Author's Note: I forgot to explain some of the names.

Tendouji Hiroshi: hiro (尋) fathom, shi (士) well respected man.
Tendouji Yuuka: Yuu (優) kindness, ka (花) flower
Tendouji Shiori: Shio (汐) wave, ri (利) jasmine (just like Airi)
Kudou Soujirou: Ku (久) old, dou (道) path, sou(宗) generation, ji (次)next, rou (滝) waterfall
Amakusa Jin: Ama (天) another spelling of "Ten"-heaven, Kusa (草) grass, jin (神) God

I apologize for the extremely long updates. It's hectic here in real life so it's kinda hard to get stable... emotional condition. Thank you very much for the many reviews and also PMs, I appreciate and love each very much! Everytime I get them I try to open the many excerpt of this story again and again and it reminds me that there are many things in life other than being depressed about university (ahahahahaha)

Please enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Kantai Collection or any of the songs I featured in this fic. If the songs are in Japanese I do translate them myself.

Similar sounding words that we have already been too tired of hearing
Is such thing as harmonious pre-established world even needed?

Seventh Haven - 7th Sisters (Tokyo 7th Sisters)

"There a snail on this fence!"

Raindrops fell on white transparent umbrella, as it does on the rest of the landscape. Tone's black long hair almost touched the puddles by her shoes when she squatted down near the heavy cruiser dorm's low fence. Choukai who walked beside her turned around to see her back, obscured under her white umbrella.

"Tone-san?"

The aviation heavy cruiser turned around, a wide grin on her face. The only thing Choukai could associate with this was definitely a grin of a boy finding a great Hercules beetle on summer. When Tone first came, she was not as bubbly as she was now. Perhaps that time her mood was almost as gloom as the rain when she first arrived.

"Snail! Oooohhhh, it moved! There is one more over here! Choukai, look! Uooooh~~~ They will meet each other!"

The snails, as if not noticing the commotion, continued to trail on the leaves of heavy cruiser dorm's living fence.

"Ah, Haguro-san once said they ate our lettuce..."

"Eeeeeh? They do? Whoa!"

Haguro and Choukai took care of the garden. Takao would be the one quietly providing meal and drinks when they worked, or perhaps stocking the gardening supplies without them needing to actively ask for it be restocked. Suzuya would only come when she was in good mood. Maya would only ruin the carefully patched tilled soil, and Ashigara would have wanted to try out gunpowder to make small holes on the soil that could easily be made by finger. Some heavy cruisers were better off the garden, Choukai naturally knew that by heart.

Watching Tone extending her hand towards one of the snails, Choukai easily put Tone into the group of those better off the garden.

A chirpy, energetic voice came up from behind both Choukai and Tone.

"They'd eat your hand too if you touch them too much, Tone-san!"

"Eh?! Real-"

"LIES~"

"Suzuya! You dare tease me!"

"Everyone, hurry and get in, the rain will get heavier soon!"

Takao appeared from the front door of the dorm, hollering at the group near the fence. Maya, with both of her hands shaping like a megaphone, shouted back, "A sec!"

"Hurry in! Anyone wants some noodle with juice by the living room?"

"Whooooo!"

Takao's shout from the front porch made everyone—Tone, Suzuya, and Maya, rushed to the front door. Choukai walked behind them, careful so as not get the dirty mud the three practically splashed here and there as they ran. She could not hold her smile.

The sky might be raining, but today in the heavy cruiser dorm, everyone was as bright as the summer sun just like always. Choukai would later tell Haguro about the snail infestation on their lettuce garden. Takao-san would be upset if their next harvest products had low quality with all the snails by the garden.

~ The Snail~

"Scrapping might have been shortest way out, though. Just take this as a gift from us for your good work. You are free to do whatever you want with them."

"Understood, Grand Marshall."

"Admiral, would you like some tea along with the sweets?"

Airi gave a bright smile and nodded at Shouhou. Grand Marshal's voice continued with a rather cold satisfaction.

"You're a great help, Tendouji-kun. I will tell them to be sent tomorrow morning."

XXXX

"Post change?"

Choukai asked Shouhou, who stood by the hall way of heavy cruiser dormitory to supervise several privates cleaning up the unused outermost room they usually used for storage. Upon hearing the heavy cruiser's question, Shouhou nodded. She tapped on her clipboard which showed the document of the new kanmusu.

"Admiral told me that there would be a new heavy cruiser and a new destroyer in. It is said that the base was moved for tactical circumstances and they needed to change the post of all the kanmusu in it."

"That is quite rare."

"Admiral said it was for the upcoming large campaign, to concentrate the movement of all available ships."

Choukai slightly raised her eyebrows but did not say anything else. True that it was common for Kanmusu to be transferred between bases, but they are mostly temporary post change for campaigns. Sounds of wardrobe getting dragged out of the room filled the refurbished, newly reinforced 2nd floor. It was barely over one year since the heavy cruiser dorm finished its renovation per Admiral Tendouji's station. The privates would move all the things in the furthermost room to the shed outside by the yard, it seems, and refurbished the room with bed and table. Only the Myoukou class did not opt for bed when they were offered and still opt for a futon. The only reasoning was, they would like to make room for koutatsu. There were plenty of room for a koutatsu, but for two koutatsus, there must not be bed. After all, somehow the Myoukou class's room had changed into their winter drinking room for some reason, even if Admiral Tendouji already provided them a spacious, comfortable reading room down stairs.

"How long will they be in this base?"

"I was not informed of any end date. It seems to be permanent change..."

The last ship of Takao class pushed her glasses higher. She turned to look straight at Shouhou.

"So, the whole previous base is moved? Permanently?"

Shouhou's eyes replied Choukai's question, reading the intention of it quite immediately. Her voice remained calm and almost flat when she answered.

"Yes," she said. "To prepare for the summer campaign."

XXXX

Final, last boom illuminated the night sky. Shrieking of Abyssal destroyer died out as they sank, leaving traces of fire on night water. Choukai circled the perimeters, trying to detect their next destination. The fairies did not pick up anything anymore, they were, for now, save. Kiso, sailing the foremost as flagship, looked behind her to check every one of the group. Suzuya brushed away traces of abyssal destroyer's bluish blood off her gun with disgust while Ashigara scanned the surrounding, blasting her searchlight to search for any enemies that might be nearby. Near them, Haguro supported Tone up. The aviation cruiser's ammunition rack sizzled dangerously and the fairies panicked as they put out the fire. Haguro's own fairies quickly jumped on Tone's runway and helped their friends putting out the fires.

Choukai sailed closer to the torpedo cruiser flagship.

"Enemy fleet has been detected. We can strike by dawn."

Nodding, Kiso reached to the radio by her ear, sheathing her rapier after flicking blue abyssal blood off its blade.

"Admiral, this is Kiso, reporting in."

"This is Tendouji, go on, Kiso."

"We have decimated all enemy fleet in this area and Choukai have located the enemy fleet not so far away. However, we have one critically damaged ship. Awaiting your instruction."

It did not take long for the admiral to make her decision, which is so like her.

"Retreat safely."

"Understood, Admiral."

Kiso ended the radio transmission and returned to her fleet, who all looked at her for instruction. The others already had knowing look in their faces.

"Lets retreat. Admiral had given her-"

"Wait, we're not going to go after the enemy?" Tone was the only one protesting. "I won't be sunk easily, we are this close to the enemy."

"Admiral Tendouji will not risk sinking if she can avoid it."

Choukai said with a rather matter of factly voice. Other than Tone, the other cruisers already knew Admiral Tendouji's habit. It was something they extremely feel grateful of. Considering everything they had gone through, all the loss and pain, it was not something that they would think twice of accepting. Tone, however, started to turn slightly red in anger and she pushed on, flailing her free hand.

"I told you, I won't sink just by this much injury!"

"Tone-san... calm down."

Haguro gently put a hand on Tone's shoulder. The aviation cruiser pushed on, however, looking quite annoyed.

"You want to say we just go home?! That's it? If we don't do it tonight, then Admiral will have to redo everything again, doesn't she?"

Kiso turned around, facing Tone. Her eye glinted.

"That is true."

"BUT THAT'S WHY WE SHOULD..."

"Because she is not the type to bet on getting us sinking," Kiso cut everything off. Her cape fluttered as she turned around. "Let's go. Lets not afford enemy reinforcement to know where we are. Haguro, tow Tone back."

Tone grit her teeth and scowled, shrugging Haguro's gentle tug at her side.

"But what of her standings?! Her points?!"

Kiso dismissed Tone's voices and sailed past the aviation cruiser. Tone's growl got louder and she began to flail her fist at Kiso.

"Hey, you there! Listen to me! Kiso!"

"Haguro. Tow."

"Y-Yes, Kiso-san."

With Kiso's rather dismissve tone, Tone did not say anything else but a grunt, nor did she push Haguro away. Tone was usually bright and happy, seeing her agitated was such a rare thing. There was nothing in Choukai's memory that remember Tone as this negative. Plus, anyone would have been happy they did not get sacrificed, yet Tone's reaction against it was quite the opposite. The heavy cruiser did not say that however, and kept her mouth shut. The way Ashigara folded her arms did not indicate that she would do the same, however. Her body gesture seemed to indicate that if Tone said anything that doubt the Admiral's decision even further, she would have a say on it.

Thankfully, they sailed in silence after then. It would not be good to piss Kiso off and perhaps everyone just mutually know that.

Suzuya suddenly yawned.

The sound of her yawning ended up to be the only voice they heard until they arrived at homeport.

XXX

"Gokurousan, Kiso."

Admiral Tendouji smiled, taking Kiso's handwritten report from beyond her desk. The cruiser bowed a bit. She watched as her Admiral skimmed the handwritten report, noting the calm look in her face.

Her fleet had come back from a failed mission, which could not be redone because by now the enemy fleet would have already gone away for a certain period of time. With that, she had missed the telegram from the central. It was just one of the many scheduled task to do, but still it would have given her much credit if she finished it. Kiso remembered clearly how at the time of Admiral Jiro, they would push multiple ship to the brink to complete the task... but not Admiral Tendouji. That said, she usually managed to finish the task on time with good ship fatigue management... yet this failure did not seem to bother her.

Kiso did not have any problem with the Admiral's choice to retreat, but Tone's outburst did knock something in her mind. Admiral Tendouji had always retreated whenever anyone is critically injured, no matter how important that mission was. At the very least, she must have some disappointment.

Admiral Tendouji put down the report and looked straight to her cruiser, smiling.

"You have something you want to ask me?"

As always, she was sharp. If she did not ask, Kiso would not inquire and kept it alone. However, since she began...

"Will this failure affect your standing negatively?"

It was not in Kiso's personality to beat around the bush. Hearing her question, the admiral smiled. She put the report down.

"Perhaps," She smiled. "However I have confidence that my achievement in other fields will lessen any influence this failure will have on my standings. Also, with tactical consideration, this mission failure will not largely affect the waters around the base. You don't have to worry too much."

The torpedo cruiser did not return her admiral's words. Admiral Tendouji's words were always kind and calming, among the reason it was hard to actually believe her when she said she had no qualms about something. That said, her reasoning was sound, just like always.

Maybe it was Tone. Kiso was not exactly acquainted with the new ship. Since she was a torpedo cruiser, she shared the same lodging with the other three light cruiser in the small housing near the battleship's lodging. She did not share the same dorm with the heavy cruiser. Tone was among the two ships moved into the base recently, along with Yamakaze. For some reason their base was abolished and both of them, being considerably high leveled, were transferred to this base. There were many speculations on how the base got erased, but Kiso usually did not even bother to listen.

It was none of her business anyway.

"Did anything happen which you do not mention in this report?"

Admiral Tendouji's calm eyes looked straight into Kiso's left one. As always, she was very observant. Her calm smile gave a sense of reassurance, a feeling that she would believe and listen tentatively to whatever one about to say. Her sure, calm, intelligent demeanor made it very easy to tell her everything, as she seemed to always have way out for everything. Even if she did not, she would be there just to listen, lighten up one's burden by her presence alone. Ever since she was stationed at the base, Kiso believe everyone felt they were taken care of and well looked after, such a contrast with their previous admiral. That said, with the sheer number of kanmusu, a single Admiral can only do so much.

Kiso originally was not among the people who would stick their nose into someone else's problem. However since now Tone was under her command too, at least for several mission that Kiso foresaw might be happening again, now that became her business. In a way.

"It was nothing to worry about."

"Is that so?"

"Yes."

Kiso straightened her posture, looking straight into Admiral Tendouji's eyes. Her green eye returned Admiral Tendouji's kind, questioning eyes with a firm look.

"Nothing we cannot handle. If it is anything out of our capabilities, we will inform you."

Admiral Tendouji's eyes turned analytical and somehow impenetrable for a while. A smile, however, slowly hovered over her face.

"I see. I am glad, then."

They had received a lot from this woman, more than they ever hoped for. She had fixed everything up for them... and now they were the one who had to fix and heal themselves. Her eyes showed that she knew a lot more than what she let on. Knowing her, perhaps she already pick up that Tone was not as fine as she seemed to be. Whatever it was in her head that time, for now she seemed to let them go on their own. The Admiral now rested her back on her chair. Her shoulder dropped in much more relaxed gesture. She still have something to talk about.

"Are you free tomorrow, Kiso?"

"I have nothing in particular."

"Awesome!" She should have been the one who knew their schedule the most, she could easily order them around. Yet she did not do that. "It has been a while since we spar. Are you in the mood for it?"

She could have just ordered her to. Easily. And given their conditioning, they would obey.

But she would never do that.

"Kiso will not go easy on you, Admiral."

"You never do, that is the best part."

"Quite a challenging statement you have there. Fine, then. I will be your opponent."

Thus, Kiso knew, her feelings on wanting to serve the woman transcended a mere loyalty for an admiral. She treated them like her kin so it is appropriate if they, too, regarded her as much.

Kiso sure needed to remember to treat her different from how she treated Ooi though.

XXXX

Rain fell in light drizzle since this morning. Ashigara repeatedly exclaimed how she dislike the weather but she had no choice but to go for a training. Haguro's puppy eyes sure worked on her extremely well. With much of the ships gone, Heavy cruiser dormitory's living room was silent. Being quite spacious with sofas and shelves, sounds felt amplified by the empty walls, making them felt unusually more prominent. It might also be thanks to the lack of living presence, the soft sound of rain filled the rather light and empty atmosphere. On rainy days like these, the feelings like being washed anew always came into Choukai's heart. She did not dislike that. Maya, however, always complained about it all the time.

"Choukai."

Steadfast, rather cold voice came up behind the heavy cruiser. Choukai looked up from the book she was reading, finding Kiso standing in the middle of the room while taking off her military cap. She looked a bit wet, she must have not used any umbrella as she went to the Heavy Cruiser dorm. Choukai quickly stood up, there must be some towel left at her closet if Maya had not forget to laundry them like always.

"Kiso-san, I will find some towel-"

"No need, I am just looking for Tone."

"Tone-san?" Choukai blinked a bit. She raised her spectacles. In her head their schedules float past. It will not be until quite next week for them to go out in another monthly attempt. It was still too soon for mission gathering. Besides, Kiso would have gather them all if it were the case. Although Kiso was a torpedo cruiser, but she was their flagship every month for the particular mission. She was also particularly a veteran when it came to the waters they would thread on.

So then it was for something else? It was kind of uncharacteristic of Kiso to come just for some talk.

"Tone-san is out with Takao-san at the moment for fitting. Lieutenant Kouseki has finished installing the recorder into her equipment."

"Recorder, eh..." The torpedo cruiser mumbled as she took off her wet cape. She did not say anything else after that though. Choukai rather uneasily straightened her spectacles again.

"Is there anything you would like me to say to Tone-san? I can tell her that you're looking for her after she comes back later."

"Ah, no need. It will be meaningless if I do not meet her personally," Kiso's green eyes gave a gentle dim at Choukai's kind offer. She took a deep breath. "if it is fitting then I guess it won't be long."

"Yes, I think so..." Though Takao may asked her to go around the base or something.

"Then I shall wait. If that's fine with you?"

"Ah, it's completely fine," Choukai quickly gestured at the seats in the room. "Please, would you like some drinks? I will fetch you some towel as well."

Having Kiso as a company was very rare. Kiso rarely came. Perhaps it was even the first time she came into the Heavy Cruiser Dormitory. Kiso rarely even spend time with Ooi, let alone visiting someone else. She seemed rather friendly with Nagato, both being quite similar in personality, but other than that Choukai did not see Kiso as the more sociable type. Kiso is trustworthy however, and wise. Being a Torpedo Cruiser, she was among the small number of ships most often watched the sinking of the destroyers during the last admiral's time. Torpedo cruisers are arguably more "valuable" than the light cruiser and the destroyers. In a light fleet composition fleet, often times destroyers are sacrificed for the safety of the more valuable ones, the torpedo cruisers. Choukai remembered seeing a strangely distant look in Kiso's eyes when she was remodeled into a torpedo cruiser shortly after Ooi, her little sister, did.

The rain did not let up. Instead, it was getting slightly heavier.

Steam wafted off the tea Choukai prepared for both of them. Warmth still lingered but it would not be long until it turned cold.

"I have been thinking about what Tone said in that night battle."

Kiso's voice felt strange inside the silence between them. They had been sharing the comfortable silence for quite a while now and Choukai was about to find herself drifted off into her own thoughts when Kiso began. Strange for her to begin the conversation, the rather light tone she made took Choukai off guard even more.

The torpedo cruiser stood beside the window, staring at the garden outside. Hydrangeas colored the green fences, dripping droplets of water from its many petals.

"I think, we are being too carried away by Admiral Tendouji's soft heartedness."

"... carried away?"

The torpedo cruiser did not immediately answered. For a while, Choukai only stared at the her back. She looked... smaller than when she had her cape on. To think she had shoulder a lot of sinking, in her rather small stature, made Choukai felt a pang of guilt.

She did not even know where the guilt came from. As a heavy cruiser with among the better specification, Choukai also had gone through several sacrificial sinking.

Perhaps it was not guilt. Perhaps it was just silent understanding.

Kiso took a deep breath. She seemed to look up at the dark sky outside.

"We are so relieved we did not have to watch anymore sinking, that we forgot that there are responsibilities the Admiral shouldered."

"Wait up! But if we don't do it tonight, then Admiral will have to redo everything again, doesn't she?"

The torpedo cruiser turned around, facing Choukai now. Her green eyes seemed distant.

"I wonder if Jiro was also in a rather bad position that he did what he did."

They had never talked of him anymore. Ever. It was almost a kind of silent agreement. After he was arrested, none of the girls ever mentioned his name or openly begun to talk about him. Everyone had something they would like to forget, times they would like to erase and pretend to not exist. Choukai sure Kiso was the same. Yet it seemed it was him Kiso would like to discuss the most at the moment. This was perhaps the first time for Choukai to hear his name in so long.

Seeing the rather surprised expression Choukai made, Kiso gave a small scoff. She turned back towards the window.

"Forget that. I did not..."

"I also would like to think that way, Kiso-san."

Now it was Kiso who looked rather surprised. Choukai bit her bottom lips. She straightened her spectacles and looked into the torpedo cruiser's eyes.

"I would like to think that it was necessities everything happened the way it did."

Her lips formed a rather tightline. She chose her words carefully, trading the sensitive lines slowly.

"I would like to believe that every sinking was necessary. That everyone... did not sink in vain."

That my life, saved, meant something. That carrying everyone's soul back as their bodies sunk to the bottom of the sea meant something.

The green eyes shone with the same light as Choukai's... and Choukai understood the point of Kiso's words... and Tone's previous anger.

If Admiral Tendouji could retreat without much thought—or at least that seemed to be how it seemed—then was everything, everyone, that had been sacrificed, actually did not mean that much? If with everything they had been through, it was only to gain nothing, what had they been doing all these times? What was they shouldered? Could they have done things differently at that time, as a ship? Couldn't they save any of their comrade in that place, at that time, and took the way Admiral Tendouji took at this moment?

Choukai straightened her glasses again. She was not sure if it was the steam from the tea that made her vision blurred, but her voice cracked as she continued.

"... That time we did not know better."

They were made to follow, it was in their conditioning.

The heavy cruiser looked away.

"That time, he did not know better."

Perhaps that was the best explanation that they could come up with. Thinking back, without Admiral Tendouji keep on asking them their thoughts on many things, even from the very first day of her assign, perhaps they would not have thought the way they did at the moment. Perhaps they would have just continued to swallow things blindly, silently abiding, forcefully convincing themselves to accept the reality and did nothing to question everything. Perhaps they would have continued to see Admirals as a lifeform to follow indefinitely, finding excuses to ease their own pain without ever questioning their Admiral's decisions.

Perhaps they would never question their own value. Perhaps they would always think of everything as necessary.

"... Even if that was not the case, I think finally now, I can accept it."

It was hard to see, but Choukai felt she heard a small smile in Kiso's next words.

"I guess some human are just assholes. Thankfully Admiral Tendouji are not among them."

The torpedo cruiser turned to look at the window again.

Her back, now, looked a lot lighter.

"I want Tone to understand the same."

If it were any other Admiral, perhaps they would not have that much care. However, it was not the same. The base was not the same, and their own selves were not the same. There were many, many things Admiral Tendouji could do and would definitely do at a moment's notice.

Now it was their turn. There are many things they could do rather than waiting for orders. As this woman had gave them the chance to heal, now it was up to them to help others who might have been in the same pain as they were.

And then, maybe. Just maybe, it would also give a small bit of meaning of surviving their many comrades' lost lives and memories while carrying on their experiences within their replaceable life.

XXX

Long deep sigh along with the feeling of something weighting the other side of the broken funnel he was sitting on made Heishi turned his head. Admiral Tendouji had her back flat on the factory wall, her eyes stared up to the blue sky that spread out before them. Crows started to flew back to mountains of scrap metal, sticking their beak between torn rigs and barrels, perhaps looking for shiny little things to take home to their nests.

Cicadas stubbornly sang into the hot humid air. The smell of summer sea filled the heat of the space between them.

In his sitting position, Heishi watched the woman beside her. The admiral still stayed by her position, thoughts seemed to play on her eyes.

"Is it the operation?"

"Mmm... yes and no."

"So it's multiple problems."

"Yes. Yes, pretty much."

She finally dropped her eyes on the ground. With the sunlight no longer falling on those irises, they turned dark brown again. Under the sun those eyes gleamed golden, almost like seeing the eyes of some Kanmusu. He had seen tears in them before, during the first time he met her. She had never really show that anymore. Instead, at times cold burning fire lit behind them, which remind him of Kongou and Ashigara. Now, what came up was exhaustion. The lights were dim.

Although she came many time just to spend some laughter, Admiral Tendouji always came to the metal graveyard whenever something happened. Often times when she came to the metal graveyard was simply because she needed company. Just company.

Many times, this woman did not need suggestion, or help, or savior. Heishi understood Admiral Tendouji's strength perhaps more than many. She might need someone to listen to her or just to be there beside her as they shared tea. Sometimes they discussed, but many times they just shared a small moment of silent, a break from the hectic life they were in.

Yet, somehow when she stood up after their time or tea ran out, it seemed she looked a slight bit better. Or at least Heishi would like to believe so.

He would like to believe, that at least his presence had that bit of meaning in her life.

He did not have the courage to ask her, however.

"How are the new ones?"

Heishi had almost waited for the question to come up. He had a rather good news to make and he knew that would make the burden weighted those shoulders down a slight bit lighter.

"Their readings improves considerably. I talked with Tone the other day, she seemed a lot more cheerful."

"And Yamakaze?"

"Still the way she usually is... but she's improving."

A gentle smile came to her face. The way her brown eyes shifted from her solid, hard side to her ever so loving tender self always made Heishi wondered just how many layers of defense did this woman had. Just how strong had that defense must be that she could withstand the responsibility and emotional burden she was having at the moment.

Also just how vast, how deep her heart must have been, that she could take in so many soul and love each one of them the way she did.

Her heart taught his to do the same. He might not did it as well as she did, but he prayed he could at least hope he learned that much from her.

Looking after her children from the side was the least he could do for her, and for the girls themselves. She did most of everything by her own, however.

"Did you do talk to them?"

"I didn't."

Her smile turned wider and her eyes shone with gentle pride.

"I trust them... and I guess I was right."

When was it, when you weren't right about your children?

Heishi could have said that, but he did not. He knew the Admiral had a lot of doubt, a lot of moments where she momentarily question herself and her method. Perhaps he understood that more than anyone. He had seen her various faces, including those she did not show any of her ship. She was perhaps the one who worried the most. And yet... she always won the fight.

Or it was her love that won the fight.

Nowadays Heishi had learned to believe in it as well... just like how the girls did.

Seeing how her eyes lit up with his report, Heishi knew now that she understood how she was not alone in the fight.

"Tea?"

"Ah, sure. Thank you."

Heishi stood up, patting his pants to go inside. He turned to her, right when she was opening her mouth to say something. With their eyes meeting each other, Heishi could not suppress his amused smile.

"Black tea, one spoon of sugar, no milk, right?"

Her smile was beautiful.

Ah, no.

She was always, in many ways, beautiful.

"Yes."

Remembering her every feature felt as natural as one breathes. Making her smile turned into desire.

"Coming right up."

If making tea and sitting between broken scrap metal could help lighten up those shoulders even just for a little bit... it was such a small price to pay.

~To Be Continued~

Author's note: I tryna muster some humor but I fail lol I need more humor in life