The young man felt like he'd just drifted off to sleep yet here he was already changing into his uniform for another day's work. With only the royal blue pants belted at his waist he rose to gather the rest of his ensemble. Today would be just another day in the life of a Letter Bee, one who risks both their life and heart to deliver even the smallest of letters across the countryside.
When he slipped on his shirt, the exact shade of color as his snow white hair, a rustling sounded from behind him but he didn't bother to look. He knew who it was. He slid the official Bee's jacket overtop of the shirt and was about to reach for his hat when two fully clothed arms snared him in a hug from behind. Golden hair flowed out over his head and though he wasn't all that surprised, the young man showed it on his face.
"Niche, what are you doing?"
Both arms undid themselves from his chest and the hair soon followed. Since no lamp was lit the room was enveloped by darkness with only semi steady light seeping in from a manmade sun far off above the inner city of Akatsuki of the government. A young girl slinked into this light peering directly up at the young man.
"Where we going today, Lag?"
He chuckled at her comments which tended to be short and after all this time remained child like. He patted the top of her head but stopped remembering he didn't think he was much older than her, though appearances said otherwise.
"We're going wherever we're sent to, you know that."
The girl nodded at him and clenched her hands into fists under the faded pink coat she wore. Then Lag twisted his face as he kept looking at her.
"You never changed from last night, did you?"
The girl's hair stiffened and locked into itself forming blades that made Lag slightly uneasy. She certainly was a special, supernatural being.
"She would have tried to clean Niche."
He raised his eyes in thought. He knew who Niche meant when she said she. Once their landlord Sylvette had tried to bathe Niche innocently enough, unfortunately, however, this wound up leaving more cuts in the walls and slopping of soapy water than any actual bath. Sylvette was one of the stubborn types and often took the times when Niche wore only pajamas (that once belonged to Lag) as an opportunity to give her a bath. Most times anymore Niche stayed in her dense coat to ward off any cleanings whatsoever.
The two girls made a fun event to watch but most times they involved him too. Between his friend and idol, Gauche and him, they were trying to save up for a cure for Sylvette's illness that prevented her from walking. Gauche no longer lived there, him being her older brother. He'd been assigned a job at tracking down radical, lone remnants of the anti-establishment group known as Reverse. This meant big pay for him, but he was frequently gone.
With Sylvette being physically challenged that didn't deter Lag in the least. Yuusari, where they lived, held a grand festival once a year celebrating the invention of the manmade sun known as Taiyou's Day. It was this day he planned to ask her out. He already had Gauche's blessing. But Niche was another story all together.
Lag placed his hat on his head making sure it was tight. It was eerie how much he and Gauche looked alike. It was even harder to believe he was already sixteen and making express deliveries like the well known Jiggy Pepper.
With his Nocturne rifle at his belt and his carrier's bag on his other side, the young Bee was set to head out.
"We leaving?" asked Niche, excited for another day.
"We are," he smiled back.
Lag turned to face her and found the girl already missing. The opened window in the room revealed where she'd gotten off to. He sighed as he usually did, a part of their shared routine, and trudged downstairs to the door. He passed Sylvette's room on the way. To help make ends meet she took up doll crafting. This ended up causing her long nights. This was apparently one of them. He knocked on her doorframe making her jump in her wheelchair.
"We're heading out, Sylvette," Lag said, saluting her.
She returned a tired smile behind her brilliant blond hair. "Be careful. When you get back there'll be supper ready for you."
"Thanks, I'd really appreciate that," he replied with a friendly grin. He gagged a little inside at the thought of her dreadful soup. He thought about the approaching festival then. It being a week away didn't leave him much time to try and ask her for a date. "Hey, Sylvette?"
She turned allowing her soft eyes to meet his again.
Lag's face became hot and he couldn't talk. Not again, he thought.
"What is it?" she asked him. Her voice was so sweet to his ears.
"Uhhh…" Lag attempted to drag the question out but it failed to come. He stroked at his bangs that hid his left eye trying to think of a way to keep this sudden turn from being any more awkward. "Don't stay up too late."
"Right," she replied, and returned to her toiling.
He pried open the door and stepped out letting the early morning air brush over him. It felt good, it felt cool, but he still felt hot all the same.
"Stupid," he exclaimed as he slouched forward. He hadn't noticed Niche waiting for him.
"Lag sick?"
"Not really, Niche."
"If Lag needs it, Niche, his Dingo, will lick where it hurts!"
Before she had the chance to try Lag held up rigid hands. "No, I'm quite fine Niche, let's go."
They headed off toward the Bee Hive to get today's letter from the other side of Yuusari passing the occasional citizen who greeted him with decent respect. His thoughts were of his Dingo, or partner. It was true she was odd, in many more ways than one, but she was faithful, reliable, and though her speech was rugged, she always meant well.
And yet, after these several years, she hadn't aged a day, his thoughts redirected. After encountering the legendary Maka himself he had a somewhat grasp on why that was. But to him, she was still a girl and it was odd.
The two of them plodded up what was known as Raspberry Hill. It was usually a section of the route taken by horse driven cart. Considering they lived relatively nearby, however, that didn't seem like much of a necessity. As always, half way up, gravity caught up with Lag's lean frame, slowing him significantly down. He bent over breathing harder than normal. Meanwhile, his dingo frolicked ahead without skipping a beat.
"Wait up, Niche," he called out, blowing a tired sigh.
"Lag slow. Hurry up!" she huffed back at him without even a glance.
"No fair," he sulked. Then he yipped at a sudden, sharp pain in his bottom, and he dashed up the hill straight past Niche.
Shortly after this the young Bee spilled over the cobblestone road in a messy heap rubbing his aching rear end.
"What on earth was that?"
Niche stopped by his head. Her unnatural hair held her pet/meal Steak, a creature that resembled a fancy rodent whose body was majorly made up of its mouth.
"Ouch." Lag rose to his feet brushing a stray tear from his eye. I'm getting too old for that, he thought.
"Does Lag need licked now?"
Feeling a tad embarrassed he didn't say a word and walked on ahead leaving Niche to puff at him and shoved Steak atop her scalp where he casually perched.
The couple entered the Hive through the double, gothic style doors and approached the director's office. Once inside it was obvious the director was, once again, out. Aria, his assistant whom Lag thought highly of came from behind the desk offering him his day's delivery.
"Hello, Ms. Link," he said.
The woman laid the letter in his flat gloved hand and immediately went off back to the desk.
"I'm sorry, Lag, but due to the director's being out I'm over my head with priorities. Have a safe trip nonetheless." She waved him out.
"Yes, maam. Will do, thanks!" Lag still used his usual chipper tone as he fled the office and five minutes later they boarded the second train headed for the town of Ruby Crescent.
Lag already had a map of the region laid out examining the route as the train got underway. He often enjoyed studying the maps of Amberground. Niche watched him as intently as he stared at the atlas. So deep in thought was she, that when he spoke she flinched.
"Looks like there's been a lot of Gaichuu activity through here lately… we'll have to watch ourselves, Niche."
"That's what a Dingo does best, Lag," and she gave him a pleasant smile.
For some reason his face got a tad warm. "You're right, and you do a good job."
It was Niche's turn to get flustered by his reaction and she turned away to hide the fact confusing Lag in the process. He watched her and looked over her old coat that anymore was riddled with holes and plagued by dirt.
"Say, Niche, how about after we get back to Yuusari I buy you something new to wear?"
"No," she yelled, startling both Lag and the other passengers.
"No? How come?"
"It's memories."
Lag frowned a bit. "You mean it has memories?"
Niche nodded confidently.
"Like what?" asked the curious young Bee.
"Meeting Lag, and Steak too," she replied, pointing to the massive, sleeping rodent joy riding on her head.
He felt flattered and took the opportunity of her cheerful mood to propose his declaration.
"Niche, I'm planning on asking Sylvette out on Taiyou's Day."
The girl glared blankly up at him. He feared the golden swords would be unleashed any moment. When she spoke to him he nearly covered himself with his arms to brace for the onslaught.
"Lag, what's asking out?"
He slumped in his seat. This would be much harder than he'd originally thought.
"Well, Niche… it means, um…"
Was telling her what 'asking out' meant really that much more difficult than telling her about Sylvette?
"It means when someone likes someone else and they want to do things together, they ask if they can in hopes of… uh achieving a higher relationship."
Lag was sweating bullets at this point. What would her reaction possibly be?
Niche sat steady, her broad mitten smothered hand over her mouth in thought. Then her big ocean colored eyes bolted up at him. "What does any of that mean? It sounds like you and your Dingo. Lag, are we going out?"
The young Bee slumped in his seat, his face beet red. Some passengers become their onlookers, chuckling to themselves. Uneasy laughter escaped his lips as well.
"Does Lag want to be S'vette's Dingo? Niche is Lag's Dingo!" she started shouting. The other passengers got startled then and made their way to a further train car leaving the couple and their 'edible' pet to themselves.
Lag wasn't sure how to cope with the new twist their day had taken.
"That's not it, Niche! You're wrong!"
The girl's pretty hair morphed into her deadly, razor sharp blades that immediately ravaged the train seat between them sending padding every which way. Then the bad went to worse. He saw the underpants he'd given her years ago suddenly clenched in a hand. They were practically a sign of their bond and when those went off all chaos broke loose.
"Tell Niche, your Dingo, what you mean." The blades turned on him.
"Um, well, it's hard to explain, Niche…"
"Niche, my Dingo… Say it!"
The troubled Bee was about to comply when the fellow passengers erupted back into their train car screaming with all they had, even startling the enraged child of Maka in the process.
"Gaichuu!" It was a unified cry of utter terror.
Lag snapped his Nocturne rifle from his belt and hurried to the door. "Niche, let's go!"
She huffed at his remark, stowing her swords for the moment and trailed after. Lag's old pair of underpants was still in her hand.