Chapter Text
Jane is leaning back in her office chair, tapping aimlessly at her desk and spinning a pair of scissors with her tail. Her PC hums in the background. She just finished her last report on the undercover mission she completed a couple of days ago, and now she’s waiting for the printer to finish printing it. Suddenly, a groan echoes across the room; it’s her stomach. Jane pauses in her fidgeting, sits up straight, and puts the scissors down, moving her tail to open a side drawer in her desk. Just as she reaches for an energy bar, an officer walks into the room. She closes the drawer.
It’s Zhu Yuan.
She opens the drawer again, making Zhu Yuan grimace. She’s holding a small stack of papers in her left hand, and she closes the door behind her with her right.
“I was passing by the printer, and I saw that your report was done, so I’m just delivering it to you.” She holds the stack out to Jane.
“Thanks, Captain.” She takes the report and plops it on her desk. Then, she reaches for an energy bar again. Zhu Yuan clears her throat, so Jane pauses to look at her.
“You’re throwing away your candy wrappers and instant noodle cups regularly and discreetly, right? I’ve been covering for you, but the whole reason we have the rule about no food in the building is because of the rat infestation last year. We don’t want any to start living here again; the chief will start to get suspicious.”
“I feel like I am practically living here. These reports feel longer than the missions themselves.” Jane sighs, leaning back in her chair again. “Also, that’s rich coming from the one growing a whole ass tomato plant in her office.” Zhu Yuan opens her mouth to protest, but Jane’s stomach lets out another obnoxious groan. Zhu Yuan’s face lights up for a split second, meaning she just remembered the real reason she decided to invade Jane’s office on a random Friday evening.
“Oh, that reminds me,” She starts. “I could hear your stomach from the hallway, so I was wondering if you wanted to get hotpot with Miyabi and me?” She finally asks.
“And sit in front of you two flirting like awkward teenagers for an hour? Hard pass.” Jane examines her nails, her tail aimlessly swaying behind her.
“You might be able to convince one of her coworkers to come along. Also, the whole dinner’s on me.” Zhu Yuan counters. Jane sits up straight.
“Well, you should’ve started with that.” She smirks and then pauses to ask, “All of it?” Zhu Yuan nods. “Did you lose a bet?”
Zhu Yuan doesn’t respond to that, avoiding eye contact, which makes Jane laugh.
“Well, it’s better than anything I would’ve dug out of my fridge tonight, so I’m in.” Jane concludes, and Zhu Yuan just sighs, accepting her fate.
“Try not to put me in the red.”
“No promises...” Jane teases, getting a blank stare back from Zhu Yuan. “Hey, you offered.” Zhu Yuan shakes her head.
“I’m starting to regret it.” She responds.
“No take-backs.” Jane winks at her, and Zhu Yuan fails in an attempt not to smile.
“The reservation is in about an hour. It’ll take about 15 minutes to get to Section 6’s office and another fifteen to get back to the hotpot place, so let’s try to leave here in 10 minutes.” Jane stretches and gets up out of her chair and fiddles with some stuff on her desk.
“I’ll pack up my things and meet you in the parking lot, then?” She asks.
“Sure, see you in 10.” Zhu Yuan exits her office.
…
The duo stands before the imposing building that is H.A.N.D.’s headquarters. Zhu Yuan locks her car and begins to walk up to the front gates, seemingly unfazed by Jane’s slightly puzzled expression.
“Zhu Yuan, you know I love sneaking around, but isn’t this place highly classified?” She catches up to the officer. “I doubt it’s a good idea to waltz right in.” Zhu Yuan just smiles and waves her off, not slowing her pace towards the entrance.
“Don’t worry, Miyabi gave me clearance to the building when she was first promoted.” She reassures Jane, who smirks.
“Ok,” She pauses for dramatic effect, her tail swaying aimlessly behind her. “So you can just walk right in, but I still have to sneak inside, right?”
“I’m sure they’ll let you in if I say you’re with me.” Jane sighs amusedly.
“And this is why people like me still have jobs…” She mirthfully shakes her head. “Everybody’s way too lax with their security these days- And didn’t the HIA get hacked that one time?” She muses, surveying windows and vents around the exterior of the building. Zhu Yuan then shakes her head too.
“You still want to sneak in anyway, don’t you.” She says, rather than asks, looking at Jane scrutinizingly. Jane laughs at her scrunched face.
“I mean, yeah, it’d be pretty fun.”
“Well, I’m pretty hungry, so let’s just go in through the front door. I think Yanagi would kill me if I let you sneak in, anyway.” She says as a second thought, looking both ways before starting to cross the street. Jane’s ears twitch at the name she kind of recognizes.
“Yanagi…” She thinks for a second. “Oh, she’s the pretty one with the pink hair, right? I think we briefly met during the Bringer case.” Jane recalls, also glancing left and right before she follows the captain across the street.
“Yes, I think you did.” Zhu Yuan nods, choosing not to acknowledge the adjective Jane remembers her by. “She usually works pretty late, so you might see her again.” Jane hums in acknowledgement.
“You think I could ask her to dinner?”
“Not in the way you’re suggesting, but she might tag along today.”
“I’m joking.” Jane flippantly waves her hand in front of her face. “We both know that dating isn’t my thing.” She adds.
“You’re terrible.”
“Or so I’ve been told.” Jane chuckles. “And plus, she seemed like the ‘all work, no fun’ type when I saw her. I doubt she’d enjoy my pestering.”
“Not like that’ll stop you.” Zhu Yuan mumbles, even though Jane can still easily hear her. Her pierced ear twitches in response, and she just shrugs. Zhu Yuan continues. “And although Yanagi fits that description on the surface, I think you’ll find that there’s a lot more to her than meets the eye.” Zhu Yuan responds
“Oooh, how mysterious.” Jane waves her fingers in amusement.
“And seriously, dating someone isn’t as bad as you make it out to be.” Zhu Yuan decides to shift the conversation topic.
“You and Miyabi still steal awkward glances at each other like prepubescent teenagers.” Zhu Yuan cringes and stutters her steps.
“Ok, well, maybe we’re not the best example…” She keeps her head facing forward to hide her blushing face from Jane’s knowing stare. “But… There are many good examples out there.”
“It’s not that I think dating is the problem…” Jane looks at the ground, kicking a loose pebble of asphalt across the road, her tail now swaying lower. “It’s me. It’s my lifestyle. Nobody’s out here looking for a woman that can’t tell them what she does for work even if she wants to. A woman who’s rarely home during the day and won’t even tell them where she’s going or even her real name. A snack hoarder who lets her apartment stay a mess because it works as an ignorant alibi. An enigma who doesn’t even know what parts of her are the real ones…” She sighs. “I’ve never even been in love, and honestly, I doubt I’d even know if I was. It’s just- I’m just not worth the hassle.”
“I’ve found that love’s not always about what you look for, but what you find.” She stops to look back at Jane. “You’re worth the hassle, Jane, whether you realize it or not. And trust me, when you’re in love, you’ll know.” Jane just scoffs.
“Well, wise guy, if you’re so hungry, maybe it would be faster if we snuck in.” She effortlessly changes the subject. Zhu Yuan stares at her blankly, making Jane huff. “Fine, fine… -But think about it.” She nods her head towards Zhu Yuan.
“No.” Zhu Yuan deadpans.
“Worth a shot.” She shrugs.
…
After getting past the few security guards that were almost too eager to let Zhu Yuan in the building, the officers walk through the hallway, reaching the elevator. Jane makes a comment about Zhu Yuan being in the building’s facial recognition database, and they enter the elevator. Jane may have been tempted to punch all of the buttons on the keypad with her tail, but her stomach groaned in protest, and she stopped wanting to waste time.
The two exit the elevator and walk through another hallway, reaching the doorway to Section 6’s office. Just before they can enter, a woman with long pink hair steps out to stop them, and she’s even prettier than Jane remembers.
Standing at seemingly only a few centimeters taller than Jane, Yanagi exudes capability and wisdom. Wearing her own spin of the H.S.O. uniform, her button up is tucked into a corset that Jane thinks must be uncomfortable to wear every day. In a valiant effort, Jane avoids staring at the woman’s massive… uh, personalities, and she moves her gaze upwards. Yanagi’s eyes seem gentle and focused behind her glasses that Jane notes she must be procrastinating getting adjusted because they’re gradually slipping down her nose. For someone who, otherwise, appears intentionally very put-together, Jane finds the detail charming.
Yanagi steps towards them with a present mindfulness of her center of balance, meaning she has at least some form of martial experience outside of her current job. Upon noticing Jane, her posture subtly shifts to be more uptight. Jane just smiles lazily, hooking her thumbs on the metal loops of her jacket and subtly continuing to profile the beauty before her. Then, Yanagi starts to talk.
“Ah, good evening, officer Zhu Yuan. The chief is currently asleep at her desk, so I’m keeping the conversation here so as to not wake her up. I am not entirely confident that anything could wake her up at this rate, but I am doing this more out of basic respect.” She clarifies.
“You can drop the formalities, Yanagi. I’m off the clock. We’re just swinging by to pick up Miyabi for dinner. Oh,” She perks up, remembering to introduce the two. “You may have seen Jane during the Bringer case, but I don’t think you two have been formally introduced.” She gestures at Jane. Yanagi nods at Zhu Yuan, shifting herself to properly face the rat thiren.
.
“I believe we briefly met at Port Elpis. I am Tsukishiro Yanagi.” She holds out her hand.
“I believe we did. I’m Jane, and the pleasure is all mine.” Jane takes her hand, shaking it, and then leans over, almost raising the hand to meet her lips. Yanagi freezes in place, her posture becoming impossibly more rigid, and Jane slithers her hand away, lightly chuckling at Yanagi’s reaction. Zhu Yuan shakes her head at Jane’s antics as Yanagi pushes her glasses back up, regaining her composure.
“Jane here is a consultant in criminal behavior, and she often goes undercover to help us catch criminal organizations. Without her help and expertise, we would’ve never been able to catch Bringer in time.” Jane pauses at Zhu Yuan’s words, surprised that she was comfortable disclosing Jane’s actual job description to Yanagi, and not just one of her coverups.
Zhu Yuan must really trust her, then. She figures.
“I see, then I am deeply thankful for your contribution to the case.” Yanagi comments, attempting to not appear affected by Jane’s recent teasing and almost succeeding.
“No problem. I’m Just doing my job.” Jane brushes it off as Yanagi moves out of the doorway to let them into the office. Zhu Yuan walks in first, and Jane follows behind her, stopping after a few steps to turn and face Yanagi again. “Y’know, the truth of my job is usually top secret…” She moves the tip of her tail to softly rest against Yanagi’s lips, making eye contact and barely noticeably making Yanagi shiver. “I can trust you to keep your lips sealed for me, right, Ms. Tsukishiro?” Her tail brushes Yanagi’s lips as it retracts. Yanagi quickly recovers, virtually not appearing affected but adjusting her glasses again to subtly shield her face before speaking.
“O-of course.” She quickly recovers, nodding awkwardly and straightening her posture. “Your secret is safe with me.” Jane chuckles.
Cute.
“Stop messing with her, Jane.” Zhu Yuan calls at her from across the room. Jane shrugs.
“Sorry, couldn’t help myself.” She regards Zhu Yuan before looking back to face Yanagi. “Come on, let’s go wake up sleeping beauty.” She nods her head towards the big desk at the end of the room and starts walking towards it. Yanagi follows right behind her. Letting her curiosity get the better of her, she asks.
“Where are you all going for dinner?” Jane stops to turn around again and answer her question.
“Zhu Yuan has a reservation at the hotpot place in Lumina square. It’s her treat, and I am never one to say no to free food.” She answers honestly.
“I hear you there.” Yanagi agrees.
“Wanna come with us, then?” Jane offers.
“Oh, no.” Yanagi puts her hands up in front of her chest as if to physically block the suggestion. Jane definitely glances at her hands and nothing else. “I wouldn’t want to intrude.”
“I would prefer you did intrude, actually.” Jane insists. “I can’t be a third wheel around those two…” She groans, shivering. “You should know how unbearable that is, and no amount of free food could change that.”
“But I could?” Yanagi reads between the lines.
“Exactly.” Jane sends her lax finger guns. “Now you get me, darling.” Yanagi stiffens at the pet name, but she distracts herself by seriously considering Jane’s offer. She sighs.
“Okay, I’ll come along.” Yanagi accepts after a moment. “And just- call me Yanagi.” She adds, stiffly.
“You have my thanks, Miss Yanagi. I think tonight has just become a lot more bearable with your company.” Jane smiles at her.
“Just-”
“Yanagi,’ I know. I’m just teasing you.” Jane giggles, delicately covering her mouth with the ends of her hands as she mirthfully squints at Yanagi. Noticing her still awkwardly squared shoulders, Jane lightly pokes Yanagi’s side with her tail. Yanagi blinks at her, but her shoulders loosen noticeably. Jane’s not even sure if the woman realizes it. “Loosen up a bit,” she laughs, her hands no longer covering her mouth. “You’re making me nervous.” She hooks her thumbs on the buckles on her jacket as she turns around and finishes her trek to the other side of the office with Yanagi right behind her.
Miyabi is face down on her desk, motionless, save for the rising and falling of her back. She’s laid herself out so far up the surface that her bangs are hanging down the edge of the desk and her ears are sticking out. Jane almost laughs at the sight.
“Holy shit, did you drug her? The poor girl’s out like a light.” Yanagi sighs and fills her in.
“Her ‘training’ today was to see if she could eat an entire jar of melon flavored gummies in four minutes.” Yanagi holds her head in her hand as she retells the story, massaging her temples sparsely. Something clicks in Jane’s head, and she turns to face Zhu Yuan.
“Wait, is that-”
“Yes, I bet that she couldn’t eat them all.” Zhu Yuan provides. “And… Well, apparently she could. And she did… with a minute and 35 seconds to spare.”
“I would have warned that betting on that was a bad idea because we both know how competitive she gets… But, to be fair, there were like 120 gummies in that jar.” Jane doesn’t know what to do with the mental image of Miyabi gorging herself on gummies out of sheer competitive spirit, so she tries to push it to the back of her mind. Even Yanagi can’t help but smile at the ridiculousness of the memory. She’s shaking her head in disappointment, but the honest and gentle grin on her face is plain to see. Jane decides she likes the way it looks on her.
Oh, she’s really cute
“And I figure it was too late when you realized-”
“-That they were melatonin gummies, yes.” Yanagi finishes for her. Jane chuckles. “She had been finished for a good few moments before I looked at the label again while throwing away the empty jar. By then, she was already knocked out.”
“The most eventful facetime call I’ve had in a while, I must say.” Zhu Yuan comments.
“Melon flavored melatonin gummies… That’s new.” Jane muses.
“Where did you even get those gummies from, again?” Zhu Yuan asks.
“Harumasa gave the jar away saying it was added as a free bonus to his prescription order… Ohhh my god.” She groans in realization.
“Well, we should’ve seen that coming.” Zhu Yuan admits.
“So you did drug her.” Jane realizes, trying not to laugh again.
“Yeah, I guess we did.” Yanagi smiles into a light chuckle, her eyes closing for a second before she regains her composure. “Anyway, what’s done is done. Now we have to figure out how to wake her up.”
“I say Zhu Yuan should kiss her to break the spell.” At that remark, Zhu Yuan’s face goes red like a tomato.
“Uh, I-I don’t think I should do that without her consent.” She blurts out. “Also, this would be a really awkward first kiss.” She flusteredly admits, her hands coming up to cover her face. Jane pauses mentally momentarily, takes a deep breath, and snaps her head to look at Zhu Yuan incredulously.
“You’ve been dating for six months, and you haven’t kissed yet?”
“I believe both have taken the approach of ‘respectfully waiting for the other to do it first’. Sadly, neither of them are impulsive enough to do anything.” Yanagi snarkily remarks, making Jane grin in surprised amusement.
Oh, I like this woman.
“You’re the last person I want to hear anything about not being impulsive from. You record and organize your free time on a spreadsheet.” Zhu Yuan grumbles from behind her hands.
“You’d be surprised by how impulsive I can be.” Yanagi retorts, choosing not to elaborate.
“Ok, so no kiss.” Jane brings the subject back, thinks for a moment, then slouches comically. “I’m out of ideas.”
“So, the kiss was your only plan?” Yanagi asks.
“Pretty much.” Jane shrugs. Then, she gets an idea. “Oh, I know! We could waterboar-”
“No.” The two present responsible adults say simultaneously, shutting down the idea immediately. Jane just chuckles.
“I’m kidding…” She drags out the end of the word. “There’s no way we could clean up all of that water and make it in time to our reservation.”
“I feel like your values are in the wrong places.” Yanagi notes.
“I get that a lot.” Jane turns to the Captain. “Zhu Yuan, try tapping one of her ears.”
“That’s it?” She responds with a puzzled look.
“Just try it.” Jane insists. Shrugging, Zhu Yuan reaches out her hand.
“Well, here goes…”
The second Zhu Yuan’s finger brushes the tip of Miyabi’s ear, the fox thiren’s head shoots up like a rocket, her bangs landing back on her face crookedly from the impact. Zhu Yuan flinches in surprise, Yanagi’s eyebrows raise, and Jane isn’t phased in the slightest. Miyabi braces herself with her forearm on the desk, clutching Zhu Yuan’s wrist with her free hand. Her eyes are half lidded as she scans the room and tries to get her bearings. When she recognizes Zhu Yuan and her hand, she freezes, blinks a couple of times, and relinquishes her grip.
“You’re early.”
“Miyabi, It’s 6:40.” Zhu Yuan clarifies. “You’ve been asleep for over 5 hours.”
“Huh.” Miyabi looks at the wall as if expecting to see a window there to confirm that it is in fact the evening, does not see a window, is not surprised, and pushes herself off of the desk to sit back in her chair. Why she doesn’t just look at the clock, Jane has no idea. “It seems this form of training was not very effective. Although, it was delicious.” She notes, appearing to be putting too much thought into the act of inhaling a jar of gummies. “After further reflection, I have concluded that those gummies may have possessed mysterious hypnotic abilities.”
“Pretty sure they were just laced.” Jane chuckles. Yanagi clears her throat.
“After further investigation (actually reading the label on the jar), I discovered that the gummies were actually sleep medication.” She clarifies.
“So, laced.” Jane paraphrases. Yanagi glances back at her with a look of disapproval, but Jane can see the amusement behind her eyes. When Jane smirks at her as their eyes meet, Yanagi adjusts her glasses and not very patiently turns her head to face Miyabi again. Jane’s smile doesn’t fade for quite a while.
“Oh, I see.” Miyabi puts her hand on her chin to think. “So, theoretically, the problem with this form of training was not the act itself, but the contents of the consumed elements. I would suggest attempting this again but with different-”
“Let’s avoid eating large amounts of gummies for a while.” Yanagi cuts in. Jane chuckles at the interaction, and Zhu Yuan sighs fondly. Then, Miyabi recalls something important.
“If I remember correctly, I did finish the jar of gummies within the allotted time limit. So-” Miyabi’s stomach growls, “we’re getting hotpot, right?” Zhu Yuan just sighs fondly.
“Yes, our reservation is in 20 minutes.” she confirms. “The drive there will probably take about fifteen minutes, so we should go ahead and hit the road.” She turns around to find an amused Jane and a secretly equally amused Yanagi. “Oh,” she perks up. “Jane’s coming, too. I could tell that she was hungry, so I thought we could bring her along.”
“Thanks for having me by the way, but I can’t handle sitting across from you two alone, so I’m bringing Yanagi too.” She smiles, bumping Yanagi’s shoulder.
“-If that’s fine with you, of course.” Yanagi hastily adds after Jane’s declaration. “I didn’t really have dinner plans tonight, and honestly, hotpot sounds really good right now.”
“Don’t worry,” Zhu Yuan reassures, “I already told her she could bring someone with us.” Yanagi sighs in relief, her shoulders relaxing.
“I’m hungry.” Miyabi deadpans, standing by the doorway. Wait- when did she get there? Jane shrugs, glancing at the other two.
“You two ready?” They nod. That’s all Miyabi needs, and she heads towards the elevator, leaving the other three behind.
“She acts like she has the car keys.” Yanagi shakes her head fondly.
“She does.” Zhu Yuan answers plainly. The other two whip their heads around.
“You’ve given her the keys to your car before you’ve kissed her?” Jane asks incredulously.
“Can she even drive?” Yanagi asks the important question.
“Kind of.” Zhu Yuan shrugs.
“Kind of?” The other two respond simultaneously.
“This is the most relaxed I’ve seen you about anything besides cooking and gardening, and it’s about the fact that your girlfriend has the keys to your car but can’t drive?” Jane looks concernedly at Zhu Yuan (for once).
“Well, no, she has a permit.” Zhu Yuan clarifies, as if that’s any better.
“She’s in her mid-twenties and still has a learner’s permit.” Yanagi sighs. “I somehow don’t find this fact surprising, but I still wonder how this happens. Don’t they expire?”
“They do, every year.” Zhu Yuan confirms. “She knows the written test by heart now, but the issue is the driving itself that she struggles with when trying to earn a license. This year, she almost passed the driving test with flying colors, but the one overseeing the test wrote…” Zhu Yuan pulls out her phone. “Ah, here it is. He wrote that: ‘She would start daydreaming at the wheel while simultaneously flooring the gas and cutting lanes on the highway like a getaway driver.” She shakes her head with an alarming lack of concern. “I’m still surprised they let her keep the permit after every time she fails.”
“That’s so on brand for her that it’s actually hilarious.” Jane struggles to hold in her laughter. “Also, Yanagi, shouldn’t you know whether or not your boss can drive?”
“Theoretically, yes, but usually her dad drops her off, or she just sprints here. It’s true that I’ve never seen a car in the lot that belonged to her.”
“I forgot that she was superhuman for a second.” Jane acknowledges. “Of course she doesn’t need to drive. That’d be too normal of her. She just sprints everywhere.” That gets an amused smile out of Yanagi. “Also, shouldn’t we go, I don’t know, stop her from speeding down the highway without us?”
“Oh, I wouldn’t worry about that.” Zhu Yuan leisurely starts walking out of the office. “She usually just unlocks the car, turns on the radio, and sits in the passenger seat until I catch up.”
“That’s actually cute, in a weird way.” Jane chuckles as the three of them make their way to the elevator. “What kind of music does Miyabi even listen to?” She muses.
“Last time I checked, she was really into ‘Bury the Light’ by Casey Edwards and other songs like that, but her tastes might’ve changed in the last few weeks.” Zhu Yuan answers pretty easily.
“Huh.” Jane pauses. “I would’ve never expected that, but now that I think about it, the song kind of fits her.”
“The chief is full of surprises.” Yanagi adds, looking forward at nothing in particular. Jane takes the moment to gaze at her breathtaking side profile.
I’m sure she’s not the only one.
If Yanagi can tell that she’s staring, she doesn’t make it known.
…
“I always forget how terrible the parking is around here.” Yanagi says as she steps out of the car and stretches. Jane follows suit, getting out from the other side of the backseat and stretching too. Yanagi is almost taken aback by all of the popping sounds reverberating from Jane’s joints and back, but no one else seems surprised.
“Oh, don’t mind that.” Zhu Yuan exits her car after Miyabi, wordlessly gesturing for the girl to put Tailless back in the car, and not bring it (‘him’) inside. Miyabi looks back at her as if confused, but leaves the sword in the backseat anyway. Zhu Yuan presses the lock button on her car key after Miyabi closes the door and waits to hear the car beep. “Jane knows the right angle to crack or pop any joint on the human body.”
“That’s actually quite impressive.” Yanagi comments.
“I had to study anatomy for a mission once, so I learned all about joints, pressure points, and other systems. It was all very fascinating.” Jane recalls. Yanagi hums.
“It sounds fascinating.”
“Although I’d love to explain it all in further detail, Miyabi looks like she’s about to pounce into the restaurant, so I’ll have to show you some other time.” Jane observes as Zhu Yuan hooks arms with Miyabi to slow her down as they make their way towards the building. It’s almost alarming to see the ever-stoic chief naturally melt into the touch like she’s done it a million times, leaning into Zhu Yuan’s side. And these two haven’t kissed? Oh, Jane is going to lose her shit. But, before she does, she plans to stuff her face with free food.
After walking past the alarmingly long line of people waiting to be seated, the four walk through the door and check in for their reservation. A waiter leads them through a curtain, to the far back of the restaurant where fancier booths reside. It’s often used by celebrities because of the extra privacy the space provides. He leads them to a corner booth with a single seat that curves around to make a semicircle. Despite its age, the red of the leather seat still looks pristine. The waiter leaves their menus and order sheet on the table. Then, he disappears behind the curtain.
“Did you have to pay extra for the special table?” Jane asks, genuinely curious.
“No, my dad just knows the owner.” Zhu Yuan explains.
“That’s convenient.” Yanagi notes.
“Hey, I’m not complaining.” Jane responds, peering at the menu as the group starts to sit down.
Zhu Yuan takes a seat at one end of the semicircle, Miyabi sliding in beside her. To avoid having to sit directly next to the couple, Jane lets Yanagi slide into the booth next. Jane sits next to her and passes the menus out to the group as her tail naturally curls around her own thigh. They all thank her, Yanagi being positively surprised by the polite gesture.
With everyone settled in, the group begins to put together their order. Of course, Zhu Yuan sets some ground rules to prevent her impending bankruptcy.
“Look, this meal is already gonna do a number on my credit card.” She starts. “So please just spare me and don’t order any alcohol.”
“Fair enough.” Jane shrugs, hearing Yanagi sigh disappointedly at the same time. “Are you a heavy drinker?” She looks over at Yanagi as the other two at the table start their own conversation over the menu.
“Not particularly,” Yanagi turns her head to face Jane, “but I feel like it’d be easier to handle you with a little alcohol in my system.” She admits. Jane smirks, leaning in a little closer.
“Do I make you nervous?” She asks, meeting Yanagi’s gaze.
“No, just kind of uncomfortable.” Yanagi passive aggressively responds. She’s not really lying, nor is she really telling the truth, but no one needs to know that.
“Ah, sorry.” Jane backs off, scooting over to give her more space. Yanagi blinks a couple of times in surprise at Jane’s respectful response, but she doesn’t say anything. Jane, now looking back at the menu and listening to the lovebirds debate from across the table, doesn’t notice.
To be honest, Yanagi doesn’t know what she was expecting. This woman- Jane is an enigma. She waltzes into the office, lax finger guns blazing, and starts flirting with her. She starts flirting with Yanagi, boring old Tsukishiro Yanagi, the one member of Section 6 with barely even a few fans. She’s the most normal, least interesting member, and Jane comes up to her? Why? At first, Jane seems like the shameless, probing, and flirtatious type, which she is, but she’s also being respectful, kind, and overall thoughtful, all at the same time. Just now, Jane was getting all up in her space, but then she immediately backed off like it was nothing the second Yanagi said she was uncomfortable. Why does she appear all insistent only to let it go without a second thought? It doesn’t make sense. None of this makes sense, and that’s what unsettles her.
It scares her, but also, it strikes her curiosity. What could someone like Jane possibly want from someone like her? Yanagi’s not used to getting this much attention. She’s used to people brushing her off and ignoring her because she’s too serious or boring. But Jane- Jane finds her interesting, is interested in her. Maybe Yanagi’s just morbidly curious to see how long it takes before Jane gets bored of her too. She doesn’t quite know what she wants out of this or how to approach it, but (as much as she would never admit it) Yanagi’s slowly realizing that she doesn’t want it to stop. Not yet, at least.
Never, maybe. She doesn’t know. She honestly doesn’t even want to think about it.
“What do you think, Yanagi?” Zhu Yuan suddenly asks her. She flinches internally but doesn't move a muscle. Suddenly realizing that she’s been blankly staring at her menu for a while, Yanagi looks up and slowly zones back into the ongoing conversation.
“Sorry, I wasn’t paying attention. What was the question?” She pushes her glasses up.
“They’ve been debating whether or not we should order our food in combos or in individual platters.” Jane clarifies then weighs the pros and cons. “Though combos save a little money, ordering individual platters lets us be specific with what we want and could theoretically save money too. It all comes down to preference”
“I think ordering combos would be the easiest way to save.” Zhu Yuan states.
“Personally, I would rather order specific things than a combo. I don’t want to be constrained by the bounds of a pre-selected collection of food. I’d rather dictate my own meal.” Miyabi argues. After no one bats an eye at the equally nonchalant and dramatic response, Yanagi offers the easiest compromise.
“In that case, why don’t we get some of both?” She suggests.
“That’s what I said.” Jane agrees, and after no one protests, she continues. “Now that we’ve settled that debate, I think we should figure out which broth to get.” Her eyes drift to the list of broths on the menu.
“How does an equal split between the house and spicy broth sound?” Zhu Yuan offers. Everyone agrees, and the four reach a break in the conversation to look over the various menu options while Zhu Yuan checks the corresponding boxes on the order sheet. Eventually, they pass the sheet around the table to check off both their individual and group orders. Zhu Yuan keeps the sheet faced down on the table, claiming that she isn’t ready to face the reality of her ‘impending credit card debt’. Jane knows she’s just being dramatic, but she still laughs anyway.
The waiter comes back around to retrieve their order sheet and take their drink orders. The lovebirds decide to split a pot of green tea, and the other two just get water.
Their drinks arrive after the waiter comes back to set up their broth, and it only takes a few minutes before their food starts to arrive as well. The first to arrive is a large platter of vegetables. Miyabi doesn’t hesitate to start dropping mushrooms and spinach into the broth. Jane moves next, adding bok choy and cabbage to the pot.
“Y’know, for someone I mostly know for living off of cup noodles and fast food, you seem surprisingly eager to eat vegetables.” Zhu Yuan comments.
“Hey, I eat terribly out of convenience.” Jane clarifies. “When I’m not paying, all bets are off.” Zhu Yuan shakes her head fondly, and Yanagi lets out an amused huff. Miyabi, on the other hand, occupies herself by stuffing her face with vegetables.
“Of course you choose to eat well when I foot the bill.” Zhu Yuan responds. Jane lets out a laugh, her face settling into a lax smirk.
“Would you expect anything less?” She asks rhetorically. “Also, I don’t think I’m the one you should worry about.” She nods across the table to Miyabi, who is steadily eating all of the cooked food in the pot. She’s putting more in, of course, but there’s only so many vegetables left on the plat- “Hey, save some of the bok choy for the rest of us.” She calls out, half joking, when Miyabi starts going for the leafy vegetables. A fox ear twitches.
“I didn’t eat any of the bok choy.” Miyabi claims.
“I just saw you take one.” Jane retorts, pointing her chopsticks at her but still smiling playfully, not really taking the conversation very seriously.
“I haven’t the slightest idea what you are referring to.” Miyabi reaches for another piece of bok choy, bringing it to her lips and chewing it thoughtfully, her effortless poker face omnipresent. Jane just chuckles, and Yanagi sighs amusedly. Zhu Yuan shakes her head.
The rest of the dinner goes on without a hitch. The waiter arrives later with the table’s various ordered entrees and sides. While Miyabi and Zhu Yuan eat more of the seafood, Yanagi and Jane both gravitate towards the animal meat. One of the few exceptions to this pattern is when Jane reaches her chopsticks across the table to snatch a jumbo shrimp from Zhu Yuan's plate and skillfully toss it into the broth. Zhu Yuan looks at her with betrayal.
“Jane, my shrimp!” She reaches out fruitlessly for the crustacean with her chopsticks, looking right in the eyes of a Jane not even trying to suppress her smirk.
“It didn’t have your name on it.” The culprit responds simply.
“Well, yeah it came from the kitchen.”
“So technically, it wasn’t yours originally.” Yanagi cuts in, trying incredibly hard to suppress her amusement.
“Oh my God, don’t encourage her.” Zhu Yuan grumbles.
“Then be more generous, Captain.” Jane drops a couple of lamb slices into the spicy broth. “You’re hogging the seafood combo over there.”
“Well, why don’t you take some seafood from Miyabi?” Zhu Yuan asks
“Respectfully, I believe she would easily parry any of our attempts to remove anything from her plate.” Yanagi reaches across the table and snatches a slice of Zhu Yuan’s halibut. “You, on the other hand, are a much easier obstacle.”
“Hey, not the halibut!” She tries to reach for the fish before Yanagi drops it into the house broth.
“You could always order more food.” Jane offers unhelpfully.
“Why don’t you order more food?” Zhu Yuan responds stubbornly but equally jokingly, forgetting that she’s paying for it either way.
Then she remembers.
“Actually don’t, please.” She quickly changes her mind.
“Don’t worry, I won’t. I think I’ve drained your card enough.” Jane laughs. She then decides to busy herself with taking the shrimp out of the broth and putting it on her plate. Yanagi, on the other hand, makes a request.
“Could I actually order a bit more food?” Yanagi asks. “I think it’d be a good idea to bring home some leftovers.” She adds.
“Oh, of course, but don’t order too much.” Zhu Yuan kindly offers.
“Even in her absence, the little one still manages to drain our pockets.” Miyabi jokingly adds.
“Our’?” Zhu Yuan asks her girlfriend. “Since when were you paying?” Miyabi just takes a sip of her tea, pretending to not have heard anything.
Jane decides not to ask what they’re all talking about, instead choosing to further examine the decorum of the room. It’s a little game she likes to play in her head, but she doesn’t really have a name for it, and it never really goes anywhere. She’ll look around a room and try to imagine how she could traverse through it in different scenarios while staying undetected. She looks at the hanging lamps from the ceiling. She wonders how much weight they can carry. Her eyes shift to the vents. She wonders where they go, how dusty they are, if they’re wide enough to crawl through? She chooses not to imagine climbing the walls because it would risk damaging the art on them or bringing attention. Looking closer to the floor now, she takes note of the various objects and furniture that decorate it. Various tall plants of differing densities in foliage, the curtain separating them from the main dining hall, and the few other booths in the room.
She moves her eyes around the room again, and they land on, wait- Yanagi? She laughs at herself internally. She guesses she can’t help what her eyes are naturally drawn to, but they usually aren’t drawn to people when she plays this game. She’s taken out of her momentary daze when Yanagi turns to look back at her.
“Don’t forget about the lamb you were cooking.” She reminds Jane.
“Oh, right.” The remark startles her, but not enough that anyone could notice, or so she initially thinks. Yanagi’s eyes stay on her for a beat longer than usual, and Jane almost feels self conscious. Can Yanagi tell she’s startled? Is there something on her face? Did she do something weird? For the first time, at that moment, she can’t tell what the woman is thinking.
It’s new. It’s curious.
It’s exciting.
The moment passes, and no one else at the table seems to be aware of its weight. Jane takes her lamb out of the broth and starts to eat it. After she finishes chewing, she looks across the table to see Miyabi awkwardly trying to feed Zhu Yuan a piece of lobster from her chopsticks. She struggles to get Zhu Yuan’s attention at first, but it just gets more awkward once she does. Zhu Yuan isn’t sure how far to lean her head to reach the food, and Miyabi isn’t sure where she should hold the food or if she should just push it closer to Zhu Yuan instead. It’d help if Zhu Yuan had her eyes open, but of course she’s scrunching them closed. This back and forth goes on for way too long and goes nowhere. Neither of the two have even thought about putting a hand under the chopsticks to keep the food from falling. Jane can’t bear to watch any more of it, so she slams her head against the table with a groan of second-hand embarrassment.
“Dear God, make it stoppp.” She mumbles fruitlessly into the hardwood.
Yanagi is shielding her own face by pushing her glasses up and letting their lenses reflect the light, but her shoulders are shaking violently, so she isn’t fooling anyone regarding her amusement.
This moment eventually passes too, and many more moments follow. The group finishes their food, and Yanagi orders a little more. They work together to cook the last of the food and load it into to-go boxes for Yanagi to take home.
When the check comes back, Zhu Yuan doesn’t go entirely pale, so it could’ve been worse. After leaving a tip, the four walk through the curtain and out the door into the cold of the New Eridan night. Miyabi curls around Zhu Yuan’s arm once again, and Jane decides to split from the group.
“My apartment is actually pretty close to here, so I’ll just walk the rest of the way. Thanks for the food, Zhu Yuan, it was delicious. Of course, I’ll still be eating instant noodles for the rest of the week, but it was a nice change.” She adds playfully.
“Are you sure you’ll be okay with walking home alone?” Zhu Yuan asks.
“You know me.” Jane answers simply. “I’ll be fine.”
“Alright then.” Zhu Yuan says in understanding. “Be safe out there.” She waves at the rat thiren.
“Aye aye, Captain.” Jane responds with a playful salute and a smile. “Take care, you three.” She regards the group, meeting Yanagi’s gaze for a final time and winking at her before turning to walk away. “I’ll see you around.” She says before her figure seems to fade into the night, the last sight of her being that swishing tail.
…
“Jane Doe…” Yanagi muses in the backseat of the car, looking aimlessly out the window. Miyabi’s fallen asleep again, cradling Tailless, and Zhu Yuan is vibing to decade-old music as she navigates the vehicle through the streets of the sleeping city. “How long have you been working with her?” She asks Zhu Yuan.
“A couple of years or so, why?” She responds easily, taking a left turn that slightly sways Miyabi’s limp form. The chief rarely sleeps so soundly, but it’s always a comforting sight.
“Although I recognize that I don’t really go out very often, I don’t think I’ve seen her around at all.” She answers honestly. “I find this interesting because she has a personality that I would expect to stand out among a crowd, not fade into one.”
“That’s the funny thing about Jane.” Zhu Yuan chuckles lightly. “After you’ve met her once, you’ll start to see her everywhere. I’m sure you’ll start finding her in places you’ve been hundreds of times only to find that she’s been there too. It’ll start to seem like you really only see her around when she wants you to, but that’s rarely the case.”
“She seems to be quite the enigma.” Yanagi notes.
“Oh, she is.” Zhu Yuan agrees. “But she’s a lot less mysterious than you’d think.”
“Huh.” Yanagi hums, watching the city lights blur past like shooting stars.
…
Jane steps over the first pile of chip bags as she enters her studio apartment. She uses her tail to push the door closed and lock it behind her. She kicks off her shoes and takes off her jacket as her tail swishes around to find and flick the light switch. As her eyes adjust to the new brightness of the room, she looks around. The dishwasher is done running, and oh-
I forgot to take the trash out, didn’t I?
Jane groans to herself. The room doesn’t smell too bad, but not for long. She throws her jacket onto the couch and steps past a pile of chocolate bars to reach her bathroom. Reaching into a cup by the sink, she retrieves her toothbrush and squeezes some toothpaste on it. She brushes her teeth as she skillfully navigates her room, checking for any loose trash or cups.
Once she rinses out her mouth and washes her toothbrush, she walks back into her living room to retrieve her jacket. As she’s walking towards the couch to grab it, her foot accidentally kicks something on the floor. She bends over to pick it up, and it’s the copy of The Port Peak she rented to rewatch. Smiling at the tape, she puts it on the coffee table next to a box of microwave popcorn.
“I should probably return that, shouldn’t I?” She notes to herself, putting on her jacket and shoes again before grabbing her trash bag and walking out the door.
…
Yanagi parks her car in the driveway and walks to her porch. It takes a moment to balance the food and get the door open simultaneously, but she manages. She closes the door behind her and finds all of the lights still on in the house. After putting the boxes of food down, she notices a sound asleep Soukaku on the couch.
Ah, she was probably waiting for me. I should’ve texted her. I hope I didn’t make her worry.
She walks softly over to the couch and picks up the sleeping oni. She carries the girl to her room and tucks her into bed before turning the lights off. She tries to shut the door of the girl’s room as softly as possible before she walks back down the hallway, through the living room, and back into the kitchen. She opens a box of food to quickly check its contents, but no matter the speed of her motion, it’s too late. The scent is already in the air.
Right on queue, the door of Soukaku’s room swings open and a little blue blur comes zipping into the kitchen, managing to not knock over any furniture and practically tackling Yanagi. Yanagi has to take a step back, but she manages to catch the girl in her arms.
“Nagi, you’re back!” Soukaku’s tail wags eagerly as she looks up at the woman. She then looks over at the counter to discover the source of the delicious smell. “And you brought FOOD?” her mouth starts watering.
“Yes, I did.” Yanagi confirms, letting the girl go to free her hands and open the abnormally large fridge. She grabs the boxes and puts them on a shelf before closing the doors. Of course, when she turns around, she sees Soukaku pouting in protest. “I know you want it now, but you can have it later. Come on, it’s time for you to go to bed.”
“Alrighttt.” Soukaku huffs, allowing herself to be led back to her bedroom by Nagi. Before Yanagi can tuck her in, she has one more request. “But can I eat it tomorrow?” Yanagi chuckles in response.
“Of course you can.” She answers. “But you need to go to bed first.” She finishes pulling the covers over Soukaku’s shoulders.
“Okay, okay, I’m going to bed now.” Soukaku agrees, turning to her side to get more comfortable. “Good night, Nagi.” She says before closing her eyes.
“Goodnight, Soukaku.” Yanagi smiles and turns off the lights as she leaves the room, closing the door as gently as before.