Chapter 1 – Shadows and Questions
Robin held back a sigh as she let her gaze drift out the window to the stormy grey sky. As she watched, a few drops of rain fell with small taps on the glass before the downpour began.
"Robin."
She wrenched her eyes away from the growing storm and glanced at Amon. He stood behind her expectantly, cold as ever. She frowned slightly. "Yes?"
"What are you doing?" he asked, seeming agitated. He had every right to be agitated. It had been three weeks since Solomon had tracked Robin and Amon down, offering them their jobs back as the STN-J. Both Robin and Amon had agreed, though Amon had been cautious, suspicious of their intentions.
"I was just thinking..." Robin murmured. Amon scowled at her disapprovingly.
"We're already late. We should be at the STN-J building already."
Robin stood. "I wonder if Solomon let Karasuma and the others know that were returning."
Amon turned to leave, speaking to her over his shoulder. "Of course they know. The STN has protocol just like any other organization. You're riding with me."
"I know."
The Raven's Flat appeared to be the same building, but Robin shivered as she followed Amon inside. She didn't need to speak to Karasuma and Michael to realize how much the STN-J building had changed. But perhaps it was only the people working there who were different.
Robin felt a small, stubborn bubble of excitement rise in her chest as she and Amon reached the elevator. Though the ride up to the office floor was silent, Robin was all too aware of Amon watching her. "What?"
"What are you so nervous about?"
Robin shrugged. "It feels different here."
"I know what you mean."
Robin looked up at Amon in surprise. "Did you just agree with me?"
Amon fixed her with a deadpan stare as the elevator door opened. He left Robin staring after him as he walked quickly to the STN-J office. Robin almost had to jog to keep up with his long strides. She opened her mouth to say something to Amon, but, instead, she found herself gasping for breath, caught in Sakaki's arms. He spun her around once and set her down. Robin stumbled slightly and scowled at Sakaki. He smiled innocently. "It's nice to have Little Robin back."
Robin fought a smile at the reminder of her beginning days at the STN- J. She spotted Karasuma and Doujima smiling at her from their respective seats behind Michael, who hadn't even noticed her come in. Robin could hear his music from all the way across the room. Michael was hunched over slightly, typing on his laptop as usual. Robin smiled mischievously and made sure he couldn't see her as she moved across the room to sit right behind him, between Doujima and Karasuma. Doujima, ever the blonde, giggled slightly.
"I'm trying to work, you two," Michael muttered. Robin tapped him gently on the shoulder and smiled as Michael groaned and turned around, obviously peeved at being interrupted.
"Hi, Michael," Robin said. Michael froze when he saw her. Then he smiled.
"Nice to see you're back. I'm guessing the icicle is back, too." He jumped when he heard the "icicle" in question behind him.
"Yes, I'm back. I don't know if I appreciate the nickname, though."
"Oh, lighten up, Amon," Doujima said, standing up from her seat. "This is just supposed to be a nice morning before we get down to business."
"What?" Robin asked, raising her eyebrows. "No down time?"
Karasuma followed Doujima's lead and stood. "Sorry if your time away from the STN-J was less than relaxing, but we have a few major problems to deal with." Karasuma sent Amon a pointed glance. "You two came back at a good time. Perhaps too good."
"We've had a few security problems recently. Apparently, a small group of witches has gotten tired of hiding from the hunters and getting picked off one by one. They've gone on the offensive. We were attacked three days ago, and we managed to catch one of the attackers." Michael took a deep breath and launched into the rest of the explanation. "We managed to get a few names out of him, and with the help of an outside source, we managed to track down the rest of the group. Three of them are staying in an apartment near here, but we won't go after them – we don't want to bring the hornet's nest down on our heads.
"There are five available hunters now, and we were lucky enough to keep access to the Orbo. We should be able to go after the main group. They've taken up shop not too far away from our source's law firm. From what we've seen, there are eight of them either staying there or coming there regularly. All eight of them should be there tomorrow night. That's when the hunt will begin. Until then, sit back, relax, and make sure to don't do anything to bring the witches and the STN down on top of us."
Robin stopped Michael from ending the meeting so quickly. "When has there ever been so many witches working together at once? Witches don't usually work in groups of more than three or four. You're saying that there are at least thirteen of them working together to attack the STN-J?"
Sakaki stood. "Apparently they decided that they'd rather stick together against the witch hunters than be hunted down one by one. Is that so surprising?"
Robin and Amon were the only ones who remained seated as the others left to enter the main office. "Yes," Robin murmured. "It is."
"What are you going to do until tomorrow night?"
Robin looked up, stunned by Amon's sudden interest in her business outside the office. "I'm really not sure. I thought I might stay here, and catch up with Michael. But that would be tonight. I don't have anything else to do. Why do you ask?"
"Would you be interested in coming with me?"
Robin looked at him strangely. "It depends on where you happen to be going."
"I thought I'd check out the area we're supposed to be hunting tomorrow. Then we could check out that unnamed source, even though I'm pretty sure I already know who it is."
Robin gave him a small smile. "Do you do anything that doesn't have something to do with a hunt, Amon?"
Amon looked at her uncomprehendingly. "Like what?"
"I mean something like dinner at Harry's, or a walk in the park. Have you even been somewhere besides Harry's, and wherever we went on the hunts?"
Amon's silence answered Robin's question, and she laughed. "Do you want to see what it's like to forget about your job for once?"
Amon stood abruptly. "No."
"It was only a suggestion..." Robin murmured as he swiftly exited the office. "Am I still invited?" she called.
Amon stopped and looked back at her. "Only if you hurry. And stick to business, would you? It's hard to have a kid along for the ride even if you aren't acting like Doujima." He turned away before the hurt look crossed Robin's face.
"I'm not a kid..." she muttered, following him to the elevator.
AMON POV
Amon almost smiled when he reached the address Michael had said belonged to the so-called "source" who had done much of the STN-J's investigative work for them. He glanced at Robin, about to say something to her, but he noticed the miserable expression on her face. "What is it?"
The expression vanished, replaced by an eager look. "Yes?"
Amon frowned. "I asked you what's wrong? You looked like you were about to cry."
"Oh. It's nothing." She glanced out the car window, and her eyes widened as she realized that they were at Nagira's apartment. "Why are we here? We already know this area."
"I had to make sure. Well, there doesn't seem to be any investigating left to do." Amon frowned, disappointed. Robin's words still echoed irritatingly in his head. Do you want to see what it's like to forget about your job for once?
"Do you want to go somewhere?" he asked hesitantly. He regretted the words the moment they were out of his mouth.
Robin looked over at him in surprise. "That depends. What did you have in mind? Something with the others?"
"No. Just the two of us. They don't have to know we aren't working on the case."
Robin laughed. "Am I a bad influence?"
A look crossed Amon's face that could almost be mistaken for a smile. "Definitely."
Harry's was empty when Robin and Amon walked in.
"I don't usually see you two in here together. Is there something going on that I should know about?"
Amon simply shook his head. "We're just taking a break."
Harry raised an eyebrow. "I've never known you to take a break from an investigation. What can I get you two?"
After Harry's, Robin convinced Amon to come to the park where she had first used her glasses on a hunt. Amon hardly recognized the park. He had only been there once, in the middle of the winter. Though it was raining, he found it beautiful. The same way he thought Robin was beautiful. He glanced at Robin out of the corner of his eye, and saw once again the misery he has noticed in the car before.
"Why are you always so miserable?"
Robin didn't hide her pain this time. "I'd really rather not talk about it."
"I know how you feel."
"How can you?"
"You have secrets, same as I do. Painful secrets that you don't want to burden anyone else with. But they're tearing you apart. Memories."
"How did you know?"
Amon smiled. A real smile. A sad smile. "Because...I'm the same way."
A/N: Hmmm...I thought the dialogue was a little awkward. Well, review and tell me what you think. I'm trying to keep these guys in character, but I think I'm stretching it a teeny-weeny bit. Well, anyway, this is just a trial run, I might rewrite the chappie, so tell me wut you think. REVIEW!!!!!! I DEMAND YOU REVIEW!! Lol. Seriously though, I will luv you all 4ever if you review my story!
Robin held back a sigh as she let her gaze drift out the window to the stormy grey sky. As she watched, a few drops of rain fell with small taps on the glass before the downpour began.
"Robin."
She wrenched her eyes away from the growing storm and glanced at Amon. He stood behind her expectantly, cold as ever. She frowned slightly. "Yes?"
"What are you doing?" he asked, seeming agitated. He had every right to be agitated. It had been three weeks since Solomon had tracked Robin and Amon down, offering them their jobs back as the STN-J. Both Robin and Amon had agreed, though Amon had been cautious, suspicious of their intentions.
"I was just thinking..." Robin murmured. Amon scowled at her disapprovingly.
"We're already late. We should be at the STN-J building already."
Robin stood. "I wonder if Solomon let Karasuma and the others know that were returning."
Amon turned to leave, speaking to her over his shoulder. "Of course they know. The STN has protocol just like any other organization. You're riding with me."
"I know."
The Raven's Flat appeared to be the same building, but Robin shivered as she followed Amon inside. She didn't need to speak to Karasuma and Michael to realize how much the STN-J building had changed. But perhaps it was only the people working there who were different.
Robin felt a small, stubborn bubble of excitement rise in her chest as she and Amon reached the elevator. Though the ride up to the office floor was silent, Robin was all too aware of Amon watching her. "What?"
"What are you so nervous about?"
Robin shrugged. "It feels different here."
"I know what you mean."
Robin looked up at Amon in surprise. "Did you just agree with me?"
Amon fixed her with a deadpan stare as the elevator door opened. He left Robin staring after him as he walked quickly to the STN-J office. Robin almost had to jog to keep up with his long strides. She opened her mouth to say something to Amon, but, instead, she found herself gasping for breath, caught in Sakaki's arms. He spun her around once and set her down. Robin stumbled slightly and scowled at Sakaki. He smiled innocently. "It's nice to have Little Robin back."
Robin fought a smile at the reminder of her beginning days at the STN- J. She spotted Karasuma and Doujima smiling at her from their respective seats behind Michael, who hadn't even noticed her come in. Robin could hear his music from all the way across the room. Michael was hunched over slightly, typing on his laptop as usual. Robin smiled mischievously and made sure he couldn't see her as she moved across the room to sit right behind him, between Doujima and Karasuma. Doujima, ever the blonde, giggled slightly.
"I'm trying to work, you two," Michael muttered. Robin tapped him gently on the shoulder and smiled as Michael groaned and turned around, obviously peeved at being interrupted.
"Hi, Michael," Robin said. Michael froze when he saw her. Then he smiled.
"Nice to see you're back. I'm guessing the icicle is back, too." He jumped when he heard the "icicle" in question behind him.
"Yes, I'm back. I don't know if I appreciate the nickname, though."
"Oh, lighten up, Amon," Doujima said, standing up from her seat. "This is just supposed to be a nice morning before we get down to business."
"What?" Robin asked, raising her eyebrows. "No down time?"
Karasuma followed Doujima's lead and stood. "Sorry if your time away from the STN-J was less than relaxing, but we have a few major problems to deal with." Karasuma sent Amon a pointed glance. "You two came back at a good time. Perhaps too good."
"We've had a few security problems recently. Apparently, a small group of witches has gotten tired of hiding from the hunters and getting picked off one by one. They've gone on the offensive. We were attacked three days ago, and we managed to catch one of the attackers." Michael took a deep breath and launched into the rest of the explanation. "We managed to get a few names out of him, and with the help of an outside source, we managed to track down the rest of the group. Three of them are staying in an apartment near here, but we won't go after them – we don't want to bring the hornet's nest down on our heads.
"There are five available hunters now, and we were lucky enough to keep access to the Orbo. We should be able to go after the main group. They've taken up shop not too far away from our source's law firm. From what we've seen, there are eight of them either staying there or coming there regularly. All eight of them should be there tomorrow night. That's when the hunt will begin. Until then, sit back, relax, and make sure to don't do anything to bring the witches and the STN down on top of us."
Robin stopped Michael from ending the meeting so quickly. "When has there ever been so many witches working together at once? Witches don't usually work in groups of more than three or four. You're saying that there are at least thirteen of them working together to attack the STN-J?"
Sakaki stood. "Apparently they decided that they'd rather stick together against the witch hunters than be hunted down one by one. Is that so surprising?"
Robin and Amon were the only ones who remained seated as the others left to enter the main office. "Yes," Robin murmured. "It is."
"What are you going to do until tomorrow night?"
Robin looked up, stunned by Amon's sudden interest in her business outside the office. "I'm really not sure. I thought I might stay here, and catch up with Michael. But that would be tonight. I don't have anything else to do. Why do you ask?"
"Would you be interested in coming with me?"
Robin looked at him strangely. "It depends on where you happen to be going."
"I thought I'd check out the area we're supposed to be hunting tomorrow. Then we could check out that unnamed source, even though I'm pretty sure I already know who it is."
Robin gave him a small smile. "Do you do anything that doesn't have something to do with a hunt, Amon?"
Amon looked at her uncomprehendingly. "Like what?"
"I mean something like dinner at Harry's, or a walk in the park. Have you even been somewhere besides Harry's, and wherever we went on the hunts?"
Amon's silence answered Robin's question, and she laughed. "Do you want to see what it's like to forget about your job for once?"
Amon stood abruptly. "No."
"It was only a suggestion..." Robin murmured as he swiftly exited the office. "Am I still invited?" she called.
Amon stopped and looked back at her. "Only if you hurry. And stick to business, would you? It's hard to have a kid along for the ride even if you aren't acting like Doujima." He turned away before the hurt look crossed Robin's face.
"I'm not a kid..." she muttered, following him to the elevator.
AMON POV
Amon almost smiled when he reached the address Michael had said belonged to the so-called "source" who had done much of the STN-J's investigative work for them. He glanced at Robin, about to say something to her, but he noticed the miserable expression on her face. "What is it?"
The expression vanished, replaced by an eager look. "Yes?"
Amon frowned. "I asked you what's wrong? You looked like you were about to cry."
"Oh. It's nothing." She glanced out the car window, and her eyes widened as she realized that they were at Nagira's apartment. "Why are we here? We already know this area."
"I had to make sure. Well, there doesn't seem to be any investigating left to do." Amon frowned, disappointed. Robin's words still echoed irritatingly in his head. Do you want to see what it's like to forget about your job for once?
"Do you want to go somewhere?" he asked hesitantly. He regretted the words the moment they were out of his mouth.
Robin looked over at him in surprise. "That depends. What did you have in mind? Something with the others?"
"No. Just the two of us. They don't have to know we aren't working on the case."
Robin laughed. "Am I a bad influence?"
A look crossed Amon's face that could almost be mistaken for a smile. "Definitely."
Harry's was empty when Robin and Amon walked in.
"I don't usually see you two in here together. Is there something going on that I should know about?"
Amon simply shook his head. "We're just taking a break."
Harry raised an eyebrow. "I've never known you to take a break from an investigation. What can I get you two?"
After Harry's, Robin convinced Amon to come to the park where she had first used her glasses on a hunt. Amon hardly recognized the park. He had only been there once, in the middle of the winter. Though it was raining, he found it beautiful. The same way he thought Robin was beautiful. He glanced at Robin out of the corner of his eye, and saw once again the misery he has noticed in the car before.
"Why are you always so miserable?"
Robin didn't hide her pain this time. "I'd really rather not talk about it."
"I know how you feel."
"How can you?"
"You have secrets, same as I do. Painful secrets that you don't want to burden anyone else with. But they're tearing you apart. Memories."
"How did you know?"
Amon smiled. A real smile. A sad smile. "Because...I'm the same way."
A/N: Hmmm...I thought the dialogue was a little awkward. Well, review and tell me what you think. I'm trying to keep these guys in character, but I think I'm stretching it a teeny-weeny bit. Well, anyway, this is just a trial run, I might rewrite the chappie, so tell me wut you think. REVIEW!!!!!! I DEMAND YOU REVIEW!! Lol. Seriously though, I will luv you all 4ever if you review my story!