Disclaimer: I make no claim to the series, ideas, or characters of Full Metal Panic.

Defining Normalcy

Chapter 8: A Social Engagement

By Adam Lakewood

Kaname stood, feeling like a goddess in the white, marble shelter. The beautiful, shining, marble shelter was an outcast standing alone at the top of the highest mountain. But, it did not matter. To her, it was more welcome there than anywhere else. The fresh morning breeze blew through the expansive room through the non-existent walls. There were no walls, only smooth marble pillars, as beautiful as the construct itself, to support the eloquent covering over the perfectly polished floor. The breeze picked up and tossed her long hair about and ruffled the white robe which she was wearing. The breeze was very pleasant and just as much welcome and appreciated. Not that the weather was hot, though. Despite the floor not being out in the direct sunlight, it was still rather warm against her bare feet.

Looking through to the outside, she realized exactly how perfectly beautiful her surroundings from atop the mountain were. There was still an early morning mist struggling to maintain its hold at the very base of the mountain from which she could hear the morning birds singing in perfect harmony their song of songs. The trees and grass still sparkled with the early morning's dew still clinging lightly. The trees were of the many extravagant colors of autumn giving view to the most beautiful piece of landscape imaginable. But, the illusions played by the rising sun were the real beholdings.

The sun was slowly crawling its way over the mountaintops, casting fiery shades through the rocky peaks, making the trees' shadows dance about like children at play. As the sun rose, it cast its rays through the cumulus clouds and rising mist, giving off the image of a beautiful, almost purple fog coating the sky. The thin, purple blanket of the sky gave vision to several different colors not common seen in the physical world.

Kaname beheld the sight in the utmost awe. She had never seen anything so beautiful before in her life. The scene was like something from the grandest of dreams.

And, if the moment couldn't have possibly gotten any better, she suddenly felt a strong, yet gentle arm wrap around her shoulders. She was gently clasped to the something solid and warm as the arm pulled her closer to its possessor. Staring out at the world's most beautiful sunrise and being held in a warm embrace by the man behind her, she felt as if she could gladly have stood there in that moment forever if only it could last that long. She might as well enjoy the moment while she can, she thought to herself as she leaned further into the man's embrace, taking in the warmth, welcoming the long desired comfort.

"Certainly is beautiful isn't it?" Sousuke stated rather than questioned.

"Yes, it is." came Kaname's unnecessary answer.

A second more was the only amount of time she was able to look at the grand view before her before she was gently turned around to face him.

He was dressed in the same type of robe she was, and his smile seemed as if it had a whole world of meaning behind it. The look in his eyes made gave her a feeling she had never felt before; the feeling was not bad, if anything it was great. She returned his loving smile which only caused his to brighten.

"But, I still prefer the beauty right in front of me." he stated as he slowly leaned over and towards her face.

Kaname almost felt her heart leap out of her chest. Could this really be happening? Since when did things like this actually work out so well for her? Her questions were answered when he was close enough for her to feel his warmth and smell his aclistic scent.

He bent in closer and she reached out a little until she could almost feel the heat of his lips close to hers.

Thud.

With that, Sousuke quickly opened his eyes and pulled away as if he had just seen her as a snake about to strike.

"Sousuke?" she asked in a disappointed voice.

Thud.

"Sousuke, just ignore it." she said still feeling as if her world were spinning.

Please, do not let the moment be completely ruined. Ignore the sound; it's probably nothing. It wouldn't matter anyway. Let this moment continue and the entire marble structure could fall down around them and she would pay it no heed.

Thud.

Sousuke looked around sorrowfully as he let out a sigh.

"I'm sorry, Kaname. I can't." he stated with his head lowered towards the floor.

"But, why?!" she pleaded desperately, not wanting the moment to end before it really had a chance to start.

Sousuke looked back up at her with an apologetic look on his face.

Thud.

"Because, that's me at the door."

Kaname's eyes suddenly flew open as if they were spring-loaded.

Thud.

She was staring at her general, average structured apartment ceiling with great scorn. She could not believe how ugly it was. It was average, not beautiful like the scene she had just witnessed so vividly in her dream; that made it grotesque. She let out a tired yawn before stretching in her bed, sending her comforter out onto the floor. She groaned as she tiredly rose from her sleeping position to the side of her bed, letting her feet dangle slightly above the carpet.

Thud.

Yep. That must have been him. She looked out into the hallway of her apartment with a malcontent expression. She would have looked at the door in the same way if she could have, even more so Sousuke. Within that lied the paradox. She was slightly agitated at Sousuke for waking her from a dream about him. Strange, but understandable at the moment.

"Coming." she mumbled perhaps to the floor she was looking down upon.

She made the tedious trek down the hallway and into the living room as if she were the walking dead. Finally, after what seemed like miles, she reached her destination: the front door. She placed her hand on the doorknob and looked over at the electric clock on her table to check on the current time. The numbers 6:52 glared at her through the darkness like malicious, glowing, red eyes. She opened the door to reveal the current source of her early morning stress.

Sure enough, she was staring at Sousuke as soon as the door opened. She looked at him through half-open eyes.

"Good morning, Kaname." he said as he extended a plastic cup of steaming coffee in her direction.

She could have reached out and strangled the life out of him if his smile hadn't been beaming brighter than the morning sun which, granted, was almost non-existent at the moment. He just seemed so genuinely happy she couldn't help but smile. The only time she ever remembered him smiling like that was on the rare occasion before he went on that mission to Halmagistein. It had been a long time since she had last seen him smile like that, and it was a very welcome change.

She mouthed out the words 'thank you', being unable to form audible words at such an early hour in the morning, took the cup of coffee, and smiled in return.

Sousuke came in the doorway as she motioned for him to come in. She went and sat down on the couch and patted the part of the couch next to her in signal for him to come sit down. He did so.

He smirked and let out a soft chuckle when he looked over at her taking a sip of her coffee with only half-open eyes.

"I wish you would be quite; it's too early for you to be so talkative."

That earned him a glare which only caused him to laugh. She tried to growl at him, but the smile would not leave her face for some reason. Normally, she wouldn't be muttering a word for a least an hour, but she felt inclined to speak to him.

"Well, I would be talking a bit more if someone, we won't mention any names, wasn't such an early bird."

"Well, you know the saying, 'Early bird gets the worm.'"

"Then, I guess I'm the cat that traps the bird." she said with a forewarning smile.

That caused him to laugh once more. She looked back over at him with a smile when she saw him laughing. She realized that she actually liked the sound of his laughter. For perhaps the first time out of all of the time she had known him, it actually sounded natural, not forced.

"I guess normal people do wait and come at a later hour. That's another part I'll have to work on. I apologize for that; I'm just used to my days beginning at around three o' clock in the morning."

"Nothing to be sorry for, Sousuke. It's actually a nice change to be up early for once. Besides, if you were up at three, I'm sure you were getting quite bored waiting this long."

"No, not at all. It seems as if Mrs. Fara is a morning person also. I've enjoyed her company for the past couple hours. She is actually quite the history buff; she even knows some things that I don't."

Kaname smiled at that.

"So, you're already a big hit with Mrs. Fara, huh?"

"Yes, I believe she actually enjoyed my company as much as I did hers."

"Well, that's good to hear. So, exactly where were you planning on taking me for our first date?" she asked with a hint in her voice.

"Well, I figured it would be a good idea to first get some breakfast. It is said that breakfast is the most important meal of the day since the nutrients will be with you for..." he paused for a moment.

That wasn't exactly something a normal person would talk about. Move on to the next thing.

"Yes, we will go out to get some breakfast. Sometime later in the day, we will go to see a movie. That seems to be something that I've found normal couples do on a date; am I correct?" he said as if he were proud of this bit of knowledge.

"Sounds great, Sousuke." Kaname said.

"Good. That is the most I have planned out for this date. And, since I'm taking you on the date, I figured we would spend the rest of the time doing what you want to do."

Kaname smirked at that last bit of information. He was a lot more normal than the Sousuke she knew before, but he still had a bit to learn.

"Sousuke, if you're taking me out on a date, you are supposed to be the one who decides what to do."

Sousuke looked absolutely confused.

"That makes absolutely no sense, Kaname. I mean, what if you don't like the things I choose for us to do on your date. This way, it is guaranteed that you will enjoy your date if you choose the things to do. Then, next time when you take me out on a date, I can choose the things to do on my date so that way it will be enjoyable to me."

Kaname opened her mouth to support her argument, but she started to realize it would be somewhat difficult to argue something that made so much sense. She instead settled on...

"Is that so?"

"Affir... yep." he simply stated.

"And, what do you mean when I take you on your date. Rather sure of yourself, aren't you?"

Sousuke smirked pridefully and triumphantly as if he had accomplished a major task. He had fully thought through every aspect of his strategy. It was a flawless.

"Of course, I am. This way, you can't complain about not having a good time on your date if you choose what to do, and I can't complain about not having a good time on my date if I choose what to do. Also, if by chance you do not enjoy my company on this first date, which is highly unlikely..." he said as he turned his gaze toward her with a cocky grin on his face.

"... it will still give me a second chance to improve that aspect since you will feel inclined to at least take me on a date since I did the same for you. My plan is flawless." he said as he stretched with a groan and relaxed a bit more on the couch.

Kaname smiled as she took another sip of her coffee. He sounded so sure of himself. He had definitely changed a lot. He seemed to be so cocky, which she didn't mind in the slightest; she actually liked that new personality trait of his.

"Wow! We certainly do have an ego the size of a planet, don't we?" she inquired with a smirk.

"Nope. Just me." he said, smirking at his own wit.

Kaname caught that little bit too. She let out a chuckle once she caught the entire understanding of his meaning. She nudged him in the ribs, causing him to jump in surprise as she got up.

"Well then, Mr. Ego, allow me to go get ready and we'll leave out on this extravagant date." she said emphasizing on the word extravagant.

"I never said it would be an extravagant date, Kaname." Sousuke said, actually sounding worried.

Kaname turned around and gave him a wary smile as she started heading down the hallway.

"Well, from the way you let on, this had better be the best date I have ever been on. Not to mention, after today, you will find me simply irresistible. I had better feel the same way towards you, buster!" she said, ending with her trademark 'hmmmph!'

Sousuke gulped. Perhaps he had bitten off more than he could chew.

"I'll... try not to let you down."

Kaname looked behind her to take in his nervous expression, but that wasn't all she took in. He was dressed rather nicely and was exceptionally cleaned up for it being so early. She watched as he turned his face away from her and looked out the window. He threw his arms up on the back of the couch and semi-crossed his leg over the other. She couldn't help but notice the drastic change in his appearance from what she remembered. He was no longer the boy she remembered. His new appearance and casual, professional clothing gave him the look of a gentleman. She had been called many things before except for a lady in the professional sense. Perhaps she was asking for more than she could handle. She turned the doorknob of the door leading to her bedroom, stepped inside, and closed the door behind her.

As soon as she was inside, she quickly went to her closet and began looking for her nicest clothes. Sousuke certainly looked as if he went through a lot of trouble to look as handsome as he did this morning, she certainly couldn't disappoint him. The problem was finding something that could back up her previous words.

The words replayed themselves in Sousuke's head. She wanted this date to be absolutely extravagant. He had only heard that word used in a lot of movies about people of high class society. He hoped that wasn't what she expected.

As soon as Kaname's door closed behind her, Kaname opened her closet and went for her best clothes, and Sousuke opened his jacket and went for his dictionary.

Extravagant.

TO BE CONTINUED