Written for Shinkane Week's Providence Event! Prompt: nature providing spiritual care

To be fair, he had asked for this.

The hotel's upscale interior reflected the owner's taste for finery. Ornate chandeliers, polished mahogany tables, delicate porcelain dishes. Begrudgingly, Kougami had to admit the coffee was good. Next to him, Akane had finished her own cup. He was used to her Holo disguise now, her lighter and longer hair, though he still had to move carefully, to adjust for the slimmer physique of his own.

Across from them, the planner opened a book of color swatches, already blurring into a gradient. "Now, I will say that most women want to be a June bride, but do you have a preference?"

"Autumn is fine." Akane said. "I have no issue with waiting."

"And you, sir?"

Kougami tried not to jolt. "Sooner rather than later."

"Eager, aren't we? I'll put you for October then. How lovely! A wedding among the maple trees." Then, the conversation veered towards budget and packages, leaving Kougami to reflect on how exactly this situation had unfolded.

To him, the mission was clear; the hotel had to be investigated. On the surface, Yume appeared to be a quaintly run business, but it had once been run by a criminal now in custody and the building had changed hands quickly. Too quickly. The new proprietress was Yanase Juria, a confident woman who appeared younger than her forty years. And despite her glamorous image in surveillance footage, reports of illegal immigrant labor were deftly buried in her file. And under her direction, the newly branded logo was a three-tailed fox.

So, Foreign Affairs had to be involved, and they met with Public Safety to negotiate jurisdiction. Unit One was already in the meeting room, Akane the newest addition. It might have been a pleasant afternoon, except for the arrival of the new chief. The man was deft and calculating, steering the discussion in Public Safety's favor.

"And on that matter, we need to decide who will be going undercover." Homura smoothly said. "Since this is a collaboration between our departments, it would only be appropriate to have a representative from each. Statutory Enforcer Tsunemori will be ours."

Hanashiro nodded. "Of course. As for our end-"

Time slowed. There were a number of Foreign Affairs employees, experienced with undercover jobs. He didn't know whose name Hanashiro was going to say, who she was going to pair with Akane. But he interrupted anyway.

"I'll do it."

All heads had swiveled towards him, a mural of shock and surprise. It was obvious what they were thinking: really? He could have been blistered by Gino's appalled aura, radiating from the next chair over, and Sugo's discomfort was marked by a cough. In his peripheral vision, Homura was like a statue.

Shimotsuki could no longer suppress herself. "Haven't you already created enough trouble for her? And have you ever worked undercover before?"

"Someone wise told me to expand my expertise. Why not this opportunity?" And that was true. Also, he didn't trust anyone else with her safety.

Then, Akane spoke up, her gaze warm. "I don't mind. I'd be happy to work with you again, Kougami-san."

"Likewise." He muttered and promptly forgot the rest of the meeting. Foreign Affairs would reconvene at headquarters, and he was bound to get an earful but he didn't care.

Afterwards, he found her by a vending machine, grabbing a bottle of flavored water. He punched the buttons for his own drink. "I guess we'll have to call often, make our cover."

"Well, it helps that we know each other." She wryly pointed out. "The best ones have a core of truth."

"So…what are we?" Damn, that came out wrong.

Akane raised her eyebrows. "What would you like us to be?"

An answer came to mind, but he suppressed the thought. "We'll have to fit in with the clientele, while keeping our story believable. A business trip may not buy us enough time."

She opened her wrist device, searching through photos of the hotel. "They host a number of events. Graduations, retirement parties, weddings…"

As casually as he could muster, he said. "A wedding would give us an excuse, even reserve rooms."

She looked at him, her lips curving upwards in agreement. "Yes, it would."

"If we're engaged, you'll need a ring."

"Oh." She glanced down, extending her left fingers. "Right. I didn't think about that."

He took her hand, turning it over in his own. "Let's find you something suitable."

Her skin was soft, her pulse a quick rhythm. "I can always borrow from Shion-"

"No. It should be yours." Before he could stop himself, his thumb ran over that space. A ruby for her name, set in a thin band…

The sound of approaching footsteps brought reality back, and they pulled away from each other.

"We can talk more later." Her cheeks were pink.

"Sure. I'll call you tonight." And he walked off, scratching the back of his head, where it felt intensely warm. Posing as a couple getting married…wherever he was, Saiga-sensei was surely cackling.

They toured the reception halls first, while the planner dug for details about their backgrounds. Kougami gave brief responses about their jobs – he was freelance, she was in the Ministry of Health. They'd met at work. The planner wasn't satisfied, asking how long they'd been together.

Akane easily replied. "Eight years. But we've been on and off until recently."

He flashed a sharp look at that, but she ducked her head. Still, her hand entwined with his, and he immediately noticed the cool silver of her fake engagement ring. It really did look nice, better than he expected, and he squeezed tight.

"And now, I'm not letting her go." He sensed her eyes now, but he refused to give in.

They walked on, and the flashy taste extended to each offering; they made noncommittal comments, it didn't matter anyway. However, the planner seemed to sense their lack of enthusiasm, beckoning them to a Japanese style garden.

It was actually outdoors; the rocks and shrubs were real to the touch. Smooth ceramic tiles outlined a path over the gravel, to a rectangular patio framed by elegant maple and pine trees. A fountain burbled, trickling water through three stony pools. This side faced the mountains, and at dusk, the sun would burn in the distance. There was no pretense here.

"It's beautiful." Akane breathed, and she stepped towards the middle of the walkway. She gave a whirl, her skirt aloft for an instant, and asked. "Don't you agree?"

He stared at her smile, and his traitorous imagination clothed her in a white kimono, a white gown, a veil unable to hide a radiant expression just for him. "Yeah. Beautiful." And it didn't feel like lying at all.