I perched on a chair in the living room, cup of coffee in one hand and my other gently stroking Kuro's fur as I gazed out of the window. I could make out a faint murmuring going on upstairs.

Midori and Dior were locked in a heated debate that had gone on for the past ten minutes. I couldn't tell what had sparked their argument, but Dior's words were becoming louder and more insistent with each word.

"Dior knows this group! She knows their characters and personalities. Dior knows what to expect!"

Kuromaru looked up at me from the windowsill and tilted his head, his ears twitching. His expressive blue eyes narrowed, and he reacted visibly to the shouting upstairs. I ruffled the fur behind his ears and tried not to think too hard about the situation going on up there.

I looked out of the window to the empty street beyond and sighed. It was hard to believe that only a few hours ago, we'd gone through another small Chaos Event. The newscaster continued to rattle on - around a hundred people had died this time. The newscaster droned on in the background as I watched the skies outside. The clouds had darkened in a few places, and the wind was starting to pick up. I could hear the faint rumble of thunder in the distance as a flash of lightning brightened the dark sky.

Now, the streets were empty, and the neighborhood was deathly silent. The argument continued upstairs, but I tried to block it out as I looked out into the street.

"It's not that simple, Dior," I heard Midori reply gently. "There's too much history here."

Kuro gave a low, rumbling mew mew as he hopped back down on the ground to crane his neck at the stairs.

I sighed and shook my head. Yeah, you're right, Kuromaru. Maybe I should just go upstairs and tell them to knock it off. I stood up, and Kuromaru jumped up to the couch, curling up on my seat with a yawn.

He made a quiet meow and lazily opened his eyes to look at me. I glanced at him and petted his fur. After that, I went up the stairs and stopped in front of the door Midori and Dior were behind. I rapped my knuckles against the wood gently.

"Hey, can I come in?" I asked.

"Hnng," Dior grunted firmly.

"Please?" I asked.

There was a moment's pause, followed by a soft click as the door opened.

I stepped inside and shut the door behind me.

Dior was sitting on the bed, staring at the corner. Midori moved away from the door to sit next to her as she looked at me.

"It's okay," Midori said. "We're just having a talk."

I folded my arms and looked Dior in the eyes. "Okay. Umn. It's probably not my business, but what's the matter? All the shouting has me really concerned."

"There was a mission posted this morning to bring those men on the TV in," Dior said calmly. "Dior thinks that we should go and accept it."

Midori shook her head. "I understand why you feel like this, Dior, but I feel we should skip this one. There are far too many unknown variables."

Dior looked down, her face set in a stubborn frown. "This is important for Dior. These men need to be brought in. It is the right thing to do. They are monsters and cannot be allowed to roam free."

"Maybe that is the case," Midori said. "But I think we need to take it slow here."

Dior shook her head. "No. If you want to wait and do nothing, then Dior is going to go now. Dior has a duty to stop them."

"Dior, wait," Midori said firmly.

Dior stood up, her back turned to Midori. "Dior is going to go now."

"Hold on, Dior," I reached out gently. "Why exactly do you want to go after them so badly?"

Dior paused for a second, and then she turned to face me. Her face was rigid and blank, except for her eyes. They were filled with the kind of cold, ruthless anger that I'd only seen in the hardest men on Earth.

And for a moment, I saw a flicker of it in her green eyes.

Just a glimmer, before her gaze softened.

"Dior made a promise to someone, so long ago," Dior said. "A promise that Dior broke. Dior owes them this much."

I noticed Midori's face fall. "Dior, I know why you're so upset. It's hard to see a group from your past like this on the news, but I'm worried about you running headfirst into this. I'm worried you'll get hurt. Or worse."

"Dior will be fine," Dior said. Her words were cold, but her face betrayed her emotions. It was a deep pain, the kind that wouldn't fade without finding closure. "Dior can handle this. It's important."

"Hey wait, if you're going to do this, let's at least call up the others," I said. "Whatever the reason behind this is, you don't have to handle it by yourself."

Dior didn't look at me, but I could tell she was listening to me.

"At least let us know what your plans on first and bounce it off for a sanity check. I don't know what's going on, but I can see this means a lot for you. I'm sure they'd hear you out."

Dior hesitated and then nodded before settling back down. She sighed, releasing the tension in her shoulders. "Ok... Ok, Ikki. Dior will wait for the others."

A small wave of relief washed over me. I could see that she was hurting over something, and the last thing I wanted was to see her in pain.

I looked over at Midori and I flinched as I saw her face set in a frown. She looked like she was about to say something, but then she stopped. Midori kneaded her forehead before speaking.

"I'm not sure what you're planning Dior, but please stay safe. I know you're dead set on this, but if you get hurt or worse I'm gonna be really upset."

Dior turned to face Midori and let out a tiny, soft sigh. "Dior is sorry."

She looked away, biting her lip. Midori hopped over to her and gave her a hug, and I smiled slightly at the gesture. "Hey, it's alright," Midori said. "Look. I'm just worried."

"Dior knows," Dior said with a sigh. "But Dior has to do this."

"I understand," Midori said. "Let me know if you need anything at all. I might not be on the field anymore, but I'll always be the same girl from all those years ago. Got it? Please be careful."

Dior smiled slightly. A warmth suddenly reappeared in her eyes. "Yes, Midori!"

Midori pat her head and pulled away. "Get some rest. We'll talk again later. I'll go call Spencer."

Dior stretched and sat down. She looked out the window, her eyes far away.

I watched her for a moment, then cleared my throat.

"I'm going to go back downstairs," I said.

Dior nodded without looking at me. I gave her a small smile, then walked out of the room.

I shut the door behind me and headed down the steps. The sudden newfound silence in the house felt suffocating to me.

I looked around the living room. Kuromaru was still curled up on the couch, fast asleep. I turned my attention to the television.

I knew I couldn't really understand what Dior was facing. I had no idea what she was going through. But it seemed like Midori did.

I shook my head and moved over to the window. I looked out the window, my gaze on the street outside.

The whole situation around this was giving me a sense of unease. I couldn't explain why, but I felt like something bad was going to happen. Like the coming storm.

Maybe I was overthinking things.