Enter Lucia.

-A… Date?-

My eye wouldn't close if I wanted it to; I was too transfixed by the beauty of the city spread out like a map before us.

Of course, there had been the one terrifying moment when I thought Sumire was going to let us crash into a stone bridge that arched over a river, but she let us drop at the last second; the water beneath her actually steamed as she soared over it.

She had chuckled when I couldn't hold back a yelp, increasing speed so that we could shoot up several hundred feet. Now we were just floating.

"Enjoying yourself?" I couldn't help the sarcastic note that crept into my voice.

"Very much." Had she always had that smirk? "It's nice to be up here with someone so beautiful."

Suddenly, her eyes narrowed— a splash of red creeping into green. I tensed. Sumire's nostrils flared and a growl left her throat. Before I could even think to ask her what was wrong, we were careening towards the ground.

The wind howled in my ears as we descended rapidly, tearing moisture from my eye and blinding me.

Just as suddenly as we had started, we stopped, my gut rebelling over the rough treatment, and Sumire was touching down gently on the roof of a decrepit building. I was set down next to her, swaying on feet that didn't seem to want to hold me upright.

"Viruses."Her expression was one of disgust—as though she had smelled something foul. "Do you mind if I take them? Alone," she added, upon seeing me draw my gun from my hip-holster.

Again, she gave me no time to respond; her hands curled into claws and she reached down, melting through steel. She dropped down through the newly made hole, nimble as a monkey, and vaulted her way down to the floor using the pipes that crisscrossed the ceiling.

It looked as though, once again, I had no choice in the matter.

Irritated now, I sheathed my weapon and peered into the darkness that my companion had just lowered herself into. There was absolute stillness for all of five seconds before flames licked along the darkness, giving me occasional glimpses of red hair, pale skin, and green.

What I could hear was a different story: shrieks of pain, snarls (I was pretty sure some of them were from Sumire) and the dull roar that only fire consuming matter could produce.

Then, after about two minutes, there was silence…

… And two slim arms wrapped around my waist from behind.

"Done." Her lips brushed against my ear. I flinched, covering the reaction by turning and giving Sumire a hard look, pushing her away from me as I did; I saw disappointment flash over her fair features, but it passed so quickly I had to wonder if it had really been there. "Sorry. If you want, I'll take you home now."

Home? Hmph. That would mean back to Lola (whoo.) and it wasn't as though I minded spending time with Sumire.

My stomach gave a howl and the younger girl's eyes lit up. "But first, we should go get something to eat!"

We blasted into the air with enough force to leave a dent in the roof.

Naturally, we couldn't just land in front of the chosen establishment—two flying teenagers would have aroused some alarm.

Which meant another roof landing.

I was ready this time, curling my body into a ball so that I could roll across the hard surface and hit the ground a few dozen feet down without injury.

"Nice one," the red-head smirked, having already returned to terra firma. She grabbed my hand—the spark that I had felt the night before was more of a jolt now—and tugged me forward, into the establishment.

Dinner was normal enough, though Sumire didn't talk much. I could feel her gaze on me though my own hardly left the food in front of me.

She paid and we left.

By the time we returned home, the sun had gone down. The moment I opened the door to Venus Vangard a sharp voice snapped, "Where the Hell have you two been!?"

The irony in the fact that the girl that was younger than both of us was acting the stereotypical role of a parent who is concerned about why exactly their daughter was out so late made me smirk. "Relax, mom."

"Don't worry, ma'am, I brought your daughter back safe and sound," Sumire snorted. A thoughtful note crept into her voice and she was grinned, "Of course, I expect a kiss as thanks for our date."

I felt my face heat, but loosed a snort of my own. "Yeah, fat chance. I'm going to take a shower."

Moments later, I was standing under a warm spray of water, head tilted backwards as I enjoyed the sensation.

"Mmm…"

I swept my eye shut and, immediately, the image of a certain, grinning red-head filled my mind's eye.

"Of course, I expect a kiss as thanks for our date."

Had she been serious?

A… date? Dinner between friends didn't translate as such.

And a kiss? Did Sumire… did she maybe feel the way about me the way I felt about her?

This feeling—it had started mere months after I had first rescued the red-head from a Virus and handed her the brooch she still wore today.

It had been shocking in its unexpectedness as well as its unfamiliarity; I had been a 'lone wolf' for the better part of my life and the sudden desire to be around any one person caught me completely off guard.

And the fact that she was one of the nicest people I had ever met didn't help anything.

I sighed and reached for my washcloth.

Sumire appeared to be sleeping by when I got back to our shared room—a fact that I thanked Kami for.

I had stupidly forgotten to bring a change of clothes into the bathroom with me and facing the girl that had been flirting with me just a few moments before naked was out of the question. I turned on the lamp on my nightstand…

… And the red-head sat up, a smirk curling her lips.

Damn.

I couldn't tell from her expression if she was surprised by my state of dress,—or undress, considering I was wrapped in a towel—but the slow grin that spread across her face made my heart skip a beat.

"Geez, Lucia, if you wanted to skip past kissing and all that and get straight to the good stuff you could have just told me. I'm game."

I refused to let her bait me this time; walked towards my dresser without sparing her another glance and pulled out a silk nightgown to sleep in.

"Ooh, a show," the red-head practically purred from behind me.

Was she sure she wasn't Berserk? This was in no way standard Sumire behaviour. Just in case, I half-turned and looked at her over my shoulder: her eyes were still pools of green.

Still Sumire.

Deciding that hesitating would only show the girl how uncomfortable (though there were other words for it that I could think of) her attentions made me, I dropped the towel, goosebumps rising on my flesh. I could practically feel the younger girl's gaze as it swept over me, but surprisingly enough, she didn't comment.

Slipping on some simple black panties, I stepped into the all-too familiar gown, jumping when a warm hand caught my wrist.

"I wasn't done looking." Sumire growled—her eyes tinged with red. How had she moved that quickly?

I snatched my hand away, but it was too late: warmth spread outwards from the point of contact. "Don't touch me."

Her nostrils flared and I had no doubt that she could smell the want on me. All of this teasing was really starting to get to me, especially after all the time I had spent telling myself we would never happen.

Her eyes narrowed, red now the dominant hue. "Take care, little one. It's not healthy to deny your body of what it desires."

With that, she stalked away, exiting the room rather than going back to bed. Her footsteps as she descended the stairs were blocked out by the 'ba-dump' of my heart.

"Lola… Have you seen Sumire?"

The blonde shook her head, pigtails swaying. "Not since last night."

Which was when I had last seen her; she hadn't been in her bed this morning and I hadn't heard a peep from her all day. "Strange," I commented aloud. "She normally tells someone before she leaves." Not that she's been acting normal of late.

The little bell that alerted us of customers sounded and I hurried away to greet the visitor.

Nearly an hour later, I straightened, rolling my shoulders.

Geez… Why are girls so… dumb!? Why can't they be like—

"Don't you dare finish that thought," I muttered aloud, horrified.

"Finish what thought?" the end of said thought asked, far too close for comfort.

I jumped. "Sumire! Where the Hell have you been?"

She grinned. "I went to get food, silly! Between the three of us, there was nothing left in the kitchen." It seemed Berserker had withdrawn for the moment. "Come on: I'll make us lunch."

Naturally that meant she'd shoo me away any time I tried to lend a helping hand, so I chose to sit at the counter instead, watching as my impromptu roommate bustled about, unpacking the groceries she had bought and taking out cooking utensils. "Is there anything you're hungry for?"

That was a loaded question.

Ignoring my debauched inner response, I shrugged. "Anything is fine."

When she smiled at me, those large green eyes shining with something warm and comforting—affection—, my heart did an odd little skip-hop.

…

I hate to admit it, but I'm head-over-heels for this girl.

Simply watching her around the kitchen had me hard-pressed not to smile and every action—from the adorable little frown of concentration she wore while consulting a thick cookbook to the excited bounce in her step as she scurried about, gathering up ingredients and preparing them accordingly—made the urge even more difficult to resist.

At one point, she looked over at me and remarked, "I hope you're not too bored, Lucia. It's almost ready."

Bored? I didn't think I'd ever been happier to be so still and quiet. When I snorted, her expression fell and my stomach did a cartwheel.

How was it that Sumire affected me so?

"I'm happy," I said quietly, not daring to meet her gaze. It wasn't something I wanted to share, but…

Anything to make a smile appear on that pretty face.

Sure enough, a shy smile curved her lips and there was even a cute little blush to go with it. I swear my heart melted.

"Lucia…" She cleared her throat, the blush deepening. "These past few days have been really weird and I'm sorry for that. Thanks for putting up with me."

"It wasn't so bad," I admitted, remembering the heated gaze I had been on the receiving end of the night before. I would be lying if I said that I didn't like it.

… Only a little, though.

She beamed and, suddenly, I was being hugged, her sweet smell enveloping my senses. A shiver traveled the length of my spine, an unstoppable indication of how pleased my body was with the contact, and she released me immediately.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."

She didn't draw back all the way and her face is very, very close to mine. Suddenly, it's difficult to breathe.

"You aren't." Was that really my voice?

"Oh…" She seems distracted, her gaze not quite meeting mine. "Th-that's good."

Is it just me, or is the air suddenly thick with tension?

Before either of us can say (or do) anything else, the bell at the front door jingles and, a moment later, Lola comes barging in, bawling about how the grocery store had "mysteriously" sold out of her favourite treats.

With the way she inhaled them, it wasn't really much of a mystery as to why the small, locally run establishment had been unable to meet her demands.

Sumire smiled guiltily, quickly putting space between us. "Aww… Lola, that's awful!"

And, just like that, the moment was gone.

I frowned, mumbling something about needing a smoke and heading outside to clear my head. Maybe cool my hormones a little.

To get to the bottom of this—whatever this was between Sumire and I,—our little house guest needed to disappear for a while… And I knew just how to keep her occupied.

I just needed to do a little research first.

...

"There's a WHAT?"

I flinched, stunned (by now, I really shouldn't have been) by the sheer volume such a small person could achieve, but managed to keep the annoyance out of my voice when I repeated, "Chocolate sale. In a huge wholesale store a town over. You could probably find those stu-er-chocolates you were looking for—"

I don't think I've ever seen someone move that quickly…

-End Chapter-