“You’re part of the Parisian Quintet, aren’t you?” Julia asked to the woman in front of her. “My name is Julia, though I guess you probably know that already. What’s yours?”

“Why should I tell you?” is the reply she got as the woman hurriedly put her mask back on.

“Well, because it’s polite, I guess? Oh, and I do need to call you by something if I’m going to be staying here for a while.”

“You’re not gonna try to run away? Scream for help?”

“Why? You’re not gonna hurt me, are you?”

The woman seemed bewildered by her response, taking in a small laugh to herself as she slumped back on to her chair.

“If you put it like that, then I suppose I can’t really hurt you, huh?”

Julia took a seat in one of the chairs away from the door. “I know you guys aren’t like other criminals. That’s why I wanted to meet you in the first place.”

“You…wanted to meet us?”

“Yup! That’s why I insisted on going to Paris. See, I always read about it in history books, but I never managed to go here myself. Papa said I will be disappointed in how it looks now, but that doesn’t really matter. If it’s no longer the same place as the one from the books, then we can just help fix it, y’know?”

“Help… fix it…?”

“It took some convincing, but father’s gonna donate about $100,000,000 to the city for rebuilding projects.”

“$100,000,000!?”

“Yup.”

“Then why were we even kidnapping you in the first place!?”

And just like that, the room is once again filled with smoke.

***

“What’s the meaning of this?” Wild Flower shouted.

The answer didn’t come from her companion in the room, but from one of the bugs that litter Paris itself.

“Grab Julia and run.”

It did not come from Bug, though. Bug never would’ve been so decisive. It must’ve come from someone higher up. Someone like him.

But Wild Flower doesn’t have the time to stop and think of who would’ve given her the order. All she can do right now is follow it.

So she grabbed Julia by the hand, hit both intruders hard enough by wildly swinging her ropes, and smashed the door close behind her.

“What’s happening?” the girl asked.

“I don’t know, just run!”

As they kept running through the catacombs of Paris, they happened upon one more intruder. Luckily, this one has it’s back turned on them, so Wild Flower didn’t waste any time throwing her rope darts at them, killing them dead.

They kept running, farther and farther away from the safe house and, by this point, Wild Flower is growing tired.

“Take a rest,” said the voice from the bugs. “You’re in clear for now.”

“What’s happening!?”

“Please refrain from raising your voice against me, Wild Flower.”

“Who were those guys? I thought we’re hidden!”

“You were, but they were relentless. But remember your mission.”

“Um… miss…” Julia, who just finished catching her breath, said.

Her voice caused Wild Flower to snap out of her rage for a moment and remember her mission.

“Wild Flower,” she said. “That’s what they call me here.”

“I see… So who were those guys?”

“Hell if I know. They just appeared out of nowhere, as you could’ve probably seen.”

“I see…” Julia looked down for a moment, before looking back up at Wild Flower. “Well, thank you for saving me.”

Nobody ever thanked her before. She has done so much for the city, but the entire purpose of the Parisian Quintet is to remain in the shadows, so no one has ever been able to thank them before. They may know that, deep down, many people who live in the city are grateful for their work, it still somehow felt different when she actually heard it from someone’s mouth. And so Wild Flower doesn’t actually know how to respond.

“It’s nothing… I suppose.”

“But you were really cool back then!” Julia said, her wide-eyed enthusiasm returning to her. “I could swear that you were like a superhero!”

Wild Flower visibly blushed a little, but she tried to hide it behind her mask.

“Enough about me, though…” she said, quickly brushing the current topic aside. “If I may ask, how is your relationship with your father?”

“Papa’s always loved me!”

There’s not a hint of irony or doubt in her eyes.

“He always took care of me when I was little, let me join him in training while growing up, and now that I’m injured, he even brought me to Paris to cheer me up!”

For some reason, Julia’s talking somewhat annoyed something inside Wild Flower. It seems that she just can’t wrap her head around what she’s saying, unable to comprehend her notion. That is why she also brushed that topic aside.

“Anyways, I should probably look for my team first. If what you’re saying is true, then there’s really no need to negotiate with your father, and it’ll be much safer for all of us to be together.”

She stood up, grabbing her rope dart and hanging it by her belt.
“Maestro, I know it’s you. Where are the others? What happened to Bug?”

“Bug is safe, if that’s what you’re wondering about. It seems that they’re targeting Miss August, though. So I suggest that you watch your movements carefully as you walk through the catacombs - the rest should be at Base S right now.”

“Understood.”