All Her Broken Pieces

Chapter 12

Surprise! Because I felt so evil about the cliffhanger, I decided to write the next part and make this week a double update :) also because you beautiful people have given this fanfiction over 1000 votes!! I never thought anyone would read it, let alone to have it get that much attention. So thank you and happy reading!
P.S. Where the dialogue is in parentheses, it means it's in Japanese...I got lazy ;)

*Sang*

It all started when Uncle called me this morning.

"Window." He had said, the random code signaling this was Academy business.

"Fluffernutter." I retorted, my mind on food since I hadn't eaten breakfast with the boys, needing some time to think about what I'd realized yesterday.

"Really, Little Bird? You went with fluffernutter?" Uncle chuckles, and I laugh too, trying to defend myself.

"Hey I'm hungry, you interrupted my search for breakfast."

"Just strange that it was the first thing you thought of, haven't had one of those in ages." He pauses and I can hear the smile in his voice. "Wait, you were with the boys, why didn't they feed you, so I need to have a talk with them?" He asks, papa bear mode activated.

"No! I just figured a little space would do is some good, it feels like I'm always with them these day and I don't want to wear out my welcome." My voice is quieter than I'd like and Uncle groans.

"Believe me there's no possibility of that happening. All I ever hear from those boys is Sang did this, Sang said that, isn't she the most amazing person you've ever met? You leaving them alone will only lead to them calling me and asking what they did wrong or if you're mad at them." I find that extremely hard to believe, but it is flattering that they talk to Uncle about me.

"Not that I don't love talking to you, but was there a reason you called?" I ask, changing the subject with North-like subtlety.

Of course, I'm not fooling Uncle any, but you can't blame a girl for trying. "Ah, don't think I don't know what you're doing, but I'll let it go for now because I did call about something important. I got a mission and need someone who speaks Japanese." Gone is the playful banter, now he's in serious spy mode.

"Why couldn't you ask Sean?" I'm curious, this likely means it has to be a girl.

"Because as pretty as that boy thinks he is, he still ain't passing for a girl." That makes me laugh, the image of Sean in a dress in heels almost too much.

Once I get a handle on my laughter, I force myself to be serious and focus on the task at hand. "That is true, now what's the mission?"

The mission turned out to be taking down a branch of an up and coming Japanese gang. This particular group is known for facilitating illegal shipments coming in from Japan, hiding things on board. Everything from guns to drugs to the most recent development, the reason I was needed, was entrance into the business of human trafficking, particularly of children.

Because of my non threatening appearance, coupled with my nearly complete social work degree and proficiency in multiple languages, these cases almost always come to me from the Academy; however, Uncle and Dr. Roberts, another man who's become like a surrogate father to me, don't trust any other teams to keep me safe so one or the other will always join me.

They act like a bodyguard as well as a babysitter of sorts, ensuring that I don't go off half-cocked trying to save everyone, which only happened that one time. And they'll never let me forget it, I think sarcastically. I may appreciate the fact they care enough about me to accompany me in dangerous situations, but that doesn't mean they don't smother me in overprotectiveness as well.