[hr][h1][i][color=00a99d]Yuki Kaguya[/color], No.11 Houkatori, & No.88 Yajuu[/i].[/h1]
[hr][hider= 'OST Title Here' ][youtube]link here[/youtube][/hider][hr]

Yajuu offered a shrug. "You seem to like making a lot of assumptions of me, Yuki," he stated, slowly gettin to his feet of his own volition. "You should know that I don't particularly care for this work any more than you care for having surveilence placed on you. I'm just doing what I'm told."

[i]Just doing what you're told...yeah[/i], Yuki couldn't help echoing that sarcastically in her head. Dammit, forget about the potential of being her...'eye candy' - she now felt increasingly pissed at him the more he got on her nerves. (She simply refused to admit that he poked most of her weaknesses spot-on.)

After unlocking the door she held it open for him, somewhat fidgety as she tried to find the right words to voice out her little request. "Uh... It's not like I hate you or I'm trying to treat you badly or anything..." She trailed off and coughed awkwardly before continuing on, "Well, it would be great if you could help to grab something from the grocery nearby, so that I can make some dinner." She paused, then finished with a rush, "Don't worry, I will prepare your share too." Even if he was here under survillance orders, it's not like he had actually harmed them in any way - and she wasn't that horrible to starve someone who had technically done nothing wrong.

Yajuu walked to the door and offered a shrug in response to her request. He didn't expect her to really care about his orders. As far as they were concerned, he was still a government dog, regardless of the circumstances. He wasn't going to fight it. "Will do," he replied. "I'll be back in a little while then. Is there anything in particular you want me to pick up for you two?"

Yuki thought for a second before she grinned for the first time ever since she had arrived in this city. "How about curry rice then?"

Yajuu offered a nod. "Sounds good. I'll be back in a little while then," he stated with a small wave. He moved out from the doorway, shutting it behind him and letting out a small sigh. He hoped he didn't just become their errand boy during all of this. He understood their apprehension, but...it was just his job. He didn't have a choice in any of this.

With a defeated sigh, he began to walk down the hallway, towards the stairs to the street.

Inside, Houka let out a small breath. She had been barely containing her sharp retorts in response to everything going on. "We could leave. Without him knowing," she said quickly. "I don't trust them. They want something from us."

Yuki had took off her skirt and was beginning to unbutton her blouse. "...Do you actually think we can leave like this so easily?" As she slipped the white shirt off her shoulders, she turned around to face the brunette. "It's true that I know very very little about Project S2 other than the name itself and also people like you who are called Sekirei, but you can't expect the higher-ups to buy the [i]truth[/i] without any suspicions at all, can you?

"Trust isn't something you can simply demand from others to hand it to you - you have to earn it yourself." With that, she gathered up her clothes and walked towards the bathroom. "Want to bathe together, Houka?"

As the woman began to undress, Houkatori found her face warming rapidly at the sight. Her eyes averted instantly, mentally berating herself for such a reaction. She had felt strange around Yuki for a while now and, while this wouldn't have been the first time, she had come to feel embarrassed over these slight incidents. "Why do we need their trust?" she asked quietly, still resenting the idea of being under watch by the government.

At her offer, Houka started to nod. She would, in fact, like that very much, as much as she would rather deny that fact than embarrass herself so. However, she froze before she could bring herself to voice her acceptance.

A gunshot - though suppressed with a silencer - rang out from the street. It was close.

"Wait here," Houka ordered without an explanation. She moved to and out the door swiftly, not even bothering to close the door behind her.

[hr][hr][h1][i]Hikari Mino, [color=598527]No.49 Nagisa[/color], & No.88 Yajuu[/i].[/h1]
[hr][hider= 'OST Title Here' ][youtube]link here[/youtube][/hider][hr]

Hikari raised an eyebrow as she put the pudding away, opting for more of the ramen. She was very...compliant? Was that even the right word? She seemed to change her mind rather easily to his prompting. "Yeah...it should be," he replied, scratching the back of his head. "Well, I guess this is fine. Here." He grabbed the container of yaki pudding, adding it to the pile. "We'll take it for dessert, if you're still hungry."

Nagisa's face brightened up - even though it was just a little - when her master picked up the pudding from the freezer. She continued to eye the small cup as the pair turned around and walked back towards the front door area.

He took it all up to the counter, letting the employee ring it up and bag it. He ignored what he felt were judging eyes as the cash register saw him with this attractive woman, buying instant ramen for dinner. He hadn't known what other choices to go with. She didn't seem to have much of an opinion towards any of it. It was the only thing he could think of for something quick and easy with that in mind. Hopefully she'd like it. He felt his anxiety spike again at the thought.

[i]Why am I worrying so much. I'm paying for all of it,[/i] Hikari thought to himself as he paid the employee. Being offered the bag back, he took it and thanked them before turning to leave with Nagisa.

"Alright. My place isn't too far from here. I can heat these up and we can eat there." He began walking again, heading towards the apartment complex coming into view.

Nagisa nodded, but she wasn't really listening to him - her mind was still on the weird expression on the cashier's face back at the store. "Hikari, are 'military-grade rifles' a rare sight among the people here?" She slipped off the gun from her shoulder, running a finger down the sleek, long barrel.

"By the way, this is an AR-30 Target Rifle," she said, then glanced around to see a schoolgirl in a sailor uniform scrambling off in fright when she met her eyes. "I guess Hikari does not like this gun also when I greeted you with it just now. What kind of rifles would you suggest instead?"

Hikari looked at her at the question, his own look becoming questioning. Did she really think it was okay to just walk around with a rifle? "Uh...no rifle is preferable," he replied slowly. "No one carries around weapons normally. You're going to get weird looks walking around like that. People think you're...dangerous." He had come to terms with the fact that she probably wouldn't turn that gun on him...but most people just saw a girl with a rifle. "It scares people."

Nagisa tilted her head slightly, a sign that she was somewhat confused at Hikari's stuttering. "...Is that so?" Her brows furrowed a little - She didn't say another word as they continued the walk to the young man's apartment...

...When she felt her Core contracting within her, sensing the presence of one - no, two - Sekirei nearby, though the reaction was faint. She shifted the rifle she had in her arms and took a cautious, defensive posture while rushing before Hikari, her eyes narrowed, wary. "Please stay close behind me," she ordered in a quiet but firm tone. She couldn't help feeling a slight anxiety rising in her chest.

[i]Has the 'game' already began?[/i]

Hikari glanced towards her curiously. What was all of this about? She seemed on edge. Without thinking about it, he stepped back, letting her take the lead. "What...what's wrong?" he asked softly. They were standing at the foot of the stairs to his apartment. What could possibly be wrong here? She was acting like she was ready to make use of that gun now, but what could scare her that easily?

Just as that thought passed his mind, footsteps distracted him. A young blond man was descending the stairs. Other than his hair color, nothing really stood out about the man, wearing a black and red sweatshirt and black jeans. The hard look in his eye only served to worry the boy, though, as he glanced from him to his companion. Nagisa instinctively raised the rifle and pointed the barrel at the stranger, her finger poised readily on the trigger. [i]This is the worst possible time and place to encounter an enemy.[/i]

"Interesting," Yajuu spoke up. "I didn't think I'd meet another one so soon. Small world." A grin came to his face, but Hikari felt the pit in his stomach deepen. It wasn't a playful grin that would be normal, but a predatory one. "You don't do a good job of hiding, do you, girl?"

Nagisa did not reply; she simply narrowed her eyes at him, preparing herself for any sudden attack from the blond man before them.

"What do you want?" Hikari asked, cutting off further inquiry. He spoke as if he knew what Nagisa was. If that was the case...he must be involved as well. The question still remained, though. Was he a Sekirei or an Ashikabi? The boy couldn't tell.

Yajuu looked to the boy with a bored expression. "To meet my competition, clearly," he stated, stepping forward, towards Nagisa. On instinct, Hikari matched his step, but the man moved quickly immediately afterwards. A quick jab landed on the boy's stomach, doubling him over. This was followed by a downward swing, sending him crashing to the ground.

Hikari was left stunned as he hit the ground. The other man hit [i]hard[/i]. Harder than he had thought possible from a human. Definitely a Sekirei...but, holy crap, that hurt. What the hell had he gotten himself into? "You shouldn't move so quickly around a potential enemy," Yajuu warned, holding his hands up and stepping away from Nagisa's threat of retaliation.

"Hikari!" Nagisa gasped, scolding herself inwardly for her incompetence - didn't she just swore to protect him at all cost? They were clearly at a disadvantage: her weapon wasn't made for close quarters combat, but she didn't have any other options right now. While the assaulter's attention was on her master (and she made sure Hikari was still behind her), she took a quick and careful aim at the stranger - and she pulled the trigger.

Yajuu stepped back, swaying away and letting the shot sail past him harmlessly. With one hand, he grabbed the barrel of the gun and pointed it away from himself before the petite girl could regain her stance. Nagisa tensed up but she did not attempt to tug the rifle out of the stranger's hand - she knew full well that she had no chance of winning against this man, not in this situation. Hikari's safety was way more important than killing the opponent before her at the moment. Certain that the stranger didn't appear to have any intention of harming them further she relaxed, but her emotionless eyes were still trained unblinkingly on him.

"Smarter than you look," Yajuu stated. "If I wanted to take you out, it'd be too easy. Especially with that weak Ashikabi." He stepped away, releasing her gun. He was confident that his reflexes would be enough to handle her. Nagisa slung the rifle behind her back once more, still standing before her fallen master, whom she gave a sideways glance at. "Hikari, are you alright?"

"I'm fine..." the Ashikabi stated softly. He pushed himself up into a sitting position, looking up at the two Sekirei. "Are we done here? I still don't get what you want."

Yajuu laughed. The little Ashikabi was trying to play tough. "A greeting. That's all," he replied with a mocking grin. "We'll be fighting soon enough. Though, I'm not sure I'll be participating quite yet...you have strong competition close to home."

"What do you think you're doing?" The raven haired girl had reached the top of the steps.