》Siffa hung her head low, her fingers digging into the soft, wet earth, the sound of thunder roaring in her ears.

"You can kill me," she said, voice toneless. "I... don't care anymore."

A woman stood across her. The sliver of moon behind her cast a weak light on her back, shrouding her face in shadows. Only the pale, faded green of her eyes could be seen from where Siffa knelt.

"Now, why would I do that?"

She lowered herself to Siffa's level, though her knees never touched the ground. Her ghastly left hand traveled the distance between them and stopped just under the girl's chin, raising it so their eyes could meet. The touch sent a strong shiver throughout her entire body.

"Is this as far as you go?" the woman asked, a hint of disappointment in her voice. "Do you really want to die?"

Siffa's eyes reflected no light. Her lips where the only part of her that moved as she replied. "I don't want anything."

"That can't be true. We all want something."

Her hold on Siffa's chin became firmer, almost painful. The edge of her eyes crinkled ever so slightly.

"They couldn't have broken you that badly, could they? You're not weak. You're not a slave anymore. So let me ask you again: what do you want?"

Siffa tried, she really did. Even with cold and despair clinging to every cell of her body, she racked her brain for an answer. What Asta had thought her... what she'd stained her hands in blood for... it was simply to live. She'd wanted to live. There had to be a reason for that.

But as the seconds passed, nothing came to her. Her hands, knees and lower lip began to shake in desperation, tears welling up in her eyes. Why… why did it hurt? It'd never hurt before; Asta had made sure of that. So why now…?

"I… I don't know," she admitted, a sob getting caught in her throat. "I just… did what she told me, but now she's gone. I don't know what to do, I don't know what I want…"

"Really? Someone as talented as you? There's a million courses of action you could take, and there's a billion possible futures that could be born from those actions." She raised her palm as she spoke, the tips of her fingers curling into a fist. "And you're telling me that you don't know what to do?"

"I'm not you," she said. "I'm just a tool. Without someone to use me, I have no reason to be."

Her words hung heavy, forming the shape of a noose around her neck. She closed her eyes and waited. Waited for Shadi to tell her what she expected; that she was not a tool, that she deserved to live and carve her own future. Empty words and hollow promises. Nothing she hadn't heard a million times before, nothing she couldn't deal with.

However, for the first time of many, Shadi surprised her.

"A tool, you say?" She looked down at her hand, silent for a few moments. "…Fine, I'll believe you."

Siffa blinked, looking up at her willingly for the first time.

"W-what?"

"I'll believe that you're a tool. No one would know better than you, I suppose." She shrugged weakly. "And considering your previous owner is behind bars now… I guess that means you take orders from me."

She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Her body reacted on its own, forcing her to stand up and take a step back, horror reflected on her face. The idea of this woman being her owner… the mere thought of it made her stomach turn.

Shadi's lips curved up. "If you really were a tool, you wouldn't be reacting this way."

"I–I am a tool!" She stuttered, trying to convince herself as much as Shadi. "Th-that's all I'll ever be."

"Then let me use you." Shadi took a step forward, her voice eager. "Let me teach you all I know. You'll become part of something greater. You'll never have to dirty your own hands again."

Her hands fell on top of Siffa's shoulders, grabbing onto them like iron cuffs.

"If your life doesn't have meaning, let me give it one. If you don't know what to do with your talents, let me decide for you." Her voice changed, gaining both volume and strength as she spoke. "I'll force you to live your life to the fullest, and I'll make sure not a second of it is wasted."

A terrible smile stretched across Shadi's lips. Her teeth caught a piece of moonlight and reflected it back to her.

"If you want a reason to live, then follow me," she said, a sinister weight behind her voice. "For there is no purpose greater than mine."《

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Thunder roared, rattling Mars' consciousness to the forefront. She opened her eyes slowly, a soft, endless blue meeting her as she came back to her senses. No clouds, no storm.

Just a dream, a part of her said. It was a meek voice, as familiar and unpleasant as the smell of blood. Keeping it locked in the depths of her mind would've been ideal, but it always seemed to resurface during her first moments of consciousness, after waking up. A bad habit, one of many she'd developed.

"Just a dream…"

She repeated the words carefully. Her lips curved up into a weak smile, and a small chuckle escaped from them.

She looked back toward the sea while she finished changing into the dry clothes she'd recently stolen. The waves were calm, barely a crinkle to be seen on the infinite blanket of blue stretching toward the horizon. Lucky, considering all the swimming she'd done to get back to Sinnoh's mainland.

And now here she stood, alone and completely aimless. Her strategy of tracking Shadi through Team Galactic had been a bust.

A sinister smile stretched across her face as she turned around, facing the looming shape of Mt Coronet in the horizon. It was a good thing, then, that opportunities were easy to come by for someone like her.

"All right then…" she grunted, letting out a yawn. "…let's throw some chaos at the wall and see what sticks."

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A commotion was waiting for Saturn as he entered the lounge. A simple look at the group of people stationed in the middle of the room told him why. The way they stood close to each other, the raised shoulders and knit eyebrows, the volume of their voices; it was like the first drop of rain before a storm.

Standing up straight, he approached the dozen or so grunts and spoke as clearly as he could:

"What's going on here?"

He did his best to endure all their gazes as they turned toward him. About half of them were wholly unfamiliar, which meant most if not all the inmates rescued by Jupiter had to be in the group. Somehow, he could tell. Their faces were more weathered, and their eyes lacked the youthful energy of the other grunts.

They were hesitant for a moment. Judging. Wondering how much authority he had, if they could get away with airing their anger at him instead of whoever had been their previous target. But before they could reach a decision, someone spoke from within their inner circle:

"Your clothes," a woman's voice said. "You're a commander, right?"

Even though no one was talking he still had trouble picking up her voice, due to how soft-spoken she was, not to mention the clear boredom in her tone. As old and new grunts alike made space, he could finally see her.

Plain was the best way he could've described her. At first glance she didn't look very old, though the lines on her face said otherwise. The Galactic uniform she wore fit loosely, and even though Saturn was the shortest commander she still only reached to his chin. Her black hair was shaven, over which she wore a black woolen beanie.

Her eyelids were partly closed, as if she were about to fall asleep. If she was unsettled by the amount of angry people surrounding her –most of which probably weighed twice as much as her– she did not show it in the slightest

"Yes… I am commander Saturn." As he said that, he could feel the others tensing up around him. "I heard the commotion from the other room. Is there a problem here?"

A moment of confusion, and then everyone started talking at once. Loudly, uncoordinated. It made him flinch, made his anxiety spike, but he knew he couldn't show any sign of weakness to them.

"She's tryna tell us what to do!" A burly man with a three o'clock shadow spoke first.

"–ittle bitch think she can order us ar–"

"She's just a brat!"

"–hell does she think she is!?"

A bunch of screeching Mankey, that's what they reminded Saturn of. He tried his best to hide his distaste for the foul way in which they expressed themselves, and raised a hand to silence them.

"All right, let's all calm down here. There is no need for the use of profanities." His words managed to ease some of the tension in the air, but not much. "Now, what is this about being ordered around?" He addressed the woman. "Would you mind explaining?"

She stared for a beat before nodding, her lips parting lazily as she replied.

"A pleasure, my name is Asta. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to talk," she said. "To be honest, I don't understand what's happening either. I told them to gather here and listen closely while I established a line of command, but they didn't seem to take the suggestion very well."

From under his breath, another girl spoke. "You told us to obey everything you said."

"I thought it'd make the process faster for all of us," said Asta. "Say, do any of you know how to organize large groups of people? I do, which is why I asked for your attention and obedience."

Somehow Saturn didn't look the most confused out of everyone around her, and he'd just arrived to the scene. He could feel the tension of the room rising again. That burly guy and a couple others were forming fists, frustration clear in their expressions. He had to act fast.

He cleared his throat. "Uh… Asta, was it? I don't mean to be rude, but I think you might be confused as to how we operate here." He tried to sound as gentle and approachable as possible. "I applaud your initiative, and it's nice to see a new recruit so eager to do work, but I'm afraid only commanders have the authority to give out orders."

There was a pause, in which a few of the grunts smiled smugly to themselves and chuckled at Asta's apparent obliviousness. The woman simply stared at Saturn as if she were looking past him, and replied after a few blinks.

"…Yes. I already know that." She dragged her words, a tinge of irritation in her voice. "I'm… not seeing the problem here."

"What… what do you mean you don't see the problem?" Saturn's smile crooked a bit. "I'm telling you that grunts can't order other grunts around. The only ones who can do that…"

"Are commanders," she finished his sentence. "Which… I am. Therefore, I can order them as much as I want."

A cold shiver ran down Saturn's back. "I… w-what?"

"You're rather slow on the uptake, aren't you?" she whispered. "Here, maybe this'll help jog your brain."

With as casually as a flick of a hand could be, she pulled up the sleeve on her right hand and lifted it to meet his eyes. Around her wrist was tied a familiar device; the Pokétch's screen was turned off and at first glance there didn't seem to be anything strange about it. That is, until he took notice of the dark color of the carcass and the extra button on the side of the device.

His eyes went wide. It was one of the modified versions Charon had created; with it one could track down the location of every single grunt whether they were in or out of the facility, not to mention they also worked as a makeshift Pokédex. However, only commanders had the privilege of possessing such a device. He then noticed a detail which had escaped him until then. While half the people around him were new recruits, the other half were all the remaining members of Mars' team. If they were all gathered together… but no, there was no way. The boss wouldn't… would he?

"There has to be some sort of mistake," he said, a hint of desperation in his voice. "You're… you're a new recruit, you can't be a commander!"

"That's what I've been saying!" From the crowd yelled a familiar girl, one of Mars' previous lackeys. "She probably stole it or something. She's a criminal, ain't she!?"

Asta sighed as she let her arm fall. "I'm offended you would accuse me of that. Trust me, I'm plenty honest when it comes to my criminal behavior." She raised a finger as to get everyone's attention, and Saturn unconsciously felt the need to shut up and listen. "It's a pain, but I'll explain what happened so you all can stop yelling at me.

"Truth is, when I got drafted and saw what kind of jobs the rest of the grunts had, I decided it wasn't really for me. I went to the boss' office and, after explaining myself, he agreed to let me be the new commander." She stopped for a moment, out of breath. "That's… pretty much it."

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

So absurd were her claims, Saturn could barely process what she was saying. Luckily, the tall girl who'd spoken before aired his complaints for him:

"That's bullshit!" She stomped her foot on the ground, earning a couple mumbles of approval from the people around her. "You can't visit the boss whenever you want; there's always guards in front of his door and we're not allowed to meet him!"

He nodded unconsciously. "Y-yes, that's true. Not only that, but the idea of a new recruit becoming a commander right away is… absurd!" He could feel the heat rising to his face. "Your claim doesn't make any sense, Asta."

What could compel her to lie like that? Saturn asked himself. And why did she look so sure of herself?

"Say…" She spoke, and the room fell silent. "... My predecesor, Mars..." There was a glint of something, perhaps anger or nostalgia as she said that. "If I'm not mistaken, she specialized in stealth, espionage and assassination." Her gaze went up to meet his. "How I entered the boss' office without anyone noticing… Why he agreed to give me her position… I'll trust you to put two and two together, since you're the same rank as me."

Her implication was not lost on Saturn, though the mere idea seemed so… ridiculous. Did she really expect him to believe that someone as small and unassuming as her had similar skills to Mars? Judging by what happened next, he was not the only one who thought so:

"Oh shut up!" The tall, burly man stepped forward, anger clear in his scarred face. "You're just a fucking twerp! Like hell I'm gonna let you boss me 'round!"

Asta nodded absentmindedly. "Hm… if this is the sort of brains I'm working with, my job might be more difficult than I thought."

"I told you to shut up!"

The man closed the distance between them, and before Saturn could intervene he grabbed Asta by the wrist. Pain flashed through her eyes for a moment, which only served to make him smile.

"I'm the one talking now, and you're gonna stand here and listen," he said, eyebrows knit tightly together. "Got it, sweetheart?"

The rest of the grunts laughed and whistled; a couple even began to clap at the man's violent behavior. Saturn could feel the air grow denser, and an entirely different kind of heat spreading through his limbs. Grabbing her arm like that, talking down to her… he was obviously trying to put himself above her, he'd seen such tactics a million times. Most of them, he bitterly remembered, were aimed at him.

However, just when he was about to intervene, Asta spoke.

"You might want to let go of me. For your own good."

Her voice hit them like a hammer to the face. In a second, all the laughter and smiles vanished completely, leaving the room silent. The man grabbing her hesitated, his smile dying on his lips. For a second it seemed he was about to obey, but whatever idiotic pride burnt inside his chest apparently convinced him to do the opposite.

"I–I told you to shut up!" he hollered, fingers closing with even more strength around her wrist. "Who do you think you are to boss me–!"

It was the work of an instant. There was no time to react, no time to even blink. Saturn's eyes barely caught the afterimage of something rising from the man's shadow, and then the outline of his body began to glow.

Invisible strings tugged at his back, and the next second he became a blur. He was thrown across the room like a bullet, his body crashing violently against the nearest wall.

The impact reverberated all throughout the room and up Saturn's body, making him shiver. The pink-ish energy surrounding the man kept him pinned against the wall for a moment; after which he crumpled like a house of cards. His limbs lay limply on the ground, right arm bent backwards in an unnatural way.

Only then did the creature who'd just appeared lowered its arm, the glow surrounding its body dissipating into the air like smoke. It looked to the side and met Asta's gaze. The woman nodded, her lips forming a minuscule smile.

No one spoke. It was as if the air in the room had been sucked up by a vacuum. Too shocked, to scared to even try and take a step back from the horrifying Pokemon now standing amidst them. Saturn's legs began to shake; every cell in his body told him to run, to get away from the creature as fast as humanly possible, but he was completely frozen. He could do little but stare at its huge, blood-red eyes, which seemed just as bored as those of its trainer.

Another similarity it shared with her was its weak, brittle appearance. Its torso was so thin one could easily wrap both hands around it, and its arms looked as frail as twigs. Most of its lower body was covered in a white, flowing gown, the folds of which moved as if a gust of wind were caressing them. Its green hair curled down the middle of its face and down at the sides of its head, perfectly framing the shape of its eyes, the underside of which were a dark grey, as if the creature hadn't slept in a long time.

The rational part of Saturn's brain forced itself to notice all those things, in a vain attempt to keep the rest of him from panicking. However, the moment he looked down at its chest, the endeavor became fruitless. A red, triangular stake was stabbed through where the Pokemon's heart should've been, its sharp end jutting out menacingly toward him.

He almost had a heart attack as a sudden, beeping sound came out of his own Pokétch. An electronic voice came to life from within the device, booming all throughout the room:

"Gardevoir: The Embrace Pokemon – Psychic/Fairy Type. Unlike most Psychic types, its powers manifest not through its mind but through the red stake jutting out of its chest and back, which happens to be Gardevoir's heart. While difficult to train, those who manage to form a bond with this Pokemon will find themselves protected from all harm. The moment it senses that its trainer is in danger it will unleash the full might of its psychokinetic abilities, allowing it to create powerful illusions and even bend space itself."

Saturn clung to every word, thankful for any kind of distraction from having to acknowledge the creature in front of him. Unfortunately, it didn't last long. As soon as the voice died the room was plunged into silence once more. That is, until Asta decided to speak:

"Thank you, Saturn." She placed a hand on her chest, sending a polite smile his way. "You saved me the trouble of having to explain it myself. This right here is Sabrina, my dear companion. She's been with me ever since I was a kid, and is also the reason I've earned my… reputation, so to speak."

The smallest hints of pride flashed across her eyes. For a moment no one spoke, the room so silent that everyone could tell when someone amidst them parted her lips to speak. It was the tall girl who'd insulted Asta a few minutes ago:

"Wai–wait… I know you." Her eyes were wide with shock, sweat falling down her forehead. "I heard of you… back in the war…"

Her voice seemed to bring everyone back to reality. The shuffling of feet was heard as most grunts took steps back, while others (the older ones) narrowed their eyes, realization dawning on them soon after.

"Y-yeah! Me too!" said a pudgy man with a few grey hairs on his head. "Wasn't it… some woman with a… Pokemon like that, who led a bunch of mercenaries during the war? They called her… uh..."

"Asta, the pale devil."

She spoke her own title with pride, lips curling into a barely noticeable smile.

"Strangely enough, I was hired by the government back then. They gave me plenty of targets and money for taking them out, at least until the new Champion rose to power and decided that my services… were no longer necessary." A bitter smile formed on her lips. "She took Sabrina away from me and decided to lock me up, even though I was only doing my job. Funny how the system works. Though… thanks to Team Galactic, we are reunited once again."

Without looking she stretched her arm and placed a hand on the Pokemon's shoulders, whose eyes narrowed slightly in appreciation. Saturn would've considered the gesture heartwarming, were it not for what he'd seen that thing do.

His gaze moved toward the other side of the room where that man still lay on the floor, not quite unconscious but clearly unable to move much, a low grunt of pain escaping his lips. Asta noticed him staring:

"Don't worry, he'll be fine. A broken arm has never killed anybody," she said. "I needed a way to clearly establish my authority, and he happened to serve as a perfect example."

Saturn gulped, his voice coming out fractured. "E-example?"

She took a step forward, staring up at everyone around her. Very few were able to meet her gaze.

"I'm a commander. I can't have those under me not respect me," she stated. "For all of your sakes, I hope that demonstration was enough to show why you should do what I say, when I say so. If anyone here is not convinced yet, I'd be happy to find a different way to change your mind." She crossed her arms tightly. "But that won't be necessary… will it?"

Her tone made it clear it was a rhetorical question, one that she expected everyone to have the same answer to. Slowly, almost imperceptibly, the grunts around her began to lower their heads, lips pursed in resignation. Their expression was gloom, but familiar. It was the same Saturn had seen in all those who used to follow Mars.

"Good. Looks like we're all in agreement." She relaxed her posture and breathed in. "Now, I think I'll have myself some lunch while I think of a good way to schedule our team's objectives. All of you stay put until I contact you again."

Her gaze moved toward Saturn, whose shoulders stiffened as if they were made of stone. "Would you like to accompany me? You look like the type who enjoys a good tripe hot pot, which is what I'm craving at the moment." Her smile was small, but cheerful. "I would also like to ask some questions about the facility, if that's okay with you."

For what felt like an eternity, he couldn't answer. Something blocked his throat, something hard and cold and heavy. The Gardevoir's eyes were still set on him, sharp like needles, sending the clear message to everyone in the room that whoever dared defy her trainer would suffer the same fate as the wounded man at the other side of the room.

"Th-this…" his voice came out like a whisper. "This is not… the boss would never…"

Asta raised an eyebrow, tilting her head to the side. He felt as if she could stare directly into his mind.

"You're unusually naïve and good-natured for a commander…" A strange sort of curiosity was reflected in her eyes. "How interesting."

As if that explained everything, she shrugged and began to walk away. The Gardevoir followed closely, her feet not touching the ground as her gown flowed behind her.

"If you have complaints about my promotion, you to voice them to Cyrus," he heard her say, her back turned to him. "And after that, feel free to join me for lunch. If you haven't eaten yet, that is."

Saturn could only watch as she exited the room, leaving a group of confused and incredibly frightened people behind.

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Strie d'argent was not only the sound a Glameow would make while choking on its own hairball, but also Sinnoh's most luxurious and, dare she say, éblouissant theater and opera house, located in the middle of Hearthome, like a snooty jewel atop the head of a snooty crown. Not that Mint had anything against places like this. It's just that, considering how little Roark paid her to be his secretary, never in her wildest dream did she think she'd come here, and to watch an opera of all things.

She glanced to the side, eyebrows knit, glaring suspiciously at the woman who'd invited her. This… Shadi was good looking, she had to admit, but she couldn't have been more suspicious if she'd tried. And it was clear she had tried. That black, bellowing cloak of hers, those eerily lightless green eyes, that scar in her neck and that mysterious missing arm… Some would say 'Don't look a gift Ponyta in the mouth', but seeing as one of Sinnoh's most famous myths involved a giant wooden Ponyta and betrayal, she found the saying about as stupid as 'Don't look a gift arrow in the heel'.

Still, it beat eating cold pizza and watching art restoration videos all night.

The main singer for the show threw her hand up in the air, eyes closed, and finished the aria with a long, crystal-clear lament, her voice so sharp and strong it could probably break glass. She finished with a bow, the stage lights going off just a second after. Gentle applause filled the theater, and while her 'partner' couldn't quite follow suit, she did lean back on her seat and let out a glad sigh.

"This first half was a bit lacking in theatrics, maybe, but that voice of hers is like a dagger to the heart. In a good way, of course," said Shadi. "Don't you agree, Mint?"

Mint made a so-so gesture with her hand. "It was... something alright. Not really my cup of tea, but I guess variety's the spice of life." She shot Shadi a side-glance, arms folded. "I'm more impressed that you could afford the tickets. Don't get me wrong, but you don't look like a woman of means."

"Oh, I am a woman of many means, just not the usual kinds," grinned Shadi, her eyes flashing ominously. "In all honesty, getting whatever you want in life is more easy than one would think. All you need is to know where to apply the right pressure, if you catch my drift."

"So… you stole them."

"I…" Shadi's smile turned into pursed lips. "Yes. Yes, I did steal them."

Far from being angry or uncomfortable, Mint simply raised one eyebrow slightly and whistled appreciatively.

"Nice," she whispered. "That's what these fuckers get for never having the performances recorded and selling the tickets for an arm and a leg."

Shadi looked surprised, but she recovered quickly, once again drawing that smile of hers.

"It's a shame, yes," she whispered. "But if everything were free, then it wouldn't be quite as fun to… take it for yourself. Especially when you're not meant to."

Not only did her voice seem to deepen unnaturally at that last sentence, but Mint could have sworn the black of her cloak shifted slightly, as though it were made of woven shadows.

She simply raised an eyebrow. "You know... you phrased that like a real asshole, but I kinda know what you mean."

Shadi's expression froze again. She wasn't quite getting the reactions she'd been hoping for, which could only mean that she had to… step it up a notch. She chuckled to herself, looking down toward the stage, where the second act was just about to begin. An idea took form in her mind. Mint made for quite the charming company, yes, but what fun was there if she didn't spook her a little bit at least? As such…

"I have to wonder, though…" she said. "If this show couldn't use a bit more... spicing up. I'd be mortified if I didn't show my date the most interesting time possible, after all."

"I was really hoping you'd say 'good' instead of interesting," muttered Mint. "What do you mean, though?"

The giddiness in Shadi's face was hard to miss as she finally got Mint to take the bait. Subtly, a smile on her face, she turned to look at the girl and, just at the right moment, made her eyes flash that faded, icy blue as the shadows around her thickened, pooling around them.

"Oh, I'd be more than happy to show you."

And at that, Shadi stood up and raised her hand, thumb pressed against her middle finger. There was a snap, and the stage below fell into absolute darkness. Deep, thick shadows seemed to fall from the ceiling downwards like some sort of liquid, and Shadi's shadow itself stretched in all directions like they were strings, attaching themselves to something behind the red curtains.

Mint's eyes went slightly wide, but judging by the lack of reaction from the rest of the audience, they couldn't see the shadows like she could.

"...Huh."

"Now, how about I show you a real spectacle?" said Shadi, her voice soft yet booming with power. "Let us begin our little aria of the abyss."

Lights illuminated the stage once more as the singer emerged, but they were… wrong. Askew, uncanny, as though it were only a pale imitation brought about by the absence of shadow instead of by the presence of light. As the singer took a step forward and threw her hand up, her voice came out… different. It was still that sharp, beautiful falsetto they'd heard before, but this time it was laced with something else. A booming that dulled the senses. It made the song sound more like a lullaby than an aria.

Stranger than that, however, was the way the woman moved. Erratically, jolting everywhere like she was being moved by strings. Not to mention her eyes were closed the entire time. And as if that weren't creepy enough, as she was moved about like a puppet, dancing and gesticulating alongside the rhythm of the song, something else happened. Thing, sharp-fingered limbs of darkness emerged from the ground around her. Some of them pushed her up when it looked like she were about to fall. Others grabbed her limbs and tried to pull her down before she freed herself and continued the song.

Then, almost at the end, a few dozen of them erupted in a ring around the woman, grabbing onto every part of her and covering it entirely in shadows. She was engulfed for a few seconds, and then the shadows poofed into smoke. The smoke thickened, solidifying into a substance half between gas and solid which now formed the singer's new dress, black as obsidian. After that, when she resumed her song, it was deeper, more melancholic. Like a lament for someone who had passed.

And all throughout, the audience was loving it. They probably thought these were some amazing special effects, and considering that both Shadi and Mint were in the highest spot in the theater, no one could see her partner standing up, moving her one arm like she were swinging a baton, directing the entire thing.

When the end finally came, the singer smiled, eyes still closed, and bowed in a manner that was very uncanny and robotic before exiting the stage, eliciting much applause from the audience.

"Ah… now that should do it."

Shadi's eyes returned to normal. She looked all around the audience, clearly enjoying the praise, and with a proud 'Hmph' she sat down again and let out a pleasured sigh. Then, trying to quell her excitement, she turned to look at Mint again, an expectant smile on her face.

It didn't take long to drop. Mint didn't look spooked in the slightest. As a matter of fact, she was leaning back on her seat, smoking a cigarette, nodding appreciatively at the stage below.

"A… are you smoking?" asked Shadi, her voice thin. "In a theater? I… don't think you're allowed to do that."

Mint shot her a glance that seemed to say 'Are you for real right now?'

"Hey, you invited. You can deal with the consequences if I'm caught," she shrugged. "Anyway… that was a pretty neat trick. And you're right, it did spice up the show a lot."

"O-oh… thank you?"

Shadi looked like a Magikarp out of water, and as soon as that almost imperceptible smug smile formed on Mint's lips, she realized she'd been had. All her attempts had been for nothing.

"Don't feel bad," said the girl. "Your thing's cool and all, but before I was Roark's secretary I worked at retail since I was fifteen. You could bite a baby's head off and I wouldn't bat an eye."

"...I see."

Mint noticed the disappointed look on Shadi's face and rolled her eyes. Still…

"Like I said, it was fun. And hey, it's not like I have anything else to do for the rest of the night," she said, taking a drag of her cigarette and shooting Shadi a meaningful glance. "Wanna come over to my apartment after this?"

As much as she tried to stop it from happening, a slight blush did inevitably form on Shadi's cheeks.

"That… sounds nice, yes."