Author's Note:

Thank you all for your reviews! I'm glad to hear people are enjoying my story! That said, feel free to throw out any suggestions you have too.

To Amon's Angel of the Darkness: Thanks for the info. I didn't realize Sora could beat Leon, though I never really tried. Not sure what you meant about his last name--I was just referring to the fact that Yuffie actually does call Leon by the name "Squall" at one point in KH as I recall. As for the ten foot sword thing--though Cloud's sword is quite substantial--I was talking about when Squall's gunblade starts glowing and gets frickin' huge during the fight in the Coliseum. It always cracked me up. Reminds me of a Zelda quote (from A Link to the Past, I believe). It goes something like this, "Your sword has grown and it is throbbing with power in your hands."Way to wrong up a weapon upgrade, huh? Anyway, the connection between Robin and Yuna just popped into my head out of nowhere. Final Fantasy X is a fun game, but if you get into playing the minigames, you'll understand the reference Sakaki made to them in chapter 2 when he's looking at the walkthrough Michael gave him. Damn butterflies . . . Unfortunately, Tidus kind of got on my nerves most of the time through the game, but Auron is awesome--partly because I really like his voice. I still haven't finished FFX-2, mostly because I started too many games all at the same time and keep getting distracted by other things . . . I played the Final Fantasy games out of order myself, but the good thing about the series is that it doesn't really matter what order you play them in since the stories don't really relate.

Anyway, on to the chapter! Randomness full speed ahead.

Chapter 5

What Not to Wear

Robin sighed softly as she gazed out the window of Doujima's car, wondering why she had gone along with Doujima's random suggestion in the first place. She had never been one to shirk her responsibilities, and she certainly wasn't a big fan of shopping, and yet Doujima's appeal just happened to hit her at one of those moments of inner rebellion which allows a person to do something completely out of character.

She saw Doujima looking at her out of the corner of her eyes. "You're not having regrets, are you, Robin?"

Robin made a noncommittal noise in response, but did not speak.

She could see Doujima pouting out of the corner of her eye. "Well you really shouldn't have any, you know. Amon was practically asking for it when he left you behind."

"Karasuma's not taking the rest of the day off to go shopping because her partner's busy," Robin pointed out quietly.

"Yeah, but Karasuma's a workaholic, and her partner's just Sakaki anyway . . . Rolling down her window to feel the warming spring air, Doujima grinned. "I just couldn't stay cooped up in there all day. And I'm so bored with shopping alone." She glanced at Robin again and saw her guilt-ridden expression. Sighing, she reached for the stereo and popped in a cd. The upbeat, jazzy melody that came blaring out of the speakers startled Robin for a moment, but she found a smile creeping across her face in spite of herself. It was simply too cheerful of a song to frown at. Half of the words were in English, and between her still shaky understanding of Japanese and her equally shaky understanding of English, she couldn't make out a whole lot. The refrain was hard to miss though, and she found herself blushing furiously as Doujima began singing along, full voice, "Strawberry sex! What a wonderful world!"

Attempting to distract herself by looking out the window, Robin wondered aloud as the song ended, "Do you think they knew what we were planning to do when you said you were giving me a ride home because I wasn't feeling well?"

Shrugging, Doujima pulled off on an exit ramp, turning toward the shopping mall in the distance. "Well, even if they did, I'm already exempt, and you're practically little miss perfect as far as attendance goes. They can't say much."

"I'm sure Amon could," Robin murmured, feeling anger again at his constant flip-flopping attitude toward her. "And I did come in late yesterday . . ."

"For the first time ever! And, as far as Amon goes, he'll forget all about it when he sees you in the clothes I'm going to pick out for you!"

Robin could only assume her mastery of the Japanese language must be very poor indeed since she was utterly unable to translate Doujima's statement so that it made sense. "Um . . . I don't think I understand . . ."

Doujima smiled as she pulled into a parking spot. "How about we back up a few steps? I know you like Amon. It's written all over your face."

Robin froze, feeling an almost painful heat burning across her cheeks. "What?!"

"Oh, Robin, you don't have to deny it. Don't worry, none of those losers back at the office have a clue." She waved her hand dismissively. "But I'm sympathetic to your plight--I have a bit of a weakness for tragic love stories."

"Tragic?" Robin voice cracked slightly.

"Well, you know, Amon is such a lot of work when it comes to getting him out of his shell."

"Don't you mean, it's impossible for Amon to ever care for me?" Robin asked quietly, thinking of Touko. "That's why it would be Ôtragic' for me to even consider him in that way." She was saying the last statement to herself as much as she was to Doujima.

Doujima glanced at her with a sad expression before replying as she reached for the door handle, "You're wrong. He may not be able to admit it even to himself yet, but I can tell he has a thing for you too. But he won't be able to resist you when I'm done with your makeover."

"Doujima . . ." Robin began slowly, worried about hurting the girl's feelings, "I don't want a makeover."

"Sure you do! You just don't know it yet!" Doujima grinned as she gathered up her purse and hopped out of the car. "Come on!

Robin followed with reluctance so intense it was almost debilitating. What have I gotten myself into?

-----

The office was mostly empty when Sakaki and Amon returned to it, and Amon frowned at the empty desks broodingly. He knew Zaizen had already left on his trip, a relief to Amon's mind, but he had no idea where the three missing hunters had gone. "Michael, where is everyone?" he demanded quietly.

Pulling one earphone out, Michael looked up at him. "Karasuma's following up on a lead I just discovered about a location we think may have some connection to those witches."

"And Robin and Doujima?" Amon prompted him when Michael paused.

"Robin wasn't feeling well . . ." Michael trailed off, his gaze dropping to his keyboard. "So Doujima offered to give her a ride home."

A crease formed between Amon's brows. "Robin's sick?" Now that he thought about it, he remembered now how Robin had been complaining of illness to Michael a couple days ago, and how she had been sneezing quite a lot lately. She had also sounded quite congested this morning, and he couldn't help but wonder if their hunt out in the cold and rain had only done more damage to her condition.

Michael merely shrugged in response to his question, an odd reaction in Amon's opinion.

"When did they leave?" Sakaki asked, collapsing into his chair. "Let me guess, Doujima conveniently took the rest of the afternoon off."

"Seems that way," Michael agreed.

Amon glanced down at the evidence they had gathered as he pulled it out of his pocket, realizing he still couldn't ask Robin her opinion. Instead, he handed it to Michael. "I need you to research some things for me, Michael."

As he explained what they had discovered in the graveyard, Amon's mind kept wandering to the young craft user as he mentally kicked himself for not noticing her illness sooner. He didn't make a habit of catering to others simply because they were in a bad mood or feeling under the weather, yet such circumstances were important to be aware of when one was in charge of a situation. His forced callousness was starting to make him less observant, and failing to perceive a situation accurately could be very dangerous indeed when they were out on a hunt. He told himself that these logical reasons were the cause of his concern, though he knew in his heart that he was more deeply affected by the way he had managed to ignore Robin so efficiently when he normally had a more difficult time doing so.

Thinking about Robin at home sick brought him to thoughts of Touko, and he remembered with a start that he had made plans with her early in the week for tonight. Cringing inwardly, he recalled she had manipulated him into agreeing to go with her to some party a friend of a friend of hers was throwing. From her description, it was some huge bash a group of siblings threw every year to celebrate the beginning of spring, and since the siblings were all different ages, it drew quite a large and varied crowd. Touko claimed it would be a great way to meet new people, one of her favorite pastimes. It sounded like several hours of hell to him, but he had already agreed to it, and there was no getting out of it now.

"Amon? Are you okay?"

Michael's voice brought him back to reality and he shook himself to clear his mind. "Sorry . . . where was I?"

"You were describing the intervals between these things," Michael said slowly, looking at him uncertainly, holding the artifact Amon had found in the cemetery. "You're sure you're okay?"

"Yes, Michael, I'm fine," Amon replied a little impatiently. He was ready for this day to be over already.

-----

When they were finally finished with the most exciting shopping spree Doujima had gone on in quite some time, the two of them were weighted down with more bags overflowing with clothing than could be counted. Well, at least more than Doujima could count without complete boredom shutting her brain down as a self-protection mechanism. Math had never been her favorite subject. After several trips, they finally managed to get all their purchases through the narrow door of Robin's apartment--funny how it didn't seem that narrow upon first appearance, and yet managed to hinder every attempt to bring Robin's new wardrobe safely inside.

Exhausted from the wearying excursion, Robin collapsed on the couch among the bags after they had finished the last trip. Doujima looked at her with pity. She didn't think the girl had ever gone shopping for clothes before, judging by the incredibly limited selection of clothing in her nearly empty closet. Though it had been a struggle, Doujima had managed to browbeat Robin into trying on clothes even when they didn't seem acceptable to her skewed understanding of appropriate attire. Robin had not given in to all of Doujima's suggestions, but had managed to develop her own style by finding a balance between Doujima's tastes and her own--if Robin's "tastes" could be called by such a name. They seemed to be more assumptions and habit than anything. Still, Doujima felt the outing had been a success overall, and was pleased with the amount of stylish outfits she had finally managed to convince her na•ve companion to buy.

Satisfied though fatigued as well, Doujima dropped down into the chair across from Robin, closing her eyes with a smile.

Footsteps walking down the hall of the apartment drew Doujima's attention and she opened her eyes again lazily to see Robin's roommate standing at the intersection of the living room and kitchen with an amused expression. She looked all ready to go out, dressed up in a shimmery shirt tight enough to show off her curves and a skirt short enough to show off her long legs. Doujima frowned. It wasn't that she really disliked Touko . . . as much as she really didn't like her very much--which was in fact the same thing twice. She might as well admit it: the willowy, snooty platinum blond really irritated her. And she didn't like the way she always treated Robin with such a condescending attitude. Not that Doujima had seen her many times--this was only the second--but she tended to have intense reactions to people, for better or for worse.

"Touko," Robin asked, her tone cautious when she saw her standing there. "Did you have a good day at work?"

"Not as good as your day, it would appear. What's in all the bags?" Touko peeked over one, trying to see the inner contents, but Doujima snatched it away.

"It's a secret," Doujima stated.

"Is it now?" Touko commented with that expression of mystery mixed with seduction, which Doujima was sure worked quite well with men, but did absolutely nothing for her.

"Doujima took me shopping," Robin explained benignly, never one to intentionally leave someone else out, though she seemed to be looking at Touko with a somewhat worried expression as if she were afraid of saying the wrong thing.

"Really?" Touko smirked, looking back and forth between the two of them. "And are you and your little friend going to have a sleepover tonight and stay up late painting each other's toenails and playing dress up?" she asked rather acidly, throwing Doujima a defiant look. Clearly, she had noticed Doujima's dislike.

Doujima's eyes narrowed. She ignored the way Robin had actually perked up at Touko's comment, utterly ignorant of the insult as she instead thought Touko was giving her important knowledge about how to act like a normal teenager. Then a notion popped into Doujima's mind. Perhaps giving Robin a normal teenage experience wouldn't be such a bad idea. She remembered the party one of her friends had told her about that was going on tonight. "Actually," she said finally. "Robin and I are going to a party tonight." Touko looked taken aback, but hardly more so than Robin. Giving Robin a "just play along" glance, she returned her attention to Touko and smiled sweetly, "Though we might still paint our toenails first."

"Isn't Robin a bit young to be going to a party?" Touko asked smoothly.

"I started going to parties at thirteen," Doujima answered just as smoothly. "I think she can handle it."

"Yes, but this is Robin we're talking about."

"Do you have a point to make?"

Touko paused when she saw the hurt in Robin's eyes. "No, of course not. You two have fun. I'm going to a party tonight as well."

"Isn't it a little early to be going out?" Doujima asked, her voice so sweet she almost sent herself into sugar shock. "Or maybe at your age you have worry about going out early enough so you can be in bed on time."

Touko glared at her. "Actually, I'm going out to dinner first. But I do have a boyfriend after all. Maybe someday you'll know what that's like. Anyway, I should be back in the morning, Robin." She smiled tightly. "Have a good time at the party and be careful. It's dangerous out there without a male escort anymore . . ." Glancing at her watch, she added, "I'd better hurry. Amon's probably already waiting for me." Touko looked at Robin briefly and the expression on both of their faces made it clear to Doujima that she was missing something, but she wasn't really too worried about that fact since she was more distracted by the information Touko had just let drop.

"Hold the phone!" Doujima gasped, squinting at Touko. "Did you say, Amon? As in, Amon, Amon? As in, here one day, gone tomorrow, Amon? As in, use em up as needed and throw them away, Amon?"

Touko smiled though her eyes were all thunder and lightning. "I said Amon, as in the Amon you work with, but you have some interesting euphemisms for him. I'll be sure to share them with him tonight." She glanced at Robin again before quickly turning on her heel and heading for the door. "Goodnight."

The door closed, and Doujima could no longer hold back the riotous laughter filling her lungs. She could feel the solemn weight of Robin's gaze watching her, but it took several minutes before she was able to get herself under control. Gasping for air and rolling on the floor among the overflowing bags, Doujima finally met the gravity of Robin's eyes, but was still unable to speak for several long moments.

"What was that all about?" Robin asked, finally tired of waiting.

"Sorry, Robin," Doujima apologized. "I know you get along with your roommate, but I think she's kind of a spoiled brat." Robin's look was transparently asking, "and you're not?" Doujima shrugged. "I suppose I am too. Maybe that's why it annoys me so much. But hey, I guess it takes one to know one. Still . . . I can't believe she's dating Amon!" Laughter bubbled out of her mouth once again.

"Really?" Robin asked dryly. "I figured you already knew. Yet another source of tragedy." She pulled her knees up in front of her and curled up on the couch. "Are we really going to a party?" She made a face.

Determined, Doujima replied firmly, "Yes! Just to spite her!"

Robin smiled sadly. "I don't want to spite Touko."

"But look at how she was gloating about dating Amon!"

"Only because you insulted her. She never even mentioned their relationship to me. I just saw them walking together in the park one day, and then . . ." Color rose to Robin's pale cheeks and she looked away quickly.

"And then?" Doujima goaded, sensing prime gossip material and going after it like a predator on the hunt.

"Nothing." Robin's eyes were wide, and she actually looked frightened.

"You're not getting away with that, Robin."

"Really, it's nothing important . . . I just . . . never mind."

Eyebrow twitching, Doujima persisted. "Robin. Just tell me! I promise I won't tell anyone else. I swear I won't!"

Sighing in exasperation, Robin stated slowly, as if every word were an effort. "I came home early the other night when I'd told Touko I'd be out late, and . . ." She trailed off, her cheeks bright red.

Doujima's jaw dropped so fast she thought it would pop, mental images painting themselves before her eyes in vivid color. "They were . . . here? And you . . ." Overwhelmed, she collapsed back on the floor. Then, after a few moments of shock, she asked curiously. "Was Amon--I mean, was he fully clothed . . . ?" A pillow from the couch hit her soundly on the head. "What?! It's a valid question! I was just . . . curious."

"Doujima," Robin began slowly, her expression very serious, "are you sure you don't have a crush on Amon?"

"Me? No way. He's so not my type." She rolled over onto her stomach and propped her head up on her hands. "But he is pretty to look at. Anyway, I still think there's hope for you two, even considering your roommate's involvement."

Robin looked annoyed with Doujima's insistence. "Amon doesn't like me, Doujima. He can barely tolerate my existence most of the time. And no change of outfit or hairstyle is going to make me ten years older anyway."

"Age? Is that it?" Doujima asked incredulously. "Age isn't that big of a deal in the grand scheme of things. Besides you act like you're forty half the time, and maturity can make up the difference."

"It's okay if you give up hope, Doujima. I never let myself have any in the first place."

Feeling a big time pout coming on, Doujima crossed her arms over her chest and stuck her lower lip out. Robin wasn't working very hard to get herself out of her funk. In fact, she was fighting all the way. Knowing that her roommate was going out--and probably staying in as well by the sounds of it--with Amon certainly did not help her any. But, why couldn't she see that Amon didn't want Touko? Doujima felt no differently about the situation than she had before she knew Amon had a girlfriend. Touko was just filler for him. Someone to give him enough release for him to continue keeping his emotions under lock and key the rest of the time. The hunger in his eyes when he looked at Robin was not something he felt he could justify satisfying, so he settled for a replacement. How was it Doujima could understand the dark hunter so well, you ask? The same way she understood everyone else around her though she pretended to be an oblivious ditz. It was her power--to understand people's hearts. Not that she would ever share that information with her fellow hunters.

Suddenly, in the middle of her intense sulk, Doujima's stomach growled loudly, completely ruining the effect, and she was forced to return to reality. "Hmm . . . I think we should order in pizza. What do you think?"

Robin sat up straighter on the couch. "Sounds like fun."

"Afterwards we can get ready for the party."

Robin's face fell again. "Doujima . . ."

Determined once again, Doujima persevered. "No! You are not going to stay home and feel sorry for yourself. We are going to go out and have fun, and the world is going to see how much fun Robin Sena can be!"

Robin's expression was doubtful. "Doujima, why do you care so much all of a sudden?"

"Well," Doujima answered thoughtfully. "I'm not really sure. I guess . . . I'd just never spent this much time around you outside work before." And it was causing her to turn into a big sister. What was it about Robin that made her want to protect her? Maybe it was the fact that Robin never bothered to defend herself. She took what the world dealt her without complaint, but was so quick to defend others even if they had hurt her in the past. Doujima knew that Robin would give her life for Amon's in a heartbeat, or for Doujima's own life, or for any of their companions, or for a stranger on the street. Her generosity and selflessness had won Doujima's admiration, and Doujima supposed even she couldn't help but want to do whatever she could to at least give some of it back.

"If you don't want to go to the party," she gave in finally, "you don't have to. I just think it would do you good to get out."

Robin paused, considering the expression of utter disappointment on Doujima's face, and then nodded. "I'll go." Her tone wasn't exactly excitement, more surrender, and Doujima realized Robin was being unselfish again and sacrificing for her. Robin really didn't want to go to the party, but Doujima was confidant she would get something good out of it in the end anyway. And then the sacrifice wouldn't really be a sacrifice at all.

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I hope all you Touko haters out there enjoyed the last scene. I'll try to get the next chapter ready to upload today or tomorrow: Chapter 6 Speak of the Devil.