By Hotaru
Disclaimer: I don't own RRK—at least, not in this lifetime.
Warning: PG-13 but no lemons here (just hints maybe ^_^)
Also: I haven't read the reviews for the last chapter yet. Don't worry guys, though. I'll mention all of you in my next update, though that might take a while. Nevertheless, I would like to thank Sandy for comments on this fic. It's my favorite fic—far from good I know—so I can't really abandon this for long. However, if everybody else hates it, I might pull down this fic for good, to make space for other RRK fanfics out there. Sorry ^_^
To Stray, who beat the crap out of my ego with THAT review, well, stay alive, okay? (Not a threat, not a threat!!!) Your review kept me going and in fact, inspired me to work on three NEW fics--"Heaven Help Me," "Wasurenaide" ("Do Not Forget") and "Heartbreak Café" (still in the works). I do hope you'll go on reading other fics, and be more generous of your praise, since that's about all we get for our hard work and intense devotion to RRK. At least Sandy understands…^_^ domo arigatou tomodachi!!!!
About my depression, hell, optimism got the better of me (K&K are optimists after all, ain't they?), but still, for the reviewers out there, please be kind. I have a very hard life, and haven't had a wink of sleep for weeks. The reason? I'm finishing my master's thesis this May (on the subject of L2 Variability—aaarrrgh!!! vomits, sweatdrops), and might move on to my PhD in June (NOT in Creative Writing—zero talent there—but hopefully, in a univ. out there offering a scholarship in Sociolinguistics to poor souls like me) or settle for law, so I can stay in the country (Law? YUCK, get real!!!). This is why playing with RRK is like second childhood to me. (Yeah, yeah I need to grow up, don't we all??? ^_^). Fanfic writers' and readers' precious companionship is the only thing that keeps me in touch with my sanity when days are "dark and deep," so please be kind and have more patience. I promise to do my best.
About my age—hell, I'm NOT as old as (nor older than) our Oro-chan (In the manga, in the manga!!!) though I did say that somewhere here before…(Even Himura's age is something I envy, that's why—ha, ha!!!) Anyway, older means wiser, doesn't it? It seems though, that I caught a reverse spell somewhere…
About my tenses…yare, yare, embarrassing as it seems, I do confuse them, don't I? (makes my thesis so much easier to write, believe me!!!) Demo, I have to thank Linay and the rest who have pointed that out. Thanks also to Akai Kitsune, Jason M. Lee, and SiLvEr_iris (sorry for the late update!!!) demo, I love you guys ^_^ !!!
Domo arigatou again for those who decided to stick it out with me. I don't know when I have to leave, but I hope it won't be soon … (wwaaaahhhh…tears have poor dramatic effect so sessha settles for sweat drops ^~^)
Cheers ~ ^_^ ~Chapter 6: In the Dark
My blindness creates you
Moulds you into shadow
As the darkness settles
Cloaks you, like rain.
But cease, there is no regret.
Because, it is when
You're invisible beyond words
That I see you
Most clearly
Rapid ballistic shots fired through heavy automatic rifles and machine guns bounced through the smallness of the room, making the darkness even smaller as the ex-hitokiri glided out of danger, black wings rendering him almost invisible against shadows that embraced. For her part, the Kamiya girl clutched the edges of the coat around her shoulders, trying to keep it from being completely blown away as Kenshin flew up, to the only ledge leading to the window above them, his eyes trained on the measured distance between the ledge and the ground that grew small beneath their feet.
The coat settled behind her, like wings folding back, as Kenshin eyed the window beside the ledge, which afforded him a full view of the rooftop outside the building.
It was going to be difficult, but his guts told him that it was their best means of escape.
Wordlessly, he began to kick the glass, breaking it into a hundred shards.
Kaoru wasn't sure if the crash that came next came from the guns, or the window giving way beneath the pressure of the ex-hitokiri's kick. Even in her state of mental exhaustion though, she can hear snatches of his thoughts, most of them quiet mutterings about the precariousness of the situation, such as the state of the window--
Stupid glass better not hurt her…--the logistics of jumping from the window to the rooftop—
About 6 meters, plus excess weight of 120 pounds…She frowned slightly when she heard that strange remark.
120 pounds??? I'm definitely NOT even over a hundred…
--the consequences of their escape—
I guess I must discuss with Saitou the arrangements for her return to HQ…Where they'd spend the night—
I only hope Tomoe doesn't kill me…
She knew only too well what that last remark meant. Through those times that they forced her to track down Himura's whereabouts especially right after the Battousai's scandal with the media, she had heard the same name in his thoughts, so intimately conveyed. She knew she was, and had often before, intruded into his privacy. Not that it was a conscious choice. Minds after all tolerate no barriers…
Her thoughts were forced back into the present when she felt his hands release her abruptly, gently allowing her body to fall on its own will to the ground beneath them. The movement caused the ledge to shake slightly, forcing her to focus on the exact condition of where they were. She noticed for example that the ledge was suspended about eight feet from the roof by thin iron bars, and overlooked the entire expanse of the rooftop of the warehouse extending to the right of the building where they were.
Must be for look-outs…she thought, noticing as well how the ledge allowed a full view of the ground below, even over and above long rows of what seemed to be pieces of equipment blocking the other side of the room. The darkness really did not afford a good overview of the whole place, though it would still, definitely, be the best position for anyone checking for movement on the ground below, which dropped to about thirty feet or so.
Thinking about it now, she understood why Himura would take risks bringing her there when other means of escape—less strategic perhaps, but nevertheless more convenient—would have presented an easier way for him to use his sword and meet the attackers head-on. What she couldn't quite believe though was the fact that he was able to take her that high while at the same time avoiding the mad volley of shots that hounded their backs.
No wonder he had deadly enemies. His skills would tempt any man to challenge his claim to invincibility.
"Look," he began hesitantly, his eyes shifting back and forth from her to the darkness on the ground below. Above them, a ray of moonlight touched his scar, throwing shadows around his face that made it all the more darkly appealing.
He turned to her, and the moonlight lit his eyes, purple pools of emotion reflecting the light…
"…I think it would be best if…"
He stopped, his head thrown back as he listened to the darkness beneath them. Then as if on impulse, he threw his body over her when the shots came intermittently like rain, punching holes through the glass remains of the window beside them, several of them also hitting the edge of the ledge and rocking it slightly.
Just as I thought… Kenshin thought, holding her against his chest, one hand pushing her head down gently. This is no good. She must stay behind…In the next second he was standing up, sword poised for the inevitable.
"Stay here alright?" he told her gently, as if speaking to a child. "I'd be back."
I hope…
He felt a tug against his side, forcing him to stop and look behind him, as he prepared for his descent.
His eyes went over her in alarm, noting that she was again barely clothed, shivering under the moonlight, which cast bluish pale hues on her already pale skin, making its smooth ivory texture shimmer. What got his attention though was the fact that her hand held out his black cloak to him, sapphire eyes begging him to take it.
He wondered at that. It was clear she was in more desperate need of the cloak than he, at least in that particular situation.
"Take it. It will hide your sword on your way down."
He had known that of course. But he'd die rather than snatch the cloak off her frail body for his own protection…
She shook slightly, a gust of wind from the window making her shiver uncontrollably.
He shook his head, slight impatience gnawing at him as shouts began to echo below. He knew that the high powered guns required several minutes to reload. Once the reloading was complete though, it can kill an army, firing as many as a hundred bullets in five seconds…
But she wouldn't take the cloak back and she made sure her eyes showed it. "You better take it, with this moonlight reflecting on your sword and making your position so…conspicuous…"
His eyes widened at that, anticipating the logic of the argument, which his feelings refused to consider. Her determination, however, was a factor he had not anticipated. Her sapphire eyes had the saddest but the most determined resolve in them, and in the light of the moon, it was hard not to admire the contrast of those eyes with the smallness of her body, shaking vulnerably against the sudden breeze.
In the moonlight, she looked so vulnerable…not helpless, but somehow vulnerable just the same…
After all, how can you call helpless someone who was offering more protection than she could give?
He smiled, and she returned it with a quizzical stare, her lips quivering as if poised to ask a question.
"Domo arigatou," he told her simply, taking the cloak reluctantly, and pulling its length around him to cover his back. "Now I had to be back sooner or you'd REALLY catch a cold this time…"
Then he was gone, disappearing again into the darkness below.
. . . . . . . . . . .
Megumi would have been charmed at Sanosuke Sagara's unexpected display of concern, but she had given her word to Tomoe Yukishiro, and she was not about to break it. She turned to him slightly, fingers fidgeting with the frilly V-neckline of her dress.
"Really, Sagara, do you think I'd let you back out on this deal? Doing that would put me into bigger trouble you know… I mean, just when I've given my clients the final go…"
She was lying of course. Tomoe hardly fitted into the picture of a dangerous client, which she was trying to paint for the intel protocol officer, but she didn't really have any choice. After all, admitting the true nature of her interest in this Kenshin Himura might get Sagara convinced that her request was not earth-shaking enough to be taken seriously…
I just honestly wish he REALLY, TRULY ain't that smart…"Are you even listening to me Takani?" he asked, stopping the car in front of a porch, which have violet pansies in them. She didn't know exactly how to react to that, confused both at his quiet retort, and the fact that they were parked in front of a house rather than a building somewhere in the commercial avenues of Tokyo.
Then she remembered the sharp turn they made sometime in the middle of their conversation. Sagara must have taken advantage of her distraction and brought her to a place like this.
A place that, strange as it seems, looked like home…
He fished for the key in his pocket, somehow avoiding the dark gaze she had been bestowing him since he pulled her out of the car gently, insistently, when she refused to budge. Only the assurance that their stop-over, as he called it, has significance to the case she had been offering him to take, got her on her feet.
He pushed the door and in a few minutes, she was surrounded by total darkness.
Then an arm snaked around her waist, pulling—no—dragging her across the darkly invisible room into what seemed to be a niche—a chamber that fitted only two people.
The ground moved and came to a sudden halt.
She panicked.
When she was about ready to scream, rough but gentle hands clamped on her mouth, forcing her to take the other, only alternative.
She bit his hand.
"Ow, for God's sakes Megumi, will you stop THAT!!!"
She drew back from him the moment he took his hand away, then reached beneath the skirt of her dress, drawing out a pistol.
"You start talking right now, Sagara, or I'd blow off that useless top of yours like a hat!!!" she cried out to him in panic, aiming the gun to his head almost shakily, thighs showing through the high slits of her voluptuous red dress.
"Hell, Takani, even rooster heads don't deserve that kind of death—after all the shit I'd have to go through convincing Soujiro that you're on our side…"
Megumi narrowed her coal-black eyes at him, brows furrowed dangerously. "What side are you talking about, and who the hell is Soujiro???!!!"
"I am," a voice answered in the darkness.
Then the room was suddenly flooded with light.
"Welcome Miss Megumi Takani," the boyish voice announced, a wide smile gracing his upturned lips. "Welcome to the Labyrinth."
For the life of her, she didn't know what to say to that.
. . . . . . . . . .
Kenshin knew that he had been shot the moment the bullet entered his shoulder, blood spewing out by the force of the explosion of that bullet against his skin. He grimaced slightly, ignoring the pain, though his shoulder numbed when he moved it, refusing to cooperate.
How did he got shot exactly? It had to do with the stupid guy climbing the only railing leading to the ledge. In fact, in his desperation and panic, he cut it off smoothly, in one swift arc of his blade, but not before exposing his back to the enemy.
The railing was at least twenty feet across the room from his position. Even superhuman speed can't save his back even if he used twice his normal ability…
"THAT was stupid, ain't it Battousai…" a voice boomed in the darkness.
He grimaced, noting the strange familiarity of the voice.
Amber searched through the darkness to meet the face that matched that voice.
"Saitou Hajime…" he grunted, pulling his arm with him as he ambled towards his target. "You son-of-a-bitch…"
"Hell, Himura, what a way to greet someone who had been an old friend…at least once."
"Friend?" Kenshin repeated, a mad scowl on his face as he squinted at the tall, lanky figure of a man standing before him, in the same blue uniform that he always sported on his missions. "You must be an even greater moron to believe that I trusted you as a friend, Saitou…"
Saitou Hajime laughed at that, a rasping little laugh, as he met the angry amber flickering from across the darkness at him. "We are, I agree, better enemies than friends, Himura. I'm sorry if my men had been rough on you, over-eager these scumbags are, to finish the legendary assassin…"
"It's a bit strange though that you should be apologizing to an enemy…" Kenshin told him quietly this time, fingertip grazing the edge of his sword. "After all, I've always known that beneath that hide of yours is nothing but dirt…"
"Hah, as if I expected any compliments from you, Himura," Saitou muttered, lighting a cigarette. "Demo, if you're as good as you claim to be you fuckin' smartass, you'd realize that either as enemies or friends we're working for the same government and the same bunch of people who wanted you on this mission. Sad to say though, that mission ends here. As you can see, some of my men had already been injured, and casualties are not to be taken lightly, given that these bozos have also been enlisted by the JIB to work on Kamiya's case."
Kenshin's head was spinning, not from blood loss, but from the fact that his details confused him. The Intelligence Bureau enlisting underground scoundrels like these to handle a delicate mission? He didn't quite get it…
"Explain what you mean by that right now, if you still value that head of yours, officer," he growled, using the derogatory name once more to refer to the intel agent.
In the darkness, the katana gleamed, the silvery blue hue matching the ray of moonlight darting through the single opening above their heads.
Saitou flicked away the ashes of his cigarette, allowing the slight wind to carry it a little way before it fell under the single ray of moonlight dividing the darkness between him and the ex-hitokiri. "You want the truth Himura? Are you sure you're up to it?"
Kenshin growled low, like a caged animal assaulted from without. "If you can afford it, Saitou. Though with things standing as they are, I don't think there's any choice in the matter. Either the truth or your stupid army. Including your head."
He had to sigh at that, not from fear, or frustration, but from an uncanny feeling in the pit of his stomach. His guts tell him that with or without the truth on Himura's side, he will not give in to his demands.
Not that keeping Himura ignorant of the entire scheme was his personal desire. It was a matter of strategy that certain facts can't be revealed to him, prior to his involvement in the mission.
Because the military needed the girl's cooperation for the plan to work. And the truth will just get in the way…
As if by impulse, his eyes glided to the ledge above them, his eyes squinting at the light entering the broken window.
Sapphire eyes immediately met his, the aura pulsating with an energy he knew only too well.
THIS was what Katsura had been afraid of.
Kamiya had read his thoughts and knew that the truth was FAR from what Kenshin Himura had been led to believe.
And so, the outcome of just about everything depends on Himura's decision—as it had always been.
. . . . . . . . . .
"The Labyrinth? Would you fucking explain to me what that's about, Sagara" Megumi demanded, not daring to put her gun down.
"Look sweetheart," Sanosuke began, reaching out to take her weapon away.
She moved back, gripping it more tightly, and pointing it back as determinedly as before. "You stay away from me rooster-head, or I'll shoot, dammit!!!!"
"Okay, kay, got your point, Takani," he tried to reassure her, watching her shoulders rise and fall with her breathing. "But I would like to have you know that no one's gonna hurt you while I'm around, so put that stupid thing away before you hurt someone!!!"
Megumi thought about that, eyes shifting from him to Soujiro, who continued to smile, indifferent to her threats. "No stupid jokes this time, Sagara, or my hands might just get a little itchy and pull the trigger before you can say 'cheese'."
"Alright already!!!" Sano told her grumpily, sitting on the nearest chair he could find behind him. "Now, do you prefer to stand there all night or would you like to sit down and listen? This story's gonna be rather long…not that you can't stay over for the night…"
Even with her eyes narrowed contemptuously at him, he could afford to laugh and joke about having a more than platonic relationship with her. She had to smile at that—mentally at least.
Pulling a chair she spotted in a corner, Megumi sat down warily, pointing the gun down only when Sano made no move to close the distance between them.
She laid the gun on her lap, crossing her legs as Sano eyed her thighs impishly, with just a little more than his usual curiosity. She looked daggers at him for that. "So what's this Labyrinth about? Who organized it, what's it for, and what made you think I'd go along with it?"
"Hey, hey, just one at a time, sweetheart," he laughed, putting his hands at the back of his head and leaning back lazily. "Soujiro, why don't you enlighten the nice young lady on the subject instead of just smiling there like some nutcake? I'm sure you know the history of the organization better than any one of us."
"Of course," the young man, who looked barely out of his teens answered confidently, his eyes shining almost with childish glee. Megumi can't help feeling creepy around him though. The boy was definitely charming, but in ways that hardly seem…normal…
"You see, Miss Takani, the Labyrinth as we call it is a large underground network that filters information on all the active and non-active organizations that are operating under the legal sanctions of the JIB. This means that we have access to all the files of the intel agents, their preoccupations for the past ten years or so, and their current status within the JIB."
"And how do you do that?" she asked, eyes taking in rows upon rows of computers and wide LCD screens practically covering entire walls. It became obvious to her that the house was just a camouflage, a ploy, and the entire complex was several levels under the ground, accessible through some secret transport system that Sano dragged her in minutes ago.
Her mind went back to her question.
"With all that amount of data you need, I guess hacking computers is something more like a necessary preoccupation, isn't it? Though how you accomplish that legally bothers me. In fact, the whole idea sounds peculiarly contradictory. How can the government allow you to do such things in the first place?"
"Uhhh," Soujiro began, scratching his head and smiling a lot more. "Not all of JIB's involvements are legal. I thought you know that by now…"
Megumi could have smacked him right in the face for making her look unbelievably stupid. "I work only on the legal aspects of the case, maybe" she muttered, scowling at him.
He laughed, obviously amused at her reaction. "Is that the reason you're helping Miss Tomoe Yukishiro track down Mr. Kenshin Himura, no less than the legendary Hitokiri Battousai of years ago?"
She flushed at that, turning towards Sanosuke Sagara with hate-filled eyes. "I can't believe you would go so far as spy on MY personal issues!!!"
"Big deal, can't a man do some research about the love of his life and get some small compliment at least? I was worried sick about you getting into trouble that's all…"
Megumi clenched her fists. "Me getting into trouble??? My behind!!! Nobody says OUR job is all sweet and rosy, dammit!!!"
"I know. Which is why I've been intending to keep track of your activities from now on. And what better way to do that than to keep you close for good?"
Megumi fumed. She can't believe how dense this guy is!!! Can't he take a big fat NO for an answer???
By the looks of it, there's no way THAT can even become a possibility…
"So," she began, a little tiredly, looking away from Sanosuke's intense gaze. "HOW are you planning to convince me that the Labyrinth is my BEST option?"
"Easy," Soujiro told her nonchalantly, grinning slightly. "We'll tell you exactly where Himura is, and how you can contact him. Is that a deal?"
She thought about it, then squeezed her eyes at Soujiro, glaring at him suspiciously. "And why would you give that kind of information to me just like that? Isn't there supposed to be a catch here somewhere?"
Soujiro and Sanosuke looked at each other, their expression singular. It was Soujiro, however, who motioned to speak up, eyes shimmering with a different kind of emotion this time, the usual smile fading completely from his lips.
Maybe he wasn't that strange really, as she presumed he was…
He sighed audibly, meeting her gaze reluctantly. "Actually, Himura's our only key to finding someone of value to us. Someone who's been an asset to the organization for a long time. If we're lucky, Himura would be helping us retrieve this person without him even knowing it."
Megumi looked away, vaguely comprehending the facts she had little concern with. After all, her only goal is Himura. Kenshin Himura. Anybody else would have to take the sidelines from there.
. . . . . . . . . .
Saitou snickered at the look of death the ex-assassin threw his way, the moment he spied the girl's presence above them.
It was not unlike him to be protective of course. In fact, that had been the primary reason why Battousai was still the most efficient bodyguard the service ever had, having saved hundreds of lives including the most important politicians the world has ever known…
Battousai had always been a tool…a weapon…and like all tools and weapons, he'd outlive his use…
This man who now calls himself Kenshin Himura, however, was slightly different from that man. Whereas Battousai obeyed as if by compulsion and necessity, Himura reasoned and refused. But like the Battousai, he had one weakness. Principles. The details of that may have slightly changed when his identity changed, but they've remained the same in spirit and essence, really.
Equal justice for all.
It's just as simple as that.
But when had justice been a simple matter? After all, it was the thin line between justice and revenge that separated Himura from Battousai.
And it is likewise that same thin line that might spell his ultimate choice.
"So," Kenshin advanced, keeping his eyes on Saitou as he moved across the room, planting himself directly below the ledge. "Are you going to talk or should I leave before I let my sword spill your guts out?"
Saitou lighted another cigarette, casually discarding a half-finished one on the floor. "Kamiya is a state property, that much had been made clear to you prior to any of this, isn't it?"
Kenshin looked away, somehow feeling embarrassed to admit that in front of the girl who he knew was listening to every word they were saying. "What's the point?"
"Two months ago we discovered her connection to another underground intelligence network that had been running, theoretically speaking, under the very noses of the JIB. The network is believed to be dangerously involved in a lot of operations both legal and otherwise, and since it must rely on information of quite astronomical proportions to manage its operations, we decided to trace its network to some possible sources…"
Kenshin caught the drift of what Saitou was trying to say, his frown deepening in contemplation. "So you decided to have Miss Kamiya examined is that it???"
Saitou nodded. "That's' just about it, I guess."
Kenshin narrowed his amber eyes at him in disbelief. "No. It's hardly just about that, I'm sure. "
"Oh?"
"You hired Dr. Enishi Yukishiro, no less than the son of the late genetics and precog specialist, Dr. Takeda Yukishiro, to perform unscrupulous experiments on the girl. When, by some strange, perverted reason he refused to give her back, you decided to re-hire Battousai to forcibly take her and return her to your boss. That stands to reason, doesn't it, Saitou Hajime???"
"I've never thought a fondness for logic can take things that far, Himura…"
"And I never thought all that smoking could get into your head and clog your brains, Saitou Hajime…"
"I don't think this conversation has any hope of turning to my favor, so forgive me Himura if we have to take what we came here for in the first place."
Behind him, a row of armed men in military uniform appeared, their guns poised at the ex-assassin for the kill.
"As you can see, I'm a step ahead of you again, Himura. In fact, all we needed you for is to get Kamiya out of the building. Once released from whatever shields Enishi used to keep us from using our trackers, we used this new device to trace her presence back at the alley where you so carelessly allowed her to escape. Of course, I can't say that Shishio's goons had no hand in all these. It was his men after all who picked her up and out of that alley and brought her here. I'd admit it took a matter of minutes for me and my men to get here, but if you were just a bit too late in coming, Kamiya would have been back safely at HQ and you, Himura, would have been enjoying an intimate welcome back party from that oversexed girlfriend of yours…"
The device looked similar to the microchip Enishi had pulled out of the girl's nape back at the laboratory, but Kenshin just wasn't interested in it anymore. Even the snide remark about Tomoe was not enough to distract him from what he intended to do.
It's quite clear to him now.
"I swear Saitou, THIS won't be the last time…"
Before Saiotu could give his men the order to shoot, Kenshin flung a wire attached to his belt up and around one of the iron posts of the ledge, then swung his body slightly to avoid the volley of shots that followed his fast ascent towards the suspended landing where Kamiya waited, eagerly facing him when he reached for her shoulder as if by instinct…
"Dammit, we want a clear shot, do you hear me??? Killing the girl with Himura is NOT an option, you idiots!!!" Saitou screamed, violently flicking away his cigarette before training his own gun at the ex-assassin.
The black coat efficiently covered the girl's small body, now cradled against the dark shadow of the ex-assassin.
Saitou would have gotten a clear shot of the back of his head, but then…
"This might hurt a little, but we've got no other choice Miss Kamiya…" Kenshin told her , voice thick with worry as his eyes gauged the six meter drop they would have to attempt from the window to the rooftop of the adjacent warehouse building.
She sighed audibly, afraid and at the same time relieved to have him back in one piece. Except for the ghastly wound which soaked his sweater, trailed his arm, and stained her cheeks in the process, she was quite content with the outcome of the events, glad that Himura did not allow them to take her back. After all, as much as she hated being trapped in Enishi's den, she didn't relish the thought of working for the same assholes who had manipulated her mercilessly for years…
He looked down at her, wiping the blood off her cheek with one gloved fingertip. She looked up at him, startling him—as well as herself—with a smile.
She had not smiled for the longest time, and feeling it on her own lips was strange, almost unfamiliar, making her gasp. He took it as a sign that she was cold, and proceeded to wrap her in his arms tighter, forcing himself to concentrate on the distance below them as he released the wire, attaching an extra hook to the waist of the coat wrapped around her. Then, with a slight tug, he let the wire go, catching her light figure in his free arm as they began their descent, silently hoping that he would never have to use the same gadgets that Katsura himself had made sure he make good use of, in this mission…
As they descended down the rooftop and away from the noise of bullets, she silently promised that she would personally attend to the wound bleeding through the wool of his shirt, the wound that strange as it seems, both stained and warmed her skin.
. . . . . . . . . . .
Author's comments: I could have proceeded to writing the lemon part here but decided to build some more suspense into it, afraid that I might rush into it and ruin it. (Not that delaying it guarantees success…sheesh…I hate thinking about possibilities, possibilities…aaarrrgh, migraine!!!!)
He he he…"oversexed girlfriend"? Yare, yare, I'd try to be nicer to Tomoe like I promised from the start okay? Anyway, this was Saitou's opinion, so I was thinking that you guys would understand and excuse the foul language (kicks Saitou's butt out of the room) ^_^
Oh, and JBI stands for Japan Intelligence Bureau. I was thinking that maybe since this is a futuristic fic, it's okay if I invent names for government agencies and political organizations. The same goes for "Labyrinth," I guess.
This long chapter was supposed to make up for the long delay in updating this fic. I'd be busy for a while, so it may take me some time to get back on track.
Hope you enjoyed it. Ciao!!!! ^_^