Ash froze, his shirt half pulled-on. “Mama!” He’d been in the process of getting ready to leave. Earlier in the day he’d returned home to get cleaned up and changed into a nicer outfit for the outing he’d been tasked to go on with Masako. Isao had told him to expect a phone call in the afternoon, but between giving his gun a direly needed cleaning and having lunch, he’d lost track of time. He’d thought about not answering when the unfamiliar number appeared across the screen of his phone. Upon hearing his mother’s voice, however, he was overjoyed that he had. “Where are you!? How’s Dad?”

He rushed through dressing as she spoke. She told him how they’d moved from location to location, barely settling in the first one before being whisked away to the next. Ash peeked at the time, rolling his eyes. Masako would likely be waiting for him, a prospect he dreaded, but he refused to cut his parents off when it was the first time they’d spoken since they left.

Kasamari made a low, grumbling sort of sound. Ash winced. She only ever made that sound when she was annoyed with someone, usually his father or him. “Do you remember Quantum?”

Ash frowned. His jaw went tense, his hands caught around the knot of his tie. Yanking it tighter, he closed his eyes. It’d been a long time since he’d dealt with their captain, likely numbering years before when he’d last seen the woman. She led the entire Japanese branch of Kuroi Ki, being only a step below their uppermost leader, but she rarely showed her face to anyone below the Senior rank of agents. If his mother was mentioning her, it wasn’t likely for a good reason. “Barely. Why?”

“She came to check in on us. She’s not happy about us having this line, but Isao assured us it wouldn’t be taken away.” Kasamari voice held her disapproval. Ash adjusted the buttons at his cuffs as she rambled about the woman’s visit. Most of it sounded mundane, but his focus scattered when she added, “I asked her about your assignment.”

“What’d she say?”

If eye rolling had a sound, Ash would have sworn he heard it with the level of scorn in her voice. “‘Don’t worry about it, Sabre, he’ll be fine. They’re a well-connected family. It could only do good for us if we make them happy.’ As if I couldn’t have told her that myself. She never answered any of our questions.”

“You don’t believe her?”

“Would you?”

Ash couldn’t say it wasn’t the type of answer he’d expect from someone in Quantum’s position; even Isao had said as much when he’d spoke to him earlier in the day, though neither of them had been happy with it. “I guess it doesn’t really matter,” he muttered, “either way, I have to go pick her spoiled butt up.”

“This late?”

“Mhm. They want me to come with them to some dinner they’re holding. It’s dumb.” His face contorted. The idea of listening to her parents talk all evening about their business bored him to tears, but as he made his way out of the apartment and down the stairs, he sighed. “I actually have to go grab her. You said this is the current number?”

Getting an affirmative, he reluctantly said his goodbyes to her. The relief that came with having a means of contacting them ended up short-lived as he approached the overdone house once he’d made his way to their side of the city. His shoulders drooped as he waited for the gates to open. She’s gunna be pissed. Fuck.

“And where, exactly, have you been?” Masako snapped.

He hated when he was right. As he expected, the teenage girl glared up at him from the table she sat at, the elder man sitting across from her subtly turning his face the other way. Her math homework laid scattered about in front of her, the multiple sheets of paper showing her numerous attempts at finishing it. The tabletop hid under the sheer amount of scrap paper Masako had scribbled on in her haste to complete her work. “I’ve been waiting for hours!”

“I’m sorry I’m late, but you’ve hardly been waiting for-” Sidestepping to avoid the racing girl as she ran past, Ash turned a wary eye toward her retreating back. Helping the other man gather her work into neat piles, he poked his head into the hallway when they finished to see Masako waiting impatiently at the front door. Being motioned away by the elder, Ash gave him an apologetic smile. It was only once he’d gotten her settled into the car and himself in the driver’s seat that Ash asked, “Towers, right?”

“Obviously. We’re getting dinner with ojisan!”

Phone in hand, Ash chewed on the inside of his cheek. He vaguely remembered Masako’s mother mentioning it on the phone earlier in the day. She hadn’t specified the occasion, just that they were having dinner with the blond man’s father, and that he needed to dress the part. He’d been so busy that her words hadn’t truly sunk in. His mind wondered about whether father and son would attend. He shook his head.

“What’s the occasion?” Ash searched for the restaurant on his phone, glowering at the map as he looked over the route.

Masako rummaged in her bag, barely paying him any mind as he turned the volume down on the navigator to a low hum. Pulling out a card, she started writing in it. “His birthday. Him and Daddy have been friends for years.” Masako eyed her writing before she stuck the card back into its envelope.

As he drove, Ash noted that her anger seemed to disappear nearly as quickly as it came. A soft smile appeared on her face, her fingers tapping absently on her phone.

“Are they close?” Ash asked.

Masako nodded. She threw the phone into her bag. “Yeah. Daddy was in the self defense force and ojisan was in the…” Screwing her face up, Masako tilted her face upward in thought. She snapped her fingers. “…The marines! They met on a rescue mission. It sounded like they went through a lot together.”

It’s still hard to believe he was in the military… It’d startled him when he’d read that Suzuki Naoki joined the land force in his early adulthood in the family’s file. Considering the wealth he’d been born into and continued to grow, it was an uncommon choice, but Ash couldn’t judge him for it when he’d made a similar choice against all reason. Mulling over her words, he straightened up with realization. “Is Zenz-san in the military, too?”

“Faysal-kun?” Masako gave him an incredulous look. She shook her head, turning her face back toward the window. “No way. He’s too nice for that. He grew up on a base, though!”

That explains a lot, he thought.

Masako pointed upward, nodding toward a building. “It’s in there. That building.”

Ash spared a glance over. He recognized the hotel as one he’d picked up some of their more affluent delegates from in the past. In the time it took them to pass under the reflective walkway, he could only catch the lowest levels of the glass-fronted building, but he knew from the last time that it towered above them. “It looks nice.” Ash pointedly ignored Masako’s snort of derision as he pulled he vehicle in front of the front doors. He didn’t bother to hide his eye roll, getting a quiet laugh from her.

“Never been? Figures.”

Before he could even turn the engine off, she was out her door and standing outside his. If she hadn’t insulted him, her excited face would have been endearing. Ash motioned for her to lead once he’d handed the keys over to the polite young valet, lagging a few steps behind the speed walking young woman. The ride in the elevator was painful, his dread building at being trapped in the small compartment with the excitable teenager. Masako bounced on her feet as she muttered something about missing time with her family. Ash could only watch as she twisted a corner on the birthday card. With a ding, the doors opened in front of them.

Taking a cursory look around at the surrounding patrons and staff, Ash let Masako slip past him. Groups of businessmen and women filled several of the tables around the room. The handful of staff he could see were dressed relatively formally, their uniforms pristine as they bustled around the restaurant. In the midst of it all, sitting at one of the center most tables, was Masako’s family. His eye caught onto a few of the other customers subtly watching their table, some of them with judging gazes on-

Ash stiffened.

His back faced him, but there was no mistaking the short blond hair barely brushing the top of his collar. A content smile lit up Faysal’s face when his head turned on their approach. Ash wasn’t certain if he was unaware, or just unbothered, by the stares of the other patrons. He pushed aside the thought of how sweet that smile was, forcing his own mouth into a slack line despite how it tried to twitch up at the corners. To ignore the voice in the back of his mind that insistently wanted to comment about the other man, he craned his head to take in the restaurant. It really was beautiful, dimly lit by modern deco lights with massive windows that showed the city skyline being showered in shades of orange and red from the setting sun. It wasn’t his type of place, but he had to admit there was a charm to it, even if he found it concerning that he couldn’t see any exits besides the elevator.

“Good evening, ojisan! And to you too, Faysal-kun!” Masako took a seat next to her mother, beaming. “Jessi-chan! I haven’t seen you in forever! Your hair’s gotten so long!”

As they exchanged greetings, Ash stood silently behind Masako. He pulled on his sleeve; even wearing a nice suit, he felt underdressed compared to the ones in front of him. He was thankful he’d had the forethought to tie his hair up into a knot at the back of his head. Feeling eyes on him, Ash turned his head. Faysal watched him, his calm gaze lowering. Ash had to resist swallowing when he realized the blue eyes settled on his exposed throat before rising to meet his gaze.

A question hid in the gentle tilt of his head and crinkling of his brow; Faysal looked toward the only vacant seat before turning his face toward him again. Ash shrugged, not daring to speak. What could I even say? The chair sat between Faysal and the only other blond there - an even younger teenage girl than Masako, if her high and joyous voice was any indication - meant that the only place he could sit was next to him. The sharp fear that he’d likely humiliate himself for the third time struck Ash speechless. How the hell am I going to get through this without saying something fucking stupid?!

Almost as if he read his mind, Faysal stood. The chair’s legs scraped across the floor as he moved to the previously empty chair. Settling in next to the fair-haired teen despite the concerned looks he received from most of their dinner partners, Faysal motioned at his previous chair. He looked up at Ash expectantly.

The hope in Faysal’s gaze wasn’t lost on him.

Ash took in the confused expressions around the table. His skin prickled, discomfort building at the scrutinizing look he received from the lone stranger at the head of the table. It felt like an eternity before Naoki made an impatient noise, dark eyes barely moving to glance in his direction; his expression appeared much more relaxed than it had the first time Ash met him when he’d dropped the other man’s daughter off at home only a few days prior. “Please join us.”

Quickly taking the offered chair between Faysal and the stranger, Ash took a steadying breath. He hadn’t prepared to be seated next to him. His racing thoughts bounced between noting everyone in the room and questioning why he sat so far from Masako. Everything appeared safe enough, but a nervous itch caused him to scratch at the back of his neck, regardless.

“Alex, this is my daughter’s protector. From what she’s told me, he’s been a supreme help,” Naoki said. Masako rarely gave him the impression that she appreciated anything he did for her. Ash kept his expression bland despite his surprise and the small flicker of warmth the thought elicited.

Bringing his focus back to the table, Ash caught the brown-haired stranger staring intensely at him, a displeased frown on his face. Taking a breath to calm his crackling nerves, Ash bowed his head in acknowledgement, realizing that the teen’s father was trying to introduce him to the glowering man.

“What’s your name?” Alexander asked, turning to him.

Both father and son looked remarkably alike, with the same deep blue eyes and strongly cut jaw, though Alexander kept his covered by a closely cropped beard. Unlike Faysal, Alexander’s hair was brown, peppered with plenty of gray throughout. Even their physical builds were similar, though Ash couldn’t help noticing that Faysal was the leaner of the two.

Trying not to focus on that fact, Ash cleared his throat. “Agent Toyama Fuyuki,” he murmured, “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Alexander tilted his head. Light eyes turning stern, he shook his head. “I didn’t ask for your field name,” he clarified. His tone remained firm. “I asked for your name.”

Ash straightened in his seat. Of course, the military operant would realize it was a fake name. Even so, boldly demanding that he divulge his actual name when they both knew he couldn’t–or, at least, shouldn’t–frustrated him. “I’m sorry, but I can’t say. Agency protocol… Thank you for understanding.” A dull ache developed at the back of his skull. Alexander’s gaze turned toward Faysal, the intention hard to discern even as he turned it back to him. Something about the exchange made him uncomfortable, but he couldn’t put a finger on why.

“Hm. Well, you’d better take good care of her. She’s like another daughter to me.” There wasn’t any judgement in the other man’s tone, but the warning in it was clear all the same. Before Ash could respond, Alexander returned to reading his menu, speaking softly to Naoki.