Through Fire and Water

Chapter 2 - Slip-up

Izumi pov:

"Needs more salt...." I mumbled and reached out to the salt shaker.

I added some salt into the curry in the cooking pot and stirred it while lowering the flame. I closed the lid to let it boil for a few moments while I got out a plate, a spoon and chopsticks as well as the rice and side dish that I had prepared for my lunch. It was a pleasant day with no running around on any errands or daily chores at the cafe. I had spent most of the morning at home, doing some cleaning that I had been putting off for quite some time now. I had also gone shopping to stock up on groceries that I was running short of. I had had the television on the whole time while switching between the news channel and history channel – two of my favorites – in which I happened to hear about the kid I had saved from the yakuza thugs only recently. He was safe and sound and undergoing treatment for the injuries he had suffered when he was kidnapped. His parents had had an interview with the media and they had thanked the PDST for helping them without giving any details of who really helped them.

I was glad for that because I didn't want to stir up any commotion. Well, I suppose I can't say that I hadn't stirred up any commotion because ever since I saved the kid and he mentioned to one of the investigators about a 'awesome girl dressed in full black clothes and wearing cool shades' saving him, they've been relentless in trying to find members of the PDST. More than anyone, Detective Hong has always been interested in the undercover services we offer to anyone, even giving concession in prices for the jobs depending on the financial status of the person requesting the job. He has been spending the last two years searching for us, hoping to find our undercover operations base and meet any one of us in person and figure out who exactly we are but all his efforts have been in vain. Too bad for him, eh?

Pushing unnecessary thoughts out of my head, I served the finished stew in a bowl and placed it on the big tray along with the rice, side dishes and cutlery. I walked to the couch in the living room and I took a seat comfortably. I reached for the remotes and turned on the TV to the local entertainment channel. There was a comedy show airing and I laughed every now and then while eating.

A few minutes passed and my phone rang musically. I glanced at the screen to see who was calling – it was Juri san. I didn't want this phone call to interrupt my meal so I put in my ear piece and answered the call while taking another bite of my rice and stew.

"Hey Juri san, what's up?" I asked as I looked back at the TV screen.

"Took you longer than usual to pick up my call....were you eating?" She asked as cheerfully as always.

"Yup." I said though my voice was slightly muffled because of the food in my mouth.

"Sorry about that, dearie. But this is important." She responded making me nod.

"A new mission, huh?" I asked nonchalantly.

"Yes....and one I believe that only you can handle."

I paused my chewing for a moment and looked to the side sort of lost in thought. If Juri san was saying that it was a mission she thought only I could handle, I knew it was a dangerous one with a lot of risk of getting caught. I was the best at being unnoticed but there were some missions where not getting caught was impossible. I suppose this was one of those kinds of missions and I would have to highly depend on my combat skills to keep myself safe and not get caught by the enemy.

"I see. So what is the mission?" I asked and went back to eating, though not as light heartedly as before.

"It's probably easier to tell you about it while you're looking at the details sent in to us. Once you're done eating, head over to the HQ. Oh, and you'll be working with Teddy this time so go over to him and he'll brief you over the mission." She said and didn't hesitate to cut the call after a cheerful goodbye.