Neither Ami, nor Makoto made a comment when Haruka and Michiru returned to the lab shortly after Haruka had gone after Michiru; Makoto had a knowing smirk on her face though, the look she gave Haruka being enough to make the blonde blush slightly, her reaction only causing Makoto's smirk to widen.
"Well", Ami was the one to speak up first, making both Haruka and Michiru glance at her, "I imagine you'll want to be on your way again soon, now that you got what you came here for."
She smiled slightly as she held the half of the key they had assembled out to the two; momentarily, Michiru wasn't sure if she should really touch it, mindful of what had happened the last time she had done so, then told herself that she could handle this, and that she would have to touch the key sooner or later, holding her breath as she reached out and took the half from the doctor.
To her relief, nothing strange happened this time, no symbols appearing on her skin and no weird powers manifesting themselves; she pocketed the half key, then looked at Haruka, realizing that now, they didn't know where to go next.
"Should we head back to Fyrestone?" she thus suggested, "and plan our next steps?"
"I might be able to help", Ami threw in before the blonde had a chance to reply, "my research about the vault and the key is on hold at the moment, but you are more than welcome to take a look at the results I could collect."
"I imagine you will want something in return, though", Michiru gave back, raising an eyebrow, not surprised when Ami smiled and nodded in response.
"I want access to the vault", she told the sniper, "not for the treasure, but for scientific research. So if you'll agree to let me work there once you got all you need from it…"
"Deal", Michiru replied at once, making Ami smile slightly; the doctor held out her hand, and Michiru shook it at once, not caring if she had made a bad deal now – she knew that exclusive access to the vault was worth more to a scientist than all the treasure it might hold would be, but was more than willing to give this to the doctor, simply for how ready she had been to help when Haruka had been hurt.
"You're welcome to spend the night here", the doctor said after they had sealed the deal, "and go through my research. We have a spare room you can use, and if what I found out is correct, you'll reach your next destination faster from here than from Fyrestone."
"Thank you", Michiru decided to accept the hospitality, "that is very kind of you. Of course we'll reimburse you for the space and for whatever food and drink we will consume."
"Nonsense", the doctor shot back at once, Makoto nodding her agreement, "our deal is more than sufficient to cover one night of food and sleep. Not to mention that you helped us fight off the Crimson Lance."
"…thanks", Michiru decided to accept this after a moment; Ami just smiled at her, then let her know that she'd go get her files and headed off, while Haruka commented that she'd get their stuff, then, earning a nod from the sniper, and a brief smile as Michiru reached out to touch her hand, just for a moment, but long enough to let the doctor and her assistant notice.
"I hope you like skag steak", Makoto commented once the door had shut behind Haruka, smirking when Michiru gave her a flat look as an answer, "but don't worry, we got enough beer and wine to wash down the taste, in case you don't."
"I don't drink", Michiru gave back, making Makoto raise an eyebrow in surprise, and giving her cause to wonder if living on this planet could only be handled with the help of alcohol, "but I'm sure it will be fine. I might be from a wealthy family, or at least they were wealthy in the past, but I've been vault hunting for a while, I've eaten quite a few vile things in that time, and Ami did say that you make a great steak."
"I do", Makoto replied at once, "not to brag, but it'll be the best you've ever had."
The sniper just smiled in response, then automatically turned towards the door as it opened, her smile widening when it turned out to be Haruka, the blonde carrying their supplies, nodding when Makoto asked her if she should them to the guest room.
"I guess Ami will bring you the files, then you'll have some privacy until dinner", she let them know as they arrived there; the room was small, simply furnished with two beds and a desk with two chairs, "feel free to use the bathroom, if you want to freshen up before dinner, it's just down the hall, third door on the right."
"Thanks", Michiru gave back, earning a brief smile from the taller woman before she left them alone; and while she was still shutting the door, Michiru already moved to one of the beds and sat down on it, the excitement of the day all at once taking a toll on her and making her feel quite tired and drained.
"That was quite the day, wasn't it", she said out loud, simultaneously patting the spot next to her, prompting Haruka to move over and sit down next to her, "all this excitement."
"Indeed", Haruka agreed, then made her smile once more by placing one hand on her upper thigh, letting it rest there, the warmth Michiru could feel through her pants sending pleasant shivers up and down her spine, "it's not every day I get shot and then healed by a Siren… and then get to make out with that Siren, too."
"I should hope you only make out with one certain Siren", Michiru primly gave back, smiling again though when Haruka chuckled lowly in reply, then nodded, a hint of mischief in her eyes when she leaned closer to her, until Michiru could feel her warm breath on her cheeks.
"I do", the blonde let her know, in a low voice which made her heart skip a beat, "but not nearly enough."
Michiru had a moment to smile knowingly at her, then Haruka was kissing her again; and this time, she responded immediately, not wasting a second on doubts and worries, but simply enjoying how good this felt, knowing she had made the right choice when Haruka pulled her close yet again, no matter how it would turn out.
After a surprisingly tasty dinner, Michiru had taken the first good look at the research material Ami had given her; she'd been reading for the past hour, surprised by how voluminous the file was, especially after Ami had pointed out that it had been more of a hobby than paid work and was far from finished.
While she had been busy with that, Haruka had taken care of her weapons, cleaning and reloading them; then, she had kept busy with mending the holes the bullet of the Crimson Lance had torn into her clothes, making Michiru wonder how much sense this made, considering the bloodstains on both the shirt and the vest, but apparently, Haruka didn't let this deter her, entertaining her with how she softly hummed under her breath as she worked.
For a while, the blonde's humming and the sound of Michiru turning pages were the only noises in the room; then, Michiru put the file aside at last and stretched, rubbing her stiff neck, not used anymore to bending over papers for such a span of time.
"If what Ami found out is correct", she then said, after clearing her throat to gain Haruka's attention, "the third piece is at some place called Trash Coast. You ever been there?"
"No", the blonde declined, putting her sewing aside and standing up, moving to stand behind the sniper; unabashedly, Michiru eyed her as she did so, quite much liking the sight of her in her dark leather pants and the white undershirt she'd been wearing beneath the shirt and vest, taking a good look at her bare arms before she was behind her and thus out of sight.
"I've heard of it though", she went on, simultaneously making Michiru sigh contentedly by beginning to massage her shoulders, clearly having noticed how tense she was after all the reading, "not a nice place."
"Are there any nice places on this planet?" Michiru dryly gave back, only to sigh again when one of Haruka's hands slid up to her neck, found the tensest spot there with surprising accuracy and began working on it, amusement in the taller woman's voice when she replied.
"A few", she let Michiru know, "perhaps, I can show them to you some day. Right now, I'm liking this room pretty much, too. I think that's the company, though."
"How kind of you", the sniper replied, smiling, only to shudder again seconds later as Haruka's fingers found another especially tense spot, "and you're really good at this…"
"Glad to hear", Haruka murmured, now not just amusement in her tone, but something else, new… something Michiru identified quite fast as her touch changed, from the massage to a tender caress, her fingertips running over her neck, then down her back, tracing her spine through the fabric of her shirt, goose bumps forming on her arms in response.
"I think", she started, then heard the tremble in her voice, falling silent and swallowing heavily before she tried again, glad that she sounded a bit more steady, "I think I've worked enough for today. Perhaps we should get some rest…?"
"Yeah", Haruka agreed hoarsely, "rest." In response, Michiru snapped the file shut, then got up from her seat, turning to face the taller blonde; she took another moment to admire her lean build, then reached out and hooked one finger into the collar of her shirt, pulling her closer with ease, their lips meeting seconds later, a tender kiss at first, quickly growing much more passionate.
Clearly having the same ideas about "resting", Haruka let one hand glide down her back, until it cupped her behinds, the other moving to her front and skilfully undoing the buttons of her shirt, until it fell open, revealing her upper body to the blonde's gaze when she pulled back from the kiss.
"You're so beautiful", she murmured, the honest admiration in her tone and eyes making Michiru's heart speed up; not trusting herself to speak, knowing her voice would tremble again, she responded by pulling her closer again for yet another kiss, directing her the few steps to the bed afterwards, pushing her down onto the mattress, a hungry glint in her eyes as she straddled her, suddenly aching for her touch, her need so big that it almost hurt her physically.
"I want you", she verbalized this need, as well; the only response she got was that Haruka pulled her down for another kiss, the world around them soon forgotten as all they focused on was each other.