[MillietheWarrior]

I know, and I’m really sorr- Wait. What?”

Kisuke blinked, not sure he’d heard her right. She…didn’t mind? What did that mean? “Eh, uh…” He scratched his nose, looking, for once, as though he was at a loss for words. “You mean you…don’t mind that? The kissing?” He felt a blush creeping up his own cheeks in a red that could rival Haru’s.

“Well…” She tapped the rim of her tea cup, before she pried her eyes away from the table and forced herself to meet his gaze as steadily as she could. “It-it was nice. I did kind of…enjoy it. And well…I don’t know. No one’s ever kissed me like that; not that I have a lot of experience, of course, but…uh…I don’t think I’d be opposed to…trying it again.”

[MillietheWarrior]

Kisuke felt his mind reeling, trying to come to terms with what Haru was telling him. “Again? What do you mean by, ‘again’?” he asked, slipping into a wry smile even though his cheeks still felt quite warm.

Haru rolled her eyes, finally managing to overcome her embarrassment in favor of snorting at him. “Oh, shut up, Kisuke, you know what I meant,” she groused, waving her hand vaguely. “I’m not going to explain it to you aga-” Haru’s voice was cut off with a squeak as Kisuke appeared beside her. She blinked, her eyes wide as he leaned in close. How-how did he move so fast? she thought belatedly, as one hand wound around the back of her neck and the other settled on the curve of her hip. “Kisuke, what-?”

[MillietheWarrior]

Her question was promptly silenced when he sealed his lips over hers in the barest brush of a kiss. Haru didn’t respond immediately, her mind still working furiously to catch up with the rest of her. When it did, however, she found that she was right; she really didn’t mind this at all. She leaned forward slightly, pressing her lips more firmly against his, and she felt him return the fervor, his hands tightening and sliding around her waist to pull her closer.

Haru’s hands lifted, as if of their own accord, to twine in the fabric of his dark kosode, her fingers wrinkling the material beneath them. She gasped when she felt his teeth nip lightly at her lips, and her mind reeled as his kisses moved from her lips to her chin and down her neck. “Haru,” he murmured softly against the skin of her collarbone, and Haru’s hazy mind vaguely registered the smug satisfaction she heard in that one, breathy whisper.

[MillietheWarrior]

“Sora,” she whispered back, and it wasn’t until she felt him freeze against her that she realized she’d done something wrong. Kisuke abruptly released her, backing away stiffly and staring at her with slightly wide, confused eyes. Haru felt her breath return to her in a whoosh of air, and had to suck in several lungfuls before she was able to speak properly. “Oh…Kami…Kisuke, I’m-”

Kisuke silenced her with a shake of his head, his face clouded over and his eyes carefully veiled. “No, Haru, it’s fine. Listen, I’ve got to go. I need to get back to the lab before Mayuri turns it into some weird experiment station.” He made to stand, but Haru quickly grabbed his sleeve, tugging in vain at the dark material.

[MillietheWarrior]

“Kisuke, I’m sorry. You know I didn’t mean…I-I just…”

Kisuke smiled faintly, though Haru could see the strain at the edges of his lips. “It’s okay. I’ll see you later.”

“Wait, Kisuke, just let me explain!”

“Bye, Haru!” Kisuke waved cheerfully as he exited her room, stepping past the slightly crooked sliding door and disappearing from sight, just as Hiyori had only a little while ago. Haru slumped back to her knees, hanging her head and letting her hands fall into her lap.

“Shit.”

----

[MillietheWarrior]

“Hurry it up! It’ll be dark by the time you bring those things over!”

Haru peered through the doors into the squad room, a curious look on her face as she watched Hiyori struggled with four or five basins that looked far too large and heavy for someone so small to carry. Somewhat concerned, and intending to help, Haru was about to step into the room, when a sickening crack and a loud crash nearly sent her scurrying back out.

“HEY! I was being nice and helping you, so that’s not way to talk to me! You better change your attitude!”

“What are you so angry about all of a sudden?”

[MillietheWarrior]

“Oi, Hiyori,” Haru called, hoping to defuse the suddenly overly-tense situation. She grabbed a lab coat that was hanging by the door, eyeing it distastefully and wondering if she’d be required to wear it in the squad room-gone lab from now on. “What’s going on?”

“What’s going on-” Hiyori shouted, suddenly rounding on Haru with a fierce scowl. “-is that this idiot thinks he’s so much better than me! He’s always ordering me around and talking down to me! I’m a lieutenant, for Kami’s sake! I deserve some respect!”

[MillietheWarrior]

“Ranks are for commoners,” Mayuri said patiently, his scratchy voice grating on Haru’s nerves; she could see why this man got under Hiyori’s skin on such a constant basis. “You’re misreading the situation completely. Here at the Department of Research and Development, I am the deputy head. You’re the laboratory chief. Which means I outrank you.”

“Uh, wait-” Haru began, but she was immediately drowned out and cut off when Hiyori suddenly screamed;

“KISUKE!”

“What is it this time? I was trying to get some sleep. I thought I asked you to be quiet, didn’t I?”

[MillietheWarrior]

Haru nearly dropped her lab coat in surprise; this was where Kisuke had gotten to, then? She thought the whole ‘I’m going to check on Mayuri’ thing was just a lie to get away from her faster. Apparently though, he actually had needed to check on Mayuri. And it seemed it was with good reason; he and Hiyori looked like they might kill one another if left alone for too long. Haru was surprised that both the lieutenant and captain had headed straight here after their respective ‘talks’ with her. Although, what Kisuke and Haru had done didn’t really constitute talking.

It hadn’t even been more than three hours since both lieutenant and captain had left, but it seemed as though they’d been busy in that short time span. Haru narrowed her eyes in Kisuke’s direction, noting that he was studiously focusing his gaze on anything and everyone but her, and promptly caught sight of what looked suspiciously like a human body slung over his shoulders.

[MillietheWarrior]

“Do something about this guy! You obviously haven’t trained him well!” Hiyori suddenly shouted, and Haru gave a small start, surprised by the sudden increase in room volume.

“Ow, Hiyori. You’re standing right next to me,” she grumped, rubbing her ear. “Captain, what’s that on your back?”

Kisuke barely glanced in Haru’s direction, but replied nonetheless. “Oh, you mean this thing? It’s my prototype for a new Gigai. Captain Hirako told me something interesting this morning, about an incident in the Rukon district where he believes people vanished without being able to retain their human form. Supposing that what he says is true, I thought that if we were to place a soul on the verge of disintegration into a human mold, the soul would not vanish. I’m trying to see if I can apply Gigai technology into making that mold into a reality.”

“You’re what?” Hiyori deadpanned from beside Haru.

[MillietheWarrior]

Kisuke was saved from answering by a knock at the door, which was promptly followed by a voice saying that there was a request from the captain of squad nine.

Haru exchanged a glance with Hiyori, and for once, the smaller girl didn’t scowl or glower at her, and instead, shared her curiosity as Kisuke moved past them to open the door and allow the man in to explain.

Haru thought Kisuke seemed a little wary of the situation, but the squad nine member relayed Captain Muguruma’s message and request for laboratory personnel without breaking stride.

“Interesting. I understand. I’ll select personnel immediately and send them tonight. In the meantime, I would like you to go back and help your captain.” Kisuke nodded faintly as the man bowed his head, immediately agreeing with the order without complaint. He vanished almost instantly after a hasty ‘thank you,’ leaving Haru and Hiyori blinking down at thin air.

[MillietheWarrior]

“Now then!” Kisuke said brightly, turning to address the lab. “Time to select personnel.” He fixed Hiyori with a smile. “Go on then. Go.”

“Hold on a second! Why the hell do I have to go there?! Can’t you send someone lower in rank than me?” For once, Haru was surprised that Hiyori didn’t point her out, and instead, chose to gesture imperiously to a small, rather gloomy looking boy behind her. Haru hid a smile when the boy visibly glowered (or was that just his face?) and groused;

“All you do is complain. You find everything disagreeable. Why don’t you just quit being a lieutenant already?”

[MillietheWarrior]

“Why don’t I just quit letting you live, Akon, you disrespectful little worm!” Hiyori shouted back, punctuating her words with a flurry of kicks that, much to Haru’s surprise, missed. That Akon kid certainly was fast. He reappeared next to the laboratory tables, speaking quietly to Mayuri, who thanked him for his troubles.

“Ugh, I hate all of you!” Hiyori snarled, grinding her fingers into her hair in frustration.

“Sorry, Hiyori,” Kisuke said with a smile. “But you’re the only person I can confidently trust with a task as important as this one.” Haru drew in a sharp breath, her eyes snapping to the floor at his words; was Hiyori really the only one he could trust in such a way? “Take anything you think you’re going to need, even if it’s from the captain’s office. Remember, get a sample form the sight of the souls that vanished; it’ll prove to be very valuable. I’m counting on you…Hiyori. Don’t let me down.”

[MillietheWarrior]

Hiyori slumped, and Haru detected a hint of red on her cheeks. “Ah, damn it.” She stormed towards the door, but suddenly whirled on Kisuke and pointed at him imperiously. “All right, but I’m going to need a pretty big expense budget!”

Kisuke merely smiled, inclining his head as Hiyori marched out the door and slammed it behind her. “Well, all things considered, I think I got off pretty cheaply.”

[MillietheWarrior]

Haru folded the lab coat in her hands, suddenly thinking better of putting it on. “Go back to bed, Kisuke,” she muttered, hanging the coat back on the hook by the door. “You look like hell.” Kisuke finally focused his attention on Haru, meeting her stare with a level gaze of his own.

“Yeah, I should do that. We can talk later, right?”

Haru was surprised  by his question; she figured he wouldn’t want to talk about what had happened, considering how quickly he’d high-tailed it out of her room. She nodded briefly, shooting him a small, reassuring smile, before she quickly turned away. “Yeah. But get some sleep first. You’re no use to us if you’re dead on your feet.”

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