In a sense, connections made the world go round. If someone needed something done quietly and discreetly, they often turned to the Inter-Knot. Not even PubSec could completely avoid it, as much as they tried. Certain people in the force realized that there was some sort of necessity to do things that skirted outside the law.

Zhu Yuan and Qingyi recently had a run-in with a proxy (because they certainly didn't have a carrot) that helped them out with something. They never let exactly what happened slipped, but Jane could read between the lines. Zhu Yuan had to rethink her views amongst certain things and seemed all the more confident for it.

It was much too hush hush for Jane to know much more about, as she was just a frequent contractor, but Zhu Yuan often held her heart on her sleeve and that made it all the easier for Jane to read.

She didn't believe the duo went out of their way to contract a proxy, but she'd found herself surprised quite often in recent times. She certainly wouldn't put it past them now, at least.

Jane's own thoughts on Proxies and the Inter-Knot were simple. There were a lot of skilled people out there, and completely shutting off one avenue of success was never a good idea. Not that she ever really needed the extra help.

Her job usually consisted of creating profiles for criminals, occasionally being called in for backup in case of Hollow disasters, and rarely being sent undercover for short periods of time. Connections might have made these easier in some aspects, but certainly weren't needed.

That being said.

What exactly did a video store manager get up to in their spare time that they had connections with both Belobog Heavy Industries AND the Victoria Housekeeping Co?

It shouldn't have even caught her attention. There was one singular flash of blue in a sea of faces as she walked through Lumina Square. One tiny moment that had her head turning before she even fully realized it, the inexplicable feeling of expectation welling up, only for it to be replaced by an odd rush throughout her veins as it was fulfilled.

And then, as Jane realized that Belle wasn't alone, another odd feeling replaced that yet again. One that had her feet halt mid-stride, much to the annoyance of some pedestrians beside her. A swirl of agitation bubbled up and was promptly squashed into nothingness as soon as she realized what it was.

Jane pushed that sensation aside as her logic caught up to her emotions, and as she realized just exactly who it was that Belle was with. They weren't people she was personally familiar with, but she had kept up on the news and more importantly, what wasn't on the news.

She might need glasses for reading, but she was confident in her range.

Grace Howard. Belobog Heavy Industries leading engineer. There was a special on TV a while back that covered the company, and more recently a case opened in the department about the trouble they ran into as the company went foraging into a Hollow.

Von Lycaon. The representative of Victoria Housekeeping Co. If it really was just a housekeeping company then she wouldn't have even bat an eye on it. But there were tiny whispers around the office that they had a part to play in the most recent fiasco at the Ballet Twins skyscraper. Nothing substantiated, really, but rumors so specific didn't come from nowhere.

Jane wasn't blind. There was a whole lot of political and corporate red tape surrounding both of the incidents. She just wasn't paid enough to care beyond what was on the news and in the office.

But now?

It could have been just a coincidence. Perhaps they all bumped into each other, literally in this case, and decided to have a chat. There was no other way to explain such a thing, right? If Belle was somehow involved in either incident. It just-

It would explain a lot, actually.

No, no. She was projecting a solution to a question based on her gut feeling without going through the proper steps. Even IF Belle was somehow involved in either situation, it just raised more questions on the 'how' rather than the 'why'.

How could Belle possibly be involved in either of them? She knew Belle. The girl was an unrepentant movie geek. She also couldn't lie worth a damn. It was hard to imagine Belle being a part of either company, really. She had seen the Bangboo's around the video store, but that wasn't exactly the type of technology that Belobog was working with, nor did the girl have the bulk required for the intensive manual labor. And for the Victoria Housekeeping Company? She doubted Belle had the patience needed for some of the odd jobs they did.

Maybe she was underestimating Belle. It wasn't as if the girl was dull. Jane knew firsthand just how bright and intelligent the blue haired woman was. It just didn't seem like something she would be involved in. Maybe the two companies… needed help with accounting?

Or, perhaps she was missing the most obvious answer. That they simply were customers of the video store. It was how she knew Belle, after all. Despite the fact that the blue haired girl had her moments of awkwardness and jokes that fell flat, she was a genuinely good conversationalist. Perhaps they had simply been taken in by her pace (or her brother's, Jane supposed), and decided to strike up a conversation. There and then. With all three of them.

After all, if it was anything more, why would they decide to talk about it out in the open?

It felt a little too coincidental, but Jane wasn't so oblivious to her own emotions. She knew there was some personal bias in her line of reasoning… but it was sound enough that she could ignore it. She simply wanted them to be safe.

That was it. Nothing more there.

Jane took a deep breath to center herself. She sailed past the rumbling storm that was her emotions and resumed her stride to the New Eridu Public Security Lumina Branch building. For a reason that she couldn't quite put into words, she took the long way around, avoiding coming close to the trio in any capacity.

It was still relatively early in the evening, but late enough that most people had already clocked out. So the lobby was empty save for less than a handful of people.

The behavioral analyst flashed her ID at the machine. It beeped and had the gates open. She maneuvered through the back of the building, dropping off a folder that contained an updated profile on a renowned proxy that she updated every other week, as well as another new profile of a low priority gang that was starting to rise.

There was a bust a while back of said renowned proxy, but it turned out to be a hacker who was only using their name. For the gang, she doubted they would last past the end of the week. There was a good chance her profile on the leader wouldn't even be needed.

But she was always one to get her work done early. And the rest of the week would likely be much more free.

Besides, since she was in the area, she might as well get something to eat.

Jane was in and out of the building within ten minutes. She made sure to poke her head out and check her surroundings before completely exiting.

For no particular reason, of course.

Once she got on the overpass just outside the PubSec building, her curiosity got the better of her. She chanced a look back over to where Belle and the two others were, only to find them gone. The space by the metro previously occupied by them scattered as pedestrians skittered about.

She clamped down on any odd feelings that arose from that and took the stairs down back onto the sidewalk. There was one place that she recently was planning on eating, if only to scout out her options before she inevitably was dragged there via a company dinner.

Like many other parts of her life, Jane preferred to be proactive about things. Even if that meant doing her best to avoid any and all spicy food. Hot-pot was enjoyable in moderation, but the frequency that people suggested it had her stomach rolling just at the thought of it.

There simply was no reasonable explanation to put that much spice into one dish. At some point it stopped being food with individual flavors and more of an amalgamation of spices. Not that she was a chef or anything.

Jane sighed. Her mood was all out of order. She knew what the cause was but not why. She stewed in her thoughts as she turned the corner around, only to grunt as someone immediately bumped into her.

"Oof." Jane let out an exhale.

"Eep!" A… familiar voice said.

There was a flash of aquamarine amongst a mess of blue hair, as the perpetrator stumbled backwards. Their arms pinwheeled in an attempt to steady themselves.

Jane's tail shot out before she even realized who it was. It wrapped around the person's thin waist and pulled them closer to her, stabilizing them in the process and letting Jane grab hold of them by their shoulders.

It took Jane more than a few moments to process who exactly it was that she saved from eating dirt. Most of it was spent trying to comprehend why her body reacted by using her tail of all things to steady them. Even if she used it as an accessory to emphasize words or actions (or an extra weapon in combat), she'd didn't allow just anyone to touch it. The rest of the moments were spent with her brain catching up to what her eyes saw. As that familiar shade of blue hair, wonderfully round and bright eyes, and innocent look couldn't be anyone else except Belle.

Jane blinked. She just-

With Belle?

And they…

"O-Oh wow. Jane you feel- Uh-" Belle stuttered out, face suspiciously flushed. "You've got fast reflexives."

Jane flinched and unwound herself from Belle. Shit. She didn't scare the poor girl did she?

"Belle." Jane did her best not to squeak. She felt that she was mostly successful. It didn't come off too high pitched. She cleared her throat. "Fancy meeting you here."

"Yeah! Sorry about bumping into you. I was thinking about what to eat for dinner."

Jane rummaged through her thoughts. "What a coincidence. So was I."

Belle smiled widely. There was still a healthy shade of red on her cheeks from earlier. "Do you- Maybe we- Uh… Are you free?" The girl stuttered out.

"I am…" Jane squinted minutely, trying to decipher what would cause such a reaction. Was she still shaken from earlier? But regardless, she could take a hint. "Do you want to get something to eat? Together?"

"Yes!" Belle all but shouted, then shrank in as she realized her sudden change in volume. "Err. Only if you want to."

Jane raised an eyebrow. Belle flushed in response.

"Hot-pot?" Jane suggested.

"Sounds great! Uh- Just not anything too spicy."

Jane chuckled. "Don't worry. I'm the same way."

The two detoured off a tiny bit as Jane led them to the restaurant. They were early enough to miss dinner rush and late enough to dodge post-work traffic. Threading the needle between the two times in a case of happenstance.

Instead of sitting across from her. Belle chose to sit right beside Jane. The shorter woman practically snuggled up to Jane's arm. Their proximity was so close in the booth that she could feel warmth radiating off. It was an odd trait of theirs, and Jane wondered just what sort of criteria determined whether the manager would be sitting across or sitting next to them.

Or, a soft voice whispered in the back of her mind, if it was something exclusive to her.

Jane busied herself by looking over the menu. Regretfully, she realized quickly that the broths offered ranged from zero spice at all to one that promised a slow and painful death. With no real in-between the two.

She knew from experience that places like these relied on die-hard spice fanatics to keep them in business, so the variant with zero spice would likely be a mediocre experience.

Resigning herself to a less than stellar dinner, Jane used the corner of her eye to peek at Belle.

As with many other mundane things, Belle took her role in choosing what she wanted for dinner with great seriousness. It was a characteristic that Jane found endearing, to care so much for every choice one was presented with. Some people could hardly be bothered to put in that much effort for important life decisions, but Belle seemed to do it even in humorous scenarios.

Like the run in a week back in the coffee shop. Even if some of her answers had seemed off to Jane. It was evident that there were clear lines of reasoning with each guess.

She just… couldn't figure out what the logic behind the second one was. An influencer? Really?

Jane moved her gaze to Belle's hair. The short locks of navy blue were clearly well taken care of, and Jane didn't need to confirm via touch to know that. Further down were those aquamarine eyes that found themselves popping back up in her mind frequently.

Was it the innocence that captured her attention? Or the way that intelligence sparkled behind them? Maybe it was the way that, when combined with her wonderful smile, any room seemed to light up no matter how gloomy.

Perhaps it was all three. All three and the fact that occasionally Jane would catch glimpses of something else. Of a Belle that seemed to be able to dissect anything in front of her. Who used her intelligence as a weapon for something Jane hadn't yet uncovered.

Of a Belle that Jane wasn't even sure existed outside of a hunch, but had her enraptured all the same.

…Belle had a nice side profile.

"Jane…" Belle whined softly, just loud enough for Jane to hear.

"Hmm?"

Belle fidgeted next to her. There was a red tinge on their cheeks. "You're staring… too much."

Jane's eyes widened in realization and her face flushed with heat. "Oh. Sorry I just… found myself lost in thought."

Belle pouted. "Are you worried about what I'm going to order?"

"No…" Jane pursed her lips. If she wanted to know something, she could always just ask. What did she have to be afraid of? She was a member of Public Security. She had faced down thugs twice the size of Belle.

But- Wasn't that the crux of the issue? She was a member of PubSec. To question a civilian with no real evidence was a blatant abuse of power as well as a breach upon their trust. It wasn't as if she believed Belle was up to no good, either.

Belle was her friend. Her good friend. Someone that occupied much more of her thoughts than she ever would have initially guessed when she walked into Random Play during that one heist.

"Just… wondering what made you come out to Lumina Square this evening." Jane settled on. "I figure you have some closer options for dinner."

Belle paused. Their eyes widened just ever so slightly and the smile on her face turned a bit stiff. "Oh! You know, it was a slow day at the store so I wanted to get out. What about you?" The shorter girl said.

Maybe it was just Jane. How with each passing week their familiarity with Belle grew. That she could notice ticks and tells that might not have been evident before. Or maybe Belle just couldn't lie worth a damn.

But either way, that sinking feeling from before came back in full force.

"Oh you know." Jane said, echoing the words of Belle. She lied with a smile. "I just wanted to get out too."