[b]Mei Song[/b]

Upon entering the train compartment, the last thing Mei had expected was for a beautiful, bespectacled woman to approach Syrus and [i]embrace[/i] him so fondly. Outrage spread across Mei's normally peppy features and she opened her mouth to spout her disapproval, but the busty young lady had quickly interjected that she was in fact [i]Duncan,[/i] but with rather large...enhancements. The anger that had risen quickly changed to that of utter confusion as the ex-instructor adopted a more cool, professional manner as he talked to  the group about disembarking. The situation diffused for now, Mei decided to spend the remainder of the journey looking out the window at the sprawling valleys and forests that they passed.

[i]Whilst[/i] keeping a close eye on Syrus, of course. 

[hr] 

Eventually, the train screeched to a halt, and the group of SeeD started to spill out from the slid-open doors. Mei followed the herd, her eyebrows shooting up as Duncan suddenly dove into the bushes conspicuously. "Mr...?"

In a matter of seconds, Duncan appeared back from the shrubbery, his male form regained and a cigarette in his mouth. [i]This is just downright bizarre...[/i] were her thoughts as Syrus walked over and engaged in conversation with the other male. Was SeeD always like this? She always imagined them to be cool and hardened from the endless struggles of battle. Perhaps she had romanticized them a little too much. They [i]were[/i] mostly teenagers after all. 

"Deling City, here we come!" Mei chirped, a sudden burst of energy overtaking her as she took the lead of the group with a skip in her step.

This would be the place where things would finally start to be put in motion. 

[hr]

"Woooow..."

After the long taxi journey from the station, Mei was quick to get out and stretch her legs, her eyes lighting up joyously at the streams of traffic, the blaring lights, the smell of petrol and food in the air...

"It's been so long since I've been to DC..." Mei murmured dreamily to no one in particular. "I think I was about 4 or 5 then. Tyler got us hopelessly lost and all he would do was cry and cry until someone finally helped us find our parents." A fond smile lifted her lips at that moment, before she turned back to the others. "Look, I know we have a job to do here, but surely it would be okay to have a little look around first, right?" Her question was aimed at Duncan in particular, since he seemed to carry the most authority of the group at present.

[hr]

[b]Asa Fiore[/b]  

"This is worse than being in a battlezone..."

Ace leaned against the wall, looking disdainfully at the dancers quarrelling about the sequence of their routine. Honestly the whole parade for the Galbadian President was completely in bad taste, especially so soon after wiping Dollet off the map. Asa herself had met Mr Vinzer Deling a few times, and every time, she had been left with a sour taste in her mouth. It was like the man was so disconnected with reality that all he could see was how much land he hadn't painted red yet. 

If her efforts had been purely for servicing that man, Ace would have quit the army years ago, but her own agenda was far too important to risk over a few...moral issues. So, she would have to suck it up and perform her duty.

Even if it meant guarding a completely obnoxious and expensive ceremony. 

"Man...looks like the President is going all out this year, huh..." A fellow soldier whispered over to her with a slight shake of his head. "Honestly I'd rather be home with my girl, but what can you do? Can't trust SeeD not to interfere after their exploits in Timber..."

Ah yes...Ace had heard about what had happened in Timber. A siege of the Galbadian Headquarters and a kidnapping of a high rank Galbadian Major. Of course this meant that SeeD could very well be privy to classified information now, which is why security had increased tenfold around the city. The wiser move would have been to cancel the nonsensical parade, but Deling was having none of it.

Typical.

"Wiggs was quite the powerhouse too. Heard it wasn't an easy fight," the other soldier gossiped further. "I mean, wasn't he, you know, [i]enhanced?"[/i]  

"Most likely," was Ace's response, her gaze fixed dully on one of the dancers as she tried to choreograph the sway of her hips with the others. "That's what tends to happen the higher you climb. You get promoted...with all the perks."

[i]And you lose whatever humanity you had left.[/i] Unfolding her arms, Ace turned to her fellow guard. "I want everyone to be extra cautious for the parade tomorrow. The enemy has shown no signs of getting out of our way so far, so neither should we."

"Normally I would just say it'll be a snoozefest, but you're probably right..." he sighed, looking back at the dancing girls appreciatively. "Hmm...which one would you go for, Lieutenant?"

"All of them," she answered plainly, eliciting a whistle from her comrade as she returned to her copy of Weapons Monthly.