Episode 15: Kill the Deception


What initially appeared as a tame affair quickly turned wild as more and more partygoers became drunk, laughing like maniacs and groping each other in ways that no sober patron ever would. Somehow a large amount of people had filed in while Tatsumi wasn't looking, and suddenly the elbow room he'd taken for granted was nonexistent. As if that weren't enough, the Rakshasa Demons had returned not even an hour after the party started, adding even more chaos to the throne room.

"How long has it been since this whole thing started?" Tatsumi groaned, head resting in his arms as he watched Bols drink and continue to be merry alongside Run. The two of them were beyond inebriated, bumping shoulders and laughing about things no one could hear above the yelling and laughter of the other patrons. Wave looked about as enthused as Tatsumi did, opting to rest his chin on one hand rather than completely slumping against the table.

"Way too long," Wave grumbled, still glancing at Kurome every now and then. The poor girl had been drifting in and out of sleep for some time now. Regardless of whether it was out of boredom or due to her previous injury, Kurome finally succumbed to her instincts and passed out completely. With that, Wave rose to his feet and carefully moved through the crowd to reach the other side of the table.

"Gonna take her back to her room?" Tatsumi sighed.

"You got it," Wave said plainly, hooking one arm around the girl's torso as he carefully lifted her into his arms. "Honestly, I don't blame her. I'm not much of a partygoer either."

It was moments like these where Kurome looked so much smaller than she was, and it was moments like these where Tatsumi realized just how delicate his friends could be. Wave took a step back from the table as Tatsumi finally lifted his head up, staring right into his friend's eyes.

"That injury seems a lot worse than it looks," he said with a little smile. "Keep her safe, yeah?"

"Pff," Wave scoffed, flashing Tatsumi a tired wink before turning his back. "Don't have to tell me that. You've got a date tomorrow, right? Can't have her sleeping in."

"You don't need to act so jealous," Tatsumi snickered. Wave did not take the bait, however, much to his disappointment. The other boy just shook his head and sighed, approaching the staircase along the wall and quickly ascending to the upper level where the rooms were.

With that, Tatsumi was alone. Bols and Run were in their own little world, no longer content with sitting on the other side of the table and laughing to themselves. They now shuffled through the crowd and disappeared to places unknown, leaving the young lieutenant sitting at an empty table while everyone else had fun.

That was, of course, until a certain pair of arms quickly wrapped around his neck. Tatsumi's hair stood up, his eyes went wide, his skin turned pale, and his blood ran cold as some very familiar hands found his chest. Warm breath that did not fit the woman in question hit his neck and made him shiver, tickling him in ways that her usual iciness simply could not.

"Tatsumi," Esdeath drawled, breathing against his neck over and over until her lips finally claimed it, bumping against his skin in a clumsy fashion. For one who was normally so precise, this also did not fit her. "I need to conduct an evaluation with you."

"No you don't," Tatsumi said weakly, shrinking into his chair as she tightened her hold on him.

"Privately," she giggled. Tatsumi just sank further into the chair, almost whimpering.

"No you don't!"

"Insubordination," she growled, instantly lifting him out of the chair and pulling him into an unforgiving hug. "We will deal with that during the evaluation."

"There is no evaluation!" Tatsumi cried, desperately trying to escape her arms as the lascivious woman dragged him over to the stairs. "You don't have to drag me around like this, General!"

"Call me by my name," Esdeath hissed, nipping at his ear and causing the poor boy to yelp. He was obviously in distress, and yet not a single person acknowledged his struggle. Helpless against the unfairness of it all, Tatsumi simply went limp and allowed her to drag him back to their room.

"Do you even know what you're doing?" Tatsumi moaned, eyes shut tight in denial as he struggled against his own racing thoughts. He knew all too well what Bols' earlier warning had entailed, and now the promised time was upon him at last.

"Tatsumi," Esdeath replied, blatantly ignoring his question. Or, perhaps she simply did not hear it. "Please open the door, as I cannot."

"What on earth for?" Tatsumi pulled back, looking up at her dumbfounded. "The handle is right there, just open it!"

"I drank too much wine," Esdeath mumbled, eyes half-lidded as she stared down at him. "This is your-"

"You're drunk!" Tatsumi bluntly accused, successfully pulling away from her. Her legs conveniently decided to give out and she fell upon him, leaning on him for support.

"You did that on purpose," he sighed. Esdeath blinked slowly, completely unaffected by his accusations.

"Open the door," she demanded, looking awfully dangerous in spite of her inebriation. Tatsumi shook his head and complied without another word, throwing open the door and helping a dizzy Esdeath into the room. He kicked one foot back to slam the door shut again, and carefully sat the troublesome woman down on the bed.

"Tatsumi," she whined, reaching out with one hand. With her eyes scrunched up in apparent need and her face set in a frown, Tatsumi felt a twinge of pain. It painted a depressing picture, one of a person yearning for what they could not have. This was not the case, however; she could have him without any more complaints. That thought was enough to make him smile again. Tatsumi approached his commanding officer and took her hand into his own, quickly sitting beside her.

"Esdeath," he said quietly, and with a concerned tone. "Are you feeling-"

In a flash she had him pinned against the bed, leaning over him with her hair cascading down. He blinked, he gasped, he instinctively shrank away from her and fought to quell his beating heart. For one normally so cold, Esdeath had already gone and devoured the room with her heat; he couldn't even tell if he was sweating because of that very heat, or because of the suggestive look on her face. He pulled his arms against his body, nervous, and his fingers captured a handful of her luscious hair in the process.

"Tatsumi, let me show you."

He blinked, helpless to stop her as the woman slowly descended and aimed to capture his lips.

"S-show me?" he stammered.

"Show you how to love…" Esdeath mumbled, eyes half-lidded as she filled the air with lust.

Tatsumi struggled to swallow the lump in his throat as her face closed in, more and more...only for her to collide with the pillow next to him.

"Eh?"

When she didn't move, he panicked and immediately flipped her over. The gentle rise and fall of her chest calmed his own, but she was clearly fast asleep. Silently praising his good fortune, Tatsumi held back a laugh and reached for the sheets at the end of the bed. Nights in Kyoroch were notoriously cold despite the arid land around them, so it wouldn't do for her to freeze after blacking out.

"So much for that," he chuckled, taking some of her hair into his hand yet again. "Maybe Bols has been a bad influence on you? Speaking of which…"

Tatsumi properly tucked the woman in and walked away, reaching into his pocket to grip the warm core within.


"I'm fine, Wave," Kurome insisted, sitting up in the bed. He moved to push her back down, but she gripped his thumbs ruthlessly with her usual, blank expression. The poor boy's went wide as dinner plates and a single drop of sweat snaked down the side of his face.

"These are mine," she said with a little smile.

"Please don't break those," he pleaded. Kurome widened her smile and let go, looking over to Bols and Run. "Are you two feeling better?"

"Quite well, thank you," Run smiled, glancing at poor Bols in the corner. "Our friend is hard to keep up with, however, so I eventually gave up. For such a large man, who could've guessed that he would find it so difficult to hold his alcohol?"

"You really do drink too much, Bols." Wave shook his head and laughed as the man in question continued to lean against the wall, riding out the last of the alcohol as his nausea finally died down.

"I'm sorry for troubling you all," Bols said shyly, slumping against a chair and staring at the ceiling. The door to the room was suddenly thrown open and he nearly jumped out of his chair, moaning pitifully as the dizziness came back in full force.

"Meeting in Wave's room, huh?" Tatsumi grinned, stepping into the room as Seryu and Dr. Stylish trailed behind. He nodded to the good doctor who in turn closed the door securely behind him, watching with eagerness as Tatsumi withdrew the core from his pocket.

"Then, that is-?!" Dr. Stylish fumbled with his words, trembling with anticipation.

"Yeah," Tatsumi nodded, delicately placing the object in Stylish's hands. "The core of a biological Teigu named Susanoo. If you can remember, he was the blue-haired one we saw at Night Raid's old hideout."

"Yes, yes!" Stylish waved him off, moving to sit in one of the open chairs at the table and fawning over the object. "The one who nearly killed me, yes! But this is tremendous news! How on earth did you keep this intact? A simple arm or leg would have been sufficient to complete a transfer of power, but the whole core-?!" The man rambled and raved, practically drooling at this point as his eyes sparkled dramatically. He turned the core over and over again in his hands, examining the crimson magatama as if it held some secret in its design.

"By the way," Tatsumi said with an eyebrow raised, "I thought you were supposed to be back in the Capital? What are you doing all the way out here?"

"General Esdeath changed the plan," Run chimed in, gesturing toward the boy with one hand. "Without Dr. Stylish on-hand, any damaged Teigu in our possession would remain as such until our return. Her reevaluation was swift, but with so little time to find a suitable replacement, she simply abandoned the notion and carried on as scheduled."

"So that's why we ended up ahead of you guys," Wave added, turning around in his chair. "You had to wait for Dr. Stylish to join the group."

"That's right! You're pretty smart, Wave." Run closed his eyes with a smile, and the boy across from him swelled up with pride.

"Not that smart," Kurome mumbled, nibbling on a piece of candy. Wave's newfound pride immediately plummeted and he glared at her with eyes of fire, easily antagonized by her mocking smile and casual shrug.

"Such is the power of my Teigu," Dr. Stylish said, still examining Susanoo's core. "My Trump, Material Manipulator, allows me to alter the composition of a Teigu and provide it with a significant power-up. In addition, any damaged Teigu can be repaired...to a certain point."

"You can't fix them entirely?" Tatsumi crossed his arms. Sitting in the corner and finally feeling better, Bols hung his head miserably when his thoughts returned to the abandoned Rubicante. Night Raid had most assuredly recovered its remains, and now it was out of his reach.

"I'm afraid not," Stylish replied, setting the core down and tilting his head back to look at the lieutenant. "Once a Teigu is broken, it can never be restored to its full potential. Only the First Emperor could have managed such a feat, given his tremendous knowledge of these ancient relics. Though his son, Second Emperor Kogen, is definitely worth consideration in that regard. Perhaps with the Codex in my possession, I could reach their level one day."

"We'll work on that sometime soon," Tatsumi promised, "but that's also something I wanted to talk to you guys about."

"The Codex?" Seryu tilted her head, finger to her chin as Koro nipped at her leg.

"No, not that. It's just that he reminded me of my other Teigu just now, the one that Kogen supposedly created." Tatsumi raised his left hand and narrowed his eyes, mentally reaching out for the weapon that was bound to him. Within moments his hand was consumed by a familiar burst of light, and the 47th was summoned once more.

"Oh, that. Didn't you say you'd eventually explain that whole story?" Wave asked. "I was there in the room when General Esdeath explained it to us, but you should say it now for everyone to hear."

"It magically deflects things," Kurome added. Tatsumi smiled at her little contribution, silly as it was.

"It's not like I asked for it," Tatsumi began, trailing off when he remembered what had happened. He did indeed call for the weapon that night, back when he and General Esdeath had been attacked by the Leviathan.

"Not really the sword, but I definitely prayed for something...I wanted to live."

Tatsumi cleared his throat, bringing his left hand back down. "Back when we were hunting Danger Beasts, the night when you guys brought me to Fake Mountain, an Ultra-Class appeared."

"The one you tamed," Kurome added quietly, now lying back on her pillow. The weakened girl was on her side, looking through pain-filled eyes that she had carefully hidden from Wave. "I remember."

"Lieutenant Tatsumi tamed a Danger Beast?" Seryu stepped back in a moment of dramatic shock, reminding him way too much of Stylish as the boy in question nodded. "At first it was healing way too quickly, and with its immunity to ice, we really couldn't do much. Esdeath was focused too much on keeping me safe and couldn't fight at her best, and I was too weak to do any better."

"Immune to ice?" Bols gasped, comically bouncing forward in his chair so as to draw closer to the group.

"A Danger Beast with such an ability would certainly be a good counter to the General's own powers," Run pondered. "Then, that weapon in your hand…"

"You're the smart one!" Tatsumi grinned, holding the 47th out again. "Yeah, this thing saved us. It had been sealed in a small idol, a gift from the Elder of my village. The moment it transformed in my hand, something else took over me. It wasn't quite like floating outside of my body, but it was almost like someone else was pulling my strings. Moving my body for me, you know?"

"Doesn't sound too far-fetched," Run replied, flashing a gentle smile of his own. "There do exist certain Teigu that enhance the wielder's abilities on such a level, to the point where that wielder can no longer differentiate between their own strength and the strength of their weapon. Following that logic, your new Teigu-Muramasa, was it?-must be showing its influence through the change in your hair."

"Wait," Tatsumi blinked, genuinely startled. "My hair changed?"

"Just like when you came back," Kurome said meekly, struggling to keep her eyes open as sleep tried to claim her once more. "When you killed the red-haired assassin, some of your hair was white."

"Bolic mentioned it, as well." Run added. "Did you already forget?"

"It's kind of hazy," Tatsumi admitted, rubbing the back of his neck. "When I swing that thing, it's like I'm in another world. Nothing like when I use Incursio. I feel much more comfortable in that armor than I do even holding this thing." With that, Tatsumi flicked his wrist and cast away the sword in another flash of light.

"I would advise that you focus on wielding the Incursio." Run insisted, reaching out to rest a hand on Tatsumi's shoulder. "Compatibility does not appear to be an issue, but if you are not entirely comfortable with wielding such a weapon, then perhaps it would be better for you to leave it alone until you master it. You were making strides with the Incursio, were you not?"

Tatsumi nodded, staring at his feet in shame. "It's...it was what Bulat used. He gave it to me before he died, so in a way, it feels like I'm keeping him alive when I wear it. I've been ignoring it lately, and that makes me feel like trash."

"Why's that?" Wave inquired, stepping up to place a reassuring hand on his friend's shoulder. Torn between conflicting thoughts and ideologies, Tatsumi couldn't even find the resolve to remove that hand.

"Bulat was like a brother to me, my big brother. Just like Leone was a big sister," Tatsumi said pitifully, shaking his head. "He made it clear how much faith he had in me before he died, and when he did, it felt like he took part of me with him. I idolized him. "That's why I can't just keep swinging this new Teigu around. It's tearing me away from Bulat, taking away every hope that he placed on my shoulders."

"Remember that you're not alone," Run said, approaching the boy and placing a hand on his head. Tatsumi blushed a bit at the embarrassing gesture, but listened. "We aren't simply a group of hired thugs, Tatsumi. We are all comrades, and if necessary, we need to be prepared to shoulder the burdens of our friends and allies. It will keep us strong even in the darkest of times."

Tatsumi blinked up at him, stunned into silence.

Run closed his eyes and smiled, his usual expression. "It doesn't matter what allegiance your friends belong to, if they are beloved. Even if you have lost some friends, you still have your new ones."

"Yeah!" Wave added with a smirk. "After all, you're our precious Lieutenant! If we don't keep you happy, then you'll probably get us in trouble!"

"Hey!" Tatsumi snapped, pulling his head back as everyone laughed at his reaction. He blushed again and tried to hide his face, his ears burning brighter than the Rubicante's flames. Kurome managed a soft chuckle, trying to save her energy.

"But Wave," Kurome murmured with faux sadness and a sinister smile, "I don't want to be removed from the Jaegers! I've worked...so hard…"

Even if he knew she was just joking, the sight of Kurome slipping beneath the covers with that sad look on her face nearly pulverized his heart. Even Bols played along, head in his hands as he shook it from side to side.

"Such cruelty...what have we done wrong, Lieutenant Tatsumi-sama?"

The Jaegers laughed even louder, forcing Tatsumi's head against the table once more. Try as he might, he couldn't push his entire skull through the wood and escape that way. Only one option remained.

"I'm getting out of here before the teasing escalates." Tatsumi said with a nervous grin, pulling the door shut behind him as he bailed out of the room. He could still hear the laughter even as he walked down the hall. He heard their laughter even as he lay down, echoing warmly within his mind. Rather than vanishing with the onset of sleep, his smile only widened further.

He felt happy.


"Is the commander still sleeping?" Kurome asked softly, perfectly at ease despite the lively crowd around them. Walking beside the girl and notably less comfortable, Tatsumi turned his head to reply when he bumped into yet another local.

"I really need to pay closer attention out here," he sighed internally.

This time his victim was a giant bear of a man, and clearly the least friendly of them all. With scars over both of his eyes, a forest of whirly-twirly hair upon his face rather than his head, and a single golden tooth, he easily held the most fearsome appearance in all the marketplace. He was muscular in places that Tatsumi didn't even know existed, something that would've added to his intimidating aura if it wasn't so ridiculous.

"Watch it, kid." The man spat, glowering down at the boy and his companion for a moment.

Tatsumi would have been in the clear were it not for his laugh, barely stifled against the palm of his hand as the man turned to walk away. The man's body then immediately went rigid, and he whirled on Tatsumi again with fire in his eyes.

"Are you looking for a fight, you little punk?!"

Bear-Man shoved Tatsumi to the ground, invading his personal space with a miasma of sweat and bad breath. A small crowd immediately formed around the two of them, with Kurome calmly melting into that crowd as if it was none of her business. This did not go unnoticed by her superior officer, obviously.

"And where do you think you're going?" Tatsumi's jaw dropped as she disengaged from the confrontation, clearly in no hurry to help him whatsoever.

"I'm sick," Kurome said with a barely hidden smile, "so you have to deal with it."

"I'm right here, you shit!" Bear-Man roared, arms crossed and lips curled back to reveal his gnarly teeth.

Tatsumi jumped to his feet and stepped over to Kurome, still completely baffled by her abandonment and blatant disregard for his safety and security. Meanwhile Bear-Man, no longer the center of attention, let his arms fall limp at his sides. His own disbelief was Tatsumi's times ten, completely thrown off-guard as the boy continued to ignore him.

"You're supposed to help me in situations like this!" Tatsumi yelled, bringing his hands to rest on her shoulders.

Kurome grabbed his hands at the wrist and twisted, much to his displeasure. A single drop of sweat rolled down the side of her head at his dramatic flailing and crying.

"It huuuurts!"

"Hmm," she hummed with a bigger smile, "maybe I should help? Lieutenant Tatsumi has a very low threshold for pain, after all."

"Don't refer to me in the third-person!" Tatsumi wailed.

"I'm still here!" Bear-Man roared.

"I do what I want." Kurome said simply, releasing Tatsumi's hands. He sniffled and sighed, rubbing the tears from his face. He blinked a couple times, looking around.

"Wait," he pondered aloud, "were we doing something? I forgot."

"Fighting me!" Bear-Man cracked his knuckles.

"Shopping." Kurome offered with a single finger raised, as if pointing to the lightbulb that just went off in her mind. "Now I remember. You were going to buy me a gift."

"I said we were going to 'browse,' you silver-tongued little-"

Another moment of being ignored was the last straw, and Bear-Man finally took a couple of steps toward them. "I'm gonna rip your heads off!"

"Buy." Kurome growled, walking past Tatsumi. He followed her with his eyes, turning around as the crowd also switched their focus to her. Kurome closed the distance between Bear-Man and herself, staring up at him as he stared down at her.

"What the hell are you-?" Tatsumi blinked.

"Me." Kurome said with a little more volume, driving her foot into the giant man's shin. His eyes immediately went bloodshot and unleashed a waterfall of tears, a pained howl filling the air as he hopped on one foot and clutched his wounded leg.

"A Gift." Kurome finished, launching her foot into Bear-Man's other leg. His howl intensified, switching from agony to rage as he glared at the two Jaegers and bared his teeth. A darkness fell over everyone in the crowd, and especially Tatsumi, as they watched the girl turn around and smile cheerfully at him.

"So let's go, okay?"

Tatsumi nodded wordlessly and followed her out of the crowd, still rather shocked by the previous display.

"I'm not finished with you!" Bear-Man roared, bounding after them while alternating which leg he hopped on. Kurome immediately stopped moving in response and turned to face the man, her dangerously sweet smile appearing as Bear-Man froze in place. Tatsumi sighed and crossed his arms, waiting patiently for the conflict to resolve itself.

"Ara," she said cutely, "your legs still look like they hurt."

The man's face went pale, and Kurome tilted her head. Closed her eyes. Smiled even wider.

"Would you like me to take a look at them?"

Bear-Man hopped away as fast as his throbbing legs would take him, much to the amusement of the marketplace around them. Vendors and customers alike turned to Kurome and clapped for her, smiling and laughing with renewed cheer. Tatsumi shook his head with a laugh and joined in the applause, deeply enjoying the euphoric expression on her face. Apparently the man was something of a local nuisance, enough for one of the vendors to offer her basket filled with various local fruits. The young woman thanked them quickly and ran back to her stall, and the two Jaegers gave her a friendly wave before returning to their midmorning journey. Kurome reached for a random fruit, a bumpy yellow sphere with a single leaf still attached to the stem. She took a large bite and froze in place, a look of pure bliss on her face as she savored the succulent sweetness.

"So," Tatsumi chuckled, "how do you like the fruit?

"Super good!" She giggled, skipping happily back to his side. "There's nothing better than the spoils of war, right?"

"Whatever you say."

Together they dived into the very core of the market, the deepest depths of mercantile and mischief. Hot as the arid land may have been, nothing could have prepared them for the heat that waited. Bumping bodies, clattering pots, boiling and bubbling pots of unidentified food. Steam here and there, smoked food smoking in the corner of Tatsumi's eye. His mouth began to water, but he'd hardly looked at the delicious rack of meat before Kurome tugged him along. Much as it may have been for their own safety, he couldn't help but wonder if maybe she insisted on holding his hand for another reason.

Sweaty hands, his and hers. Sweat pouring from their bodies and cast off into the air like everyone else's, a haze of heated claustrophobia. Senses and desires thrown into a melting pot of confusion, torn between the urge to escape and the desire to never leave, to stay forever and see everything. Hot, humid, almost unbearable. Almost.

Kurome dragged him from one stall to the next, never really asking for anything. She seemed perfectly content with staring at the various bits and bobs, the food and the clothing, the treats and the jewelry. Nothing seemed to light a fire in her eyes, and yet he couldn't help but note the the curiosity in her gaze. She wanted to see it all.

"You did want a gift, right?" Tatsumi raised an eyebrow, still entirely mystified by the girl who continued to tug on his aching arm and refuse him even a moment's rest. She'd even threatened to kick him in the shin, at one point, the little monster.

The two Jaegers burst free of the marketplace and nearly collapsed, soaked to the bone with sweat and overwhelmed by all they'd seen. All that looking, all the walking and waiting and watching as Kurome browsed...for nothing. They'd walked out empty-handed.

"I didn't see anything I liked."

"Well, what do you like?" Tatsumi insisted, still gratefully sucking in the cool desert air. Well, it was cooler by comparison, at least. He quickly moved to a nearby bench and collapsed, eyes closed as he leaned back. Even with the heat of the market's core gone from his body, the feeling of claustrophobia was still quite strong. The elbow room returned, but the number of stalls didn't diminish; even now he was sandwiched between two more, with a fresh fish stall waiting across from him. Judging by how one of the baskets was wriggling and bouncing, Tatsumi assumed the fish was indeed quite fresh.

"I don't know, I thought I'd find something." Kurome sat next to him, wiping her forehead with the back of her hand. "We're having fun though, right?"

"I'm doing my best over here." Tatsumi laughed. It was a weak, tired sound, but there was real joy to be found there. To know that he'd been having fun in her company brought a smile to Kurome's face, as well, and she responded with a little laughter of her own.

"It's so crowded in this place." Kurome said, staring up at the clear blue sky. "The streets are narrow, the buildings are all burning-hot because of the sun. It's nothing at all like the Capital."

"Do you not like it?" Tatsumi blinked, turning his head over to look at her. Kurome shrugged, looking back at him.

"Do you?"

"I think it's nice," Tatsumi replied, "since I've always liked to explore. No matter how much the weather might suck, or how often the locals try to beat me up, I think I'll always find something to like about the new places I see. Sure, I almost got beaten up a few times today, and you dragged me through a damn cauldron with your sweaty hands and the promise of mooching off of me…"

Kurome reached ever-so-subtly for the Yatsufusa at her side, eyes shining dangerously…

"...but it's nice," Tatsumi finished, "because at least I was melting in this hellhole with a friend nearby." He flashed her a kind smile and Kurome smiled back, slowly removing her hand from the Teigu's hilt. While calm and collected on the outside, on the inside, Tatsumi was heaving a great sigh of relief.

"That was close."

"And not only that," he continued with a wider grin, "but since I let you drag me out here for your stupid 'date,' it means I didn't have to deal with Esdeath and her incredible hangover."

"I bet the General grows horns when she's angry and sick…" Kurome said with all the quiet fearfulness of a little girl, nibbling gently on one of her prize fruits. With a yawn and a slow blink of the eyes, she took just a brief moment to lay her head on his shoulder when…

"JUST AS I SUSPECTED!"

Both Jaegers fell backwards over the bench when the quivering fish basket up ahead exploded, sending many different kinds of slimy creatures soaring into the air. Wet and slippery prizes came raining down from the sky, landing on various individuals and sending them running in terror. One poor little girl, cute as a button with sandy blonde hair and a doll in her hand, had the misfortune of receiving an octopus upon her face. She ran screaming back into the center of the market, followed by her (very) upset mother. Bear-Man even made a special guest appearance, flailing about and screaming with all the bravado of ten two-year olds as the eels all over his body showed him what they thought about the situation.

Kurome and her astonished Lieutenant brought themselves to sit upright once more, mouths agape at the sight before them. There, standing firm despite the slime all over his body and the furious expressions of the crowd surrounding him, was Wave. Pointing.

Pointing an accusing finger at them both.

"You're making a move on Kurome, you bastard!"

Tatsumi's jaw dropped even lower. A flapping flounder came crashing down from the sky and, like a wrathful bolt of lightning, smacked the top of Kurome's head and sent her falling backwards a second time.

"You were hiding in a barrel of fish?" Tatsumi leapt to his feet. He blinked twice, fireworks exploding in his mind as the puzzle pieces fell into place. "You were spying on us?!"

"If you refer to it as 'spying,' then that is an admission of guilt!" Wave said triumphantly.

"We weren't doing anything!" Tatsumi cried, nearly tearing his hair out at the ridiculousness of it all.

"You're taking her on a date!" Wave cried. "That's fraternization!"

"It's not an actual date, fish-for-brains! She was being coy, like usual! I thought you knew that!"

"Then explain why she had her head on your shoulder!"

"For crying out…" Tatsumi rubbed his temples with irritation. "Are you two seriously going to take this long to do the obvious? Why can't you just drag her up to your room already?"

Wave fell silent. Kurome leaned up from her slumped position, the flounder still wriggling desperately between her furious teeth. Tatsumi looked from one to the other and sighed.

"Really? We're really going to do this right now, in front of all these people?" Tatsumi shrugged. He moved over to Kurome, lifted her up by one arm, and shoved her towards Wave. Still overwhelmed by the situation and obviously lacking her normal coordination, she tripped over her own feet and fell…

Right into Wave's chest. He looked down at her, and she looked up at him. Kurome spat the fish out, and Tatsumi facepalmed. Both of them looked over to their Lieutenant, but the cheeky youth was already walking back to the Palace.

"Enjoy your fraternizing. Take it to the Palace if you want to get serious."

The two entwined Jaegers practically threw themselves away from each other, eyes aflame and wreathed in a dangerous air that forced all of the onlookers away. With the desired result achieved, Tatsumi broke into a sprint and gave it his all. He had to.

They were hunting him.

Blending in seamlessly with the crowd and watching from beneath the hood, Lubbock could hardly contain his bitterness. He watched as his former friend dashed through an alleyway and disappeared from sight, followed by Wave and Kurome. Thinking back on Najenda's wound, his fists clenched.

"You're having fun? Even in this place, surrounded by those people, you'll laugh and play?"