II.
There was no movement in Hawkeye's tiny apartment aside from the persistent wag of Black Hayate's tail. A soft patting sound was heard as he sat on the edge of the couch, black eyes fixed intently upon his mistress' bedroom door. She was taking a long time to get dressed this morning, an unusually long time, and there was an unusual hopeful air about the living space that caused the dog's already short attention span to be cut in half. His patience was about as great as his body mass, which wasn't very big at all. Finally, he couldn't stand it any longer and broke the silence suffocating him with a loud yelp. A sudden frantic rustle could be heard from within the bedroom. He waited a moment, and barked again.
"Alright, Alright, Hold on a moment!" a woman's muffled voice sounded from the other side of the door, followed by more fumbling. At last, the door clicked open and Riza stepped out into the open living room. "So, Buddy, what do you think about this one?" She did a little twirl. Her shoes were simple and white, but looked nice with the outfit. Her white skirt flowed just below her knees, a very flattering length in Riza's personal opinion. Lastly, her short-sleeved button down shirt was light pink in color and tucked into the waist of the skirt. Her hair was down over her shoulders. She couldn't decide if she wanted it up or down today, but she decided upon down, seeing as how up reminded her of the office and this was her Saturday off. So down it was. Black Hayate examined her closely. She looked nice, but not over done, which was key in her plan. She didn't want this mystery man thinking she was actually excited and on a date with him or anything of that sort. No, this wasn't a date, just a - - Mission! An exploratory mission. Mere curiosity at the identity of this so called 'Secret Admirer.' In simple terms she just wished to know exactly whom she should point her gun at.
Black Hayate barked his approval and leaped off the couch to sniff his mistress' shoes.
"You hate them, don't you?" she asked, gazing down disapprovingly at her chosen footwear. "I'll change them." She turned on her heels to run back into her room, and the small dog trotted after her. He was going to be included this time; he'd make sure of it. However, Riza didn't get very far into the room before she stopped in her tracks. "Snap out of it!" She shook her head. i 'This is just embarrassing! I don't care about my shoes!' /i and with that she left her bedroom, shoes unchanged, and walked to the front door of her apartment. She grabbed her pistol from the side table at the entrance and lifted her skirt to reveal a black holster strapped to her inner thigh. She placed the gun securely in the holster and when she was completely satisfied that no one beside herself and the dog would know it was there, she pulled open the door and exited, followed closely by Black Hayate.
Moments passed in silence through the small apartment. Then the door opened once more and Riza ushered the small dog back inside. "Stay," she ordered and gave him that serious look that said she meant business. The puppy pouted, planting himself by the door when it was closed and whimpered. She always got to have all the fun!