursue. Valkyrie was a step ahead of him and zipped down the hall toward what was probably the back exit of the museum.

Yuri turned to look at him, those charcoal eyes blazing. "Go home."

"No." Flynn felt like he had messed up tremendously. He had been trying to help, but in the end, he had ended up aiding the Red Eyes in their objective rather then impeding them. He could fix this. "I'm going to help."

"Then stay out of the way. I'll do my job, you do yours!" Yuri turned swiftly and continued after the escapees. Flynn followed, in spite of the warning.

The rear exit of the building was just closing when he reached it. He was so close to Yuri now. He could help he could fix this.

It flew open at his touch and he dashed into the back alley. No Red Eyes. No Valkyrie No True Knight. A collection of trashcans, knocked over in the haste of the chase and darkness. With no further leads and his police radio buzzing only static, Flynn was left to return home, defeated.

Failure made a fool of him, but Flynn tried not to let it get him down. He would try again. He would prove that he could do it, that he could be helpful to Yuri. Practice made perfect. Failure would only fuel his drive to do better.

Dinner with Yuri went nothing like he had hoped. After a hard day at work and a shower, he had gone to pick Yuri up for their date, only to be turned away by those fiery eyes and that statement 'Go home.' If Flynn had any hope that Yuri had not recognized him that night at the museum, that effectively dashed it.

Rejection was painful, but he wasn't about to give up. He could prove that he would be useful. He only wanted to help Yuri, to keep him safe. He would show Yuri that.

Flynn showed up for two more emergencies, both involving the Red Eyes and did what he could to prove himself a little more useful. True Knight ignored him and Flynn tried not to get in the way. Maybe with time, Yuri could accept this and maybe with time, Flynn would get used to handling a sword. It had been a week since he donned the mantle of 'White Knight'. They had spoken barely a word to each other, but Yuri would have to forgive Flynn eventually.

Flynn stopped in the Comet for lunch. Yuri didn't look at him and didn't speak to him, only handing over his food and coffee curtly.

"Hey, Yuri, are you doing anything-"

"Can't. Busy." He moved to wiping off the counters.

"I haven't even asked yet."

"I'm out of town starting tomorrow."

"What?"

"I'm going out of state to shop for some new machines," Yuri sighed, tossing his dishrag into the sink and leaning against the back counter. "The espresso maker's been on the fritz for a while, so we need to get a new one."

"Is this about the Aquarius?"

"Hell no. I don't need new machines because that fuckface has all that fancy shit." He seemed to be loosening up a little. Maybe things were okay. "It's just a week, maybe less. The sooner I get something at a good price, the sooner I'll be home."

"Can we go out when you get back?" Maybe the question was a bit too hopeful.

Yuri exhaled softly, rolling his eyes away from Flynn. "We'll see." After a week of silence, this progress was the best he could hope for. "Don't do anything stupid while I'm gone."

"I won't." That wasn't a promise to not continued what he had been doing, just to be careful about it. Even Yuri had to see that he was improving and that his concern for Yuri's safety was genuine. "Please have a safe trip."

"I'll be fine. Now get back to work. You've got a job to do." Yuri smiled a little, a small thing at the edges of his lips. Maybe soon things would be okay again.

The kiss that came across the counter surprised him a bit, and afterward, he was sent back to work, step a little lighter.

A week of research since he started his nightly quest to help Yuri had been getting Flynn a little closer to figuring out what the Red Eyes were up to. He hadn't been able to figure out if they were working for someone or of their own accords, but he was certain that Zagi was still locked up under tight security.

So far, the items stolen had been the sword from the museum, which he hadn't been able to determine what was so important about. The two further incidents involved another bank robbery, where the vault had been raided, but most notably a gem known as the Star of Aselia had been taken. The second incident was another gem from a private collection called the Calegia Diamond. There had to be some sort of connection between these items aside from their incredibly steep monetary value, but Flynn hadn't found anything on the subject and he hadn't had a chance to ask Yuri. Newspaper articles and internet and library searches hadn't proved very fruitful beyond a few photos of archaic tapestry photos of the unnamed sword or portraits of the long dead holding the gems. He knew there was a connection somewhere, but the evidence of his hunch wasn't as forthcoming as he would have liked. That didn't stop him from searching though.

A book of swords he picked up form the library had a little information and a photo of the sword he was sure the Red Eyes had made off with. His index finger brushed across the edge of the page as he read the brief description below the photo aloud.

"Iron age sword, discovered in 1912 in empty tomb. Decoration and wear suggest it may have been used in a ritualistic nature."

The pieces weren't fitting together and the proved just as frustrating as the situation with Yuri.

Flynn rolled over, snapping the book shut and dropping it on his nightstand. His reading glasses followed and he moved to click off the lamp when his police radio buzzed.

"Two one one sam," it fuzzed loudly, a voice piercing the static. "One four three two South Market Street."

Flynn was at attention, grabbing the radio. He waited for the repeat. He couldn't have heard that correctly.

"Repeat, two one one sam. One four three two South Market Street." A silent alarm was triggered at the police station where he worked.

The sound of his phone ringing cause him to jump out of his skin. It was Sodia.

"Hello?"

"Flynn, you should see this."

"Where are you? What's going on?"

"I'm at the precinct. Did you hear the call?"

"I did. What's going on?"

"All of a sudden, the silent alarm started and we found something on the outside wall. I'm going to send you the photo. Hold on." The line went dead and a second later, a picture popped up on the screen of his phone.

It was the exterior wall of the precinct and the red bricks were stained with lines of fuzzy, purple spray paint. The letters read 'HAVOC' and just below them was a crudely painted figure with a sword. After looking at it sufficiently enough to remember the details, he called Sodia back.

"Havoc?"

"I'm not sure, but reports of graffiti just like this are popping up all over the city. I wonder if they're connected to the recent string of robberies."

"How though?"

"Who knows, but ever since those thugs True Knight and Valkyrie showed up in town, freaks are crawling out of the woodwork." She had never approved of the superheroes that were trying to protect Zaphias. Flynn never told her that he happened to be dating one of those superheros. It was for the better. "Well, I'm sorry to have bothered you. See you on the early shift tomorrow."

"Try and get some rest."

"You, too."

He dropped the phone on the nightstand and rolled back against the pillows. His bed was cold and empty save for his own meager warmth. If only Yuri was here.