AN: Heyo! In the last chapter, we have featured Rosehip AKA as the Speedster of the story, now we turn the spotlight to the Spymaster herself. So sit back and relax and enjoy the show!


Chapter 3
Angel of the Morning

Onboard HMS Ark Royal
Florence Nightingale Hospital

Standing with her other Noble Sisters, Assam was anxiously waiting in the corridor outside a hospital room. Her watch showed that it was already noon, but she hadn't had anything for lunch yet, with the flurry of activity that followed the match. Even then, she probably wouldn't have had much of an appetite.

If someone said things would go downhill from the moment she took that shot, she would have laughed it off, but she wasn't laughing now.

After their tank popped out the white flag, she immediately knew something was wrong. It was only amplified when no one emerged from the Crusader and the emergency vehicles began rushing to the scene.

With their sirens blazing, the medical personnel headed to the cruiser tank and checked up on the condition of its crew members. Once they had determined that everyone onboard was unconscious, much to Assam's distress, they carefully retrieved the four crew members and placed them onto stretchers. These in turn were loaded into a waiting ambulance, that then made haste to the hospital.

With their tank knocked out, she, Darjeeling and Orange Pekoe had to hitch a ride on Earl Grey's Cromwell, leaving Ruhuna behind to deal with the knocked-out tanks.

"What a pity!" she remembered Earl Grey exclaimed as the Cromwell raced through the streets at breakneck speeds, closely trailing the ambulance that led the way. Their senpai had volunteered to sit outside the turret to make more space inside the tank; Darjeeling and she sat at the commander's seat and the gunner's seat respectively. Orange Pekoe had to settle deeper inside the hull, seated by the hull machine gun.

Cranberry and her driver remained to help operate the cruiser tank, so a tank designed for five, now held six and even someone who only knew basic arithmetic could deduct that it would be a tight fit.

"Shame, that Rosehip gal was starting to grow on me," Earl Grey carried on, her voice barely audible over the winds that whipped outside the tank. Darjeeling just looked on with her stiff upper lip as she operated the reinstalled boiling vessel, hoping to brew up some tea. It may have looked as if the situation unfolding didn't phase her but behind that stoic mask, Assam knew that her blonde friend was panicking just as much as her, if not more, but Darjeeling had just more practice in keeping her emotions in check, being the Commander and all.

Arriving at the hospital, she saw her kouhai being transferred to a gurney and ran to its side, trying to keep up with the nurses pushing it. She immediately saw that Rosehip was physically fine albeit out cold and to add more to her worry, the girl was obviously experiencing a bad dream.

Beads of sweat were forming at the girl's forehead and she could hear mutterings coming from her.

"No… i-it wasn't my fault… I didn't know...know that it will lead… to that…..I'm sorry," the speed-demon whimpered.

If she was worried before, her worry increased tenfold. What is she talking about? Why is she apologising? Who is she even apologising to?! All these thoughts battled for her attention, making her brain mushier than mashed potato, a telltale sign that she was running low on food.

Oh, this is SO my fault.

Meanwhile, the nurses pushed the bed deeper into the hospital, Assam tagged along, much to the looks of the people on the corridors. As the group entered a room, one of the nurses, dressed in the old Victorian way of a black dress, crisp starched white apron and a cap with the Red Cross in it, blocked her way.

"I'm sorry Miss, but only medical personnel are allowed beyond this point," the nurse said as she stood in front of the doorway."

"Please, I need to know if she's alright!" Assam shouted in exasperation, blinded by tears of worry that now streaked her face.

"Her condition is stable, but we will have to perform examinations to be sure. We'll inform you when you are allowed to see her. May I have your number, so we know who to call?"

"Alright," Assam said, reciting it all from memory as soon as she calmed down a bit. The nurse repeated it to make sure she got it right and she nodded when she heard the professional recite it correctly. She watched as the orderly turned her back and closed the door momentarily afterwards.

"Assam!"

She turned as she heard her name being called and saw her two companions had finally managed to catch up with her, still breathing heavily as if they had run a marathon.

"This is all my fault!" she said in despair, her back pressed against the corridor wall, as she slid down to the floor. Once she was on the ground, she curled herself into a ball and buried her head in her arms as she lamented the fact that she was the one who pulled the trigger.

She felt the soft, small, delicate hands of Orange Pekoe on her shoulder as the girl joined her down on the floor, sympathising with her, but it did little to clear up her mind. What had happened did not make any sense.

"Something like that shouldn't have happened!" Assam exclaimed, throwing up her hands. "

"Simulation rounds could knock some of the crew members out; but certainly not the entire crew! It doesn't make any statistical sense!" she frustratingly blurted out in anger, mostly directed at herself for not knowing and for not being able to find any logical solution.

Computation was her mastery, she should have at least seen this coming!

"Unfortunate business with Rosehip and her crew, however, it was not in any way your fault," Darjeeling said, reassuring her, kneeling down so she could easily wipe the tears from her face.

"If anything the responsibility lay on me because I was the one who ordered you to fire."

Assam, with the reassurances from her friends, was able to calm down and allowed reason to take over from fear, giving way to a peaceful transition of disposition.

Perhaps there was an unknown variable? Tampered shells? Maybe it was with the tank, like having a compromised carbon fibre coating? Or maybe both? Either way, an investigation needed to be launched.

With her mind at ease, she was able to bring her emotions in check, as she used a handkerchief from her pocket to clean her eyes, allowing her to spot the bespectacled girl that was timidly approaching their trio huddled on the ground.

"M-miss Dar… Darjeeling, Madam Earl Grey wants to meet… meet you in your office," the Matilda commander spoke out, her voice trembling as if she was afraid to bear the message.

Darjeeling suddenly stormed off, much to the surprise of everyone in the corridor. Even people from inside the nearby rooms couldn't help but gawk at the spectacle. With her own problems momentarily forgotten, Assam, along with Orange Pekoe, followed suit, only a few steps behind, wondering why their friend reacted like that.

The problem with hiding your emotions, Assam thought, was just like a boiling vessel, if left unchecked, the built-up pressure would increase, eventually causing it to explode. The impromptu return of their senpai had probably caused so much stress on Darjeeling that she started to crack. In all her years of knowing Darjeeling, this was the first time she witnessed her so worked up. Even when she was rounding up on Rosehip for her shenanigans, she maintained a calm demeanour.

But now the facade had come crumbling down, as her fellow blonde marched off to her own office. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed how Pekoe's face was twisted with worry as they followed her senpai. She herself knew that, aside from the former's obsession with quotes, Darjeeling was a capable mentor to the orange-haired girl chasing after her; in fact, they probably had a far better senpai-kouhai relationship compared to the one she has with Rosehip.

Rosehip... that carefree klutz. She never really gave a damn to what others might think

At first, Assam was excited to finally have someone pass on what she learned about being a refined lady herself. She soon gave up on the idea, however, when she met Rosehip.

A lost cause; she had tried every trick on the book but none worked. It was as if Gloriana had decided to humour her and give her a formidable challenge; by bestowing upon her the kind of girl who'd do naughty things to herself when she thought no one was looking.

The only reason she was lady-like earlier was that they had a bet a day before. It worked, but she knew that cheeky gal would take advantage of it if she did it every time and Assam knew she would long be penniless before she graduated if that continued.

But, she pushed that pink-haired devil out of her mind and focused on the task at hand. By now she was close enough to hear her friend's mutterings.

"That bugger thinks she can push me around like a bloody pawn."

Oh dear, this has turned into a problem

Darjeeling rarely swore, like blue moon rare. Assam could count on her fingers how many times the other girl swore out loud and most of them were when she stubbed her toe around their apartment.

Pekoe looked like she was about to cry but a determined look on her face kept her together. Much to Assam's surprise, the little girl grabbed the hand of her mentor and tugged it hard, using the strength she received in her role as a loader, causing her senpai to almost topple over.

"Darjeeling-sama, please calm down. Please remember, as the saying goes, 'Anger is an acid that can do more harm to the vessel in which it is stored than to anything on which it is poured'." Orange Pekoe said, mimicking the girl herself.

Darjeeling, who a few moments ago looked so pissed, now had a blank look on her face, and as if she had suddenly gone through the five stages of grief in a span of a few seconds, smiled weakly.

"Ah yes, a great quote from Mark Twain., I apologise for making you two worry. I guess it was just the stress taking its toll. Come, let's make our way to my office."

With Darjeeling now calmed down and the bomb defused, they walked the rest of the way to the Office of Senshadou Commander.


Leading the party, Assam volunteered to open the heavy oak door, and knocking beforehand, she turned the knob as she steeled herself for what she perceived was a fracas about to start.

Unlike the Antechamber, Darjeeling had taken the liberty of decorating her office. Ceremoniously placed on top of the fireplace mantle, beneath another portrait of St. Gloriana, was a cavalry sabre, which according to rumours was a valuable heirloom that came all the way from England. In reality, it was actually just bought by Earl Grey at an antique store back on the mainland and she had passed it off as something much greater. The midday sunlight shone through large arched windows, pleasantly illuminating the room and hitting the plush velvet carpet that covered the length of the entire office.

Located on it were a few pieces of carefully selected furniture, which included a sofa and a coffee table before it, filing cabinets crammed full with paperwork, a bookshelf lined with books on stratagems and quotations, admittedly more of the latter, and a desk believed to have been crafted from the deck wood of the pre-dreadnought ship Mikasa.

In addition to this, the walls were lined with various paintings and pictures, the former a reminder of her friend's skills with the brush and the latter to remind them of what they were fighting for. Some of the pictures included photographs of the entire team but most of what was framed were pictures of the three of them doing a whole lot of shenanigans.

Incidentally, she remembered that Darjeeling also had a portrait of Chi-Ha-Tan's commander, Kinuyo Nishi, who apparently was long idolized by her friend, hidden away in the safe behind the desk. She only knew about it when she barged into this very room herself back then and spotted her fellow third-year intensely staring at the portrait, with lust in her eyes. It was one of the many secrets kept between them that each hoped would never see the light of day.

Despite the door being open, Earl Grey was nowhere to be found and Assam saw Darjeeling place a hand on her skirt, a bleak reminder of the "training" she watched her friend endure in the past. Eventually, they found Earl Grey, not sitting behind the oak desk nor standing by the window but rather lying on the sofa reading a small red book that seemed quite familiar.

Wait, isn't that….

"Hey! That's my journal!" Darjeeling said out loud, her face a weird mix of embarrassment and anger.

"Don't worry, I wouldn't tell a soul." Assam saw the alumnus stand up and walk over to hand over the diary back to its owner and was surprised when she promptly leaned close to her.

"She tried cooking yesterday, almost burned down your dorm," the former commander whispered to her in a low voice, wiping a tear from her eye.

"Anyways, what is it that you need to discuss so urgently?" Darjeeling asked, with hints of anger in her eyes as she grasped her journal close to her body.

Now it was Earl Grey's turn to get flustered, which piqued Assam's interest. What was something so important and embarrassing at the same time that made a lady like Earl Grey fidgety?

"I will have to ask your friends to leave beforehand."

"Either we talk about it with them or we won't talk at all!" Darjeeling protested, making her stand, probably knowing what alone time with Earl Grey might entail.

"Darjeeling, I didn't come home all the way from England just for a cup of tea and a rematch, and I'm pretty sure you know that," Earl Grey said before suddenly turning her back on them and approaching the bookshelf, where hidden amongst the books was Darjeeling's vinyl collection. The blonde alumnus shifted through the records and pulled one out. She popped it onto the vintage gramophone on the corner and lowered the pin.

As the disk started to spin, Assam was sure that she was not alone in giving their upper-class schoolmate a look of confusion.

"Just in case. You never know who's listening," Earl Grey explained, giving Assam a knowing look that said that she understood more.

The record began to play the first bar of the song-

I give you a toast ladies and gentlemen

-she was sure it was Vera Lynn's 'There'll always be an England'; one of the most famous wartime songs from the Second World War.

"Well, this will be a long story, so I suggest you get yourselves seated," Earl Grey advised, which they complied to as the three of them deposited themselves on the sofa while the alumnus remained standing.

"You see my dear children, back when I had just taken the position of commander..." Earl Grey started, the gramophone providing a good background noise as she spoke.

"The alumni association knew that I was adamant in my agenda of having the school win, no matter what the cost, even throwing the school's supposed elegance away." Darjeeling was about to interrupt before Earl Grey raised a hand, effectively shutting her up.

"Now, those basterds thought of an ingenious plan. They funded an Irish-themed school called Shamrock School For Girls in the hopes that the team this school established would carry on the traditions Saint Gloriana had, in their eyes, thrown away."

Assam and the rest of the Noble Sister looked at Earl Grey in a state of incredulity. They had never heard of this supposed Irish-themed school, nor were there any records of the purported transactions. Staying in England for so long must have muddled their senpai's mind in order for her to make up this ludicrous tale.

"The matter was closed, however, when I gave in to some of the alumni's demands and made a compromise, conforming to their strict rules and guidelines in exchange for whatever tank I wanted. With their fears now unfounded, they had no more reason to stay in the Irish-theme school, forcing them to pull out of Shamrock," she continued.

"But if you're telling us about it now, then it wasn't truly closed?" Assam asked as she noticed Darjeeling nudging Pekoe to pinch her hard, probably to make sure that this wasn't all a bizarre dream.

"Correct, right now there is an attempt by someone named Iona Yoshimura, also known inside the school as Shannon, to revive their Senshadou Team."

Earl Grey suddenly produced a manila envelope and placed it on the coffee table.

Orange Pekoe was the first to pick up the envelope and opened it to view its contents; she then passed it around for the others to see. Assam saw Darjeeling's forehead wrinkle as she began flipping through the photos, her eyebrows rising higher and higher as she went through them.

Assam finally got her turn and what she saw surprised her. Even by GI6 standards, these photographs were excellent; Massive bird's eye view pictures, both in black-and-white and colour, of an aircraft carrier that was smaller than standard. These photos were labelled in red marker with HMS Unicorn. Next was an ID picture of a small redhead that strangely looked like the president of Ooarai's student council. This one was marked with the name Earl Grey had mentioned earlier. The remaining photographs were of two or three tanks either manoeuvring in a field, being serviced inside a garage of sorts or out on the streets.

"Where did you get these?" she said out loud. Most of the bird-eye shots were too high to be shot by an ordinary drone, which could only mean they were probably taken by a low altitude reconnaissance satellite.

Instead of immediately replying, Earl Grey just winked at her. "Let's just say I have friends in high places - very high places, but that's beside the point. If they uncovered the attempt of our school to mess with another school's internal affairs, this could be a public relations nightmare."

Darjeeling frowned and massaged her temple for a while, before finally finding the strength to reply, "What do you want me to do?"

Silence ensued in the room for a while, as Earl Grey left the question hanging up in the air, allowing the three of them time to process the load of information they had been given. The record had run its course, and the dull hissing and repetitive click of the needle only added to the tension of the room. The tension was then cut short by a shrill whistling of a kettle permeating throughout the room. It would seem Earl Grey had helped herself to Darjeeling's personal tea kettle and brewed herself tea, or at least that was what Assam initially thought.

So it came as a surprise to her when it was not the flowery aroma of tea, but the sickly sweet smell of chocolate that came to her nostrils. The cups on the tray being toted by the alumnus filled with dark brown boiling liquid was the final confirmation she needed to confirm that Earl Grey had, in fact, served them steaming cups of hot chocolate; a deviation from the Gloriana tea tradition.

"I developed a fondness for these when I was in Blighty, so I brought some with me. Anyway, it's your call, you're the one in the helm now, I just gave you all the information you would need to reach a decision," Earl Grey stated as she pulled up an ottoman and sat down to enjoy her cup of cocoa.

Assam gingerly picked up her teacup from the tray and took a sip, tasting a sweet concoction. Well, too sweet for her palate and set it back down on the table. Her two companions were still deep in thought and left their cups untouched, their hotness slowly cooling off, as steam continued to rise from the drinks.

Rosehip would have loved this.

Ah, there goes that roseate-haired girl, suddenly running around her thoughts again, like her real-life version. And once more, she shoved that lass to the recesses of her mind, focusing first on the task at hand.

"We can send a liaison and even send in some of our spare tanks as diplomatic gifts," Darjeeling said, finally picking up her choco, but instead of drinking from it, she simply twirled her teacup around the saucer, a telltale sign of when she was nervous.

"But who would work out the finer details of this conference?" Assam asked, noticing Darjeeling's mantel clock had struck quarter past noon and despite their elevenses earlier, she felt the need for real food.

"I was thinking of you, Assam-san." Darjeeling smiled maliciously, gladly passing the responsibility to another person.

She was sure the look of surprise was evident on her face but there was no use protesting now, with everyone's eyes on her. "If that is what you want, I'll accept the offer."

She grabbed the photo of Iona or Shannon or whatever from the table and stared at it "She does kinda look like Miss Kadotani of Ooarai… The one who rekindled the flames of that school, so fierce were the flames that it was enough for them to win the 64th Senshadou Tournament. However, it needed a Nishizumi to make that possible."

There couldn't be another one, right? she thought.

"Great then, it looks like there's nothing left to discuss!" her blonde friend said as she clapped her hands and started to stand up, really eager to kick out her senpai out of her office.

"Just a minute." Earl Grey suddenly announced, producing a bottle of champagne and four champagne flutes out of nowhere, much to the surprise and shock of them.

Assam herself raised an eyebrow as she saw Earl Grey place a glass each in front of them and went to the fireplace. With a great pull, the girl unsheathed the sabre from its scabbard and positioned it on the neck of the bottle.

"Please no, the carpet is delica-" Darjeeling tried warning but trailed off half-heartedly as their senpai used the sharp edge of the sabre to remove the top end of the bottle cleanly, sending it flying across the room. With part of it now gone, the champagne spewed forth.

Earl Grey topped their glasses, despite their best attempts of declining the offer and asked them to do a toast. "To the future partnership of St Gloriana and Shamrock, cheers!"

The four of them clinked their glasses and she and her other Churchill crewmates took tiny sips from their flutes, cautiously tasting the sparkling wine, while Earl Grey chugged hers in one go. The drink tasted bitter, not aided by the fact that she had just drunk hot chocolate before this, as it rolled on her tongue. As she took more, however, she began to appreciate its hints of sweetness and the underlying taste of fruitiness; she knew though that she needed to drink in moderation to avoid getting drunk.

Assam felt a buzz in her pocket and figured that it may be someone trying to contact her, took out her phone and checked. It was a message from the hospital management, stating that she may now visit. With trepidation, she placed down her glass and stated that she had to go, Darjeeling and Orange Pekoe looked as if they wanted to join her but didn't have the same excuse, all the while Earl Grey poured herself more glasses of champagne.

She made her way out and was about to close the door when she heard rapid footsteps behind her. Turning around, she saw that Earl Grey was in hot pursuit and managed to catch up with her, closing the door behind her.

"Before you go, I want you to take this," the alumnus said, her face flushed red and it was obvious that she was already a little tipsy from the glassfuls she had taken. In her hand was a small unremarkable plastic box that could be carried discreetly on one hand, which she was gently pushing towards her direction.

Without much choice, Assam took out the box and cracked it open. Buried majestically upon red velvet silk, was a sleek black firearm that had a circular tube as its main body. With it, were what she could only assume were several magazines and other trinkets that came with the weapon.

"Is this a gun, why are you giving me a gun?!" she asked in exasperation. What was going on inside her senpai's head? Had her years spent in Europe made her forget the customs of her homeland?

"There are rumours of anti-St. Gloriana sentiment in Shamrock; take that Welrod pistol, along with four extra magazines as a precaution," Earl Grey explained, just lazily smiling as she attempted to pat her head, with Assam taking a side step to avoid it.

"I can't shoot to kill..." Assam said, closing the box shut and tried handing it back to her senpai.

"Don't worry, those aren't real bullets silly! They're Real Action Markers, the latest craze over in the European tankery scene." Earl Grey replied, taking the box and picking up one of the magazines. From it, she popped out a round and it looked nothing like the bullets of the Besa machine gun; this one was entirely spherical and coloured in bright green.

"It provides a realistic experience as if you were using the real deal, without the risk of killing someone. Be warned though, it could still cause bruises and if shot at the head, a concussion," Earl Grey warned as she returned the box.

"I-I okay then." Assam sighed as she simply gave in, taking back the gun box.

"And besides as the saying goes: Keep your faith in God, but keep your powder dry." Earl Grey quoted, making a small hiccup before covering her mouth.

"Oliver Cromwell?" she answered since although she wasn't a victim of Darjeeling's quote addiction, she had taken extra steps in case she found herself alone with her fellow blonde.

"Sharp as ever! Now off you go!" Earl Grey praised and sent her off as the alumnus turned towards the door to Darjeeling's office, where Darjeeling and Orange Pekoe were still trapped inside.

Today couldn't get any worse, could it?


After she left Darjeeling's office, she took a cab to their dormitory, though, admittedly, that was a bit of an understatement. The place was more of a fine townhouse, detached from its neighbours by neatly trimmed hedgerows, shared with her other Noble Sisters. The house itself was quite spacious, complete with its own miniature library and a bedroom for each one of them and a spare one for guests.

One of the problems she had with this arrangement was that the dorm only had a single bathroom, which required all three of them to have a tight-knit schedule, to work like a well-oiled machine, or else they'd all be late. Another issue was the fact that being bunked in with Darjeeling forced her and Pekoe to literally dash to the kitchen before any mealtime lest Darjeeling knocked up another nasty concoction that would leave their guts wrenching and send them off to the emergency room.

Assam opened the door with her own key and went to her room, but not before taking a detour to the kitchen, where she toasted some bread up and topped it off with some reheated leftover Welsh Rarebit. A dollop of Worcestershire sauce from the pantry made the somewhat Spartan meal a more delicious affair. A quick visit to her wardrobe and gone were the red coat and black skirt of her Senshadou uniform which were replaced by a blue blouse and a long red skirt. She finished the look by adding sunglasses and a purple purse. Before she forgot, she left the box Earl Grey had given to her on her pristine desk, intending to examine it at greater length later on, and then locked her room.

Prior to leaving the house, she retrieved her black motorcycle helmet and the keys for her scooter, which she had hidden in a small shed in the backyard of their home. It was an Anzio-made Vespa motor scooter, which had served her dearly, especially during the gridlock of the early morning rush.

Putting on her helmet, she rode off back to Nightingale's, which was located all the way on the other side of town. Their dorm was located in the affluent Mayfair district in the West End, while the school proper was in between the city. Weaving in between cars and buses, Assam zigzagged the streets of the district, navigating the maze of structurally similar but aesthetically different townhouses, each one inhabited by a group of students.

After a while, she managed to escape from the labyrinth and emerge at the Roundabout, a four-lane circular intersection at the heart of Saint Gloriana. Plopped smackdab in the middle stood a replica of the Victoria Memorial, a pearly white pylon crowned by a glittering bronze statue of Winged Victory, the original being outside Buckingham Palace.

Due to its position and its importance, it was said that all streets onboard the carrier led here and using this knowledge, she made her way to one such street; Regent Street.

The residential area of the Mayfair District soon gave way to commercial buildings and she stopped and parked her scooter in a free parking space. The street was a shopping lane for all the residents of the carrier, especially for the well-off ones, and she decided to procure some items before she visited the quartet.

Entering a florist, called Vanessa's Flower Shop (which strangely offered law-related services as well) she bought four sets of bouquets, imported from Ooarai, doubtlessly arranged by the Ikebana master herself. Walking back to her scooter, Assam was able to spot a vibrantly pink-coloured storefront named Candy Crush; a sweetshop - which was completely different from a sweatshop - and a bright idea came to her. Balancing four bundles of flowers, she entered the store and brought a small packet of Konpeitō; colourful sugar sweets that are a favourite of the redhead. Her Centurion credit card allowed her to have a faster transaction without having to bother with the weird coinage of the school, and something that would have been made even more difficult by her full hands.

She remembered the time that Rosehip chugged a sachet of these rainbow confections, which induced a 24-hour sugar rush that resulted in half a dozen tanks taken out and a permanent ban on consumptions of these candies before Senshadou matches.

A wide grin was on her face as she made the rest of the journey, driving under the bright electronic screens of Piccadilly Circus and passing the lions of Trafalgar Square, reaching the school campus and finally, Nightingale's. After parking her scooter yet again, she walked through the glass doors of the entrance and made a beeline for the registration desk at the hospital's reception. After asking for directions, a kind lady was able to give her a specific set of instructions, which she intended to follow to the T. Walking the brightly lit sterile corridors of the hospital, Assam's heart raced, she wasn't sure if it was the sight of doctors in scrubs or the sting of the alcohol of the air, but she knew the that the atmosphere as a whole got on her nerve.

Or maybe it was the fact that she harmed the girl she was supposed to protect?

Either way, she had finished the last leg of her journey. It was five minutes after one, and she now stood in front of a hospital room.

Room 305; her final destination. Holding bundles of flowers and a paper bag, she knocked three times and when no response came, she pushed the door open. A small round object suddenly came her way and it was only through sheer luck that she was able to dodge the incoming projectile, which sailed over her head. Inside the room, she saw a girl dressed in Gloriana's Senshadou uniform digging into the fruit basket by her bedside.

"How dare you!" the brown-haired girl shouted, posed to throw an apple before she realized who was in front of her. "Oh, wait, hello Assam-sama, sorry I mistook you for someone else."

"And who would that poor soul be?" Assam inquired.

This was Rosehip's driver if her memory served her right, but she had forgotten her name. Rosalia, Rosella... Roselle, ah yes, her name was Roselle, who according to Rosehip was her sister from another mother.

"The nurses at this hospital! They took my boots away!" Roselle gestured to her bare feet, now missing their signature cavalry boots, which had clashed violently with the rest of her clothing.

I wonder if she wears them as well when she goes to bed.

"Don't worry, they'll probably return them later. Say how come you're wide awake?" Assam asked as she made her way around the room, placing the flowers into vases and deposited the sweets on Rosehip's nightstand. She looked over Rosehip and the rest of her crew, one of whom had broken eyeglasses and a nasty gash on the forehead (which did nothing to reassure her conscience).

"Oh, that concussion earlier, I've received worse, nice shot though!" Roselle peeled a banana and began attacking it. The poor wretch hadn't had lunch yet, she remembered.

"Uhm…. thanks? Say, since you're conscious, could you tell Rosehip that I visited?" Assam requested, choosing to accept the compliment albeit with a heavy heart.

"Okie-dokie!" The brunette was now chowing down on a bundle of grapes, which were rapidly decreasing in number as they got devoured relentlessly.

Now on Rosehip's side, she watched as her precious kouhai slept. The distress on the girl's face earlier now had disappeared and she looked quite peaceful as she lay tucked in on her bed, almost like an angel, as opposed to her hasty personality when the girl was awake.

If only Rosehip would remain in this state forever and besides, she would look really cute...

Wait a second! That's not quite right!

She was just concerned, nothing special about it. Right? Assam immediately purged the memory from her mind but curiosity got to her and she reached out to touch Rosehip's face before leaving, caressing her rosy-white cheeks.

Upon leaving the room, she noticed her phone buzzing and she took it out to reveal that Darjeeling had been trying to reach her several times in the last few minutes.

Darjeeling's weary but strangely cheerful voice greeted her as she answered the phone.

"Hello?"

"Assam, it's Darjeeling. Thank Gloriana! I managed to dispose of Earl Grey! There will be an assembly later at three o'clock in the afternoon, sharp. Be there. We'll be discussing this Shamrock affair. Additionally, the mechanics will be reporting something important.

Guess there go all her Saturday plans...


AN: Well, the last part took some time to erk out. Again, thanks to those who helped out and suggestions/criticism is very welcomed!

P.S: (?) You may notice that there may be some discontinuity with the previous chapter. Don't worry, it's being addressed at the time of the publishing of this chapter.

P.S.S (7/27/20): Edited this as of late, removed stuff and added stuff, you know the drill. If there are still any grammatical errors left, please do tell and as always, see you next time!

P.S.S.S (10/12/21): HAPPY SECOND ANNIVERSARY! As a gift, receive this rewrite and we will be back to our regular program next month!