Five days later...
"So, we're still doing this?"
Lack-Two nods at Looker, and motions him to sit down on the chair beside, and Looker briefly glances at the monitor before doing so.
"Superintendent, anything new?"
"No," Lack-Two sighs, before continuing, "It seems that she's stopped doing that kind of thing with the doll, something that essentially told us how much she'd devoted herself into worshipping the 'King' of Plasma, which is why..."
He feels his knuckeles turning white, as he clenches them in his pockets, "She didn't continue, and I took it that she'd somehow gotten over him."
"She seemed absolutely fine during the day when I talked to her."
But no.
Looker stares at him inquisitively, but Lack-Two doesn't talk anymore, and instead bites his lips, as he turns back to the screen. Whi-Two is there, doing her homework, in the evening like she always does.
At these times, it's hard to find anything out of the ordinary, save for her fancies of gazing at stars, and whatnot. Speaking of which, there are brief intervals in which she gets out of her room, then returns and plays with her shrine.
But these instances are getting more remote by the day, and she seems like any other girl but...
The girl would sometimes be out for hours, and sometimes he'd worry, and maybe he'd follow her there too, except, he didn't want to risk that anymore. Making her even more suspicious, or even catching her off-guard, was the last thing he planned to do.
Then there were the most horrible times when she'd suddenly be crying in her bedroom.
Crying for a man Lack-Two wanted to destroy by any means.
"Lack-Two."
Looker's voice breaks his chain of thoughts, and Lack-Two clears his throat, when he sees Looker pale at the sight of his murderous face, and slowly changes it to a composed one, before looking back at the monitor.
"Say, Looker." He whispers, as he glimpses at Whi-Two's face, tensed up in concentration, her head bent as she tries focusing on her work. ELooker shifts on his chair, nearing his Superintendent.
"Yeah?"
"Lack-Two smiles, and now turns his head to look at him. "You think too much, it's annoying."
"If you want to ask your Superior something, you should, you know."
Looker widens his eyes in disbelief, "Sir?"
"Obviously," Lack-Two's grin fades away, and he now looks at him with mild curiosity. "Rookie or not, you're still going to work with me in this case, amd with all the suspicion I have, even if I die-" Looker stutters at this, alarmed, but Lack-Two still continues, "you need to take over my place."
"S-Superintendent, what I wanted to say was..."
"This girl, we've been watching her for quite a few days, and even though the evidence we have on her isn't that solid, I don't understand why, you haven't arrested her."
He stops and takes a deep breathe, looking at his Superior in the eye. Lack-Two waits for some time, and then gives out a sigh.
"I can't tell you that." Out of all things, Looker had to ask this.
One of the disadvantages of working within Interpol, was that you could never trust people to leave you alone when it came to working on some specific things, even if it would be better for them if they just got out of the way.
So by default, he had to con.
"I thought that was obvious." Lack-Two answers.
"You know what, subordinate? I think you'd better figure this one on your own, you need the brainwork."
Looker doesn't especially appreciate how vague his Superior's being, but to tell the truth...his Superior was always vague, and keeping things to himself. Changing the flow of conversation seemed like a better, and frankly safer, idea.
But Looker was never the one to tread carefully. He stepped in unchartered waters, and regretted it later on, bit by bit.
As if fluking was a thing he'd gotten used to.
"But, Superintendent, why did you say that you might die?" He'd made the leap.
Lack-Two shows a hint of annoyance as he answers, "Because it's apparent that the previously worshipped 'Lord' she had, is coming back. The man should know enough of me by now to do anything."
"...not that I'd let him do it."
Saying that Looker was surprised in itself would be an understatement, and judging by the way Looker was gawking, he'd probably thought he could predict Lack-Two, his Superior.
~L~
The letter almost seems unreal as Whi-Two squeezes it in her hands, her skirt swishes as she walks by, slowly, disbelievingly, and she brushes unknowingly against tree trunks, and sometimes, people.
She, she couldn't believe it. She hadn't believed it when the courier had taken out that stamped piece of paper, with her name written in front, in his hand. It was all too much.
Her face reddens, and she can't think. Even though she'd planned this for days, maybe because she thought her words would one day get to that person, the person who'd seemed so unreachable until moments before.
She needs to get to her room soon, and think. Relaxing now, here, while the letter was still fresh and unread, was out of the question.
But more than anything, she feels happy, a kind of happiness that ranked beyond interpretation, and left her confused. And, it partially helped her get her thoughts off Lack-Two.
(Of what he might do)
(Of what might happen to their friendship)
Of...
'No...no...no.'
'Don't think about him.'
She couldn't go back, not when her Lord needed her, which was evident by the fact that he'd responded to her. She needed to help him, even if it meant sacrificing her life along the way.
She needed to help her Lord rebuild Team Plasma. And then her Lord would love Whi-Two forever...
By now, she doesn't even care that her eyes have glazed, and her mouth is open, her face looking so out of it it's as if she'd flown into dreamworld.
~L~
Moving his hands which were clasped behind his head, Lack-Two again elevates his upper body, just enough to for his forehead to touch the metal bar, when his transceiver rings.
Sighing, he jumps down from the workout equipment, before landing on his knees and standing up, heaving quick breathes.
But when the watch screen fades open to reveal the face of Looker, he manages to talk perfectly smoothly.
"Si-"
"Looker...you keep interrupting me, even in the very rare moments when I can actually stay alone."
"What do you want?"
Looker appears surprised, however, and is unknowingly slowly testing Lack-Two's patience, "Sir! You're in the training room, Interpol? Since when, sir?"
"..."
Sensing Lack-Two's slowly increasing annoyance, he immediately speaks up.
"N..." Lack-Two arches his eyebrows.
"You told me to keep watch on all the main stations in and out of Aspertia, for N, or even someone who happens to look like him., Looker pauses, his eyes uncharacteristically grim, "It's exactly like you said, it seemed like he came out of nowhere, but of course, no one had expected he'd come by so soon."
It had happened. Lack-Two lets out breathe, noiselessly. "Any significant change in appearence? Or...does he feel brave enough to roam around with that identity?"
"Yes, in fact, sir! Um, although it's more a nice, tiny detail than a big one, but it has made him unrecognisable enough... He's cut his hair, it isn't long and girly anymore, Superintendent! He looks handsomer too, sir, do you think Whi-Two will...?"
Lack-Two clears his throat in answer, as he tries to maintain nonchalance, keeping his gaze steady.
"I don't care..."
"What suspect B might think of A's hairstyle."
"Um..." Looker awkwardly rubs the back of his neck for a moment.
"Would...would you want to intercept N? Given he still hasn't reached the heart of the city, you might just meet N the moment he nears 'suspect B'."
"It's Whi-Two," he snaps, and is about to reprimand him for possibly the most stupid thing Looker'd said, when he speaks.
"Oh...sir, you can't really interrupt this, can you? She'll kill you for barging into her romance, I see." Lack-Two sighs, in relief that his subordinate isn't so stupid.
"Yeah..." Lack-Two says, smiling.
He exchanges a look with Looker, before returning to his initially calm expression.
"In any case, I'll be joining you to watch her over, without her knowing, obviously, and-"
"Uh, sir?
"Hmm?" Lack-Two stops when he sees Looker stare, and stutter bewildered at his side of the screen. The soft echo of a tune manages to reach Looker's ears.
"You're listening to Whi-Two's...?" The call mysteriously gets shut off, and Looker loses his view of his Superior.
"...her song." Looker finishes, confused.
~L~
Whi-Two sits, humming, as she patiently observes groups of people walking here and there, eager to pick out her Lord from among them, and run to him the moment she sighted him.
'Is...is this going to be a date?' Whi-Two bits her lips, thinking back to the invitation.
'When two people like each other, and end up planning to meet...' She gulps, and tightly closes her eyes as she hugs herself, her eyes closed.
'Ehh! Th-This is a date,' she can't wait anymore actually, she needs to know.
Will he come? Will she embarrass herself? Will he leave her?
No...she was sure he would take care of her, because-
Because, she, more than anyone, knew how kind he was.
How he laughed, smiled, even cried, all of that was drilled into her memory ever since she was young. So even as she sits in the park bench, which is thankfully less crowded than usual, she dreams of him.
So when the voice of her Lord in her dream, coincides with a voice for real, outside, she jumps.
"Rosa." He says, smiling, his tall figure a few feet from his bench. He nods at her, and opens his arms.
Then her heart delightfully skips a beat.
~L~
End of chapter
Author gives a bonus!
*Deleted lines*
'Beat the shit outta this short-hair hippy soon.' Lack-Two thinks, knowing N needed to be killed. Looker nods, obviously agreeing with Lack-Two that he needed to be killed.
(I swear I was going to be serious, I swear) HELP. ME.