A little more SetsunaxFeldt in this scene. And a quick update because reviews are fuel and I have to stay awake while my iPhone updates. I can promise you this won't be a regular thing.

Disclaimer: I don't own or make profit from any of these characters. A nod of recognitions is best sent to those who came up with the addicting series, and its maddening protagonist.

Sequential

Chapter 2

Feldt huffed and puffed when she caught up with the young Meister. Hands on her knees, she hunched over from lack of breath, hoping Setsuna wouldn't run away this time. To her immense gratitude, he stayed right beside her, simply watching the crowds. After a minute of silence he spoke, startling her.

"If you want to catch your breath quicker, stand up straight and put your hands behind your head. It opens the airway to your lungs."

The young woman blinked but complied, slightly amazed to find that it was, indeed, true. After another minute, she had regained her breath. She smiled slightly, brushing a strand of pink hair from her face.

"Thanks, Setsuna. Where did you learn that?" She continued walking, half-leading, half-following him towards the food court.

He just gave a one-shoulder shrug. Feldt figured that was some sort of code for "I don't want to talk about it" so she let it drop. The silence was amicable, even as they took a seat in a small table in the back corner of the dining area. Setsuna's eyes seemed to be in a continuous pattern of checking out every area of possible attack or danger. After a few minutes of nothing but silence, though, the atmosphere began to get a bit awkward for Feldt.

She tried to strike up a conversation, but it ended up becoming almost entirely one-sided. Occasionally, Setsuna would nod or make a little noise in agreement. Most of the time, though, he just sat there and stared into the throng of people around them.

Feldt sighed quietly, giving up on conversation for now. She was trying to think of how long they should wait for Mileina before finding her and if she should eat before they left Earth when a couple of young—and handsome, she had to admit—men stepped up to her table. They formed a crude semi-circle around her, almost blocking Setsuna from her sight.

"Hey, cutie," the tallest said, flipping his dark hair out of his eyes in a way she supposed he thought was handsome. It was really just stupid. "What's your name? You looked so lonely sitting over here we thought we'd come say hi."

The skinniest one leaned on the back of her seat, making Feldt scramble for a hold on the table so she wouldn't tilt backwards into him.

"Come on, baby. We won't bite. Just tell us your name." He winked a flat brown eye at her.

"I…I mean, uhh…" Feldt stuttered, not at all sure what she should say or do in this situation.

A third appeared between the two, resting his hands on the table very close to her own. "At least let us get your number," he grinned.

At least Feldt could answer that one. "I don't have a phone." At least, not an open-line one like normal people do.

"Aaw, look, boys, she's scared!" the first chuckled.

"It's probably because Jackson here, is getting all up in her space!" laughed the one whose hands were too close as he playfully shoved the one leaning against Feldt's chair. The boy stumbled as he laughed, nearly taking Feldt and her seat with him.

She would have toppled backwards, too, if it hadn't been for a certain Meister's super-human reflexes. His feet slipped out underneath the table, snagging the legs of her chair and pulling them firmly back to the ground. Setsuna's eyes locked on the way her hands shook and he scowled faintly.

Feldt jumped visibly when rough, calloused hands covered her own, gripping them securely but without making a move to pull her out of her seat. Her teal eyes connecting with Setsuna's brown ones. He gave her hands a small, comforting squeeze before his gaze hardened again, swinging back towards the trio of annoying boys.

"Leave," he commanded in his typical flat tone.