Sorry it's taking me so long to put out these super-short chapters...:(. I've been trying to decide where I'm going with this...
Chikage, Yukine and Mia watched from across the street as Letia held the door for Chela. A low growl arose from Chikage's throat and Mia placed a hand on his chest. Letia turned and noticed them and Mia groaned. "Curse her super-senses. Why is she even here? Ugh." Mia started prepping her cannon and Chikage pulled his sphere out. Across the street, Letia smirked and put a single hand to the hilt of her blade, cleverly concealed on her backpack. Chela followed her, her eyes roving the plaza they were standing in. Letia gestured with her hand, gently sending Chela back into the hotel. Mia turned to Chikage. "Take Yukine up. I'll talk to Letia." Chikage nodded curtly and began guiding the curious Yukine up the stairs. Mia turned on her boot and stood waiting. God, did that woman always have to take her time for everything?
Letia fidgeted. The worst thing about the mafia, and Mia in particular, was that one never knew what to expect. One day, she was toting shock-batons and the next she was launching giant grenades from her personalized cannons. Of course, Letia understood that it was mostly for the sake of survival; when an enemy didn't know what to expect, he couldn't train himself specifically to defeat them. Letia's hands scraped subconsciously against her thin blade, her fingers briefly wrapping around the warm, familiar hilt. Her lithe body tensed like a cat as she slowly neared her target. Mia mirrored her, tensing as well. The two of them looked at each other for a few minutes. "Good to see you again, Mia." Letia's eyes bored holes into Mia's clenched hands. Mia jammed her hands into her pockets and smiled a grim smile. "Wish I could say the same." Letia chuckled condescendingly and Mia glared angrily. "Why are you here? I though you didn't believe in Mafia," Mia wondered aloud, "unless...Felix?" Letia nodded reluctantly, her eyes half-pleading, half-defiant. "You of all people," Letia murmured, "should know why. Or have you forgotten, 'Sister Grimm'?" Letia remarked tauntingly. Mia growled angrily, her nimble fingers reaching for a grenade stashed away in some hidden compartment placed somewhere on her. Letia smirked, acknowledging the challenge and drew her sword.
Shin's hand grabbed Mia's arm in an iron grip and rolled his eyes. The last time the three of them had crossed paths, they had nearly destroyed the entire Grand Central Station. What was Felix thinking? Mia glared at him and he quickly released his grip and held his hands up. "Chill, sister." he chuckled nervously, "I was just trying to keep you from blowing up everyone in the near vicinity..." Letia snickered and Mia glared angrily. Everyone she met always made jokes about her "imprecise" fighting style. So she was a blunt killer with a bit of pyromania. Better than Chikage, who used Mist flames to hide everything about himself, or Shin, who used a guitar. A freaking guitar! She was really angry, but she figured it was time to rejoin Chikage in the lobby. The three of them turned and started toward the plaza.
In the lobby, Chikage stood and watched as the three seemingly innocent young people walked through the crowded street. He shivered to think of the power contained within the three of them alone. What was Felix trying to achieve?
Minami and Ryo sat on the bed, playing cards. Kazu was watching some cooking show with Gin. Felix watched the "drama" unfold from the window and chuckled. He reached for the remaining three rings, which lay on his dresser. Kazu's eyes followed his hands and Felix nodded amiably, trying to show him nothing was wrong. 6 knocks rang on the door, 2 confident, 1 loud, 1 controlled, 1 careless, and 1 quietly. Gin's eyes looked questioningly at Felix and the old man nodded confirmingly. Minami groaned and reached for the knob, but the door swung open. Letia stood in the doorway, holding a pin. Minami glared at her. "You're not room service." Ryo remarked amiably and Minami threw her foam cup at Letia angrily. Letia's blade glinted and the poor cup lay shredded on the ground. Minami's eyes glazed over and Kazu and Ryo tensed. Letia glared and turned to Felix. "Which one?" "The one over there, next to the scary one." Letia, Mia, Shin and Chikage cross the room, all arriving at Gin. "He looks like a baby." Letia remarked. "Go easy on him, he's just a kid." Shin chuckled. "Why him?" Chikage muttered. Mia elbowed him. Chela plopped down next to Kazu. "Hey," she purred, eyes smoldering, "I'm Chela." Kazu turned away and Chela stared. "Oooohhhhh, you're one of THOSE," she remarked, nodding. She quickly regained her calm composure. "Well, let me tell you, that whole thing in America, well, I am SO for it." she smiled sweetly, "A man should be allowed to marry a man if he wants to." everyone went silent. Mia couldn't hold it any longer. She burst out laughing. Everyone stared, but then started laughing to. Even Kazu chuckled. Gin just stared.
Everyone sat in a circle, legs crossed. Felix had finished informing everyone about the recent occurrences. "Jane hates Felix because she thinks he discriminates against females. She's a hardcore feminist." Mia explained to a stunned Gin. He nodded, his eyes vacant. The raw power in this room was terrifying. He felt like running. And all of these people, gathered by Felix. Who was that man? Gin looked closely at the wrinkled face of the man he had come to know fairly well over the past few days. Kazu, Minami and Ryo didn't seem to care. The three of them put their rings on, sat down, and went on with life. The world had gone insane.
Felix felt the rings burning his skin. Two of them had gotten excited in the instant the others had come in. The creator of the rings had designed them to find the seven people that had powerful flames and were compatible with the boss. They had tried to explain to Felix how it worked, but complex computer science wasn't Felix's specialty. Minami, Ryo and Kazu were all chosen by the rings, in the instant that the creator set Gin as the boss. The little girl and the flirty woman were both chosen ones two. And the last one, he didn't know yet. Perhaps it-"FELIX!" Mia cried into his ear. Shin smiled cheerfully at him. Letia scowled. "Anything else?" Felix put the rings in the center of the circle resignedly. Mia smiled affectionately at them, but Letia snarled and backed away. Felix chuckled. "Good work as always, eh, Mia?" Mia nodded. "My institution prides them on perfection." she replied haughtily. Letia rolled her eyes. "Mia belongs to a black-market scientific organization. One of their members created these rings." Shin explained. Felix nodded and handed one to Chela and one to Yukine. Letia and Mia looked satisfied. "You expected this?" Felix and Shin both asked. "As soon as I entered the room, I could detect something. Power. The seven of them can be powerful if they are trained well." Mia noted. Letia agreed with this sentiment. Chela's brow furrowed. "Does this mean I hafta call him boss?" Letia nodded and Chela rolled her eyes. "Nice to meet you, boss. Whooo, I can feel the girl power in here." she said sarcastically. Gin bobbed his head uncomfortably. Yukine smiled at her ring. "I'm gonna name it Squishy." Chikage snickered and she batted his head with her hand. Gin smiled at them nervously. Chela, feeling sorry, smiled and reached out to grab his hand. "I was just kidding. It's nice to meet you, Gin. Did you know your name means silver?" Gin nodded. "Silver by itself is weak, soft and tarnishes easily, but it's still precious. Do you know why?" Gin shook his head. Chela smiled. "Silver is beautiful. And it can conducts the energy of others better than any other element."