Well, last time was a long chapter. hopefully, it's okay that this one is Longer ovo''. Thanks as always for your support by reading and enjoying my story!

Song Suggestion: Overwhelmed - Ryan Mac & Christian Gates [Remix/Mashup] (this one is a pretty specific one but if you copy-paste it into youtube you should find it)

Disclaimer: CapCom owns what CapCom Owns, I'm just a dirty rotten FanFiction writer who likes borrowing characters rather than being created enough to work on my own books. Please don't sue me.


Another Saturday was about to begin, welcoming in the Fall season with the first week of October. Emma was enjoying sleeping in since the tiny terrors were not visiting this weekend. Eventually, she slowly crawled out of bed with a yawn and looked out the window. Rain. She gave a tired sigh. "Well, I'm going to be sleepy all day. Joy... Eh. I'll probably still go out to the Penny Arcade," she said with a shrug before pulling out her phone to see an odd notification.

Ring: Camera Error - No signal

"Huh?" she muttered, feeling a chill crawl up her back. Something was wrong with her camera? She quickly went to the door of her room and locked it before checking to make sure no one else was in there with her. Once she was sure the area was safe, she checked the last available footage. 3:45 AM. The camera just went dark, then offline a few seconds later... "Maybe the battery died," she said quietly to herself to calm down. There didn't seem to be anyone in the footage, so there was nothing to worry about. Right?

Emma took a deep breath as she walked back to the door to her room and unlocked it before heading out to her front door to unlock it as well. Sure, she was still wearing her pajamas, but she needed to put her mind at ease more than anything else. Besides, they weren't exactly scandalous. It was a tank top and plain, loose cotton pants.

Just as she feared, the camera was smashed. Seeing that caused her to shake involuntarily. Why is this happening? she thought as she went back inside to get a screwdriver, then started taking the broken camera out of the wall. A noise behind her caused her to jump slightly before quickly turning around. "Bastion. Oh, thank heavens it's just you. You scared me," she said with a nervous laugh.

"Yeah, I was just going to head out to work for the da—what's wrong?" Bastion asked as he noticed Emma shaking.

"I'm just cold, is all," she said with a nervous smile. "Did you end up installing that camera for your door?" she asked as her voice cracked.

"No—Oh honey, what happened this time?" Bastion asked as he walked over and saw the broken camera. "Can I give you a hug?" he asked, clearly feeling sympathy for the woman. Emma silently nodded in return, and Bastion did just that. "You poor thing, this is just not right," he said, giving her a good squeeze. Emma took a deep breath as he did so. The gesture was comforting, even if it was short-lived.

"Stay here a second. I'll be right back, okay?" Bastion said, and once more, Emma nodded and returned to trying to get the camera out of the wall.

Bastion headed over to Chris' door and knocked on it before going over to the Russos' and knocking on their door as well. Both opened one after the other.

"Bastion, what is it, love? Isn't it a little early?" Mrs. Russo asked while Chris remained silent.

"Emma had another incident," Bastion said bluntly. "They smashed the camera this time." He crossed his arms.

This news caused Mrs. Russo to gasp and Chris' brow to furrow.

"It's fine, really. I'll just replace it," Emma said, though she was clearly mostly trying to convince herself. All the same, Chris walked over to look at the damage. His expression darkened as something else caught his eye.

"They didn't just break the camera," he said before kneeling to inspect the lock and rub a thumb over it. "There are scratch marks... Deep ones too. Looks like they were trying to pick the lock."

"Oh, my heavens," Mrs. Russo exclaimed before heading back inside. "Marco! Marco, you need to go get Mr. Jacobs right now," she said with panic in her tone before the two started speaking in Italian.

"You are not helping," Bastion chided with a frown.

"What am I supposed to do, ignore evidence? The lock needs to be changed," Chris retorted as he got back up.

The nail tech gestured to Emma, who was now shaking even worse than before. Someone really was trying to get into her apartment. "It's going to be okay," Bastion said with a soft smile. "If you need to, you can stay with me for a night or two," he offered sympathetically.

"No, that's fine. I can't be this frightened of my own home. It's mine, not theirs," Emma said, trying to regain her resolve as Chris took out his phone and checked his own footage.

"Looks like my camera was too high up for them to reach, or they just didn't care enough to take it out." He looked over the recordings. "Yeah, there they are," he said, still frowning. "I'll give Mr. Jacobs the footage, so it can be added to the police case. Maybe they'll pick something up. This can't be the only place they're going to, so they'll end up sloppy at some point," Chris offered in an attempt to calm her nerves while clicking away at the screen.

Emma nodded, clearly still processing this as she scratched at her neck. What if they keep trying? What if they get in? What do they want? She didn't own anything particularly valuable. She didn't work with classified or sensitive information. She made web-ads for a wannabe record label for a living. Did someone blame her for being rejected? She wasn't even a part of that process.

"Emma... Emma!"

"Hmm?" she murmured before eventually processing that Chris had been trying to get her attention.

He gave a quiet sigh. "Do you want to work on another lesson?" he offered, which caused Bastion to raise an eyebrow, but he minded his own business.

"Sure. Yeah, I think I'd like that," Emma agreed.

"Are you going to be okay if I head out then?" Bastion asked. "I can call in sick." He gave her a gentle smile, but Emma shook her head.

"No, you don't need to do that. There's not much else that can be done anyway," she admitted with a frown.

"Okay, you have my number if something comes up, right?" he asked and Emma nodded. "Good. I'll check in on you during lunch. Hang in there," he said, giving Emma one more quick hug before heading down the stairs.

"Are you ready?" Chris asked as he gestured to the door. "Mr. Russo seems to be handling the conversation with Mr. Jacobs, and I already emailed him the footage," he added, and once more Emma nodded.

"Yeah, let's go," she said and opened the door for them to head inside. Emma closed the door behind Chris, and he went through the usual motions,pushing the table out of the way so they had space to move.

"Let's start with basics. No surprises this time," Chris said and held up his hand as Emma got into position and threw a jab at his hand. She had been working on it, he could tell. The addition of two 5lb weights next to her TV stand confirmed as much, but the improvement was minimal. He frowned at this. The threat was becoming much more apparent, but she wasn't going to be ready to meet it at this rate. "Like you mean it," he said as Emma tried again with similar results, even though she appeared to be putting in more effort. His frown remained. "All right, let's see your kick," he said, and sure enough that was actually improving. Marginally, but it was better. It didn't make any sense.

"Let's try something different," he said as he stepped back. "Give me a set of ten punches in the air." Emma complied, repeating the motion, and Chris watched while walking around her. "All right. Now ten kicks," he instructed, and once more she followed the instructions. Well hell! No wonder she wasn't progressing. She was stiff as a board when punching compared to her kick. It was practically night and day now that he noticed it.

"Kick," Chris said and as she did so, he pushed her. To his surprise, even without a warning, she stayed in place and just ended up leaning to the side . Not a single skip or hop, even though she was standing on one leg. What the?

"Punch," he ordered, and as she did. He tried pushing her again. This time she stumbled to the side.

"What on earth are you doing?" Emma asked, clearly getting frustrated.

"Troubleshooting," he said with a perplexed expression. How was her balance better on one leg than on two? "Do you have a prosthetic leg?" It was the only answer he could think of.

"What? No!" she replied, confused. "What are you on about?"

Chris shook his head. "Nothing. We need to fix your stance," he added before walking to stand next to her. "Do another kick but slower this time," he said, and she complied, still confused. "Stop there," he said, and she held the position. "When you're kicking, you're putting your full-body movement into it. You don't have a lot of mass to work with, so that extra movement is doing your end force some extra favors," he explained, then said, "release," and Emma went back to standing properly.

"Okay, that makes sense," she agreed, and her frustration seemed to lessen.

Chris moved to stand behind her and placed a hand on her lower back, which instantly caused her to tense up again. "Relax, I'm not going to push you," Chris said, and Emma hesitantly relaxed. The woman was no longer shaking, which was good, but as she punched, he felt the muscles in her back tighten to keep it from moving. "You need to move into the punch," he said before standing next to her again. "The more distance your fist travels, the more momentum you give the punch, which means more force, making it hit harder," the agent explained. "Like this," he said, showing her a few exaggerated jabs. It was more than was really necessary, but she needed to get the idea of full movement.

That was an easy mistake to fix, and he felt some guilt that he hadn't really been taking her lessons seriously enough to even check that until this point. After this latest incident, though, he couldn't deny that she could potentially run into trouble. He watched her try a few of the exaggerated jabs before standing in front of her again and holding up his hand. "Try again."

Emma hit the target as requested, and a slight smile crossed his face. That was what he was looking for. "Much better," he said with a chuckle. It wasn't really a ton of progress, but it was better than the zero progress she was making before. Upon hearing the praise, a weak smile crossed Emma's face, only to turn into a yelp as she was pulled into a hold. "Don't go and get cocky from a little bit of progress," he warned, making sure he had a good grip on her. She chuckled at his scolding before attempting to get out. "Use what you learned, put your body into it," he coached, and on the second try, she was out.

"Better, but you need to be able to do this on the first try without hesitation," he said, offering a hand so she could try again.

"Right," Emma replied and accepted the offered hand. "Thanks, Chris."

The two practiced for another hour before heading over to the kitchen, where Emma poured each of them a cup of morning coffee. "I'm going to go grocery shopping later. You're not usually around, so I don't really get to ask. Is there anything, in particular, you want for lunch?" she asked, causing Chris to pause and think.

"I'm trying to eat more protein lately. I need to get back into shape," he admitted with a quiet sigh.

"You're not already?" she asks, notably confused.

"I let myself slip," he further confessed. "I'm certainly not in my old boulder punching shape," he added with an amused smirk before sipping at his coffee. This was always a fun story to bring up.

"I'm sorry, you punched a what?" she asked, clearly baffled, which caused Chris to laugh.

"Yeah, it's honestly not that impressive. It was mostly pumice, so it was deceptively lightweight," the agent admitted. "Just don't tell the others that. I have a reputation to uphold."

"A boulder-sized chunk of pumice... wouldn't that only be possible in an active volcano?" Emma asked, still trying to process that new, unexpected fact.

"Yeah," he confirmed with a chuckle, clearly enjoying the confusion. "I see you paid attention in science class."

"Why in the hell were you—Oh my gosh, okay, never mind. I don't want to know," she said with a laugh. "Let's just stick with 'it was work.'"

Chris nodded in agreement. "That's probably for the best."

"Anyway, protein-packed lunches. I can do that," Emma said before looking at Duke, who was not so patiently sitting by the door with his leash. "Shoot. Hey, I need to walk Duke... are you okay with locking up when you're done with your coffee?"

Chris nodded.

"Thanks," she said and hurried back to her room, closing the door behind her before walking out, properly dressed for the autumn weather. She'd worry about showering and changing once she got back. The poor pooch was probably at his last straw. She hooked up Duke's leash and opened the door. "See you around," Emma said in parting and heads out.

She took the fluffy tank out for a longer walk than normal to try and make up for the wait before bringing him back into the apartment. Sure enough, it was locked up as she had asked. Once she got back inside, she gave Duke his breakfast before checking her phone.

9:41 AM

1 New Message

[unstored number] Hey Emma, it's Chris. I got your number from Bastion. Text me if you get spooked while you're shopping.

Emma chuckled at that. "Well then, someone clearly threw away the plate of new neighbor cookies. I already gave you my number," she said with a shake of her head. "Oh well. I'll give you a pass since you're watching what you eat." A few clicks later and Chris' number was saved on her phone.

[Emma] Hey Chris, thanks for the offer. I'll keep it in mind.

'*'*'*'*'

Things seemed to calm down after that. The camera replacement arrived by Thursday and was promptly installed. Before Emma knew it, the weekend had arrived once more. The girls spent the night from Friday to Saturday, leaving her schedule much more crowded.

"Okay, I had all of yesterday to take care of chores after the girls left... I did nothing," Emma said to herself, frustrated that she had fallen behind on her usual routine. "That means today I have to be a boss and do all of it." She coached herself to have the willpower to actually be an adult. "I can do this." She thought over the list of different chores to be done. Let's see. Grocery shopping. Laundry. Clean the apartment. Um. Walk Duke, but that's an everyday thing. What else? Meal prep, right... Make sure to buy extra groceries because of doubling the recipes.

The woman bobbed her head. Maybe she could multitask on some of this. If she started her laundry now and cleaned the apartment while waiting for the wash cycle to finish, she could move her clothes to the dryer before heading out to pick up groceries. The laundry would be done by the time the groceries were put away. She could take that back to the apartment to fold, then go into some meal prep while watching a movie. Then, once all of that was done, take Duke for a walk. Perfect. Excellent plan.

With the day of chores organized, Emma set to work collecting her dirty clothes and sorting them into darks, lights, and brights. She looked at the three piles and bobbed her head. Using three washers and dryers would be excessive. Just put the darks and brights together. Using two of the shared washers would be more acceptable. It wasn't great for her clothes, but she didn't really care that much, as long as her white blouses didn't turn pink.

Emma placed the brights and darks back into the basket before heading out of her apartment and down the hall to the shared laundry room. She opened the door and found a silent washing room. None of the machines were in use? She thanked her lucky stars for that and moved to fill one of the washers before heading back to her apartment to collect the light clothes, her bag of quarters, and laundry soap. Then, she made her way back to the laundry room. Another washing machine was filled, soap was added to both, the lids were shut, and once the machines were paid, they actively churned, and the rushing sound of water could be heard as the wash cycle began.

Phase one complete. Emma happily went back to her apartment to work on cleaning.

'*'*'*'*'

Chris yawned while sitting on his couch and reading a field survival guild on gun maintenance. It was a rather fascinating chapter on what to do if your ammo gets wet, since putting it over a fire to dry it was a generally stupid idea. As he was reading, the sound of washing machines could be heard from the other side of his living room wall, which caught his attention. "Shit... Bastion, please tell me you didn't use all of the machines again," he grumbled as he put the book down on the coffee table and got up. The one nice thing about sharing a wall with the laundry room was that he got a pretty decent reminder to take care of his own washing too.

He headed back to his room and gathered up his clothes before getting soap from the closet and a few quarters from the change jar on the counter. With that collected, he headed over to the shared laundry room and checked to see if there was an open machine.

"Phew." He walked over to find only two of the four washing machines were in use. It was his lucky day. The washing machine next to the dryers was available, so he'd be able to just throw things over after. With that, he plopped the basket of unsorted clothes into the washer, put in some soap, paid the machine, and headed back to his apartment to pick up where he left off with his reading.

'*'*'*'*'

Emma happily hummed to herself while sweeping and listening to music. Let's see. What to make for meal prep... Protein-packed. Hmm. Chicken with peanut sauce would have a lot of protein. That tastes great with snow peas and rice. Maybe some lemon and herb fish. Emma continued to think over different recipes she already knew how to make and enjoyed as well, so she could create a mental shopping list. She did ask, so she might as well take his request into consideration even if he was making up crazy stories about punching boulders in a volcano. In what situation would that even be necessary or possible? How would he even survive in a volcano?

An amused chuckle escaped her as she picked up the now full dustpan and carried it over to the trash. She tossed the collection of dirt and dog hair before checking the time.

10:15 AM

She had put her clothes into the wash well over an hour ago. They should be done by now. She finished putting the broom away before picking up her laundry basket and her bag of quarters once more, then made her way back to the laundry room. While initially, she believed her wash might still be running, it turned out it was a different machine that one of the other tenants had started after she left. Emma took her lights over to the nearest dryer and plopped them in before starting the cycle. She then went back to collect the brights and darks.

"Oh gosh, I should have moved these first," Emma complained in a strained whisper as she carried the much heavier, larger batch of waterlogged clothes to the next closest dryer and got them started. Yeah, next time, she would have to do three batches. This was too much. Oh well. With that, she made her way back to her apartment to drop off her basket and quarters. Once she had her shoes and jacket on and her purse over her shoulder, she made her way to the parking garage to get in her car and head to the grocery store. Shopping took a little bit longer now, but it was a small price to pay for something as useful as self-defense lessons from an expert.

'*'*'*'*'

Chris' stomach growled as he finished a few more chapters of his book. Hmm. Probably should eat something since he only had a protein bar for breakfast. With that, he put his book down yet again and headed over to the kitchen to make a quick ham and cheese sandwich. He'd just taken e before catching a glimpse of the microwave clock, which read 12:43 pm. It took him a second longer to notice his apartment was silent... Oh no, his clothes. He left them in there for almost four hours.

He put the food down before hurrying over to the washroom to throw his clothes into the dryer next to the washer he had been using. He plunked a few quarters into the slots, started the machine, and winced at the grinding sound the dryer was making. Honestly, none of the machines sounded great lately. He frowned at that and went back to his apartment to finish his lunch. He'd have to talk to Mr. Jacobs about that later. He'd been in this apartment for over ten years now, and the washers were old when he moved in. They were well past due to be replaced.

'*'*'*'*'

Shopping took a while, but that was expected. Emma made her way up the stairs, bringing her groceries into the apartment. Her arms ached, but carrying everything in one trip was worth it. Not really, but she'd tell herself it was, darn it. She quickly got to work putting everything away in the fridge and cabinets before picking up her basket and heading to the laundry room. Her clothes should be done by now.

Emma walked in to find that the one machine was still running. "Weird," she said under her breath. Oh well, it should be done soon. With that, she took out the brights and darks from the dryer that had turned off and got to work folding them on the counter across from the machines. At least this way, she could get some of her folding done while she waited for her lights to finish drying... wait, didn't she put those in first?

The thought caused her to look around and see if someone had moved her clothes to a different machine. Nothing. They weren't on the counter, either. So that had to be hers. She shook her head and went back to folding. It only took her maybe fifteen minutes, then she was left with nothing to do.

Well, it can't be much longer at this point, she thought as she took a seat on one of the wooden stools next to the counter space and took out her phone to wait... and wait... and wait... What the heck? Is the machine broken or something? Why is it still running? It's been almost an hour, Emma thought. She was starting to feel sore from sitting on the wooden stool for so long.

'*'*'*'*'

Chris walked up the stairs to the second floor with a frustrated expression. That was a waste of time. After finishing his lunch, he paid the landlord a visit. In his attempt to bring up the out-of-date equipment to Mr. Jacobs and point out that it might need to be repaired, he instead ended up in a much longer than necessary debate on what constituted an 'out of date' machine. It certainly didn't help that the elderly landlord would not drop it and let him leave. If the drum of a dryer is grinding under the weight of a single load of laundry, it's time to replace the machine. They barely even worked as it was anyway, and the models were at least twenty years old. It wasn't like they were recent additions, and he was being ridiculous. What was he even paying rent for if the guy wasn't going to take care of the building?

He made his way over to the laundry room. At this point, his clothes were probably done. To his surprise, he found Emma sitting there waiting while staring at her phone with a bored expression.

Emma looked over as she heard the door open. "Oh, hey Chris," she said in greeting before going back to her phone.

"Hey," he replied and moved to wait since it seemed his machine wasn't done yet... none of the other machines were going, though. So why was she here? "Waiting for something?"

"Hm? Oh, um yeah, the dryer is taking forever. I think it might be broken," she admitted while gesturing to the dryer that he had put his clothes in. "What about you?" she asked with some level of confusion as well. There didn't seem to be any other active machines... what was he doing here?

"Waiting for the dryer," he replied, gesturing to the same one. "I just put my clothes in there an hour ago."

"Oh... That's the one I was using before I left. I went to get groceries. I only just got back a little less than an hour ago. Um…" Emma was starting to piece together what had happened. She didn't want to just jump to accuse him of not checking the machine, but her clothes were missing otherwise.

Chris pinched the brow of his nose. Goddamn it all. His grumpy thought was cut short as Emma started laughing.

"Maybe Bastion accidentally took my clothes? I know someone was using a washing machine when I went to move mine to the dryer," Emma offered as a potential explanation. It didn't seem likely that Mrs. Russo would mistakenly take her clothes.

Nope. No, that was me, Chris thought, embarrassed that he failed to check and make sure the dryer was empty. It had been so long. He just figured whoever else was using the machines had well since left.

"Would you mind checking before I go and ask him?" Emma requested sheepishly. It kind of seemed like it was more likely that her clothes were still in there.

"Yeah, sure," he agreed, and the two waited for the machine to eventually come to a stop.

Chris walked over, opened the machine, then picked up the bundle and moved it over to the counter. Sure enough, clothes far too small for him were mixed in.

"Well, at least that mystery is solved," Emma said with an attempt at a smile.

"Sorry about that," he mumbled with a slight frown. How to fix this...

"It happens," Emma replied with a shrug. She moved her basket next to her and out of Chris' way, then got to work. Let's see. Hers. Hers. She folded each piece after picking it out of the pile and added it to her basket. Not hers. "Here you go," she says, handing that over to Chris, who accepted and folded it.

Guess this is all that can be done. With that, he got to work as well. His. Also his. He'd fold each piece while making sure to steer clear of anything that very clearly wasn't his. Even then, it couldn't be completely avoided. He offered a shirt over to Emma. "Yours."

"Thank you," she replied, accepting it and folding it before putting it into her basket. Well. They were both here. "So, how was your week?" she asked, figuring chatting might help clear the air of embarrassment between the two. It was a simple mistake, so they might as well fix it and talk as friends.

"It was fine, nothing too exciting," he replied with a shrug as he accepted the unspoken offer to chat. What to ask in return... "How are you holding up? Any more door issues?" he asked, figuring after what happened before, he should check.

"Nothing so far," Emma replied with a slight frown. It didn't make her worry any less, but at least whoever was trying to get in was leaving her alone for now. "The lessons seem to be helping, though. Thanks again for that, by the way," she mentioned as they continued sorting through the pile. "If anything, I might feel bad for them if they do get in. They won't know what hit them," she said before giving his arm a light tap with a closed fist, figuring a joke would help too.

He raised an eyebrow at that, and an amused smile crossed his face before he nudged her back. "Yeah, they'll wonder how a leaf got into the building. Was that supposed to be a punch?"

Emma chuckled as she caught her footing. "Hey, I was going easy on you, is all," she retorted, causing him to shake his head as he took a few socks out of the pile and set them to the side.

"Mhm, sure," he replied before a thought came to mind. "Oh. I'm going to be away for work next week. So, this coming Thursday will be the last lesson for the month."

"Not a problem. I can always practice on my own," It was nice of him to help her. "Hopefully, I'll have this punching stuff figured out soon, so I can get out of your hair."

"It's not a problem, I don't mind. It helps me go over the basics," he shrugged. As uncertain as he had been before, it was kind of nice spending with her every so often. On top of that, having a place to go for a meal after being away was pretty useful. She could be curious from time to time, but she wasn't too pushy about it, so it wasn't a nuisance or anything. She was actually pretty patient. After all, she wasn't getting on his case about this whole mistake.

The two continued to idly chat, and before long, the pile was sorted out. "It was kind of nice to get to talk for a bit." Emma said what Chris had been thinking earlier. "See you later. I should have your meal payment ready around seven or eight."

"Take your time. See you around," he said in return, and the two made their way back to their respective apartments.

'*'*'*'*'

True to her word, Emma adjusted the meals she was making for Chris, but soon after, he was sent off for a week to check on Ethan and monitor his progress. The days of October came and passed, and before long, it was the 23rd. Luckily, this time around, he still had food that was not yet moldy and was able to avoid having to go to his neighbor for scraps to hold him over. Not that it really changed much since, even though they missed a week of practicing, Emma dropped off a stack of five Tupperware containers in exchange for the empty ones waiting on his counter. It had become a natural part of Sunday evening over the last three months that neither of them really questioned anymore.

The weekends were never long enough, and Monday began bright and early. Chris gave a tired sigh as he made his way into the cafeteria to put away his meal for later, only to find the whole Hound Wolf Squad staring at the bulletin board on the far wall. The leader gave an attention call, which the group instinctively reacted to and lined up. "Shouldn't you guys be busy?" Chris asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Hey, ease up. It's our first day back after a mission," Lobo said with a laugh.

"We were just catching up on company news. Anything worth knowing is usually posted to the board anyway," Night Howl admitted as he shifted to relax a bit.

"Pretty sure that you'll find it interesting." Umber Eye smirked, causing Canine to nudge him.

"Hey, don't tell him. We're gonna end up losing," he said with a frown, which got Chris' attention.

"What? Are they hosting another shooting competition?" Chris asked with a laugh.

Tundra raised an eyebrow. "And here I thought the one holiday you wouldn't forget is Halloween." This caused Chris' expression to shift to confusion and then realization. Halloween was coming up in a few days.

"There it is." Night Howl chuckled.

"The BSAA is hosting the usual costume contest. Are you gonna join in again?" Umber Eye asked. "That sailor costume was a big hit a few years ago."

"I was more a fan of the samurai one the year after," Lobo said, poking fun at the leader. "Hey, let's make this fun." The usual mischief was in his tone.

"Here we go," Tundra said, rolling her eyes.

"What if we make it a contest for us too?" Lobo offered with a smile. "The person with the lowest rank for the costume contest has to host Thanksgiving?"

"So, what you're saying is that you're volunteering to host this year?" Canine asked, earning a frown from Lobo.

"Hey, it could be anyone's game. I don't think any of us really had time to prepare something this year," Lobo argued before looking to Chris. "No repeat costumes, though. If you wear those damn short shorts again, I swear to the powers that be—"

"You'll what?" Chris asked, amused.

"... I'll think of something, but it's officially cheating to reuse an old costume," Lobo said upon realizing he really couldn't back up that threat. All the same, the others nodded.

"Yeah."

"Fair."

"Agreed."

Umber Eye chuckled and looked at Chris. "Pack rules, right?"

"Fine," he reluctantly conceded. "Now get to work. I don't want to see any of you distracted by this."

"Yes sir," the group said and went on their way. Chris looks at the poster for the costume contest with a small smile before taking a picture of it with his phone and sending a quick text.

[Chris] -Image file of the poster- Hey. Think you can help me out again this year?

[Bastion] I thought you'd never ask.

[Bastion] What are we doing?

[Chris] Not sure... Vampire?

[Bastion] Eh. Kinda boring, but I'll see what I can find to spice it up. I only have a few days, so don't expect a miracle.

The days moved quickly, and soon Halloween day arrived. Chris heard a knocking at his door around seven in the morning. He walked over to find Bastion waiting on the other side with an arm full of clothes. "Took you long enough," Chris jokingly greeted him with a short laugh.

"How do you feel about corsets?" Bastion asked with a devious smile, which got Chris' attention.

"You're joking, right?" Chris asked with mild concern.

"Nope. Either let me in or don't take my help," said Bastion, still smiling away.

"...Fine," Chris agreed and moved out of the way, so Bastion could enter.

"Thank you," Bastion said, walking into the apartment and towards the living room. "You have black dress pants already, right?"

"Yep," Chris said as he closed the door.

"Good, go ahead and change into those for now," Bastion instructed as he laid out the different pieces he had brought with him on the couch. After a minute or two, Chris walked out wearing his dress pants and a plain white undershirt.

"Oh no, you won't be needing that. Off." Bastion gestured to the shirt, which Chris reluctantly removed. The nail tech handed over a pure white corset that closed in the front with three thick plastic clasps that looked similar to the ones on Chris' regular tactical gear. Chris put on the corset with a grumble. "It's a bit tight," he complained. It felt weird too, as it only covered from his hip to right under his chest.

"That means it's working," Bastion said with a laugh. "All right, now put this on over it but don't button it up." Bastion handed him a very loose cotton button-up shirt. Again, Chris did as he was told, donning the shirt before tucking it into his dress pants without buttoning them up. Bastion then gave him a new package of fake fangs.

"Go ahead and put those on too. I need to work with this last piece for a second," Bastion instructs while adjusting a floral broach. The agent opened the package to get the plastic teeth out, attaching them to his canines to make them look sharper. "So what are we doing about this area," Chris asked, making a vague gesture to his bare chest.

"I mean, you could wear some dog tags if you want," Bastion suggested, seeming confused by the question.

"Bastion, I need a shirt," Chris said, unamused as he checked the time. 7:25.

"You have one," Bastion countered, gesturing towards Chris.

"One that covers me, I know I got away with the half-bit for the samurai costume, but I got a warning with it, and this is definitely more skin than that," he pointed out, a frown starting to cross his lips.

"Fine, take it off. Then we can rearrange the layers," Bastion said with a disappointed sigh. "Offices are no fun."

Chris fumbled with the top clasp for a few moments with little progress before noticing that it was pressed in but not releasing or popping back into place. "Shit, it's stuck."

"What do you mean it's stuck," Bastion asked, bewildered. "Suck in," he said as he walked over and attempted to help. Unfortunately, with how long his nails were, it was difficult to apply pressure to the clasp.

"I am!"

"Umm…" Bastion mumbled before an idea came to mind. "Okay, just stay right there. I'm going to get some help." Then he walked out of the apartment.

It took a few minutes, but he eventually returned with Emma, who was also in costume, but Chris was too distracted to focus on that.

"What on earth?" Emma exclaimed upon seeing Chris. Holy! Hello pectoral! What was that outfit? "Okay, hold still." She walked over and checked the clasps. "I could try cutting the fabric."

"No! That's my favorite corset," Bastion cried, horrified.

"You tried putting him in your clothes?" Emma asked, bewildered. "What were you thinking? Of course it's stuck." She walked over to the kitchen to get a butter knife to wiggle into the clasp to try and get it to release. It took her a good ten minutes, but she managed to get all three clasps open.

"Well, to hell with that thing. I'm not putting that back on," Chris grumbled as he tossed the corset over the back of the couch.

"What are you trying to dress as?" Emma asked, trying to focus on his face. He had a nice six-pack, though—Crap! Eyes at eye level.

"I could ask you the same thing. What did you do to your face?" Chris asked since he finally had time to breathe and absorb his surroundings. Emma's hair was sticky and black and was clumped together in sections as if it was soaked in black ink. She wore black-out contacts and black lipstick, dripping marks coming from her eyes and mouth. A simple black sleeveless A-line dress clung to her torso but flowed freely from the waist to a few inches above the knee, complemented by matching black stiletto heels, opera-length black gloves, and a black choker.

"It's kind of an inside joke at the office," she said, laughing. "I'm going as a diva meltdown."

"You look like The Ring decided to go to junior prom," Bastion said.

"Perfect, that's about what I was aiming for," she joked. "So... space pirate?" she asked, confused by the corset.

"Vampire," Chris said.

"Well, not anymore. You're ditching the main part of the costume." Bastion sighed.

"Probably a good idea. He's already got some bruises forming from that thing," Emma pointed out before putting a hand on her hip and drumming her fingers. "Give me a minute," she said before heading back over to her apartment. While she was away, Chris took the time to fix his shirt, untucking it so he could button it up except for the top three buttons, then tucking it back in. It was more comfortable now that the corset was gone.

Emma eventually returned with two containers, a plastic straw, and a toothbrush. "Luckily for you, I had to look up the drip effect thing for my own costume." She smiled as she opened the container, which had a dark mixture in it.

Chris walked over and looked at it suspiciously. "What is that?"

"It's chocolate syrup, water, and red food coloring. It's safe," she promised, "I used the same thing with black dye. A bit of blood from one corner of the mouth will make the vampire part more apparent when people can't see your teeth."

The agent nodded. "Fair enough... what's the other container?" he asked since that one hadn't been opened yet.

"Hair mousse with white dye. I was thinking about going with a white version of this costume but decided against it. Dracula is usually depicted with white streaks of hair on the sides. Do you want to use these?" she offered.

"Sure. If I don't place, I'll lose the bet with the squad." He frowned slightly, causing Emma to chuckle.

"Do you guys bet on everything?" she asked, amused.

"It passes the time," Chris replied with a shrug as he sat at the kitchen island.

"Fair enough. Hold still then, and I'll help you with this," she replied.

He nodded before holding still as Emma gently held the side of his face in one hand while using the straw to pick up a few drops of the fake blood and places them at the corner of his lips to let them drip. It only took a few seconds, then Emma nodded. "Okay, good," she said before opening the mousse and picking up the toothbrush to scoop some out and gently brush it into the sides of Chris' hair.

Bastion leaned against the back of the couch and watched with a small smile as he noticed Chris relax during the process and close his eyes. Suppose anyone could enjoy a little personal attention.

"There," Emma said. "All done." She stepped back so Chris could get up and go take a look.

The man took out his phone to use it as a mirror. "Not bad," he said while looking himself over. "It could maybe use more blood, though?"

"You're the boss," she said with a chuckle. "There's plenty in the container, so you can reapply throughout the day if you need to."

"Maybe some hand marks on the shirt?" Chris suggested, which caused Bastion to nod.

"I don't mind. It's a goodwill find, so I'm not attached to it." He smiled.

"Sounds good. Did you want to help with that, Bastion?" Emma requested since her gloves took forever to get on.

"And mess up my nails? Oh no. I'm good. You have fun with that." Bastion grinned.

"Ah, right," Emma said, wincing. She had forgotten how sensitive Bastion was about his hands. She took a moment to shimmy off her gloves, dip the tips of her fingers in the mixture, and press them against Chris' neck, waiting for it to dry before taking her hand away. "One down."

"Maybe one here-ish," Chris suggested, grabbing a section of the shirt close to his torso.

"Sure, I can do that," she agreed and dipped the fingers of her other hand in the mixture before rubbing it into the palm of her hand and grabbing the shirt where Chris had before. "Do you want some blood splats as well?" she offered with a chuckle.

"Might as well," Chris said with a nod as Emma dipped her fingers once more and flicked the mixture at Chris, resulting in various splatters.

"Okay, I'm cutting you off there." She laughed as she went to wash her hands before closing the containers. "Any more, and you're going to get pulled over by a cop."

"Thanks, both of you. With any luck, I'll be able to avoid coming in last place," Chris said as he got up and looked at the microwave clock, which read 8:03. "Shit, I'm going to be late." He hurried to get his shoes on.

After hearing this, Emma looked at the clock and shoved her gloves back on. "Oh dang it!" Emma said as she managed to get one on. "I'll see you guys around," she called, hurrying to the door.

"Let me know how it goes, you two," Bastion said with a laugh as he walked out and headed back to his own apartment.

"Will do," they agreed in unison. Chris put his second shoe on and headed over to the counter to get his keys and wallet before grabbing the last container from the fridge and heading out for the day.

After narrowly avoiding a speeding ticket, he managed to park and make it to work. 8:31 AM. Technically late, but who was counting? He walked into the cafeteria and found the Hound Wolf Squad chatting.

"Hey Alpha, took you long enough," Tundra said with a laugh. She was wearing an interesting costume that looked like a fried egg over a black long sleeve shirt and leggings and a headband with horns.

Umber Eye, Night Howl, and Canine were wearing matching outfits with canes and sunglasses, while Lobo looked like a giant dust bunny full of clutter wrapped in gray tulle.

"So, vampire, three blind mice, deviled eye," Tundra listed as she pointed at each person before looking at Lobo.

"Sharknado," he said with a smile, which caused the others to groan. "Hey, it's creative. Besides, what are you three going to do if you lose? You can't all host Thanksgiving," Lobo said with a frown.

"We'll just work together," Night Howl shrugged.

Chris shook his head. "When do we get the results anyway?"

"Around noon, I think," Canine said before gesturing to the doorway. "You gotta get your picture taken for the poll, though, and that's going out in ten minutes," he added, which got Chris' attention.

The team captain quickly put away his lunch and briskly walked to the receptionist to get checked in for the contest. It wasn't his best costume, but it was better than nothing. As Canine said, a company email went out shortly after with a rule that you couldn't vote for yourself and that the poll collected email addresses, so they would know.

By noon, the results were in.

Deviled Egg - 8 votes

Vampire/Dracula - 7 votes

Three Blind mice - 14 votes

Sharknado -

"Twenty three votes and third place overall?" Canine read aloud as the group had decided to have lunch together for once.

"I told ya it was creative," Lobo said with a cocky smile.

"You wrapped yourself in a sheet of fabric and hot-glued sharks to it," Tundra said, unamused.

"Don't hate the player, hate the game," Lobo rebutted. "Besides, that's rich coming from the Walmart clearance bin."

"So, if we divide fourteen by three," Chris jokingly suggested, only to get a chorus of arguments in return from the three.

"That is not how that works. You lost." Night Howl frowned.

"So, what time is dinner?" Umber Eye asked with an amused smile.

Chris gave a tired sigh. "Fine, I'll host but don't expect anything impressive."

The squad laughed as they ate their meals and finished up a very unproductive day at the office. Paperwork got nowhere, and gym time was mostly spent talking since some costumes were more of a safety hazard than others. The day eventually ended, though, and everyone made their way back home.

Chris was admittedly not in the best mood as he entered the apartment. Did he seriously have to host Thanksgiving? He just hosted poker night, and his apartment wasn't that spacious. Thanksgiving was a large meal, and they barely had enough space at the table to play cards. Well. They could just put all the food on the island and bring their plates back and forth... but that wasn't the point. Chattering voices became clearer as he made his way up the stairs to the second floor.

"Are you sure you're okay with that, Em? It's asking a lot," said a vaguely familiar voice.

"Yeah, I don't mind. It's just a few months," Emma's voice replied and was greeted with high-pitched cheering, which caused Chris to wince. Once he made it to the top of the stairs, he found two tiny little girls dressed as princesses, a now not pregnant mother holding a baby dressed as a pumpkin, and an exhausted father standing next to her. Bastion was leaning in his doorway, and the Russos were also standing in the hallway as Mrs. Russo cooed over the children, who were more than happy with the attention.

Wow, everyone is here. "Did I miss a meeting?" Chris asked to make his presence known.

"Nah, just handing out candy. We have trick or treaters visiting," Bastion said with a shrug. "How'd the contest go?" he asked.

Chris stared at Bastion with a deadpan expression in response.

"That well?" Emma winced as Chris shook his head. "Oh well. You'll get them next year," she offered with a half-smile.

At this point, Summer finally registered that the vampire by the stairs was Chris and gave a small gasp. "My friend is bleeding?" she asked with a horrified expression before walking over to wave her magic princess wand at him as if it would miraculously make the 'blood' go away.

"It's chocolate, Summer," Emma said to try to get her to calm down.

"Oh," she said, then paused to think about it before looking at Emma. "Auntie Emmy, can I have chocolate blood too?"

"You probably already do with how much candy you've eaten," Emma quietly muttered, causing the parents to laugh.

"We should get going before they crash. Thanks again, Em. We'll see next Saturday?" Chelsea asked, and Emma nodded.

"Yep, see you then," she said with a smile.

Chris made his way past the gathering and to his own apartment to wash up and get some sleep.


This was a fun one, hopefully, it wasn't too stressful. I know that first bit got me a bit anxious and I wrote it lol. Hopefully, the silly nature of the second half made up for that.

Review responses:

Kishin. Instinct - reading your review made me smile thanks for taking the time to tell me that you like the story! Hopefully, this chapter wasn't too jarring compared to the others. This masked figure is going to come to a head in the next few chapters but I'm trying to space it out a bit to keep it from being the main focus. I kinda want to go with the feeling of constant nagging, something that won't quite go away, and just when you're about to forget it pops up again to add to the anxiety factor that it's causing Emma.