This is kinda going off the whole buying brass knuckles thing. Where else can you get such wonderful bargains?

Also, I read up on the P5 Anthology based on gerson's review...Makoto is superbly bossy.

Double also, thanks for all the support. Most recently I got a string of reviews from Mem, so I figure now would be a good time to say it's all much appreciated.

"I didn't know you bought a laptop."

Akira looked up from his desk, a half-finished lockpick in one hand while a small notebook rested in the other. "I didn't. Well, I guess I did. It was broken, though. Had to get some bits and pieces in Akiba to bring it up to par."

"How'd you manage that?"

"I'unno. Morgana was impressed, too."

"I can see why...judging by the paint, it suffered through quite the ordeal."

Akira shrugged and set back to work, an errant screw sailing over his shoulder as he tinkered with the lockpick. Makoto was no expert by any means, but she was unsure as to how exactly the materials he was using could possibly create the sturdy lockpicks he always carried into Palaces. She did concede, however, that his habit was certainly justified; it was always exciting finding a treasure chest that was actually locked.

Rather than dwell on it further, Makoto opened the laptop and smoothed out the bed sheets she was sitting on, surprised to see that a website was already open when she signed in. "Tanaka's Shady Commodities…"

"Hm? Oh, that. Yeah, that was already running when I fixed the thing."

"Well, I hope you didn't purchase anything from this site. Everything about it oozes with...shadiness."

"You sure that's not just the site name bothering you?"

"Positive. Look at this...Tanaka. He looks like someone who might need to get his heart stolen."

"Calm down there, Queen. It's legitimate enough for me to have gotten what I ordered every time."

Makoto pouted and went back to browsing, leaving Akira to try and remember which step he was working on, idly weaving the unfinished lockpick between his fingers as he did so. His grip stiffened on the tool as he remembered, quickly closing his notebook and grabbing the materials he needed off his desk. Finishing the device only took a minute or two from there, and he tucked the finished product alongside the nine others he kept in an easy-to-conceal sleeve.

Another look at Makoto intently browsing the goods offered on the site made it easy for Akira to decide that further tool making could wait. Any other tool he made aside from the purpose of picking locks was more an exercise than anything.

His chair scratched against the floor as he stood, leaving his glasses on the desk as he sat down next to Makoto and leaned gently against her shoulder to see what she was looking for. She smiled and bumped her head against his affectionately before turning her back slightly to him. What may have been an attempt to allow Akira to better see the screen was taken instead as an invitation. Akira grinned, carefully pulling her against him and wrapping his arms securely around her waist. Makoto held the laptop aloft as Akira got comfortable, settling it on her thigh after he finished squirming around and hummed softly in satisfaction. Makoto scoffed lightly and reached up to tousle his hair. "You act more like a cat than Morgana."

"Woof."

He closed his eyes and rested his cheek on her shoulder, leaving Makoto to quietly browse. The 'quiet' part lasted for about five minutes. "Oh, a punching bag!"

"Huh?"

Makoto proudly showed him the screen of the laptop, giving Akira a full view of Tanaka and his trying-too-hard glasses alongside the information page for a punching bag. Sure enough, it was right there, next to the page for a Condenser Lens. The one she had singled out in particular was a rather gaudy one; it looked less like something to punch and more like a body pillow with a decal of Jack Frost. "Uh…"

"Ah, it's really cute, too! Hmm, but then I'd feel bad about punching it…"

"Think of it as an exercise of the mind, then."

"...Huh. That's not a bad idea."

Akira smiled again and listened to her list the ups and downs of buying the punching bag, his sight lazily drifting to the smooth skin of her neck. He briefly glanced at the image of the Jack Frost decal staring back at him from the laptop. What are you trying to tell me, Jack Frost…?

"I think I'll buy it when I get home - ah!"

Akira opened one eye at her squeak, humming softly but not moving his lips from her nape. "Well, that was an interesting noise."

"W-what are you doing?"

"Poorly veiled flirting."

She winced softly and reached forward to close his laptop, the task only becoming more difficult by his apparent fascination with her ear. Tanaka's incessant jingle cut off abruptly as the laptop fell asleep, so Makoto hastily set it aside as she felt his arms tighten possessively around her. Akira's voice was a husky murmur as he quietly asked, "Done with shopping?"

"It seems to to be that way, doesn't it?"

Makoto laughed as he grinned and tugged her back, falling against the mattress with a happy little smile as he hovered over her. As he leaned down to kiss her again, she shifted up to meet him in the middle only to stop when a metallic 'thunk' rose from the floor. Makoto gasped softly as she realized just what it was. "Y-your laptop…"

"I'll just fix it again."

Akira, unflappable as ever, flashed a cocky smirk at her and brushed his thumb along her cheek fondly. "Really, don't worry about it. Scratches add charm."

Makoto shook her head and smiled at his simple logic, tugging him down by his collar and murmuring, "I was under the impression you meant scars on people, not scratches on electronics."

"Semantics."

Akira leaned down to kiss her again, her breath quickening slightly in anticipation of it until they both froze upon hearing, "What's going on up there?! Are you two okay - oh. Damn it."

Sojiro had run up the stairs, a jar of coffee beans clutched tight in his hand to presumably throw at any intruder. Akira felt flattered in the back of his mind that the Boss would now use his prized beans rather than a mug to protect him. At the forefront, however, he blushed as hotly as Makoto did at that moment while Sojiro groaned. "Is this some weird kind of foreplay? Stop making so much noise when you do whatever the hell you're doing."

"We were - ow."

Akira rubbed his forehead as an expertly flicked coffee bean bounced off it, looking down at Makoto as she giggled at the sight. "Whatever. Keep the noise level low while the cafe's open. And you're paying for that bean."

"Yes, sir."

Sojiro nodded and stomped back downstairs, muttering something about how they were going to give him a 'damn heart attack'. Akira sighed, lying down next to Makoto and absently playing with her headband as she rested her head on his chest. "...So you really wanna buy that punching bag, huh?"

"I do. What, is it a bad idea?"

"Where are you planning on keeping it?"

"Here, of course."

"Oh, right, that - what?"

Makoto smirked in a manner that made Akira proud, sitting up and crawling over him to straddle his chest. The shine in her eyes plainly said that Queen was going to explain her reasoning. "It only makes sense, no? Sis would raise too many questions if I brought it home."

"And you want it here because…?"

"Because I would have yet another reason to come see you?"

"As if you needed another."

Makoto smiled coyly, putting her hands on either side of his head in the exact same manner he had attempted a few minutes ago. "So true."

She ducked down to kiss his jaw, working her way to his cheek and finally his lips. Her legs straightened out along the bed as his arm circled around her back, pulling her down into a warm embrace as the two lost themselves in their own little world.

Howdy, hope ya liked.

I have a few other chapters close to completion alongside this one, so those should be rolling out pretty soon.

Till then! Also, if you have any idea you want put to words, feel free to let me know.