The Situation in Touma

by The Brute Squad

AU: Kamui Hoshido, middle child of the Hoshido family and employee at the renowned Hoshido Fashion Label, receives an unusual request from her older brother. Soon, complications arise, old secrets are dredged into daylight again and Kamui finds herself tangled between the fates of her own family and their rivals'.

2. The Offer

Disclaimer: Sadly I don't own Fire Emblem, but any original plot belongs to me so please don't steal.

---

The Offer.

For the first day of her unemployment, it still felt surreal. Kamui understood in a completely binary manner what had happened and what she had agreed to do, but it still didn't feel tangible to her then. She agreed to drinks with Kaze and Oboro on the night, and she and Kaze spent much of it listening to Oboro getting furious on her behalf.

"Honestly," Oboro had said, "I swear it's like I'm angrier about it than you are!"

Her navy-haired friend had delegated herself to the role of stout protector and insisted that she stay over for the night. Kamui more than welcomed the company. Her slight mental absence must have been visible because Oboro had endlessly drilled Kamui on Takumi's favourite recipes for a 'special birthday feast' (deaf to Kamui's sensible reminder that it was only July and her brother's birthday wasn't until 14th December). On the other hand, Kaze had been quiet (even for him) until he pulled Kamui aside at the end of the night.

"I know something….suspicious is going on," he'd confessed, "and I won't push you to explain, but please be careful."

On her second day, Kamui drifted through her one-bedroom bungalow at a loss for what to do. She checked and re-checked her CV, sent it through to the Nohr address Kagerou had provided and wasted half an hour on Spider Solitaire waiting for a reply. She puttered around her tiny garden, poking at the small bed of vegetables and overloading the Bird Feeders, trying to convince herself that she was occupied. When Oboro finally left work, Kamui practically rushed out to chatter to the young woman as she left her car.

The duo thoroughly cleaned her house, Oboro tackling the polishing with the same gusto she tended to approach all things in life while Kamui dutifully followed her barked orders. That done, Oboro divulged that the gossip mags were having a field day speculating slander over Kamui's dismissal. Most portrayed Ryoma as heartless, even falsifying an 'eye-witness' account of Kamui stumbling from the Hoshido Building in floods of tears. The news worried Kamui, pained to see her brother's reputation dragged through the dirt but a later text from Saizou told her to stop 'babying' since they had it under control.

It was midday on the third day (Friday) that the reality of what had happened hit Kamui. She blinked. The movies always portrayed realisation as a thunderbolt or a hammer, one brilliant moment of stark understanding that made brutal, unforgiving contact. Kamui found it nothing like that. The closest thing she could compare the sensation to, was being very slowly submerged in water and discovering she could still breathe. There was a jittery panic far in the back of her head and her mind was telling that the situation was abnormal, but her life did not come screeching to a halt.

She flicked off the TV just as Gerome the masked anti-hero was about to enter his final showdown with the antagonist, and grabbed her shoes. She was five seconds away from unlocking her front door when her home phone rang. She froze. Whatever half-formed plan that had suddenly possessed her sieved through her mind like grains of sand through her fingers. No one rang her home phone. She sometimes forgot she even had one.

Kamui dropped her keys on the shoe rack in her tiny porch and approached the receiver as if it might leap at her at any given moment.

Licking her lips she placed it against her ear, and pressed the correct button, "….hello?"

"Hello, is that Kamui Hoshido?" asked a voice. One that was rich and feminine and reminded Kamui of the full-bodied temptresses of the 1950s.

"Speaking," Kamui replied brightly.

She could hear a smile in the voice as it said, "Ufufu, how polite. This is Camilla Nohr."

"Eh?" Kamui blinked, "…C-Camilla Nohr?"

The woman was infamous, as much for her beauty as her ruthless ability to secure contracts. Her personal team were unflinchingly loyal, and she'd become something of a fashion icon among the younger generations. That, and well….her bust was pretty legendary. Kamui was embarrassed to admit that was the first thing that immediately bounced to mind when she'd heard the name. She couldn't help an instinctive glance at her own average bust.

Camilla hummed in affirmation, "We heard about that nasty business with your brother's label, how are you, sweetheart?"

"I'm fine," Kamui replied, her tone colder despite herself.

"…How curt," Camilla's voice sounded more curious than upset, "I'm sorry, I must have offended you."

"N-No, no, I'm sorry….that was uncalled for," Kamui sighed, pressing the heel of her hand against her forehead, "You only asked a question, I shouldn't have been so sharp."

Camilla laughed as Kamui stumbled over herself to apologise, "Ufufu, you're adorable."

"Er...sorry, I must have misheard that, did you just call me 'adorable'?"

"I did," her words curled in a way that made Kamui think of postcard images of cats basking on window seats, warm and satisfied, "In fact, Kamui, I'm calling to offer you a position here at Nohr."

"Y-you're offering me a job?" Kamui repeated dumbstruck.

While that was what they had been working towards, she certainly hadn't anticipated Nohr to make the first move. In fact Kamui had been prepared for an uphill battle just trying to get into the company in the first place. Nohr's tactics were bewildering.

"That's right…though if it makes you uncomfortable I completely understand," Camilla's voice shifted to something far softer and kinder than the media's seductress image of her would have someone believe possible. The care was genuine, another factor in a long list of things that confused Kamui about this conversation.

"W-well I…" she sighed, recollected her thoughts and tried to shuffle them into appropriate order before asking, "why?"

Camilla hummed in surprise, "'why'?"

"Yes," Kamui's brows furrowed with purpose, "why are you doing this?"

"You're skilled."

"In Languages."

"Perhaps we need a translator?" Camilla teased.

Kamui couldn't help chuckling at that, though she tried to rein it in quickly. This was no time for humour!

"You're experienced," she continued.

"Three years at a rival company," Kamui countered.

"Three years at a fashion label, one whose prestige is equal to Nohr's. I won't lie, Kamui, part of the reason I'm speaking to you is because of your family-"

Kamui shifted uncomfortably at that.

"-but what if I told you it wasn't for the reasons you think?"

"….Really?" Kamui asked with a hopeful edge.

"Yes," the smile was back in Camilla's voice again, "That, and I think you're possibly the cutest thing I've ever seen."

"W-what?" Kamui's cheeks were flaming.

"Ufufu, what a reaction. I'm looking forward to picking you up for your interview tomorrow. Don't worry; I already have the address. Till then, dear Kamui."

"Oh, erm, goodb-"

The call disconnected with a soft click. Kamui stood there in the hallway, staring at the receiver in utter confusion, her cheeks still bright red. What exactly had just happened?

/

"It's a trap."

Saizou's judgement was so swift and final, that it took a few moments before anyone could discuss it further. In their business attire, Kamui had expected Saizou and Kagerou to look out-of-place but the duo had an uncanny habit of camouflaging into any environment. The environment in this case being Kamui's little bungalow, located at the end of a cul-de-sac on the fringes of Touma City.

Kamui did not inhabit a stylish, modern flat like Takumi and Oboro, nor did she have the sprawling grounds and traditional architecture of the Hoshido family home. The vast majority of her neighbours were elderly and retired, which left the area with a perpetual sleepy, intimate atmosphere. Kamui had, in fact, purchased her own bungalow from an elderly woman who had relocated to a Care Home at her son's insistence. As a result the place had been in a dire state of disrepair (inside and out) and had acquired the stubborn stench of cat pee and soiled lavender.

Kamui had lost count of how many bottles of aerosol she and Oboro had sacrificed to the cause, but two years later her home still smelt of Summer Meadows and Citrus Blast. Attempting to cater to the already rustic (Takumi preferred the more honest 'old') character, Kamui had acquired most of her furniture from hand-me-downs and what bargains Mikoto managed to nab at Antique Actions. Her favourite colour of deep crimson was a running theme, somehow she had managed to squash three wardrobes and a king size bed into her bedroom, and littered here or there was some trace of Eastern influence; but for someone who dressed so femininely Kamui's home was surprisingly Spartan. Only the narrow hallway (which led from her living room to her bedroom and bathroom) was overly cluttered with framed photographs, making the already claustrophobic space seem even smaller. Kamui had no doubt that her little bungalow seemed ratty to Kagerou and Saizou, who lived in the more high-end proportion of the distinctly Japanese side of the city. She doubted Kagerou would judge, but Saizou had already looked at the lack of secure locks with critical scrutiny.

"To what end?" Kagerou questioned, her expression thoughtful as she folded her arms and leaned back against the countertop, "Although I don't disagree that the offer is suspicious."

"They'll interrogate her about Hoshido," Saizou glared across at Kamui, "she'll break, no doubt about that."

Kamui, looking affronted, opened her mouth to deny Saizou's claim on 'inevitable betrayal', but Kagerou cut across.

"They already have a spy in Hoshido," she said, ever the voice of reason, "what would be the point in recruiting a fired employee for the same purpose? No, there must be another reason. Likely they intend to exact an emotional blow against Ryoma and the Hoshido family, or at least damage his reputation and elevate their own by hiring the sister portrayed as the victim by the press. "

Camilla's words glided through Kamui's mind like a stream of perfume from a passer-by.

"I won't lie, Kamui, part of the reason I'm speaking to you is because of your family but what if I told you it wasn't for the reasons you think?"

"Maybe…maybe there is no ulterior motive?"

Kamui balked when she realised she'd spoken the words aloud and the other two occupants of the room were staring at her gravely.

Saizou snorted in a derisive manner, "Don't be so childish. These are the same assholes that employed a corporate spy, you really think they'd just hire Ryoma's little sister because of your résumé?"

A flush broke across Kamui's cheeks at his words. The sudden desire to spring from her chair had her legs jittering as the shame of being scolded and her own indignation fought for supremacy. Was it childish to think that her skills would be in anyway desirable? Was the option of giving Camilla the benefit of the doubt so ridiculous? Despite being a member of the Nohr Label (and in a sense automatically her enemy) Camilla was still a human being who had proven to be more than capable at her job. She'd sounded sincere on the phone, so why was it such an impossibility that Camilla simply had the savvy to hire someone who would benefit the company? Everyone may see Kamui as Ryoma's little sister, just another component in the Hoshido Empire (and not even the most talented one at that) but that did not necessarily make her useless, did it?

Maybe it did, because she had consigned herself to such. She couldn't say she regretted going into the family business, but she realised with a sickly knotting in her gut that she had no place to argue with Saizou. Kamui was doing this for Ryoma, and she reminded herself that she'd never been skilled with these things. There was a larger game afoot, to survive she'd have to trust in the direction the more experienced players steered her. Swallowing her bruised pride, Kamui nodded stiffly though it was nigh impossible to look either of them in the eye for the rest of the duration of their stay.

Saizou exited her porch with a curt grunt, before spiriting away into the BMV shored against the curb of the dinky cul-de-sac.

"Thank you," Kamui said as she pulled Kagerou's coat from the stand and handed it to the older woman, "for coming over so quickly, I know Ryoma said to try not to contact you too much but…."

"It was no problem," Kagerou smiled, "We're glad you called, this new turn of events is disturbing, so please do not hesitate to do so in future. I fully intend to be of use to you and Ryoma, no matter the situation."

The brunette wrapped the coat about herself but paused with a hand resting on the handle, "Kamui, what Saizou said…."

"Eh? Don't worry about that," Kamui smiled and waved her hands as if she could waft away Kagerou's guilt like a bad smell, "it's fine, he's only looking out for Ryoma and I understand that."

"Still," Kagerou replied firmly, "he spoke to you in a disrespectful manner, please forgive us."

Kagerou immediately dipped in a formal bow and Kamui scrambled to straighten her again. Kagerou was so serious and contentious about the people surrounding her, Kamui respected her so much that seeing the brunette bow to her was distinctly embarrassing.

"There's nothing to forgive, Kagerou!" her voice had risen to slightly desperate, "J-just please stop!"

"Very well," Kagerou replied with a small, maternal smile, "I will scold Saizou for his conduct later."

"S-scold?"

She nodded once, her expression solemn, "Sometimes it is necessary."

"…W-what?"

"Goodbye Kamui, and good luck," then she, like her husband before her, left.

"Eh?" Kamui breathed in the empty porch. For the second time that day, Kamui felt like she'd missed a vital component of the conversation. Still frowning to herself with confusion, Kamui pulled her phone from her pocket and messaged Kaze.

Kamui: You may want to warn your brother. Kagerou says he's in for a 'scolding'? :S

Kamui watched the three little reply dots dance across her screen then disappear only to repeat the process again.

Kaze: Please, just disregard it (uncomfortable smiley).

Kamui: XD Kaze, you have to make the smileys with your keys not just write the word smiley lol

Kaze: Ah

Kaze: I see

Kaze:…lol?

Kamui giggled so hard she had to stifle it with her hand, while the other absently relocked her front door. Kaze had always been lost when it came to technology, sometimes having to rely on Kamui to guide him. Kamui wondered who he'd turn to in the office for such help now she was gone. The thought prompted an aching pang in her chest. Her smile smoothed into something more bittersweet as she replied.

Kamui: Please never change, Kaze :')

Kaze: For your sake, I'll make an effort not to (: (is that correct?)

Kamui: Yes! :D So, how has your day been?

The red leather giving a dry huff as if out-breath as she resettled herself on the sofa and turned on the laptop on her coffee table. She spent the next hour diverting her attention between texting Kaze, and continuing her monthly research on Nohr's line (something that had become a habit after Orochi first gave her the tip when Kamui began working at Hoshido). Once again, what Nohr had to offer in the way of anything inventive or eye-catching had dwindled further, something that had been happening with creeping regularity that year. Kamui remembered being amazed by the sharpness of Nohr's designs when she had first started at Hoshido; the boldness and confidence, the way they had viciously tip-toed the line between grandeur and immodesty.

Hoshido's line had always been breathable beauty, the sort of clothes that made their wearer feel ethereal and cherished. Kamui had fallen in love with grace and nobility to Hoshido's finished products that simply could not replicated by anyone else. Nohr, however, had always been a direct contrast to that, still stunningly beautiful but with an aggressive, darker edge that Hoshido lacked. Only in the privacy of her thoughts could Kamui admit that she mourned the way Nohr seemed to be steadily fading into the niche market of luxury but…uninspired formal wear.

The pointer on Kamui's mouse hovered over her CV for a moment. Hesitation played a game of tug-and-war with her heart.

"You're experienced."

"Three years at a rival company."

"Three years at a fashion label, one whose prestige is equal to Nohr's."

Saizou's voice nipped at the heels of Camilla's.

"Don't be so childish. These are the same assholes that employed a corporate spy, you really think they'd just hire Ryoma's little sister because of your resume?"

Three years of experience. A University Degree in Languages. A role in the Chief Customer and Supplier Relations Team at Hoshido. A prominent Fashion Label, whispered one part of Kamui's mind. The family business, whispered another.

Kamui: …Kaze?

Her green-haired friend was a slow at typing, and by the time he'd replied Kamui had unconvinced herself then convinced herself multiple times.

Kaze: Yes, Kamui?

She typed quickly and sent with a burst of determination.

Kamui: Do you think I'm personally qualified?

Kamui: Not qualified but, er, skilled?

Kaze: Yes

Kaze: Of course.

Kaze: Do you?

Forcing herself not to think too deeply on what she was doing, least she lose her courage, Kamui's fingers flew over her keypad at speeds Kaze could only dream to replicate. When one word had appeared on screen, others followed in a flurry, galloping past the part of Kamui's brain that safe-guarded such things like some wild creature suddenly turned loose.

Kamui: I'm not sure.

Kamui: I used to be sure. I used to think being part of Hoshido family was all that mattered.

Kamui: I STILL think that

Kamui: I don't think that'll EVER change

Kamui: But I'm starting to wonder where the line between help and hinder is

Kamui: And I've put so many things on hold, and

Kamui: That's selfish, sorry

Kamui: -.- I'm just unloading everything on you, Kaze, sorry

Kamui: Sorry again ):

Kaze: What is you want, Kamui?

Kaze's calm and perceptive reply made Kamui sigh. Here, she was using him like some last-minute confessional for a bunch of irrelevant doubts and the man still had her best interests at heart. Though if anyone understood it was Kaze. Kamui thought back to the little girl who'd tacked pictures of all the places she was going to explore and all the people she was going to meet, on her bedroom wall. The schoolgirl who, after her father's death, found some comfort in learning languages because she felt there was something immensely special about understanding what the one foreign student said when he was lost in a sea of strangers. To the teenager determinedly practicing German nouns with cue cards with her boyfriend, planning where they'd live and who she'd work for and what breed of dog they'd own. Then she thought of the young woman from hours prior, who had swallowed her tongue at Saizou's rebuke.

She loved her job (ex-job in a manner of speaking), loved her family and the people she worked with. As precious as those irreplaceable things were, Kamui still felt like she had been given them. It was a dizzying sensation, recognising that she had had little control in her past and what felt like little control in the direction of her future either.

Kamui: I think I'd like to prove I'm worth being a member of the Hoshido family.

Kamui: Or at least know there's more than that to me

Kamui: Does that make sense?

Kaze: Complete sense.

Kaze: Then do so.

So simple yet utterly true. Kamui uttered one incredulous, soft laugh as she stared at the reply. Why didn't she just do so? Why couldn't she now? She was doing this for Ryoma, but there was nothing to say that she couldn't complete her part with some distinction. Of course, Kamui wasn't sure how she was going to achieve that but that was largely forgotten in the wake of her new resolve. She would protect the Hoshido label, her father's legacy and his children's beloved vocation, and she would do it in a manner that would make them proud.

Kamui: Thank you Kaze

Kamui: You have no idea how much hearing that meant to me

Kaze: I have some idea, you've said similar to me before (:

Feeling energised, Kamui raced to her room to pick out an outfit for Camilla's visit tomorrow.

/

Camilla Nohr arrived in a haze of lulling floral perfume and an air of the highlife. Kamui could personally attest to this, as she was enveloped in both upon opening the door and immediately finding herself squeezed into a hug. She couldn't say that she had ever found herself pressed into an embrace with a complete stranger before, so it was understandable that the shock felt like her brain had run full-pelt into her skull.

Kamui managed to squeak into the pillow of Camilla's bosom. Suddenly the purple-haired woman pulled back until an incredibly bewildered Kamui was dangling an arm's length away.

"You're even cuter in real life," Camilla purred, smiling at her appraisingly, "like a little kitten."

"K-kitten?" Kamui choked.

Camilla nodded, looking pleased and rather feline herself.

"Now," she turned in a swish of fitted wrap dress and knee-high boots, "grab your shoes and we'll get under way."

"...Did you just hug me?" replied a shell-shocked Kamui.

"No need for money, dear, lunch is my treat," Camilla continued, Kamui's question remaining ignored.

Kamui nabbed a flowing pale red scarf from the coat stand, wound it once about her pale neck and slipped on her heels, before hurrying after Camilla. Despite only being in the woman's company for all of three minutes, Kamui predicted that she'd spend most of her morning in the same fashion. Still reeling slightly from the other woman's overly-familiar reception, Kamui shied away further when Camilla took her hand in hers and swung them as the pair walked like they were child and parent.

"Oh?" Camilla blinked noticing Kamui's red-face, "…You do not do such things in your culture, do you?"

"Erm, not really…."Kamui answered weakly, "Holding hands and hugging is really only something done with someone you're very close with like friends or family."

"I see," Camilla smiled brightly, though Kamui noticed the admission had done nothing to stop the woman from holding her hand until they reached the car.

There was something a little charming in that, but Kamui sincerely hoped that Camilla's spontaneous bouts of deafness were not about to become a regular theme. Regardless of the warmth of the gesture, publically being treated like a toddler was still embarrassing.

"Here we are," Camilla's smile arched into a smirk at Kamui's anxious expression.

"T-This is your car?" Kamui breathed.

Camilla hummed and nodded.

Although she did know the name of the vehicle, Kamui could only imagine it was something sleek and foreign. Glossy black, low and teeming with the promise of horsepower, the car had forgone the pavement altogether due to its sheer girth. She thought of big cats, of Panthers and Tigers, thought of fangs and claws under each graceful curve of bodywork. Some of the airplanes Hinoka piloted probably weren't as expensive as Camilla's sports car. The taller woman slid behind the driver's seat, fitting a glove of the same black leather as the upholstery onto each hand before popping the passenger door open. It was hot and cloudless (rare weather for the UK) enough so that she could already smell a distant barbeque and see the snail trails drying to nothing on the heated pavement; but she had the bizarre notion that the car would still be cool to the touch. Kamui may not have known the name of the car, but she did know that she didn't want to get in it.

"Don't be frightened," Camilla said, both her smile and her voice soothing as Kamui hesitated on the pavement, "I'll protect you."

"….Miss Nohr, please don't take offence but may I ask a question?"

"Please call me Camilla, and of course."

Kamui licked at her lips, "Why are you treating me like….," she paused, searching for the correct term but found none, "well, like you're treating me?"

The replying grin was wide and unashamed, Camilla's eyes crinkling into happy little crescents as she said, "Ufufu, what a silly question. It's because I think you're cute, of course."

Kamui's flustering at the answer only seemed to amuse Camilla more.

"There's no need to feel embarrassed."

Kamui steeled herself. Even though Camilla's apparent fondness for her could be considered a blessing, it was not ideal. Only last night Kamui had decided to handle this situation to the very best of her abilities, something she felt could be seriously hindered if she was red-faced or spluttering into Camilla Nohr's cleavage.

"I'm sorry Miss Nohr, but please understand that I am an adult, and being treated in such a manner could not only prove to be undermining but also jeopardise your authority among-Urk!"

Kamui had not been given the opportunity to protest her case fully, before Camilla was tugging her into the car and buckling her seatbelt up for her.

"M-Miss Nohr?" Kamui gaped at the blatant disregard for personal space again.

"Hold onto something, Kamui dear," Camilla winked.

This time Kamui did not even time to question the ominousness of that remark before the sports car growled twice, the entire frame trembling enough to set the leather seats vibrating as it shook off sleep. Without warning it lurched forward, peeling up the street in an orchestra of squealing tires and pungent smoke. A scream rose and lodged there in Kamui's throat, snatched away on the wind now streaming through her hair. Contrary to most car adverts, recklessly breaking the Speed Limit was not a pleasant sensation at all. Her heart felt like it was still suspended on her road, miles behind her, and she was losing all feeling in the fingers clawed into the sides of her seat. Camilla laughed with naked joy, a sound with a wild and slightly bloodthirsty undertone to it that did very little to help settle the hard, petrified lump in Kamui's belly.

When they grew closer to the centre of the city, Camilla added yet more momentum to the impossible speeds they were going. She whooped again when they veered onto the main road in one tear-inducing swing. When she actually started swerving between traffic Kamui frantically put her head between her legs and prayed. Consequently, it was unsurprising that Kamui had little to no idea where they were when Camilla finally rolled to a stop. Kamui wasn't exactly sure who she was after that journey, never mind how exactly they were both alive.

The smile on the older woman's face dropped at the sight of how pale her companion was, "Kamui! Are you okay?"

Kamui attempted to answer but another wave of vertigo had her fumbling for the door handle. Outside the sports car she fell to her hands and knees, thanking the White Dragon as the nausea abated somewhat at the feel of solid pavement beneath her palms. She was never getting in a car with Camilla Nohr again. She'd walk back home if she had to.

"There, there," Camilla hushed, rubbing comforting circles in Kamui's back, "Feeling a little better?"

"Yes, thank you," Kamui tried to regain some dignity by rising shakily and giving the best smile she could under the circumstances.

"Good," Camilla replied with her own soft smile, "I'm very sorry, Kamui. I'm used to driving like that and I forgot that it can be a shock to others, please forgive me."

The regret was so heartfelt that Kamui found it impossible to do anything but.

"I-it's fine."

Camilla sighed, "And I'd so wanted to make a good first impression….Here."

Kamui blinked as a bottle of water was held directly in her gaze, close enough to watch the trail of one drop of condensation slide from its chilled surface. She took a grateful gulp, delicately wiped the corners of her mouth and handed it back to Camilla.

"Thank you," she smiled shakily.

"It was no trouble," Camilla purred, looking far more content now that colour was returning to Kamui's skin, "Have you ever been here before?"

Kamui glanced up at the awning drooping over them in jolly blue and white pinstripe. Shadowed under it was Ice Cream Diner, decked out in chrome and retro nostalgia. Jukebox music drifted down from the windows, under-laid by childish laughter and the pour of Coffee Machines. Despite the early hour, it was hot out and as a result the Ice Cream Parlour was packed with sticky-fingered toddlers too young for school yet. She was not entirely sure what she had been expecting but it had not been this. The establishment was more suited to hold a children's birthday party than an informal interview, but (as Kamui was beginning to discover) any questioning of Camilla's quirks was an exercise in futility.

"No," Kamui curiously peered into the window and was pleasantly surprised by the attention to detail (right down to the black-and-white tile floor).

"I used to come here all the time with Elise, she used to let me pamper her with double scoops of Strawberry Swirl," Camilla sighed with affectionate nostalgia, "…I always find myself wanting Ice Cream when the weather's hot and remembering those days."

"I can understand that," Kamui replied softly, "I try to take Sakura to Sweet Tooth Bakery as often as I can, even if costs a small fortune."

There was a twinkle in Camilla's eye as she smiled then, "it is hard work being a big sister but I don't regret a moment of it."

Kamui hurried after her as she held the door open for the younger woman, "How old is Elise?"

"Hmm?" Camilla hummed as she searched for an available spot on the counter, "She was fourteen in March, my, how quickly they grow."

"Just a year younger than Sakura. What's she like, your little sister I mean?"

"I can't imagine how anyone couldn't immediately love her. Elise is a very sweet girl," Camilla voice rang with barefaced pride, "with a big heart and she's so bubbly sometimes it is difficult to keep up with her, but that's have the fun of it."

"It seems to run in the family," Kamui replied, blushing when she realised that this was not Kaze and she had no notion of how Camilla would react to any light teasing. She was evidently very devoted to her siblings and Kamui worried that her comment may have been taken as a slight.

However, her trepidation was unfounded, "Ufufu, maybe so," finally the counter emptied, "a double scoop Mint Choc Chip for me, Kamui what would like?"

"Oh, just a single scoop Vanilla, please?"

"Vanilla?" Camilla blinked, "Are you sure? You don't have to worry about money, this is my treat remember?"

"I'm sure," Kamui nodded decisively, "Vanilla's my favourite."

"You're favourite colour?" Camilla asked with evident growing interest. They accepted their cones and settled at the counter, Camilla swinging one leg over the other while Kamui adopted her usual proper posture.

"Hrmm, definitely red," Kamui answered in between a mouthful of Ice Cream, "especially dark red."

"My," she leaned back in her seat in her seat, "a woman whose favourite flavour is Vanilla but whose favourite colour is red, the colour of passion, what a unique mix."

Kamui was unsure of how she should respond to that, so she wisely decided not to. Ten minutes later, her hope that the conversation would have shifted into more business-related territory was dwindling rapidly. Camilla was stubborn in her desire to learn more about her and being learned about in turn, mercilessly disregarding any attempts Kamui made to ask about her offer or the Nohr Fashion Label. As a result Kamui began to stitch together a patchwork image of the woman across from her.

She spoke of her family affectionately and often, especially her younger sister, to such a degree that Kamui found it mystifying how this side of Camilla Nohr hadn't been brought to the public eye. The newspapers painted her as a tease; yet although the two young women garnered more than their fair share of double takes, not once did Camilla divert her attention from Kamui to bless her admirers with a sly wink. Sitting across from Camilla Nohr, having a conversation with her in some retro Diner over Ice Cream, Kamui could not correlate what she'd been told of the business woman and what she'd actually seen. They had had her wrong. All those tabloids and gossip columns about some voracious socialite with little to no regard for her underlings were writing about a ghost.

Maybe Camilla did try to encourage that image or maybe she had been like that before, but Kamui only knew the woman who handed her a napkin to dab at the Ice Cream in the corners of her mouth, and she found her a little…lonely. The playfulness and the mothering appeared so much more harmless now Kamui had some context. She couldn't shake the impression that Camilla craved to feel needed. What Camilla said indicated that the only role that she had ever done so in was as a big sister, so she compensated by trying to become a big sister to everyone. There were moments when they'd be talking about Camilla's love for fast vehicles (be they plane, car or boat) or when she touched on the subject of being fired by Ryoma, that a dangerous edge sharpened the curl of her smile but Kamui never felt unsafe during the half an hour they wasted together.

She'd always believed that she'd thought of the Nohr family as humans but it was only when the relief surfaced that Kamui recognised that that wasn't entirely true. It was difficult not to have some perceived negative notion of them when growing up from Japanese background in Touma, especially when your last name was Hoshido. Racial slurs were common in Touma High School and the papers had always seemed keen on passively inciting the situation further. With some shame, Kamui can admit that although they tend to keep their rivalry less… venomous when she was in the room Takumi and Ryoma had never exactly been the most charitable towards the Nohr family either. It was not exactly in the perimeters of what she'd promised to achieve but she only hoped that the rest of Camilla's siblings helped dislodge that buried prejudice.

"So," Camilla voiced as they began sliding from their seats and collecting their bags, "we shall see you at 8am on Monday?"

"Oh," Kamui blinked then grinned, "Yes, yes of course."

Camilla's smile unfurled across her face in a wave of pure satisfaction, "Ufufu, good. It's been lovely spending the morning with you, Kamui, we shall have to do this again."

"Wait!" Kamui hurried towards where Camilla had paused at the door, "Don't you want my references or anything? I've got it all in my bag here, one moment please-"

"Kamui," the taller woman hushed, reaching out a hand to gently halt Kamui digging through her bag, "There's no need. You already have the job."

That statement made such a total lack of sense that Kamui could only stand there, mouthing wordlessly like she'd suffered blunt head trauma. Firstly, why offer the job at such a notoriously demanding company on so little information? Technically speaking she was qualified with prior experience in the industry, but those alone hardly outweighed the disadvantages of hiring her. No interviews, no training days, no…well nothing substantial in the way of the usual procedure of these things. She wouldn't anticipate such a lax approach from her local takeaway never mind a company as infamous as Nohr. Apparently Kamui's employment was based solely on her CV and a five minute phone call.

Secondly, if Camilla had just decided on hiring her on the premise of her CV alone, why invite her out at all? Although she liked the woman and she could understand the importance of gaining a more individual impression of a co-worker; Camilla Nohr was an extremely busy woman who likely had people more important to her that she'd prefer to spend what little free time she had with.

"I…I have the job?" Kamui frowned.

Camilla hummed and nodded, "Today was only about getting to know you…Of course, if you'd rather reject our offer I won't be offended."

"No!" Kamui blurted then coloured as an elderly couple turned to glare at her, "I mean no, I'd like to work there, very much so. I mean," Kamui took a breath to expel the last of her momentary panic before bowing slightly at the waist, "I'd be honoured to accept your offer, thank you."

She wasn't given the opportunity to rise as Camilla had already smuggled her into another spine-bending hug.

"Ufufu," the taller woman chuckled, "You're so adorable."

She pulled back and Kamui greedily made use of the space to gasp for air. Camilla pushed a neatly folded piece of paper into Kamui's palm; who on closer inspection was unsurprised to discover a phone number, nose wrinkling slightly at the flowery perfume it was drenched in.

"My number, don't be afraid to call if you have any questions," Camilla called back over her shoulder as she left, "Remember Monday at 8am and we'll sign the contract. Till then, dear Kamui."

"Goodby-"

History repeated itself in fine form, because Kamui didn't manage to get the words out before Camilla had disappeared; this time in a screech of tires on tarmac and the feral roar of an engine. She wasn't in the passenger seat this time but Kamui still felt her stomach drop when she glanced at the piece of paper in her hand. She tried to think on the worried line between Ryoma's brows as she slipped the card into her handbag. As nice as Camilla Nohr had proven to be, the purple-haired woman and her family were still planning to ruin Hoshido.