*inhales deeply* FINALLY

I honestly thought I'd NEVER get this chapter done...special thanks to fubukitasuku999 for beta'ing it for me :P

Osamu found himself subconsciously pulling on his restraints.

I'm fine, he thought as his wrists continued to burn, I'm still okay.

The side-effect of being stuck in any place for who knows how long is forgetting that something else existed beyond one's surroundings—and that was a pit Osamu refused to fall into. Even though he knew his chances of escaping were now slim to none, he wasn't going to give his captors the benefit of breaking his mind along with his body. The pain kept him awake until it simply wasn't physically possible, and the lingering sting allowed for a dreamless sleep.

The door opened, and he didn't need to look up to know it was Dr. Mariposa. Judging by the way she stopped well out of arm's reach, the bespectacled brunette guessed that she was worried about something—maybe even afraid.

It took him a moment, but he realized why she was staying so far away—he was still tugging on the chains, subconsciously leaning towards her with clenched jaw and fists. Taking a deep breath, he relaxed his grip, letting his arms dangle instead. When he did the blonde woman finally stepped closer, though her silence betrayed her tension.

After a long pause, she murmured a sentence he most certainly wasn't prepared to hear.

"...I owe you an apology."

Kinuta could not believe this was happening.

"Calm down!" he snapped as the Media Countermeasures Chief continued to have a mental breakdown. "All of the A-rank squads are out looking for her as we speak—"

"What can they do against that kind of trigger!?" Netsuki demanded hoarsely, "Where's Mikumo-kun when we need him!?"

"K-Kinuta-san, Netsuki-san!" Chief Engineer Terashima shouted as he barged into the room. "Kido-danchou is calling for an emergency meeting—everyone's required to attend."

"We'll be there in a moment…" Kinuta sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. He'd honestly thought he was the one that should be falling apart—especially since this was more or less his fault to begin with (though he'd never admit it)—but when Netsuki found out he flipped out, leaving it up to Kinuta to get him back together and haul him to the meeting.

"Imaging what the press will think!" his coworker lamented, "Border is doomed—Earth is doomed! Mass hysteria insues!"

"Netsuki, get ahold of yourself!" Kinuta bellowed, shaking the Chief by his collar. "How about you imagine what the press will make of one of Border's higher-ups crying a damn river instead of fixing the situation!? Those piranhas would have a field day with that!"

He wasn't sure if it was his words or his constant shaking that finally got to him. "I-I'm sorry," Netsuki apologized, still looking panicked. "It's just—how are we supposed to get out of this!?"

"Not by whining and moaning about it, that's for sure," Kinuta muttered, releasing Netsuki's collar. "Now hurry up! We don't have time to lose—and if we end up late I'm blaming you!"

"I see," Kasumi murmured, "you're the one who kidnapped my son, yes?"

The neighbor woman nodded while she twisted the little ring on her finger. "I'm surprised that you're not showing any fear," she replied, "most would be terrified of the one who stole their child away."

"I'm not," the brunette stated, "In fact, I'm simply upset—I have a tendency to hold grudges you know."

"So am I, obviously," Dr. Mariposa muttered, subtly wiping her eyes. "Trigger, on."

A glowing blue Kogetsu appeared in what Kasumi realized were glowing hands, but she didn't look fazed. It'd be best to assume that it operates like Osamu's, she thought to herself, she can probably kill me with that.

The brunette woman ducked and rolled to her feet as the blonde suddenly stabbed at her with her Kogetsu. Her phone was in her pocket, but she couldn't very well grab it while avoiding getting sliced to pieces—

Her train of thought halted when the sword grazed her leg, though she refused to cry out or stumble.

"You can't keep this up forever!" Dr. Mariposa declared, thrusting at her again. "Just let me hit you already—!"

Finally seeing an opening, Kasumi slipped behind the neighbor woman and in one fluid motion slammed her hands against her ears.

Letting out a scream of pain, Dr. Mariposa fell to her knees, cradling her head in her hands."Y…you…you bitch…" she growled, "I'll…I'll…"

Not letting the blonde have any time to react, Kasumi gripped the heavy stick with white knuckles and slammed it right into her temple."ACK—!" Dr. Mariposa cursed, collapsing onto the ground while holding her head. "Damn it…"

Kasumi limped over to the woman and picked up the Kogetsu. "Interesting color," she murmured, "You probably can draw blood with this, can't you? Like my son's trigger?"

Dr. Mariposa grunted, forcing herself back to her feet. "Trigger, off."

The Kogetsu disappeared, returning to the ring on the neighbor woman's finger.

"I see you have quicker reflexes than I realized," she murmured, "But you'll run out of breath sooner or later."

Kasumi winced, glancing back down at her leg. As much a she hated to admit it, the neighbor woman was right—she'll bleed out at this rate unless she gets some medical attention.

"What do you want?" the brunette asked, "if you're planning on killing me, now is your chance."

"Tch," Dr. Mariposa huffed, "practically nothing phases you, does it? Trigger on."

The glowing katana returned in her hand, and Kasumi braced herself as the neighbor woman lunged at her again.

"W-what the—!?" Kasumi dodged at the last second, taking Dr. Mariposa's arm and cranking it behind her back. "O-oww!"

"I have a question," Kasumi stated, tightening her grip as the neighbor woman struggled fruitlessly. "You had a son, did he have a father?"

"No duh," Dr. Mariposa spat, "how do you think Polilla got here? He's going to rescue me any day now—but why the hell do you care?"

Kasumi hummed as she let go of her arm. "Just curious," she confessed.

"Well, back to the problem at hand," Dr. Mariposa decided, "Trigger, on!"

Nothing happened.

"W-what the—?!" the neighbor woman glanced at her left hand, eyes wide in shock.

"Looking for this?" Kasumi asked, holding up the ring. "I figured you wouldn't be able to do much without it, so I decided to take it off your hands."

The brunette then slipped the ring right above her wedding ring. "This father of your son is your husband, correct?"

Dr. Mariposa averted her eyes. "Not quite," she confessed, her hands tightening into fists. "It's...complicated."

"Hmm," Kasumi hummed, "A lover then?"

"I don't have to tell you anything," the neighbor woman spat out, "If you're going to kill me then do it already—unless you're stalling until help arrives."

To Kasumi, the latter seemed like a good idea. "No need to be shy," she replied, "Since we seem to be at an impasse, we should chat for a while. Neighbor or not, I know all about how 'complicated' something like this can be."

The neighbor woman raised an eyebrow at her, most likely confused. "...what are you talking about?"

"Well," Kasumi started, limping over to the bench and sitting down. "For one, Osamu's father isn't with us."

Dr. Mariposa raised an eyebrow as she did the same, holding her head. "He's dead, then?"

"I don't think so," the brunette replied, "he's just...always abroad. We're married, and I'm sure he loves us both very much, but work prevents him from living with us."

There was long pause between the two, broken by Dr. Mariposa's sigh. "Damn," she muttered, "You're right."

"How so?"

Dr. Mariposa looked down, rubbing her wrists. "Well, your situation is pretty similar with how my...my son's father isn't normally present due to work," she replied, "but...he certainly doesn't give a damn about us. In fact, I bet that he finds Musca's death a good thing…"

"But you said he'd rescue you any day now, didn't you?" Kasumi questioned, "He must care about you—"

"He cares about my research," Dr. Mariposa spat, "that's the primary reason he 'married' me—Musca was just an unwanted nuisance to him! I-It seemed like I was the only one who cared about him, and...I let him die..."

"I understand," Kasumi murmured, "Like I said earlier, I've been waiting three months to beat you over the head with a stick—but it hasn't changed anything, has it? Time hasn't rewinded, the damage hasn't undone—and killing me or my son will only have the same, disappointing effect."

Dr. Mariposa took a shaky breath as she calmed down. "Are you saying that to spare your own life, or your son's? Because I haven't changed my mind about killing at least one of you."

"My son's, obviously," Kasumi chuckled, wiping her eye the same way the neighbor woman had earlier. "As his mother, I'd do anything to ensure his safety."

Dr. Mariposa's eyes widened when Kasumi held out her left hand and closed her eyes.

"Trigger...on."

"301...302...here we are," Arashiyama murmured as he glanced down at the small piece of paper in his hand, then the room number. "303—"

Suddenly the door opened, and the captain found himself facing the very person he came to see.

"K-Kitora?" Arashiyama stammered, "Are you okay? What's going on!?"

"A-Arashiyama-san?!" she exclaimed, blinking rapidly in shock.

"Wait, why are you in your Border uniform?" Arashiyama asked, "Is something—"

"That's not important," Kitora waved off impatiently, "What are you doing here?"

"That neighbor escaped," Jun answered darkly, "all the other A-Ranks are searching for her as we speak, but I decided you were our first priority."

"Naturally," Jin agreed, "Hopefully you're smart thinking will make things a bit easier."

"Like that ever happens," Kitora muttered, "Where's Satori-san and Tokieda-san?"

"They're with Amatori-kun," Jun answered, "I couldn't just leave her alone—she was the one last attacked, so she's—"

"The next target," Jin finished, "But thanks to your great timing and smart thinking, Chika will make it out alive."

Jun rose an eyebrow. "I get the feeling something's bad is about to happen."

"It'll be fine," the Power Elite assured him with his trademark smile, "My Side-Effect tells me so."

As much as Kitora wanted to believe it, she just couldn't bring herself to do so.

The Kogetsu handle formed in her hand, and she let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding. Her hunch was correct—it acted similarly to Osamu's trigger, however instead of blood it responded to tears. She had been afraid of what the consequences would be if she was wrong, especially when she thought back to her son.

Shaking the thoughts out of her head, Kasumi held out the handle of the sword blade to the neighbor woman, causing her to furrow her eyebrows. "What are you doing?"

"Letting you kill me," Kasumi stated, "so you can see for yourself if you'll feel accomplished or not."

"Wha—are you insane!?" Dr. Mariposa demanded indignantly, "I'm not going to just stab you!"

"You most certainly were a few minutes ago."

Dr. Mariposa went to protest, but stopped herself. "...you're right," she murmured, "but…"

Kasumi winced suddenly, the throbbing in her leg starting to burn. "Ah," she huffed, "If you don't, this cut might…"

"No," Dr. Mariposa said resolutely, standing up and taking of her jacket. "Give me your leg."

The brunette woman did as she was told as the neighbor woman tore her jacket and began to tie it around her injured leg. "It's Trion," she stated, "it should hold until you get some medical help."

"...thanks…?" Kasumi trailed off, slightly confused. "But...why?"

"I want to kill you myself," Dr. Mariposa said bluntly, "I'm not going to let you die by a stupid infection. Besides…"

Kasumi winced as the neighbor woman tightened the bandage. "...I'd rather kill you than your son."

"...is that because I asked nicely?" she asked, and Dr. Mariposa rolled her eyes in response.

"It's because killing your son would be pointless," the neighbor woman muttered, "because then two children would have died before their time, and that would only make things worse."

That explains why she escaped and came to me instead of Osamu, Kasumi thought with a smile. "You're absolutely right," she agreed, "though I'm surprised that it's not for 'making him feel the same pain as you did' or something along those lines."

"...that too..." Dr. Mariposa added unconvincingly, "Oh don't give me that look. Your son did kill mine."

"After you tortured mine for three months."

"I wasn't trying to torture him!"

"And I'm sure he wasn't trying to kill your son."

Dr. Mariposa crossed her arms and looked away. "I already said I wasn't going to kill him," she grumbled, "Whatever, let's just get you some help..."

Deciding that was most likely the best she was going to get, Kasumi glanced down at her leg. "...thank you."

"You're not welcome," Dr. Mariposa replied bluntly, "and besides, you won't be thanking me when I kill you—properly this time."

Actually… Kasumi thought amusedly, I think I just might.

"Reiji-sempai?"

The Tamakoma-1 agent lifted his head, the déjà vu hitting him like a brick as he saw Chika staring directly at the door.

"…Amatori-kun," he murmured, already sensing what she was going to say next.

"…was that a nightmare?"

For the first time in a long time, tears threatened to break his neutral façade, but he valiantly held them back. "…Amatori-kun…"

"…I thought it was a nightmare."

Reiji stood with an exhale, sitting down beside his kohai on the hospital bed. "…I'm sorry," he said as she continued to cry, rubbing soothing circles on her back. "I…I wish I could have been there to—"

"No," Chika interrupted, "People always get hurt trying to protect me, so please…please don't say you wish you were there."

"You don't mean that," Reiji cut off sternly, "Amatori-kun—"

"Did you see her?" she asked hoarsely, her eyes starting to well up with tears. "I did that—"

"Chika," Reiji repeated, "It's not your fault. You were backed into a corner—it was her or you. The fact you were able to…well, it makes you stronger than most. Don't forget that, okay?"

The brunette girl relaxed suddenly, leaning onto her senpai's shoulder. "…this must be how Osamu-kun felt," she murmured, wiping her eyes. "…I said the same thing to him after he came back…"

Reiji smiled sadly, wrapping an arm around her. "Well it's true," he replied, "isn't it?"

Chika smiled, her eyes fluttering shut. "Yeah…"

When he was sure she was asleep, Reiji laid her back down on the bed and left the room without another word.

As he closed the door, the sound of feet pounding on the tile caught his attention as he saw two familiar Border agents sprinting towards him. "Tokieda-san? Satori-san?"

"Hello," Tokieda greeted, "I assume you heard the news, which is why we're here."

Reiji raised an eyebrow. "What news?" he asked, "I haven't heard anything."

"Oh boy," Satori sighed, shaking his head. "Border is turned on it's head—that neighbor lady Mikumo-kun captured escaped!"

Reiji blinked, eyes wide. "What?"

"That's correct," Tokieda affirmed, "And the body of the one that attacked Chika went missing as well. We're here primarily because Kitora-san's a floor below us, but Arashiyama-san wanted to make sure Amatori-kun was safe as well."

"Remind me to thank him later," Reiji murmured. Looks like I'm staying longer than I intended.

"You can go on if you want," Satori said, "Tokieda-kun and I can—"

"It's fine," the redhead interrupted, "I'm staying."

Satori blinked while Tokieda let a small smile slip by.

"Suit yourself," Tokieda acknowledged, "She's your kouhai after all."

"Reiji!"

The redhead turned and saw Jin walking up to them, Arashiyama and Kitora following behind.

"Kitora-san, you should be resting," Reiji stated, "Jin, what's going on?

"Hey," the Power Elite smiled, though the redhead saw clear through it. "We uh...got a bit of a problem—"

Suddenly the door opened again, and Chika poked her head in. "Is something wrong?"

"Nothing to concern yourself with," Arashiyama answered with an easygoing smile, "Just some Border things to take care of."

Chika didn't seem to buy any of it. "...Osamu-kun's in trouble, isn't he?"

Reiji sighed, not surprised in the least. "We'll handle it, I promise," he assured her, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. "We won't let anything happen to Osamu."

"I want to help," she insisted, "I'm pretty much healed, and if it's one of those neighbors I can stand a chance."

"But Chika—"

"I have my trigger," she added, as she revealed it from behind her back. "Osamu gave it to me just in case something happened."

"Of course he did," Kitora replied as she rolled his eyes. "Though I can't say I blame him—Arashiyama basically did the same thing."

"Are you sure you'll be okay?" Reiji fussed, "We can handle—"

"Get down!" Jin shouted suddenly, and yanked Kitora down to the ground as Reiji shielded Chika just in time for the door to her hospital room to explode.

"Oh," an unfamiliar voice drawled, "It seems like you brought some friends, Trion Monster!"

Yuma glanced at his captain, watching him rub his wrists nervously.

It took him a while to notice the odd habit, but the white haired neighbor was certain that this was relatively new—new enough that it may be directly linked to him being in captivity for two months.

"Are you alright?"

Osamu jumped, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Y-yeah," he murmured, "I'm fine."

It wasn't a lie, but Yuma certainly wasn't convinced. Even so, he didn't press any further as the two of them continued their walk to the hospital. It was nice outside, and they were cutting through the park since it was quicker—

Of course.

"Yuma?" Osamu asked when the white haired neighbor stopped in his tracks. "Is something wrong?"

"…I should be asking you that," Yuma replied, "Are you sure you feel comfortable—"

"It's fine," the brunette cut off, continuing forward. "I can't avoid it forever, so let's just keep going."

An tense silence ensued as Osamu continued forward, Yuma following close behind.

After a while, Yuma found his mind wandering to the last time he was here—the park completely empty and destroyed, those glasses lying shattered and abandoned in the destruction…

Yuma glanced at his captain again, his face unreadable. If it was difficult for him, it would definitely difficult for Osamu—even with the logic that taking the roundabout way would add at least fifteen minutes to their walk, it can't be easy…

"It was just like this."

It took him a second for Yuma to realize that Osamu was probably talking to himself, but he decided to respond anyway. "Normal, you mean?"

Osamu jumped slightly, not expecting his answer, "...kind of…" he replied hesitantly, "It's just...what is normal for Border agents?"

"That's a good question," Yuma agreed, "Fighting rouge neighbors and Trion monsters is normal along with the calm days like these, huh?"

"Yeah…" Osamu murmured, "...it's kind of the reason why I stayed."

Yuma smiled knowingly. "You definitely would go crazy just being a civilian," he noted, "you're too much of a sucker for those in need—besides, Chika and I would have to retire too."

The brunette furrowed his eyebrows. "...why?"

"Because you're our captain, duh," Yuma replied, "I said I'd only do it if you were our captain, and I'm not sure Chika would want to be a solo agent—not that you'd ever let her."

"...no, I wouldn't," Osamu replied, "I said I'd take care of her…"

"And I'd say you've been doing a great job," Yuma pointed out, nudging him playfully. "I wouldn't sweat a thing."

Osamu shrugged, averting his eyes. "...everyone else says that I would do better retired or as an operator," he murmured, "But…"

"But you want to protect everyone around you," Yuma finished knowingly, "trust me, I'm glad you're back as our captain."

The brunette smiled, blushing slightly. "So am I," he admitted, "I-"

Osamu stopped abruptly when he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. "Ah, hold on a second…" he murmured, pulling it out and checking the screen, "It's a text from my mom…"

His eyes widened, and Yuma raised an eyebrow. "What's it say?"

"She...she says she's in the hospital," Osamu stammered, "...and the neighbor is with her."