A/N -

I've been told that this is a very domestic chapter. By my Beta writer... Typical.

... Oof. I didn't mean to fuel the shippers more. (On a side note, I'll be busy studying for-what seems like the entire day tomorrow-So I decided to post the chapter a little ahead of time. Hope y'all have a good week!)

But it's a good chapter in my opinion, so up it goes! Thank you very much for all of your reviews, favorites, and follows!

-0-

"Rindou-san," Kasumi began evenly, now standing at the door with narrowed eyes. "I hope you are aware that adoption papers for a child that isn't in an orphanage… Don't appear out of thin air."

Rindou sweatdropped, bowing respectfully to Kasumi. "Well, uh— I figured we could just fake it… Until we make it…?"

Kasumi's eyes narrowed further, but I cut in with a quick hug before she could berate the man further.

"Alright mom, I'll see you later?" I asked quickly. "I'm probably going to stay over here for dinner, and if you wanted, you could come over again…?"

"…Maybe," She hugged back subtly, already nodding. She probably noticed my efforts to take her attention off of my boss and decided to reluctantly comply. "I do need to get this in order after all… Though maybe if I can finish quickly, I'll be back in time to discuss any of the remaining issues with Rindou-san." She shot a quick glare in the man's direction.

Jin pat his boss' shoulder comfortingly, although the action was dampened by the amused chuckle that slipped out through his lips.

Rindou's shoulders drooped further.

"I'd appreciate it if you came," I added quickly, just before separating from the woman. "I'll be here all day and relatively not-busy, so if you need anything, just call."

"I could say the same to you," She huffed in amusement, before following Kizaki out the door to be driven home. Konami accompanied them since everyone figured she'd be bad at the whole 'negotiations' thing, and Yotaro was still sleeping as Kizaki carried him out on his back.

There was a long, drawn-out silence as everyone tried piecing together our course of action for the day.

A silence that wasn't really a silence, considering you could hear the muffled, amused snickers from Yuma, Jin and myself. Though it was mostly the former two.

"So…" Chika turned back to our boss. "We're heading to HQ…?"

Karasuma picked up from there. "You just wanted us to back you up while you tell Kido, huh?"

Rindou shrugged with a slightly nervous grin. "Well, you see—"

Shiori cut him off with a loud, slightly exasperated sigh. "—Don't bother making excuses, Rindou-san. We'll go with you."

"Really?" He perked up slightly, only for—

"Yeah, but you owe us."

He drooped again. "… I suppose that is expected."

"Ok, but serious talk?" Jin composed himself, though another chuckle slipped in between his words. "Mori and I should stay here. The rest of you guys can go, but we'll stay home just for today."

"… Eh?" Shiori tilted her head in curiosity. "Any particular reason?"

I distantly recalled Inukai's offer to spar later today. Either that needs to be rescheduled, or I need to leave later on… After whatever Jin is talking about, is over. It sounds relatively important, so I'll go along with it.

"Kind of," He laughed. "Something's gonna happen, and it'd be bigger mess if anyone else were around… Though It's going to be a mess either way."

"Ah, lovely." I laughed, loud and slightly sarcastic, but also light-hearted and slightly relaxed. "Another shit-storm to rain down upon my life. It's kind of unnerving how quickly I've gotten used to this."

"Almost dying will do that to you," Yuma joked, as everyone else winced.

I shot my best friend a quick finger gun for indulging me and my slightly annoying 'dying/stab'-jokes.

"… But yeah, she should probably be here for this. I'm just here because I'm lazy." Jin hummed. "… But don't blame me if you get back and Mori has burned the building down in a fit of rage."

Everyone else was out of the room before I could even blink, each awkwardly shoving each other out the door until the room was relatively empty, void of most of the Tamakoma residents.

Yuma, on the other hand, was slowly making his way out of the door was a small grin. He muttered a quiet 'Have fun, Mori', before shutting the door behind him.

There was a quiet murmur in the background of everyone —everyone being Rindou, Karasuma, Chika, Shiori, and Yuma— making their way to the remaining car in what seemed to be a hurry.

I raised my eyebrow blandly at Jin.

He only grinned at me in amusement. "I was only half lying."

"And what, pray tell, would cause me to go into a—" I lifted up my fingers to make quotations. "—so-called, 'fit of rage'?"

He laughed but didn't answer me quite yet.

-0-

"Should we be worried about leaving those two alone while Jin's plotting?" Karasuma asked, sitting in the front seat. In the back seat, Chika— being the smallest by a small margin compared to Yuma—was sitting on Shiori's lap, with Yuma beside them, and Hyuse on the very end.

"Jin's always plotting," Yuma muttered but continued to go ignored.

"They'll be fine," Rindou muttered hopefully. "They'll be fine."

"It makes it less believable when you repeat it again," Shiori muttered, leaning against the car door she was sitting beside. "By the way, what's the plan for on our way back? We're not planning on handing Hyuse over to HQ, but I really don't want to sit like this again, so I think I'd rather walk home than be in the car again."

Chika's expression was slightly sheepish and apologetic, which Yuma pat her on the shoulder for. The seating arrangement wasn't optimal, but it could have been worse.

"I guess you could walk back if you wanted to, Shiori," RIndou conceded, starting up the car. "Anyone of you guys back there—except for Hyuse— can actually walk home if you want. Hyuse is the only one that needs to be driven, and Karasuma's just here to make sure that he doesn't get away."

Hyuse shot everyone in the car a disbelieving look. Honestly, Yuma didn't blame him for the sheer strangeness of the situation.

-0-

"I think the rest of them were planning on getting Rindou-san to buy them dinner, as a favour for them," Mori laughed, standing up from her spot on the floor. "… Should we spare him and make dinner for when they get back?"

"I'm sure he'd appreciate that."

"Good," She huffed. "'Cause I'm in the mood to cook, and I didn't really need anyone's permission anyway."

Jin laughed, slouching down on the now empty couch. "… What were you planning on making?"

Mori pulled a hair elastic off of her wrist and reached up behind her head to pull together her only slightly damp hair. "Don't know yet. What's happening today, and how long is it gonna take?"

Jin hummed, before sitting up slowly and making his way towards the door. "… It might be a while, so go ahead and do whatever I guess."

Mori paused, finally finished tying up her hair, before narrowing her eyes at her accomplice.

"… Do you even know when—whatever this is—is actually happening?"

Jin laughed, stepping out into the hallway as his voice bounced off of the empty hall walls. "Not exactly," He admitted without shame.

Mori scowled half-heartedly, leaning out into the hallway to call out after him. "If you're still in that Trion body when you get back, I'm kicking you down the stairs!"

"Mori, we're on the ground floor!"

"There's still a basement level!"

"… What if I just… Don't come back over there?"

Mori pushed up her glasses and began rolling up her sleeves as she made her way to the kitchen.

"Jin, you are getting your ass over here, and you are going to be my mock-sous chef while we cook dinner for the whole goddamn branch building!"

The sunglasses Jin had gifted her were folded and tucked into her shirt, swinging side-to-side as she walked. By the time she had arrived at the kitchen though, she wrenched open the fridge before groaning loudly.

"… What is it now?" Jin asked after a moment, peeking through the doorway from behind her, now wearing casual clothes and no longer in a Trion body, which was a rare sight on its own.

"We're out of food, how often does Rindou-san refill this fridge…?" Mori grumbled, counting what little ingredients there were in their kitchen. "… We're gonna need to head out to the grocery store, huh?"

"I guess so…" Jin sighed.

Mori shot him a quick, slightly suspicious side-eye. "Couldn't you have just foreseen this, you bastard?"

"… Maybe I already did?"

The female teen jabbed him in the side, just as he began to laugh at her misery, once again. It was light-hearted this time, and Mori supposes that she can't fault him for wanting to spend just a little time with her after that shipwreck of a week they've had since she woke up.

-0-

Four-eyed weirdo : i apologize, but I can't make it for our plans today. sorry.

Cloud buddy : Aw, really? Shame… Well, I guess I'll NEED to ask Tsuji-chan to hang out with me, or else I'll get bored.

Four-eyed weirdo : JESUS CHRIST you type FAST

Cloud buddy : Haha, nice reaction… Anyways, I guess Hiyami-chan is probably gonna be around too though. Ninomiya said he's going out sometime later, so it's not like we can hang out as a team…

Cloud buddy : Maybe I should just find someone else to bother? I'm sure Arafune's around, and if I'm lucky, Murakami-chan will be with him. If I'm unlucky, Kage-chan will be with him.

Four-eyed weirdo : Kageura. you call Kageura-san "Kage-chan"?

Cloud buddy : Haha, yeah, but I think Murakami-chan and Arafune came up with the nickname first, since they're his friends.

Cloud buddy : He doesn't like me all that much.

Four-eyed weirdo : … Ok then?

Four-eyed weirdo : You seem unbothered by this fact

Cloud buddy : Eh, you can't get along with EVERYBODY.

Cloud buddy : So I shared my side, what's going on on YOUR end?

Four-eyed weirdo : …pardon?

Cloud buddy : What're your plans for today?

Four-eyed weirdo : oh

Four-eyed weirdo : well I'm making dinner for the branch, and i guess other than that… its supposed to be a lazy day.

Four-eyed weirdo : Jin said that something's happening though, thats why i need to stay back. He won't tell me WHAT though… rn we're going out to buy food tho before heading back

Cloud buddy : Ah, shame.

Cloud buddy : Maybe we can hang out tomorrow after school?

Cloud buddy : Whenever your school ends, anyway.

Four-eyed weirdo : Sounds alright with me. im PRETTY sure I can drop the baggage off before heading over to border, anyhow

Cloud buddy : … I'm almost afraid to ask, but "baggage"?

Four-eyed weirdo : I'm showing around a new student, that's probably gonna end up joining our branch. or something, he's living over here for now anyways

Cloud buddy : Oh good, I was worried it was going to turn out to be something insane. A new student sounds relatively normal.

Four-eyed weirdo : …yeah, normal. sure, lets go with that.

-0-

"Are you going to be ok walking around for today?" Jin asked politely, although we were already walking through the city and towards the grocery store.

I noticed we were slowly nearing the area of which the store was in, so I sent a quick 'alright gtg', before I levelled a flat stare in his direction. "I think you would know that better than even myself. What's my future lookin' like, Mr. soothsayer. Aren't you gonna read my palms or some shit?"

He snickered lightly at the quips, before shoving his hands in his pockets with a smirk. "The forecast today—"

I shoved him to the side, a bark of laughter being poorly disguised as a cough. Jin joined in on the laughter just as we walked up to the front door of the supermarket, the door opening automatically before we stepped in.

Jin picked up a plastic basket—bless the man, I hate those things, those are so fucking awkward to carry—before nudging me in the arm. "What do we need, oh great head chef?"

"It's weird when you call me that," I muttered quietly. "I'm literally only 15 years-old."

Jin shrugged unapologetically. "Shun's still a year younger than you, ya' know."

"I mean, I guess."

I tossed a few bars of cream cheese into the basket, Jin huffing slightly as the basket gained weight in his hands.

"Why did you need those…?" He asked, although he probably already knew the answer.

(… That used to annoy me a little.)

I snickered, covering my mouth with my cold hand. "It was on sale, Mr. Soothsayer."

He frowned playfully at the nickname. "… Are you going to call me that forever?"

"I don't know, will I? You're more likely to know that than I am."

-0-

Videogame Addict : mori! pls help me

Videogame Addict : kohei is being super mean and he cheated while we were playing video games

Videogame Addict : help me pull a prank on him pretty pleeeeaaassseee

Four-eyed weirdo : im shopping rn yuu-senpai sorry can't talk

Videogame Addict : eh, rlly?

Videogame Addict : u didn't seem like the type to go shopping nd stuff

Four-eyed weirdo : grocery shoppin

Four-eyed weirdo : with jin

Videogame Addict : wait, r u guys finally ok with each other? finally made up and all that?

Four-eyed weirdo : …how did you know something was wrong in the first place

Videogame Addict : tachi knew because he and kazama gossip with each other

Videogame Addict : and jin was feeling down since the invasion so i assumed

Videogame Addict : cause you were all upset too kind of i think

Four-eyed weirdo : … I didn't expect you to be so observant

Four-eyed weirdo : also, Tachikawa-san, Kazama-san? gossiping?

Videogame Addict : …please dont tell them i described it like that

Four-eyed weirdo : I doubt its as weird as your making it sound, so ill forget about it

Four-eyed weirdo : talk to you later Yuu-senpai

Videogame Addict : ttyl mori, be safe

-0-

"Green onions, pineapple, salt," I listed, a small amount of glee making it's way through my voice as I pulled out ingredient after ingredient out of the plastic bags. "Carrots, beef tenderloin, chicken breast, panko, eggs—"

"Did we really need all of this?" Jin chortled, helping me unload all of the food items into the fridge or cupboard. "Rindou's wallet is suffering because of you, Mori."

I waved a hand at him dismissively, although I had no doubt the man could see my shoulders shaking with smothered laughter. "He deserves it after all of the bullshit we put up with. Honestly, sending Hyuse to school without previous permission from HQ? Asking my mother to forge some adoption papers for him so that Hyuse can be legally listed as my cousin—or brother, depending on what mom chooses? And right after that big scene he made at the press conference when I was in a coma, I swear. It's because of him that the away mission is starting earlier than usual, now we need to get to A-rank faster."

("'Forge' is a harsh word, Mikumo," Jin protests, but I send him a flat stare that has him shrugging.)

"Oh?" Jin shared my amusement, and he didn't seem all that regretful for using our boss' debit card number to pay for all of our groceries. "And who'd you hear that last little tidbit of information from?"

"The 'away mission starting earlier' tidbit?" I questioned. "Kikuchihara told me about it, since he was kind of annoyed by it too."

He snickered at that, just as I began to pull out some pots and pans, cutting boards, and a few knives.

"Alright, you could do me a quick favour and chop up the cream cheese into smaller chunks for me, and toss it in the bowl." I paused, before explaining leisurely. "I'm in the mood for cheesecake all of a sudden, and god knows how much time we have until this so-called 'disaster' arrives."

Jin shrugged and didn't seem too apologetic. His body language told me that he was slightly worried though, and I dreaded whatever would make Jin-of-all-people, worried.

"We can have panko-fried chicken for dinner since we bought a lot of that." I shoved the bag of panko off to the side, before pulling the chicken out of the fridge. "I'm pretty sure we can prepare it right now and let it sit until dinner time before frying it, as long as we cover it with plastic wrap."

Jin hummed in agreement, already cutting the cream cheese bars into small chunks. I eyed the neatly cut pieces with thinly veiled suspicion.

"… You didn't strike me as the type to be able to cook." I paused, before sending him a slightly sheepish smile. "Honestly, I thought you were the type to live off of fried rice crackers and instant ramen because it would be the only thing you could make..."

"And what gave you that idea?" There was slight amusement in his tone, and my grin stretched further.

"It was probably… Oh, I don't know, the lifetime supply of fried rice-crackers in your room? The way you stay in your Trion body all day, every day? Take your pick."

He snickered for a while, before slowly coming to a halt as the silence took over.

"… Just don't trust me to actually cook anything over a fire, and we'll be good."

There were a few more moments of silence before our laughter started up again.

(Being this friendly with Jin is new, but welcome. It's surprisingly nice when I don't find myself aggravated by his every move like before.)

(… But still… What's bad enough to actually worry Jin? That isn't a full-blown Neighbour invasion…?)

"I wonder how the rest of them are doing," Jin mentioned nonchalantly, still chopping up the cream cheese. "… Do you think Kido will kill them?"

I couldn't help the snicker that escaped. "Maybe he will. Hopefully, Rindou-san and Shinoda-san will protect them from certain death."

He handed me the bowl of cheese with a grin, and I promptly tossed it in the fridge while I handed him something else to do. That's all that was really happening at the moment. Just waiting idly for something to happen…

Maybe I shouldn't be as in the dark about this as I am.

"Hey, Jin-san…?" I waited for him to show that he was listening, before going on. "… Can I get at least a little warning on whatever's coming soon?"

He didn't answer me for a while, keeping his eyes down on his work. When he did finally answer, he began with a question.

"What did you want to know?"

(Keep it lighthearted) I sighed before tilted my head up slightly upwards in thought. "Maybe, could I get a danger level or something?" (Don't hold anything against him, it isn't his fault) "Like, on a scale of… Meeting-Yuma danger—which was really the start of this wild rollercoaster my life has become—to… Large-scale-invasion danger."

He laughed at the smile amount of hilarity from the former, before sobering up. "… It's… not really a danger, per se. It's more of…" He hummed, a dull 'thud' echoing in the room as the knife made contact with the cutting board. "… It might be hard on you, mentally. But it'll only affect you negatively if you let it."

That statement, in particular, was what caused me to give him a puzzled expression.

He laughed, before waving his hand at me. "Don't give me that look, I wasn't being that cryptic."

"I suppose," I huffed. "But only in comparison to some of your earlier statements."

"… Was I really that bad?"

"You pissed me off around 80-percent of the time. It was pretty bad."

He shrugged, before finding it in himself to continue the previous topic. "… Maybe at first, it'll piss you off in more ways than one. But if you push past that, you'll most likely learn something that'll help you grow from it."

"… Do you think I can do that?" I asked quietly, before elaborating. "Learn from my mistakes, I mean. Sometimes I think that I'll never learn, or that I never did."

I felt a hand on my back, warm and comforting rather than condescending. "You shouldn't put yourself down like that, four-eyes. Besides… You'll have a chance to show how much you've grown."

(… He really thinks that.)

"Soon, you'll start to learn more about being a captain, about everyone in Border. And then… You'll start to make your way up the ranks. I guarantee it."

(Jin really has trust in me. He really doesn't doubt me to do that.)

"… Do you mind if I handled this alone then? Whatever it is."

"If that's what you want. Just don't lose control, and you'll be fine."

-0-

After a while, that mostly consisted of light-hearted banter as well as me ordering around the laid-back A-rank agent in our cooking duties. He laughed along most of the time and did as I asked, but I very quickly learned not to leave him alone with an open fire—or any actual cooking in that general manner.

'I can't see the future of inanimate objects,' He excused with a carefree laugh as I held a frying pan of burning leeks in my hand, staring at him accusingly. 'I don't know when to take it off the fire.'

Ok, I guess I understood where he's coming from. Cooking is weird, and sometimes things can look like they're undercooked when they're not. It's understandable sometimes, to an extent.

(But Jin. JIN. The vegetables were charred, for crying out loud.)

… We didn't have another incident like that for the rest of the morning, thankfully. I made sure of it.

And before long, the doorbell had rung.

My head lifted up, and I sent a slightly questioning glance over to the doorway of the kitchen, already untying my apron from around my waist as I started down the hall.

"Take everything off the stove, and don't do anything before I get back," I asked politely(for once), as Jin held out a hand to take the apron. I sent him a thankful nod while handing over the cloth, before slowly making my way closer to the door.

His expression was slightly apprehensive, and I shot him one last grateful look just before he turned back and stepped back into the kitchen.

The doorbell rang again, spaced out enough from the last ring to still seem relatively professional, rather than annoying or too impatient.

"Alright, alright, I'm coming!" I called back, reaching for the knob, and unlocking the front door with my other hand. With one smooth movement, the 'click' of the lock mechanism, and I took that as my cue to wrench the door open.

Sharp, narrowed eyes.

A crisp, neat, professional dark suit.

I barely surpessed a small flinch at his almost natural glaring expression.

"... I'm Ninomiya Masataka, from Ninomiya squad." The man began clearly. "I have a few questions for Amatori Chika and Mikumo Mori. I was told they'd be here."

And without a single shake in my hands… I pulled open the door and led him in.

-0-

(The meeting room was fairly full today, Yuma observed. Along with the people from Tamakoma, being Rindou, Chika, Shiori, Karasuma, and Yuma himself, there were several people from HQ. That being said, Kido was present, obviously, with Shinoda, Kinuta, Kikuchihara, and Miwa right beside him. The latter had shot a quick glare at Yuma when he entered the room, but other than that, they were without conflict.)

(For now.)

"I will not…" Hyuse authenticated clearly, careful to keep his voice on that careful balance of bland, unaffected, but also unwavering. "… Answer any questions about my homeworld."

There was silence in the meeting room before Hyuse tacked on a sharp but not rushed, "I have nothing else to say" Just to clarify.

And the silence continued before the chubby man, who's name Hyuse did not know—nor care to know—crossed his arms with a huff.

"Prisoners sure are arrogant when brought from Tamakoma." His tone put a strange amount of emphasis on the final word, and Hyuse watched in detached amusement as not one person in the room reacted to it.

(Hyuse came to realize that the branch that was keeping him captive seemed a bit more… Separate than the actual organization itself. Some kind of internal feud, maybe?)

"Neighbour," The man continued sharply. "Don't assume we're as lenient as Tamakoma. We, the people at HQ, don't have an issue with getting any information you may hold… Through force, if need be."

(Only Rindou, Shinoda, and Kido's eyes caught the darkened flicker that ran through Yuma's eyes. Because there was a lie, wasn't there?)

"And again, what's the point of this blind loyalty?" Kinuta demanded, voice not quite yet a shout. "Are you aware that one of the Neighbours died at the hands of those who they thought were their comrades? And the way they spoke, it sounded like they planned to kill him from the start! What's the point in cannon fodder protecting their country when it would turn on them so easily?!"

"Kinuta-san, I doubt all that is necessary," Another man continued, as if the option of torture hadn't just been thrown on the table. "Before we get to asking him any questions… I'd like to ask Yuma something in particular. How differently do they treat captives on the other side?"

Yuma scratched his head at that(he'd only been expecting to be addressed by Rindou). "Well… For getting information, torture isn't primarily used. The captive could just say whatever, and you'd have to trust that it's true… Which isn't very efficient in general. It'd be best if you had multiple prisoners that you could compare stories with, yeah?"

Kido's eyes seemed to get sharper as his gaze slid over to the white-haired teen. "Yes, but you could tell the truth from lies, correct?"

The air seemed to get colder as the two finally looked each other in the eyes. Rindou gulped.

'… Maybe I shouldn't have brought Yuma along to this meeting…'

Yuma gave a closed eye smile, though the expression didn't elevate any of the tension in the room. "Is that the only reason you tolerate my presence in this room, oh-great-commander-Kido?"

Hyuse's amusement rose again, his bland interest in the conflict negating any effects the tension could have on him.

Kido's eyes were dark and particularly cold as he stared Yuma down. "There's no need to get all riled up, I was simply confirming my suspicions. Kuga."

Kikchihara shifted in his chair, both him and Miwa sitting silently with raised eyebrows.

(I should probably change the topic, Rindou decided. I do have something I need to bring up anyway, now's as good as any time.)

Except it wasn't.

"Hm, well, I've got the perfect plan!" Rindou burst into the conversation, his tone just little too light, and shoulders just a little too relaxed.

Both Kido's sharp glare and Yuma's unnaturally carefree gaze turned to him, and Rindou lost just a liiiiittle bit of the bravado he had.

Of course, not enough to deter him.

(Oh boy, it might've been better if he stopped there. You'll never know though, I guess.)

"What." Kido's tone was flat, cold, and generally angry, but Rindou decided to go on anyway.

(He didn't see Shiori and Karasuma's aborted gestures for him to stop. Miwa and Kikuchihara did though, and they watched on in growing confusion.)

"Well, you know the true torture for kids nowadays," Rindou elaborated with false cheer. "School is a pretty horrible punishment, isn't it?"

Yuma was starting to get the idea that RIndou liked pissing Kido off on purpose. Not that he was gonna stop him, but for others, it just made him seem like an oblivious idiot when he wasn't.

"What." Kido repeated again, and honestly, no one could blame him.

"I've decided, since you let Hyuse go into Tamakoma's custody," RIndou grinned, just as Hyuse shot the man a bewildered glance. Probably questioning everything that was being said, because Hyuse was not told about any of this. "That I'll be sending Hyuse off to school! He'll have two guards at all times, no worries, but doesn't that sound like a great idea?"

And after approximately 5 seconds of stunned silence, everyone hastily evacuated the room as Kido attempted to violently murder Rindou.

-0-

Torimaru : Hey, how're things going over there?

Torimaru : …Jin-senpai?

Torimaru : Jin-senpai, please answer.

Jin : sorry didn't see these

Jin : could I maybe text you back later

Torimaru : … I suppose.

Jin : thanks

-0-

"…So." Yuma swung his arms up behind his head, making his way down the hallway without a care. "I'm hungry, we should get some lunch."

"You had breakfast not too long ago," Chika reminded patiently, and Yuma hummed with furrowed brows. "And I think big sister was planning on making dinner."

Yuma hummed again at that. "… I guess I can wait."

"… Should we try to save Rindou-san?" Karasuma asked after a while, although not one person in the group made a move to turn back. "He did bring us along to help him smooth this out, you know."

"Nah," Shiori whistled. "If Mori is cooking, then Rindou-san can't buy us all dinner. So technically, the deal's off."

Both Miwa and Kikuchihara watched in morbid fascination as the Tamakoma agents slowly walked away from the scene of the crime, where their boss was(most likely)being—or about to be—brutally slaughtered.

Hyuse was still standing there, completely bland expression. Before he could even jokingly entertain the thought of making a break for it, Karasuma stepped back to stand right beside him, and any possibilities of escape vanished at that moment. Of course, it didn't really matter in the end, as Hyuse didn't particularly care.

"The two of us probably need to wait here though," Karasuma grabbed Hyuse's arm, completely unperturbed as the Neighbour shook his hand off harshly. "Rindou-san needs to drive Hyuse home, and I've been assigned guard duty for today… And for the last time."

"The 'last' time?" Shiori questioned, as Kikuchihara raised an eyebrow in silent questioning.

"Oh, captain and I'll be on guard duty for 24-hours from Monday and onwards," Yuma picked up seamlessly, pointing at himself as the group came to a halt. "Kasumi's currently forging adoption papers so Hyuse can live at their house, so she'll be guarding him after hours, and he's been assigned to the same class as us for during the day."

Miwa looked vaguely amused as confusion and undeniable regret spread over Hyuse's expression, though the amusement quickly transitioned to pity for Kasumi, being the one to take care of the two menaces. "Does Kasumi-san know about the circumstances? She is technically a civilian, I don't think she allowed to be privy to this information."

Yuma, being on particularly not good-terms with Miwa, decided not to answer.

"Rindou-san said something about… 'as long as she doesn't have context', and 'as long as we don't tell her directly'… Then it's fine," Chika explained from beside Yuma. "But Kasumi-san is really smart, so she's probably already figured it out."

"That's to be expected," Shiori mumbled, just as the group began to move forward again, away from Karasuma and Hyuse who were standing against the wall. They walked on for a few more moments in silence, before Shiori perked up again. "You guys should come over for dinner!"

… Well, that came out of nowhere.

Kikuchihara turned, slowly and deliberately with a questioning expression. "… What…?"

No one really had any doubt that he heard what was said, but Shiori repeated it again anyways.

"Come over for dinner!" It sounded like less of a question this time. "You guys and your squads! It'll be fun, Mori's really the best cook in the branch!"

"Except for Reiji," Yuma admitted. "We haven't really had a chance to compare their cooking, and Reiji won't really get back to the building in time to cook anything for today."

"… Yoneya will probably want to go." Miwa scoffed and turned away. "But what makes you think I'd—"

Shiori wrapped an arm around his neck, causing him to cut off with a sputtered choke. Everyone else watched in bewildered amusement as she dragged him along with a cheery grin. "Alright, you're coming too! No exceptions, if Kikucchi's coming, you are too! Kikucchi, we gotta invite Kazama and Uttei and Mikami-chan too, do you know where they are?"

Kikuchihara scowled, backing away slightly. "Why am I getting dragged along—"

"What was that, Kikucchi?"

"… Nothing. I'll… Text them."

The male teen could only scowl grumpily as his eyes caught sight of Yuma's smug grin. He pulled his phone out and proceeded to type.

-0-

Chat : Kazama-Unit

Kikucchi : the traitor wants us to come over to tamakoma for dinner

Kikucchi : save yourselves, shes already caught me

Uttei : Certainly it's not THAT bad… Right?

Kazama-san : I'm sure it'll be fine.

Mikami : Is there something going on in particular?

Kikucchi : theyre just having a big dinner

Kikucchi : mikumo is apparently a good enough cook, while miwa and i just so happened to be nearby

Mikami : Sounds like fun

Kikucchi : shes choking miwa. he's being dragged against his will.

Kazama-san : I'll show up.

Uttei : Same. Where should we meet up, Shiro?

Kikucchi : …i hate you all.

Kikucchi : fine. Meet at the cafeteria place, we're heading in that direction anyway to find miwas teammates

Mikami : I'll be there, but I might be a bit late

Kazama-san : Ah, right. You were with Kunichika, weren't you?

-0-

Kikuchihara levelled a flat stare down his phone, just a hint of betrayal mixed into his features

"… I guess we're coming."

Shiori cheered at that, giving a happy peace sign with her free hand. "Success! I knew I could count on Uttei, Kazama and Mikami-chan!"

Miwa tried to take advantage of the fact that she released one of her arms from him, but her remaining arm's grip was unwavering. She only tightened her hold as he once again, choked.

Yuma tried to smother his laughter as much as he could, really he did. It wouldn't do him any good to have the Neighbour-hating teen any more mad at him, after all.

Chika could only glance at her teammate, take in his hilarious expression, before turning her head to the side slightly and giggling herself.

-0-

White gremlin : hey

White gremlin : we'll be really late getting back

White gremlin : kasumi-san, konami and reiji might even be back before us

White gremlin : …mori?

White gremlin : mori, are you there?

-0-

I had sat him down in the living room, politely asked Jin to stay out of the room, and attempted to prepare some tea at the speed of light.

(There must've been some kind of future where I had burned down the building in an attempt to do so, because Jin had already prepared some beforehand.)

(When I sent him a questioning yet nevertheless thankful glance, he gave a false-nonchalant thumbs up before jabbing a finger towards the living room.)

Once I had gotten back and set down the cup in front of him… Well.

It was quiet, to say the least. For something that just lasted a few seconds, it felt like it stretched into full minutes.

Thankfully, Ninomiya seemed more than happy to break the absolutely awkward silence that had formed.

"I have no intention of dragging this on too long." His tone was sharp and I was forced to internalize my wince. "Since Amatori Chika doesn't seem to be present, I'll find her on my own time if I can't get enough information from you."

I was wholly tempted to send him a glare for that slightly pointed remark.

"I'll keep this brief."

He leaned forward slightly, eyes narrowing as he stared me down, before dropping the bomb.

"Rinji Amatori. You recognize this name… Don't you?"

My eyes widened.

(It felt as if a spike was being driven into my head.)

-0-

I glared down at my phone nearly every day after that.

It got in the way of my everyday life more than something like that should've and that was something I'm not very proud to admit.

"Mikumo, pay attention! Your grades, in particular, dropped slightly after the last test, this isn't like you."

(How do you know what I'm like?)

"You ran right in front of that car to save that old lady! You must be insanely brave—although it's kind of weird when you have such an unnervingly blank face…"

(I just don't want to regret anything anymore.)

"Mori. When was the last time you tried hanging out with Chika-chan?"

(I don't know. I don't know, I'm just so tired, and the days keep passing me by.)

I glared at my phone.

It was all his fault. I didn't want to feel like this, I didn't want to be dragging my feet like this! But he closed the door on our lives, and I have no idea of how to even begin putting it back together.

I glared at my phone.

But I never deleted that voice message. I don't know what was still tying me down to it.

"… Sorry… But if you're hearing this, it means I did something dumb, Ri."

-0-

"… He…" My throat was dry, but I pushed out the words as normally as I could. "… He used to be my tutor… And a family friend. What is this about?"

He nodded while reaching into an inside pocket, not really paying much attention to the words that came after my confirmation. I might've snapped at him if I were less bothered by this situation. Rather unexpectedly, he set down a photo down on the table between us.

I skimmed the photo for a second, unfamiliar by the figure. Though for some reason, the person being cut off by the edge of the photo seemed vaguely familiar, though I didn't comment on that.

"This woman." His voice seemed to almost get… Sharper. Angrier, in a way that professional people would make their tone so as to not blatantly show that they were actually mad. "Do you recognize her?"

I had never seen this woman in my life, I was sure. I would've recognized her unless it was only a fleeting glance with no introduction.

No name to put to the face.

(She had a certain quality to her expression that I couldn't match any string of words to, but the closest I could get was…)

She was smiling dully at the screen.

(… She seemed like the type that only had a very specific confidence in her skills. The confidence was limited, but that was the closest I could get.)

"No." My response was short, clipped, and seemed uncaring despite the amount of thinking that was behind it.

His eyes narrowed at that, but he didn't elaborate beyond the dirty look.

"Are you sure?" He instead asked. "Look closer. She's a dull woman with a fake smile always plastered on her face."

I copied his gesture—narrowing my eyes—at his description.

(That's not what I see, but go ahead.)

I projected as much mock-exasperation into my tone as I could. "And… Who is she? What's the significance behind these questions."

"She's suspected of a major breach of code, supplying Triggers to civilians." His tone was cold. Cold, flat, and carefully bland. "And then, according to our sources, went with them into the Neighbourhood. It's been deduced that they crossed a gate to reach the other side."

(Another sharp pain. Another spike.)

-0-

"… Kept under wraps… Issue…" I murmured, leaning against the backboard of my bed with my phone in hand. My eyes were furiously scanning line after line as Inukai typed as quickly and efficiently as he could, summarizing the case. "Ema… Ninomiya… Someone was under suspicion of being involved in a "trading" of sorts with the team's former sniper…"

My eyes were wide as my brain eagerly took in the information.

'They think she took some Triggers and traded them with him and a few other people, before all going beyond the gates and into the Neighbourhood.'

(It's a lead. A lead on what the fuck he was getting himself into.)

-0-

"With civilians?" I repeated dully. "And how certain are these so-called 'sources' of yours?"

"When her Trigger reading disappeared into the gate, there were three other Trigger readings that followed." He summarized without reacting to the slight. "None of which, were from Border. On top of that, no other agents disappeared that day."

I considered the information silently.

"That means that three—at the very least—collaborators with sufficient Trion left with her to the other side, that day. To supply Triggers to civilians is the highest-level infraction, and warrants the use of the memory eraser at HQ." His eyes strayed off to the side before he refocused on the topic at hand. "HQ immediately sent agents to pursue and capture all of them, but they were already long gone."

He looked back to me, meeting my gaze head on. "I've been investigating the possible suspects. As you can now probably deduce, Amatori Rinji is one of those suspects."

(Another sharp pain.)

-0-

I grit my teeth angrily, wide eyes staring at the house. My green orbs met with another man's, his narrowed eyes just barely passing over me as he held an umbrella high over his head.

(The rain was falling around me)

His eyes left me just as quickly, and I felt like I couldn't breathe.

I ran past everyone gathered at the entrance, pushing aside another blonde teen as I dashed into the house. I ignored the indignant 'hey!' as I slammed the door shut behind me, prying my shoes off in an instant and running through the halls.

-0-

(He was there back then…)

"… Would I be wrong in assuming that you had some sort of connection with this woman?"

He acknowledged me blandly. "Her name is Hatohara Mirai. She was once my subordinate, as my squad's sniper." The air seemed to gain weight as he addressed her. "It's speculated that she's the leader of this little… Parade, But I know better. She's not smart enough for something like this, so it's obvious someone else was manipulating her. She doesn't even have the backbone to shoot people in a Trion-simulation , do you think she could boss people around?"

"If you find out, are you going to try convincing HQ to take some of the blame off her?" I questioned, his tone giving me mixed signals. "Since it'd mean that someone else if the ring-leader?"

"Don't be ridiculous." He scoffed. "She's just as much to blame for this whole mess as the rest of them. She allowed herself to be used by some half-baked nitwit and ended up dragging down others with her. It's disgusting."

…Hm.

(… I wonder if Inukai would think the same...?)

-0-

"Rinji… What the hell is this?'

"A Border Trigger. A weapon."

(He'd always been fairly straightforward when speaking to me. I was usually thankful, but now it just made me mad.)

'… It's a weapon. No shit, why the hell do you have it?'

"I made a deal with someone to get it."

'Who. I'm gonna punch them in the face.'

"Haha, I'm not going to betray their trust THAT easily. You should know me better than that by now, Ri."

'… I hate you, Rinji.'

"You only say that. But for the plan… My collaborators and I are going to check beyond the gates, get a good look at the other side."

-0-

The room was completely silent.

For a mere 20 seconds, Mori could fool herself into thinking that everything was okay.

(It's not like anything, in particular, was wrong. She had dealt with most of her emotional baggage regarding Rinji after the invasion. After all, wisecracking with Yuma regarding the tragedies in their lives usually helped lighten the mood a little. So it's not like talking about Rinji was particularly suffocating at all, it's just…)

(Mori felt like something was about to go sideways.)

"… What do you get out of treating your teammates like this?"

Ninomiya tilted his head. "Hm?"

(He obviously heard what had been said, just testing to see if she had the guts to say it again.)

"I said…"

(She did.)

"What do you get out of treating your teammates… Like this?"

He scoffed, after a long silence. Almost as if he were… disappointed, with her answer. "Is that all? A half-baked lecture on how I should treat my unit?"

"This isn't a lecture." Mori's voice was even, blank. Like she was hardly aware of what she was even saying anymore, just acting on pure instinct. "I'm genuinely curious. I'm a newer captain you see, and I'm trying to learn from my senpai, so I'd like to hear your honest opinion on this."

Her suddenly blank stare might've unnerved Ninomiya a bit. Not nearly enough though.

"You're looking for advice on how to be a captain?" Ninomiya scoffed. "That's rich. You hardly even act like a proper Border agent, much less a captain."

"Please don't twist my words around, Ninomiya-san." Mori's lips pressed together thinly, eyes still blank. "I simply wanted to hear your take on being a captain. If you don't want to offer that, then I had not asked for a critique of my own abilities as a compromise."

"Then take this as the passing advice from your better." Ninomiya shoved his hands in his pockets sharply, slowly standing up to his full height. Mori followed him to stand up not too soon after, already sensing the apparent conversation coming to an end.

"Your better in terms of being a captain. Your better as a shooter. Your better as a Border agent. Someone… That is better than you in every way."

They slowly made their way to the front door, through the halls, past the kitchen.

Ninomiya's eyes remained trained on the younger teen.

His harsh, cold gaze clashed with her increasingly bland one.

"First, I would suggest offering another position to the cannon girl. She's obviously not fit for combat, she'd be better off either being an operator… Or not enlisting at all."

When they finally reached the door, Ninomiya gripped the doorknob of his own volition, already prepared to leave the building on a sour note.

"… And maybe you should start to take the battlefield more seriously if you even want to live." His eyes narrowed before he wrenched the door open. "Much less live to improve enough, and make it onto the away-mission team."

"Don't hit the door on your way out," Mori's uninterested reply came, just she slammed the door in his face.

-0-

I stared at the door for a few more moments, still left behind with the aftershock of his words.

"I would suggest offering another position to the cannon girl. She's obviously not fit for combat, she'd be better off either being an operator… Or not enlisting at all."

His… Words.

"…And maybe you should start to take the battlefield more seriously if you even want to live. Much less live to improve enough, and make it onto the away-mission team."

His… Advice. His genuine, honest-to-god, advice.

(His opinion. It's just his opinion, it's just one person's perspective out of god-knows how many—)

This shouldn't be as bad as it is.

Why am I blanking out again—?

(Jin trusted me.)

My hand slid off the doorknob.

(… Jin trusted me to… To grow from this. That's not to say it won't affect me, but if I let it become a rock that I'll trip over...)

My breathing calmed.

(… Rather than a step stool I can use to jump higher than before… Then how will I ever be able to grow?)

My hands returned, limp at my sides as I stared down at the floor.

Before I felt a hand on my shoulder.

My head whipped around, and my eyes met Jin's as he met my gaze straight on. Without hesitating at the blank undertone in my eyes.

"I'm fine," I said without thinking. "I'm sorry, I'm just thinking."

He waited a few seconds to assess me, before patting my shoulder comfortingly. "I know." And he did. "… Just… Try not to worry the others too much."

I nodded, thoughts still swirling around my brain.

"—And maybe you should start to take the battlefield more seriously—"

(Have I really not been taking this seriously in the least? Even with people as important as Replica and Rinji on the line like this?)

"Do you wanna go back to cooking?" Jin asked kindly, and I could only nod numbly.

-0-

"I can't believe you got Shuji to come with you guys," Yoneya said once again, just to mock his captain.

His captain, who was still trapped as Kazama and Shiori flanked him on both sides.

(To be honest, he might've tried running away at this point if it weren't for Kazama still being present.)

Kodera sent his captain a slightly pitying glance, while Narasaka only nodded along with Yoneya.

Shiori beamed, while Miwa glared.

"I can't believe they got captain to come along," Narasaka repeated, just so that it got the message across.

"I get it," Miwa hissed, and his entire team watched in amusement as he buried his face further into his scarf. Tsukimi even reached over with a small, fond smile as she pat him on the head.

Miwa scoffed but he didn't dare brush off her hand.

"He seems so much less threatening like this," Kikichihara leaned over to whisper into Utagawa's ear, just loud enough to be heard by everyone in the hall.

Yoneya and Narasaka actively held Miwa back from mauling the younger agent, who only plugged his ears and turned away.

Utagawa sighed. Kazama, if he were any lesser a man, might've laughed at the situation.

But Kazama was most likely one of the coolest people in all of Border. And so, he only watched on in mild amusement.

"D'you think we should head back now?" Yuma asked politely, for once not actively trying to pick a fight with Miwa.

Shiori tilted her head, a smile growing. "… Eh, probably. If we don't start walking now, it'll be too late by the time we get back."

"It's relatively far in walking distance…" Mikami chuckled. "How often do you guys walk back and forth?"

"Mori and I come over usually every day, and Rindou only drives us every once in a while." Yuma sighed. "Sometimes Mori ends up staying at the branch building just because she's having an off day, but it's not that often."

Miwa was the only one that really picked up on the 'off day'. Being the second person that got injured during the invasion, he could kind of relate.

(Sometimes the pain was just so… Jarring. So sudden. For no reason.)

(He didn't voice that out though.)

"I'm sure Reiji would have driven you guys if you'd just asked…" Chika added softly. "Then, again, you two are quite stubborn."

Yuma whistled obnoxiously.

"Actually, speaking of which…" Shiori's expression morphed into something more… Worried. "Do you think Mori's ok?"

This caught the attention of everyone that wasn't part of Tamakoma. "Why, what'd she do this time?"

Shiori absentmindedly swat the back of Kikuchihara's head for the remark. "Jin sent us off this morning, saying something like… 'Don't be surprised if she burns down the building while you're gone'… Or something."

"That does seem like a cause for concern." Comes Kazama's slightly sarcastic comment.

Mikami tilted her head, looking up from her phone screen. "Did he elaborate on that statement?"

"Nope, we were too busy running away." Shiori laughed nervously.

"Well, I'll help take away some of those concerns!" Yuma cuts in cheerily. "That was a half lie, so it's not likely that the building will be gone by the time that we get back!"

"But it's still a possibility?" Chika clarified.

"Yeah, I guess it's still a possibility."

"… What are we getting our selves into?"

-0-

Reiji, Konami, Yotaro and Kasumi were the first ones to get back. Rindou had gotten some files to help Kasumi along with the process of 'adopting' Hyuse, and he trusted Konami and Reiji to help with whatever blanks she needed to fill in. With that group, they were finished with their task relatively quickly.

When they got back, they were the first ones to witness… This.

"Welcome back~" Jin sing-songs, twirling around on a desk chair that probably came from Rindou's room, or one of the offices. "Dinner'll be ready… Eventually."

Reiji deadpanned. "Why does that statement fill me with endless dread."

"This is the first time that I've seen you out of your Trion body in a while," Konami commented from beside Kasumi, the two of them right behind Reiji in the doorway. "How'd that end up happening?"

"Mikumo threatened to kick me down a flight of stairs," Jin nonchalantly replied. "Actually, speaking of Mikumo, I'd better get going."

And then he kicked off the wall, wheels sending him flying down the hall and off towards the kitchen.

The four of them paused (Yotaro was sitting on Reiji's shoulders), still in the doorway.

"What." Kasumi muttered, and Konami couldn't help but agree.

Rindou, Karasuma, and Hyuse come by next. They'd left Border slightly after the last group had, but arrived at the building sooner since they were in a car. Hyuse was in the middle of their makeshift line, with Karasuma in the back to keep an eye on the Neighbour.

It had taken quite a while to get Shinoda and (mostly) Kido to… 'agree' to the terms Rindou had set down. They had gone over nearly every single scenario of escape that the Neighbour might make, with Rindou patiently filling in the blanks with either;

A - Mori and/or Yuma catch him. That's it that's all. Yuma has a black Trigger for heaven's sake.

B - That's it. They just catch him if he tries to get away, and they live out their lives at school peacefully otherwise.

The overall simplistic plan had Kido seething, but Kinuta made up for it when he offered some of the gadgets the development department and engineers had made—which thankfully enough—would suit this situation perfectly.

A Trigger fashioned as an otherwise unremovable bracelet to provide a normal-looking Trion body for Hyuse, which would take away his horns for appearance's sake. A tracker which was implanted in his Trigger, so he was under constant surveillance by the two people guarding him—Mori and Yuma—who would be provided with the tracker. There'd be an extra one kept at HQ if he did end up getting away, where they'd send an A-rank squad after him for immediate extermination. If he didn't want to talk, then there's no point in particular to keeping him around, Kido justified.

Rindou, surprisingly enough, agreed to that. He had faith that Mori and Yuma wouldn't let the Neighbour out of their sights, so he let it slide.

After being given the items, Rindou was (very reluctantly on Kido's part) released from the meeting room, and ready to go home.

Hyuse, being the antisocial teen that he is, practically ran to the car as soon as Rindou said they were ready to leave.

Neither of them commented on it.

By the time they got home, Jin was too busy to greet them. So Konami met them at the door, quickly pulling Hyuse to the basement before heading back to meet them again.

"So, how'd it go?" Konami still looked slightly bothered by something, presumably unrelated, but still strange enough for Karasuma to decide to ask. Though he decided to answer her first, before questioning her back.

"It went relatively well," Karasuma picked up conversationally. "I'm not sure if you saw it, but there's a bracelet locked around his wrist that will blow up if he attempts to escape. That was the only circumstance Kido had us agree to, aren't we lucky?"

"WHAT?!"

He didn't even flinch at the shout. "Sorry, that was a lie. It's just a tracker and a Trigger, no worries."

Konami nearly launched herself at him to punch him, but Rindou held her back. "C'mon guys, really? Can't we all just get along?"

"His face can get along with my FIST!"

Karasuma walked down the hall, slowly making his way away from Konami, Rindou, and the front door. '… I guess I'll ask her later when she's not ready to kill me.'

He didn't end up needing to ask.

And finally, the last group.

The last group, made up of Yuma, Chika, Shiori, Miwa, Yoneya, Narasaka, Kodera, Tsukimi, Kazama, Kikuchihara, Utagawa, and Mikami. 12 people in total.

"My feet are killing me," Kikuchihara muttered, being one of the last ones to step through the door. "How do you guys walk back and forth nearly every day?"

Kodera looked only slightly out of breath. Miwa's old wounds were hurting himself, but he didn't let it show on his face.

Halfway through the walk, Shiori had asked Utagawa to carry her the rest of the way. Him, being the kind gentleman that he is, politely did as requested.

"Thank you for inviting us," Kazama murmured quietly as he stepped into the house, slipping off both shoes without much trouble before walking down the hall.

He only barely saw the strawberry blonde blur that ran right past him.

"YUMA! CHIKA!" Konami wailed, running right past most of the group to latch onto the teens. Both of which looked quite surprised at the suddenness of it. "HELP US, MORI'S LOST HER MIND!"

It wasn't a lie per se, which was what really shocked Yuma to silence. "… Uh, What?"

Being hurried along by Konami, the group quickly made their way to the kitchen, only to find…?

Thud.

Mori lifted up the knife from the cutting board, face eerily blank as she muttered something under her breath, far too quick and quiet to be properly understood, but just loud enough to be heard.

She turned towards the door, probably hearing them come in, lifting the knife in an unnaturally (and most likely unintentionally) terrifying manner as she turned.

"… Oh." She muttered. "Welcome back."

A particularly girly scream rang throughout the building.