Chapter 2 - Hakone Yumoto

Day 1

The couple waited in the blistering heat for the next bus from Hakone Yumoto bus station. Houki nervously glanced towards Ichika, noting that his eyes were fixated to the sign post indicating various tourist events. She was nervous, more nervous than normal. Houki had consulted Cecilia and she had applied a thin layer of makeup. Her lashes were now fleshed out, matching well with her thin strapped one piece white dress. She was confident in her figure, and the heeled sandals further accented her long legs.

Then why wasn't he looking at her?

When they had taken the train he was fixated on his journey log, and when walking together he paid her no heed and was more interested in the surroundings. His camera that was strapped around his neck had not taken a single photo and it was frustrating her.

"Ichika?"

"Yes?"

She didn't really think past that point. His eyes were looking towards her blankly. It was really annoying.

"Houki?"

Always calling out her name so casually. He practically addressed everyone using their first name. She was jealous. It was her wish that she was to be exclusive, made to feel special.

"Nothing."

The bus still didn't come. She had arranged for Ichika to stay at the dojo, but she also purchased round bus tickets. There will be one day where they would visit a luxurious hot spring, and with that Ichika would be hers.

Houki had to close her mouth. She was drooling.

"Ah, Houki. The bus is here."

She smiled widely as they entered and pulled a single bus ticket each. Ichika needed no help carrying his small black suitcase, it was truly mysterious how guys managed with so little things. The bus was relatively empty and the driver was courteous enough to wait until they were seated before driving.

It was now, that Ichika was taking out his camera, excited to take pictures of the surrounding scenery as the bus went through the valley's dips and troughs. Green land could be seen for miles leading straight to mountainous terrain. The small villages they passed consisted of basic required items to function and the residents friendly, waving at them as they passed.

Houki felt relaxed as he took photos from behind the window. She heard the faint snaps of the camera. The weather was humid, but not uncomfortable with the windows open and the gentle breeze flowing in.

In this state she had clasped his hand. His face went red, but did not pull away and the journey became that much slower as her heartbeat quickened.

"Is it me, or are they getting too close?"

Cecilia looked through her binoculars at the couple in the bus. Something wasn't right… she zoomed closer.

"Oh my lord!"

"You're too loud!" Rin said.

But she couldn't hold in the rage that she felt. Instinctively she reached for her rifle.

"Cecilia? What's happening? I can't see from my position," this time it was Charlotte's voice.

She lost sight of the target and dejectedly Cecilia put the weapon back into the IS hoister. Gently she decreased the volume output of the earpiece, knowing their reaction after telling them the grim news.

"They were holding hands," she whispered.

Sure enough Rin had screamed into the earpiece eliciting a brief gasp from Charlotte. Yet one person stayed quiet throughout.

"Bodewig, what's happening?"

"Target acquired, must stay in hiding."

Her stealth skills were nothing to be joked about, she was on that very bus herself.

"Laura, take out the target… now," Rin screamed again, Cecilia felt compelled to agree.

"Negative, I can't take a clear shot at this angle. If I move I will be spotted."

"Damn it all."

"Rin calm down," Charlotte tried to reason. But she was drowned out by another gasp.

"Rin? What's wrong?" Cecilia said into her ear piece still searching for the bus.

"Head… on shoulder…"

The transmission cut out and it was pretty clear what Rin was going to do. She turned hot headed in these type of situations.

"Dunois, get your IS and intercept Rin before she does something stupid."

"Roger!"

"Bodewig, continue to stand guard, but distract them if necessary when Rin gets too close."

"Received."

Cecilia cracked her knuckles deploying her own IS, Blue Tears. As a long ranged assault suit, it was capable of searching up to several hundred kilometres for moving targets. Stealthily she ascended into the air.

It did not take her 5 minutes before she spotted the bus again. Slowly she raised her binoculars and sure enough Shinonono Houki had her head resting on Ichika's shoulder. Her jealousy almost exploded and she was tempted to fire a missile at them. But she had to refrain, it was only the first day and her strongest rivals were Charlotte and Laura.

The French girl had spent too much time with Ichika already, with a sweet and caring personality to trick and entice any man. But Cecilia knew better, beneath that was a darker side, perfectly able to make people's life difficult if needed.

And Laura, the military girl. Her stealth skills and knowledge with weaponry could not only take out competition, but be able to formulate perfect defensive strategies. She would have to plan ahead to counter her.

Right now it was best to leave Shinonono Houki up to Rin and Laura.

But take extreme measures when required.

"I'll be in your care."

Ichika bowed traditionally to Houki's father who looked at him critically before nodding. He was tall and muscular, with a face that did not look much older than Ichika himself, but his hands were calloused showing his years of training.

"The pleasure is mine, thank you for looking after my daughter."

"No, no, no she has been looking after me a lot more," he said with a smile. Ichika caught Houki's glare and knew that he was being informal, but he meant the words that he said.

"Nice eyes you have there, boy."

"Eyes?"

"They're honest. Looks like you've grown up well."

"Thank you sir."

"But if you're going to steal Houki away from me… be prepared to defeat me in kendo first!"

"Don't worry I have no int-"

"Ichika!" Houki had shouted over him. He thought about what he was about to say and gulped at the almost heinous error he made.

"I can tell from his eyes Houki," her father said cautiously. "Boy, stay a while and train with us."

"Of course, thank you for the opportunity."

Rising only after her father did, he followed Houki as she showed him to his room. The hallways were all aligned with wood work and no further articulation was needed. Occasionally they crossed house workers and disciples who all bowed to Houki with respect. The actual establishment was not very large, but it covered a wide area of ground.

Ichika briefly remembered when they held hands on the bus and grimaced. Houki had gotten comfortable, but he felt that the bus was unbearably hot. The last thing he wanted to do was to be too near to another person.

He couldn't imagine her being cold, so why had she gotten close to him?

Probably a bit tired and wanted to sleep. It wasn't like she said anything else the whole trip and the journey from IS Academy had been long.
Houki stopped and indicated to her right.

"Ichika, this is your room."

She opened the sliding door to a tatami mat floored room. It was only about 20 square metres in area with a single folded futon and short table. There was thankfully a power socket and window leading to the green land beyond. He quickly took a picture of the room before dropping his items.

"Ichika?"

"Oh the room looks… very practical."

"I apologise for the lack of… things."

"No, it's fine Houki."

"Then, if you need me I'll be down the hallway. Outside there is a sign that says my name."

Immediately she stood up to leave.

"Are you mad or something?"

As soon as he asked this she turned with an expression that he had not seen before. She was close to tears. Ichika had to hold in his shock when she slowly backed away and closed the door.
He was mad at himself, of course he upset her.

He had completely forgotten to give her father the gifts he brought from his home.

Ichika had to go and make this right as soon as possible. It was terribly bad manners to not bring anything. He opened his small closet and found a bogu, kendo protective gear. He quickly dressed and ran to Houki's room carrying a shinai in one hand and a gift box in the other.

"Houki?" he tapped three times on her door.

The door slid open and sure enough she had also put on her bogu, but she was surprised to see him do the same. Her eyes were wide in shock even when he apologised about not giving her father the gift box, then she chuckled before saying he was forgiven.

The training would soon begin and Houki's mood seemed to be lifted a little.
And that in itself made him smile.

"Status report! Status report!" The Chinese girl demanded stomping her booted foot onto the ground in frustration.

"I don't think we were needed here," Laura replied through the channel.

"What do you mean?" Rin demanded.

"Ichika just doesn't understand women. I'll continue my watch."

"I'll keep watch from the east side as well," Cecilia chimed in.

"G-G-Guys I'm suddenly having seconds thoughts about this," Charlotte said.

"T-True this has gotten a bit out of hand," Rin admitted. Laura and Cecilia did not reply and the Chinese representative pilot sighed, switching off her communication. She turned to Charlotte who was right next to her and stuck out her tongue. The French girl smiled and Rin turned from her.

"Don't be so angry Rin."

"I'm not angry."

In truth she was. She had located Ichika's bus and was about to take out Houki with a single blast canon round. However, Charlotte managed to somehow get above her and tackle her with an ignition boost. Before they knew it, they were half way up a mountain without any shields and no roads in sight.

"Don't worry my Raphael Revive will charge in a couple of minutes."

"Stupid second generation models, with their Battery Packs and chargeable power."

The third generation models did not have a concept of mobile charging. They could only be refilled in specially designed outposts. She looked at the French girl in more detail now, noting how calm she was. Her face was smiling slightly even as she scrolled through her IS data screen.

"You're… surprisingly upbeat about all this."

"Eh? Really?"

There was a good chance she was always like this. Rin had never really got the chance to bond with Charlotte, but just by looking at her she felt warm affection for her fellow rival.

"Cecilia said something strange just now," she said clutching her ear piece and then she gasped in shock.

"What did she say?"

"We forgot something really important," Charlotte exclaimed.

Rin thought about it, but could not come up with a simple answer. It was not as if Shinonono lived in a fortified castle. She was only the daughter of a dojo master and related to…

"How could I forget?!" she screamed to her blonde companion next to her.

"This is turning out to be a disaster."

Disaster was an understatement.

Rin switched on her communications once again and spoke in a soft voice.

"What's going on? Are you guys safe?"

"I'm fine from here, I'm about 2 kilometres away. My Blue Tears is picking up about 200 life signals. Considering there are only fifty dojo members and ten staff the rest are most likely guards."

"… I cannot move from my position. There are very few routes, I'm limited to night movements only."

"Laura get out of there quickly. They will most likely shoot on sight," Charlotte screamed. "These are official government guards!"

"Don't worry mistress, I am not easy to catch."

"Hi-Hi~"

Rin gasped. She looked at Charlotte who had an equally pale expression.

"I found you~. As expected of the world's smartest scientist and prettiest idol Shinonono Tabane-desu~"

The voice was chuckling and Rin's worse fears were coming to light. It was undoubtedly the voice of Shinonono Tabane. The creator of IS, the sadist from hell and the only person able to present a challenge to Orimura Chifuyu.

"I applaud your guts for invading my home on an only twice encrypted network. Now Rin, Charlotte, Laura, Cecilia…"

Rin was sweating openly now and her mouth went dry.

"What are you doing here... desu?"

"Taking a walk," Laura replied almost immediately.

Out of all the things she could have said.

"In Ichika's room? How convenient~"

"You're in Ichika's room?" she shouted. She also heard Cecilia voice similar complaints, plus a lot more colourful vocabulary.

"Spying and sabotage," Laura admitted.

"By staring at Ichika while he changes?~"

"Laura?!" Charlotte had just yelled loudly and Rin could make out Laura's gasp of fear.

"This looks fun. I'll dismiss the guards for the next three days. Anything for my dear sister to be more honest with herself~"

"What?!"

"I leave it up to you guys. Bye Beeee~"

A sharp static cut through and there was a brief silence.
Charlotte took off her ear piece.

"I don't think this is a good idea… at all."

She was right, there was something suspicious about this whole situation. By doing this, the genius scientist was purposely hurting her sister. There was no way she wanted to be part of that family feud. She also disabled her communications and decided to leave the rest to Laura and Cecilia.

"Guess we'll head back to the hotel then."

This was it…

The chance that she was waiting for.

As soon as Ichika was asleep, she would climb into bed with him and make him submit to her will.
After all he was her wife.
Laura licked her lips as she hid in the lower closet compartment. Ichika was still staring at his logbook just a metre from her and she had to suppress her muffled breathings. She was practically salivating after watching him change twice and massage his broad shoulders with those flexible yet muscular arms.

Patience!

An hour passed before he finally switched off his lamp and shifted to his right side to sleep on his futon. She would wait another hour before taking off her own clothes. Laura counted down the minutes and she noted Ichika's breathing become heavy. It was soon enough.

23:55, she savoured the numbers before slowly opening the closet door. She knelt beside Ichika and felt her heart thumping. His face looked as if it was chiselled from stone, making the jawline more defined than even most even Europeans.

When was the last time she was attracted to a person in such a way?

"Ichika."

She could not stop, softly calling out his name as she leant in to kiss him.

Laura had been in the military since birth, bred for war, born in combat. It was because of this, that she felt danger and instinctively leapt back.

A bullet hole had materialised where she had just been moments before. Laura quickly looked towards the window and sure enough it was open. However from it she could narrow down the trajectory path, leading to the sniper.

"Cecilia what the hell are you doing?" she whispered.

"I want to ask you the same question Laura Bodewig. What in heaven's name do you think you were doing?"

"Stay out of this, you don't want to hurt Ichika do you?"

"My shots… will never miss."

Laura dived to the right as two more bullet holes appeared. They were small, but she could tell they were electrically charged.
Stun bullets.
She removed her eyepatch and looked one more time through the window. This time she saw it. The flash of light indicating the round leaving the barrel. With her supreme reaction time enhanced Laura dodged the next shot and hid back in the closet.

"Stay there Laura and observe only."

"Impressive Cecilia your shots are accurate. However you made one fatal mistake."

"Are you thinking of going against me?"

"Cecilia, you are out of your depth."

"Say anymore and I'll shoot you through the wall."

"Stand down. You'll regret this."

"Bodewig, are you going against me?"

"Yes."

Laura pulled out her terminal and pushed a button.

"Wha-"

There was a sound of a dulled explosion. Laura knew in advance Cecilia's habits, she was a perfectionist with an unhealthy obsession over Ichika. Therefore she took the bait when Laura terraformed an area perfect for sniping. She had also rigged the area with explosives. The bomb would buy her around 15 minutes. That was all the time that she needed.

Laura gently stroked Ichika's face and leaned in to kiss his brow. He didn't flinch and she knew she could get away with more.

The door slid open and Laura vaulted to the left avoiding a blow that would have split her head open. Shinonono was wearing a night gown and in her hand was a partially deployed IS hand. Laura tried to stay calm even as the kendo girl neared her position, knowing that it was pitch black and her position could not be accurately determined. Laura herself could only make out slight outlines after having trained in darkness for most of her life.

"What are you doing here… Laura?"

How did she know?

Laura crouched slightly to the right and to her shock, Houki's armoured arm followed her movement. Was this a fourth generation model feature?

"You can't run. I can see… your eye!"

Laura gasped and covered her golden eye, but it was too late as Shinonono Houki had already trapped her head within the grip of her IS. She was flung out the room and further into the garden beyond. The IS gave her opponent almost sonic speed and Laura could not react to such fast attacks.

"Abort Mission! Abort Mission! We have been discovered!"

There was no reply.

Rin and Charlotte had already given up for the day.

And she just blew up Cecilia.

"Back up! Requesting back up!"

She was instantly against the ground again as Houki materialised behind her, pummelling her into the soft earth. Laura could feel the air leave her lungs as she tried to escape the grasp of the IS, but it was futile.

"Medic!"

Laura was losing consciouness. But she heard a reply in her ear piece and her heart soared. Someone was there!

"Bingbong… Dead end for you Laura Bodewig~"

A/N: Hey guys, hope you enjoyed this.

Sorry if I haven't replied to reviews, fanfiction keeps on saying there is an error with the review page. So just waiting till it fixes itself.

Will update soon!