[hr][i][h1][color=salmon]Haruka[/color] & [color=cornflowerblue]Shizuka[/color] [color=fa8072]T[/color][color=e78381]a[/color][color=d58591]k[/color][color=c288a0]a[/color][color=af8bb0]s[/color][color=9c8dbf]h[/color][color=8a90ce]i[/color][color=7792de]r[/color][color=6495ed]o[/color], [color=plum]Trevor Obott[/color], [color=springgreen]Cindy Keagan[/color], & [color=red]Meifeng Vuhong[/color].[/h1]
[sub](Written in collaboration with [@Mr Allen J])[/sub][/i]

[hr][hider=God Eater OST - No Way][youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RWWBwJFYi8[/youtube][/hider][hr]

Shizuka closed his eyes to force down the rising annoyance of his current situation. Okay, so far so good with making some acquaintances on their first day in this seaside city (he mentally tagged Trevor as "that shameless booty hunter" and Cindy as "that brown - not black! - chick"), and the usually awkward Haruka was able to hold his own conversation with their new 'friends' surprisingly well.

The silver-haired twin moved to a window. Peering out of the glass, his eyes were greeted by the sight of another heavy downpour. Ever since the Takashiro brothers had arrived at Verthaven, Shizuka never felt at ease, only unknowable dread. Something was bothering him, but he didn't know what, and why. All his gut feeling told him was that it might have something to do with this weird weather.

Haruka's irritated voice pulled him out of his thoughts. "Earth to Shizu---" Following the gaze of his brother, the elder twin stopped short at the rain. "I guess they do have flash showers in non-tropical areas like Verthaven."

"...It's more than that. Don't you feel something off about it?"

"What do you mean?"

Shizuka raised his left hand to eye level. "Oh great. Now I'm back to normal." He placed the palm on the window, his skin registered the hard and cold surface the moment his fingers came in contact with the glass. He tried with his right hand. As solid as how it should be. He wondered if it's the stress from anxiety that caused him to lose his control momentarily.

A look of relief flashed across Haruka's face for a brief second, but that wasn't enough for him to drop the [i]main[/i] topic. "What's wrong with this rain?"

"It feels...unnatural. Like, someone is purposely causing this rain, either to relay some sort of message or to cover up some really bad stuff." He rolled his eyes at Haruka's odd expression. "What?"

"I think you read too much psycho manga."

Cindy was wiping off the counter to the bar. Ah, it was like she's a bartender! Though, the twin's conversation really hit her. She was thinking about how...weird, all this rain was. "No, no, I think he's on to something," Cindy injected. "Someone probably is behind this. I don't know what they're up to, but I'm hoping that NEST gets to the bottom of it."

Trevor, lounging in one of the booths with his hands behind his head, just went, "Pttf, ya'll worry too much." He shrugged. "Someone just got a little tired of all the [i]sunshine[/i]."

Shizuka arched an eyebrow. It's the second time he heard that term today. "What the hell is this 'NEST' anyway?"

"You two [i]really[/i] must be new here." Cindy said, raising an eyebrow. Now she was further convinced that these two were newcomers to the city. Like the whole damn city's full of NEST - because it's full of Metahumans. "...You heard of Metahumans before, right?" Now here's the question that would decide whether or not Cindy would feel comfortable discussing powers.

Haruka nodded. "Yeah, I've heard that on our way here. People with superpowers." He cast a quick glance at Shizuka, who simply shrugged in response.

"NEST is basically cops for Metahumans. They're really anal about superpowers, and you have to register if you have any, and do these [i]annoying[/i] ch---" Cindy caught herself when she realized that she was sounding a little [i]too[/i] personal. "But, yeah, they only go after Metahumans who do crimes. Ya'll ain't got anything to worry about...unless you two are up to no good." 

The twins exchanged looks - Haruka, a worried face; Shizuka was merely amused. The older Takashiro shuddered at the thought of separation from his [i]Metahuman[/i] brother if anyone found out about his 'phasing' ability - Shizuka was the only person in this foreign place whom he could trust. Sure, there's still Aunt Akemi around, but he knew nothing about her other than being their mother's sister.

The sound of engine made the twins looked out of the window again. A car pulled up along the road before the door of the club; two feminine silhouettes got out of the vehicle, and one of them was running towards the club. Probably another one of Trevor's friends.

"...What's up?!" Meifeng said as she barged into the Club. She immediately looked around, and saw Trevor, Cindy...and some two fucks she didn't know.

"Heeeey!" Trevor shouted, raising his hands up into the air.

"Glad you made it, Meifeng." Cindy said.

The girl who entered was just like how Trevor has described (minus all the sex jokes): Asian - obviously Chinese, even if her name wasn't mentioned - and bigger than the twins. Haruka made a mental note to never get on her wrong side: he could spot many scars all over her arms and legs, and her basketball gear made her look almost like a jock, this time a female. He could only hope Shizuka would have the sense not to provoke her with his smart mouth.

Unfortunately, that was the least of his worries - he could try to put a leash on Shizuka, but he had no power to stop the other party from making the first move.

"But...I wanna know..." Meifeng said as she walked over to the twins. Her attention immediately went to Shizuka, and she walked up to him. Standing right over him. This boy was like a little twig - not as sissy as Trevor, but still pretty fruity. Hell, Meifeng was wider than he was. Only problem was his hair... It was dyed grey - nothing cool like silver. Like he was some old-ass man. What lil' weirdo would dye his hair grey?

Meifeng had to find out! "Yoooo, who are you? And the why the hell did you dye your hair [i]grey[/i]? Like, it's already bad enough that a [i]boy[/i] dyed his hair, but [i]grey[/i]? Like some old ass man? Aw, I can't look." She mock-winced, covering her eyes with her hand.

Before the younger twin could make a comeback, Haruka stepped before his brother. Not that he was feeling brave - he wasn't in a mood for a brawling session that [i]might[/i] happen. "I'm Haruka, and he's Shizuka. The gray hair is natural."

"Don't lieeeeeeee!" Meifeng moaned, loudly laughing. "You like - what - my age? How the hell did you get [i]naturally[/i] grey hair?"

"Have you heard of a genetic condition called 'premature graying'?"

Meifeng shrugged. "Genetics ar---"

"Don't bother." Shizuka waved a hand at his brother. "No need to give this gorilla girl a science lesson - she probably doesn't have enough brains to understand your oh-so-awesome lecture, [i]nerd[/i]." He poked at Haruka's glasses playfully.

"Shizu." The elder twin slapped his hand away. "Be. Nice." And threw him a warning look: [i]are you trying to look for a fight?[/i]

"... Gorilla?" Meifeng put her hand on her hip as she looked at him. Okay, this boy was about to be taught one hell of a lesson. She took a step over to him, and shoved him by the arm. "Hey, hey, hey, you better watch it." Meifeng put her hand up, staring down Shizuka, "Because I'll karate chop your [i]dick off[/i] if you get smart with me, boy."

He knew that this would happen; Haruka forced his twin's head down by the back of the neck and looked up at Meifeng. "Sorry about my little brother's rudeness." He knew Shizuka well enough that he wasn't a deadly competitive type even if he could hold his own ground, and there was another issue about possible accidental display of his power. That was the last thing he wanted - it wasn't about the trust with a bunch of teens they only just met, but the fear that his brother would be taken away from him for good if his ability was found out by NEST.

Shizuka probably sensed Haruka's uneasiness through his tightening grip around his neck - he mumbled a barely audible apology, still looking down.

"Come on." Meifeng smiled, leaned forward, and pointed one finger up into the air. "Long as the little dude watches his [i]manners[/i], we'll be cool. Think we just got off to a bad start with the whole weird grey hair, thing, right?" Meifeng clapped her hands together. "I'm [i]Meifeng[/i]. Your names?"

Before they could reply, Cindy rolled her eyes, and called out, "Yeah, ya'll better not get into a fight in the club. I was cleaning up after the last one for months..." She rolled her eyes again.

"Oh, uh, Cindy." Meifeng turned over to her friend before. "My mom wants to speak with you outside."

"Oh?" Cindy peaked out the door, and saw that tall behind woman leaning up against the car. "Guess ya'll can excuse me for a few minutes..." She got from behind the counter, and started walking towards the door. Right before she stepped through the door, she poked her head back in, with a dry look on her face, and said, "Don't destroy the club, please." Before the door closed.

"Alright!" Meifeng clapped her hands together, and faced the twin. "Where were we?"

"Our names," Shizuka said, rubbing the back of his neck. He pointed at his brother and then back to himself. "Haru, and Shizu."

"Oh, nice to meet you two... Your names sound more Asian than mine! You Japanese or something?"

A grin broke out of Shizuka's face, the tense situation from before all forgotten. "Yeah!" Haruka nodded, the tension had left him rather drained now.

"That's great." Meifeng said, putting her hands on her hips, looking around. She shrugged. "Now what? I'm bored."

"Oh!" Trevor raised his finger up into the air, getting everyone's attention. "I wanted to do this for a little while, and now seems like a great time!" He hopped his way out of the booth and started walking over to the three.

Meifeng rolled her eyes. "...No, Trevor, we're not having an---"

"No, no, no, it's not [i]that[/i]." Trevor waved his hands at them. Before he stood straight up, putting a smug grin on his face. "Are ya'll up for a little adventure? A little danger?"

"Like I said, no---"

"You're not even listening." Trevor said. "Know that spooky part of the city, the 'Ghost Town'?"

"The part that's probably full of maniacs and monsters?" Meifeng noted.

"Yeah. How about we go give it a lil' look?" Trevor said, putting his hands on his sides. He then leaned in towards the twins. "If ya'll are man enough?"

Shizuka rolled his eyes. "Definitely more man than you are, Trevor." Haruka could only facepalm, resigning to his brother's unparalleled cheekiness.

"Well, I'm a woman." Meifeng put her hands on her hips, and rocked back and forth.

"More man than me?" Trevor mocked shock, putting on an 'O' mouth. "You're going to be eating those words after I show you how [i]man[/i] I am." He snickered.

Shizuka laughed in response. "I'll be looking forward to that!"

"Well, lemme put it like this." Meifeng shrugged, her hand hovering over her chin. "This is a dangerous trip that could get us all in trouble, or brutally murdered. Not even the [i]squatters[/i] have the balls to go in there." She then shrugged again. "Without Anna, I don't have much else to do. So sure."

Before Haruka could make a protest, the younger twin slapped a hand over his brother's mouth. "And you can count us in too. Now this is [i]real[/i] sightseeing around Verthaven."

"Yeah, the parts no one actually wants you to see or go to," Meifeng said, shrugging.

"But before we go, I need to run back to my house and grab my archery equipment." Trevor nodded his head. "Show off that little talent I told ya'll about." He flashed them a confident smile.

"Well, can't help you with that, I was dropped off."

"Crap." Trevor thought about it for a few moment, then it came to him. He ran out the door of the club, shouting, "Cindy!"

"Huh?" Meifeng followed him right out.

The twins fell in behind Meifeng out of the clubhouse, exchanging looks of bemusement.

[hr][i][h1][color=springgreen]Cindy Keagan[/color], & [color=dodgerblue]Lihua Vuhong[/color].[/h1][/i]
[hr]

Cindy cleared her throat when she approached Lihua Vuhong. The woman was certainly intimidating - but Cindy felt that she had an idea of how to deal with her. She stood before her, and she had her arms crossed. "Yeah, Ms. Vuhong?"

"First," Lihua started off, before she closed her eyes. "I have to apologize for the lack of communication. Things...haven't been going so well on my part, and I've been forced to stay home for the past week."

Oh, okay. Cindy understood that fully. She refrained from asking, because she's smart enough to know when she's not going to get a straight answer. "'Kay. That's all?"

"No, no, no..." Lihua groaned. "I'm going to be gone for a little while, so can I ask you to do a favor for me?"

"Yeah, what is it?"

"Can you keep an eye on Meifeng for me? That girl has been getting into all sorts of trouble... She's apparently friends with this disrespectful little slut, and I'm curious about what sort of things she might be getting into."

Cindy put her hand behind her head, and scratched it. she wasn't sure if she wanted to act as a snitch. Betraying her best friend's trust. The one who hooked her up with this job in the first place. "Well---"

"I'll pay."

"Okay." 

"Look," Lihua put both of her hands up vertically. "All you have to do is text me when she's up to something, and I'll handle it."

"Well...wouldn't it be obvious?" Cindy questioned.

"I'll handle it, I promise." By that, Lihua meant that it was up to Cindy to solve her own damn problems. 

"Alright." Cindy was going to place her trust in Ms. Vuhong. She nodded her head.

"Good. Now, you kids stay safe." Lihua said as she opened the door and slid inside halfway. "...There's [i]monsters[/i] out there." The kind of monsters Lihua cannot possibly let live. She got into the car, and drove off a few moments later.

"...Yeah, monsters."

[hr][hider=God Eater 2: Rage Burst OST - Manage It!][youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVvsIbpyWPc[/youtube][/hider][hr]
Right when Lihua left Trevor ran in, he ran up to Cindy, and nearly came to a skidding stop. He said, "Hey Cindy, can you take me back to my house for a second?"

Raising an eyebrow, Cindy shifted her weight to one hip as she crossed her arms. "Wait, why?"

"Alright, well..." Trevor, for a moment, stumbled on how to explain it, before he just spontaneously said, "We're going to the Ghost Town!"

Cindy facepalmed and shook her head. "...And get our asses beat by the cops when they realize we're there?"

"No, no, it'll go better this time." Trevor put his hand up. "I got Meifeng and the others on board."

Well, if the others were on board, then maybe Cindy would consider it. "Ugh, get on, Obott. You owe me for this one." She got on her motorcycle, and put her white helmet on. "I'll come along, just get on." 

"Neat." Trevor walked up, and got on the back of the scooter. In a few seconds, they were off.

"...Good grief." Meifeng said, closing her eyes, and shaking her head. "They left us behind." She turned around, and clapped her hands. "But, that shouldn't stop us! We should go [i]ahead[/i] of them." Going along with them ahead wasn't [i]that[/i] bad of an idea. She didn't think too highly of them in the physical department. She bet that she could kick their teeth in before she even had to fall back on her power.

As for the twins...

Haruka stiffened at the thought of being left alone to deal with a brawny girl and a saucy brother for company. Shizuka, on the other hand, was completely unfazed - he simply stretched out an arm before him and stared at the Chinese. "Lead the way then, Mei."