Rogue

Chapter 10

A couple weeks had passed since Akira had taken residence at Tamakoma and things had become a little less crazy. She had begun to join the others for meals, albeit quietly. The blonde had also taken quite a liking to Konami and spent most of her nights talking with her before going to sleep. It was an extreme contrast from when she had first arrived.

Akira had also finally met Torimaru when he finally stopped by, being so busy with school and work. She loved how he interacted with the redhead; constantly teasing her and making petty lies to extract how gullible she was. It was entertaining to watch the duo.

She had also become quite a bit closer to Jin who would chat with her about Tachikawa and the others. Plus, he kept her supply of rice crackers stocked even though she didn't need them as much now that she partook in all of their meals. It was refreshing to be around someone that was more laid back than the number one team.

However, Jin had begun to act oddly the past few days. He was absent much more than usual and he was "pulling strings behind the scenes" as Konami liked to call it. It wasn't until he returned one afternoon with guests in tow. Akira was currently laying in her bed, tossing her trigger at the ceiling as she had been doing whenever she was bored or lost in thought. She heard a commotion downstairs.

Shiori was talking about the lack of sweets they possessed in the Branch. Akira furrowed her brows at the prospect of them bringing guests while she was still living there. It seemed like the unsafe, irresponsible option as it put everyone in danger. However, part of her wondered if it was her boys coming to retrieve her.

The blonde scrambled to her feet and threw on Izumi's hoodie just in case there were in fact strangers downstairs. She didn't feel like activating her trigger, so she simply hid her horns and moved to her bedroom door.

The girl sauntered down the stairs with her hands shoved into her hoodie pocket so as not to seem too interested in what was occurring in the common room. She stepped into the kitchen, drawing a couple eyes to her but otherwise not capturing the attention of the room. It wasn't until she started looking for a snack in the fridge that Jin seemed to find her presence important.

"Everyone, this is Akira." The blonde side-eyed the group from over the refrigerator door. She scanned the group of newcomers, becoming completely disinterested―and slightly disappointed―by the occurrence. They're nothing but children. The brunette waved her over, halting her search for food.

She trudged over, keeping a majority of herself concealed under her thick clothing. Green eyes searched the man's face, trying to decipher his motives with this introduction. Why was any of this important? "This is Mikumo Osamu, Amatori Chika, and Kuga Yuma.

"Akira's actually under HQ, but she's staying with us for a while." He gave her a short glance before looking to the kids again. "She's also a Neighbor."

"Jin!" Her outburst shocked two of the younger teens. How could he just reveal that so carelessly when the whole point of her cover was to hide the fact that she was a Neighbor. However, he curiosity got the better of her. "What do you mean also?" She looked at the three of them and fixated on the small girl. The blonde could sense an immense Trion signature from her.

Yet, she didn't seem all that special. "You're a Neighbor...?" Amatori chuckled nervously as the older woman cocked her head to the side.

"Uh, actually―"

"I am," said the white-haired boy. He had been totally silent up until now, but it seemed his appearance made more sense. She could tell right off the bat that something was off with him. He had a permanent trion body, for one. Akira could tell that much.

Though, she continued to analyze him. He seemed so familiar to her but she couldn't quite place where she'd seen him before. Her green eyes narrowed at him, getting closer so she could get a good look at him. It wasn't until his red eyes lifted to meet hers that everything seemed to click.