Normalcy could be a strange thing. When you're going through one extraordinary event after another, it becomes difficult to imagine life any other way. And when it finally comes, well…it may take a while for it to feel truly normal.

"Bugger…"

Every once in a while, thoughts like these would worm their way into Cammy White's head. Her life, by most accounts, was not a very normal one. To the average person, few jobs were as extraordinary as an intelligence operative, especially one who works for an agency as high-profile as MI6. but for Cammy, it was the only one she'd ever known, yet even that seemed mundane in the grand scheme of things.

Cammy couldn't help but sigh as she looked at herself in the bathroom mirror. She was meant to be getting ready for an outing; a visit to the cafe with two of her sisters. A perfectly ordinary thing, even if everything leading up to it had been anything but. The memories could be almost overwhelming at times, yet they didn't illicitly despair and confusion as they had before. Instead, they brought her comfort. Joy. Pride at how far they had all come. How far she had come.

Bison was gone. The man who had brought her into this world, the one who had hurt so many dear to her, the one who had forged her into a killer. That had been her purpose from the start - to be a killer. She was never meant to be anything more. Bison hadn't believed she could be anything more.

How wrong he was.

"Cammy!" came a voice from outside. "Are you ready yet?"

"Just a minute!"

Her focus rekindled, she got back to her fairly limited preparation. She didn't typically apply makeup, but just for today, she decided to put on a touch of lip gloss. It wasn't hers, naturally. Her flat mate, Juni, had lended her after insisting she "doll herself up" a little. An interesting choice of words, given their history.

And there it was again.

Casting this thought aside before it could root itself in, Cammy finished applying the lip gloss and gave herself one more lookover. She'd decided to wear an orange turtleneck and a pair of new jeans she'd been meaning to wear, but hadn't really gotten the chance to. Her job was very demanding and she was quite devoted to it, a combination that didn't leave her with much free time. But work was rather slow at the moment, so she had a chance to slow down herself. To simply enjoy the life she'd fought so hard for.

From outside, she could hear some quiet giggling, no doubt at her expense. "Oh, for the love of…" she uttered to herself as she finally stepped out of the bathroom. Waiting for her were Juni and their other sister and flat mate, Decapre. Both of them were already dressed; Juni in a blue short sleeved turtleneck and white skirt, and Decapre in a simple blue shirt and black pants.

"Aww, look at you!" Juni enthused as Cammy approached, putting her hands together and smiling broadly. "Isn't she cute?"

This question was addressed to Decapre, who didn't seem to hear it at first? "Hmm? Oh, yes. Quite." she finally said. Compared to her and Juni, Decapre had a noticeable Russian accent, but this wasn't what caught Cammy's attention. Just from the way she spoke, it was clear she was nervous. She typically was when they went out in public. All this was still new to her, after all, and she was certain to draw attention due to the burn mark on the right side of her face. An eternal reminder of her bloody past.

"We're all bound to turn a few heads," Cammy said before turning to look at Juni. "Which I guess is the idea."

"Not necessarily," her flatmate said with a slight smirk. "Unless…"

"Juni…"

"Like I said, just be open to it, okay? As long as it isn't unwanted attention, of course."

Cammy could only sigh as Juni slightly adjusted her collar, keeping that same infectious smile on her face the entire time. Then, with a spring in her step, she grabbed her purse and started making her way to the door. "Okay, let's go! Before it gets too busy!"

For a moment, Cammy simply watched her go, during which time she noticed Decapre rolling her eyes, something she couldn't help but chuckle at. Compared to the two of them, Juni was much more personable or perhaps more accurately, a lot less cautious around people. This was hardly a criticism of her. If anything, she was impressed by how well her sister had reintegrated after what she'd gone through. But some days, she envied her.

After retrieving her purse and jacket, and making sure to say goodbye to their house cat, Cammy and her sisters began their little outing. The weather had been everything she'd hoped for: the sun was shining in the sky and a cool spring breeze kept it from getting too humid, making for a pleasant walk down London's streets or as pleasant as it could be, anyway.

As they walked, Cammy had to remind herself to relax. When she was on the clock, she'd been taught to practice constant vigilance, a habit that bled into her everyday life. But right now, she wasn't looking for anyone and whatever threats they might encounter on the street would be trifling at best. All she had to do was relax. Enjoy herself. Smile and laugh.

She'd earned it. They'd all earned it.

…

They reached the cafe some twenty minutes after leaving. The patio seats completely packed, leaving them no choice but to go looking for a seat inside.

"Ooo, there!" Juni said before they even opened the door, pointing to a circular table through the window.

"Relax," Cammy said as she opened the door for them. "If this one's full, we can always find…another…"

Her voice ever so slightly trailed off when she looked behind the front counter. Out of habit, she'd quickly scanned the cafe as the three of them entered, making note of how many people were there and where they all were. As expected, nothing really caught her eye - that was, until she saw who would be serving them.

Behind the counter was a young man wearing a simple blue apron, his attention absorbed by a notebook he was presently writing or scribbling in. A few things jumped out at her: he had a slight tan, had a short beard and looked fairly lean; in short, he was quite attractive.

Thankfully, he only captured Cammy's attention for a moment before it turned back to Juni, who'd gone ahead of her and Decapre to claim the free table.

"Come on, I've been meaning to take you guys here for months," she said to them, pulling out their chairs for them as they approached. "Great lattes, great cakes, great ambiance…great service."

Juni looked directly at her while listing this last quality, putting a good deal of emphasis into it as well. Naturally, this incited a bit of suspicion. She was certain Juni had been looking the other way when she noticed that barista, but then why was she smirking at her like that? Was she reading too much into things?

"I'm sure," was all Cammy said as she and Decapre took their seats. Her twin had been quiet for some time and was herself looking over the cafe, appearing somewhat uneasy. "Do you want to find another spot?"

"Oh, no, I like it here. It's…cozy."

Taking another look around, Cammy couldn't help but agree. She hadn't paid much mind to the decor until then, but the cafe seemed to be going for a vintage aesthetic and it worked quite well. Exposed brick walls were decorated by various paintings and black-and-white photos, the details of which she could only faintly make out from a distance. Light acoustic music played over a speaker, interspersed with the subdued chatter of the other customers, a couple of which she could see glancing in their direction.

But regardless of all that, Decapre looked comfortable. She looked happy - happy to simply be there with them. And nothing warmed Cammy's heart more.

"Good. Really good." She couldn't help but smile as she spoke, or when she looked back at Juni, who was gleaming with similar pride for their sister.

That quiet moment was interrupted when Juni's eyes focused behind her, after which she waved at someone. "Kostas! It's so good to see you!"

Kostas? Who was Kostas?

Her confusion led to her looking behind her to find the barista she'd seen earlier coming over to their table with his notebook still in hand, something that probably shouldn't have surprised her as much as it did.

"Welcome back, Juni," he greeted with a much deeper voice than she was expecting. "Sorry for missing you earlier; I was just catching up on a little homework."

He held up his notebook and Cammy could faintly see what looked like equations on the pages. So he was a student; a college goer, if she had to guess. There were a good deal of those around town, be they local or international, but it wasn't immediately clear which camp he fell into. His accent definitely didn't seem English…

"Sorry for distracting you," Juni apologized with a small giggle. "Well, okay, not really. Come on, come meet my sisters."

"Oh, bollocks," Cammy suddenly thought to herself. She should've known.

"Your sisters?" It was then that Costas seemed to notice her and Decapre for the first time, but particularly her. When he met her eyes, he seemed almost in disbelief, practically mirroring her similarly befuddled expression. She figured he was young, but not this young; even younger than her, from the looks of things. Yet he still looked so…mature.

"Sisters. Right, that checks out," he uttered, his eyes going back and forth between her and Decapre. "Well, it's nice to meet you. Name's Kostas, if you didn't hear. Can I please get yours?"

It took Cammy a moment to offer a response, when she realized he needed them to place their order as well. "Cammy. Pleasure."

"Cammy, right. I remember now - Juni had a lot to say about you."

That was certainly a surprise. Juni told him about her? Why had she told him about her?

She pondered this while Kostas noted her name in his journal for later before turning his gaze to her twin. "And you must be…De…Decapre? That's how you say it, right?"

"Close enough," she replied and even chuckled at his sloppy pronunciation. "So…are you a friend of Juni's? Because I don't recall her mentioning you."

"That so? I'm hurt."

Cammy's attention briefly turned back to Juni, who was still observing the interaction with a silly smile. She also couldn't help but notice her sister was being uncharacteristically quiet.

"And why is that, I wonder?" Cammy teasingly said, earning an eye roll from Juni.

"Oh, I have my reasons. Just probably not the ones you're thinking of."

Juni's coyness was becoming a little irritating, but Cammy didn't let that irritation show. By now, she had a good enough idea of what she had in mind and she decided to play along. For the most part, anyway.

"So, ladies. Do you know what you're getting or should I come back in a few?"

"Yeah, I'll…" "Come back in a few, please," Cammy politely interrupted Juni before she could finish, something that didn't seem to surprise her too much.

"Actually, that's a good idea. We'll come to you when we're ready," she said to the barista, who seemed a little confused by the whole situation.

"Alright then. Take your time."

With that, Kostas made his way back to the counter, leaving the three sisters to decide what they wanted to have. Though she didn't mean to, Cammy spent more time than she should've looking after him and suddenly, she wished she hadn't been so curt with him.

"Mmm, looks like someone's made a good first impression," she heard Juni say behind her. And just like that, any doubt she had about her intentions evaporated.

Sharply turning back towards her, she looked directly at her and exclaimed, "Are you mental?!"

"Why do you ask?", she said, still just as calm as she was before.

"Why do I…?" Cammy was minding her voice, being sure not to talk loud enough for the other customers or, God forbid, Kostas from hearing them. Nonetheless, she paused and took a steady breath before continuing. "Are you trying to play matchmaker here?"

"Depends. Are you interested?"

"Juni, I'm serious…" "No, really. I didn't make him any promises. He didn't even know we were coming today."

As vague as she'd been today, Cammy believed her. She wasn't trapped; if she wanted to leave, she could do so at any time. But the thing was, she didn't want to leave, not only because she didn't want to uproot their established plans, but because a part of her was…curious about this Kostas. As much as Juni insisted that she consider "putting herself on the market" as she'd say, she had never tried anything like this before. And odds were she wasn't only trying to play matchmaker for her…

"Ahhh, I see now," Decapre suddenly interjected, smiling as she turned to Cammy. "He is quite cute, isn't he?"

Now she really had no idea what to say. Hearing that from Decapre of all people felt surreal - the fact they were concerning themselves with such meaningless drivel after everything that's happened…

Before these thoughts could get too out of hand, Cammy took another breath. This wasn't something to get bent out of shape about. "I guess so," she reluctantly acknowledged.

"I knew it!" Juni exclaimed almost the moment she finished speaking. "I knew he;d be your type."

"You are a child," said Cammy.

"See that, Decapre? She didn't say I was wrong."

"So I noticed," her twin acknowledged, earning her a sidewards glare from Cammy.

"You were in on this."

"What?"

"You were in on this, I know you were!"

"Oh, no, no, no, nonsense!" Decapre insisted, but subtlety wasn't quite her strength, nor was reading social cues. She seemed to think she was genuinely upset with her, immediately eliciting a tinge of guilt from Cammy.

"It's fine. It's just…" She paused for a moment, tapping her finger on her curled knuckles as she looked between her two sisters. "What exactly do you want me to do?"

"Nothing you don't want to," Juni said to reassure her. But soon after she did, she smiled again and leaned in a little closer. "But tell me this. What would you do if he were to say…come back over here and ask for your…"

"No," she said almost without meaning to.

"Alright, then I guess it has to be the other way around," Juni continued without missing a beat. "How about this? We'll figure out what we want to have and then you'll go order for us."

"I…" Once again, she found herself unsure of what to say. It would have been so easy to just say no again and go about their day as originally planned, but a part of her didn't want to. And not simply because she didn't want to disappoint her sisters.

"Why are you doing this to me?" she lightly complained as she sunk back into her chair.

"It's good for you. And most amusing for us." It was Decapre who spoke this time - blunt and to the point as always. But there was more to what she said.

"I'm happy with things as they are. You know that." Cammy took a lighter tone when speaking this time.

"I do," Decapre acknowledged. "But I think you need to relax a little more. With how much you work, it's like you think Shadaloo never died."

And there it was. She'd hoped to avoid any mention of that today, but Decapre's comment came from a place of genuine concern and unfortunately, wasn't entirely unfounded. They'd both been there the day Shadaloo fell - the day M. Bison was finally vanquished. Yet even all these years later, Cammy was certain a few loose ends remained and leaving even one to dangle could be disastrous. Bison had cheated death before. Who's to say he couldn't do it again?

"I want to be able to move on. I want all of us to be able to move on. But until I can be certain…"

"We understand," Juni chimed in. "Believe me, we understand. But you can't live always anticipating the worst case scenario. We're not asking you to drop it, because let's face it, you won't. Just…take it easy, okay? And take a chance or two while you're at it."

Throughout all this, Juni continued to smile at her. And yet again, Cammy felt a sense of overwhelming pride. She'd never forget her days as a Doll, but those were in the past. She was her own woman now, with her own life, something she said again and again she owed to her. It was clear now this little gesture was her attempt of repaying her in a way and even if she didn't think it was necessary, Cammy was quite moved.

When she looked back over to Decapre, her twin gave her a simple smile and nod. Of course she agreed with everything Juni said. After everything Cammy had done to save her, how could she not?

"Alright, fine," Cammy relented. "If he has your seal of approval."

"Oh, absolutely," said Juni. "He's a bit reserved, but I think you'll get along well."

Deciding to take her at her word, Cammy then waited for her sisters to decide what they wanted to order. She herself decided what she wanted pretty quickly, giving herself a bit of time to determine her plan of action. She didn't consider herself to be anxious, but she couldn't help but be wary of people, so she didn't tend to approach strangers often, especially not for this reason. What was she meant to say or do?

"Don't overthink it," Juni advised her once their orders were decided. "Just chat with him for a bit and slip him your number."

"I'm not overthinking it." "Course you are. You always do."

Cammy gave Juni a brief glare, even if she knew she was right. Rather than wasting any more time arguing, she finally stood up from her seat. "Excuse me," she said for no real reason.

"Excused," Decapre jokingly said.

"Knock 'em dead," Juni added on.

With that, Cammy turned around and made her way over the counter. The cafe didn't seem to be particularly busy at the moment, so there was no line for her to wait in and more importantly, nobody for her to hold up behind her. So when she got close, she immediately got Kostas's attention, who looked up from his notebook and set it down to greet her.

"Oh, hi there," he hastily greeted. "Cammy, right?"

"That's me," she confirmed. "Kept you waiting, huh?"

"No problem at all. I have enough to keep me busy."

When Cammy stopped at the counter, there was a brief moment where she simply stood there and said nothing. The two of them had by now made eye contact, letting her get another really good look at him. There wasn't much for her to note about him that she hadn't already; he was just really handsome.

"Are you ready to order then?"

"Yes, yes, thank you," she said, finally remembering what she was supposed to be there for. "I'll just take a mocha and some apple pie; then a caramel latte and cheesecake for Juni, and some black coffee and a chocolate cupcake for Decapre."

Kostas noted this all down as she spoke. "Any specifics for the drinks?"

"Just that Juni wants hers in a cup. She also said she's excited to see the art."

"No surprises there," he said with a smile.

There was another brief silence where he finished up with his notes, during which time Cammy was still trying to figure out what to say to him. All she could think to do was watch as he wrote in his notebook, which was when she finally got an idea.

"So, what homework did we tear you away from?"

Caught off guard, he stopped writing and looked up at her. "Ah, that's what you meant. It's prep for a math class I have tomorrow morning; nothing I imagine you'll find exciting."

"Maybe not," she acknowledged. "Do you find it exciting?"

"I need it for my degree. I'll say that much."

"And what's that?" "Engineering."

"Ah. Impressive." "You can say that when I finish the bloody thing."

Cammy couldn't help but laugh, not so much because of the joke itself, but because of how casually he said it. People tended to be a little cautious upon first meeting her and she couldn't blame them - she wasn't the most sociable person in the world. But Kostas hardly seemed intimidated by her. Engineering definitely wasn't her first guess, but it did make him seem ambitious.

She was just about to ask what school he was attending when he finally lowered his notebook. "Listen, I have to go get your orders ready, but can I ask you something first?"

Somewhat taken aback, she needed a moment to mull the request over. "Sure," she answered, curious about just what was on his mind.

"Right. I'm just curious, and sorry if I'm prying, but…what's with the scar?"

At first, she was a little bit confused, until she realized he was referring to the scar she had on her left cheek. "Oh, that's…it's a long story. But it's real, if that's what you're wondering."

"I see. Then that...thing on Decapre's eye - I take it that's not a birthmark?"

This was a question Cammy was a bit more hesitant to answer. "Unfortunately not," she eventually said, resisting the urge to look back at her twin before doing so. She didn't know why she told him that or why she felt so guilty for doing so. She hadn't exactly revealed anything to him, after all…but judging from the silence that followed, he'd understood enough.

"Okay, that seems like a touchy subject. Sorry for being so nosey. It's just hard to miss, that's all."

"I understand," said Cammy. While it was a bit upsetting that their markings was one of the first things people tend to notice about them, there was nothing they could do about it. They would always be there, and not everyone needed to know their true meaning.

It was clear that Juni hadn't told Kostas everything, but it was also clear he was still curious about her. And for once, Cammy didn't mind one bit.

"Although, I can tell you a little bit more. If you happen to have the time."

He seemed just about ready to return to work when she made this proposition, no doubt wishing to leave the awkward situation he'd created. Needless to say, he was quite surprised, but only briefly.

"I'd be all ears," he eventually said, bringing back some of his earlier swagger. "Only thing is that today's quite busy for me, and I can only let you three stay for so long before the boss starts hounding me."

"I didn't say it had to be today," Cammy pointed out.

"True." Pausing for a moment, he leaned against the counter, bringing them a bit closer to eye level. "So…"

"Do we get to eat for free?"

She said this a bit spontaneously, once again causing him to fall silent. She could see the exact moment he realized what she meant and had to keep herself from laughing. "I mean…"

Finally, Cammy couldn't contain herself any longer, but managed to limit herself to just a bit of giggling. "Don't worry, I'm just messing with you. What do I owe?"

"32 pounds," he promptly answered. "And maybe a little more, if you're feeling generous."

"Mmm." Taking out her wallet, Cammy got ready to pay. "Cash only, right?"

"Aye."

With this in mind, she took out three tenners and one fiver, as well as another inconspicuous slip of paper that she mixed in with her payment. "Here you are," she said as she handed him the money. "Whatever's extra is for you."

"Why, thank you," he said as he took her payment. Taking a moment to check she'd given him everything she owed, he quickly noticed the extra slip, taking it from the bundle in order to have a look at it. Once he was done, Kostas simply looked back up at her and smiled; for a moment, Cammy was so embarrassed she almost dropped his gaze, hoping to God she wasn't turning red.

"Everything appears to be in order," said Kostas, sparing her from further embarrassment. "Well, time to get back to work. I'll get back to you soon."

"Thank you," she said when nothing else came to mind and seeing what he'd just said as confirmation he got the message, turned to return to her table. As she made her way back, Cammy felt a strange sense of relief, maybe even excitement...which quickly turned to dread when she saw her sisters closely watching her and more specifically, Juni smiling from ear to ear.

"Not one word," she said to them as she sat back down.

"So, did you…?" "Yes." Cammy anticipated her question and answered before she could even finish, but this was obviously only one of many that were coming her way.

"What did he say?" "Nothing," she answered, which wasn't entirely wrong. Not that it mattered.

"Look at her, she's still blushing. He definitely said yes," Juni said to Decapre, who was quietly observing all this with a pleasant smile. And while she didn't say it outright, Cammy could tell she was proud of her, at least in a small way.

"I can't believe you put me up to this," she muttered almost to herself.

"Hey now, we didn't tell you to do anything," Juni pointed out.

"You did a little more than that, Juni." "Maybe. But you didn't need to slip your number in with the cash, right? You could've just kept it and come right back here, And yet..."

Cammy chose to stay quiet, mostly because she had no way to argue against that. That bit with the number had been Juni's idea, yes, but it was just that - an idea. And to her credit, it ended up working quite well, even if it made her feel like a ditzy school girl.

"What's done is done," she said after some pause. "And now, I guess I wait."

"Hopefully not too long, hmm?" Decapre finally spoke, drawing their attention to her. "What? It's exciting."

"I didn't think you'd be so invested in this," Cammy commented.

"Me neither," her twin replied before leaning a little closer to her. "But tell me, and be honest, what did you think of him?"

She was practically whispering to her, speaking just loudly enough so that Juni could also hear her and judging from how she perked up with interest, she did. This whole outing seemed to be getting more ridiculous by the minute; being the subject of such childish gossip, and by her sisters no less, felt utterly surreal to her.

Yet, she couldn't bring herself to be upset. With all the years that've been stolen from them, they could afford to be a little childish. And to be honest, Cammy found it all a little amusing herself.

"Well…" she started to say, still a little unsure of what she should say. What did she think of him? She'd only just met him, after all.

"I like him."

This simple answer was left to settle over the table, leaving her sisters to simply sit and smile at her. As nice as it was, Cammy didn't like staying the center of attention for so long. "Oh, for goodness sake, you two. If I had any sense, I'd ask for a refund and take us somewhere else."

"Too late," was Juni's simple comment on the matter. What's more she was looking behind Cammy as she said this - in the direction of the front counter.

She first hesitated at following her sister's gaze, but very soon, she ended up caving and turning her head some ways to glace behind her. She could see Kostas preparing their coffee, finishing one cup and setting it on a decorative platter before getting to work on another machine. As he toiled away, she saw him sneaking a few glances in their direction, but particularly her direction.

At first, she couldn't tell if he could tell she was looking, but that doubt started fading the moment he started smiling and then shattered completely when he gave a cheeky wink. The moment she saw that, her head practically snapped forward, a sight that practically made Juni break out in hysterics.

" Yep. Too late," she thought to herself, but this was soon replaced with another thought. One she almost couldn't believe she was having.

"How exciting."

...