Friendly and not-so-frendly traps


[ACMI: Calm Days]

Out of the bath, GV ran into Index who looked... vaguely amused.

"Did you get out first?" GV asked.

Index shook her head "No, Short Hair got out first. She got water in her mouth and needed to recover. She should be in the first aid center now. Itsuwa's still in though, though she said she wouldn't be much longer."

GV nodded and glanced at the door. He and Index hadn't really spoken before, he didn't know her background other than that she was from the magic side.

"How did you meet Touma?" He asked, just to have something to talk about as they both headed to the first aid section to check on Misaka.

Index shrugged "One thing led to another. Pure happenstance. He's reckless and does what he can to help people so it's natural he'd help take care of me. I just want to repay that."

GV understood that feeling, at least partially. He did still want a good chance to repay Touma. Even if...

"When was it?"

"The 19th of July." Index answered instantly "I'd ended up at his window by chance. He fed me and I stuck around."

Like a cat.

Regardless. July...

"Does Touma seem different now than when you met him?" GV prodded.

Index shrugged "Well, he is nicer now than he used to be. His yelling excluded of course."

There was a mystery there, but GV didn't want to push. If Touma was hiding his memory loss from someone he knew, it was probably Index.

They got to the first aid station and Misaka was ready. She looked slightly sick but gave them both a smile.

"Did you learn anything?" She asked GV. He shrugged in response.

"Maybe?" He offered "But... there appears to be more details. I'll tell you later. We need to head back, where are the others?"

Index held up a set of three tickets "Oh, before we go back! Itsuwa gave me these!"

Misaka took one of the tickets and read it.

"Huh, it's a ticket with full access to the bath's all-you-can-eat place."

Index nodded "She said we could go in together after our bath. She said she was fine not coming."

...So, Itsuwa wanted to talk to Touma alone and had bribed Index with food. The tickets were apparently only valid if the three ticket holders were together so it was also a good way to trap him and Misaka here until they got back.

Clever. Even so, GV did need to head back to Joule.

The tickets didn't say anything about who could use one.

"Hey Misaka, I plan to head home, do you want to invite your teleporter friend to come join you for this?"

Misaka paused, but nodded and accepted the ticket from him "Fine, but you'd better send me the info as soon as you can."

GV nodded and headed for the exit as Misaka pulled out her phone to call Shirai.

He exited out into the cold night air and wondered how this underground section of academy city replicated it so well. Giant fans maybe?

Pulling out his own phone, he texted Joule that he should be home soon and set off down the street. He wasn't running alongside a bike this time so he'd stick to pedestrian paths and avoid obvious bursts of speed.

As he walked though, he noticed that something was wrong, but he couldn't tell exactly what it was.

[ACMI: Entry to Darkness]

Ah, that was it. There was no one else on this street. It was like some of the missions he'd been on back in Sumaragi's cities. They'd clear people out of an area before combat of any sort would happen so rumours wouldn't spread.

Hmm. Some shops still appeared to be open though, but no one went outside. If it was a bar, people were just staying inside, no one was even near the door.

There also were some people about. A small collection of people who were milling around behind him.

As he glanced back, he noticed a man walking the other way down the same path. GV stepped out of the way of the muscled man but he stopped and looked at GV.

"Hmm." He murmured "Do you live in this area?"

GV didn't break eye contact. Somehow he knew this man was dangerous. It was his sixth sense that had been honed in his time working in the shadows.

"I don't." GV admitted "I was heading home."

The man nodded "Be on your way quickly then, I have faith that you'll make it home safely if you do."

With that the man broke eyecontact and continued down the street.

GV turned round as he left and called out.

"What's your name mister?"

The man paused in mid-step, lowering his foot slowly while thinking. Finally he looked back.

"Acqua."

With that, the man called Acqua continued on. There was something about him...

Itsuwa was guarding Touma. From who or what? GV had the odd feeling that the man was a magic user. He was powerful but he didn't look like any kind of scientist and most adults didn't undergo ability development. The man though had a feeling of confidence that GV had only seen in Adepts, Espers and Mages.

"Well." GV muttered as he watched the man "I wanted to help Touma."

He headed back the way he'd come after the man. He caught sight of him walking towards the small crowd of people that were milling around.

The man, Acqua, was strong. There was some sort of thing going on to keep fighting out of the public eye. GV picked up the pace a little.

He would be a part of whatever was coming.


End of chapter.

Fun fact: First time I watched the anime for the Acqua arc, I somehow managed to miss that they were underground at first, as you can guess that made parts of the fight very confusing when they'd fall through a hole in the sky.

And yes, Acqua did just try to warn GV to stay out of this. GV read Acqua well, but Acqua read GV better in that short talk.