WOW HI GUYS IT'S LESS THAN THIRTY MINUTES IN 2018 AND I LOST TRACK OF TIME WHOOP WHOOP WHOOP LET'S GO!

Wow, that's a long time between updates. Between looking for a job, keeping my grades up, and senior year in general, wew, no time for this.

But fortunately, next semester should be incredibly easy and I've found work. So, I suppose you should see more updates. Assuming I don't just go fool around playing Octopath and Smash for an entire semester, haha. I have written this and a few more chapters, so hopefully I'll be able to put out regular updates or something. I might also be working on an original project, so we'll see about it.

Anyways, let's just get on with the chapter. Here we go! I'll put review replies later since I am IIIIIN A RUSH.

Chapter 14: World Wide Phenomenon

"Feeling nostalgic?"

The silence of the archives room was broken with those two words. MT looked up and to her right, seeing down the rows and rows of metallic grey shelving in the admittedly dreary if not well-lit room to see who it was.

"Ma'am." MT said, immediately putting her folder down on the table next to her and saluting to the dress-suited-up Rebecca, who walked over to her and glanced down at the folder.

"You can relax, MT. I was just down here for likely the same reasons as yourself." Rebecca said, running her left hand across her face, brushing her short ginger bangs out of her green eyes as she looked away from the folder MT had put down.

"I doubt we were going to be looking at the same files."

"Indeed. But, my question?"

"I… perhaps, yes." MT said, taking her folder back into her hands.

"You and Weiss were a good team." Rebecca said as she looked through the folder list, then grabbed a file.

"It wasn't enough to take out Goddess Ascendant." MT muttered back, looking down at the ground. "...we should have won that day."

Rebecca shut the folder with a bit more force than she intended. "Don't blame yourself. It's not your fault, after all."

"I know, but it's just… if we had won that day, would we still be well… here?"

"Most likely not. Out of curiosity, have you told our current four zero three fours about your stint?" Rebecca asked, turning her head towards MT, who simply shook her head.

"No. As far as they know, I'm just a handler. They don't need to know, anyways. If you order me to do so, I'll have no issue with it."

"No, no, don't worry about that. I just wanted to know if you had told them, is all. So, is nostalgia the only reason you were here?"

MT shook her head as she tabbed through the files in the folder she was holding. "No, ma'am. I was just thinking that maybe there was something we had overlooked. Maybe something that could give us a better clue to Phantom Task. They're slippery, that's for sure, so I just wanted to make sure that we really didn't miss a thing."

"I see. Good on you."

"But ma'am, I doubt you would have just come down randomly. Did you need me for something?"

"I was here just to fulfill some curiosity, but it was just fortunate I ran into you."

"What do you require of me, ma'am?"

"You're being fielded again, MT, so go down to the range and make sure you're well acquainted. I trust that someone who was once a four zero three four wouldn't slip so easily, but you should make sure that you're up to snuff."

"Where am I going?"

"France. Picking up… an old ally." Rebecca said, handing over another folder which MT took. In it detailed an extraction plan of one Abraham Dunois. "His plan to slip out of the spotlight is almost complete, so you'll be there to make sure he makes it to us."

"I see. He'll be extracted successfully. Having him back on the team would definitely be beneficial. Have we dug up his old unit?"

"It's in the works, which is why I'm trusting you to make sure of his extractions. We need as many pilots on deck as we can get."

"I see. If I'm going to France, are we picking up Lisarene's research?"

"She's not quite done yet with it, so negative on that."

"Got it."

"Additionally, plans are being moved up. Protocol Musical Call has been in invoked, Phase One is in two days."

"Two days?"

"A friend of ours tipped us off. We have to move."

"Disavowed, huh…" MT chuckled, shaking her head. "Never thought we'd see the day."

"It was bound to happen the day we dug up something a little too dirty that had to be swept under the rug. We're going to be fielding you quite a bit in the near future, so be ready for that as well."

"Of course. If you'll excuse me, I'll go and prepare now."

With that, MT shut her folder and tucked it underneath her armpit, then saluted before leaving Rebecca.

The times, they were certainly changing…

"Okay, calm down, calm down…"

Katalina Granger was nervous. Very, very nervous, as she was meeting her senator today, at the headquarters of her non-profit organization, Buried Hatchet. She had started it with a friend, well, she supposed she was a friend. They had originally met online and then eventually met in person, doing all sorts of fundraising and outreach activities to grow their message, before her partner suddenly had to leave, but swore she'd continue to support her from afar.

Their message? That the Armored Cores should all be decommissioned and done away with.

The IS had managed to bring out a sort of still peace, but the only threat to it was the proliferation of the AC, especially NEXTs, that's what Katalina had thought. Her partner had told her about all the horror stories, of kids being made to pilot those machines, and dying in the wastelands in the middle of mercenary wars. However, as resources ran dry, the ACs would stop fighting, and a coordinated, multi-national effort to stop them would see the rampaging conflict end sooner than later.

Her partner had always been very passionate about it. Maybe she had been personally affected or knew someone who was. A world without the AC, a peace brought about by the IS being the new top dog on the block… wouldn't that be nice? Though sometimes, Katalina wondered how exactly that peace would last, if all that was keeping it in check was that no one was willing to suffer the mark of being the first one to break the Alaska Treaty. But it was an okay first step, and having one weapon of the world dismantled was better than none.

"It's not like you to be so uptight."

"Hawawa—"

In the doorway was her partner. The one who had to leave, citing family business, and that she'd be busy for quite some time. She shouldn't be here, she shouldn't—

Her partner smiled, her immaculate white teeth shining with confidence. The sunlight filtering through the windows sparkled off of her blonde hair that went down past her shoulders, and her eyes had their familiar light green sheen to them. If only she knew that those were contacts obscuring the blood red eyes underneath.

"Have you already forgotten my name, Katalina? That hurts, you know?"

"No, no! Of course not, Sheila!"

Sheila Aveen, yes, that was her name. If you were Katalina Granger, or anyone who had interacted with them. But if one knew the truth, they would've no doubt realized that this entire thing… was all a sham. Just another pawn for Phantom Task, and more specifically Squall Meusel, to move around the board.

"You've managed to grow a lot without me. I'm a little bit sad." She said, walking forward over to Katalina's desk. "But I'm also very proud."

"W-where have you been?" Katalina said, standing up from her desk.

"I was overseas. I couldn't say anything, so this one's just between us, right?" Meusel leaned in and smiled. "I was helping getting things ready for the denouncement of the AC."

"R… really?!"

"Mhm. Africa has really been hard hit and I had a friend over there. I would have loved to bring us both, but you needed to be here to grow the movement. Sorry to lie about it being family business, but they insisted."

"And even so, you were supporting me…"

"Well, I can't just forget you, right?" Meusel gave another small grin as she pointed at the patch sewn on the jacket hanging off of Katalina's chair. It was a badly stitched sunflower with a smiley face on it, looking like it had been created by a six year old. "You kept it?"

"You made it with me, so of course I did." Katalina mumbled as she looked away. "Are you staying?"

"I'll be in town for a while, so yes. Maybe we should go have dinner some time?"

"Y-yes, we should! Of course! Oh, but not tonight, I have to meet with a group of high school students who were interested in spreading our message to their school."

"Ah, of course, of course. I'm glad, though, we might actually get to see our dream come true."

And then, Meusel thought as she closed her eyes as Katalina went on about the students she was going to meet. And then, that will be one less obstacle for me to overcome. All of my shameless followers who think it will be some glorious revolution when we rise will fall by my hand. This was never about world domination or ruling the world, unlike what they think.

Disgusting. Absolutely disgusting. They should never be handed the keys to the world. The only ones who should be able to lead the world are the ones willing to give everything for it. But in order to reach that point, I will have to dismantle the AC.

Because at the end of the day, this is simply to erase the biggest threat to peace. I can lead them there with the IS, but not the AC. It's just too unregulated. Every day, a NEXT pilot could be born, trained, raised, and defeat me. But with the IS, there's far too much red tape in the way. And I'll exploit that to the very end, to achieve my dream.

She had masterminded it all from the shadows, whether it be through blackmail, murder, seduction, or any number of unsavory methods. She had a vision in her heart, a peace that would be brought about through her. She would lead the world into a new era, with the IS as her sword.

For that, she had demonized the AC, working with her compromised media outlets to constantly push for their removal. Over the years, it had been incredibly successful. She played on people's envy and when the sentiment had come up that it would be women's time to shine and dethrone men, she capitalized on that, too, even if she herself did not believe it—even if she found herself disgusted by it. To her, no one was owed anything. It was up to oneself to craft their own future. To blame history for your failures was just an excuse in her eyes.

After all, throughout history there were plenty of who carried a goal of world peace, and they had all failed. History stated that she would fail—yet she would not allow the follies of hundreds of men and women drag her down.

Now, she was on the precipice of her goal. The AC had mostly been subdued in the popular culture. A constant, years-long barrage of calling it a machine for murderers, a demonization and stigmatization of mercenaries, and she herself hunting down its top proliferators had made it unsavory to the public. The temptation to bring power back into the hands of governments and ruling bodies as opposed to relying on a mercenary branch made it easy to convince politicians and bureaucrats to support the IS over the AC. Dissenters to the decommissioning of ACs were quietly dismissed and her own puppets in media outlets hushed it all down.

Meusel quietly begged for forgiveness as she put on a smiling face and continued to talk to Katalina. Even though she had sacrificed a lot for her goal, there was plenty she considered unsavory.

"Something wrong, Sheila?"

"Hm?"

"You seemed to frown at that latest story."

"Ah." Meusel closed her eyes, thinking. "Something about it rubs me the wrong way, is all."

"Oh…"

"If you see that boy, Robert, was it? I'd like to talk to him. Something about that situation just feels wrong. Even if he supports the AC, he shouldn't just be completely discarded just because he's a boy."

Katalina was silent as she scanned over Meusel, trying to get a feel for what she truly meant by her words.

"What I mean to say, Katalina, is that to discard opposed opinions is foolhardy. Even if he is a boy—" Disgusting. Absolutely disgusting, that I have to say that. "—it is best to show that an opinion is wrong than to simply throw it away. There is nothing that is above debate."

"I see… your trip to Africa certainly shifted your viewpoints a bit, hm, Sheila?"

Perhaps I simply became tired of living a lie. "Artillery makes no difference between man and woman, Katalina."

Again, she quietly begged for forgiveness. To slander, defame, and smear the history of the world—all to suit a world that had suddenly experienced this shift of supposed "equality". Meusel knew she had a hand in it, even if she did not believe in it. It had been just a useful tool to push the AC out.

But I will fix it, when my goal is reached.

In due time, she knew, things would balance out. She would balance them out herself, if need be, when the time came.

Men, women, countries, society's structure—it all was a necessary sacrifice.

So forgive me, Katalina, for even if all of your motivations are not pure, your intentions are. And I will use them to pave the way to the utopia of my own making.

Armored Hearts

"Ha…"

"Done?" I ask, though I don't move from my spot. I'm currently sitting on a picnic table, where roughly twenty feet from me, Nomida is on her knees, still dressed in full kendo uniform.

Of course, I don't move because I made that incorrect assumption last time, and Nomida tried to use it as an ambush. She even waited for me to roll in close with the wheelchair before she attacked me. Cheeky brat.

...on the other hand, I've taught her well. I shouldn't have made that assumption. I suppose I need to remind myself that Nomida isn't the same girl she was when I began teaching her.

"Yeah…"

"Do you mean that?"

Nomida takes off her gloves and then removes the tsuba of her shinai. After a pause, she undoes her helmet's laces and then puts it off to the side.

"I am done, instructor Kazuma."

"Don't ever call me that again." I mutter as I climb back over and ease myself into my wheelchair, where I roll forward and give a hand to Nomida. I help her up to her feet, where she pretty much collapses into my lap.

"S… sorry." she whispers very shakily, her voice quivering. "I… I really gave it my all."

"Can you stand?"

"K… kind of."

"If you need a moment to gather your strength, that's fine. We have plenty of time."

Nomida nods, allowing herself to go slack. I try to help her at least get in a more comfortable position, but it really just ends up with her almost sitting in my lap. I push us over to the table where there's a few benches, but Nomida doesn't seem to want to move.

"You know there's more room on the bench."

"Tired."

I sigh, shaking my head.

"How did I do?"

"Well, you've learned well. Thanks for nearly pulling me out of my wheelchair."

"I didn't think I could win in a straight fight, so I had to try for an opening. I was on my last legs by the time we had started dueling."

"That's good. That's how you should fight."

"But, Kazuma-san, you were kind of sloppy. I didn't think you would actually come in…"

I roll my eyes as she gives a goofy smile, likely half-loopy from exhaustion.

"I underestimated you, so I slipped up. If I hadn't been as careful, you would have gotten me."

"I'm glad… I was able to get that close."

"I'm not going to go as easy on you next time, then."

"Aw… but, I'm surprised at myself, too." Nomida pauses, so I look down and give her a small nod to press her to continue. "Even though you were in a wheelchair, I was still willing to rip you from it in order to win. I didn't see myself being that kind of person, but I think it might be because it was you."

"Because it was me?" I ask, giving her that small push to make sure she has the full answer that she needs for herself.

"Because… you were a combatant. If you had just been anyone else, I don't think I could have done it." She stops, then shakes her head. "No, I know I couldn't have done it. I wouldn't have done it at all. Because unless they were trying to harm me, then I would absolutely refuse."

"Good." I say, Nomida tilting her head and opening her mouth in surprise. "It means you've drawn a line in the sand. That's good."

"It is?"

"Yes. It's what differentiates soldiers from attack dogs and weapons. You've got a sense of autonomy, of choice, and you have standards. A thing you absolutely wouldn't do. That's what I wanted to raise you as—as a fighter, a soldier, not an attack dog or weapon. If I wanted to train an attack dog that would simply kill or follow my command without any hesitation, then hesitation like that would be seen as a weakness. But you're not an attack dog, you're not a weapon."

"Mhm." Nomida nods, coming to an understanding. "...thank you, Kazuma-kun."

I hear an "eep" and see Nomida's face turn red. I did say that it was fine for her to call me that, but I guess it's still embarrassing for her.

"S-sorry, I assumed—"

"It's fine. I don't mind. Besides, I told you after that incident with the unmanned unit it was fine to call me by my given name, so I don't mind."

"Ah, I see… so-sorry. Um, so I should call you that from now on?"

"If you're comfortable with it."

"Okay."

We simply sit there for a while in silence while Nomida rests. About ten minutes pass before I break it.

"Nomida-san."

"Kazuma-s-kun?"

"I wanted to ask about your family." I hesitate, feeling her tense up in my lap. "If you don't want to—"

"No."

"Hm?"

"I… want to tell you. I really, really have wanted to tell you for the longest time. But it's just… hard for me. Though… if you ask me, just enough to give me a small push..."

I see Nomida slowly get up from my lap, stretch, and then slowly remove the armor from her chest. She lets its fall to the ground as she walks towards the handrail, the wind kicking her hair around and causing her hakama to billow about. I see her close her eyes and nod to herself as the wind dies down, her hair sparkling in the sunset.

"Do you still remember the story I told you?" She asks, and I realize that she really has gathered the strength that I saw in her that night.

"Yeah."

"Hehe. Well… it was very obvious that girl was me. I wanted to grow up to be a doctor. I didn't want to have to fight like this at first. I never even had to be at the dojo, because I was at the top of my class. Everyone said I was going places, that I could be a top doctor. It was nice, they were better days. My sister was also the star pupil of our dojo, too, and we were becoming a well known family. I suppose that my mother somehow, I don't know how, knew the Orimuras, or was at least jealous of their fame, and then began to drill my older sister into being a pilot. She was an ace at fighting, too. She was smart as well, learning all of the material quickly. She would have been our star pilot—

"But… my sister turned out to have a heart condition that flared up when she went for her flight test to be a pilot. The sudden motions and force exerted on pilots agitated her condition, which is why we hadn't picked up on it before. So… my mother wanted to raise me instead. I had to withdraw from most of my extracirriculars in medicine to change my schedule to learn kendo and completely shift myself to start studying for the IS Academy exam. I saw my friends less and less. Eventually we just stopped hanging out, then texting, then even talking.

"Most girls spend most of growing up studying for this, all three years of junior high and even before then. I spent a year and a half, but my test scores were good enough to the point that even with my subpar piloting, they let me in."

Nomida pauses, laughing.

"I'm supposed to be a doctor, saving lives, not… taking them. I shouldn't be with Reinhardt side by side, but for when she comes back from a battle. It was all for one reason, though. My sister… said that she wanted to see me fly. And so I pushed myself to do it. Even though I lost all of my friends who all wanted to go to medical school with me, I pushed myself. I graduated from junior high all alone, but I had it—the smile of my sister, saying she was proud of me. She's always been someone dear to me and she did so much for me, so being able to do that much made me feel so alive. And after all of that...

"Then… well, I met you, Kazuma-kun. And the rest is history, isn't it?"

"Ha, yes. Though, what about now? You were supposed to be a doctor, but now?"

"Now…" Nomida opens and closes her mouth a few times, not saying anything before taking a second to collect herself, turning to face me as the wind of course, picks up so it blows her hair to my right in a suitably dramatic fashion. "...I'm ready to stand at your side. I'd still like to become a doctor, maybe in the future, but for now… I might have been forced to fight, but now I choose to fight. I want to stand by Reinhardt-san, Cayden-san, Stoneson-san, um, well, I guess Lisarene-san is part of our team, and… you."

"Good to hear."

I'm glad that you've reached this point, Nomida.

"So… thank you, Kazuma-kun. For indulging me today and… for listening."

"I'm your teammate. It's what I do."

She gives a bright smile. "Mhm!"

Ah…

...geez. I felt… rather calm, seeing that smile of hers. She's at a real peace, confident at knowing her place. This… feeling in my chest, I wonder what it is. It's what I felt… coming home from a mission. Coming home from a mission, about to step out of Orbital Static, knowing that Mei was on the other side of the door, waiting for me with a big smile on her face.

That's right… this place is somewhere I can call home. No, it's the people. If… we were anywhere else, I could still call it home, as long as I was with them. Even if it hadn't been Rainbow Stream or our home base, as long as someone like Mei was on the other side of that door, it'd be home.

"Kazuma-kun?"

"Hm?"

"You were… smiling."

I reach up and touch my mouth, finding that I really was. So I was…

"A-anyways, I'm going to go clean up! You should probably get dinner, I wouldn't want to keep you!"

I look up, broken out of my thoughts, and find Nomida immediately moving to go and pick up all of her belongings. She scoops them all up and seems to run away as fast as she can...

"Alright. I'll see you later, Nomida-san." I say, despite her being too far to hear me, beginning to roll myself to my next destination.

"You seem distracted."

"Reinhardt, didn't expect to see you up here." I say, leaning back in my wheelchair.

After talking with Nomida, I went up to the observation tower on campus and decided just to think. I felt… conflicted. I have… a place I'd like to call home, but… I'm terrified of becoming… soft. Perhaps I simply am scared of change. Or maybe it's a growing discomfort, knowing that I would be, well…

...leaving that world behind. The world of the AC. Of Hidden Hand. I know MT told us that we need to, but… there's something left. I can't just leave. So perhaps I'm terrified that in gaining a home and people that I might want to protect other than Mei, I'd have lost something I needed to defend them.

And that fills me with an indescribable terror.

"Something must really be on your mind."

I blink, realizing that Reinhardt has come up next to me, sitting on the bench.

"You didn't even say anything when I came up next to you. Should've brought a marker."

"Oh, shut up. How'd you find me?"

"I saw you leaving the park area with Nomida. You seemed really out of it, rolling right past Cayden without saying a word. The fact you didn't notice me following you tipped me off, as well."

"That bad, huh?"

"What's on your mind, Kazuma?"

"I don't know if I can really talk about it."

"Hmm… okay."

"That's it?" I ask, raising an eyebrow. "Not going to push me?"

"I don't think anyone could ever force you to talk, so there's no point in trying to force it out of you." She says, waving her hand around. "So really, if you won't say anything, I won't ask any further. But, I will simply let you know that if you want someone to listen to you, then I will be here for you."

"...alright."

We sit in silence for a little bit, just looking out at the island.

"...Reinhardt."

"Kazuma?"

"I… well, perhaps it might be good to ask you, since you were raised in a more traditional military environment."

"I'm listening?"

"I've… well, I was the operative, right?"

"You were." She says, though I can tell she's skeptical of my whole story.

"So, the times I fought were rare, but they were there. I always had a reason to fight. Just one. But recently, I feel like… I've had more. More reasons to fight. But that one reason I had before carried me. It's what gave me everything I needed. Yet I feel like… while I've gained more reasons to fight, my capability to do so has been decreased, somehow."

"Ah, I get it." Reinhardt puts her hands on her hips when I look at her with a 'Really?' expression. "No, it was my dad who told me about it. When he joined the navy, it was because he loved his country. Then he met my mother, and then he fought because he loved his country and his wife. Then my brothers came along, and he piled on more and more reasons to fight. But sometimes it feels like all of those reasons are pulling you around, or that your will to fight is being spread thin.

"I think… he once told me that it's just a feeling. It's not true. Every reason you have to fight, if they synergize with each other, you might not feel it all the time, but when the time is right, when everything is on the line, you'll see how capable you are."

I close my eyes and think on it. If everything were to be threatened all at once, huh…

...I definitely would push myself beyond anything I would have ever done before. That much is certain. But it doesn't quite solve that feeling or worry that I'm less able to fight. Like I've grown soft.

"Thanks, Reinhardt."

"Ursula."

"Hm?"

"When we're alone… Ursula is just fine. We're friends, right?"

"Ursula-san, or…"

"Just… just Ursula." She says, scratching her chin.

"Then, just call me Weiss when we're alone."

Seeing that we both had Western roots, it's nothing really major. If we were at a school in the West, we would have likely been doing so a while back. I suppose Reinhardt is a bit hesitant because of the implications at IS Academy, due to the Japanese culture that's prevalent here. Calling each other purely by first name would imply a deep amount of intimacy.

"Then, Ursula, thank you for that. It doesn't exactly solve my concern, but… it does give me something to think on." I say, leaning back in my chair.

"You're welcome. I'm glad I was able to help."

We sit around for a while longer as I continue to think about Reinhardt's words. I'll only know it when everyone's in danger, huh? Heh, maybe it was… that day, with the golem. On foot, no shields, a single shot on the live battlefield, against an IS. Would I have done that before… and then against Bodewig, threatening to have Reinhardt fire even though Orimura was out there.

"—iss?"

"Hm? Sorry, I was lost in thought." I say, looking towards Reinhardt.

"I wanted to ask if you wanted to do something tomorrow. There's… something I'd like to do."

"I mean, the fights are still going on, so of course I'm free. What time?"

"Maybe around eleven o'clock?"

"Works for me. Should I bring anything?"

She shakes her head. "Nope, please leave everything to me."

"Riiiight…"

"So, what now?"

"I guess we just wait for the battles to be done. You guys should have a small break before we really hit the ground running with your training."

"We have the class trip soon after this, too. You're going to make us really work that hard before it?"

"Work hard, play hard."

Reinhardt snorts as she rolls her eyes.

"Hey, you want to enjoy that vacation? Better earn it."

She laughs at that, looking out the window. "Alright, fine, fine. I'll earn the stupid vacation."

I simply roll my eyes as I look out the window as well, the silence overtaking us. There's not that much more that needs to be said between us. For now, we're just thankful that we don't have to deal with Bodewig. Though I wonder if Orimura will be able to keep up with her…

And there's still that annoying feeling in the back of my head, like something big is about to happen. Something that I could have prevented if I wasn't here. But at the same time, would I have found this place if I wasn't well… here? I wonder…

As much as I'd love to do something on my own, I'm nothing without the backing of Hidden Hand. Or perhaps it would be more appropriate to say I'm nothing but a very skilled operative without them. But I'm just a lone field operative. I don't have access to an AC, an information network, or anything like that which would help me investigate. For all the talk I gave to Nomida about not being a weapon, I ironically act as one. Point me at a target and I get the job done. I don't have to think about anything else besides accomplishing the mission.

Still, though… I guess I just have to keep doing what I've been doing. Preparing for the inevitable and keeping my guard up. I know we have enemies in the shadows. And I know that one day, they will act. So I must be ever vigilant and ready… and perhaps these girls might take a stand with me, too. As much as I would prefer to keep them off the battlefield… it may just become an inevitability, as this Phantom Task seems to have its claws all over the world.

And if they can take out the previous 4034…

...then I better make sure they can't take out the current iteration.

Armored Hearts

"Good night, Reinhardt. Ah, er… good night, Ursula."

The girl nodded curtly. "Good night… Weiss."

The boy quietly wheeled himself away to the elevator as she continue to look out the window. One of the elevators dinged and he went inside, going down and leaving her alone.

Reinhardt let out a deep exhale of relief. The knot in her stomach finally loosened, a knot that had been in there since she followed him up the tower.

I… I finally asked him.

One might have been led to believe that Reinhardt had finally asked Kazuma out on a "date", but that was far from the truth. Or perhaps not as far, as her mind was currently half-thinking it as one. But rather than a chance to grow closer to him, it was…

I need to figure this out.

...a chance for her to finally sort out this feeling in her chest.

Over the past few days, Reinhardt had slowly been questioning what exactly was causing her to tense up at the thought of Weiss, how she felt uneasy when it was just him and Nomida, and all sorts of things that would indicate a girl in love. However, it wasn't love, that much Reinhardt was certain. They had only known each other for a small amount of time, relatively speaking.

During her time back in her 'normal' school, she was known for being a bit of a cool beauty. She had been… a bit popular at school. Or perhaps 'famous' was more like it. Her 'cool beauty' aspect, brought about by her slight stoicism, had driven many boys to try to make her laugh. She did in fact, have plenty she could call friends, but ultimately she never developed many deep relationships due to her desire to get into IS Academy. And that meant every girl at school was a potential rival. She herself hadn't tried to isolate herself, but they certainly isolated her. Despite this, though, she persisted, and achieved her goal.

But… she did feel slightly lonely. When she originally came, she suddenly found herself missing those carefree days. Being around mostly men in her life and admiring the strength of her father and brothers, it slightly bothered her being at a fully female school. Save for two, one of which had become a massive influence in her life.

Yes, it wasn't love. But it was a more intimate relationship with any other boy she had ever known. And so, she was confused. She was… well aware of relationships, having seen them all the time in school. Plus, the girls here always talked about them. Part of her wondered if… she even wanted to pursue something like that with Weiss.

"Ha…"

She let out a small, self-deprecating chuckle at herself. The irony—the once cool beauty now wondering about the 'ice king'. But in the end, she had clutched it. A chance to confirm for herself what the feelings in her heart were. If she could go on tomorrow's outing and feel nothing more than the usual tension she felt when they were alone on the battlefield, it meant that she simply was afraid of losing his instruction and friendship. A completely natural worry for her to have, as someone who didn't have many friends coming in, and someone who originally didn't have any friends at the Academy when she arrived. Her tensing up when she thought of Weiss was simply nothing more than a worry that he'd be gone. Him being alone with Nomida and that worrying her was nothing more than a fear in her heart that he'd one day arrive and say 'Nomida's ahead of you now'. She didn't of course, want to compete that much with the girl, but there was certainly a pride within her that knew she was a cut above the normal girl here. She shouldn't worry so much that someone trained by Weiss of all people suddenly caught up to her, but it still made her anxious.

But…

If she went on that outing with Weiss tomorrow and she found herself worrying far more than the usual—if her heart jumped more than when she would spar with him, if the nervousness in her hands didn't match the one when she aimed down with a sniper rifle with his trainer's eyes on her…

...then certainly, she could admit that maybe she had a thing for Weiss.

"Father."

"Charlotte."

"It's good to hear your voice again." The French "boy" said, sure that no one could hear "him". Orimura Ichika had left the room a while ago, already having discovered her "secret" a few days ago, and tonight Charlotte had asked for some privacy. It was as simple as simply implying something about her period and pretending to be embarrassed about it, and the boy had quickly departed. As for any bugs, she had already swept the room the first day she arrived.

"Likewise."

"I still must voice my disagreement of your plan, Father."

"It's the only way, Charlotte."

"But Father, this will ruin the compan—no, it will ruin only you! The company can continue to stay afloat, but if we go through with this, then…!"

"I know, Charlotte. But Hidden Hand needs me."

"You're too old, Father. You've been off the battlefield for too long, and—"

"But it's something that I must do, Charlotte. Phantom Task is on the move. From the seat of CEO, I can only do so much. And ultimately, I was a better pilot than I ever was a corporate officer."

"What would Mother say?"

"...I don't know, but I imagine that she wouldn't want me going back into the AC. But it has to be done, Charlotte. For the sake of the world."

"That's such a vague idea, Father. Do you even know what you're about to do all of this for? We can still stop now!"

"I don't know what Phantom Task's goals are specifically, but they've always been about seizing political power on the world stage as far as I can remember with my time. Things might have gotten worse over time. Now that they have a superweapon that is controlled by governments… I wonder just what would happen if they were to ever fully sink their claws in."

"Father, that's…"

"I suppose you could say then, Charlotte, that I am going to fight so we can one day, have another argument over the phone like this. I would say I disapprove of the boy that you're seeing, you would accuse me of spying on you, to which I would vehemently deny it, and so forth. Right now, the world can still be like that. But with Phantom Task in the background, I simply don't know. We simply don't know what they intend to do, but simply that they are mobilizing with a figure at the helm. And so I must be ready to fight."

"They beat 4034. The ace. How can you ever hope to win?"

"I won't be alone. That was 4034's mistake that day."

"...right."

"It seems our time is just about up, though. Good luck in your upcoming fight."

"...Thank you, Father."

"This is the last time we're going to speak like this in a long time, so…"

"So?"

"I love you, Charlotte."

"I love you too, Father."

"Good night."

"Good night."

And with that, the line cut dead. Charlotte got up from the bed and used Partial Deployment, giving herself her bracer with a hidden pile driver in it. She loaded the phone up on the desk very precisely, and destroyed it with her weapon before dismissing her unit.

She took a few deep breaths, calming herself down. Everything had to go along with the plan.

Even if that meant throwing her own father to the wolves.

So, you guys wanted to know more about the state of the world, and so I tried to write a chapter detailing it.

First was just some notes about Hidden Hand, along with an increasing amount of pressure on them. The second scene was with Squall Meusel, who I originally wanted to keep off-screen for longer, but since there was a lot of confusion about why the AC was replaced, I decided to put this scene in. Essentially, yes, it was a targeted campaign by her and her group in order to force the AC out of the picture through shame and societal changes. I know it's a bit cartoonish to make Phantom Task have such reach, but it seemed fine enough.

I also thought it was a good chance to characterize her in this story. Rather than show up at the very end, her motivations, goals, convictions, along with her conflict are very much laid out. Standards and lines are drawn for what she does and does not like. It wasn't a full attempt to play the sympathy card, but more of an attempt to showcase what kind of person she is and the lengths she'll go to. Meusel is a woman who will dismantle society's balance, manipulate movements she herself doesn't agree with, and tempt politicians with more power, yet still maintains a dislike for the viewpoints those movements have. Still clearly someone who's dangerous and needs to be dealt with, though.

The next part was just a bit on Nomida's development, some doubts on Kazuma's part, and Reinhardt's dynamic with him being called into question. I didn't want Reinhardt to go full "I'm in love!", so I thought it might be interesting to give her some doubts. She isn't completely sure of her own feelings and needs to sort them out. Though for me, the more interesting part was Weiss' doubts, wherein he wonders if by finding reasons to fight, he weakens himself compared to when he was just fighting to keep Mei alive. It also ties back into the reason he was originally sent to IS Academy, where he was supposed to blend in and forget Hidden Hand. Rather than purposely trying to accomplish that, just by having relationships with others, it slowly gets to him, and now for someone who's known Hidden Hand for most of his life, he doesn't know what it entails. I thought it was a good doubt to give him, and one that can be brought up soon.

The last little bit is more of a stinger and a recontextualization of the Dunois situation. It does kind of excite/amuse me to have this whole like, "clash of secret organizations" mounting in the background of the shenanigans of IS Academy, ready to blow over at any time. Really, this entire setting is a ticking time bomb, haha.

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed it. I'll try to be a little more punctual with chapters in 2019. Seeya all then!