Chapter Twenty - Saturday III - 再会 AKA Reunion

‘You’re out here at sunrise again? Don’t tell me you and Sensei had an argument on our one quiet day or something?’

‘Good morning to you too, Cap,’ the black and purple-haired woman replied, turning and gazing up toward the visitor as she hopped down across the rocks and boulders which rested on the shore’s inner edge. ‘Believe it or not, it’s nothing like that. I run along the shores for exercise while the stars are still sort of visible and wrap up by watching the sunrise from here. I don’t just put on sports clothing because it’s comfortable, heh.’

‘Cool, cool.’ Lowering herself onto a nearby boulder, ‘Sooo, I forgot to ask yesterday, so fill me in; what did you two talk about on Thursday night?’ Renka queried, intensely peering at Hikari through the lenses of her glasses.

‘Nothing too interesting, to be honest; robots, yuri literature and a brief introduction to Tsubaki’s younger years and her family life. She’s already met my parents, so she felt like playing catch-up by filling the time with info on hers.’

‘Ehhh? You’ve already introduced her to your parents? You don’t waste any time, do you, Kitten? What did they think of her?’

‘I’m not sure about my mother, but my father seemed strangely positive, given that he generally doesn’t show interest in anybody really. From what little info Tsubaki’s let slip, it sounds like she and my mother got pretty chummy at least…’

‘So, the writing’s more or less on the wall and you’re still struggling? What is wrong with you two?’

Thanks for yet another inference that we’re a useless/ idiot couple, Captain Obvious; very classy. ‘I guess it’s complicated, not so much for me, but for her... I’ve been thinking about it recently and I think I’ve figured out the main reason why she can’t make her mind up, especially after the way she sounded last night. Things’ll probably get messy before they get better, but it is what it is,’ Hikari shrugged.

‘Okayyy, just be sure to keep your mess in your own litterboxes and not have it spread into mine,’ Renka coolly warned, with a blank stare. ‘Aaanyway; would you mind if I joined you on these morning runs? I’ve kinda been neglecting exercise a bit since we set up here.’

‘Hmm, that could be fun. Do you have suitable gear? I haven’t really seen you with anything besides that one regular outfit of yours.’

‘Ah. Um, no? I’m cool running without cl-’

‘Sorry, Cap; I’m not gonna let you finish that sentence.’ Hikari interrupted, raising a flat palm in a halt signal. ‘Don’t get me wrong; frolicking along the shore with the soothing sensation of the sea breeze caressing your skin sounds nice and all, but I totally don’t want to catch a poison arrow from your girlfriend, or have her inject me in my sleep because she got the wrong idea. Maybe we could go shopping, if today’s activities don’t take all day?’

‘No offence, but I doubt she feels threatened by you,’ Renka sniggered. ‘Jokes aside, shopping for clothes would be good; I only have my current clothes and my light duty service uniform. I’d planned on starting working on the plane today, by searching for some new engines for the C-130. Chances are very slim that we’d find even the core parts for it, but it’s our best chance of private escape, so…’ the captain added, her voice sounding increasingly deflated as she continued.

‘I have a connection a bit west of here which might be able to solve that problem, maybe we should pay them a visit?’ Hikari suggested, with a cheerful tone.

‘Hmm? Will that visit result in us being shot at?’ Renka asked, with narrowed eyes and a suspicious tone.

‘Do any of our visits pass without us getting shot at?’ Hikari smirked.

‘Touché.’

❀

‘Am I right in thinking that the fact we headed out in this car without that many weapons and equipment is because we’re not expecting trouble?’

‘When will you ever learn, Tsubaki; we’re always expecting trouble. We’re just not expecting much today. In theory, today should end up being one of those fairly boring days that you so desperately crave.’

‘Do you have to make it sound like it’s such an unpopular opinion?’ the doctor wearily replied.

‘In this car, it kinda is an unpopular opinion though. Right, you two?

‘Yep. Sorry, not sorry, Sensei,’ Renka confirmed, turning and displaying a playful grin.

‘I’m kind of indifferent,’ Kasumi offered.

‘So, that’s two and a half vs one.’

‘Could you not have taken my side just this once? As the only other mildly sensible person in this car,’ Tsubaki pestered, glaring directly at the black and pink–haired woman.

‘I gave an honest answer. Besides; it’s not like I entirely agreed with them.’

I guess that’s a no then. ‘Where are we heading anyway?’

‘Please stop trying to ruin the surprise; just relax and enjoy the ride, Hon.’ Here’s hoping the opening times on the map were accurate and they are actually open on Saturdays…

After the Lancer Evo had snaked its way westward across the island for the best part of another ninety minutes, it finally eased itself through an opened metal–gated gap within a tall concrete perimeter wall.

Tsubaki closely studied the venue as the car leisurely rolled through the front courtyard area and parking complex. So, this is the heart of the industrial capital? No wonder Hikari refused to divulge details; I’d never have guessed that such a tall and innocent, yet imposing building with a neatly–paved courtyard, lush lawn, large water fountain would be our destination, definitely not when seeing the heavily monitored and guarded front entrance. I love that the building appears as if made entirely from tinted glass; it looks quite pretty with the sunlight glinting off the many panes and borders.

That said, I still don’t know exactly where we are.

Within a couple of minutes, the Lancer came to a rest in the underground car park and the low rumble of the 4G63 powerplant and exhaust vanished, following a turn of the key from Hikari. ‘Probably an obvious statement, but expect them to have metal detectors and content scans in there. In other words, weapons are a no–go.’

‘Right, so why do you still have that blade strapped there?’ Renka questioned with a frosty glare.

‘Don’t watch that; I’m an exception,’ Hikari firmly replied, with a teasing smile.

‘I hope you’re right and you’re not about to get us all killed.’

‘Well, Tsubaki is here and I don’t expect her to use her energy-converting ability today, so that should tell you everything that you need to know.’

‘Riiight,’ Renka remarked, still holding a suspicious gaze on the black and purple-haired woman.

As the women slowly made their way from the underground car park, Hikari assessed the surroundings while she strolled alongside the doctor. Interesting day to pick the most toned-down look, Tsubaki. Not that I don’t like the single bun and camelia accent or the dark gel polish, but the other three women that you’re walking in with’ll no doubt draw attention to themselves, heh... So, this is the mighty Yumi Heavy Industries’ HQ building? Its design is on par with the architecture in the capital; I wouldn’t be at all surprised if it projected some pretentious illuminated patterns at night as well…

As the group of women passed through the large glass sliding doors, they abruptly halted, having taken only a few steps onto the marble floor.

Alarms blared within the main entrance complex and immediately a pair of suit-clad gentlemen approached Hikari, while the other three women slowly shuffled away from her. Really?? Why would you all back away?? Now it’s blatantly obvious that I triggered the alarm. Worse still, I’m pretty sure these guys are packing ha-. Yep; MK III Five-seveN handguns. I’m guessing they’re experienced as well, given their fearless expressions, prepared stances and weapon grips as they approach.

‘Our entrance scanner has detected at least one weapon on your person. If you wish to proceed, you will have to be frisked and sent through a secondary scan,’ one of the men advised, with both of his hands then firmly gripping his pistol, albeit aimed toward the floor.

Well, this is going great.

‘Don’t mind them, guys. They’re associates of mine.’

Before Hikari could turn, the bearer of the voice slipped an arm under one of hers and dragged her to the side of the immediate entrance area. Meanwhile, both men bowed and withdrew their weapons, with the one who addressed Hikari earlier hurriedly blurting, ‘Yes! Please accept our apologies, madam!’

Uwah; what just happened?? Ah.

‘Still getting yourself into trouble, I see.’ A young woman with a streak of blue hair, deep blue, tourmaline-like eyes and a hydrangea hair accent turned and beamed Hikari a playful smile. ‘Aaaanyway, which one of them is yours?’ she asked, with a hushed voice.

‘Huh?’

‘Those women who quite clearly look like outsiders?’

‘Ah, um…’ Hikari weakly forced. ‘It’s still a work in progress, but the one with lots of green.’

‘Ehhh; she’s pretty. With that camelia accent in her hair, I’m beginning to think that girls with flowers in their hair are your type, heh. Jokes aside, it does look like she’s the sensible one from this little group of yours… You and I will discuss this later, I think…’

Haruka turned to face the security checkpoint and loudly commanded, ‘Could you please open the side gate? These women have an appointment with my father to get to.’ After turning back to Hikari, she quietly added, ‘It’s a good thing that you arrived when you did, I was probably a few hours away from taking special measures to contact you…’

‘As you wish, madam,’ one of the suit-clad men from earlier replied. Shortly after, the rotating gate beside the pair of full-height metal scanners and possession scanner stations receded and revealed an open path into the main reception area of the building.

So many questions, Hikari. I feel like you’ve kept one massive secret from me here. I didn’t know you had friends, let alone one that’s so integral to a huge company like this…

‘What’s the matter, Sensei? The prospect of your potential girlfriend being connected to one of the island’s biggest corporations is provoking some thought?’ Renka queried, with a teasing smile.

‘Maybe?’ Tsubaki waywardly replied, diverting her eyes away from the captain.

So, there’s hope for Team Useless after all, maybe…

❀

Following a five-minute journey where the five women ascended through the building, they eventually arrived in a large, comfortably furnished office space with light pouring in from one face essentially completely formed of glass.

As soon as the door opened, Hikari hesitated for an instant. Huh??? I don’t recognise the man, but I’m dead certain those two women are the same pair that we raced down the mountain just after we picked up the Evo. Somebody once said that there’s no such thing as coincidences in this world…

‘Ah, Haruka, you’re back.’ The suit-clad gentleman seated at the large, dark mahogany desk, sat up straight in his lavish leather seat and the two women rose from their seats, fixing their gazes on the group of women who had joined them.

She gave off that scary impression while at the wheel of that Z and now seeing her stood up, the effect is amplified. I’m pretty sure she’s taller than Rose even and her glare is much colder. Even I, who doesn’t scare that easily, am unsettled by her presence. At least the gentleman and the other woman look significantly more approachable.

‘As my daughter has probably already informed you, I am Mr. Satou; the current president of Yumi Heavy Industries; one of this nation’s leading developers and manufacturers of industrial machinery, industrial electrics systems and electronic devices. I presume that your being here has something to do with my daughter, so could you please introduce yourselves?’

Hikari’s mouth opened, but failed to vocalise a response before, ‘No need for introductions, Miss Terashi; we already know exactly who you are,’ firmly came from across the room.

Hikari froze, mouth agape. Shit. How?!? Not even these girls know my family name... Ugh, I’m pretty sure there’s sweat rolling down my back as well. Her train of thought shattered, as the tall, dark-haired woman with dark grey eyes continued.

‘Terashi Hikari. Left school at the age of fifteen, under interesting circumstances and started working for an equally interesting organisation shortly afterward. Still, it’s good to see that you stuck with it for these, what? Over ten years now?’

Silence filled the room, as the raven-haired woman flashed a menacing smile at Hikari, studying her terrified eyes and the visible tension in her posture.

‘Don’t worry; you and the delicate national security situation that surrounds your identity aren’t in any danger. I’m sure I need not tell you how I know; after all, you did pass the physical, intelligence and critical thinking tests with the best scores the organisation had seen for years.’

Fuck; this is torture. It’s like I’m being stripped naked in front of everybody.

‘I wouldn’t look so smug, Captain Hibara; we know perfectly well who you are as well,’ the woman informed, shifting her icy stare onto the bespectacled woman with an orange streak in her hair.

Renka’s eyes instantly sharpened and her pose stiffened. They know my family name as well???

‘Hibara Renka; Ittō rikui of the GSDF, currently assigned to the HQ Company of the 46th Infantry Regiment, Specialist in engineering; weapon and flight systems development. Graduated with a first-class degree and rapidly rose to her current rank through an impressive continuous display of leadership in field operations, reportedly.

‘Very easy to track down that information when you’re running around in places that you shouldn’t be, especially if you happen to cross paths with a former Nitō rikusa of the same force. Personally, I’d have you restricted to nothing but carrying out the most mind–numbingly boring duties for at least half a year if you returned and I’d dishonourably discharge you at the first whiff of any further funny business. I dearly hope that your CO is half as lenient as I’d be prepared to be.’

The captain emitted stifled mumbles of discomfort amid the ensuing silence, unable to unlock her eyes from the commanding watch of the grey-eyed woman. I guess this is reality catching up to both of us, huh, Hikari?

The other woman standing nearby, with a single braided ponytail and dark peach-coloured eyes continued, with a slightly softer tone. ‘Your friends however, we don’t have much information on.

‘Midori Tsubaki; studied at the top university in the capital for all of her high-level qualifications. Qualified doctor, specialising in medicine. Has almost no digital profile or records kept in notable places, so there wasn’t much to find.

‘Similarly, Sawa Kasumi; graduated from university with a first-class music degree after being accepted onto the course already having multiple grade eight performance and theory certifications. Aside from that, we found next to nothing on you as well.’ Well, we did find the desperately unfortunate information about your parents, but it looks like you women all have your secrets, so it’s probably best we let that info lie.

‘Thank you, both. Miss Terashi,’ the company president began, ‘if I’m not mistaken, you’re the woman who aided my daughter recently when she ran into trouble in the capital?’

‘Yes!’ Hikari blurted. This is exhausting; I’m pretty sure the past few minutes have drained me more than the wild goose chase, the seafloor mission or the CSS raid for the first processing unit.

The president rose from his seat, and with little delay bowed. ‘Thank you for your assistance, I owe you a great debt of gratitude.’ Lowering himself back into the chair, he continued, ‘Now that we are formally acquainted, may I ask what business brings you here?

After turning to Renka, ‘Captain,’ Hikari invited.

‘If possible, we would be grateful if you could please advise us where we could find a pair of turboprop engines capable of powering a C-130H medium lift STOL aircraft; 3424 kW power output, I think…’ the captain sheepishly requested.

‘That sounds simple enough. If we can’t find them, then we can probably build them for you. How quickly do you need them?’

‘Uhh, within a week, ideally.’

‘That should be fine, if we don’t find them today, then we’ll start work on manufacturing some. Haruka, could you please take a note of what these ladies need and personally deliver the request to our resources department and our development department.’

‘Yes!’ Haruka enthusiastically chirped.

The gentleman continued, ‘However, there is one thing that I would like you women to do for me. I realise that this may be asking a lot, but if you are willing to consider this the beginning of a working relationship, I would like you to listen to my request.’

Nervously, Hikari responded ‘Yes.’

‘Tomorrow there will be our annual networking event, hosting our numerous partner companies and suppliers. As you might have guessed from the security measures at the entrances here, we currently operate under the presumption that a strike from one particular irritating entity is imminent. While the two highly capable women stood next to me handle my security, my daughter doesn’t have a team. Or rather, she refused all of the candidates that I presented and specifically asked for you, Miss Terashi.

‘The event will be taking place at a hired mansion not too far from here, tomorrow evening. If it isn’t too much trouble, would you please attend and cater to my daughter’s security requirements? I don’t mind if the rest of your associates join you to operate as a team, if that helps.’

Dammit Haruka, you cute little… Don’t make me blush. ‘We’d be happy to be of service.’ At this point, I wouldn’t be at all surprised if the threat they’re referring to is those CSS clowns.

‘Very well, if you need smart clothing in order to attend, then please consult with Haruka and she’ll make arrangements. With that concluded, I believe there is no other business?’

‘Um, actually, there is one thing…’ Hikari tentatively replied. ‘Would it be possible for you to replicate a compact multi-function bracelet? Miss Midori has a particularly complex device which she’s been struggling to make copies of.’

Tsubaki flinched in reaction to the utterance of her name. What are you thinking, Hikari??

‘We could take a look at it. It’s probably not too different in form factor and function from my daughter’s earrings. If you understand the necessary steps of replicating such a device and you’re still willing to surrender the device to her, she can have our development department expeditiously investigate its replicating.’ Following a brief pause, the president again asked, ‘Is that all of your business?’

‘Yes! Thank you!’ Hikari hurriedly replied, leading the four women to bow in gratitude before they all departed, along with Haruka.

❀

‘Hey, what were you thinking back there?’ Tsubaki quietly growled, as she trailed behind the other three women, alongside Hikari.

‘I was thinking that the lovely men and women here could produce those copies of that bangle that you said you were struggling to get components for. I do pay attention to things you say, you know, Miss Midori. Surprise, surprise; learning that name came as absolutely no surprise to the others, given how much green you wear. Jokes aside, I don’t think I said it when we met in the capital, or at any point since; it sounds beautiful; it totally fits you.’

‘Stop, you idiot,’ the doctor quietly snarled, shooing the hand which Hikari attempted to stroke her face with. ‘Why is it every time that you say or do something approaching admirable, you have to ruin it by being unnecessarily tactile? On second thought, I don’t even want to know.’ It’s hard to admit now, with the awkward air, but I am pretty grateful that you were thoughtful enough to suggest the idea. I definitely wasn’t thinking of it and even if I did, I probably would have been too scared to say anything in that lions’ den. Especially with the woman with long, black hair there; I have no idea how you managed to speak in the presence of somebody so terrifying.

‘Sorry to break up the thick awkward air between you two, but we’ll soon be arriving at the research and development offices. Is there anything else that I should know about this device or any connected devices that I should be aware of?’ Haruka asked, holding up the glossy bright green loop.

‘Um, it’s connected to an AI, which runs two robots?’

‘You wouldn’t happen to have those robots with you, would you?’

‘One of them is in the luggage compartment of our car.’

‘Could you please retrieve it; the technicians will probably need it if you want an accurate reproduction or want to save yourself having to do a lot more development work.’

‘Here,’ Hikari offered, presenting the Evo VII’s keys.

‘Thanks.’

After the pair watched Tsubaki disappear into a nearby lift, Haruka invited, ‘If you’d all like to follow me, we’ll have a little tour of the development department while we wait for her to return. You’re welcome to get as close as you like to any of our development materials, but please don’t touch any of it; with the heightened state of alert, the staff are very touchy about outsiders touching their work, even if they’re being escorted by me.’

After the group entered through the two-stage sliding security door, Haruka turned to face Renka and Kasumi, advising, ‘Feel free to have a wander around. Miss Terashi and I have some catching up to do, if you don’t mind,’ with a mischievous smile.

‘Ah, okay, thanks,’ Renka nervously responded. So many different robots, motors and machines in here; it’s like an engineering wonderland!

The younger lady’s deep blue eyes sharpened as she fixed Hikari with a condemning glare for a few seconds. ‘So, Miss Midori, huh? Would you care to explain to me why or rather how you two haven’t got together yet? If you two weren’t so hilariously awkward, you’d be such a cute couple. That said, on the way here, you two did look a bit like one of those adorable but hopelessly stupid couples that often turn up in manga,’ Haruka remarked, rolling her eyes as she finished.

‘It’s a delicate situation, I guess. If you want my honest guess; she’s still struggling to adjust to her life changing so dramatically and I don’t really want to push her to respond to how I feel about her. I know she doesn’t approve of my way of life, but I don’t think that’s the only sticking point.’

‘Ehhh?’ Haruka replied, with eyes narrowed and eyes fixed on Hikari. Something sounds amiss here. On that night where we first crossed paths and in that office just now; you charged straight in. Maybe you weren’t fully thinking of the consequences on either occasion, but so far as I’m aware you thought it through well enough.’

‘Huh?’

‘Ugh; no wonder you two are struggling. I get that you’re trying not to be overbearing or whatever, but trust in yourself a bit more. If that’s too difficult for you to understand, then let’s have ourselves a little wager,’ Haruka suggested, with a teasing smile.

‘Hmm?’

‘If we’re able to produce more of those bangles for you today and she receives them with a smile, you have to try harder to get her. By that I mean, if you don’t get her by tomorrow evening or tomorrow night, I’ll be forced to reconsider our relationship.’

‘And if she doesn’t jump for joy or you don’t produce the copies in time?’

‘First off; we will produce them in time. We have some of the nation’s best product designers, electronic engineers and resource managers here. Frankly, I feel insulted that you’d suggest such a thing,’ Haruka warned, with playful irritation in her voice and a similarly insincere frown. ‘If she doesn’t jump for joy, then I won’t badger you to step up to the plate and you two can peacefully continue being painfully awkward around each other for all eternity.’

‘You don’t mess around or pull any punches, do you?’

‘And you love me for it, unless you’re lying to yourself.’

‘Guilty as charged, I guess,’ Hikari replied, with a playful smile.

‘Seeing as we have a bit of time to kill, do you mind if I ask if you have any preferences for your outfits for tomorrow evening?’

‘You’re asking me to decide for the entire group?’

‘Consider yourself my interface to that team of yours. Speaking of, when did you become part of a team? Both times that we crossed paths you were alone, so you definitely gave off a lone-wolf vibe; I’d never imagined that you’d be traveling in a squad or whatever.’

‘Oh, uh, long story short; Tsubaki and I were escaping from some guys, we ran into another pair of girls who were also running from some guys, some more guys turned up and tried to kill us, they failed, but then a lot more guys have been after us, so here we are.’

‘You should totally turn that into a book if you manage to escape all of those guys, heh. Anyway; those outfits. Have you come up with any ideas?’

‘Um, I’m thinking beautiful and elegant for myself and classy and robust for the captain and her girlfriend.’

‘Girlfriend? No wonder they looked so close. That must be fun; watching them living the sapphic dream while it remains an aspiration for you?’

‘It’s fine; I’m happy for them. The captain’s supportive of me and my struggles as well, so I can’t really think ill of her.’

‘Time to sharpen up; dear Miss Midori is back and she’s carrying a quadcopter?’

‘It’s her new friend, Sayaka.

‘You gave it a name? That’s cute; we’ll be sure to take good of her.’ Returning her voice back to normal volume, ‘Welcome, Miss Midori, to Yumi Heavy Industries’ main research and development laboratory. If you pass Sayaka to me, we can leave the development teams to get started on those bracelets of yours. Would I be correct in presuming that you want one in green, purple, orange and rose?’

Tsubaki tilted her head momentarily as she hummed in contemplation, before hurriedly responding, ‘Ah! Yes, please! That would make it easier to identify them.’

Why was there a delay in that answer?? both Haruka and Hikari asked themselves.

After the development team had received Tsubaki’s bracelet and the quadcopter which communicated with it, the five women leisurely proceeded toward the resourcing department, to quickly deliver the captain’s parts request.

‘There’s still roughly five or six hours left before the teams call it a day, so why don’t we set about preparing your outfits for tomorrow?’ Haruka asked the four women, as they came to a halt in one of the long corridors.

‘You’re not about to tell me that you have an in-house tailor or something are you?’ Hikari questioned, with a jeering tone.

‘We have one, but not in-house. I was thinking that we head out and go shopping if that works for your schedules.’

‘Actually, we were kinda planning on going shopping anyway. Captain Hibara needs new sports gear.’ It feels sooo strange using family names after exclusively using given and nicknames up until a few hours ago.

‘Splendid. So, how about I treat you all, then? Your car wouldn’t happen to have space for one more, would it?’

❀

As a strong, deep orange hue dominated the skies above, a white Lancer Evo unhurriedly returned through the freshly-opened metal gates at the entrance of the YHI headquarters site.

‘You can park in front of the building entrance if you like; nobody will mind at this time of the day.’

‘Thanks,’ Hikari warmly accepted, before bringing the car to a stop at the edge of the walkway which led directly to the front entrance of the building which rose to the skies.

Once the group of women had entered the building and again passed through the main security checkpoint area, Haruka stopped and turned in front of the other four women. Facing them and slowly panning her eyes across them, she advised, ‘In the interest of keeping things a surprise and because it’s possible there’ll be discussions which you needn’t be a part of up there, I’m gonna have to ask you all to stay down here while I consult with the various teams. Feel free to take a seat or have a wander around on this floor, hopefully my little progress check won’t take too long.’

After briefly flashing a friendly smile, she turned on the spot and scampered to the nearest lift.

‘Seriously, Kitten, I’m impressed. Just how many trump cards do you have tucked into that skirt of yours? Casually switching cars and calling for clean-up services on the first night that we met was one thing, but you’ve really outdone yourself this time,’ Renka commented, with a calm, awe-laden tone.

‘Ah, it’s nothing; I was just in the right place at the right time is all,’ Hikari dismissed, with a light waving motion in the captain’s direction.

Almost within an instant, both Renka and Hikari’s eyes fixed on a corner of the lounge area. After exchanging glances and discreetly smiling at each other, the pair immediately skittered across the marble floor, to the lounge area, where they each picked up small paddle-shaped bats and within seconds, the quick, sharp clicks of an intense rally with a small plastic ball flurried from the table and bats.

‘Ugh, they’re such children.’

‘It is a sport played by adults as well, you know, Miss Midori. It’s an Olympic sport, if I’m not mistaken. Not that I don’t agree with your assertion that they’re children. I guess we should take a seat on the sofas and read in the meantime?’

‘Thank god you exist, Kasumi, but why are you joining in with the family names thing as well?’

Kasumi offered a little smile and remained silent, as she strolled toward the sitting area of the lounge.

‘Hey! Don’t walk away; answer me!’

‘Okay, ladies, if I could have your attention!’ After roughly twenty minutes passed, the short, younger woman with black hair and a hydrangea accent stood in the centre of the marble-floor reception area, signalling the women to gather in front of her.

Once the women had lined up before her, she briefly pondered. Such an obedient team; I know I’ll be in safe hands with them looking after me tomorrow. ‘Sooo, first of all, there’s good news and there’s bad news.

‘Bad news; our resources team were unable to source an existing turboprop engine which matched the make and model of the original. The good news is; the development team were already working on a slightly more powerful turboprop motor, which should be significantly more efficient. If you let us know where to deliver them; they’re okay with sending four of them to you in the next couple of days. It doesn’t have too many operational hours on it, but they have proven reliable for the 1000+ hours of testing that they’ve done so far.

‘As for this little girl,’ Haruka introduced, holding up Sayaka. ‘The development team have advised me not to give it back to you, heh.’

Heh; you really weren’t kidding Hikari; Miss Midori really is an entertaining one. ‘No need to get so tense, Miss Midori, if we were intent on keeping her, she wouldn’t have made it back past the lab’s security doors. I just wanted to see if the rumours were true that you make adorable reactions, sorry,’ Haruka confessed, with a teasing smile, prompting Tsubaki to relax from her stiff pose.

‘In addition to returning her to you, I also have four more of the bangles that you requested,’ Haruka informed, while waving a set of freshly-retrieved, brightly-coloured loops. The team says some modules may need additional programming, but all of the components are exactly matched in specification to the unit which you provided.’

After a brief pause, where Haruka eyed both Hikari and Tsubaki, she informed, ‘There is one other thing. While I was up there consulting with the development and resources team, there was a lot of positive chatter from the product developers and engineers. Sort of unsurprising, but when I then went on to visit the resources department, one of the lead product developers was lingering and requested that I ask you to consider joining us here as a product developer. If I remember correctly his words were, “I’m astonished that one person has the capability to build such a device and also construct a sophisticated AI as well”. So, you know, if you ever want to move into product development, or hang around with me some more, then feel free to let me know,’ Haruka concluded, with an encouraging smile.

Although Haruka maintained her friendly smile, the doctor remained still and silent. Hold on a second, her eyes are welli-

‘Thank you!’

Uwah, Tsubaki!?!? That’s one dangerously tight grip.

‘For everything today, I really appreciate it, honestly,’ the doctor hurriedly blurted, with her arms tightly wrapped around the black and purple–haired woman.

Wait! Wait! Wait! Why is my shoulder dampening? This has come as such a big surprise that I can’t even particularly enjoy it. Obviously, my insides are practically melting now that I’m in your arms, but there’s an inescapable oddness about how abrupt this all is, especially when you only mention today... Well, so far as starting points go, I guess this is a good launch point for a new offensive... ‘You’re welcome. You’ve done well; you’ve earned it,’ Hikari gently responded, softly lifting and pulling her arms into the doctor’s upper back.