-Haruka-

While she made her way out to the hall where she had left Seiya, she put her glasses back on and was immediately told off by Kakyuu.

"Haruka, we are supposed to stay in contact at all times. We agreed that you would not take the glasses off unless you were being scanned!" the doctor complained loud and clear in Haruka's head.

"I know, but there was a signal tracer in the changing room. I couldn't chance it that they trace the signal back to you." Haruka mumbled under her breath as she walked through the empty passage.

"Keep them on." Kakyuu reminded her and Haruka pushed the glasses up on her nose as it was the agreed signal for having gotten the message.

Haruka found Seiya in deep conversation with Kitae as she got back into the festive hall, but before she could approach them, Hiroko stopped her.

"Took you long enough to get out here. Thought you would be nimbler with getting out of cloaks. Congratulations Tenoh." She said as she passed Haruka a glass of scotch. "I know that you don't care much for bubbles." Hiroko added as she raised her own champagne glass and Haruka thanked her with a smirk.

"You know me, I had to fix my hair. Those hoods ruin this mane all too easily." Haruka replied before lifting her glass to Hiroko's and the then taking a sip, letting her eyes slide over to Seiya again.

"They are so deep in boys' talk, Kitae hasn't even noticed that I had gotten back out of the meeting." Hiroko grinned wide. "I'd vote to leave them like that for a while and to chat in peace up there in the gallery." Hiroko pointed to the stairs that led up to a balcony that overlooked the hall.

"Sounds like a good plan." Haruka agreed and they walked up there.

Haruka's leg started to ache as they walked up the steps and the grip on her cane tightened as she followed Hiroko.

They positioned themselves with the back to the wall in the shadow of the gallery while they overlooked the whole hall.

"Anything I should know?" Haruka asked Hiroko.

"I doubt there is anything that I know that you don't." Hiroko smirked before she sipped from her champagne. "Love your daughter by the way. She is really adorable." Hiroko added.

"Of course, she is. She is mine after all." Haruka couldn't help but let some pride show.

"My niece is incredibly smitten by her." Hiroko chuckled.

"They are kids. Give them a bit of time to find out what they truly like." Haruka smirked.

"We were kids, too." Hiroko reminded Haruka.

"And look where we are now." Haruka replied.

"Sometimes I do wonder if I missed out on something." Hiroko smiled mischievously.

"What are you talking about? You didn't miss out on anything besides trouble with your father. That is what you missed out on, because I kept covering for you." Haruka smirked.

"You were a willing enabler." Hirko grinned.

"What choice did I have when the logical conclusion was that all those girls were mine and not yours when I was in the vicinity. I look the part after all." Haruka chuckled.

"True. Your notoriety does come in handy at times." Hiroko agreed. "Oh, look, Warwick is out to collect the meat puppets for the night." Hiroko pointed out Caiden who was walking around among the higher echelons, taking tokens before proceeding to the lower ranked people to collect the fighters.

Haruka adjusted her glasses and frowned.

"You are the noob here, you will have to send in someone if you won't do it yourself." Hiroko smirked.

"Pretty barbaric tradition." Haruka said with disdain as she watched how excited the crowd was getting. The many board members of various big companies, fund managers, investors and worst of all executives that belonged to the higher echelons of the conglomerate. People who cared only for one thing, their bottom line.

Haruka refrained from showing disgust and disappointment in the assembled collection of humanity and kept a stoically unmoved face as she looked down on them.

"What can I say, a lot of bored rich people will find entertainment exclusive to them just to stroke their ego, and if they don't they will make it themselves." Hiroko just shrugged when her uncle suddenly spotted them and walked up with his pet following close by.

"Hiroko! The event is about to get started." He called her and Haruka noticed how Hiroko rolled her eyes before she emptied her glass in Haruka's shadow and then turned to him with a sweet smile.

"Coming uncle." She said with a smile on her face.

"Are you joining us?" Minoru asked dismissively. He probably still assumed that Haruka was just the Chairman's guest and not a member in her own right, Haruka thought to herself.

"I guess." Haruka just replied nonchalant.

"I will see if we can make space in our box for you then." Minoru said with a high sense of self-importance even though it was his niece with the silver lion pin and not himself. Alone, the best spot he could hope for would be among the crowd of invited prospects for the entry echelon.

"I don't think that will be necessary, I would invite you to my box, but it is very small. I can take your niece off you though, so you have more space in yours. You are welcome to join me instead." Haruka counter offered as she smiled charmingly towards Hiroko, causing her uncle to look indignant.

"That is such an honour to be invited to the oversight's box. Of course, I gladly accept." Hiroko grinned as the last colour of her uncle's face drained.

"I will send word for the people at the door to let you into our box uncle." Hiroko smiled charmingly in her uncle's direction before Haruka offered Hiroko her arm and Hiroko gracefully accepted it so that they both could leave.

"This was fun." Hiroko chuckled.

"You will be in so much trouble." Haruka snickered

"Don't worry about me. There are way more people out for your blood than mine." Hiroko replied.

Before Haruka could reply, her phone rang.

Haruka stopped on the stairs and fished it out of her pocket.

'Louis' was flashing on the screen and she picked up.

"Bon soir." Haruka answered the phone.

"Bon soir. I hope I am not interrupting anything important." Louis apologised.

"Of course, you aren't, or I wouldn't have picked up. I know you wouldn't call unless it is important." Haruka replied factually.

"I am not sure if it is important, but your lady friend from last time is here with Ferguson." Louis stated and waited for Haruka's reaction.

"Who made the reservation?" Haruka asked to cover her short moment of confusion. She needed a moment to figure out who Louis was talking about, then she remembered that Michiru was in Paris. So Haruka had brought Michiru to Louis' place. Bold move, even for her standards. She must have really wanted to know something about her.

"Montgomery." Louis replied.

"Any recordings?" Haruka asked quietly, suppressing the urge to sneer.

"Yes, do you want me to… forget it?" Louis asked hesitantly.

"Do you have any other recordings with either of them?" Haruka asked evenly.

"No." Louis' reply was quick and earnest.

"Then no, it would reflect badly on you but send me a copy for review through channel twelve with review pending." Haruka decided after a moment of thought.

"Would you like me to send your regards?" Louis asked.

Haruka stayed silent for a moment. Michiru was an agent, but what on earth was she doing in Louis' restaurant? She would find out soon anyway, but should she give Michiru a signal that she was being listened in to or not? As a capable agent, she had to know and if she wasn't it could get dangerous for the agency. Hiroko looked at Haruka with mild curiosity and Haruka made up her mind.

"No. I don't know of this whole thing, neither do you and we haven't talked today." Haruka said resolutely. Whatever Michiru might be up to, Haruka might push her out of her game by revealing her hand.

"I understand." Louis replied solemn. "Should I give Ferguson at least a mild food poisoning with his dessert?" Louis added with a slight chuckle and while the idea was really tempting to Haruka, she decided against it.

"Great idea but no. In the end he earns pity points." Haruka replied wryly.

"Understood." Louis replied with a chuckle.

"Thank you for letting me know. We talk after you close shop." Haruka ended the conversation and Louis bid her a good evening.

"Business?" Hiroko asked.

"Hmm." Haruka just replied before they continued their way down.


-Michiru-

Daniel had excused himself to the bathroom before dessert had arrived and Michiru was eyeing his phone that he had left in his jacket that was lying on the chair next to her. She looked around herself quickly before she tapped his phone with a cloning device.

Their desserts were being served by a waiter and Michiru was uncharacteristically looking forward to it. She was by no means a sweet tooth, but she was longing for the comfort that she expected from this piece of Paris that would conjure up the nostalgic memories of her last visit.

But as soon as it was in front of her, she noticed that something was not the same. The crème Brulee looked differently and, more importantly, smelled differently.

Daniel returned and sat back down opposite of her.

"This looks delicious." He commented and Michiru nodded in agreement.

She sunk her spoon in it and parted a small piece of it to savour, but as soon as it hit her tongue, she knew that this was not the same as the one that Haruka had given to her on the hill of the Sacre Coer.

"Something wrong with the dessert?" Daniel asked concerned.

"Hmm. No, not at all. It's delicious." Michiru smiled with all the charm that she could muster while her inside had to digest the big disappointment that was spreading.

"Let me try." Daniel asked and Michiru gave him a spoonful, the less she had to endure this, the less pain she would probably feel in her heart, at least that was what she told herself to quench the disappointment.

"hmm, it is very nice." Daniel commented.

Suddenly Louis himself was at their table with a vastly different looking crème Brulee.

"I must deeply apologise mademoiselle Kaioh, the waiter mistook your order for a special crème Brulee with a regular one. Please accept this one on the house." Louis replaced the plate in front of her swiftly along with a fresh spoon.

"I .." Michiru started.

"You know Louis?" Daniel interrupted her surprised.

"Oh no need to be jealous monsieur. How could mademoiselle possibly know me, I never leave? I am just an art admirer and I just recognised mademoiselle from the many posters that are hung out across Paris. Such a beauty cannot be mistaken, even from afar, though you look even more beautiful in person." Louis replied for Michiru.

"You didn't have to replace my crème brulee, it was not a big mistake." Michiru finally joined the conversation, though she was sure that the menu had only one version of crème Brulee listed.

"I wouldn't be able to forgive myself if you didn't get the best that we have on offer." Louis bowed respectfully.

"In return then, please let me invite you to my exhibition." Michiru fished two tickets out of her purse that she always had on her in case that she needed to invite someone.

"Oh, … Since you insist." Louis took the ticket and nodded with gratitude. "I will leave you to enjoy the rest of your dinner." Louis added before he left them to their devices.

"Is it really that much different?" Daniel leaned his head to one side and looked over to Michiru's plate.

Michiru took another spoonful and the familiar taste of salted caramel with smooth pudding and a hint of cinnamon spread in her mouth. This was it. This was the one, Haruka's kryptonite, and Michiru had to smile.

"You had your share, this is all mine now." Michiru replied with genuine joy.


-Seiya-

Seiya watched how Haruka was coming down from the stairs from the gallery from the corner of his eyes. Haruka had a positively peeved look on her face. Other people might just misinterpret it as a cold demeanour, but the way Haruka subtly frowned, he knew that something didn't sit right with the blonde.

Kitae was still talking about the job opportunities in his squad and how they all had each other's back and about the steady process of promotion and benefits, but Seiya had stopped listening a while ago.

"I believe our bosses are back." Seiya sneered.

"Better get to them before they disappear on us." Kitae smirked. "Think about my offer." Kitae added under his breath before he went ahead of them.

As they reached Haruka and Hiroko, Caine joined them.

"Tenoh, you need to enter a fighter. Would you like do it yourself or send someone in on your behalf?" he asked gruffly and Haruka looked around her carefully before she looked at Seiya.

"I don't think these guys' egos could handle it to get some ass whooped by a woman." She smirked and nodded towards Seiya, who nodded slowly as Caine noted down his name on a piece of paper.

"Chiba?" Caine addressed Hiroko.

"Well, since you send someone in, I maybe should, too." Hiroko mused as she looked over to Kitae.

"Whatever you wish Chiba-sama." He bowed obediently.

"You want a real dog fight, huh?" Haruka sniggered.

"People want real entertainment and what is on the list won't cover it." Hiroko chuckled. "Put him on the list, too." Hiroko gestured towards Kitae.

"Any last words for your dog?" Caine asked Haruka.

"Don't lose." Haruka just said coldly and Seiya nodded again.

Caine walked ahead of Seiya and Kitae and led them to some changing rooms.

"You can get changed here." He handed them each a key to a changing room. "I see you outside when you are done."

They each took a key and unlocked their respective changing rooms.

Seiya took a deep breath and moved his injured shoulder. It wasn't that he couldn't fight, but that didn't mean that it wouldn't hurt or couldn't lose either.

He took off his clothes and put on the shorts that were laid out ready for him and noticed a small note in it with a lighter.

'Stay vigilant. First one plays dirty. Second one, too, but aim for left side lower ribs.' Was all on that was on the note.

Seiya took the lighter and lit the note before dropping it on the tile floor and watching it burn completely, before he stowed his things away, bandaged his hands, grabbed the mouth guard and exited the room.

Caiden was standing ready with a few other men, Shinji being among them.

"Let's go." Caiden barked and everyone followed him apprehensively.

They walked into a darkened hall with a fighting cage in its centre.

Caiden grabbed the microphone and Seiya looked around himself.

He noticed Haruka in the upper viewing box with the best view onto the cage with Hiroko right next to her.

They made short eye contact.

She just looked at him stoically and Seiya understood what needed to be done.

"The first fight of the evening will be..." Caiden grabbed with his free hand into a bowl with pieces of paper. "Kou vs. Smith. Ladies and gentlemen, place your bets. The MMA match will start momentarily." Caine announced and gestured for Seiya and a tall brunette to join him in the cage.

"The rules are simple here. Anything goes. There are no breaks, the one who goes down first is the loser. Winner advances." Caiden reminded them as they stood opposite to each other.

A horn blared.

"Bets closed." Caiden announced while Seiya and his opponent got ready to fight.


-Haruka-

Haruka had walked into the box for the overwatch and only two other men were already in there, enjoying drinks and cigars while sitting comfortably in the leather chairs that were facing in the direction of the cage.

The men turned their heads towards her and nodded in acknowledgement while raising their glasses to greet her and she nodded in return.

"You know, the pleasure room is through there." The man with the faded blonde hair and pale blue eyes told her as he noticed Hiroko by her side and gestured to a velvety door to Haruka's right.

"Thank you for letting me know Hathaway, but we're here to watch the match." Haruka smirked as she reached over to Hiroko and exposed her pin.

"My apologies m'lady." Hathaway nodded apologetically and Hiroko waved off his apology gracefully.

"It's good to finally have another overwatch member among our midst again." the darker haired companion of Hathaway smirked.

"Thank you for the nice welcome Barnes." Haruka replied with a chuckle. "Really enjoyed the lighting and glad that I wasn't the only one forced to wear a dress."

"Only the best for Tenoh's little devil." Barnes chuckled.

Haruka walked closer to the balustrade, standing in her allocated box and looked down to the cage, but her focus was not on the cage itself, but the people surrounding it, their eager eyes glued to the match in the cage.

Seiya was keeping up and delivering a good show. Each blow was precise and calculated, but Smith was a seasoned fighter himself and managed to land a few punches.

"Who do you think will win?" Barnes asked between puffs on his cigar.

"My boy, of course." Haruka replied nonchalant.


-Michiru-

They had just dropped Daniel off at his hotel and Michiru had placed a chased kiss on his cheek before he had exited the car, just to console him that nothing more would be in for him for this evening.

They drove silently through the yellowish lit streets of Paris towards Michiru's hotel, but Michiru wasn't ready to go to sleep. All day she had missed the blonde and she guiltily had to admit to herself that she compared everything that Daniel did with what she had experienced in this city with the blonde.

Her date with Daniel was by no means bad, just very generic. They had gone shopping, perused the Louvre and ended the day in a wonderful restaurant. Anything a girl could wish for, yet it felt so utterly hollow.

With Haruka, it all felt so much easier and yet more satisfying, though in comparison, they didn't even do as much.

Michiru looked melancholically out of the window and saw how a young couple was walking down the evening street side by side, their body language so intimate and yet not overt. The subtle glances, he shy smiles, the hesitant touches. It was adorable. She sighed and turned back to face the front and noticed how her driver had been watching her out of the corner of his eyes but made no attempts to enter her head space.

The car stopped at a red light and Michiru knew that they were closed to the hotel that she was staying at. Michiru knew that this was the last chance to deviate before having to face Elsa and her aunt and so she reached out to Arthur's shoulder and tapped him gently.

He immediately looked at her inquisitively via the rear view mirrow.

"Could you drive me to the Cathedral Sacre Coer?" She asked clearly and Arthur just nodded as he switched on the turn signal.

They drove the very same streets that Michiru had spent on the back of a Vespa, with her arms around Haruka's waist just a few months prior and Michiru dwelled in the bitter sweet memories. She wondered if Haruka already knew who she was when they travelled along these streets, if she already knew how much time they would be spending together, if she knew who Michiru really was, what that truly entailed and how different their worlds truly were.

A sigh escaped her and she couldn't help but lean her head back on the seat and to look up to the starless sky as they took one turn after the other until they had reached their destination.

Just when Michiru wanted to get out, Arthur had already exited the car and opened her the door and lend her a hand for her to exit the car easily in her dress.

As Michiru reached for Arthur's hand she finally had a closer look at her driver.

The silent figure looked her intensely with guarded eyes and suddenly Michiru didn't want to let go of his soft hand. The look was just so familiar to her, that her hand refused to let go even after Arthur had closed the car door behind her.

"Indulge me please and come with me." Michiru requested with a melancholic smile and she could see the conflict in her driver's eyes before he gave in and nodded.

They walked together to the bench on which Michiru had eaten the crème brulee that Haruka had brought last time and sat down in silence. Michiru let go of Arthur's hand leaned back so that she could see the stars instead of looking down to the city that depressed her.

"You might think that I have gone crazy…" Michiru said, more to herself since she knew that Arthur, who sat by her side patiently, couldn't understand her if she didn't face that direction. "…but this is the first time that I feel relaxed today and am actually enjoying myself." Michiru continued. "You remind me of a teacher that I used to have when I was really little and was going to boarding school in Germany. She was a beautiful woman inside and out, tall and strong with striking features as well as pretty much the same eyes as you have Arthur. She was actually the one who taught me the violin and encouraged me to paint. I often think back to her and wonder what she is up to, since I often ask myself what she would say if she could hear my latest works. I actually tried to find her again when I had the chance, but she seemed to have just disappeared from the surface of the earth and I often wonder what happened to her and if that had anything to do with me having confided in her my childish thoughts. If my tongue had slipped about something that neither of us was supposed to know and that she had to face the consequences for my slip up. I know that if I asked her for an opinion, I would get an honest answer rather than the usual generic responses from people who listen to my music. She would probably even fix it here and there just to get the mood that I want to convey just right. She used to be quite pedantic about the matter of pouring your heart and soul into your music, even more so than following what was noted on the sheets." Michiru chuckled as she thought back at those cherished memories of her childhood, especially since she always felt profoundly lonely as a child, even among people. "It was nice to have someone who actually cared more for the art itself than the glory that came with it. I don't think I was any good as a child, but her joy for music was so contagious, I was hooked from the first moment that she had laid that children's violin into my hands and showed me how to elicit a sound from it. I used to play every day and go without it for months at times, too, when life got too busy, but now, even though I am busy and have only not played for a few weeks, I feel like I have lost a limb, or at least that one of my limbs has gone so numb that I don't know how to balance myself without falling." Michiru mused as her eyes adjusted to the darkness of the sky and she slowly spotted the odd star here and there.

She turned her head towards Arthur who had his eyes trained straight ahead, overlooking Paris. Michiru noticed how pensive Arthur looked and wondered what was going on in the other's head. Haruka had looked very similar to Arthur after she had told the blonde that her mother had called her. Pensive and slightly resigned but yet resolute. Michiru had to smirk to herself. She was suffering a serious Haruka withdrawal to be comparing every single person that she encountered with the blonde.

Michiru looked back up at the sky and was wondering what Haruka was up to and if she missed Michiru as much as Michiru missed her. She missed playing her violin, and even though she had it with her and missed playing it, she was worried if she did so, she would reveal too much of herself to her immediate surrounding. She knew that with her music, she couldn't lie, but if she indulged in her true emotions, she might lose sight of the mission objective. She could have just tried harder to pretend that Daniel was Haruka, to elicit those emotions that she is supposed to enthral him with, but she just couldn't. He was nowhere close to what Haruka was, if anything, he was the exact opposite that Haruka was.

Suddenly she noticed that someone was getting closer to them and Michiru strained her ears to figure out where the person that was getting closer to them, might be coming from. Even Arthur seemed to have noticed and was sitting in full suspense by her side, but didn't let on that something could be wrong.

She remembered her aunt's words and how she said that Arthur was a close friend of hers, which could only mean that he was very capable of looking after himself, but even so, Michiru didn't want to take on unnecessary risks and so she stood up slowly and faced Arthur who looked at her surprised.

"Let's go back, I think it is getting too cold for us now." Michiru explained and Arthur took off his jacket before putting it around Michiru's shoulders. They started to walk back, Arthur holding one of her hands firmly in his. The jacket was heavy and Michiru recognised a familiar scent.


-Seiya-

It was his third fight and he could feel the strain it had on his body. His shoulder ached blindingly, but his body still protected him with all its might. The blood that was flowing into his eyes from the cut on his forehead made it hard for him to see Shinji and the jeering and cheering around him made it close to impossible to hear where his attacks would be coming from. Seiya focused solely on the air movement around him when he could feel it shift on his left side and he reached for what felt like a leg and flipped Shinji as hard as he could onto the ground before going for a choke hold. His counterpart was a good bit bigger and taller than him, but he had speed and precision on his side and so he just tightened his grip. The crowd cheered and booed simultaneously until Caine tapped Seiya on his shoulder and told him to release Shinji.

The last fight was over, he had won every match, just when Caine was about to raise his arm to announce his victory, he could feel that someone was about to attack him from his back, but before he could react, something whizzed by his head and struck his would-be assailant.

"Hey!" Minoru could be heard shouting after the thud of Shinji's body hitting the ground echoed through the room and the crowd went deadly quiet.

"Tenoh, that is not how we play." Caine said through the microphone and Seiya could see how some faces went pale at the mention of Haruka's name after he had wiped his eyes clear from his blood and looked up to the box in which Haruka was standing prominently, looking down coldly.

"Then you should have made sure that THAT wouldn't dare to move until I picked up my price." Haruka nodded towards Shinji who had gotten an apple squarely thrown in his face and fallen backwards again. Haruka had probably thrown it with all her might, judging from the apple sauce like state that the fruit was in.

"Anyone want to fight me on my judgement?" Haruka asked coldly and demeaning into the silence and the whole hall stayed quiet but Seiya could see how Minoru was fuming that his little protegee was hit but an older, taller man held him back from retaliation.

"Under my watch there will be no foul play without my permission." Haruka announced for them all to hear and Seiya could see how the two other men were pleased with their new member as they smirked.

"I apologise for my rudeness chairman, but I prefer the direct approach to problems that might undermine our structure." Haruka raised her glass apologetically towards the chairman who sat in the box on opposite to hers. Bernard just nodded and raised his glass in return.

"The fights are over for tonight." Bernard announced.


-Riko-

She had received a message and was on the way down to the underground parking of the hotel.

Michiru was passed out on the back bench and her big bear got out of the driver's seat.

"Seems to have been a great date." Riko chuckled while the other just shook her head and put a finger on her lips to stay quiet.

Her companion picked Michiru up easily and Riko enjoyed the look of those defined back shoulder muscles at work before she led the way to the elevator. Michiru was perfectly wrapped up in the men's jacket and her head was rested on the shoulder of her carrier. Riko reached out and brushed a loose strand out of her niece's face. She looked so peaceful, yet, that was probably the last place that Michiru's soul was at.

She had watched her niece act perfectly so far, and she knew all too well how exhausting that perfection could be and how taxing that was on the soul.

They walked into the living room, where Elsa was still working on her various articles and didn't even glance up as they walked past her into Michiru's room.

Riko helped her niece out of her dress and her partner held Michiru securely during the process of undressing and redressing her niece.

After Michiru was tugged in bed they stood in front of the door for a minute and Riko looked into those deep blue eyes with a hint of green that she loved so much. A small smile grew on the other's face and they shared a quick kiss.

"How much I hate it when you don the beard." Riko whispered before she caressed the other's cheek. Her bear took the hand that she had rested on the cheek into her own and kissed its palm while whispering into it. "I know" in her low gravelly voice.

"Is everything ready for Dublin?" Riko asked.

"Almost." Was the nearly silent reply.

"Good. I have finished what we needed to get done here, so go ahead. I will see you there." Riko pulled the love of her life in for another, more intimate kiss before they parted again. A wide grin spread across the handsome face that she was looking at and a nod followed.

"Good, lets get out of here before Elsa gets any ideas." Riko chuckled quietly.


-Yaten-

They were all sitting at the breakfast table. Everyone, including their hosts, was busy eating and the servants were doing their best that their coffees and teas were topped up adequately and that they weren't lacking anything.

Seiya looked positively beaten up but hadn't lost a single word about what had happened last night. His face was bruised, but Kakyuu had done a great job with keeping him presentable.

Belinda and Sam sat to each side of Joy and seemed a bit more nervous than they usually were.

The plates were finally cleared and everyone was poured their last cup of tea before the servants were sent out and they were finally alone.

"I have made my decision on who is going to be my representative here in London when I am back in Japan." Haruka announced while she was adding milk to her tea.

"I want everyone at this table to know that you have been all considered well, and the matter that you have not been chosen doesn't reflect your incompetence, but more accurately, emphasises the suitability of the person who got chosen for the job." She continued while she looked around the table and her eyes lingered just a moment longer on Seiya than anyone else.

Haruka finally pulled out a small black box and opened it, revealing a platinum chain, that had a pin, reworked into a pendant, hanging off it.

"Joy, will you do me the honour and represent me, my views and my values?" Haruka addressed the blind woman whose lips were graced with a knowing smile.

"I knew it that you would propose to me eventually. Did you ask my mums for permission already?" Joy chuckled.

"I did" Haruka smirked.

"Well, that explains their nerves. I do. I will represent you to the best of my ability Haruka-sama." Joy replied in her usual cheerful way. "Don't worry mum." Joy reached for Belinda's hand on the table and squeezed it. "I know you will keep me safe." She said reassuringly and Belinda let out a wry chuckle.

"I know baby." Belinda replied before she kissed her daughter on the forehead.

"Uh huh, does that mean you don't trust me to keep you safe?" Sam interjected with faked hurt.

"Oh, I know you would pack me in cotton if Belinda would let you." Joy laughed as she reached out for her other mother.

Haruka stood up and put the necklace with the falcon and the Tenoh family seal around Joy's neck.

"Now that we have that out of the way, it is time to plan our approach for Dublin. We will be flying out in three days. So, we don't have much time to plan." Haruka changed the subject.


-Michiru-

It was the second last night for her in Paris and she was busy smiling and holding small talk with the people that attended her exhibition. Even Louis attended the exhibition and was standing right next to John Denton, who had already attended her Rome exhibition and had returned to reassess her work. She had gladly introduced the two to each other to escape for a moment to look for her aunt. Since her date with Daniel, her aunt had been too busy to talk to her about it and while she had to admit that she had fallen asleep in the car, she had not been asleep the whole time that she had been carried upstairs. She had just been too embarrassed to admit that she had fallen asleep like a small child by the time that they were walking into the suite.

The moment of intimacy that her aunt had shared with her driver didn't go unnoticed, as well as the fact that 'Arthur' was neither a guy, nor deaf.

Michiru had been considering how she would approach the topic with her aunt and had decided to wait until Elsa would leave their little group so that she would not jeopardise the main mission. Just when she was about to reach her aunt, Elsa intercepted her.

"Hey Michi-chan, have you heard the great news?" she asked Michiru gleefully.

"What news?" Michiru asked politely in return.

"Your aunt just told me that you got a gig with the special charity auction that is always being held among the super-rich and I just managed to convince her to let me tag along." Elsa grinned from ear to ear.

"Oh, that's great." Michiru said cheerfully while internally cursing herself for not having called out her aunt when she had the chance to.


-Mamoru-

He had been called early in the morning by his mother, informing him that his father was gravely sick and in need to see him.

Mamoru sighed, he was used to his father using his inability to say no to his mother as a means to order him home and he didn't expect this occasion to be no different to all the others in which the so called emergency turned into a lecturing session by his father that he had to endure about duty and the greater picture.

He changed out of this hospital clothes and got ready to see his father. He doubted that he would need anything from his medical bag, but he took it with him nonetheless as he left the hospital.

The night shift had been unusually busy last night and he wanted to have something to grip in his hands before he'd lose his patience when the inevitable apology from his mother would come that it was just that his father that had ordered him to come.

He unlocked his car from a good distance, a habit he had developed since the time that he had seen how one of his father's associates got blown to bits by a car bomb in Spain. He knew that it was highly unlikely that anything would happen to him here, but any additional precaution that he could take, he would take, not just for his own sake, but the sake of his young family.

The motor jumped to life when he placed the key into the ignition and Mamoru enjoyed for a moment the fine balanced tune that it emitted. Even though the car was a present from his father when he had graduated, the joy he received from it had nothing to do with the man. For all he cared, the car could have been the most expensive and best sportscar in the world and he would still have let it drive off a cliff without any hesitation just to spite his father if needed. But he knew that besides the environmental damage he would be causing with that action, he'd also disappoint one of his best friends. He had only been on a few races with Haruka, but the excitement and joy that he had the privilege of experiencing was exquisite to him. Haruka was the one who was more excited about this car than he could ever muster to be, but she showed him the beauty of the German engineering that had gone into it and he had to admit that it wasn't the car's fault that his father and him just didn't get along on any level. His resentment for both his parents only got worse after he had gotten married and even his mother had started to berate him on the bad life partner choice he had made.

As he pulled out of the parking lot onto the early morning roads of Tokyo that were nearly empty, he let the engine roar up once, as if to encourage himself that seeing his parents wouldn't be the end of the world and probably having to have breakfast with them not the biggest disaster that he would have to endure today, and even if it was so, Usagi's smile when he would get home would make him forget all about it, but right now he had to focus on the road and not the outlook of getting to go home to his loving wife who would cheer him up with all her simplicity and love that she embodied for him.

He pulled into a big gate, where people were already awaiting his arrival and he merely nodded as he passed the deeply bowing servants of his father's. Pulling into his designated parking spot, a servant stood already ready there, waiting to take him to his mother. He exited the car grumpily and reached for his bag, but the servant was faster a and took it before he even reached for it.

"This way Chiba-sama." The servant instructed him and went ahead of him.

Things must be pretty bad if they were rushing him this much towards his father, he thought to himself as he suppressed another sigh with all his might while he followed the servant.

His mother was waiting for him at the entrance with concern edged on her face. Maybe it was a real emergency after all.

"Mamoru, good that you are here, you need to talk to your father." His mother, Masuyo, told him with urgency in her voice and he rolled his eyes.

"This is not a medical emergency." Mamoru tried his best to not snap at his mother in front of the staff.

"Yes, it is. You'll see." She insisted as she walked towards his father's office.

"I take this." Mamoru took his medical bag out of the servant's hands to indicate to him that there was no need to follow them.

As they got closer to the office, muffled shouts could be heard. Considering that the room was partially sound proofed, Mamoru worried for the health of his ears with what he was about to face.

His mother took a deep breath before she knocked onto the door loud and clear. The shouting didn't stop but Mamoru had no patience for the games that his father played.

"You better go and look for what is for breakfast. I have not eaten yet." He addressed his mother who just nodded before she left.

Mamoru just opened the door of the office and was facing his father who had shouting a tirade of insults and swearwords. On the screen overlooking the scene was his sister. Her nonchalant expression indicated to him that she was the source for the sudden surge of blood pressure for his father.

"How dare you to play with the reputation of our family like that?" His father screamed at the screen to which his sister did not reply and just waited for him to calm down. Mamoru was used to his father's outbursts that usually ended with someone passing to the afterlife but because since they were both his flesh and blood, they were spared the death sentence. His sister spotted him and waved unrepentant while he just frowned as he prepared a shot that would calm his father down.

"Mamoru, do you know what your sister has done? She has disgraced our whole clan by fraternising with the Tenoh demon." His father shared his outrage with Mamoru.

'Tenoh-demon' a term with which he had coined Haruka with since he had caught news that Haruka was gay.

Initially Mamoru was only allowed to associate with Haruto after that news made the rounds, but considering that the twins were really hard to tell apart and Haruka did have her charms if she wanted to, besides being a 'competent business person' as his father liked to call people who got the job done, his father had let up the passive aggressive verbal attacks on Haruka because he did respect her sense for 'business'. Her accomplishments spoke for themselves and were formidable even for father's standards.

"Sit down father, this outrage will get you nowhere with Hiroko." Mamoru said calmly and his father obliged, partially due to being out of breath.

"So, what happened? And remember, I will only listen if you speak calm and slow, or I can go again." Mamoru continued.

"Your sister has taken it onto herself to enthral Tenoh, who is currently in London to take over the conglomerate or something." His father explained, still at a higher volume thatn Mamoru was willing to tolerate.

"Hiroko." He just said to indicate to his sister that he needed a summary that makes more sense.

"Minoru snitched on me." Hiroko just chuckled, purposely summarising the problem down to an incomprehensible minimum.

"Don't make me mad. I have to deal with dad already." Mamoru warned his sister of his thinning patience as he measured his father's blood pressure.

"Tenoh came here last night and took over the leadership of the conglomerate's overwatch. If father would have let me, I would have been able explain that because she had announced that nothing will be happening within or with the conglomerate without her permission, that it would be only good for us to maintain friendly ties with her. Tenoh has the complete overwatch behind her and if we wanted to expand our business here, her blessings would be crucial. Instead of hearing me out though, he only listened to the matter that Minoru-ji had told him, that I followed Tenoh to her private lodgings in the clubhouse, which isn't true. I was invited in the overwatch box to watch the fights. Nothing more happened. I know my value as Chiba after all and the reputation that I need to regard alongside of that." Hiroko explained calmly.

"So that blonde demon is now overwatch and hand. She is moving fast to centralise so much power." Masaru mumbled as he let the news sink in.

"Exactly. She has fostered better connections in two hours than uncle Minoru has in the last two decades, and let's not forget, he still didn't get accepted into the conglomerate, but you did, father. I am here to represent you and your wishes and not him and his ambitions." Hiroko stated calmly and his father let the news sink in.

"Just to proof to you, that even I do a better job than your brother, I have been invited to the Dublin meeting my Tenoh herself and I will be right by her side through all the meetings that are not exclusive to the highest most echelons." Hiroko smirked as his father's eyes lit up.

"Why didn't you say so earlier?" Masaru demanded to know.

"You didn't let me talk." Hiroko replied.

"But…" Masaru frowned again.

"I will not sleep with Tenoh. Who do you think I am, father? I have resisted the smartest and most handsome men that you had found for me, do you really think Tenoh could best any of them?" Hiroko asked as if she had taken real offense.

"True. You have stayed respectable so far without fail. I trust you that you will not give into Tenoh's charms, no respectable man would want you anymore if you had been with that demon." Masaru reminded her and Hiroko just smiled and nodded.

Mamoru knew all too well that Hiroko couldn't care less about those men that their father had introduced her, because while Haruka and her might not be sharing a bed, they did share a common interest.

"It is good that you are close to her, but that seat should be ours." Masaru growled.

"Father, what is the point of just that seat, if you can hold the person who holds not just that but also the mediator seat of the council? Her ambitions are even bigger than your wildest dreams and one day, we might not just want her ear, but with me on her lap, we would have it all." Hiroko said calm and cold that a shiver went down Mamoru's back, but he did not look up from the injection that he was giving his father.

"If you weren't my daughter…." Masaru started but his daughter cut him off.

"I do what is necessary for the pride and honour of our family." Hiroko just stated composed. "If you excuse me, I will have to prepare for Dublin. Uncle will not be allowed to come along, as Tenoh has instructed for me to come alone, as a sign of respect and trust."

"But you need your security detail" Masaru protested.

"Father, I trained twice as long as Mamoru-nii and worked twice as hard in training. I tell you all the time that I can look after myself. Also, I will be under the exclusive protection of Tenoh who has an excellent protection detail. Unlike the men your brother trains, one of them had eliminated every single fighter last night with nothing more than a scratch to show." Hiroko rebutted.

"Fine, I want regular updates." Their father insisted.

"No." Hiroko replied short and Mamoru was half glad, because he had no patience to turn up at the house of his parents every time his father would be throwing a fit. Considering that future business dealings would involve the head strong blonde, it was inevitable to happen every other day.

"Absolute radio silence has been ordered for the time of crucial meetings. You know how the council meetings are. These ones aren't much different." Hiroko explained.

"Fine, but you will come home to report to me directly once it all is over." Masaru demanded and Hiroko sighed but didn't complain and just nodded. "Good, you go and get some sleep. Your brother and I will now go and have breakfast now." Masaru waited for Hiroko to cut the connection before he turned to Mamroru. "You know, you could do even better than her if you would just put your mind into it."

"If you asked me, Hiroko is doing a very good job, despite the lack of your support." Mamoru replied cold.

"It's a men's world Mamoru. She would not last in it without Minoru having her back." Masaru shook his head.

"Not sure who has whose back here, father, but if you want to eat alone, keep talking. I will be going home." Mamoru replied annoyed.

"If you go home to work on having a son, I will send you home personally." Masaru laughed.

"That is not how this works." Mamoru rolled his eyes.

"You are a doctor, make it work or I wonder what you even learned in medical school." Masaru replied stern.


-Elsa-

She felt slightly guilty for deceiving her childhood friend and her aunt for so long, but she knew if Riko would find out her true intent, there would be a slim chance that she would ever get a reporting gig again from the manager that managed such high-profile artists as Riko did.

Elsa had decided to at least confide in Michiru, since she needed to know whom she was getting involved with. Daniel Ferguson had been courting Michiru very hard and she could not let it happen that Michiru would get involved in the shady dealings that he could potentially be involved with. As an investigative journalist, she had the duty to uncover the truth, but as a friend she had also the duty to look out for her friend.

After taking another deep breath she finally knocked on Michiru's door.

"Come in." came the melodious voice of her friend.

"Michiru, what are you doing?" Elsa enquired as she saw how Michiru's luggage was open and her clothes neatly laid out in different piles on the bed.

"I didn't expect to be gone for a few more days and so I am running out of clothes. I am just trying to put together an outfit that hasn't been photographed yet." Michiru laughed light-heartedly.

"Ah, true. You are always in the focus of it all so you need to keep up with the press and the pictures that get taken." Elsa nodded thoughtfully.

"And that is why I am so lucky that 'the media' is one of my best friends and will go lightly on my wardrobe choice." Michiru winked at her and Elsa's guilty feeling in her stomach just gained another hundred pounds as she forced herself to smile in return.

"Michiru, I think we need to talk." Elsa eventually managed to say past the knot in her throat.

"Oh, what's wrong?" Michiru asked concerned and motioned for Elsa to sit down next to her on her bed.

"I have to tell you something." Elsa started.

"Ok." Michiru looked at her with concern. "Are you alright?"

"I am but I have not been entirely truthful with you." Elsa admitted and felt like a child that was about to confess that she broke a vase.

"Ok, what is it that you have not been truthful about? The dress that I wore last night didn't look as good as you said it did?" Michiru asked in jest.

"No, you looked wonderful, as you always do. It is more of why I am here…." Elsa started and looked at Michiru who didn't interrupt her but only looked at her encouragingly.

"You know I am actually no art reporter…" Elsa started again and Michiru nodded. "I have been actually investigating money laundry and I have stumbled over something even more sinister than money laundry." Elsa kept her tone down and watched Michiru's reaction. Her friend looked puzzled but didn't ask anything.

"You might not know it, but the art world has been the perfect place to wash and move money without any authority being able to follow the flow of money." Elsa continued. "Art pieces that go for millions are just the means for shady characters to pay for one another's services. Let's say you did something shady, not that you would ever do that, but if you did and you wanted to get paid, the person who needed to pay you would just need to buy one of your paintings at the agreed price and no one would be the wiser. Another way would be gifting you with an expensive piece of art that you could liquidise at your disposal. Of course, I am not saying that artists are criminals in any sense. It is just that art has been used to pay for a lot of shady business, bribes and so on and I have been using the cover of covering you as a means to find out more about it." Elsa waited for Michiru to be outraged for being used like that, but the artist just sat there and looked deep in thought.

"So, you think my art has been used to launder money and to cover up criminal activities?" Michiru finally asked.

"I have not noticed such thing so far, since your pieces are very rare and have been mainly bought and sold at reputable charity events, but I know that the art auction in Dublin is an event that is rumoured to have a lot of shady characters mingling among politicians so that it could be used for such things to happen and you have been my ticket to get into it. I am sorry to have used you like that Michiru." Elsa looked down and didn't dare to look into Michiru's eyes who would, by now, definitely filled with disappointment and disapproval.

It was silent for a moment before Michiru started to talk.

"So, are you investigating the money laundering itself or the things that have been paid with the laundered money?" Michiru just asked understandingly and Elsa looked up and to her friend's slightly concerned face. "It sounds like it is a very big deal and the people involved might be very dangerous." Michiru added, the concern in her voice evident.

"Actually, I just wanted to investigate the money laundering itself, but it turned out to be a real treasure trove of scandal." Elsa was torn between excitement to finally confiding in someone about her research and the fear of saying too much and scaring Michiru off, or worse, making Michiru tell her aunt about this. She couldn't fathom what Riko would do with this information or if she would ever let Elsa tag along again if she found out that she had been using her as the ticket to get into many exclusive events for investigative purposes, rather than to cover the artist or art that was being presented. "I am not sure if I should tell you. I don't want to endanger you or taint your opinions about people that you might know…." Elsa trailed off.

"Isn't it better when I know, rather than if I don't? I might accidentally sell my painting to someone who has sinister plans with it and therefore be enabling criminal activity that is bad for us all?" Michiru gave Elsa to think about.

"It is not like you could control what happens with your art after it has been sold." Elsa pondered aloud.

"Probably not, but I can still make sure that it gets into the right hands the first time around and then I can rely on them not being sold onto shady characters." Michiru explained.

"That is true. Ok, but until I have concrete evidence, this stays between us and please don't think that I am crazy when I tell you about it." Elsa couldn't contain herself.

"Of course." Michiru confirmed.

"So, a few jobs ago with your aunt, during an opening dinner in Naples, I noticed how a few of the Cosa Nostra were coming towards it through the window, but then they were stopped by a tall blonde man who came out of nowhere. I am not kidding you, he just appeared out of nowhere, stopped them in their tracks and it all went so fast. I was rushing out to check out the commotion in front of the gallery but by the time I got out, the mafia guys were all hanging on for their dear life and begging for me to go away and not to mention the incident. I, of course, called the police and the ambulance. The police didn't even ask me what I had seen and just helped the ambulance to get these guys to the hospital. When I contacted them to make a statement, they took it less than half hearted. When I dug a bit deeper, one of the police men took me aside with the sincere advice to stay clear of the Phantom, or I would not see another sun rise." Elsa explained.

"Why didn't you let the matter rest then?" Michiru asked.

"How could I? A blonde vigilante on the loose in Naples? It would have made a better story than the one I was torturing myself to come up with about contemporary abstractionism, so I researched some more, but found nothing for a while until the art heist in Marseille. The one where a whole bunch of pieces of art had disappeared from an art auction. It was just a tiny by line in the news and didn't stir much attention even though the value that had been robbed was in the twelve figures. Not something to sneeze at. I looked into it and found out that one of the ones that suffered most of the damage was Sora-Ltd. A subsidiary of the big Sora Industries who also hold Tenoh-Tech and various other smaller venture capital firms as well as better and lesser known R facilities and security firms. I had not even scratched the surface of that slightly clumsy heist when the complete loot resurfaced unharmed, but the robbers on the other hand were found with their throats slit and their tongues cut out right next to it. Again, the investigation was closed rather swiftly and Sora Ltd didn't even press charges. As if they knew that they would get it all back. Naturally, I looked into the firm and only found the CEO of Sora Industries to be a H. Tenoh. Naturally I looked into the Tenohs and found nothing. Literally nothing except a bunch of death certificates of all the ones that had died, but there was no record in any database of any Tenoh being born or alive, not even any sign of family tree. It was all either classified or 'lost'. But remember how I told you that I have only ever lost a race to one person? Her name was Haruka Tenoh, so they couldn't be all dead, but I could not find any record of her birth and I have scoured every hospital in Tokyo, actually whole Japan." Elsa explained.

"She might have been born oversees." Michiru interjected.

"Exactly, I thought the same." Elsa exclaimed excited. "And I was really about to give up when I remembered that Tanaka is now working in the administration for domestic affairs and she would have access to everyone's citizen status, since they are also the ones who approve of new passports and register your residence. So, I contacted her but she said she didn't want anything to do with that and after A LOT of convincing, she told me she would let me into the archive for exactly four minutes and not a second longer, but that was all I needed, funny enough, Haruka's personal details and location of residence were registered, but her brother's Haruto's didn't exist. I looked up if he had died, but there was no mention of him either. He was neither born nor has he died yet I am fairly certain that it was her brother who watched the race as I did watch them fool around before-hand and caught snippets of their conversation, otherwise I would not have known his name." Elsa mused aloud.

"So, you think that her brother is the mysterious vigilante?" Michiru asked curious.

"What? No, or maybe. I am not sure. I had the impression that the vigilante had to be older than Haruka and Haruto, though. Don't ask me why, but the movements just seemed, too controlled to be those of someone who was barely past their mid-twenties." Elsa thought back to the night when she witnessed that fight.

"How long have you been investigating this?" Michiru asked surprised.

"Almost five years." Elsa admitted sheepishly.

"That is a very long time…" Michiru stated concerned.

"Yes, well I did a lot of things in between, like this with you now." Else justified herself. "Also, here comes the kicker, Haruka's parents were gunned down during a failed robbery on the streets of Kairo while they were there for a medical conference, at least that is the official record of it, but when I found copies of the pictures taken from the crime scene, they died from shots from the side and not the front like it would be expected from a robbery. If you ask me, they were executed." Elsa whispered.

"Do you know by whom?" Michiru leaned in and whispered like Elsa.

"No. The investigation records are sealed and, like the missing Tenoh family tree, everything about the incident is either non-existent, classified or 'lost'" Elsa lowered her voice further.

"Did you try to ask Haruka about it?" Michiru whispered question was barely audible.

"I tried, but that woman is nearly impossible to get a hold of. She is well known to be hard to approach. You will need an introduction to her inner circle first or there is absolutely no chance. She has representatives everywhere who take care of her business and even though she is the CEO, she never makes public appearances or statements. It is always the local managers who take care of things. Shareholder meetings are non-existent since she is the sole owner of the whole enterprise. The only person who could possibly hold her accountable for anything is her grandfather, but he also works for some really big and opaque organisation. He is frequently seen with the leaders of the world, wining and dining with the who is who of world happenings." Elsa explained.

"If it is so hard to get hold of a Tenoh and everything is so hidden, how do you know about all this?" Michiru asked and Elsa hesitated for a moment. She didn't want to scare her friend off, but she had the right to know, since it could be vital for her survival at the auction.

"Back in the days when I just started out as a journalist, two seniors took really good care of me. Linda Crow and Allison Seiren. They used to look into Sora Industries activities a lot, too, and they shared their information with me…" Elsa trailed off.

"Used to?" Michiru asked and Elsa was reminded on how attentive her friend was when she was told something.

"On their last research assignment, they disappeared without a trace. They were looking into a Sora subsidiary in South America and just never returned." Elsa's voice broke at the end at the knot that had formed as she recalled the loss of her senior colleagues.

Michiru moved closer and pulled Elsa into a hug. It had been years since she had lost them and she thought that she had come to terms with the loss but right now, the excitement and the dread were all so much for her.

"What were they researching on?" Michiru asked carefully.

"There has been a long-time rumour about a person or an organisation that has been called the agent of death, also nicknamed Charon or the Phantom. It is said that once you are in contact with them, you either turn up dead or disappear from the surface of the earth. It is unclear if it is a person or an organisation, but in the underworld it is a feared name. The mere mention of it shuts you all doors right into your face. They had been looking into that, investigating if Charon had anything to do with the very public death or disappearance of senior level politicians and businessmen. They were very competent journalists, especially Crow, and would not have disappeared without leaving a trace or somehow getting the story out. In some ways, I suspect that they found the answer that they were looking for." Elsa sighed.

"Sounds that they got mixed up in very dangerous matters." Michiru said quietly as she caressed Elsa's back soothingly.

"The biggest stories usually are." Elsa sighed.

"What do you hope to achieve by going to that auction with me?" Michiru asked cautionary.

"A contact of mine told me just last night, that she has it on good authority that Haruka Tenoh will be attending the auction in Dublin herself for a change. I just want to know…" Elsa stopped a moment to think about what she really wanted to achieve with it. It has been years since she had started to chase the blonde that she almost forgot why she did it. "I just want to know how she fits into all of this, if she has anything to with all the corruption that is going on and if she knows anything about Charon." Elsa finished her sentence resolutely.

"Didn't you just say that is only possible to get into contact with her when someone introduces you to her? Is that contact going to introduce you?" Michiru asked her.

"I don't think Tina can introduce me Haruka. She is not that well connected there. But Haruka is also a notorious skirt chaser, so I thought I just up my wardrobe a bit, and hopefully my feminine charms will capture all the attention that I will need from her. I am just waiting for my pay check for the last article to clear to go shopping. After all, I have the queen of fashion and stunning beauty here to help me." Elsa winked to alleviate the gloomy mood that had set.

"What if I told you that I could introduce her to you?" Michiru laughed.

"You can do that?" Elsa asked surprised.

"She did attend one of my charity concerts and we talked. I remember her as being reserved but friendly. I would think that she'd remember me and won't mind if I introduce you. Though I am not sure if she is really so influential as you say that she is." Michiru chuckled. "She seemed to me like just another rich person with money to spare for the charities that I collect for." Michiru noted.

"That is the thing with dangerous people, they always seem so friendly and unsuspicious." Elsa explained to Michiru.

"Alright, we shop tomorrow then, so that you still look so stunning that she won't be able to keep her eyes off you even if I don't manage to introduce you two." Michiru winked.


-Haruka-

They had arrived earlier in the morning in Dublin and now they were getting ready for the informal gallery opening night. The real opening as well as auction would not start until tomorrow, but today, a select few would have the chance to peruse the exhibits on offer in person and without the masses, that were registered to attend, to overcrowd the location. Basically, it was code for Haruka to make a dry run through security and see with how much equipment on her she could get away with as well as having the perfect chance to scout the location in peace. As far as she was aware, it was only her and Thomas who would get that chance, as he was the host and she was the most important guest among all the attendees.

"Haruka, are you ready?" Joy asked as she walked through the door. "Don't worry I am not looking if you are not decent yet." Joy chuckled.

"Is that so? What will you do with me then if I am already decent?" Haruka asked jokingly in return.

"I will ask you to go already, both of my mums are so nervous that they are even testing Taiki's patience." Joy chuckled.

"Alright, I am ready to go." Haruka put on her glasses and grabbed her cane, before she reached for Joy's waist and guided her out of the room.

As soon as they were downstairs, they were greeted by a concerned looking Samantha and a sighing Belinda.

"I would have thought now that we are back on your home turf that you'd be a lot more relaxed Sam." Haruka chuckled.

"What do you mean that I am not relaxed? I am the calm in person." Samantha defended herself.

"Honey, you are doing it again." Belinda reprimanded her wife.

"I will be fine, Haruka will not leave my side under any circumstances, right?" Joy asked rhetorically and Haruka nodded.

"No one is even going to come close. You do have a good reputation here and my presence will only add to the suicide factor for anyone who comes unasked closer." Haruka reassured Samantha.

"You are right." Sam sighed. "You two go and have fun."

"We will." Joy smiled and kissed both of her parents on the cheek before Haruka led Joy to the car where Kakashi and Seiya were already waiting.


-Michiru-

They had just finished placing the last painting when two of Thomas's security men told them that they had to leave the gallery. Riko looked at her watch and nodded.

"Let's go. I am starving." She addressed Michiru and Elsa and quickly hooked each arm of hers into each of their arms to guide them out of the exhibition room.

Just when they were half way out, Michiru noticed that she had forgotten her gloves in the exhibition room and excused herself to grab them before they would go to dinner.

When she made her way through the maze-like hallways to the room of the exhibition, she noticed a steady clacking sound of something hitting the floor in very even intervals, like a metronome. She slowed down and approached the room quietly to see what the source of the sound was. As she looked inside, through the small gap of the slightly opened door, she recognised Haruka's back. The blonde was waking steady but heavily leaning onto a cane in her right hand while her left was slung tightly around the waist of a strawberry blonde woman. Just when she was about to open the door further a hand reached out for her shoulder.

"You forgot these." Kakashi held up her pair of gloves.

"Thank you." Michiru replied slightly startled.

"You better re-join your aunt before your friend suspects that you got kidnapped." Kakashi said quietly. "We'll see you tomorrow night." He added with an ominous gravity to his tone.