Brielle folded her arms, her mouth slanting in annoyance. As they walked inside, she grimaced at the unique, functional side of the male bathroom. Hikaru stared at the ceiling, avoiding all eye contact with the porcelain objects.

"We need to figure out what's going on," said Zach, looking at Hikaru. She nodded. With a shimmer, she disappeared, turning invisible. Her footsteps were soft as she walked out of the bathroom.

"All right, depending on how many there are—" 'Since Sullivan didn't bother to tell us anything. Thank you for the nonexistent help. It's like he wants to sabotage us.' "—let's just go with our usual method: the bathroom plan."

"Cloak isn't going to like that," said Sevati.

"But it's the easiest plan," whispered Jacob. "I mean… there's less fighting, so less risk, right?"

Possibly.

The plan relied on stealth, forcing them to take things slowly. It was better this way for most of their missions. After all, if they came into the bank, fighting wildly, someone could get hurt – especially one of the hostages. The girls were best at slipping in and disabling the enemies. Brielle would dismantle the weapons, while invisible Hikaru would lure the criminals away and cause confusion among them. After Drake knocked them out, Sevati would tie them up.

They rarely had an all out battle with criminals. Stealth was the safer, smarter way of bringing them down. There was no reason to burst onto the scene like a bunch of hotheads, when luring them out one by one had the same effect.

The bathroom door opened. Hikaru became visible again. "There's five men, each carrying small semi automatics," she said. "And there're seven hostages." The light in her eyes dimmed; her lips thinned briefly. "Chief," she whispered. Fear bled through her dark eyes. "There's a child, a little girl. What if—"

Zach placed a hand onto her shoulder. Her gaze lifted, connecting with his – her terror penetrated his heart.

"No one is gonna get hurt, all right?" whispered Zach. The light in her eyes didn't brighten. "Look, it's going to work out," he said. "No one's going to die or get hurt. We got this – we've done this before. We take down the bad guys and save the hostages. We're—we can do this."

He had almost said, 'We're the heroes.' Thankfully, he had caught himself before it slipped out. She gazed at him. The only window Zach had into her emotions were her eyes and lips. She nodded, the light in her eyes softening.

"We're counting on you, then, Cloak," said Zach, giving her a smile and a pat on the arm. The flesh around one of her eyes moved, giving the indication that she was raising an eyebrow; there was a hint of confusion.

Then, recognition dawned.

"Oh, no—no, we're not doing that plan," said Hikaru. There was a pause; Zach didn't budge. Desperation entered her tone. "Can't we do something else?"

"Oh, come on, you have the fun job," said Drake brightly. "I wish I could do it. It's hilarious."

"But I hate this plan. Why do I always have to be the one to lure them out? And in such an embarrassing way!"

"I know! It's amazing!" exclaimed Drake. His mouth twisted in disappointment. "I wish it were me," he said. The evidence of him wriggling his eyebrows showed. "I guess I just don't have that perfect, alluring nature to my voice."

"I have a fantastic idea, Smash: let's trade. I much rather be punching them out."

Drake laughed. Hikaru dropped her face into her hands. She sighed, resigned to her fate. She went invisible. Three of her steps were heard before they went silent with her stealth. The door to the bathroom opened and closed.

Silence reigned as they waited. Drake took his position near the door, his body tense. Sevati stood at the other side, while Jacob and Brielle hung back with Zach. The waiting was always difficult, but it was the silence that killed him. He couldn't help but worry about her, wonder what was going on. Perhaps it came with being the leader, this nervous feeling in the pit of his stomach. It had nothing to do with her skill; she could do this without getting caught.

But his stomach still churned in her absence.

The sound of footsteps signaled her first success, the first victim to the you-have-to-go-to-the-bathroom trick – all beautifully whispered in the ear.

The masked robber barely had a moment to open the bathroom door when he was met by Drake. The boy gave him a smile and a lift of the hand in greeting.

"Yo."

That same hand turned into a fist and smashed into the man's face, knocking the man out immediately. With the flick of her hand, Sevati released a small seed into the air from a pouch around her wrist. The seed hovered in the air briefly, before it expanded, vines bursting forth. By the time Drake dragged the robber into the bathroom, Sevati had strong vines around the man's arms, wrists, and ankles.

Drake took the man's gun and tossed it to Brielle. It paused in midair a few inches away from her outstretched hands. Her hands moved in a circular motion; the gun came apart, the pieces separating altogether. She lowered them to the ground and they clinked against the floor.

"Good job, guys. Peach, you might be crushing the guy's wrists with those vines."

Sevati rolled her eyes. "He's fine; he'll live," she said; the vines loosened barely.

Zach stepped to the door and peeked into the empty hallway. "Cloak, you there?" he asked. There was a soft sigh and Hikaru's form appeared with a light shimmer. Zach smiled. "Good work. One down, four to go."

"Hey, you think this batch is dumb enough to all need to go to the bathroom at the same time?" asked Drake with a grin, poking his head out from behind Zach.

Hikaru chuckled. "We'll see, won't we? Men can sometimes be a bit slow on the uptake, hm?" The hallway became empty again. There was a soft laugh; then, silence.

Drake looked at Zach. "I set myself up for that one, didn't I?"

Zach snorted. The group fell into silence once again, as they waited for the next sucker of a criminal who would fall victim to Hikaru's invisible attack.

She didn't disappoint.

The second robber was knocked out, gun removed, and tied up with the first. 'That leaves three. Time to give her some backup.' Bank robbers weren't exactly stupid, after all. They were bound to figure out that something was up by now – or at least be somewhat suspicious.

"I'm going with her," said Zach, stepping out of the bathroom. "You know what to do."

He walked softly through the long hallway, staying alert. The vaulted ceiling dwarfed him, the modern architecture giving it a clean, white look, even in the darkness of the limited light. Zach reached the end of the hallway. He crouched low, staying close to the wall, remaining hidden within the shadows. An invisible touch lightly brushed against his arm. Zach crept forward. He kept his head down, keeping his gloved hand over the lower half of his face to shield the exposed skin.

Once around the corner, he could see them: the last three criminals and the seven hostages.

Dread filled his chest.

Author's Notes: Thanks for reading! See ya next time! Comments/reviews = much love! ^.^

Anthy