Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Anya runs through the park with Bond, a wide smile on her face as her legs carry her across the field. Looking over her shoulder at the large dog, she spots her father sitting on a bench, speaking to a redheaded woman who had been passing by... or so was the cover story. That's actually Papa's boss lady, and she's a spy like him! I dunno what Papa's mission is today, but it'll be exciting no matter what!

The momentary distraction proved to be a fatal error, as Bond catches up to Anya and bowls her over into the grass, where she lies, giggling happily as her dog licks her face. "Haha! Alright Bond, alright! You c-caught me! Hah! Stop!" It takes a few more minutes of struggling against the white hound, but eventually Anya manages to free herself from Bond's assault. Catching her breath where she lay, she stares up at the clouds overhead, observing them as they slowly drift through the great blue sky. Spotting a few of particular shape, she points up at them while speaking to Bond once again. "See that cloud, Bond? It's a big, fluffy Stella Star! And that one looks like Agent Penguinman! And that one looks like Scruffy-head! And all of them look like you!"

Turning her attention to the animal sitting next to her, she watches him look up at the clouds himself, borfing at her comment of his resemblance to the shapeless white overhead, before starting to lick her all over again. "Gah, Bond! Hahaha, no, please, n-not again! Haha! I s-surrender! Please!" Raising her arms to guard her face, Anya descends into fits of laughter once more, struggling to protect herself from Bond until her father eventually finishes up his business, walking over to the laughing child.

"Bond, stop that." Picking up his daughter off the ground, Loid holds out his hand to her. "Let's go, Anya. It's time to head home and make dinner, okay? We don't want to leave Yor waiting, do we?" Anya shakes her head quickly falling in line beside her father as they begin walking, Loid attaching Bond's leash to his collar to keep the dog in line. "...You know, you got your clothes covered in grass stains and dirt. Hopefully we can get them clean again without too much trouble."

Anya simply laughs at her father's exasperation, picking up some stray thoughts in the air. Handler emphasized the importance of this mission, so I need to make sure that I can leave home without arousing suspicion from Yor. Another emergency house call should cover the time it'll take to steal and destroy all the research into that chemical weapon. The young girl stares at her father in shock. With her studies at Eden, she'd slowly been picking up on the threat levels of each mission her father went on, and this sounded quite dangerous.

A kem-ick-el weapon!? That's scary! Papa's so awesome for taking care of it! As the spy continues his planning for the operation, Anya's attention flicked towards her dog, noticing his ears flicking up off of his head. Bond sees something? She leans closer to the hound, focusing on the grainy static in his head. If this would be important to her father's safety, she'd need to know quickly!

However, the vision shared with her is certainly an unexpected one. Inside a movie theater, Ewen Egeburg marches up to Anya, an uneasy expression on his face as his eyes flick around the room, erratically. "Forger, this is your fault, isn't it!? What did you do!? Where are we!?" His tone is aggressive, though Anya seems just as uneasy as he is. Following behind him, Damian Desmond pulls Ewen away from the girl. "Calm down! Can't you tell she knows just as much as we do!? Look at her face!"

Sy-on boy meets Bond in a movie theater? But nobody seems happy to be there... Anya's dragged out of her thoughts by her father tugging gently on her arm. "Anya, is something wrong? You suddenly stopped walking." She blinks a few times, looking around the area to see if maybe the boy and his lackeys were nearby. However, the only person still in the park was the Handler, sitting on a nearby bench, pretending not to be watching them.

Looking back at her father, she winces, the bright sun resting in the sky right above his head. As she shields her eyes from the glare, Anya answers him. "No. I just thought I heard a weird noise." Even though she was covering the sun with her hands, she found that the brightness barely decreased. "The sun is really bright today." Loid also began shielding his eyes, though Anya could hear questions running through his head.

"You're right, it does seem really bright today." That glare isn't coming from the sun, but no matter which way I turn my head, it doesn't get any dimmer. What's going on here? The young girl feels her father tighten his grip on her hand, before the world suddenly lit up in a flash of white, blinding them to whatever was happening.

As the blinding light fades away, Damian lowers his arm and looks around, taken aback by the sudden change in surroundings. What had once been his dorm at Eden was replaced by a large theater, partially filled with people in similar states of disorientation. There's a few familiar faces in this crowd. I can see Blackbell, Master Henderson, Forger's pops, Forger herself, Emile, and more. But why us specifically?

He hears a groan from beside him, and turns to see Ewen rubbing his eyes. "Gah, that was super bright... Huh!? Where am I!?" The boy's eyes drift towards Damian, and widen further. "Lord Damian!? What's going on!?" Damian shrugs his shoulders, looking over at Emile, who started running over after hearing Ewen's shouting. He gives a wave to the more portly boy as he draws close, sighing as Emile begins fussing over him and Ewen.

"Bossman, Ewen, are you guys okay!? That light really caught me by surprise! You didn't trip over anything during the flash, did you!?" While reassuring his friends that he was, in fact, perfectly fine, his eyes drift down towards the pink-haired girl standing with her father, who had spotted him by this point and started waving a hand over her head.

"Hey, Sy-on boy! This sure is weird, right?" Damian rolls his eyes at the comment, scowling as he turns away from her to look at the other people who found themselves in this room suddenly. Really Forger? Weird would be the understatement of the century! The selection of people here seems almost completely random to me! Blackbell's servant, some random office lady, a couple of young adults, a dog, Forger's mom, that guy's wearing the SSS uniform! Seriously, what's the correlation between all these people!? He turns his gaze back to Ewen as the boy starts yelling again, marching over to Forger, who looks like a deer in headlights at the sudden hostility. Sighing yet again, Damian quickly follows, intent on redirecting focus towards the real questions that need to be asked, and away from the girl who's likely to cry if this continues.

"My gun is missing too." Chloe watches Yuri as he feels the space his weapon should have been beneath the casual street-wear of the disguises, and was, up until just a minute ago. His grim expression speaks volumes to his own feelings on the matter. "Somehow, we were disarmed and relocated in a matter of seconds, along with numerous civilians, including Chihuahua girl, Loidy, and- SIS!!!" Chloe winces at the volume of Yuri's shout as he suddenly sprinted towards the woman in question, wrapping his arms around her and babbling some kind of nonsense. Turning her eyes to the nearby children, she chuckles as she notes that Yuri's outburst caused them to stop bickering and stare at him with wide eyes.

"Anya!" She sees a fifth child run down the steps of the theater to the group in the front, almost tackling the pink-haired one. It's nice to see that even in such unusual circumstances, kids will still be kids. Hopefully we can figure this out and get everyone home before they start to panic. While she stares in confusion as a similarly-dressed child with the physique of a grown man approaches the group, the sound of footsteps approaching her from behind signals her to the return of the lieutenant. She waits for him to stand beside her, staying in character as a normal citizen even though the situation has changed.

As he passes by her, she watches his hands behind his back, reading the message the signals conveyed. ...Doors are locked, huh? With no way to contact HQ, we have to figure this out by ourselves. How would this have even happened in the first place? It seems like magic... A memory comes to mind, and Chloe snickers, drawing the attention of the lieutenant, who raises a brow. In response, she smirks. "So, what do you think? If I recall correctly, you said something before about not being able to beat a wizard. This seems pretty magical to me." The lieutenant rolls his eyes, turning away, although she does note the hand gestures he makes. ...Be serious? I mean, I was making a joke, but I was serious about this seeming like magic...

Just before she was about to open her mouth to point out how impossible the situation is, a feminine voice fills the room. "HEY EVERYONE! QUIET DOWN NOW, PLEASE!"

Henry stands silently, counting the seconds it takes for the room to fall quiet. A small smile finds its way to his face as he notes that his students were among the first to fall quiet. They have been handling this odd situation in a most elegant fashion. Clearly, after that bus hijacking situation, they all are more prepared to face stressful situations with clear minds. His eyes draw to Mrs. Forger and the man clinging to her, the two being the last to fall quiet among the group, barely beaten by a man with particularly curly hair.

With the reigning silence in the room, the unfamiliar voice speaks again, no longer shouting. "Thank you, everyone! Hopefully you've all been finding your bearings quickly! Sorry about the bright light, if it wasn't needed I wouldn't use it, but I'm fairly certain none of you want to see what's around you during transportation!" Henderson raises a brow at that comment. That implies that we have passed very unpleasant things on the journey here, despite having only been rendered blind for five seconds.

A silver-haired lady standing nearby him clears her throat before speaking, her eyes flitting around the room, searching. "Excuse me, but who are you? And where are you? And-" She's cut off by the sound of a door opening and closing, and in between those sounds, one of the walls to the theater suddenly opens, a nearly-imperceptible door revealing a young woman, possibly only a teenager, quickly jogging out to stand at the front of the theater, long brown hair catching the wind. Once she reaches the center of the front, she stops, turning to face everyone with a smile, bright blue eyes twinkling with excitement.

"Sorry about that! Technically, the job instructions say I shouldn't be showing myself to all of you, but I figured it shouldn't hurt too much! Either way, hi! I'm the keeper of this theater, and the one who will oversee your viewing experience! I haven't thought of a codename for myself yet, so for the moment, unfortunately, you're all just going to have to call me that, okay?" She pauses her rapid rate of speed, and Henry watches as the children all nod their heads, as does he. The adults in the room, on the other hand, show no acknowledgement to her words. "Okay, cool, I can see that at least seven of you understood what I said! Well, before we begin, do any of you have any questions? Raise your hand, and I'll call upon you, no shouting over each other!"

Almost everyone in the room raises a hand, and the girl spends a few seconds looking over them all before selecting the scarred man in the uniform. "Miss Keeper, you are aware that I am a member of the State Security Service, right?" When the girl nods her head, the man continues. "Then surely, you are aware that you have commit a grave offense against Ostania by kidnapping me, and will be arrested for it, right?"

The Keeper pauses, staring at the man for a few seconds as she absorbs his words. "...Nah, I'll be fine, lieutenant! It's not like you guys will be able to arrest me and disappear me anyway!" How much of a death wish does she have, to directly say that? Disregarding the gobsmacked expression on 'Lieutenant', she looks around the room with an exaggerated gesture before pointing towards Damian, smile present on her face as the boy speaks up.

"You kidnapped us for a reason. Tell me, why did you choose everyone in this room? As far as I can tell, there's no identifiable pattern to the selection of individuals present. What's so important about all of us that we were your targets? And what do you want from us anyway? You mentioned a viewing, and this is clearly a theater. What do you plan on showing us?" The boy is quite calm right now. He certainly has his mind in the right place, considering the questions he asked. I would have asked the same, if I were picked.

"Ooh, you wanna get right into the meat of it, huh? Alright I'll sh-" She pauses, her eyes flicking towards the young Miss Forger and her expression turning deadly serious. "Don't try it kid. You won't be happy if you do." Henry watches Miss Forger's expression shift to one of shock, bordering on horror, almost. Was she about to do something? I didn't see her even move. She certainly has displayed a willingness to try and help her friends in the past, even back on her first day at Eden. I just hope she doesn't get herself in trouble... Seeing Miss Forger's expression, the Keeper turns her attention back to Damian, smiling once again.

"As I was saying, yeah, I've brought you all here for a reason! And there's a reason why I chose the people in this room, too! You see, a LOT of you guys are keeping some pretty big secrets from everyone else!" Henderson notices Miss Forger tensing up, along with many of the adults in the room. "I'm gonna reveal the secrets that are hidden away, in a way that'll be fun, and easily digestible! And everyone in this room is gonna be affected by what's gonna be revealed, trust me on that, kid! Now, I'm sure many of you are curious about WHY I'm revealing all these secrets, right? Well, I'll give you that answer as well, free of charge!" The Keeper looks around the room, pausing for no discernible reason before continuing, this time with a far more serious demeanor. "...You see, a lot of these secrets are very important. The kinds of things that people would fight over. The way I see it, all these secrets are gonna end up coming out eventually. But it'll take so long, that relations between people will be irreversibly damaged by the reveals. So, I'm forcing them out early in a lighthearted setting. Yeah, it's still gonna suck, but it's better than the alternative. At least this way, I'm pretty sure it won't lead to lifelong enemies... Or, I guess not as MANY lifelong enemies."

As the weight of her words is being absorbed, the Keeper looks around the room again, eventually pointing towards Mr. Forger, whose expression reflects the grim atmosphere the room has been plunged into. "How long is this going to take? You DO plan to release us after the viewings are done, right? And if this is going to take a long time, are you prepared to provide food, water, and private quarters for all of us? Because from what I can tell thus far, you do care about all of us for some unknown reason, so it stands to reason that you will take care of us, right?"

As he finishes speaking, the young woman at the front of the room snaps her fingers as her expression lights up. "Oh yeah! I forgot to mention that! Yeah, this might take a while! In THEORY, you guys could be out of here in a little more than half a day, but I think this experience should be extended to multiple days! And before any of you stoic types start complaining about me wasting your time, remember that there are children here! Also, you're going to need time to unpack the things you're all learning about each other! Trust me on that... But anyway, yeah, I'm fully equipped to keep you all in good health and very comfortable during your stay! Whenever you all want to eat, I can open the doors to the dining area! Whenever you all want a break, I can open the doors to the personal quarters and recreational rooms! If there are any other things you guys need, feel free to ask, and I'll add them in!"

Seemingly satisfied with the answer that the Keeper has given, Mr. Forger nods his head. Looking around once more, the Keeper finally points towards Henry, and he clears his throat before speaking. "Miss Keeper... What did you mean by that? When you said that you would 'add them in.' As far as I am aware, would that not be far too much effort for the short period that we are to be here?" The woman's smile grows even wider as she listens to him, and when he finishes, she claps her hands excitedly.

"Okay, so to answer that, I've been given a gift by a colleague that'll help me handle any of your needs while I'm still new at this! After all, every theater keeper needs to be able to have control over what goes on in the theater! So, until I've gotten the hang of controlling the theater, I've got something to help me out! So, anymore questions?" She looks around, waiting for a full minute to see if anyone was going to suddenly put up their hand. After nobody does, she claps her hands once more.

"Alright, then if that's so, then everyone find your seats! A few ground rules before we begin! First off, don't try to hurt me, it won't work and you'll embarrass yourself! Second, don't try to hurt each other to an excessive degree! That means no stabbing, no slicing, no shooting, no stomping, no killing, no arresting! Punches are fine, but only one punch per person per thing that makes you wanna punch someone! However, if you can justify it, then it's possible I will grant exceptions to the one-punch rule! Third, be careful not to hurt yourselves by accident! Because there are children in the room, I will leave it at that! Is that all clear?"

Henry nods his head, as does everyone else. Seeing the agreement, the Keeper continues. "Well then, just so you all know, you're free to discuss the things you're watching at will. The screen will pause whenever one of you starts talking, completely autonomously! So feel free to say anything you want to say, got it?" As everyone nods their heads, she thinks for a moment before continuing. "Actually, for the first viewing session, I have a specific request for seating." She waves one of her hands, and- Is the theater extending!? How!? Sure enough, before his eyes, and to the shock of everyone in the theater, the room widens, and a separate section of seats pops up in the new space. "I'd like to request that the children sit in this separate set of seats until the end of the first viewing session, okay? I've got a feeling that people are going to be pretty up-in-arms to start off, and children shouldn't be caught in the crossfire. So, could all children please make your way over to the separate seats, while all the adults in the room, please find your seats in the main seating area."

It takes a few seconds, but the old housemaster manages to shake off the shock of seeing what looked like magic, and finds a seat in the second row. As he makes himself comfortable, he notices the children have yet to move. "Come now students. As confusing as this situation is, I'm sure you are all aware that it would be best to go along with what has been requested of us." As they begin to move, his attention is drawn to the sound of someone taking the seat on his right, and he turns to find the scarred SSS man from earlier sitting roughly, a scowl on his face.

"Excuse me, but do you mind if I take this seat?" Looking left, Henry finds Martha gesturing towards the end seat on his left. Gesturing for her to go ahead, she takes her seat with far more elegance than the Lieutenant. Idly observing the rest of the adults, Henry notices the silver-haired lady sitting on the opposite side of the Lieutenant, and the seat on her right remains empty. In the front row, Mr. Forger sits ahead of her, with Mrs. Forger on his left, and the curly-haired man on his right. The loud man who was hugging Mrs. Forger earlier sits beside her (and in front of Henry, the housemaster laments internally), and on the end in front of Martha sits a woman with magenta hair and casual clothing.

"Alright! With everyone seated, I'll get the show going!" The Keeper runs up the aisle of the theater to the back, and sits down at a single chair separated from all the others, next to a very sleek, compact projector. With the press of a button and the twist of a knob, the screen lights up and the theater dims, signaling the beginning of the first viewing.

Chapter Text

The camera opens to a sunny day, overlooking a highway as traffic moves along steadily. A voice speaks up. "How much longer to the embassy?"

Loid Forger's eyes narrow. I recognize that voice. That's the voice of one of the Westalian diplomats, one who died in a car accident. His gaze flicks to Franky, who seems to have caught the same thing, although his eyes have widened instead.

The perspective shifts to focus on a single black car as another person responds. "I believe it'll be around 20 minutes, sir."

"Hey, who are these people? I thought we were going to be seeing something that was important to all of us?" Becky's voice fills the room as the viewing pauses.

Franky's the first person to respond to the child. "Oh, that first guy's a Westalian diplomat. I remember seeing them on tv a few years back, and listening to some negotiations between our countries. I'm pretty sure they died in a car crash though..."

"...Huh?" The view jumps to look inside the vehicle through the windshield, where the driver looks rather shocked. "The brake's not working." As he presses the pedal several times, the diplomat in the backseat grows concerned.

"Hey, you! Up front! Look up front!" He jumps from his seat to shake the driver, concern escalating to panic in a matter of seconds. A loud smashing noise is heard, as the view shakes before shifting to reveal the car having crashed through the barrier wall of the highway, falling several stories down onto a lower street, and being consumed in a ball of fire.

Several gasps fill the theater as the shock of what they were exposed to in the first few seconds of the viewing settles in. Mr. Henderson turns in his seat to look at the girl sitting with the projector, an expression of only minor tension on her face. "Miss Keeper, this cannot be something you would show in front of children!"

As the audience turns to her, she looks towards Henry, answering him immediately. "I know it's a bit much, but it needs to be seen. Backstory explanations are important for understanding the context of certain actions."

The housemaster struggles to refute her words, eventually accepting them and turning to look at the children, who all seem to be in various states of horror. Hopefully, this level of violence is not a consistent trait to these viewings. The students shouldn't have to deal with this sight at their age.

"One of our diplomats perished in a car accident in Ostania."

The Lieutenant raises a brow at that narration. This person is from Westalis? That's an interesting thing to note, considering all members of this audience are Ostanian... Unless there are spies in this room. That would certainly explain why the Keeper forbade any arrests in the theater.

The screen fades to black from the explosion, before cutting to the WISE symbol. Next, it cuts back to reveal a dimly lit room, focused on a long table where a variety of people sit. The one on the end is completely enshrouded in darkness. "But we believe it to be an assassination by the East's far-right political party. They are plotting a war against our nation of Westalis."

"Hey, Desmond. Isn't your dad the leader of the National Unity Party? Have you heard anything about that?" Damian turns his head to look at Bill Watkins, who was leaning over his seat with a curious expression on his face.

Damian shakes his head. "Nope, I haven't heard a thing about planning a war. Why, did you expect my father to share his plans with me when I have to focus on my studies?" Seeing Bill shrug, Damian scoffs before turning back to the front. He notices Anya turned around in her seat staring at him. "What do you want, Forger?"

She quickly turns to face forwards again, leaving his question hanging in the air. Why's she being weird again?

The focus shifts to a glass of water, behind which sits a map of the two nations, Westalis and Ostania. The voice continues speaking. "We must do everything we can to figure out their plan." The camera shows one side of the table, where a man speaks up.

"Let's let him take care of it. The best agent we have. 'Twilight'."

Yuri tenses in his seat. He can see Chloe glace towards him, blinking rapid patterns he quickly recognizes as a code. No rash decisions. We need to focus on memorizing everything we see here. He returns a quick wink, to show he got the message. Twilight... Finally, we'll be getting solid information on our greatest enemy. Hopefully, we'll get more than that, and be able to dismantle his entire organization.

Jumping perspectives, the focus falls onto another black car, this one parked in a back alley as two men face one another. One hands a folder to the other, who pulls out photos of a man whose toupee had shifted quite far on his head. "Here's the goods I promised. Proof that the foreign minister wears a toupee. I even have the negatives." The folder lowers, showing the man tossing a capsule to the other, who catches it.

Loid stares at the screen, his outward appearance one of perfect calm and minor interest. On the inside, however, his mind is racing. This is bad. There are at least two members of the SSS in this room, potentially three, as well as a professor at Eden and my wife. I can't have this screen revealing my identity, it would be the end of Operation Strix! But trying to distract everyone from it isn't an option, because the video stops whenever someone does something! I'm completely trapped here!

While he panics, he hears a quiet "Are you okay, Anya?" Glancing over at the children's section of the theater, he spots his daughter holding her head, swaying in her seat as Becky fusses over her. Right, Anya doesn't handle large crowds very well. But this can't possibly be more people than are in her class, how is she getting so overwhelmed here? Maybe she's overwhelmed during classes too, and that's why all her test scores are so low?

"Well done. Now we can force him to resign." The second man holds up the folder with a smirk on his face, before turning to leave, waving. "I look forward to doing business with you again." As he drives off, the supplier tugs down the brim of his hat and turns away, only to be greeted by the same person.

"Hey. How about you hand over the goods now?" The camera pans backwards, away from his outstretched hand to the supplier, who stands dumbfounded.

"Huh? Wha- But you just-" Turning back to the direction the car drove away in, he runs a hand down his face, groaning. "He got me!"

Yor smiles at the sound of laughter from the children. "Boy, that guy really looked silly, right bossman?" I'm glad the kids are able to enjoy themselves a little, despite the circumstances.

The view cuts to the black car as it drives, and the driver raises a hand up to his face, a ripping sound heard as a voice speaks up. "Code name: Twilight." Jumping to the inside of the vehicle, Twilight finishes removing the mask, shaking his hair back into shape as he discards the disguise into the backseat. "A spy."

The screen pauses the viewing, even though the theater remains silent. However, the minds of the people in the room form a cacophonous roar in Anya's head.

Huh? Loid? He's on the screen? But...

I KNEW IT! I KNEW LOIDY WAS TWILIGHT! Stay calm, stay calm, I can arrest him later! For now, just keep watching! With a full list of his actions, I'll be able to have him executed for sure!

Oh man, if Twilight's compromised, then chances are, I'm gonna be compromised too! Damn it, damn it! What do I do!?

Huh? Forger's pops is a Westalian spy!?

"Loid's a spy!? Oh my god, you're literally living in an episode of Berlint in Love, Anya!"

Anya blinks at that last one, turning to the side as Becky looks between her and Twilight. "Um... Yeah. I guess so, Becky."

As if that was a dart thrown at a balloon, Becky and Anya's comments open the floodgates to the rest of the room, and it quickly grows just as loud in the theater as it is in Anya's head.

"Mr. Forger, what is the meaning of this!?"

"Yuri, your sister married TWILIGHT!?"

"THAT'S WHAT YOU'RE THINKING ABOUT, BLACKBELL!?"

"I knew there was something suspicious about you, Loidy!"

Twilight glances over at Yor, who was now giving him a dark look. If he had worse training as a spy, he'd probably feel a bead of sweat rolling down the side of his head. "Yor, please try not to jump to conclusions. I promise that everything I've done as a spy has been for the benefit of both our nations."

The woman's gaze flicks between her husband and child a few times, her expression now tinged with a great amount of uncertainty. "...Are you sure?"

He nods his head vehemently, though he notices that Yor's expression remains just as conflicted as before. Anya jumps out of her seat and starts running over. "Mama, don't be mad at Papa! He's a goo-GACK!" As she reaches the stairway between the adult and child seating areas, she bounces off an invisible barrier, falling backwards onto the floor.

"Anya! Are you okay!?" Becky leaves her seat as well, to help her friend off the ground. Once she's back on her feet, the pink-haired girl holds out a hand to press against the unseen wall between the two sections of seats. As she begins putting her full force into pushing against it, Becky also gives the air a shove, finding it solid. "What the heck? What is this?"

The sight of their daughter being hurt immediately takes precedence for the Forgers, and they both stand from their seats and approach the dividing line. The spy's attentive eyes instantly note the red mark on Anya's face, while also the pressure against the palms of the two children as they push the air. He reaches out his own hand and his fingers brush against the barrier. A transparent wall? But when did it get here? The children were able to pass through this area without issue before... He crouches down to the level of the students, concern apparent on his face. "Anya, are you alright? Can you breathe properly?"

The little girl smiles at him, nodding her head. "Yes Papa! I'm fine!" He breathes a sigh of relief at the knowledge that she's safe. "This is pretty cool, right Papa? It's like magic!" Twilight stares at Anya's bright grin, raising a brow.

"I suppose it does seem rather magical. But are you sure you're fine?"

"Yes Papa! Ab-so-loot-ly!"

Feeling a tap on his shoulder, Twilight turns his head to look at Yor, who had raised up a fist and a determined expression on her face. "Excuse me Loi- Twili- Loid. Could you step aside please? Just for a moment." She steps up to the unseen wall, winds back a fist, and brings it forward in a lightning-fast punch.

A spiderweb of cracks emanates through the air surrounding her fist. "HOLY CRA- COW! HOW DID YOU-" The Forgers turn to the Keeper, who jolts from her seat, an expression of pure shock on her face. "DON'T DO THAT PLEASE! THAT BARRIER IS THERE FOR SAFETY REASONS!"

Twilight stands up to face the Keeper, noting that the cracks were slowly shrinking already. "What do you mean 'safety?' Is it really so dangerous for us to be able to reach our daughter? As far as I am aware, you've already taken away any weapons that we had, right?"

The girl shifts her weight uncomfortably. "Well- Yeah, I've taken away all your weapons. But a lot of you guys are still super dangerous, even without weapons! It's a safety precaution! So... So don't try breaking it again! Like I said, this setup is temporary! Once the biggest reveals are out of the way, I'll merge the seating areas, but for now, just accept that it's gonna be there! If you try breaking it again, I'll put you in air timeout, got it!?"

The Forgers stare at the Keeper, struggling to decipher the meaning behind the threat. Eventually, the girl sighs. "Just... Everyone back to your seats, okay? We've only watched a minute of this!" With no argument to be made, the audience settles back into their seats to continue.

Twilight flicks out a pair of glasses as he drives, sliding them onto his face and parting his hair slightly to one side. "In an era in which the nations of the world were waging a fierce war of information just out of sight, this man survived that battlefield by being a master of disguise, a man with a hundred faces."

The scene cuts to a late-night view of a statue next to a canal, and then to the inside of a restaurant, where a woman begins speaking as the camera slowly pans to look at her. "So Daddy's been in such a bad mood lately because someone stole his toupee pictures, or something. What even? Ugh, I'm so mad."

Emile stares at the woman for a few seconds, before turning to the adult section of the theater. "And who's this? She's not gonna be someone important who dies too, right?" Twilight glances over at the children, who all seem to be expecting him to answer Emile's question. With a sigh, he complies.

"No, she's not dead, as far as I'm aware. Her name is Karen, and she's the daughter of the man I was impersonating. That's all."

"Hello? Are you even listening, Robert?" The view changes to show Twilight eating across from her.

"Hm? Yes, that's rather unfortunate."

As Karen stares at him, a smattering of applause fills the restaurant from her right side, and she turns to find a man proposing to his girlfriend. Resting her chin on her hands, a small smile graces her features as a thought enters her mind. "So, Robert... Do you think one day we'll also-"

"Karen, let's break up."

"What?!"

"I'm afraid I can't sense any intelligence in your conversations." Wiping his mouth, Twilight stands up to leave. "Farewell. May you find happiness."

Chloe gives Twilight a disapproving look. "Hey, I get that you have a job and all, but couldn't you at least let her down gently? That was mean."

Franky, who had been snickering at the scene, is the one to respond. "I mean, was he wrong though? She certainly didn't sound very smart, I'll say that much."

Ewen snorts out a laugh as he tags into the discussion. "Ha, true! There's more substance to a talk with Stubby Legs than her! At least she understands how special space travel is!" He chuckles to himself, before receiving a strong hit on the head from Anya. "Ow! Hey!"

Anya points at the Keeper, a smug smile on her face. "She said we get one punch per thing that makes us wanna punch someone."

Chloe hears Twilight sigh as the kids begin to bicker, though they quiet down when the old man in the second row clears his throat. "Remember, students, that even in a situation such as this, one should try to remain elegant."

Hey, Robert! Wait! You can't just do that to me! Robert!" Standing up in indignation, Karen's yelling draws the attention of the proposing couple and their friends as Twilight leaves the building.

The camera cuts to Twilight walking down an alley, inspecting the photos in the folder he was given. Sorry, Karen, but I have no further use for your family.

Twilight coughs as he turns to the Keeper. "We're going to be listening to my thoughts? But that could reveal information that could damage the relations between our nations, from both sides."

She simply shrugs her shoulders. "I didn't make this film, Twi-guy. But, if it's any consolation, I'll put it out there that we're going to hear the thoughts of more people than just you. Thoughts are very important to the story being told here. And everyone here wants peace between Westalis and Ostania, so it's in everyone's best interests to keep quiet about some of the things they see here."

As everyone accepts the Keeper's explanation, something about what she said catches Damian's attention. ...Thoughts are important to the story? Why? Do our internal thoughts matter more than our outside actions? I guess with a spy, that's probably a given, but that feels like a more significant statement...

Slipping the photos back into the folder, Twilight pulls off the glasses he's wearing. As of tonight, I'm also done with the mask known as Robert. As he passes through the alley, he discards the photos and glasses into a barrel fire, and shoves his hands into his pockets.

Marriage? Conventional happiness? I got rid of those aspirations, as well as my identity, the day I became a spy.

"What!? That's so sad though!" Becky stands up on her seat to face Twilight, and make herself more noticeable. "How can you say that? Besides, you're married right now, and you have Anya!"

Yor thinks for a minute, before tapping her husband on the shoulder. "That first wife you had? Was she a woman you seduced in one of your past missions?"

The spy descends into a coughing fit from the surprise of that question, shaking his head while he regains the ability to talk. "N-No. She was not someone I seduced during a mission. And to answer your question Becky, spies aren't expected to live in one place long enough to ever have the opportunity to form a real relationship with someone. Honestly, we're not expected to survive long enough to raise a child at all, which is part of why most of us don't even try."

The scene changes again, to the middle of the day in a train station. An old man reads a newspaper on a bench while Twilight walks up to the bench with a suitcase, coffee, and newspaper of his own, tucked under his arm. When he reaches the bench, the old man closes up his paper and folds it. Meanwhile, as he's setting down his suitcase, Twilight's own paper falls out from under his arm. Catching it and placing it down on the bench, the old man places his own on top. Switching papers, the man stands up, and begins to walk away. "Meow."

Damian raises a brow at the weird noise. "Meow? Is... that a thing you spies do? Identification of some kind?" Twilight hesitates to answer, especially with the SSS in the room, but eventually relents.

"I suppose that if my thoughts are going to be on display, I won't be able to hide this information anyway... It's a signal to help identify what cipher is in use when a secret message is being handed off."

As the child acknowledges the statement, the Lieutenant pulls out a notebook, prepared to take notes on how WISE ciphers work.

Twilight raises the swapped newspaper to eye level. Must be Cipher C.

A voice comes over the loudspeakers of the station. "The train bound for Berlint is now departing from track 5."

The perspective shifts to the opened newspaper, as certain letters on the page are picked out, and Twilight begins to decipher the message. Good day, or perhaps, good evening, Twilight. Shifting the view to the side, it's revealed that Twilight is on the train as he reads. Well done on your last mission. Thanks to you, the minister lived another day, to the great benefit of our country. Now, then, I have your next mission.

Emile raises a hand. "Hey, I've had a question for a little while. Why does it matter so much whether or not the minister wears a toupee? It's not ACTUALLY a matter of life or death, right?"

I'm going to be answering a lot of questions today, aren't I? Twilight takes a deep breath. "The toupee itself doesn't actually matter much. The problem is how people will try to twist anything to fit a political view. The world is full of a lot of people who are just as intelligent as Karen, and are likely to believe anything they read without question. So, if one person manages to point out 'hey, this minister wears a toupee, isn't that essentially LYING to us? What else might he be lying about?' Then a lot of people are going to get very mad over nothing. And once it reaches that point, then it DOES become a matter of life or death, because extremists will latch onto any possible opportunity to spread the influence of their cause. I know it seems ridiculous in this specific example, but these things do happen. So I encourage you kids to do some research whenever you hear something, okay?"

Well said, Mr. Forger. Warning the students about the dangers of being ill-informed in such a way was quite elegant. Being able to think for oneself is a key step in achieving peace. Mr. Henderson smiles as he watches the children nod in response to Twilight's words, happy to see them absorb the valuable lesson.

Closing the paper to look at the rear face of it, Twilight continues with the message. Your target is the leader of the National Unity Party, Donovan Desmond. A photo of the man is present on the page as he reads.

"Wait, my dad!? You're not going to hurt him, are you!?" The news shocks Damian, and he looks at the spy, nervous about the answer.

Twilight smiles at the boy and shakes his head. "No need to worry, Damian. I'm not an assassin. Collecting information is my primary job. I only use violence when it's absolutely necessary, and I try not to kill if I can avoid it."

Anya glances at her mother for a moment. Hopefully Mama won't have to kill him. That would make it very hard for Papa to do his job...

Was that it, then? When I faced Twilight and he was disguised as me, he had the chance to kill me easily. His gun was lined up with my face, but he didn't take the shot. Instead, he let me shoot him in the arm, disarmed me, and beat me until I was unconscious. But the higher-ups have been telling us about how dangerous Twilight is, and how he's a heartless monster of the West... While Yuri muses over his encounter with the spy, Yor worries about something else.

Oh no, the Keeper said that the thoughts of multiple people would be shown, and that a lot of secrets would be revealed! If this reveals my job, and how awful some of my thoughts are, the kids will be completely traumatized! And Yuri will be so disappointed in me for my job! He might even hate me for killing people!

As he reads, Twilight takes a sip from his coffee, the perfect image of the average commuter on the train. He is a great threat to the truce between the East and the West. Your mission is to get close to him and probe any seditious activities. In order to achieve this, you will get married and have a child. Immediately, the mouthful of coffee is spat back out, and all over the newspaper.

"Sorry, what?!"

While Chloe, Martha, and the majority of the children chuckle at Twilight's surprise, and the strangeness of his mission, Damian thinks to himself. ...Get close to my father, huh? That one time after the bus hijacking, when I called her my friend, didn't Forger say that I should invite her and her pops over to my house and introduce him to my father, and talk about world peace? That's a hyper-simplification of this mission, isn't it? But he wouldn't just share his mission with a child, would he? That seems like a major slip-up for a spy.

Desmond is an extremely cautious man who rarely appears in public. He only appears at social gatherings held at the elite private school his son attends. A visualization of the gates to Eden is shown on screen as the camera pans inwards through the gates and up to look at the building. These events are informal get-togethers for the upper echelon of industrial and political leaders. You will have your child enroll in this school and infiltrate one of the social gatherings. The enrollment deadline is drawing near, meaning you have one week to pull this off.

Gripping the paper tight, Twilight rips it in half, an intense expression of annoyance and distaste on his face. "You expect me to produce a child in seven days?!" The camera cuts to show the entire train cabin staring at him for his outburst. Realizing this, Twilight clears his throat. "Please excuse me."

Once again, the children are sent into bouts of giggling at the silly actions of the Twilight. The Lieutenant sighs. "I'm sorry, the man I've spent a large part of my career hunting down acts like this in public? How are you the greatest spy in Westalis?"

Twilight coughs into his fist to alleviate some of the awkward air (as well as his own embarrassment) before answering. "I normally hold myself together better than that. Personally, I think you would react in much the same manner if your own employer told you to get married and have a kid in a week, correct?"

The Lieutenant pauses to think about that for a moment. "...Eh, I guess you're right about that. I'd be pretty shocked too."

As he turns back to the screen, Twilight hears Yor whisper a question. "There was no first wife, was there?" He subtly shakes his head in response, and Yor sighs. "A whole year spent in the shadow of a woman who never existed, worried I wasn't good enough... At least that weight's off my shoulders now. So where did you get Anya from, then?"

He leans towards her slightly to respond. "I found her in an orphanage. She completed an extremely difficult crossword puzzle to prove her intelligence to me... Much harder than her homework, now that I think about it."

"Did Anya know you were a spy?" He shakes his head again. "I'm glad you didn't tell her. She likes spies so much, she might try to follow you on one of your missions, and get hurt."

Operation Strix. This operation is the key to maintaining peace between East and West... and perhaps, the world. Hero who casts no shadow, the great deeds you and your fellow agents do shall never see the light of day. You will never earn any medals nor make it into the papers. Even so... Never forget that everyone else's day-to-day lives are possible because of your blood, sweat, and tears. A family sitting across the aisle from Twilight is shown, happily taking in the view from the window of the train.

Yuri feels the words in his mouth. "Operation Strix... Weird choice for a name. I think I remember seeing it in the scientific names for several owls."

Becky stands up to shout across the theater again. "Do they say that in every single mission briefing you get? Because that's really sad to hear. People should know how much they owe you!"

Twilight shakes his head. "No, they only say that for particularly daunting missions. A reminder of what we fight for. Peace."

Martha smiles as she faces the young girl. "It's quite noble of you to believe that he deserves recognition, Madam. However, being recognized would be detrimental to his work, would it not?"

Becky hums dejectedly, sitting down again. "I guess you're right... But it's still sad."

"Well, congratulations, kid!" Franky shouts from his seat at the far side of the theater. "Now you're one of the few people out there who CAN give thanks to Twilight for his actions! So pay attention, and take it all in!" He gives her a thumbs-up that she quickly returns, before setting her focus back on the screen.

Damian, meanwhile, watches with interest. It's certainly an intense song and dance to go through. Was Forger struggling so much with school that her pops had to actually tell her about his mission? As he thinks that, he pauses, a frown crossing his face. ...A dance... What was it Forger said during our dance? Recalling the scene in his head, an idea comes to Damian. His eyes flick to the seat in front of him. Hey, Forger. You can hear this, can't you?

Anya's head flicks around, and she stares him in the eye, a shocked expression on her face. Seems like you can. The way you said it during our dance, I imagine this is a pretty big secret for you, right? Damian watches as her eyes flick to look at the others around them, before giving a small, almost imperceptible nod. I see. Have you told anyone else about it? Anya shakes her head. Not even your pops? She shakes her head again.

"Hey, why're you staring at the Bossman like that, Forger?" As Emile questions her, the pink-haired girl flinches, and her demeanor turns slightly nervous.

"...I w-wanted to know if Sy-on Boy still wants me a-as a friend..." Damian raises a brow at that, staring intensely at the mind reader.

There are layers to that question, aren't there? You're afraid I'll hate you for both reading my mind, and for having ulterior motives for hanging out with me. Ewen decides to chime into the conversation. "What, because your dad's a Westalian spy?"

As Anya nods her head, Damian shrugs. "Does it matter if her dad's a spy? He wants to stop a war, and he said he doesn't want to hurt Father." He sits silently for a few seconds, before realizing that Anya didn't stop looking at him. Face forward again, moron! You'll look suspicious if you keep staring!

With the mental prodding, Anya finally turns around again. Looking back at the screen, Damian hesitates for a moment, careful with his thoughts now that he knows Anya can hear them. Eventually, he gives her a last message. Thanks for telling me, I guess. I want to discuss this more once we have a break though, okay? Seeing her nod, he returns his full attention to the viewing.

Very well. I abandoned my identity when I became Twilight. I will play the part of a father with a child if I must, for the sake of a better world. As Twilight thinks this, the camera switches to a birds-eye view, tracing the railway as it leads to Berlint on the horizon.

The next scene shows the inside of an apartment. "This is one of our single-family apartments." A salesman speaks as Twilight shifts around the apartment, closely inspecting every inch of the room. "The unit comes furnished, includes central air conditioning and heating, and... Um... Sir?"

No wiretaps detected, and there are securable escape routes. Turning back to face the salesman, Twilight adopts a pleasant smile. "I'll take it."

Yuri stares at the absurd actions of Twilight before turning to the man. "I'm with the officer on this, actually. How the hell are you the best agent Westalis has!? You aren't even hiding your search!"

Fiona glares at the back of Yuri's head. As if you're one to talk! Twilight figured out your job in a single conversation with you!

The Lieutenant glances at the woman sitting next to him, noting her anger and where her eyes are pointed. I think we have a second spy in this room, actually.

From the children's side of the theater, Anya listens to all these thoughts with an unimpressed expression. These people are very bad liars.

"Excellent, Mr. Forger. Now, if you'd sign these documents..."

Twilight sits down on the couch of the apartment, and begins to sign. Loid Forger. Occupation: Psychiatrist. That's my new life. With a family I love and a happy home life...

The perspective shifts to a view of the street outside the apartment. "How nice that you and your family are moving into a new home. Do you have a boy or a girl?"

"Ah, well... I'll be deciding on that soon."

"Huh?"

At that, Franky slams a fist down onto his armrest. "Okay, actually though! How bad of a spy are you!? Do you have any idea how suspicious of a thing that is to say!?"

While the adults descend into further bickering, Becky pokes Anya's arm. "Hey, Anya. I just realized, that's not your house. That's not even your street. What's going on here?"

"Oh, I did live there first! But only for a day or two." Those words caught the attention of the rest of the children.

Bill speaks up first. "What? Only two days? Why would you move so shortly after buying the house? That's a massive waste of money."

Anya's eyes light up as she opens her mouth to respond, only for a black bar to appear over her mouth, the word 'censored' across it. "Sorry kids, but we can't have spoilers. It breaks the order of reveals, and can seriously change the impact of some things!" The students jump at the proximity of the voice, and turn to see the Keeper standing right behind their collection of seats.

Emile points at the black bar covering Anya's mouth. "Seriously, how are you doing that!? is it some kind of secret device?"

The girl smirks at them putting a hand up to cover her mouth on the side of the adults. "Nah, it's actually the magic of the theater. So long as we're in this place, I can do stuff like that. Every keeper of a theater has magic, but the way each keeper's magic works changes to suit the keeper. Using this as an example, I've seen other keepers avoid spoilers in a variety of ways. One made a person cough up bubbles whenever someone tried to say something, another just left the person with all the secrets in a coma for the entire viewing."

Ewen stares in amazement. "That's awesome! So you can just cause things to happen because you want them to happen!?"

As the Keeper nods, the black bar finally vanishes, and Anya holds up her hand. "Can you make peanuts appear for me?"

"...Kid, we're only five minutes into this episode. Are you really hungry already?"

"When you took us all away from home, Papa was just about to cook dinner."

The Keeper stares at Anya for a few seconds before shrugging. "Fair enough. Yeah, I can get you some peanuts." She snaps her fingers, and a bag of peanuts appears in Anya's lap.

Emile watches in awe at the sight. "That's such a cool power! It must be super handy when you're hungry!"

"Oh, yeah. Absolutely. For now though, we should get back to the viewing. I'm sure the higher-ups are already gonna be mad enough at me for talking to you guys this much." Spinning on her heel, the Keeper returns back to her seat. She waits for about ten seconds for the adults to stop arguing about Twilight's skill level, before clearing her throat loudly. "AHEM. You guys can discuss Twi-Guy's skills later. Right now, you should keep watching. I'm sure you all would like to make some actual progress in the viewings."

Seeing the logic in her words, the room falls quiet again.

What an absolute burden for a spy. A doorbell rings, before the scene changes to a door with cracked glass opening, revealing a very drunk man behind it.

Anya's eyes widen at the familiar scene. This is where Papa found me!

"Huh? You wanna adopt?" The perspective shifts backwards revealing Twilight standing on the doorstep of a very poorly maintained orphanage.

"Indeed. I heard that your orphanage was looking for candidates. You see, my wife and I-"

The drunkard cuts off Twilight quickly. "Yeah, sure. Take whichever one you want. Come on in." The spy's expression quickly changes from friendly to slightly surprised as the man turns around and walks away from the front door.

Following the owner inside, Twilight glances around the hallway at the children surrounding him, all wearing dirty, patched-up clothes. What a terrible environment. But the shadier the establishment, the more likely these children have complicated pasts, so it'll be easier to alter their stories.

The camera follows the Westalian as he passes through, sticking out from the filthy environment with his perfectly kept appearance. I can make this mission work if I have a child. I would've preferred to handle it all on my own, but I can't exactly disguise myself as a child, no matter how skilled a spy I am. As Twilight finishes his thought, the focus changes to a stuffed chimera laying on the floor, and a small hand that pauses in the middle of reaching for it, the air around the arm sparkling slightly.

Anya tenses up as she realizes that her own secret's going to be revealed soon. She raises her legs up from the floor to press against her chest as she curls up.

Poor Anya, she must have bad memories of this place! Anya feels Becky pat her shoulder reassuringly.

What a terrible man. How can he drink so irresponsibly while watching over children? Martha's thoughts flow through the telepath's head.

...I need to convince the Lieutenant to run an investigation into this place, so we can arrest that man and get those children relocated to better orphanages. Harsh conditions like that are likely to breed criminals, and Ostania doesn't need more of those. Yuri's surprisingly thoughtful worry washes over the child.

You probably heard that commentary, didn't you Forger? Anya gives a tiny nod in response to Damian. ...So the sparkles represent your powers, then. Good to know.

The boy then speaks up verbally. "Hey, Pops! Are you sure you couldn't pull off that disguise? Have you seen the kid sitting behind me?" A few chuckles are raised by that comment as the video continues.

The view returns to the hallway. "Pardon me. If possible, I'd like a child who can read and write."

The drunkard turns back to look at Twilight. "Well, in that case... Hey, Anya." The perspective changes to reveal a pink-haired child kneeling on the floor with the chimera plush now in her hands. "She's the smartest one we've got. She don't talk much, but she's a good kid."

Anya's grip on her peanuts tightens as she looks at herself. They showed Papa's thoughts earlier... That means that my thoughts will be shown too! My secret...

Her friend's thoughts drift through the air. Is she okay? Her hands are trembling... Anya turns to Becky as the girl grabs one of her hands, giving a reassuring squeeze with a soft smile on her face.

The view shifts to focus on the owner once again. She's a creepy, disgusting little brat. I'd be thrilled to get her outta my hair. "Go on, say hello."

"She's not creepy or disgusting at all! She's my DAUGHTER!" Yor's grip on her armrests tightens, and the wood begins to cave beneath her strength.

The young girl stands up to face Twilight as he approaches. "Er... Pardon me." A strange twinkling chime fills the air the moment the spy begins to think. If I recall, the earliest age students can enter Eden College is six. She definitely looks no older than four or five.

The child suddenly begins speaking. "Six. I'm six!"

Twilight stares at her, a surprised look on his face as the drunkard idly comments. "You're six years old?"

With the scene replaying in front of him again, Twilight muses on it. "I've always said that Anya's strangely perceptive. I don't remember seeing any sparkles in the air or hearing that sound, though."

He glances over at his daughter, and is surprised to see her pushing herself out of her seat and starting to pace around the front of the children's seating area. Does she have so much trauma from this orphanage that she's uncomfortable even seeing it again?

But she's so small... When Twilight thinks this, the camera pans down towards Anya's legs as she raises herself up onto her toes.

"I've noticed the same in classes, Mr. Forger. This certainly does take the cake for perceptiveness, though." Mr. Henderson watches his student on the screen, curious about her true origins. Perceptive doesn't exactly do it justice. I've seen this child dance through conversations like an elegant ballerina at times, and then brute force her way through them like a bull at others.

As Anya returns her heels to the ground, she turns to the table standing next to her, picking up a newspaper from the surface. Hm? The paper? She holds it up in front of the two adults, the empty crossword on full display.

Yor glances over at her husband. "Is that the crossword you mentioned her completing with no trouble?" The man nods his head silently, curious to watch the interaction again with an outside perspective.

A crossword puzzle? That's probably too difficult for a child. As Anya sits down at the table with a pencil in hand, Twilight walks over to watch her attempt the puzzle. Of course, for myself, it's mere child's play.

Becky stares at her friend, the worry only growing in her mind. "Anya, what's going on? You're so sweaty!" She climbs out of her seat to follow after Anya.

The pink-haired girl turns to her, an anxious expression adorning her features. "Oh, um, nothing! I just... I just... don't like this place! Nuh-uh!" She shakes her head profusely. "I-It's a bad place! I don't wanna ever go back! It's... uh... it's got... bugs, and... the floor creaks! Um, and it also, it also, i-it's got mold an' stuff! Yeah! Bad place, I don't wanna even look at it! Nope! N-Not at all! It's the-"

Becky jumps as her friend suddenly whips around, turning to look at... ...Desmond? Is she looking for comfort from her crush right now? Anya stands completely still for a few seconds, before she speed-walks over to Damian, grabbing his arm and pulling him out of his seat.

"Wha-HEY! Forger, let go of me!" Despite his protests, Becky notices that Damian's not putting up any actual resistance as Anya drags him out of his row, over to the wall of the room where she leans against it, her eyes tracing the movement of the other children.

The twinkling noise fills the air again as Anya begins. One down is 'Homeostasis.' One across is 'casual closure.' The one below that is 'symplectomorphism.' Placing down her pencil, Anya picks up the paper and turns it to face Twilight again, all the spaces filled in correctly. She completed it? Seriously? Such unbelievable intellect. She should have no problem passing the entrance exam. Turning to the owner, Twilight gestures towards the girl with an open hand. "I'll take her."

Well played, Forger. You certainly made good use of your powers. The young Desmond turns to look at the girl clinging to him. "How old were you then, actually? That seemed like you were lying."

Anya's eyes bore into his, flooded with terror. "Um, I think I was four? I'm five now, though."

Mr. Henderson is flabbergasted by this, and turns to Mr. and Mrs. Forger. "Were either of you aware of her actual age!?" When both of them shake their heads, the man takes a deep breath. "Your child started attending Eden College at roughly two-thirds the age of any other student, and has managed to maintain passing grades in most of her classes, even achieving the second highest grade in her age group for one of her classes. Keep in mind that our academy challenges students to a much higher level of education than other schools, and I think you can understand my surprise. The young Miss Forger seems to be a prodigy."

"Why'd you drag me over here anyway!? What's the big idea?" Damian's question hangs in the air for a few seconds before Anya tightens her grip on his wrist with one hand, while bringing the other hand up to cup around his ear.

Damian bends down slightly and tries to keep any unneeded thoughts out of his head as Anya whispers into his ear. "E-Everyone's gonna know that I c-can read minds soon! Someone might wa-wanna hurt me for it! ...You know already, and you're still nice, so you c-can help!"

What do you mean 'I can help!?' Help how!? Damian gives her a shocked look, feeling a sudden mountain of stress on his shoulders.

"As for the paperwork..."

"Don't worry about that. Just take her already." As Twilight and the owner talk, Anya puts down the paper again, collecting her stuffed chimera.

Having been told to forget the paperwork, Twilight turns back to his new daughter. My mission to end up with a child is a success. Everything's going so well that it's making me nervous. "Are you okay with this?"

As Anya nods her head, her thoughts are heard. A spy... mission... So exciting!

The voice of the narrator floods the room. "This little girl happened to be a telepath."

If the theater was quiet when Twilight's secret was revealed, then it's dead silent now. Everyone's heads swivel to face the pink-haired child as she begins to cower behind Damian. The scion himself doesn't look much more comfortable, staring at the rest of the room with wide eyes as he stands frozen in front of Anya.

Fiona stares at the girl in muted horror. Oh god, if she can read minds, that means that Twilight's mission was doomed from the start! She'd have known every single step of the way, and in her childish incompetence, probably told all her friends at school! Donovan Desmond himself could know Twilight's identity by now!

Franky's expression is pure shock. A mind reader!? That's insane! Just by walking down the street, she could collect a massive amount of intel! She's literally the perfect informant!

Yor stares at her daughter in surprise, which quickly shifts to open horror. OH GOD! NEVERMIND THE VIEWING, ANYA'S BEEN HEARING EVERY SINGLE THOUGHT I'VE HAD IN HER PRESENCE! I'M SO SORRY, ANYA!

Emile's the first person to speak up. "...Um. I've never heard that word before. What does it mean for her to be a telepath?"

It takes several seconds for anyone to gather their bearings enough to respond. In the end, it's Mr. Henderson who returns to his senses first. "...W-Well, young Mister Elman, a telepath is a concept sometimes seen in fictional stories. The basis behind it is the idea of a character being able to read the minds of others around them."

"Oh." Emile ponders over the last scene for a few moments, slotting in the new information. "...Cool! Hey Forger, does this mean that you know when school trips are coming up?"

"Uh, not cool! Not cool at all!" Ewen cuts in before Anya can even peek out from behind Damian. "It's a massive breach of privacy! You're telling me that I can never relax around her ever again, because she's listening to everything happening inside my head!?"

While the E-Boys argue over the correct way to respond to this information, Becky jumps from her seat, running over to her friend. Her proximity startles Damian from his fright, and he feebly spreads his arms wide to block her advance. Unfortunately, Becky manages to duck under his arm, rising back up and grabbing Anya by the shoulders, turning her body so she can stare the other girl directly in the eye. "Anya, how did you get the ability to read minds? You weren't born with it, were you? How does it work? Do you hear emotions as well as thoughts? Can you see dreams, or visions in other people's heads? You've gotta explain how this works when we get a break, okay!?"

Overwhelmed by her secret being dragged into the light, everyone around her thinking so much, and Becky's manhandling and interrogation of her, Anya tries her best to keep up, trembling in the grip of her friend. "Y...Yeah Becky. I-I can try... S-Sy-on Boy already asked..."

Becky pauses at those words, staring deeply into her friend's emerald eyes. "Huh? When did he ask that?"

"A-" Anya tries to look away, but Becky forces her to keep eye contact "Um, b-back when P-Papa was... still reading his o-orders on the train..." Becky blinks a few times, a confused expression on her face.

Damian pulls Becky's hands off of Anya and pushes her back slightly to give the telepath some space. Becky glares at him and dusts off her outfit."Hey! Hands off, Desmond! I don't remember you two talking about this back then at all! Heck, it was only revealed just a moment ago! How did you guys have that conversation?"

Anya shifts uncomfortably, unsure how to respond. She turns her gaze to Damian, who stares back at her, clueless on how to proceed. "H-He, um, he kn- he..."

Noticing the poor girl floundering, Damian clears his throat, grabbing Becky's attention. "I-I already knew, Blackbell."

Becky jolts at that revelation, looking between the two with surprise. "Since WHEN!? And HOW!?"

Ewen takes a quick break from his fight with Emile to chime in. "I bet that Lord Damian figured it out himself! Isn't that right, Bossman?"

Damian glances over, feeling in way over his head by this point. "Eh, kind of? Th-That's only half-right, though. Forger told me during our dance, because I thought it was weird that she knew about the incident involving Max and the pond. I literally asked her if she had read my mind, and she said yes... O-Of course, I didn't believe her at the time... b-because who would!? Yeah! It sounds insane! Crazy! I only figured out that she was telling the truth earlier when I realized that she said something to me after the bus hijacking that sounded a lot like the objective of Operation Strix! B-But yeah, I figured it out earlier!" Shut up, you idiot! You're just rambling!

Becky gasps at the reveal. "SINCE BACK THEN!? Anya, you told HIM before ME!?" Becky pouts as she accuses Anya, though it's quickly replaced with a smile again. "I mean, as much as I want to be mad at you for it, there's something so romantic about sharing your biggest secret with a guy who you trust enough to spend your life with!"

That comment causes Anya and Damian to stare at Becky on shock. They look back at one another, realizing how close they've been since Anya dragged him out of the second row. Damian tries to step away, but is stopped by Anya grabbing onto him again while she responds. "U-Um, Becky. You're egg-zad-joor-ayt-ing. A lot."

"Y-YEAH! WHERE THE HECK DID THAT IDEA COME FROM, BLACKBELL!? WHAT ROMANCE ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT!? THERE'S NOTHING GOING ON BETWEEN US!"

Damian resists slapping Anya's hand away, glaring at Becky while she stands there, smirking at the two.

"Hah! You can't hide your feelings from a mind reader, Desmond!"

While Becky and Damian start up a fight of their own, Anya reaches out with her powers, trying to find anyone who might be a threat to her now, and catches a stray thought from across the room.

...How much does she know? How much has she shared? If she told Damian about this big of a secret, and brought up a bastardized version of Operation Strix to him, then what else has she said around the other children? Furthermore, she chose to share her secret with Damian and not me. This could potentially show that she trusts him more than her own father... Anya turns her head towards Twilight, who had been staring at her silently for the entire time. As the rest of the room begins to slowly quiet down again, one last thought from Twilight reaches Anya before the viewing continues.

...How much of a danger to world peace are you, Anya?

"Test Subject 007. She possessed the ability to read people's minds. She was unintentionally created in an experiment by a certain organization, and she later fled the facility." As the narrator speaks, the view changes to Anya waving goodbye to the other orphans as she leaves with Twilight, and then transitions to the street of the apartment. She has been wandering around looking for someone to take care of her.

The words spoken by the narrator bring a sick feeling to Chloe's stomach. "...Test Subject?"

Becky looks at Anya again. "Unintentionally? How would an organization accidentally create you? How would they accidentally make a girl who can read minds?"

"If they were trying to make people with a different ability." The children look back towards Bill, who elaborates. "My daddy has told me about how many of the greatest military innovations in history stem from completely accidental inventions. It's likely the same with you, Forger." She has a big advantage in life. What I'm concerned about is what she might have heard while attending Eden with the rest of us. We all have a lot of power, and she's sitting pretty to take advantage of it using our secrets as blackmail.

The Lieutenant flips to a new page in his notebook, writing down the details of Anya's past and glaring at the words. Human experimentation cannot continue under the watch of the SSS. It's unacceptable, and my team and I WILL put a stop to it.

Anya's grip on Damian's sleeve tightens and she shifts behind him, hiding herself from Bill.

The view pans downwards towards the door of the apartment building, where father and daughter stand face to face as Twilight speaks. "Now, listen, little girl."

"Anya."

"Now, listen, Anya. Starting today, you will be my daughter, but if anyone asks, you've always been my daughter. Got it?"

"Yep."

"Make sure you address me as 'Father.'"

"Papa!"

"Very well."

Yuri smirks as he watches the interaction. It's quite entertaining to see Twilight forced to negotiate with a toddler, instead of managing to sweet-talk his way into getting what he wants.

The next scene shows Twilight and Anya standing in the stairwell outside their home, speaking with an old lady. "Well, aren't you a cute little girl? Hello there."

Loid removes his hat and gives a polite bow to the old lady. "We're the Forgers. We just moved in today."

"I am Anya. I have been Papa's child for a very long time." The woman blinks a few times, confused by Anya's choice of words.

That wasn't necessary. Quickly locating an escape from an awkward conversation, Twilight opens the apartment door. "Come on, let's go inside."

Inside the apartment, Twilight flicks on the lights as his daughter runs inside. "This is Anya's house?"

"Yes."

The girl quickly finds her way to a dark screen located within one of the shelves. "A TV!"

Closing the door to the apartment, Twilight begins peeling off his gloves. "Go ahead and turn it on."

Twisting the knob on the device, a dramatic voice fills the apartment. "Spy Wars, an adventure cartoon!" The child turns to her father, pointing at the screen.

"I like this show."

As she sits down to watch, Twilight observes quietly, unimpressed by the choice. Of all things...

The show's loud volume fills the apartment. "A gun with a silencer! You're a professional!"

Anya stares, entranced. "So exciting."

"Not much of a coincidence in the end, hm?" Martha gives a small smile to Twilight, who remains silent. He glances at his daughter, who trembles and ducks behind Damian again.

First, I'll have to gather everything we'll need.

"I will be taking back that bomb. Anyone who gets in my way will regret it."

And I'll have to forge an ID for her. "I'm going out for a bit." Twilight turns towards the door, preparing to leave. "Just sit there and watch your show."

Hearing of Twilight's plans to leave the house, Anya stands up quickly, Spy Wars continuing to play. "Out of my way!"

As the fake gunshots fill the room, she runs over to Twilight, her arms outstretched. "An adventure!" She quickly clings to his leg while he's facing the door and picking up his hat.

Aggravated, Twilight begins swinging around his right leg, trying to dislodge the child. "I'm not going on an adventure, I'm just going shopping."

"Loid, you need to be careful. Anya could've been seriously hurt if she lost her grip on your leg, right?"

Twilight glances at Yor and nods his head. "My apologies. At the time, I'd spent so much time dealing with grown men that I had forgotten how easy it is to hurt a little girl. I know better now, though."

A cable car passes by in the streets of Berlint. Anya and Twilight are in the middle of walking to the market when she suddenly runs a few steps ahead and turns around. "I want a pistol with a silencer!"

"Sure. Maybe if we can find one on sale."

"LOIDY!" Yuri whips his gaze towards Twilight, and the spy sighs in anticipation. "YOU CAN'T GIVE CHIHUAHUA A GUN! SHE COULD HURT HERSELF, OR SIS!"

Twilight glances at his brother-in-law, a neutral expression on his face. "I was just trying to pacify her. I held no faith in the possibility of finding a pistol at the market."

"But there might have been one! What would you do then!? You wouldn't ACTUALLY buy it for her, would you!?" The WISE agent shakes his head profusely. "...Good!"

To be a master spy, one must act normal and never draw attention to themselves. We must do everything we can to look like an ordinary family. Twilight is broken from his train of thought by Anya shouting.

"Papa! Save me!" Looking in the direction of her voice, Twilight finds his daughter being swept away in a crowd of people.

Must you draw attention to yourself?

Yor watches the poor display of parenting in front of her with worry. "Loid, you need to hold onto young children, or else they get lost or hurt."

"Yes, I know that now, Yor. In fact, I was just about to be taught that lesson."

As Twilight steps closer to the crowd of people, a woman picks up Anya, taking her out of the crowd and back to her father. "Now, now. You need to make sure you hold the little one's hand. Here."

Taking his daughter's hand and continuing, Twilight's mind drifts over the downsides. Having one hand tied up will make it difficult to prepare for an enemy ambush, but no matter. As he thinks this, Anya begins reading his mind again, and stares up at him in shock.

An enemy?! Pulling her hand from Twilight's, Anya runs forward, looking around the area for a few seconds before ducking under a cafe's standing blackboard, where she curls up, closing her eyes and covering her head with her hands.

Twilight approaches the blackboard, staring at Anya while she cowers beneath it. "What are you doing?"

"Hiding!"

Did I do anything to make her want to hide from me? Perhaps I held her hand to early. Does she hate me? This isn't good. I need to maintain a good relationship with her until the end of this mission. I must know more about this creature. It's basic diplomacy. Understanding the other party is the first step toward peace.

"Creature?" Yor glances at her husband with a raised brow.

"Please remember that I hadn't dealt with children in a long time, and had no attachment to Anya at the time. I don't think she's a creature."

Becky watches the Forgers as they argue, glancing at Anya. "This is getting old. It's nice that your mother's helping Loid, but if she does this every time he messes up, we're gonna be here forever, right Anya?"

Anya takes a moment to think back on her interactions with her father before nodding her head. "Papa's... not perfect, but he's my Papa." She sneaks a peek at him, trying to gauge his reaction to her saying that.

His intense stare is almost as unnerving as the fact that his head is devoid of any thoughts at the moment. Damian glances back at his crush, feeling her father's eyes digging into the two of them. "...Can we go sit down again?" Standing to the side here draws attention to us.

Hesitantly, Anya nods, and the two return to their seats. Anya's stiff as a board, hoping that the focus will return to the screen instead of her. Damian's own eyes flick around the room, trying to see if anyone is still watching the two of them.

As she cowers beneath the blackboard, Anya continues reading her father's mind, and jolts in shock at what she hears. Understanding me will lead to world peace?! The girl quickly climbs out from under the sign, facing Twilight with a determined expression.

"I like peanuts. And I don't like carrots."

"Uh-huh..."

As she continues, Anya smiles pointing to a store behind Twilight. "But I really like crispy bacon from bakenries!"

Turning around, Twilight is met with a sign for a bakery. He turns back to Anya. "That's a 'bakery.' They do not sell bacon." As he corrects her, Anya's face flushes in embarrassment.

In the next scene, Anya holds up a Spy Wars poster and a coin to a man at the market. "I'd like this, please."

Twilight notices the kind of coin in her hand. "That costs one dalc. You can't buy it with a ten-pent coin." He walks up to the stall owner and hands over a bill to pay for the poster, while Anya turns to look at Twilight, her face flushing once again.

After paying, Twilight stares at Anya, pondering. Is this girl actually stupid? Was the crossword puzzle a fluke? Maybe I can still go back and get another child-

The second he thinks this, Anya erupts into tears. "Pwease don't get rid of me!"

"Yor frowns at the thought and looks at Twilight. "Loid, that would be really awful to do to her! You weren't actually considering it, were you?

Twilight pauses, debating whether to tell the truth or not. "...I... considered it. For a moment. Again, I had no attachment to her at the time."

Chloe glares at Twilight, curling up one of her hands into a fist. Stay calm. No rash decisions. It's horrible treatment of a child, but still, we need to sit back and observe.

Twilight recoils, surprised by Anya's outburst. "What's gotten into you?!"

"Pwease! I'm a good bargain!" As the girl continues crying, a woman in the nearby area begins whispering to another.

"What a terrible parent."

Looking around in a panic, Twilight buries his face in his palm, already exasperated with this child. What do I do? A thought comes to him, and he quickly raises his head. "I'll buy you some peanuts! Just stop crying!"

The effect is instantaneous, as Anya's sobbing, tear-streaked face switches out for a bright, happy smile. "Peanuts!"

That fast!? How much do you like peanuts, Chihuahua Girl!?

Time jumps forward, showing Twilight walking with a bag of groceries. A bag of peanuts is clearly visible sticking out the top. The camera pans up, showing Twilight's exasperated expression. "Papa, I'm tired. Can't walk anymore..."

The spy looks down at his side in disbelief. "What?"

Time jumps again, to reveal Twilight walking with the groceries in one arm, and a sleeping Anya in the other. She's drooling onto his suit, and his hat rests uneven on his head. This isn't working. I just don't understand this irrational behavior. I need some manuals to help me understand it. Yet another time skip, and now Twilight is walking away from the library, groceries in one arm, Anya in the other, and a tall stack of books being supported by both as the man clearly struggles to carry it all.

Martha smiles at the sight, glancing over to Becky. "This reminds me of our shopping trips, Madam."

Yor glances over at Martha, smiling as well. "It reminds me of when I first met Melinda Desmond, actually. Her servant had sweets stacked so high that I couldn't see the poor lady!"

Damian sighs, resting his head on his hand as he looks down at the seat in front of his. "It's still hard to believe that your mom's friends with Mother, Forger." With discomfort, he notices that several people immediately turned to him and Anya when he spoke.

Sitting down on the couch in the living room of the apartment, Twilight opens one of the books, and begins reading. "'The key to raising a child is trust. Rather than scolding them, try to understand things from their perspective.'" The pages flip past at an incredible speed as he reads.

Ewen turns to the spy in the theater, a wondrous look in his eye. "Wow, you sure can read fast, Mr. Twilight! Can you teach me? It'd make studying a breeze!"

Damian scoffs at the idea, throwing out false bravado. I'm still a Desmond, I have to remain composed! "He's probably just skimming for information. I doubt he's actually absorbing everything on the pages."

Twilight glances over at the children, giving them a friendly smile. "You would be surprised how much information you can gather from just a glance. It takes practice though, and I think your efforts would be better spent actually studying for school."

The camera shifts to view Anya's bedroom, where the light is out, her peanuts and poster sit on a chair, and the girl herself is tucked into bed, fast asleep. "'Children are not very good at putting how they're feeling into words, so try to understand them more.' So no interrogating them, then?"

Finishing that book and swapping for a new one, he glances over the collection of literature he's gathered. Do the parents of the world normally carry out such difficult missions all the time?

Yor glances at Twilight. "Yes. Raising a child is very difficult, and a genuine struggle." Looking back at the collection of books on the screen, a sad smile covers her face. "I wish I had access to all that when I was growing up. I'm still worried that I might have done something wrong while raising Yuri."

The dark-haired man turns to her, a big smile on his face. "You did an amazing job raising me, sis! You cooked for me, took care of me when I was sick, and spent all the spare money from your job on my education! I couldn't possibly ask for more!"

Mr. Henderson listens to this exchange, intrigued by the backstory of Anya's other parent. "With all due respect, I have to comment on that. Taking care of another child without the help of an adult is even harder than being an adult with a child, and only having one guardian will always be detrimental to the development of a child. The fact that you raised your brother and cared for him by yourself is quite commendable, but on the scale of quality parenting, cooking and caring are the bare minimum. As admirable as your efforts are, Mrs. Forger, I think you are right to worry for the quality of your parenting, if Mr...." He glances at Yuri, pausing.

The undercover cop looks up at the old man, his expression carefully neutral while listening to this man both compliment and insult his sister's parenting. "Briar."

"Thank you. If Mr. Briar believes that food and health are the signs of outstanding parenting, then your childhoods were quite lacking in comforts, and I must offer my condolences." Hopefully, Miss Forger has been receiving far better treatment, but with the display we've seen from Mr. Forger on screen, my hopes are not very high...

"P-Papa and Mama are awesome, Housemaster! They... They're very good parents!" Mr. Henderson jolts in his seat, looking over towards Anya, who was standing on her seat and staring at him. He notices the fact that she's drenched in sweat and she seems uncomfortable.

It still hasn't sunk in that she's able to do that... How inelegant of me. "Of course, Miss Forger. My apologies for thinking otherwise." I will assume that you are still worried about what everyone thinks of your powers. Do not worry, I'm not holding it against you. I just hope you have been putting in the effort to study for your assignments, and not copying the answers of your classmates. But I don't think I need to be worried about that. Your answers are quite different from the others. So long as you continue to do your own work, you will be able to keep attending Eden College.

He watches the girl sigh in relief before collapsing back into her seat, her posture less rigid than before. So she's been worried about that... It's not all of her worries, but it was part of what had her so concerned.

Flipping open the second book, Twilight continues his research. "'Nurture their self-esteem to give them a better future. By giving them the ability to think for themselves, their future...'" He stares at the passage in the book for a few seconds before looking up from it, an impassive expression on his face.

As soon as I'm done with this mission, I'm sending her back to the orphanage. That's the extent of our relationship.

Anya glances at her father in the theater, the reminders that he can dispose of her rather worrying, especially with his thoughts from earlier. Becky notices her friend's brow slightly furrowed, and where she's looking. "Are you okay, Anya?"

"...I'm fine."

As a new day comes, the camera pans down onto the street again, and the relaxing morning is quickly ruined by Anya's yelling.

"Don't wanna! I don't wanna study!" Inside the apartment, the father and daughter duo stand face-to-face in the living room, Twilight holding up a book.

"I need to know how smart you are for this exam."

"I don't need to study to do any tests! If I just read other people's..." ...people's minds... Anya glares up at her new father defiantly.

"Are you planning on cheating? Listen. If you don't get into this school..." ...my mission fails. Dropping the book onto the living room table, Twilight leans over Anya, his hands on his hips as he grunts in frustration. Several tense seconds pass, before he turns and begins walking away. "Fine, then." He slips on his suit jacket swiftly, adjusting it to rest perfectly on his body. "I'm heading out." As Anya begins to step towards him, he swiftly places his hat on his head and turns to point at her. "You're not coming with me today. No matter what. You're staying home."

The Twilight in the theater groans, dragging a hand down his face. Chloe leans forward in her seat to look at him. "Hey, what's got you acting like that?"

Pinching the bridge of his nose as he turns to look at the girl, he sighs heavily. "I know what's about to happen, and it's probably going to make me seem even worse than I already look. So I'll just say it right now, I've never done what I'm going to do ever since."

Yuri looks at his sister, who shrugs. "I've never been told about this, so I'm in the dark too."

Twilight's dread over the coming scene fills the audience with curiosity, and the screen becomes the focus once again.

Anya's shocked face fills the screen until the door closes behind Twilight. Immediately, she approaches the front door and opens it a crack. Twilight, already descending the stairs, hears the creak of the hinges and turns around, glaring. "Hey!" Quickly returning to the door, he forces it fully open, which causes Anya to lose her footing and be pulled sideways midair. "I told you, you're not coming!"

Next, Twilight's seen walking down the hall, with Anya watching him from behind a green bin. He stops, and then points towards her again. "You there! Do you really think I don't see you?"

He points at Anya hiding under the stairs. "There!"

He points at Anya hiding up a ladder that leads through the ceiling into darkness beyond a removable panel. "There!"

Anya smiles in admiration and joy. "Papa is so good at finding me. It's so much fun!"

The camera switches to an outside view of the apartment building, and Twilight's laughter echoes through the theater. "Try and get out of that!"

The Lieutenant raises a brow at the sight of Twilight repeatedly finding his hiding daughter. "I'm not sure why you were worried about this. It seems like a regular father playing with his kid."

"That's not it..."

The next shot is one of Franky, who looks unimpressed with the spy. "So that's why you're late?"

A flashback is shown of Twilight outside the apartment, with a large green chest pressed up against the door and a rope tying it to the doorknob. His face seems rather smug. "In the end, I put up a barricade in front of the door and trapped her inside."

Yuri stares at the image, slack-jawed. "...Loidy. That's child abuse."

The spy sighs, leaning forward and closing his eyes while clasping his hands together. "Yes, Yuri. I am aware." He remains determined to not react as he feels Yor's intense stare.

Yuri glances between the screen and the spy, before turning his gaze to his niece. Is Chihuahua okay? She said that sis and Loidy were good parents, and obviously sis is an amazing woman who could never fail at raising a child, no matter what that old guy says... but this isn't how a father should treat his daughter. Plus, she might just be saying that so she's not sent back to the orphanage. He stares at the child for a few seconds, the thought gnawing at him. Why do I even care how she's treated? She's just some random kid, an escaped test subject from some mysterious organization, an annoying brat who constantly gets into trouble, a mind reader... His eyes narrow, and his frustration at himself only grows.

...I guess she has been through a lot... And she is just a kid... AND she's a victim of human experimentation... Fine. But I'm only checking because sis would be sad otherwise. He takes a deep breath, before trying to think as loud as he can. HEY! CHIHUAHUA! He watches Anya jump in her seat and spin to face him, a surprised look on her. Are you doing okay? His niece stares at him for a few seconds before smiling and giving a thumbs-up. Grunting, he leans back in his seat and faces the screen, trying to ignore Chloe, who was looking between him and Anya in confusion.

The camera switches to a perspective behind Franky, focusing on Twilight as he holds his hat to his chest. "I'm praying that you don't get reported for child abuse."

"Who knows what children are thinking? Their method of always crying to get their way is truly annoying." The spy places his hat on the counter of the tobacco stand and crosses his arms.

"Hate to tell you this, Twilight, but crying is their job."

Yor manages to take her eyes off her husband to look past him towards Franky. "You knew?"

Franky nods, lifting his arms behind his head to act as a pillow. "I'd like to think I'm his only real friend, considering we've known each other since the war. We started as enemy soldiers, and now he's the best spy in Westalis, and I'm the best informant in Ostania."

Twilight glances at the man, raising a brow. "I've never called you that."

"How many other informants do you go to for information?"

The Lieutenant stares down at Franky with intensity. "And you're willing to betray your country?"

"Is it betrayal if what I want is peace? Besides, I don't JUST give out my info to spies. If anyone is trying to help keep the peace, I'm willing to lend a hand. Although personally, I'd say I don't particularly care much for either country. I just want people to live good lives, and people dying because of a bad talk between politicians is stupid."

"More importantly, here's what you asked for." Franky pulls an envelope out from under the counter and places it down between him and Twilight. "An application, ticket for the exam, and exam questions. I went through hell getting these for you."

Twilight picks up the envelope and tucks it into his jacket, turning around to face the sidewalk. "Thanks, Franky. I think we can make things work if we have her memorize everything."

Mr. Henderson glances down at Twilight. "You've been having your daughter cheat on exams?"

Twilight quickly turns around, a placating look on his face. "This is the only one we've cheated on, I promise. Everything else is the result of hard work and studying."

"Oh yeah. About your daughter... I dug up some records on her past that the orphanage didn't have." He holds up several folded up papers, handing them over to Twilight, who unfolds them to reveal a summary of information on his daughter. "I couldn't find anything about her birth. No info on her age or parents, either. I could only find information from the last year, but she's been adopted four times and returned each time. She's also been to two other orphanages."

Anya stares at Franky, awestruck. "Scruffy! You found everything from after I escaped?"

Chloe is similarly dumbfounded by the level of data contained in Franky's investigation. "You found her entire life since entering the public, and based on the lighting of the scene, it might not even have been 24 hours since Twilight adopted Anya yet... You also got him the application, exam ticket, and exam questions. Twilight hasn't even been in Berlint for a full two days yet, and you managed to do all of this for him. When did Twilight even ask you to get all this?"

The man looks over, raising a brow at her. "I think he was carrying the kid in his arms when he asked me, but didn't have the books yet. I dunno, it's been almost half a year since then."

Mr. Henderson joins Chloe in staring at Franky, amazed. "In less than twelve hours, you managed to not only gather everything needed to be able to attend Eden College's exams, but you also found the complete history of a child with no parents, no last name, no age, and no origin. Judging by your appearance in the film, you also slept quite well last night, meaning you only spent FOUR hours on achieving all of this!" He's got such a level of talent in this, I can honestly say that if he's good at handling children, I would invite him to apply for work at Eden and teach a special course!

Becky, meanwhile, was hugging her friend tightly. "What!? So many people didn't want you? How!? Can't they tell how amazing you are!?"

Twilight reads over the data in his hand. "Anya Williams, Anya Levski, Anya Roche..."

Franky smiles at the fake father. "She changes names as much as you do. You guys are perfect for each other." Twilight glances back at him with disapproval. "Hey, I'm kidding. This is for your mission, right? She may be a kid, but no good's gonna come out of getting too attached."

Twilight collects his hat again, placing it on his head as he turns to leave. "Thanks for the concern."

"Hello? Where's my money?!" Despite Franky's protests, Twilight leaves the tobacco stand without paying his informant. "Damn it... Who knows what spies are thinking, either?"

"YOU DIDN'T PAY HIM!?" Chloe jumps from her seat, pointing at Franky for emphasis.

Fiona scoffs, glancing at the SSS officer. "Why pay him when he's enough of a pushover that he'll do the work for free?"

The Lieutenant turns to her, raising a brow. "Loyalty. If you prove that he's valuable to you, he'll stick around. I'd certainly be willing to pay thousands of dalc per job he does, if he's able to do things that quickly."

"Finally, someone who understands my value. You saw the address of my stand, and have heard my motivations. Feel free to stop by sometime if you need something."

Twilight rolls his eyes at the discussion. "Enough, I just forgot to pay him that time. I normally do pay Franky."

Inside the apartment, Anya is shown laying on her back on the couch, a glazed-over look in her eyes. I'm so bored. Spies aren't like what I thought. I just want to get the bomb back. She turns her head to face her Spy Wars poster, before her perspective shifts to a door with a lock on it.

In a flashback, Twilight is seen placing the lock. I can't have her messing with my spy equipment, so I'll lock it up. The code is 6, 1... Anya peeks over the back of the couch, a smile on her face as sparkles fill the air around her.

Twilight gets a pit in his stomach as he watches. "You didn't..."

"...1, 0."

With the lock unlocked, the view shows Anya in Twilight's room, digging around in his things. "Bomby-bombs! Bomby-bombs!" As she tosses several gadgets aside, unsure how to use them, she turns to a suitcase, unclasping the latches and pulling it open. "Bomby-bombs! Bomby-bombs! Ooh!"

Contained inside is a mobile transmission kit for sending telegraphs through coded messages. "Secret messages!" The girl begins tapping away on the telegraph key. "Secrets, secrets..."

"YOU DID!" He turns to glare at his daughter, who shrinks into her seat beneath his gaze. "You heard me thinking that you shouldn't be messing with my things, and you did it anyway! I thought that-" A black censor bar appears over his mouth, and his glare intensifies. You and me are having a discussion after this, young lady. Some ground rules regarding this power of yours are going to be set, got it?

Anya quickly nods her head, and the spy sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose in exasperation as the censor bar is removed. The others in the room look between the two in confusion.

Inside a far away building, a morse code message can be heard. "Boss! We've intercepted a new message."

"Is it using the West's cipher?"

"No, it's just plain text. It says... 'Twilight here'... Twilight here! This is the frequency used by Western intelligence. Oh, there's more. 'Catch me if you can'..."

The 'boss' the communicator refers to is the same man Twilight impersonated at the beginning of the episode to get the toupee photos, who at the moment is turning red with rage. "Hurry up and pinpoint where it's coming from!"

"Uh oh..." Emile stares at the man on the screen.

Becky glances at Twilight, who looks almost as angry. "'Uh oh' is right..."

Ewen notices the same thing, and gives a mock salute of respect. "It's been nice flying with you, Vice Captain Forger..."

Damian slaps him on the back of the head. "Stop messing around! This is serious!"

Back in Twilight's room, Anya closes the telegraph case and wipes her brow with a smile. "Whew..." Turning around, she sees how much of a mess she's made of her father's room and panics.

In her mind, an image of her father pulls out his gun and points it at her with a glare, a dangerous aura rolling off his body. "Now that you've found out I'm a spy, you'll have to disappear." She quickly begins cleaning things up and putting them where they came from.

Fiona stares at the imaginary Twilight in amusement. He doesn't have to do that. All he needs to do is intimidate her into silence, or indoctrinate her into WISE. If I were her mother, both would be easily possible... Glancing over at Anya, she's surprised to be met with a disgusted face staring right back at her. What's that look for!?

When she finishes putting everything away, Anya pauses sitting still on the floor of the bedroom. "If he finds out I'm a telepath... I'll have to leave."

A man speaks in her mind. Anya, you mustn't tell anyone about your power. As she turns around to look at her chimera doll, the perspective changes to a flashback.

Anya turns around to look at a group of three doctors, all in low detail. "It's time to study now, Anya."

"But I wanna draw..." She sounds noticeably younger in the flashback.

The Lieutenant flips to a new page and quickly begins drawing. "Someone talk about something. It doesn't matter what. I need this to stay frozen on this frame long enough to draw the faces of these people as best as I can. It may not help much, but it's a start to figuring out this organization, and who's behind this human experimentation."

Anya's eyes, which had gone rather dim at the memory, light up a little as she hears that. "You're gonna find out who made me?"

Bill looks at the man, a slight frown on his face. "Accurate mugshots take a long time to draw, don't they? What could we possibly talk about that will last that long?"

Martha thinks for a moment, before turning to Becky. "Madam, perhaps you'd like to explain to me what happened on the last episode of Berlint in Love? I didn't quite understand it when we were watching."

While Becky's eyes sparkle at the idea and she takes a deep breath, Damian watches Anya cover her ears. That bad? When she nods, he promptly covers his ears too, and his friends quickly copy him.

"Alright, I'm done. You can stop talking now." The Lieutenant looks at the rest of the audience, and is rather surprised to see the conditions of some people. While Twilight, Yor, Bill, Martha, and Mr. Henderson were listening politely, and the same could not be said for anyone else. Franky's hands were over his ears, Fiona was muttering something to herself with a distant look in her eyes, Yuri had removed his jacket and placed it over his head, Chloe's eyes were completely glazed over, and all the children around Becky were covering their ears. Heck, the dog up front was burying his head in his paws, and the Keeper was wearing some very puffy headphones.

"What? But I'm not even halfway through explaining the episode! And I haven't even reached the best parts!" Becky herself had apparently been so emotional in her retelling of the episode that she'd brought herself to tears.

Martha gives her a smile. "Perhaps you can finish explaining during the first break from viewing this. For now though, we should continue."

"Um, Yuri?" Yor taps her brother on the shoulder, and he slowly lifts up his jacket.

"Is it finally over?" When she nods, he sighs in relief, taking the jacket off his head and putting it back on properly. As he does so, one of the sleeves smacks Chloe in the face, snapping her out of whatever dissociation she was going through.

Glancing at Fiona, the Lieutenant notices that she'd stopped her mumbling shortly after Becky stopped talking. Was she just drowning out the child with her own subject matter?

Seeing the movement among the adults (and the lack of movement on Becky's face), Anya turns around and pokes Damian. "She stopped, Sy-on Boy." Soon enough, everyone in the room was ready to watch again.

"Don't bother with childish games. We must use your power for the sake of world peace." The camera shifts to show the face of one doctor close up.

Emile turns to Anya, curious. "Is that where the obsession comes from?"

She nods her head, a serious expression on her face. "Anya was made for world peace!"

The Lieutenant's pencil hits paper again. "Feel free to continue talking. This is a much better photo for one of the doctors, so I'll take full advantage of it." Several people in the theater groan loudly at this.

"Hold on! Before you do that!" The Keeper snaps her fingers, and two big red crosses appear on the floor, one on each side of the invisible barrier. "Becky, you stand on that X! Martha, you stand on that X!" When the two reach the designated spots, she snaps her fingers, and a circular barrier surrounds the both of them. "There. Now you can talk."

Franky stares as the child's mouth moves, but the theater remains quiet. "...Soundproofing?"

The Keeper nods, sighing. "One-way." She snaps again. "Two-way, now. But yes. I don't know why I didn't do that the first time around, but I'm not letting her drive this audience into a fugue state! But while this is happening, does anyone need refreshments? Because just listening to her talk made me thirsty."

Quite a while later, and quite a few drinks later, the Lieutenant stops drawing. "Alright. That's finished. We're good to continue now."

"Great, let me just..." Snapping her fingers, the circle disappears, and Becky's voice fills the room.

"-And then that girl pulls Vincent away from Sonia, and as they stand on the balcony, she-"

"HEY! BECKY! YOU CAN STOP! NOW GO SIT DOWN AGAIN!" Jumping in surprise from the sudden interruption, Becky looks around the room before her eyes land on the Keeper, who glares at her. "Anya's holding onto a drink for you, and I'm sure you're thirsty after talking so much. So sit down, drink up, and watch the screen."

She quickly returns to her seat, where Anya hands over a bottle of water. "The lady said this was better for you than any other stuff after talking a lot." Becky watches as her friend sips a cup of cocoa before opening her bottle and focusing on the screen again.

As the perspective changes, we see a younger Anya, tears in her eyes as she's on the verge of crying. "There's no time for tears, either. Now, enough playing. Back to studying."

As the flashback ends, Anya wipes her eyes of tears, a small sob escaping her.

Yor glares at the screen, her hands tightening into fists as she stares at the poor toddler on the screen. "What a despicable man."

Mr. Henderson nods in agreement. "A vile, uncouth individual... I suppose one would have to be, to stomach human experiments."

Later in the day, Twilight finally returns to the apartment complex in a taxi, carrying a bag of groceries in his arms. She'd better not have messed up the apartment.

Climbing the stairs to the floor the father and daughter live on, he spots the chest he'd blocked the door with. Oh, right. I need to move this. Glancing at the floor, he notices scuff marks starting at one corner of the box and curving, as if it had been moved. His eyes narrow.

From inside the apartment, the noise of the chest being moved can be heard, and as the door creaks open, it's revealed that two people are inside the apartment, one with a pistol behind the couch, and a second behind the door with a pipe raised up.

Martha glances at Anya and Twilight with concern. "They were hiding in the apartment, waiting for you to return?"

Ewen stares at the picture of the spy entering the dark home. "And you're unarmed, with your hands full..."

The Lieutenant pulls out a pack of cigarettes, removing one with his teeth before fishing inside his jacket for a lighter. "You know, a good fighter can make a weapon out of anything, kid. I'd bet the groceries will play to his advantage. He's a resourceful rat, after all. I've been hunting him for a while."

Mr. Henderson glances at the man and frowns. "Pardon me, but there are children in here. Perhaps holding off on the smoking for the moment would be for the best." He rolls his eyes, but stops looking for his lighter, simply chewing on the end of the smoke instead.

Slowly, Twilight takes a few steps into the apartment, and the sound signals the man behind the door to take a swing. He steps out from behind the door, swinging the bat at head height. Luckily, the WISE agent ducks, and only his hat is smashed against the wall. Twilight quickly counterattacks, delivering an uppercut to the jaw of the thug.

Yuri watches the way Twilight fights, studying his moves to get a better understanding of how to beat him.

Becky holds her breath, afraid that her beloved Loid might get hurt. He may be an enemy spy, but that only makes our romance more dramatic!

As the man tumbles backwards, his associate steps out from behind the couch, pointing his gun at Twilight and firing. Twilight manages to pull a can out of the bag before letting it be blown apart by the bullet. The armed thug fires a second shot as the father runs into the room, missing as the spy ducks before throwing the can right at the face of the assailant. While he holds his nose and recovers from the impact, Twilight runs around the kitchen table, picking up one of the chairs and smashing it over the man's head, knocking him to the floor.

Who the hell are these guys?! Dropping the smashed chair's remains, he runs further into the apartment, throwing open his daughter's door. "Anya!" Not finding her, he moves over to his own bedroom door, opening it in a rush. "Anya!" Inside, Twilight finds Anya's chimera doll, laying on the floor. She's been kidnapped? By whoever sent these thugs?

Bill's eyes widen, and he looks down at the mind reader two rows ahead of him. "You were kidnapped on your second day of being adopted? They didn't hurt you, did they?" Before Anya can respond, the censor bar covers her mouth again. Sighing in defeat, she slumps over in her seat.

But why? I need to find her immediately. Twilight glances back at the unconscious gunman, before looking into his room again and gritting his teeth. Calm down. From the looks of it, I've been compromised. I need to get to safety immediately. Striding farther into the room, he approaches the doll, a hand over his mouth in thought. As for Anya... He bends down to grab the chimera. As he does so, the man with the pipe is revealed to be right behind him, winding up to bring the heavy bar down onto Twilight's head.

There are plenty of other children out there. I'll start things over from square one and- The screen goes black as the pipe falls, and a metallic crack is heard, along with the sound of something splintering.

"ALRIGHT, THAT'S IT!" Chloe steps out of her seat, a clenched fist raised in front of her as she marches over towards the spy. Her gaze flickers towards Yor for a moment. "PLEASE TELL ME THAT YOU'RE REASONABLE ENOUGH TO LET ME HIT HIM! THAT DESERVES A PUNCH!"

Yor herself was giving her husband a strongly disapproving look. This woman thinks it's normal to want Loid to be hurt for that thought. I should hit him then, shouldn't I? She glances at Chloe for a few seconds. "...Go ahead."

Twilight braces himself in preparation for the strike, tightening his abdominal muscles before the impact so he's not winded. It still hurts though, enough that he knows it'll leave a bruise. he takes it silently, and stares Chloe in the eye as she glares at him. His lack of a reaction seems to annoy her, as she huffs and stomps back to her seat. "You act like you didn't even feel it. It takes all the satisfaction out of it. Damn spy training."

Franky leans forward in his seat and calls out to Chloe. "Speaking of his spy training. He's literally trained to think that way. His first thought was about getting her back, so it's pretty obvious to me that his first instinct was to save her." Chloe doesn't acknowledge Franky's words, simply sitting down and crossing her arms.

Yor speaks up, still giving Twilight a displeased look. "I think I'd like to sit somewhere else for the moment. I'd like to avoid striking you myself while I think about this scene."

When the spy turns to look at her, she mouths some words to him. Acting normal... Keeping the image of a normal family is probably a moot point by now, but I'll play along. I can tell that even if she says that she's only acting, she is genuinely unhappy that I thought that. "If you want to sit separately, that's fine. I know I haven't been shown to be the best person on the screen."

Martha stands from her seat, coming down from the second row to face Yor. "Mrs. Forger, if you'd like, you can take my seat. It's in the next row and will put some distance between you and Mr. Twilight."

Yor nods to Martha, standing up from her seat and marching up to the second row, sitting down next to Mr. Henderson while Martha takes her new seat between Twilight and Yuri.

When the screen fades back in, Anya is shown tied up in a shopping cart, whimpering behind the tape over her mouth and a terrified expression plastered to her face as the men around her talk. "So who the hell is this kid? Could she be Twilight's?"

"No idea. She was in the room where the message came from, so we snatched her just in case."

Because of the transmission?

"She was holed up inside the apartment with a barricade out front." The view changes to show that Anya's facing directly towards the boss, who glances at the man explaining her circumstances.

"Why out front?"

"Beats me."

The boss frowns, half-turning from the child as he comments. "Well, no matter. We might be able to use her as a hostage in order to force Twilight to steal the toupee off the foreign minister's head personally."

One of the men speaks up uncertainly. "Boss, I think we should just give up on the toupee." Immediately, the boss whips out a handgun and shoots the man in the head, his body falling to the ground lifelessly.

"Wha-!" Becky covers her mouth in horror, glancing at Anya. "You saw a man execute his own underling right in front of you!? Over a TOUPEE!?"

The telepath nods her head slowly, her expression downcast. "This adventure wasn't very fun..." She glances over at her parents, a sinking feeling filling her gut the longer she looks.

"Transparency is essential in government. Toupees are a no-go."

Anya stares at the smoking gun, horrified. A pistol with a silencer...

"Also, the minister's a traitor who's been secretly backing the West. Anyone who advocates for a traitor is also a traitor." Slipping his pistol away, the boss pulls out a cigarette and lights it. Anya takes the moment to glance into the man's mind.

A real bad guy...

Damian looks at Anya, who trembles a little at the scene. "Hey. This didn't tell us what was going on inside his head. Do you still remember what was in this sicko's mind?"

The mind reader glances back, swallowing thickly and nodding. "S-Something about cutting off arms and legs from living people, and dumping bodies, and getting info..."

A shiver runs down Becky's back as she listens to Anya list things off. "What a madman... If he's still in the city when we get out of here, I'm getting my daddy to take care of him! How dare he lay his hands on you, Anya!" She wraps her arms around her friend protectively.

Damian grits his teeth, glaring at the image of the boss on the screen. "Men like that are a stain on our country. I'll call Jeeves and see if we can't hire some private investigators to track him down for you."

Yuri glances over at the children, dumbfounded. ...I think I can appreciate Chihuahua's brand of crazy a little more now. These rich kids are far crazier than her.

As the view shifts, a black van can be seen through a window, screeching to a halt outside the building. A watchman notices and turns to the rest of the room. "Boss! Nguyen and his guys are back from the apartment!"

One of the men who enters has someone over his shoulder, with a bag on their head. Despite that, the person is wearing the same green suit that Twilight has worn for most of the episode. "We captured him." As he bends down to lay the tied-up person on the ground, it's revealed that the carrier is the one who swung at Twilight with the pipe, Nguyen.

While the tied-up man struggles against his bindings, the boss steps forward. "Well done."

Once Twilight is laid down on the ground, Nguyen steps back, grabbing his throat where the spy struck him in the apartment. "Those weren't the moves of an amateur. He's the real deal."

Anya stares at Nguyen for several seconds, and surprisingly, she's no longer on the verge of tears despite her father being tied up on the floor in front of her. Meanwhile, Edgar waves off Nguyen, seeing that he's still hurting from the fight. "Go rest over there." He gestures in the general direction of Anya before crouching down in front of the bound father. "Now then, Twilight... Let's have you return the photographs you stole from me."

He grabs the paper bag and removes it, revealing that the person tied up on the floor is, in fact, Nguyen, and not Twilight. "Nguyen!"

Bill hums in interest. "Oh? So you managed to disguise yourself as your attacker?" When the spy nods, he stares at the face of the thug on the floor, inspecting him. "...The disguise looked exactly like him."

"Wait..." Emile thinks for a second. "Didn't we hear the pipe hit you though? How can you be fine?"

Twilight glances at the boy, raising a brow. "You didn't think the best spy Westalis has would go down that easily, right? Besides, the splintering we heard wasn't my skull, it was the floorboards of my bedroom."

Another bad guy turns around, confused. "What's going on?! He was just-" As he steps to the side, it's revealed that both fake-Nguyen and Anya have disappeared.

"The kid's gone!"

"He got me again!" The scene changes to Twilight carrying Anya as he shuts a massive door behind him to delay the pursuing criminals.

This was a mistake. I risked everything by waltzing right into enemy territory. I'm a failure as a spy. Anya grips her father's shirt tightly as he carries her away from danger.

"Papa... Pabwaaaaaah!" Finally, she bursts into tears, the stress of the situation catching up.

Mr. Henderson stares at the crying child, the scene bringing up memories. It's just like the bus hijacking. She refuses to let herself cry until she's with her parents again. She certainly struggled a lot more in this situation compared to the one I'm familiar with, but she's also younger and less experienced with situations like this... Wait.

The man looks over at Anya in the audience. "Miss Forger, if it's possible for you to answer a question, I'm rather curious about something. I noticed that you held yourself together much better during the bus hijacking incident compared to this one, meaning you got more used to dangerous situations in between these events. I have to ask, how many times have you been in circumstances like this?"

Anya pauses to count, but as she opens her mouth, her words are censored once again. Frowning, she simply shrugs before returning her focus to the screen.

While the young girl wails in his arms, Twilight glances at her. "Look, you're okay. I won't do anything. You don't have to be scared."

"Pabwaaaaaah!" Anya buries her face in his shirt as she continues to cry.

This is exactly why kids suck. As he keeps running, the spy places a hand on his daughter's back, a revelation coming to him. I see. I think I figured out why I hate the sound of kids crying so much. As the passage of time seems to slow down, Twilight's legs moving slower, the scene begins to shift, from the bright sun of the late afternoon, to a much darker scene.

Because I end up remembering my own childhood. In the darkness of night, surrounded by the wreckage of destroyed vehicles and bombed-out houses, a young blond boy stands in the middle of the street, sobbing, with tears running down his face.

The sudden vision of his past makes Twilight freeze up in shock, while the rest of the theater stares at the flashback. "Woah..." Ewen stares at the destroyed surroundings, awestruck. "Is that what Westalis looked like during the war?"

Martha nods her head. "Of course. Ostania didn't look any better though. I can remember the destruction like it was yesterday."

Yor stares at the screen, taking in the sight of her husband as a child, all alone with no help, having to fend for himself. ...Even worse off than Yuri and I. We at least had each other.

No one reached out their hand to save me. I felt alone, in despair, and so powerless that all I could do was cry. The scene shifts back to the spy and his daughter as he walks out the doors of the building. I thought I'd abandoned that past, but on a subconscious level, she was reminding me of me. No, actually...

Now outside, Twilight bends down to place Anya on the sidewalk as he fishes inside his jacket for a pen and paper. "Listen up, little girl."

"Anya."

"Listen up, Anya. Me and my friends are pro tag players. Whenever we spot someone with potential, we immediately challenge them to a game."

"Oh." Papa is a liar.

Damian smirks. "Pro tag players? That's a really awful cover story."

"Now, listen." Twilight points down the street with a pen. "If you go straight down this street and turn right, you'll find a police station." He holds up the paper he had just been writing on, now folded up. "If you can get this to a police officer, you win the game. Got it?" If you show them this, they'll put you in a better orphanage. I'm not going to involve a kid in this mission. Anya takes the paper, but looks up at her disguised father, shocked by what he's thinking. I'll figure something out and rework the plan.

"Pa-"

"All right, go! Hurry!" He points a finger down the road, and Anya turns, starting to run. I'm a failure as a spy? No. My mistake was putting that little girl in danger to begin with. As he thinks this, Twilight's hand draws up towards his head, and he turns away from the running girl. How could I forget? Anya stops running, looking back up the street at her father. To create a world where children won't have to cry... He rips off the mask as he walks back towards the building determined.

That's why I became a spy.

"Well said, Mr. Forger. That was quite the elegant way of getting your daughter to safety. And your goals are truly noble." The housemaster of Cecile Hall nods in approval of Twilight's motive.

"Good luck with that, Loidy! Kids will cry over the smallest possible things!" Yuri, on the other hand, scoffs at the lofty, idealistic mission of the spy.

Wait, if spies from the West have objectives like that, then why are we enemies? If we're enemies, there's gotta be a bigger reason to fight, right? Emile closes his eyes, deep in thought as he ponders over something that was bugging him. But still... We've been getting taught our entire lives that they are the ones in the wrong, the ones who attacked us first.

Back inside the abandoned building, the thugs quickly bust open the large yellow door and rush into the room, firearms at the ready. "Don't let that bastard get away! We're gonna drag him out here and expose his face to-"

As they spread through the room, one's leg catches a wire strung across an aisle, which then tears open several bags of flour that had been secured on the ceiling, dumping the contents into the air. "A trap? When did he-" The bad guy coughs as another backs up to stand close to him. "What is this? Flour?" Any chances of hearing a response are swiftly reduced to zero as the sound of a strike is heard, and the man is sent flying through the now heavily-obscured room.

"A good plan, blinding them so you can fight one-on-one with them!" Bill was interested in the tactics and prowess on display, and wanted to learn everything he could in preparation for joining the army when he graduates Eden.

Chloe stares at the scene, a familiar thought coming to mind. "...Oh! That flour's been ground up very finely, hasn't it? It's the good stuff!" Twilight glances over at the girl, nodding slowly. This was as good a distraction from those unpleasant memories as any.

"Indeed. That flour is a very fine powder, and fits the role I wanted it to fill quite well." The children looked between one another in confusion over these words, not knowing why the quality of the flour matters.

Chloe, on the other hand, pauses before whipping to face Twilight fully. "Hang on! You're in that room too! That's really dangerous!"

The nearby criminal whirls around, pointing his pistol into the flour cloud blindly. "T-Twilight?!"

A third assailant nearby quickly shouts. "Don't shoot! This whole place will blow!" Even as he says it, the man he was speaking to is already being attacked by the spy.

Yuri stares at Twilight with a bewildered expression. "That stuff can explode? Are you insane, to have fought in there with the chance that someone would have taken a shot?"

Edgar watches as the silhouettes of his men are taken out one after another, keeping his pistol pointed in the direction of the pained cries. "Wha-" However, as the dust settles, he's left to face nothing but unconscious thugs scattered around the room, which now stood in a state of disarray. "You've gotta be shitting me."

The barrel of a pistol is pressed against the back of his head, and he makes the wise choice to raise his hands. The perspective changes to reveal Twilight standing behind Edgar, a very serious expression on his face. "Turn around, and I'll kill you."

"Twilight..."

"Good day, or perhaps, good evening, Edgar." Twilight knocks the gun from the boss's hand, and it clatters to the ground. "How's Karen doing?"

"How do you know my daughter's name?"

"Of course I know. That's what spies do. I know her height, weight, shoe size, her favorite foods, even how many moles are on her body." While the WISE agent speaks these words in a cold tone, the view shifts to show Edgar's uneasy expression. "Though it's nothing compared to your record, I know of her criminal activity, too."

"Absurd! My daughter would never-"

"Edgar. I also know how much you care about your daughter. So listen carefully. If you wish for her to have any semblance of a normal life, you'll leave me the hell alone." As he says this, Twilight's eyes gain a thoroughly frightening look to them, similar to the eyes one might see on the face of a man about to swallow poison to keep a secret, or set off a bomb hidden in his vest. The look of someone who is about to do something they know will have dire consequences, something they would rather not have to do, but are determined to do what is needed. Fanatical devotion. He shifts his aim to Edgar's pistol on the ground and fires a round into it. "If you understand, go home right now."

Damian scowls as he watches Twilight threaten the boss of the thugs. The way the spy's pupil's dilated leaves an uncanny impression in his mind, one of uncomfortable similarity to the eyes of his father and brother.

Ewen feels a chill run down his spine from the actions of Twilight. Holy cow, that was scary! Western spies are savage!

Franky chuckles at the sight on the screen, to the confusion of several. "Dude, I think you could've killed him if you went a little further with the intimidation, no bullets needed. The guy definitely pissed his pants from that!" Twilight sighs at his informant's commentary, which was thoroughly unneeded at the moment.

Outside the abandoned building again, Twilight walks with the black jacket he'd been wearing bunched up in one hand, heading in the same direction he pointed Anya. The warm, late afternoon sunlight illuminates the silent street in a glow that gives the scene a feeling of finality. He slowly draws his gaze up from the pavement he walks and his serious expression suddenly shifts to surprise. "Anya!"

Said girl was crouched behind a phone booth, playing around with a line of ants. Hearing her new father's voice, she looks up at him and a smile quickly covers her features. "Papa!" She stands up, running over to the man with her arms spread wide, before latching onto his leg once again. "Papa!"

Twilight looks down at the child, perplexed. "What are you-I mean, what are you doing outside the house?" He points to the abandoned building, which bears a faded sign labeling it as having once been a supermarket. "I, uh, just happened to come here to shop, but I guess they went out of business."

Papa is a huge liar. Anya removes her face from Twilight's leg to look up at him with wide eyes. "I was playing tag with some old guys."

"Oh, I see. Did you have fun?" As the agent asks this, his daughter presses her face against his leg again and shakes her head.

"It was a little scary. I wanna go home. To our home, Papa."

Twilight looks down at the child, his expression somewhat somber. "Are you sure?"

"If you leave me behind, I'm going to cry."

Franky's voice enters the spy's mind. She's been adopted four times and returned each time. This is followed by his own thinking. Anya Williams... Anya Levski... Anya Roche. Twilight slowly places a hand atop Anya's head and pets her comfortingly. "I see. Well, let's go home, then." Anya looks up at her new father again. This time, her eyes are brimmed with tears, and an expression of wonder is on her face. The image causes the setting sun's light to give off a completely different feeling. This time, it's a sense of comfort. Safety.

The scene changes to show a trolley car moving through the streets of the city as the day comes to a close. "But that apartment is far too dangerous, so let's move. I spotted a poisonous snake there yesterday."

"I don't like snakes." Anya smiles at Twilight as the vehicle carries them. Papa is a huge liar... But he's such a cool liar. "I wanna live in a castle."

"We'll see if one's listed."

"Well, that's quite the pleasant way to solidify your connection." The Lieutenant watches the touching moment with a blank expression. While it was a nice sight, he couldn't start feeling sympathetic towards Twilight.

"I must agree. While it lacks refinement, it was clearly a significant moment in Miss Forger's life, and a beautiful piece of history to be uncovered." Mr. Henderson bears a small smile at the sight of the scene.

"Once we get to our new home, you've got to study."

"Gwak!"

"This time, you just have to memorize all the answers. It'll be easy." The screen fades to black with those words, before quickly lighting up again, this time showing the exterior of a building in the middle of the day.

Inside the building, dozens of young children are shown sitting in one large room. An adult stands at the front, facing them all. Each child has a sheet of paper, a pencil, and an eraser sitting on the tables in front of them. "All right, begin!"

As the children begin working away on the paper, the view cuts to Twilight sitting on a bench outside the exam room. I'm counting on you, Anya. You can do it.

Back inside the exam room, the air around Anya is filled with sparkles as she listens to the people around her. The thoughts are not good, and she looks around to see the anguished expressions on the children sitting near her.

This is so hard!

I don't know any of these answers!

Um... eeny, meeny, miny, moe...

Mommy...

As Anya returns her attention to her own paper, her expression has started to look very similar to the ones on the others. However, in her mind a vision of Twilight points towards one of the questions. A flashback is shown, revealing where the image comes from. Twilight stands over Anya as she sits at the living room table, guiding her through the memorization process.

Back in the present, the telepath puts her pencil to the paper and begins to write, her face looking far calmer and more determined than it had mere moments ago.

Mr. Henderson sighs at the sight. "A rather inelegant way to get through the exam. However, I suppose that if this is for world peace, then the ends do justify the means. I'm at least grateful to know that Miss Forger does actually retain information given to her, instead of copying the others in the room."

Outside a different building, Twilight and Anya stand among a crowd of parents and children searching large display boards. "K-212... K-212..." As the focus falls onto the many lines of identification tags, it scrolls down the list with speed, eventually slowing down and stopping upon one ID.

The view changes, showing Twilight and Anya with ecstatic expressions. "It's there! You passed! You did it!" Twilight bends down to lift his daughter into the air.

"Did I do a good job?"

"You bet you did! You-" Anya's joyous laughter fades as Twilight loses balance and falls backwards, still holding Anya above him.

"Papa!" As his back hits the ground, the spy places his daughter to his side before falling completely limp. "Papa! Don't leave me!"

I relaxed for a second and all my pent-up exhaustion hit me at once.

Anya tries to shake her father back to wakefulness. Meanwhile, Twilight's face is shown, with heavy bags beneath his eyes. "Papa! You're going to make me cry!"

I... Relaxed?

"I promise to be a good girl! Just come back to me!"

What the hell is going on with me?

Becky looks over at Twilight, concern evident on her face. "That sounds like you don't relax much. Before this, when was the last time you had the opportunity?"

The man tilts his head backwards, staring up at the ceiling as he thinks. It takes a while for his answer to come. I think it was back when my mother was still alive...

Becky frowns at the lack of a response. Why isn't he answering? Does he not remember?

Anya looks between the two, hesitating before leaning in to Becky. "He remembers. His mama was still alive." Becky jumps from the sudden intrusion into her mind, but after processing what Anya said, her eyes widen.

"THAT LONG AGO!?"

Inside the new Forger residence, Twilight lays on the couch with a pillow under his head, looking completely catatonic. Anya stands in front of him, tears in her eyes. "Papa died."

She turns away from her father as she hears the doorbell ring and a voice call out. "I've got some mail for you!" She walks to the front door and opens it, revealing a mailman. "Is this the Forger residence?"

"I'm Anya Forger."

The man digs through his satchel for only a moment before pulling out a letter and holding it towards the child. "Could you give this to your mommy or daddy?"

"My mama doesn't exist."

"Oh, really? I'm sorry..."

For the first time in a while, Twilight turns to look at his daughter. "Was that really necessary to say?" Her face flushes and she sheepishly shakes her head. The man responds by sighing and returning his eyes to the screen.

"Papa! The mailman came." Anya moves back over to the couch, letter in hand. When she arrives to his bedside and he doesn't move, she taps the envelope against his cheek a few times, trying to elicit a response. When none comes, she stares at Twilight for a few seconds before the camera shifts. From behind the couch, Twilight's arm can be seen raising and lowering, and once the perspective changes again, it's revealed that Anya has climbed onto the couch with him, and had one of his arms laying over of her.

The two lie on the couch for several seconds in peace, before Twilight suddenly startles awake. Immediately, he sits up, physically recoiling from the child lying down with him. "What do you think you're doing?! Are you trying to kill me?!" Crossing his legs and resting his head in his hand, the man chastises himself. I actually fell asleep in front of someone. Unacceptable. I need to get a grip.

As the young girl sits up as well, she holds out the envelope to Twilight. "Mail!"

Yes, you do need to get a grip. This is unlike you, Twilight. Fiona stares at the screen, an intense expression on her face.

The torn envelope rests on the table as Twilight reads the contents. "It's a letter from Eden College." He flinches as his eyes spot a problem.

"What's the matter, Papa?"

"'The second phase of the admission process is a family interview. It is mandatory that the applicant attend with both parents. Absolutely no exceptions.'" Twilight's expression has turned grim with the news.

By his side, Anya's expression reflects the same. "But Mama doesn't exist." A clock chimes as the partial family are faced with this conundrum.

"Oh!" Yuri turns to his sister. "I'll finally get the real story of how you two met!"

Yor gives her brother an uncomfortable nod, glancing down at Twilight with uncertainty. Yes. And from the theme of how this viewing has gone, everyone here will also see why I was at the tailor's that day...

Anya listens to her mother's thoughts, and her own concerns crop up. "Papa? ...Please don't be mad at Mama for her secret. Promise?"

Twilight looks between his wife and daughter, his mind racing now that Anya had spoken. Of course. If this is focused on exposing all of our biggest secrets, then of course Yor has something to hide as well. And it must be something big if Anya wants me to promise not to be mad at her. He glances at Yor's uncomfortable body language before looking back towards Anya. "Anya. I can't promise to not be mad. If something is bad enough, of course I'm not going to be happy about it. What I can promise is that I will try to understand, and to reserve my judgement until after she has been able to properly explain herself."

The screen turns black with CRT lines, and in large white text, the words 'NEXT x MISSION' fill the view as stereotypical spy music begins to play. It then suddenly cuts to a scene of the Forger family's van outside two warehouses, one of which has smoke and flame suddenly billow outwards. Next, Twilight and Franky are shown dressed in all black, as if they're about to steal something. After that, a small case is opened to show many valuable trinkets. Among them, a diamond ring. Next, in a series of quick shots, it shows Camilla, Millie, Sharon, Franky dressed as a woman, and lastly, two shots of Yor. One where she's as calm as all the ones before her, and a second where she looks surprised. In smaller text, the words 'SECURE A WIFE' are seen.

Franky immediately groans and covers his face. "Gah! Not that scene! That was awful!"

Martha glances around, and after seeing several confused faces, she turns to the Keeper. "Excuse me Miss, but is it possible for you to explain what exactly that was?"

As the Keeper starts messing with the projector, she looks down towards Martha. "A preview of the next mission. These previews highlight several significant moments without giving away anything. They're there to maintain engagement and interest. If you see interesting parts of what's to come, you'll want to keep watching to find out the context and reasoning. That'll be especially important for the episodes that are watched right before taking breaks. You'll have the opportunity to get up, stretch your legs, eat, and anything else you need, but the thoughts of what you have yet to see will help bolster resolve to continue watching once the break is over. Now, just give me a moment and I'll have mission two playing for you all."

Chapter Text

Inside the theater, several members of the audience are taking the time to stretch their legs before the next episode begins. While the Keeper messes with the projector, a variety of discussions take place.

"So, what are your thoughts on what we've been shown so far, Henry?" Martha and Mr. Henderson stand by one of the back walls of the theater, observing everyone else while they talk. As her eyes glide from the seating area to him, his own remain firmly fixed on the children, still sectioned off.

"I don't think we have enough time to properly discuss my thoughts, Martha. I'd have to mince words and give half-answers to fit them into the time we have before the next viewing. However, I think it's possible for me to share at least one thought of mine on the subject." He finally looks away from his students to face Martha, his expression a serious one. "I hope that the children are using their brains while they are viewing this. Despite several unsavory things being mixed into the viewing, there is a lot of good information to absorb from this, and lessons that cannot be learned without this level of insight."

Martha glances at the Eden College students out of the corner of her eye, watching a rather intense discussion happen. "I don't think you need to worry about them not absorbing the knowledge presented. They clearly have... But I have a feeling that's not the main reason why you chose to share that thought. Something has you worried."

The old gentleman closes his eyes for a moment, sighing lightly before he continues. "Yes. They clearly have gained something from watching so far. But my concern is in regards to what each one of them has gained. These children are going to shape the future of Ostania, and perhaps Westalis as well. They need to be able to think through tough decisions and complex situations without souring relations. But from what I can see, each one of them has very firm opinions on the situation, and none of them want to back down at all."

The veteran of two wars stares at the impassioned debate going on in the separate section, noting how aggressive some of the children seem to be. "You should take some time during the break to give them a lesson on that, Henry. Peace talks and how to have civil discussions while still presenting their own opinion in a non-aggressive manner."

"I already plan to. I just hope that the break comes soon enough that I can teach them before things become irreparable. They need to be capable of standing united when they grow up, and I believe that Miss Forger's secret has caused a rather large fracture to occur in the relations between her and the people who have spent time thinking about it too much."

"It's creepy! I feel like nothing can be a secret around her now!" Ewen points at Anya, who watches the debate with wide eyes.

Becky glares at him, placing her fists on her hips as she counters him. "It's not her fault! She didn't ask to have this power, it was forced onto her! She hasn't done anything harmful with it anyway, so why are you so mad about it?"

"Because she never told anyone! She just follows us around, listening to every single thought we have, and uses them to her advantage! We all saw her start using crying as a weapon against Mr. Twilight as soon as she learned that he hates the sound of kids crying! How is that nothing harmful!? She's been using all of us!" Ewen's fierce response washes over the group, and Becky flinches at the truth in his words.

Emile stands from his seat, speaking with far less ferocity than Becky or Ewen. "Um, the weird doctors who were using her. Didn't they tell her to never let anyone know about her power? I'm pretty sure they were completely in charge of her life at the time, so she's gonna listen to them. Also, when she was threatening to cry, she was afraid she would be sent back to the orphanage, and you saw how bad it was, right? I'd do anything in my power to stay away from a place like that. I don't think any of our talks have been that important, so I doubt she's been pulling any strings behind our backs."

"Sorry, but I have to object." Bill's voice cuts into the discussion like a knife. "I don't think it matters what the doctors told her when she was in the lab, because she hasn't been in the lab for a while now. If a dog trained to attack people stops being an attack dog, it's expected to learn not to hurt anyone anymore. If it stays violent, you put it down or get rid of it, right?"

"Bill! She's not a dog! And you're suggesting that Anya should be KILLED!" Becky places herself between the large child and her friend, spreading her arms wide in a protective gesture.

The Wald hall student quickly backpedals, realizing how that sounded. "I didn't mean that literally! I was comparing the situation! I did it badly, I know! But you understand what I meant, right? She has a brain in her head, she can think for herself and decide to tell us about it herself!"

"But what if the doctors catch wind of it through gossip, and hunt her down to bring her back?" Emile glances at the girl, who seemed to be getting rather overwhelmed by the discussion. "We shouldn't force her to be in danger for our comfort, should we? And again, we never have any important talks so what harm is there to her hanging around us?"

"That's wrong though!" Ewen retorts with frustration. "The Bossman said it himself! After the bus incident, she said something to him that sounded like Mr. Twilight's spy mission! She HAS been taking advantage of us, trying to cozy up to Damian so a Westalian spy could start leeching info out of his family!"

"Why are you so angry about that though, Ewen?" Damian's dismissive tone enters the fight as he finally adds his own opinion. "Literally everyone else in the class has been trying to use me for personal gain since we've met, and you don't lash out at them for it. What's wrong with Forger trying to use me for the benefit of the nation? That seems like a better option to me. Besides, unlike all those other brats, she's putting in actual effort to try to be friends, rather than just orbiting me like annoying bugs."

Ewen turns his anger towards Damian. "I'm not sure why YOU'RE okay with it, Lord Damian! She's only putting in this much effort because she's trying that hard to take advantage of you! She doesn't care about any of us at all, she's just trying to make her dad happy so she's not ditched! Her dad, who I will remind you, is an ENEMY SPY! You're acting weird right now, you've always pushed her away before this, and all of a sudden you want to just let her be a traitor!"

Becky jumps in furiously. "Loid's not a bad guy, you heard that he's doing this for peace! Anya wants to help him avoid a war, and you're mad at her for it!"

"His boss might be lying to him about his efforts, Blackbell! He might think he's working towards peace, but he might be tipping scales towards our enemies!" Bill's deep voice reverberates once again. "Generals will lie to infantrymen for the good of the nation if needed. How do we know this isn't one of those times?"

"I've-" While Anya tries to jump into the discussion, her words are quickly silenced by censorship, and she grows visibly annoyed by being repeatedly forced to withhold information.

Thankfully, Emile tries to pick up the conversation for her. "The fact that she just tried to respond to you but was cut off means that she had something important to say that would prove Mr. Forger's innocence!"

The bickering of the children continues on like this, no headway being made in any direction at all.

"Sis, you gotta break up with Loidy! He's TWILIGHT, an enemy spy!" The Briar siblings had found a nice corner of the room to sit down and chat, though most of it continues to be very similar in nature to this.

"Yuri, you've heard his thoughts on the screen! Loid's not our enemy, he wants to help avoid a war!" Yor's defiant words rebuff her brother and his concerns, though he quickly continues.

"But he's USING YOU, Sis! Chihuahua's not even his kid! Besides, it doesn't matter what his intentions are!" Yuri's voice lowers, his expression darkening. "There's that SSS guy in the second row, and I can basically guarantee that once this is over, Loidy's going to be hunted down! If you don't split up with him, you might be arrested on suspicions of treason, even if you're innocent! Please, see reason and get a divorce from him! For your own safety!"

Yor stares at the concerned expression on Yuri's face, and a twinge of guilt strikes her in the gut. I'm not as innocent as you think, Yuri... "Yuri, I'm sure that we can talk with him during the break and get things sorted out. If he really cares about his country, then he'll understand that letting Loid go is in his best interests!"

"But what about his superiors!? If they ever find out that he kept this a secret from them, he'll be on the block for treason! There's no way he's going to take that risk, Sis!"

"Like I said, I don't care who you are, so long as you're doing the right things... And pay me." Franky stares at the Lieutenant, who had pulled him aside for a chat about business.

"I can do that. I certainly get a big enough paycheck to request your assistance. Either way, I'd like to acquire your services in hunting down that lab that created Twilight's daughter, and those three doctors as well. It's a disgrace to our country that an organization like that is able to hide within our borders, and I want to change that." The scarred man watches the informant as his lips pull up into a grin.

"Now you're talking. I'll probably need access to copies of those mugshots you made to help out my search, but I'm willing to cooperate with you. It puts a bad taste in my own mouth, thinking about the things those madmen have probably done. I'm an inventor myself, so I know that getting a project to work takes dozens, even hundreds of tries. In the context of human experiments, that can mean dozens, even hundreds of bodies are piled up somewhere, and nobody knows."

The Lieutenant chews on the end of the unlit cigarette in his mouth. God, I need a smoke break. This has been a lot to take in, and there's going to be more before I'll get the chance. "Personally, I'm worried about the surviving few. Anything that makes that many bodies will leave ghastly scars on the survivors, physical and mental... I probably don't have the money to afford the medical attention for a bunch of people who probably don't have legal citizenship, though."

"Oh, I can cover that. I know a guy who has a supply line all the way back to the factories that manufacture the medicines used in hospitals. If the survivors need it, I can get it."

"Great. Now, let's discu-"

The screen suddenly lights up dimly, showing a frozen frame of stone brick streets and a puddle reflecting the moon, all illuminated in purple. "All right!" The Keeper's voice fills the theater as she speaks. "Okay everyone! We're good to start the next mission! Everyone return to your seats now!"

The Lieutenant gives a frustrated huff before glancing to Franky again. "We'll continue this talk later."

The informant laughs. "Obviously. This sounds like the kind of job that'll actually change lives, AND come with a good paycheck. Normally it's one or the other!" The SSS officer rolls his eyes at the joke as they head to their seats."

Once everyone returns to their seats and stops talking, the image on the screen begins to move.

The water in the puddle gains a ripple, and the image of the moon is obscured entirely. Suddenly, the view shifts to a cloud of smoke blowing out of a tunnel as music begins to play.

"Oh right, that exists. Hang on, I'm skipping this for now. I don't think you guys are ready for the can of worms that this will open up yet." As the Keeper covers the projector's light with her hand and begins messing with it again, several people look between her and the dark screen in confusion.

So despite this entire experience happening for the sake of revealing secrets, that girl's going to keep a secret of her own? Hypocritical. However, she does seem to think that we're actually not prepared to handle whatever that secret is. Fiona stares at the teenager lording over the theater, suspicion floating through her head. At the same time, she's perfectly willing to immediately reveal to everyone that Twilight's a spy and his daughter is a human experiment that reads minds. Both of those are massive risks to just throw at a group of people, so what does she have to hide, and why is it something that needs to be hidden more than our own secrets?

Becky's thoughts were on the single second of the projection they had been able to witness. "...Why were the colors so vivid?" What was that anyway?" She glances at her friend, raising a brow. "Any ideas, Anya?"

The telepath shakes her head vigorously. "Nope. It reminds me of Spy Wars, but the color's too deep for that."

"There we go! Alright, we're good to continue!" The Keeper uncovers the projector light, and the screen illuminates once more.

The top of Franky's head can be seen, before the view shifts to Twilight's face, then Anya's face, and then back to Franky's, which is covered in makeup.

"GAAAHH! I STILL HATE YOU FOR THIS, TWILIGHT!" Franky grabs his hair and pulls on it, glaring at the spy. "This was never supposed to be seen by anyone else! I'm putting emotional damage onto your tab for this!"

"That's unreasonable and you know it, Franky." Twilight doesn't even spare his informant a single glance.

Twilight sighs as he stares at Franky, and the view shifts to show all three of them standing in the living room of the Forger's home. "Yeah, no."

Franky scowls at the spy. "What?!"

Anya turns to her father and points at the disguised informant. "Anya cannot accept this mama."

Twilight's emotionless expression remains strong as he continues. "You're just not going to cut it for the mother role, Franky."

His friend picks up a hand mirror from the table and holds it to the side of his mouth, whispering to Twilight. "You're literally a spy. Couldn't you have done my disguise better?"

"There's only so much I can do with your height and physique." The WISE agent turns away and walks deeper into the house while Franky puts down the mirror and stomps off to the side.

"I can't believe I volunteered for this!"

Chloe tries to stifle the laugh threatening to bubble up when she speaks. "You volunteered for that? Why?"

Franky groans, leaning back into his seat. "How many women do you know that are willing to marry a single father in less than a week, who also have no criminal record? I thought I would lend Twilight a hand with his mission, but CLEARLY he didn't need it!"

As Twilight sits down in one of the chairs, he clasps his hands in front of his face, closing his eyes to think. In the background, Anya can be seen offering a snack to Franky to cheer him up. "Have a peanut."

Operation Strix. In order to stop a key figure in Ostania, Desmond, from trying to start a war, I was given this top-secret mission as a member of WISE.

Damian calls across the theater. "Hey, what's WISE, Pops?"

The spy sighs, assuming a similar pose as his counterpart on the screen. "Westalian Intelligence Services Eastern-Focused Division. My job will always be to avoid war with Ostania."

Becky speaks up next, curious. "Then is it safe to assume that you have different divisions for the other countries?" Twilight nods, saying nothing further on the matter.

We were able to pass the written exam to get into the prestigious Eden College, but who knew the interview process's next stage demanded the attendance of both parents? As Twilight thinks this, the image of the gates to the school is shown, along with the school crest. Unclasping his hands and sitting up straight, the spy stares out the window of the apartment as the view shows the rooftops of the city. "Very well. I guess I'll have to explore my options."

The words 'MISSION 2: SECURE A WIFE' appear on screen for a moment. before the view changes again, this time focusing on a single building from a ground-level perspective. The words 'Capital City Berlint, City Hall' are seen now.

"Did you hear? A thief might've entered our office." Inside the building, Camilla speaks to her coworkers with an easy smile on her face. "Apparently, they only searched drawers with information regarding the girls. Like, what? What kind of creep does that?"

Millie responds to her. "Honestly, the section chief is way creepier. He's always ogling me." Her expression shifts from neutral to one of discomfort as she says this.

Their third coworker, Sharon, speaks harshly as the smoke from her cigarette drifts into the air of the office. "That's because you're always wearing those short skirts."

"Well, my boyfriend likes it when I wear them." As the dark-haired woman takes a drag from the smoke and lets the nicotine into her lungs, Millie continues. "You've got a nice figure yourself, Sharon, so flaunt it more."

Sharon turns to face her, impassive. "You don't bother anymore once you have a kid."

Camilla turns away from the two, interested in the fourth member of their group. "So hey... What do you think about this, Yor? Isn't it creepy?"

The sound of liquid pouring is heard as the red-eyed woman turns to face the other three, her earring clinking softly. "Sorry?" The camera changes, showing her body from the waist up instead of just her face, revealing that the pouring was her, making a cup of coffee.

"Seems like this mission is focusing on you, Sis. I guess I should have expected that, considering the mission title." Yuri glances towards Yor, who nods her head.

"I suppose it is." I don't know if I'm ready for my secret to be revealed. Loid said he'd try to understand, but there's a big difference between a spy and an assassin!

Millie glances at the cup being poured. "Is that the section chief's coffee? Let's put some boogers in it."

Mr. Henderson scoffs. "That woman has very little refinement to her. This sounds like the scheme of a child."

Yor looks at Millie, confused. "Huh? Do boogers somehow make it taste better?" Millie and Camilla both seem a little surprised by Yor's question.

The perspective changes to focus on Camilla's face again as she smiles. "You know, Yor... I've gotta say you're rather... unique."

As Yor absorbs that comment, Millie chimes in again. "I know, right? She's so out there that I bet guys keep their distance."

Sharon raises a brow from behind the chatty woman. "Come on, now, Millie." Despite her words, Camilla and Millie continue the discussion they've created.

"You've got a nice face and body, Yor. You'd be a knockout if you just dressed up."

Emile rolls his eyes, yawning. "Why are we just watching a bunch of office ladies gossip? This is boring to listen to."

Martha turns to the child. "Everything we're being shown has a reason for being shown. I'm sure this has importance, just be patient."

Yor gives Camilla a blank stare. "Uh-huh..."

"I'll give you the deets on some of my favorite cosmetics." Millie offers to help Yor out, but the woman disregards the offer and turns her head to look at the table next to her.

"I'm honestly content as long as I get to keep this job." Yor sounds satisfied with her response, though Camilla speaks up again.

"But aren't you like, 27? You need to be careful." As the naive woman turns to her, the camera focuses on Camilla's face, a shadow crossing over her features in a menacing way. "There seem to be a lot of spies around lately, you know? So people are apparently getting reported over the tiniest things." An image of a woman being dragged off by the secret police is shown. "The other day, a single woman in her late twenties got reported by her neighbors for being suspicious."

"Wait, what? That's hilarious." Millie adds unhelpfully, as the image fades to show her playful smile. "You know everything, Camilla."

"What's she even talking about?" Franky scoffs at the words spoken. "How's it funny at all to have an innocent woman dragged off because of nosy neighbors?"

"I have to agree with you, Mr. Franklin." Mr. Henderson frowns at the screen. "That 'Millie' girl seems quite immature and inelegant, finding humor in suffering like that."

Sharon chimes into the discussion again, speaking her own thoughts. "True, it's unheard of to be single at that age. Very suspicious."

Yor speaks to Sharon, her tone of voice having stayed unsettlingly flat throughout the scene. "Oh, I see. Thank you for the warning." She bows to her smoking companion in thanks before the focus falls on Camilla once more.

"Oh, yeah. I'm having a party at my place this weekend. You should totally come, Yor. Make sure to bring your partner with you." She waves to Yor as she leaves the room, followed by Millie and Sharon.

As Yor is shown to stay still in the room, Sharon's voice can be heard from the hall. "Isn't that asking a bit much?"

"Maybe the creeper who snuck into this place will go with her." Camilla's mean-spirited response makes it clear that the invitation is blatantly mocking.

"That's so mean!" Millie giggles at Camilla's words.

Yuri's eyes narrow at the screen, a shadow cast over his face. "This is blatant workplace harassment."

Fiona glances at him. "From two of them, maybe. The one named Sharon seemed to have been genuinely warning Yor, rather than participating in any of the harassment. In fact, she tried to make Millie tone it down, didn't she?"

On the kid's side of the room, Damian felt a shiver in his spine. "What's wrong with your mom there, Forger? She sounds like a walking corpse." When the girl shrugs, he scowls and turns back to the screen. That's a pretty weird way for her to act, because from what I've seen, she's always so full of life.

While Yor stares at the coffee pot, the scene fades away while a phone rings, changing to late at night, and back at Yor's apartment. After several rings, the phone is answered. "Hello, Briar residence."

Inside the apartment, the view focuses on the phone held to Yor's ear. "Hey, sis. How have you been?"

"Oh, Yuri."

"How's work going?" The camera flips from behind Yor to in front of her, revealing a smile on her face for the first time in the episode.

"Don't worry. I'm still employed." As she speaks, she turns her head, looking at a framed picture of the Briar siblings on the table next to the phone, though the phone cord covers Yuri's face.

"I'm worried about you. You're kinda unusual, y'know."

"How rude. I'm completely normal."

Chloe turns to Yuri, shocked. "Is that how you talk TO your sister? Whenever you talk ABOUT her you only talk about everything good about her."

Yuri scowls at Chloe. "My sister's amazing, the best person I've ever met in this country, but nobody's perfect. I'm well aware that she has flaws. What, did you think I just grew up blindly idolizing her?"

While Yor twirls the phone cord around her finger, Yuri continues. "Isn't it about time you got married? Anyone you're interested in?"

This again?

Yuri continues. "The thing is, there's a chance I might get promoted... Meaning I'll probably be even busier running around than before. But I can't leave you alone like this, so I'm not sure if I should take it. The whole reason I got this far is because of you, and I'm truly grateful. That's why I just want you to be happy." While Yuri speaks, the perspective changes to a variety of angles and focuses around the apartment, ending with one from across the room before focusing on Yor's face from the side.

Yor gains a warm smile as she listens to Yuri talk. "I know. Thank you, Yuri."

"If you want, I can introduce you to someone."

"Huh? N-No, that's okay. O-Oh, yes. I'm actually going to a party this weekend. With my partner, of course." Yor taps one of her heels nervously against the floor as she speaks.

"Huh? You have a boyfriend?"

"I do, actually... So don't worry." The smile on the woman's face has changed completely, now an awkward one as she tries to lie to her brother.

"I see! That's great. It'll be a party with coworkers, right?" Yuri sounds genuinely happy to hear about his sister's fortune.

"Yup. Camilla's throwing it."

"Ah. Then I'll have to ask Dominic about the guy later."

"Huh?"

"I mean, I know how gullible you are. I'll have to chase him away if he's a loser."

"Huh? Um..."

"I'll hold off on this promotion until I know he's a good guy."

"Oh, you don't need to do tha-"

"I look forward to meeting him. Goodnight." As Yuri hangs up the phone, Yor stares at it for a moment before slowly lowering it back to the base.

What should I do?

Ewen frowns at the conversation that just played out. "He sounds like a good brother, but that was a bit forceful, wasn't it?"

Twilight raises a brow at the screen. He's been holding off on a promotion since then? He seemingly wants Yor to be happy and married, so why has he always hated me so much?

While Anya waits quietly for people to finish talking, she notices Bond's ears flick upwards. Bond's got a new vision? She reaches out with her mind, connecting to his to see what comes in the future.

Four adults stand in a circle, speaking heatedly. Fiona points an accusatory finger at Yor, glaring intensely. Yuri slaps the hand away, looking back at his sister with confusion, disbelief, and something else. Fiona glares daggers at the brother before turning to Twilight, who stares at his wife in horror. Yor stares back, terrified, barely reacting to the rest of the fight.

A big fight's coming soon!? Anya looks between the four adults, her mind already whirling to try and figure out how to avoid what she saw.

I need to find someone by the time of the party. Turning away from the phone, Yor begins to pace around her room, a hand to her chin in thought. If he finds out I'm lying, he'll think I'm a weirdo and a pathological liar, and he'll lose even more trust in me. I need to find someone for the sake of my little brother's promotion. As she thinks that, the phone begins ringing again.

Franky chuckles at the sight. "Heh. That train of thought reminds me of yours when Anya hid under that sign, Twilight. You both spiral so quickly, huh?"

Yor quickly runs back to the phone, picking it up and speaking in a rapid, flustered pace. "Yuri, you've got the wrong idea! I was just joking earlier-"

"Oh dear. Did you buddy-buddy siblings actually have a quarrel?" The voice on the other end of the phone is definitely not Yuri's, and Yor quickly regains her composure upon realizing who it is.

"Oh, Shopkeeper? I'm sorry, I didn't realize it was you."

"Good evening. I have a client for you, Thorn Princess." As the man says this, Yor's expression immediately changes, going from her usual, innocent look to a cold, dark, dangerous focus as she narrows her eyes. Her earring glints in the light as her face is cast in shadow. "The Royal Hotel. Room 1307."

Franky's own expression does a complete 180, going from relaxed and silly to wide-eyed terror as he looks at Yor. "WHAT!? YOU'RE-" He's cut off by a censorship bar, but his sudden outburst caused Yor to jump in surprise, facing him with an anxious expression.

I'm not ready, I'm not ready, I'm not ready for this! "Y-You know!?" As the informant practically falls over his armrest to back up against the wall of the theater, everyone else in the room looks between the two with mounting confusion and concern.

What's got him so spooked? That face she made was creepy, but that's Yuri's sister! She's an angel according to him! Chloe glances at Yuri, but the man himself was staring at his sister in confusion.

Thorn Princess? What's with that nickname? What is this, Sis? What haven't you told me? As he meets his sister's anxious expression, Yuri allows himself to look away to make her more comfortable. As he averts his eyes though, he catches Anya's instead. The kid looks jittery, sweaty, ready to jump out of her seat and bolt for some reason, and her gaze keeps shifting between four members of the audience, himself included. Chihuahua? What's going on? As the girl looks at him again in surprise, he can practically see the gears turning in her head before she starts mouthing something. ...Stay calm, protect Mama?

The scene changes to the inside of a luxurious hotel, an elevator rising up before ringing as it reaches the 13th floor. Yor stands in the elevator, and as the doors open she's faced with several men in suits. Once she steps out, one of them begins speaking. "Apologies, my lady. This whole floor has been reserved."

When she doesn't stop, a second one turns his head, looking around before facing a third. "Did anyone call for this chick?"

"Who knows?"

As Yor finally stops walking, her quiet voice fills the silent hallway. "But I've heard..." As she bends down slightly, the guards stare in shock. "That a traitorous scumbag is staying here." With a flourish, she pulls out a golden stiletto, letting it twirl in the air before catching firmly in her grasp.

In contrast to her quiet voice, the camera shifts to inside the next room as the doors are knocked off their hinges, two of the men thrown through them. The men having a meeting inside turn to the commotion, startled and frightened. "What in the world?!"

The third guard runs into the room in a panic. "It's an ambush! A lone woman-" He's cut off by a wet piercing noise, and he falls to his knees, the same golden stiletto embedded in his spine, before collapsing entirely. As the men inside the room grow even more terrified, Yor's high-heel lands right in front of the camera.

Her quiet voice is heard once more. "Excuse me. Vice Minister Brennan from the auditing department, I presume?" The camera changes to a front view of the woman, dressed in black with embroidered red roses on the inside. Her bloody piercers shine in the lighting of the room, while her face is curtained by darkness. "I am terribly sorry if I interrupted anything..." Focusing on her face, her eyes shine dangerously, though her face is rosy, clearly dolled up in makeup. "But may I have the honor of taking your life?"

With a metallic swish, the lights of the room go dark, and the sounds of gruesome violence can be heard as dark fluid sprays onto the white walls. The narrator who introduced Twilight and Anya speaks up again.

"Code name: Thorn Princess." As the view changes, it reveals Yor washing her hands in the bathroom, the only source of light. The room is full of bodies. "An assassin."

Through the entire reveal, and gruesome slaughter, everyone had sat petrified, completely caught off-guard by the tonal shift between the friendly woman and her actions on the screen. Damian has terror written all over his appearance. Bill looks sick to his stomach. Becky attempts to stand up, her face pale as she slowly pushes her trembling body out of her seat to look at the woman who had been teaching her to be strong. Emile freezes up, sitting perfectly still. Ewen faints entirely, collapsing out of his seat loudly and making the rest of the children jump.

The monocle falls from Mr. Henderson's face, hanging by the cord as it bounces off his chest. Martha has a pained look on her face as she looks between the Forgers. Twilight is stunned, his jaw hanging open as he stares at how many people his wife just killed on the screen. Thinks about how casually she did it. His brain begins to wind back on their time spent together. All the moments where Yor displayed great strength, agility, and durability.

Fiona's gaze is locked onto the assassin, her mind floundering from the reveal, trying to say something. Franky migrated to a corner of the room, his terror-filled eyes burning a hole into Mrs. Forger's head. Thorn Princess herself looks around the room, unsure where to put her eyes. The Lieutenant stares at the screen, his pencil firmly stopped in his notebook.

Chloe slowly turns to look at Yuri, flabbergasted and horrified. She manages to force her lips apart, and her voice is quiet, barely able to be heard. "D...Did you... know about this?"

Yuri can't comprehend what he just watched. He can almost feel his synapses burning up from electrical surges. "S-Sis... That's not, that... This... I..." He turns to her, and meets her eyes. Disbelief meets despair. "...I-It's, it's not... true, right?" Yor returns his gaze, unsure how she can possibly answer him. Her face is slick with sweat and she can't manage to break eye contact with him.

Fiona manages to find her voice. "...Dr. Forger. I think that for your safety, and the sake of world peace, you should consider getting a divorce." Twilight's eyes flick towards her in recognition of her words. He doesn't respond, instead he slowly rises from his seat and begins to pace in front of the seats, marching back and forth while engrossed in his own mind. His wide eyes snap around the room with seemingly no pattern at all.

Seeing the distress that her husband was clearly in, Yor stands up and takes a few uncertain steps towards him, pausing to look back at her brother. His eyes have been locked onto her the entire time, but without him objecting to her actions, she continues towards him. When she's within arm's reach of his walking path, she slowly reaches out a hand towards him. "...Loid?"

The man jumps back, looking between her and her hand. She can see the tendons in his limbs tensing up under his suit, preparing himself to fight for his life. As he stares at her, terror stricken across his face, Fiona leaves her seat, marching over to pull Twilight away from Yor. "Leave him alone. Can't you see how you've affected him, just by standing there? Go away."

"But... he's my husband. I wouldn't hurt him." Guilt fills her as she thinks about that one time they went drinking... and her cooking attempts. "...Intentionally." She watches Twilight's concerning reaction to her presence, as he takes a few deep breaths and seems to pull himself back to a more professional demeanor.

"...Yor. I'm going to try very hard to give you the benefit of the doubt... How long have you been doing... that?" He gestures to the screen, keeping his eyes off of the brutal view.

Yor takes a moment to think. I need to be honest with him. I need to prove that he can trust me. "I've... had this job since-" To her horror, she finds herself censored at the worst possible time. She looks Twilight in the eye as he shifts his gaze between her eyes and mouth. "I... can't answer that. I'm sorry."

He stands silently for a few seconds before asking another question. "...Why did you become an assassin?"

"Because-" Yor is censored a second time, and winces at her own inability to share the truth. "...I'm sorry. I can't say why."

She can see the frustration building inside her husband, and can feel the desperation inside herself. "Alright... Is there a pattern to your targets?"

"Yes. They are-" A third censoring and she groans in irritation. Come on, just let me tell him! "There is a pattern. I can't say what."

"Fine..." Twilight swallows his agitation, forcing himself to stay calm. I got at least part of an answer. There's a pattern to the kills. I should be able to figure that out... Taking a deep breath, he continues. "I'm a little afraid to ask, but... How many? How many people have you killed?"

His wife's response is quiet, her voice kept low as she glances at the frightened children. "...I don't know. I stopped counting a long time ago, back when I was somewhere around 400 kills."

400 at minimum? And this is my wife? How the hell did this even happen? Of all the people in the city, I'd get married to an assassin!? ...Wait a minute. ANYA! He can hear her jump in her seat. Satisfied with the knowledge that she heard him, his focus falls back onto the bigger question. What now? How do I proceed with things now that I've learned that my family is as abnormal as it possibly can be, and all these people know? How can I possibly manage to keep Operation Strix alive?

Yuri's attention is drawn to the startled child for a second, and that reminds him of her warning. ...Chihuahua told me to stay calm and protect Sis. But what does she even need to be protected from, anyway? She's an... assassin, right? She can handle herself in a fight. Still, he forces himself to stand up and walk over to the other three adults at the front, and he notices the icy look the white-haired woman is giving his sister.

"Yor, I... I'm going to need time to think about all of this. It's... a lot. And I don't feel safe without knowing the answers to my questions. I know that you can't tell me, but I still don't feel safe regardless." Yuri listens to Twilight's words as he reaches the group, standing close to his sister, but not as close as usual.

She'll need space to fight properly if she's in danger, of course.

"I, I understand, Loid. But... I'm still able to be Anya's mother... right?" Yuri feels his heart twist at how hurt Yor sounds right now.

Fiona's cold gaze turns even colder. "I doubt anyone would want you to take care of their child after learning that!" She points an accusatory finger at Yor. "Not only are you a bad influence for a child, but a danger to them as well!"

Yuri stares at the hand for a second before slapping it away. "My sister is a great mother, you don't know what you're talking about." There's less venom in his own voice than he expects there to be. As the white-haired woman turns her ire towards him, Yuri glances at his sister. "Hey, Sis? Why don't we just... find new seats?"

He gently grabs her wrist and waits for her to look him in the eye. Eventually, she nods her head, and he leads her up to the top row of seats. Yor sits down in the empty seat on the end next to the children's section, and Yuri sits in the seat behind Mr. Henderson.

...Why does this feel wrong? I wanted to see Sis and Loidy break up. This is a good thing! His eyes drift down towards Anya again, who has a sad look on her face now. Thanks for the warning, I guess. I don't know what you want me to protect her from, but I'll do my best.

With Yor sitting in the back row now, Twilight and Fiona find their seats again, and the projector begins to play once more.

"She was taught the skills of her trade from a young age, and has done any dirty work her employer requested ever since." The camera focuses on Thorn Princess as she washes her hands, an unhappy expression on her face as she scrubs away at her spotless hands.

"It's not coming off."

"...Um, q-question?" Becky trembles as she opens her mouth, afraid to incur the wrath of the assassin in the room. "What... exactly isn't, uh... coming off?"

The stifling pressure in the room makes Yor hesitate to answer. ...This is going to sound bad, no matter how long I take to say it. She takes a deep breath, keeping her eyes directed firmly at the floor between her feet. "...The smell. I could still smell blood on my hands."

"Oh..." Becky faces the screen again, sweat running down her cheek. This is awful! I know that it's a big secret, but it's affected the tone of the room more than Anya or Loid's secrets! I feel like I'm choking on air!

The assassin turns off the tap, glancing down at her outfit to check for stains. She gasps as she pulls up the bottom, revealing a large tear. "Huh? Oh, no! What shall I do?" The camera pans across the bathroom countertop, showing the blood staining the sink, and her three stilettos, now clean and resting on a cloth to dry. "This is the only nice dress I own. Now I can't go to the party." Sighing, she turns around, staring into the room of bodies. The words of her associates come to mind.

Anyone you're interested in?

It's unheard of to be single at that age.

Make sure you bring your partner with you.

Yor's gaze lowers, and a somber look rests on her features. "But it's hopeless. When it comes to homemaking... Cleaning is the only thing I can do." Staring at her handiwork, the scene fades out to black.

She doesn't seem very happy. Does she not want to be an assassin? Martha turns in her seat to look up at the woman sitting in the third row.

"Sis! You're capable of much more than that!" Yuri's emphatic words ring loudly in the tense silence of the theater. He quickly wraps his arms around Yor's shoulders, giving her a tight hug. "Don't think so little of yourself!"

Martha turns back to the screen as Yor returns the hug. ...I'll pretend I didn't hear Mr. Briar wheeze just now.

The camera lights up again, a bright and sunny day with a perspective outside the building containing the Forger household. A door can be heard opening, followed by Anya's voice. "Scruffy Head!"

Inside the Forger's living room, Franky grunts as he places down a large stack of papers onto the table. "I copied all the files of unmarried women from city hall."

"Great, thanks." Across from him, Twilight sits on the couch.

"That was you?" Yor looks at Franky, whose muscles immediately tense at being addressed.

"Y-Yeah, Twilight had a job for me, and I can't just leave him hanging..." Despite the light tone of voice, he sounds fairly uneasy.

"You need one who won't care you're divorced with a kid, is refined enough for a prestigious school, and is willing to get married within 48 hours?" Franky crosses his arms. "If a goddess like that exists, I'd sure like to meet her. Meanwhile, I'm not picky at all, yet I can't even get a date."

Anya and Twilight stare at Franky as he laments his love life. "How unfortunate."

Franky slams his hands down on the table angrily, startling Anya. "Don't pity me, asshole!"

Mr. Henderson frowns. I had been considering him as a teacher, but such unrefined actions and crude language in the presence of a child are making me think otherwise...

Anya glances over at the Housemaster, before calling out across the room. "You just lost a job, Scruffy."

"Wha-Hey! What for!?" As the angry informant shouts at her, Anya thinks to herself.

Scruffy's a funny guy, so he can make everyone happy around Mama again! Turning around in her seat, she's satisfied to notice that Becky has a small smile tugging at the corners of her mouth, one of Damian's eyebrows had risen, and Emile was starting to breathe normally again. ...Wasn't there another henchman?

Looking around, she spots Ewen being picked up off the ground by the Keeper and placed back in his seat. She taps him once on the forehead, and the boy startles awake. "H-Huh? What..." Did I fall asleep? The screen's showing a scene I don't remember starting, and why's the Keeper lady standing right there? Um... I remember seeing Forger's mom getting a phone call, going to a fancy hotel, and... oh.

As the boy's face turns pale, the Keeper taps him on the forehead again. "Nuh-uh. You're not passing out again. Not while we're watching." He stares at her in confusion, and Anya notices the color returning to his complexion. "There we go. Now, back to the viewing..." Satisfied with her work, the teen marches back to her own seat.

Anya peeks over the arm of the couch at her father, her brow creased in worry. "Is having a kid bad? Am I in the way?"

Twilight places a hand on her head and softly pets her. "You're not in the way at all. Don't worry. Just go watch some TV."

"'Kay." While Anya walks past Franky to reach the TV, the man sits down in one armchair, giving the screen an unimpressed look as the child flips the channel to Spy Wars.

Leaning closer to Twilight, he speaks just loud enough to be heard over the music from the show. "Actually, why don't you just use a female agent from your work?"

Twilight picks up one of the documents Franky procured for him before the view changes to focus on the screen. "A lot of them got caught in the recent spy hunts, so I couldn't find a good match. Selling people out is really in right now."

On the screen, Bondman holds a woman. Her eyes are closed, and blood trails from her mouth. "Wake up! Hey!" He clenches his teeth and shouts to the sky. "You... You won't get away with this!" As the telepath vibrates with excitement, the camera focuses on Franky and Twilight again.

"We don't have enough agents, so I got another mission on top of this." He picks up two files, comparing the two of them while he speaks. He puts one of them down and picks up another, comparing it to the first. "Eliminating a certain smuggling ring."

Franky looks unhappy to hear this. "They're working you to the bone! Let's just get this over with." The perspective shifts to show the profiles as they are placed down on the table by Twilight, one by one. "The quickest options would be women in bad circumstances who'd cooperate with you. Finding dirt on them might help, too. If they don't have any, we can always make some up." Franky picks up the profile of a woman named 'Clara Meyer' while he talks.

"I'd like to avoid anything risky." Looking at Twilight again, Franky's arm stretches across the screen to point.

"Oh, please. She's plenty risky." Looking up from more files, Twilight follows his gesture to look at Anya, who's bouncing excitedly in front of the screen. "She definitely doesn't look like any princess from a rich family."

"Push! Push!"

A drop of sweat rolls down the side of Twilight's face. "You've got a point. I need to at least do something about her appearance."

Chloe turns to look at Twilight and Franky, a scowl on her face. "You guys sure do sound like a couple of malicious con artists right now."

Twilight gives an apologetic smile. "Sorry. 48 hours is a short window to find someone. I think we both were a little desperate to get the operation to work."

Yeah, right! You're just showing your true colors, Loidy! Yuri glares at the man from above. "You better not have-"

"I didn't do anything like that to make Yor marry me. It was-" A black bar appears over Twilights mouth as he's censored. Visibly annoyed, he faces the screen again.

Jumping to a different part of the city, the front of a tailor's shop is displayed. Inside, Anya stares at a green jacket while one of the workers approaches. "Now, young lady. I'm going to take your measurements. Come with me."

Taking the child's hand, she leads her across the room. Anya turns to Twilight. "I'm being sold off somewhere!"

"You won't be if you behave." Walking to the edge of the counter, the spy tracks Anya's movement for a few seconds. "Honestly, where does she learn to talk like that?" He leans against the counter, his back towards the door as he looks around the room. The seamstress... is married. The proprietress was listed among the single women, but she's been arrested once over political activities, so she's too dangerous. Twilight watches as Anya's waist is measured and she leans too far back into the measuring tape, almost falling over. Finding the right person might take longer than-"

He pauses as someone walks up to the counter behind him, completely silent. "Pardon me." The WISE agent startles at the voice.

The elderly clerk is the one to respond. "Oh, I haven't seen you in a while, Yor."

"Hello. I was hoping I could get my dress fixed up. Could I get it done as quickly as possible?" Opening her handbag, Yor pulls out the folded dress she wore to the hotel assassination.

"But of course. You're one of our regulars." While the clerk speaks in a friendly tone, Twilight shifts his posture slightly, peeking at the woman from over his shoulder.

Martha raises a brow. "You didn't reassure Miss Anya, and instead fed into that worry to make her behave?"

"It seemed like a good idea at the time. Considering how much trouble she caused me in the first few days, giving her a reason to behave felt justified."

Yor looks over at Anya. "Placing that much stress onto a child can't be good though, right?"

The spy falters, suddenly reminded of the deadly presence in the room. "I... I'll be more thoughtful in the future."

She managed to slip behind me so easily. Who is she? Closing his eyes, Twilight imagines all the profiles he looked through that morning, going down the list rapidly. Yor... Yor... There we go. He focuses on her profile. Yor Briar, 27 years old. She has no record of being married or divorced. Both of her parents are deceased, and she has one brother who's much younger than her. He turns his head a little, to get a better look at Yor. They're both civil servants whose records are pretty clean. Did I just let my guard down? I'm far too relaxed lately.

"Excuse me." Yor turns to Twilight. "You've been staring at me ever since I walked in. May I help you?"

Impossible! She could even sense my gaze? "Er, no, um, I'm sorry... I was just admiring how pretty you are."

Yor's face shifts slightly. She seems surprised, and closes the distance between Twilight and herself quickly. "Does that mean... You have a favorable impression of my physical appearance?"

"Er, well... Yes."

A vision of Camilla appears in Yor's mind. You've got a nice face and body, Yor. You'd be a knockout if you just dressed up.

"Um-"

"Papa!" Yor is cut off by Anya's return. "I now know how long I am!" As she draws close, she stops, looking at Yor. "Who's that?"

As Twilight gestures towards Yor, the woman turns away, a shadow over her face. "Another customer."

He has a child. I almost pursued someone's husband. As the room darkens around Yor's head, the signature twinkle of Anya's mind reading can be heard. I've heard that women have been killed by wives for such things. I mean, if it happened to me, I'd just kill them back...

"Huh?" Anya stares at Yor, shocked by her thoughts.

No, I mustn't. If I think like this, someone will eventually figure out I'm an assassin. I must learn to be more normal.

A-An assassin?! Anya's horrified face fills the camera.

"I never thought that my own worries would be so accurate..." Thorn Princess glances towards Anya again, anxiously. "I-I hope you haven't seen anything awful in my mind! I apologize if you have!"

Is it worth it to lie about this? We might see a lot more of Mama's thoughts in the future... "It's okay, Mama. Your mind's a little scary, but a good kind of scary."

The child looks back and forth between her father and the woman. A spy... An assassin... I'm... so excited! Her eyes glitter with life as she stares at the adults.

The narrator speaks up again. "The little girl was starving for entertainment."

Damian scoffs upon hearing that. "And how about now? Are things entertaining enough yet?" Anya looks back at him and nods her head.

"Papa and Mama do so many cool things. It's a lot of fun."

Becky turns to face her friend, a worried look on her face. "Anya, you don't think that murder is fun, right?"

The telepath glances over at the industrial heiress. "Nope. The fighting that comes before it is cool, but I don't like that part."

Good. If Twilight's child decided to start killing people, it would ruin the mission entirely. She needs to be properly disciplined about all this trouble she causes, and clearly Yor Briar doesn't do it properly. Fiona glares at the screen, frustrated.

Hmm... I was considering her as a candidate to play my wife, but never mind. As Twilight thinks this, Anya turns to him, shocked.

I was considering him to act as my boyfriend at the party, but I must avoid these so-called messy lovers' quarrels. When Yor thinks this, the child's attention is drawn back to her.

Immediately, Anya runs a step back and begins shifting around weirdly, hugging herself. "Ah, I am oh so lonely because I do not have a mama."

Twilight turns to her in confusion, while Yor turns towards the father. "What brought this on?"

"I long for a mama."

"Are you not with your wife?"

"Oh, er..." Turning away from his wiggling daughter, Twilight faces Yor again. "I actually lost my wife two years ago, so I'm raising her on my own now."

Yor gasps quietly. So I won't be killed for asking him to the party! Her face flushes a little as she starts over. "Excuse me..."

Ewen glares at Anya. "What did I say earlier? She's using people! And she doesn't care for their safety at all!"

Anya flinches at the accusation, pulling her legs up onto her seat and resting her chin on her knees. "You're wrong, I care about Papa and Mama..."

...But would she have cared at that time? Anya twists to stare at the Lieutenant, who raises a brow at her. Well? Do you have an answer? He continues out loud. "Perhaps you do, but you're incredibly short-sighted. Wouldn't putting a spy and an assassin in close proximity raise the chances of one killing the other, especially considering the fact that they are on opposite sides of a conflict?"

The telepath looks down at the floor guiltily. "...I thought... It would be fine..." Twilight and Yor glance towards one another, but look away again once their eyes meet.

Yuri stares at his niece, thinking. ...Yor would probably be fine. Twilight's... SLIGHTLY more capable than I am in a fight, but Sis is in a complete different ball park... Still, she might have gotten hurt! "You need to think harder on things in the future, Chihuahua. If Yor ever gets hurt because of you, I'll- ...I'll convince her not to buy you any peanuts for a month!" He smirks triumphantly at Anya before facing the screen again. Considering the fact that one bag of peanuts got her to stop crying over the risk of being abandoned again, that threat should really make her careful whenever she does something!

Cutting to outside the tailor's, Yor and Twilight talk while Anya clings to her father's leg. "Pretend to be your boyfriend?"

Yor looks embarrassed as she answers. "Yes... I fibbed to my younger brother about having a boyfriend. If it's not too much trouble, I was hoping you'd accompany me to this party." She suddenly stumbles over her words, flustering herself. "Um, I promise I don't have any ulterior motives! Of course, I'll thank you properly, too. I just want to put my brother's mind at ease."

Twilight stares at her for a couple seconds before a soft smile comes to him. "Very well. I accept."

Yor turns to him in surprise. "Really?!"

"But I would like something in return."

The perspective changes for a moment to one from across the street as several people walk past. Quickly, it returns back to up close with the trio. "So you see... I'd like you to play the role of her mother during the interview."

"Her mother?"

Twilight turns his head away from Yor, closing his eyes and clenching a fist. "With the future being so uncertain right now, my only wish is for my daughter to get into a good school. This was also the wish of my late wife."

Papa is a liar.

Yor stares at Twilight, awed by his words. What a wonderful person.

The man turns back to her. "It will only be one time. Would you be up for it?" I'll have her accept something simple first, but I'll get her to agree to a formal marriage in the end.

"A-All right... If you think I'm fit for the role." Twilight smiles at Yor upon hearing her response.

"Thank you. Then let us reconvene at Saturday's party."

"Yes."

Yuri turns to his sister. "So at least part of your story was true, then. You did meet at the tailor shop."

She nods her head, but before she can talk, someone else does. "From what I've seen in life, the best lies are made from partial truths." The siblings stare at Fiona as she regards them. "The fact that Twilight has been able to weave this tale to Yor is partially because he is good at his job, and partially because it was believable. Yes, he was raising Anya by himself. Yes, he wanted her to get into Eden College. Those small truths carried the rest of the story quite well."

Chloe stands up to face Fiona, glaring at her. "Are you done singing his praises yet? Remember that he's still a spy from Westalis. Sure, he's skilled. I can acknowledge that. But you don't need to explain exactly how good of a job he did."

"Is there a problem with being impressed by a good lie?" Fiona returns an icy glance to Chloe. "It's hard for most people to maintain a lie for an entire week. Twilight has been doing it since the school year began at Eden. I think that talent deserves praise."

"What about Mama?" Anya stands up on her seat to try and make herself look bigger. "Unkie Yuri never knew about Mama's job! That's much longer! Her talent should be praised too!"

Fiona glares at Anya, barely bothering to hide her hostility. You know what you're doing, don't you? Trying to force me to compliment Yor Briar! Her mouth stays resolutely shut as she engages in a battle of wills against a six year old.

Mr. Henderson clears his throat. "Ahem. There's no need for any of this hostility between us. Save it for later. Right now, we have a task to complete."

In the next scene, the camera opens to a grocery store. Inside, Twilight pushes a shopping cart, and Anya walks alongside it. "I got a sitter for you on Saturday, so make sure you behave."

Happily, the child stops, pointing to bags of peanuts on the shelf. "Stock up on them peanuts!"

"Yeah, yeah."

At the checkout, the cashier holds out a coin to Twilight. "Ten pents is your change, ribbit." Twilight takes the coin and walks out with Anya, groceries in hand. "Thanks, ribbit."

Anya looks back at the cashier, confused. "Ribbit?"

Damian catches the similarity. "You were just handed another mission, weren't you?" Twilight nods his head, and the boy smirks. Good, I'm figuring out the pattern for how spies handle their work. This is an important skill for me to have as a politician when I'm older!

Walking home, Twilight flips the coin, catching it with a swipe of his hand. A T... no, an F cipher.

Back in the apartment at dusk, Anya can be seen watching Spy Wars in the background as Twilight uses a tool to crack open the coin, revealing a tiny slip of paper. Must be the details on the extra mission. Using a robust looking-glass, he reads through the numbers on the magnified text, deciphering them quickly. Retrieving art pieces that were stolen from the West and eliminating this smuggling ring. I'm to carry out this mission Saturday at 1800 hours when the target meets with the buyer. He lowers the looking-glass, his eyes widening. Saturday?

Yuri cannot believe his ears. ...Did Loidy just suffer Chekhov's gun? He glances over at Twilight, frowning. "I hope you at least let Yor know that you were gonna be late."

"PAPA WAS SHOT?!" Anya looks between Yuri and Twilight in horror.

"HOLY-" Yuri releases a shuddering breath, his nerves high strung. This place is built to fray my nerves. Noticing Twilight's questioning eyes were on him, he sighs. "No, Chihuahua. Loidy wasn't shot. I was thinking of Chekhov's gun. It's a theory of storytelling where anything mentioned in a story will have an effect in the rest of the story at some point. The common example given is that if a gun is mentioned in the first chapter of the story, it will be fired at some point." He gestures to the screen. "At the beginning of this mission, Loidy was assigned extra work on top of raising you, and it was specified by Camilla that the party would happen on Saturday. I mention this second point specifically because, from what I remember, no dates were mentioned in the first mission, only a time limit. They weren't important. So for this party to specifically be on Saturday, and Loidy to have extra work, the fact that the work comes back to haunt him on Saturday is the narrative looping back around and using those aforementioned elements."

He stares at the child, hoping that she understood. Her blank expression does not fill him with confidence. "Ugh... Okay, look. You like that Spy Wars show. Imagine that while Bondman's infiltrating an enemy base, at the end of the episode he notes that he's going to need to use his fists to get out, because he only has one bullet left."

Anya's eyes light up. "One eighth! His pistol holds eight bullets!"

Yuri raises a brow. "...Yeah? But as I was saying, he's only got one bullet left, so he's gonna have to brawl his way out. Next episode comes, and he's punching all the bad guys in the face. Some big boss gets in his way, and it seems like just hitting him isn't gonna get the job done. How's Bondman gonna defeat the big boss?"

It's like he can see the moment the pieces click into place in Anya's mind. "Oh! He's gonna use the one bullet!"

"EXACTLY!"

"So if Bondman gets a mission with multiple papers clipped together, and he burns the papers, then later on, he's gonna need that paper clip for something!" The wide grin on Yuri's niece is contagious, and he finds himself smiling as well.

"YES! That's exactly it! You understand!"

Yor observes the teaching moment with a smile on her face. It's nice to see Yuri getting along with Anya. She turns to Twilight. "Was that why-" Her voice is cut off, and she's surprised by the black bar appearing over her mouth. I've seen this happen to Anya and Loid, but it's quite shocking to feel it suddenly appear!

Skipping forward to Saturday night, the camera shows the pier, with the warm streetlights bathing the scene in a soft glow. Twlight can be heard speaking. "And so..." As the view pans across the waterfront, it falls upon two individuals atop a building dressed in black. Twilight and Franky. "We're going to take care of this quickly so I can make it to the party. You're helping."

"Hang on a second! I'm just an informant! My fighting skills are literal trash! Not to mention, you already pretty much capped your tab-" As Franky protests Twilight's plan, he's interrupted by the spy.

"We're talking 78 art pieces valued at a total of three million dalcs. I'm almost certain no one would notice if one or two happened to go missing." Twilight pulls a mask up over his face, obscuring his identity rather effectively.

Franky points a thumb at himself, suddenly confident. "Leave it to me. I just so happen to have invented some new spy gear just for days like this."

As the view leaves the pair and looks back over the docked ships, Twilight's thoughts are heard. He's so useful.

"HA! He admits it! I'm useful!" Franky smirks at Twilight while the spy just rolls his eyes.

"Yes, yes. You're useful. Now, quiet."

Inside the city near a train station, Yor stands by the side of the road, checking her watch. "Loid is awfully late. I hope he wasn't in some terrible accident."

Back at the pier, an explosion rocks the warehouses and smoke billows. Inside one, Franky runs with a cart of stolen goods while bullets whizz past him. Twilight follows behind him, dodging between the streams of lead. "Hold it! Who're you workin' for?!"

Rounding the corner, Twilight throws himself against the corrugated metal, raising up his pistol while Franky's screaming fills whatever silence survived between the bullets. "You didn't tell me there'd be an army of them!"

Ignoring his companion, the spy looks back into the warehouse. "Two, four, six... 38 of them. I can't afford to waste even ten seconds on each one!" As he says this, he begins brawling with the smugglers that attempt to chase after them. He works through them much faster than his self-imposed time limit. However... "Reinforcements! There's no end to them."

Behind him, Franky slams the trunk of the Forger family van shut after a few failed attempts to jump high enough. "I got 'em all in! Get in!" The two immediately run for the driver and passenger doors, start the van, drive off from the smuggler hideout. Inside the van, Franky opens up a case containing a variety of expensive-looking jewelry. "Whoo! Let's see... Which one's going to accidentally go missing?"

Glancing over, Twilight grabs a diamond ring from the box. "I'm helping myself to this one."

"Hey, that's a diamond! No fair taking the expensive-looking one!"

"I'll use it as part of this whole charade." As he drives, Franky grabs at the ring, forcing Twilight to take his eyes off the road.

"Shut up! Give that back!" While he pesters the WISE agent, the high-beams of an oncoming vehicle light up the windshield, and screeching tires can be heard. Shifting perspective to outside the van, a muscle car drives head-on towards Twilight and Franky while the passenger shoots at them. Franky ducks his head as Twilight twists the wheel desperately, and the screen goes black with the sound of metal and glass crunching.

"AGAIN?!" Emile's shocked cry fills the theater.

"Papa was shot by the Checkers Gun again! Mama said she hoped he wasn't in an accident!"

Twilight scowls. "I-" Immediately, he's cut off by censorship. Groaning angrily, he crosses his arms and wraps one leg over the other.

Back at the train station, Yor stands alone in the cold, her nose running from the chill. She wipes her face with a handkerchief. I see. So this is what it means to have your heart toyed with. I must keep my work relationships favorable for my brother's sake, too. Which means that I must attend this party. Turning, she begins to walk away.

Chloe glances up at the siblings in the third row. ...Even if she's an assassin, that must have been rough.

Becky watches Yor walk away on the screen with worry. There's so much drama happening! And Loid's in trouble! I hope everything turns out okay!

Her friend taps her on the shoulder. "Becky. You know how this story goes. Mama's my mama."

The hopeless romantic sighs, smiling at her friend. "Well, of course! But the end of the story isn't everything, Anya! What happens to get there is important, and this is so interesting to see! I hope Loid barges into the party and says something like 'Sorry I'm late, honey! How's your night going so far? Hmm? Who am I? Oh, I'm this woman's fiance, of course!' Oh, that would be so romantic!"

Emile leans forward in his seat. "Hey, Blackbell. Remember that she's an assassin. I doubt she'd be swooned by that."

"Agreed." Ewen chimes in, glancing at Yor out of the corner of his eye. "That woman's a contract killer. I don't think she'd be flustered by anything."

"Have you two even been watching the screen? Mrs. Forger's been flustered, off-guard, and embarrassed for most of this mission." Bill refutes the two from above, and Becky nods her head in agreement.

"Yeah! I've been to Anya's house and met Mrs. Forger before! Heck, she's my Master, and I'm her student! She's been teaching me stuff! I know her! She's gonna react to something like that!"

Damian rolls his eyes. "You guys are forgetting something. She only needs a boyfriend for the party! The marriage is for Pops' mission!"

"Yeah, but wouldn't it be so nice though? Besides, they've been married this long! Clearly, they hit it off pretty well!"

The scion stares at Becky. "I don't understand why you want to see something that would complicate things for them so much... Though, if you're being trained as an assassin, I guess I should probably be more careful when fighting with you, huh?" He smirks as Becky turns pale and twists around to look Anya in the eyes.

"ANYA! I'm not being trained as an assassin, am I?!" Anya places a hand on her friend's shoulder and gives her a sympathetic look.

"...Sorry Becky. Being trained by Mama makes you dangerous. The punch I gave Sy-on Boy on our first day was just from learning her teki-... tek-nik... how she punches. You've been getting strength training."

"I-I would NEVER train someone to be an assassin without them knowing!" Yor tries to defend herself. "You're not becoming an assassin, Becky! It's just training to build muscle!"

At the party, Camilla opens the door. "You're late, Yor!" Behind her, Millie holds a glass of wine, and Sharon stands with her arms crossed.

Stepping over the threshold, Yor holds out a bag to Camilla. "I do apologize. Here's a gift." Closing the door behind her makes Camilla curious.

"Oh? I thought you were coming with your boyfriend."

"Unfortunately, he had something suddenly come up."

"Oh, what a shame. I was so eager to meet him!" Millie's energetic voice is muffled by the door.

The camera shifts, showing the shoes of Camilla, Millie, and Sharon as they stand in a close circle. Camilla's heel shifts. "What a lame excuse."

"How pathetic." Millie leans forward.

Camilla responds again. "I knew she was lying about having a guy."

The perspective changes again, this time showing the tops of their heads while the focus falls on Yor, sitting on a bench next to the door, by herself. Millie continues the mean-spirited gossip. "Should we report the liar?"

"We should! I'm positive she's a spy sent in to lower our country's birth rate."

Sharon, thankfully, is at least a voice of reason. "Seriously? That's so petty. She's just unpopular with the guys. Just leave her be."

"You're meaner than both of us, Sharon."

"You're so hilarious!"

Behind the three, a man approaches Yor, smiling. "It's too bad your boyfriend couldn't make it. I was excited to meet him."

Yuri glares at the screen, dark thoughts thundering within his head. As if Yor would be a traitor to the nation. She hunts traitors, she said so herself. Those two, Camilla and Millie... I thought Camilla was passable because she wanted Yor to divorce Loidy, but she's clearly only in it because she doesn't like Sis. As for Millie, she just seems like an awful person... Dominic might miss Camilla, but unless I see otherwise, it seems like Millie's got nobody who would object to her arrest...

Yor seems surprised by the man approaching her. "D-Dominic..." She stands up from the bench, leveling out their heights a bit more.

"Yuri's always so worried about you." When Dominic says this, Yor glances down a little.

"Um, could you possibly... just tell my brother that I came to the party with a kind gentleman?"

"Yeah, not happening. Just how desperate to impress people are you, Yor?" Camilla walks up from behind Dominic, clinging to his arm. "It just makes you look even more pathetic."

Dominic looks at her, his smile wiped off cleanly. "Jeez, knock it off, Camilla!"

Stop talking to my man. The unkind woman begins dragging Dominic away from Yor. "I'll be sure to let your brother know you came alone."

What could she possibly gain by doing that? Yor keeps her hands close to her body as she laments the night. This is honestly becoming tiresome. If all of the adults here just happened to perish, my brother would never find out...

Dominic grabs Camilla by the shoulders and pulls her back towards the rest of the party. "I'm so sorry. Have fun! Come on, Camilla. Help me bake this gratin."

Yor shakes her head of those dark thoughts and returns to sitting down on the bench.

Martha sighs at the scene. "Such a jealous woman... Dominic seems like a nice man, at least. With good survival instincts, too."

Morosely, the assassin looks around the room, listening to bits and pieces of conversations being held. First, she looks at a woman conversing with someone while her child pulls on her arm.

"And then that guy..."

"Mommy!"

Looking at the opposite side of the room, her gaze falls on Sharon as she boasts about her son to a few guests.

"My oldest here will be taking an entrance exam soon. At the prestigious Eden College."

"Wow, that's wonderful!"

"He'll be a shoo-in with the elite."

Her kid took the exam too? Bill glances at Yor, and can feel the sweat accumulating on his brow just by thinking about speaking. ...Daddy didn't raise a coward! He schools his expression and steels his nerves, taking a deep breath. "...Mrs. Forger, do you know if her son managed to p-pass the exam?"

The woman stares at the large child, her brow furrowing slightly. The poor boy is terrified of even speaking to me... I don't understand how revealing these secrets helps anyone. "He did. I don't remember what class he ended up in, but he does attend Eden."

Yor observes the room as a complete scene, taking in these families enjoying the mundane parts of life. That must be what "normal" looks like. I'm sure that's how my brother wanted me to end up.

"Seriously? She's still here." Camilla whispers to Millie.

"She's tougher than she looks."

Sharon approaches the two, adding her own opinion. "I'm honestly surprised she had the nerve to show up alone."

Twilight observes the scene, thinking to himself. From what I can tell, Yor always acts the way she does around Anya and I. I suppose she doesn't have to invent an entire personality just to talk to people in public. Her secret doesn't consume as much of her life as mine does. Of course, I can't allow her to win my sympathy through attempts to not be reported. She's only trying to survive. People will fall to incredible depths of villainy just to survive. Actually, knowing what I know about how she and Yuri grew up, I shouldn't be so surprised that she became an assassin. Desperate times make desperate people. Of course, she-

Franky pokes his shoulder, interrupting his train of thought. "Hey, Twilight. Stop frowning so much. I get that watching your wife being harassed must not make you feel good, but she's a-" The informant finds his voice stolen from him in the middle of his sentence. He rolls his eyes and continues. "Whatever. She kills people, and you only married her for the mission. Don't be so attached."

The spy glances at Franky, scowling. "I wasn't worried for her sake. I was wondering how I missed the signs. Looking back, they've been everywhere..."

I see... I'm too out of my league here. Yor takes a moment to get her belongs in order before standing up from the bench. "I do beg your pardon. I will have to take my leav-"

Yor is interrupted by the door swinging open suddenly, and Twilight standing there, blood running down his face. He steps inside, walking up next to Yor. "I'm terribly sorry for arriving late." The spy seems to be struggling with staying coherent as his eyes tremble and he sways on his feet. The blood runs further down his cheek. "I'm Yor's husband, Loid Forger."

Chloe's jaw drops. "You guys got married by accident?!"

Both of the Forgers open their mouths to respond, and both are silenced by black bars.

Fiona glares at the screen angrily. If only I had been available to help with that smuggling ring, then Twilight wouldn't have gotten injured and made that mistake!

"I can't believe Blackbell was partially right." On the opposite side of the room, Emile's surprise is echoed by the rest of the children.

"I didn't know it happened like that, even aft-" Anya stutters, her eyes widening for a moment, before she... not quite relaxes, but remembers the situation. "Even after r-reading Papa and Mama's minds..." The young girl heaves a sigh, sounding weary.

Becky looks at her with concern. "You alright, Anya?"

"Mhm, just... not used to people knowing about my power, or talking about it."

"You'd better get used to it quickly. I wouldn't expect everyone to be nice about it." Damian's warning falls onto the two girls in the front row as they turn to him.

"Don't be mean, Desmond!" Becky glares at the boy. "After all that you two have been through, don't treat her like that!"

Damian's eyes fall onto Anya, and he notices her features twisted in a downcast expression. "I-I'm not being mean! It's just a fact! And what are you talking about?!"

Ignoring Damian's question, Becky returns her focus to Anya. "Don't worry, we can talk plenty during the break! It'll help you get practice!"

"Um..." Yor cups a hand around her mouth as she whispers to Twilight. "I just needed a boyfriend, not a husband."

Shit! The WISE agent's expression shifts to disbelief. I mixed up my mission with hers.

"Um... Mr. Forger, was it? You're bleeding." Dominic steps forward, trying to navigate the sudden appearance of Yor's husband, and not Yor's boyfriend.

"Oh, pardon me. One of my patients had a violent episode." The assassin hands Twilight a handkerchief to wipe his face of blood, which he gratefully takes and places against his head. "It happens all the time to a psychiatrist. Have you been enjoying yourself, Yor?"

As the new arrival turns to smile at Yor, heeled footsteps clack closer. "You're joking, right?" Camilla stands beside Dominic, surprised. "You're married, Yor? Why didn't you tell us?"

"Um, I..." Seeing his 'wife' struggling to answer, Twilight quickly comes up with a response.

"It's embarrassing to say so, but this is my second marriage and I already have a child, so it may have been hard to bring up. It's my fault."

Don't give me that shit! There's absolutely no way Yor has a husband who's that handsome and hot! I'll embarrass her in front of everyone! Camilla steps away from the new couple, picking up a hot tray.

"What?! She's being so mean!" Emile's eyes widen in surprise. "Why's she so mad that Mrs. Forger's married?"

Mr. Henderson sighs at the sight. "Most likely, she's jealous of Mrs. Forger over something. What specifically, I cannot say without knowing her better."

Yuri glances at his sister, frowning. I think I might have figured out what Chihuahua meant... Yor's strong physically, but from what I'm seeing she suffers from social mistreatment constantly, and doesn't know how to stand up for herself.

Turning back to Twilight and Thorn Princess, Camilla starts returning to them. "Yor, I just got this piping hot gratin right out of the oven!" She stumbles to her knees and tosses the tray forwards. "Oops, I seem to have tripped!"

Yor watches the gratin soar through the air towards her in slow motion, and Camilla smiles smugly... before a gust of wind blows upwards, hard enough to make her dress flutter and raise her hair. When the perspective shifts, it reveals that the source of the wind was Yor's leg swinging upwards, above her own head as she catches the tray with her foot, smoothly and evenly enough that barely any of the gratin spills at all. Of the small amount that does leave the tray, a piece of it lands across the bridge of Camilla's nose, and audibly sears her skin as she grabs at her face and groans in pain, staggering backwards.

When the camera focuses on the spy and assassin again, Yor has transferred the tray to her hands. Twilight turns to her. "I admire your dedication to not wasting food, but it's a bit improper to use your feet, Yor."

"Oh, I'm sorry."

Dominic crouches down and wraps an arm around Camilla as he watches the strange interaction in front of him. "That got you?"

Twilight and Yor's voices can be heard from off-screen. "This is quite delicious."

"Indeed."

Camilla rises from the floor, undeterred in her mission to humiliate the deadliest person in the room. "Did you know, Mr. Ranger..."

"It's Forger."

"...that she was apparently doing some questionable work before working at city hall?" As Yor recoils in surprise, Camilla's smile grows more abhorrent, and Dominic approaches the trio. "What did you do again?"

Camilla's boyfriend places a hand on her shoulder. "Come on, stop it!"

Undeterred, the hostess continues, even as Dominic begins dragging her away from the target of her ire. "Men would call you to their hotel rooms so you could give them 'massages'? Oh, you little whore."

"That was..." "Massages" were a cover for occupational murders. Yor turns to Twilight, her brow furrowed. "Um, please don't get the wrong idea, Loid. I-"

Surprisingly, the psychiatrist smiles. "How wonderful."

"Huh?" As Yor's confusion is voiced, Twilight turns to the rest of the room.

"Yor lost her parents at a very young age. She did all she could to care for her younger brother, even if it meant sacrificing herself." As he says this, Twilight lowers his eyes, and the edges of the screen darken. A flashback is shown, where a younger Twilight crouches behind a desk while bad guys shoot at him. Leaned up against the same desk right beside him, a lifeless body slouches, blood dripping from the hairline and a bullet hole in the chest. "Be it for someone else or for a specific reason, having to endure a merciless job requires an incredible amount of dedication. And that's something to be very proud of." The flashback ends, returning the camera to the present.

While Twilight speaks, Yor stares at him, captivated by his touching words. Similarly, the others in the room are struck by how solemn his words and actions are. "Let's go home, Yor."

"Er, yes... Thank you for the lovely party, everyone."

A similar quiet falls over the theater. The Lieutenant glances down at the spy. "That corpse. Were you close with the guy?"

Twilight's head doesn't turn away from the screen when he speaks. "...He was one of my closer associates at the time."

The scarred man chews on the end of his cigarette and taps his pen against his notebook a few times. "...Judging by the attire of the men shooting at you, they weren't anyone working with the government. Just some renegades trying to prove a point." His words are met with silence, so he continues. "I've lost some good friends and coworkers in the field, fighting the exact same kind of folk. It's a damn shame that none of them lived. We might be enemies, but from where I'm looking, that man died fighting for the same thing my friends did."

Twilight clenches his fists in his lap, his gaze firmly locked on the screen.

"I'm sorry he had to give his life up for his duty. I guess I'll hope that he and my friends can get along while they wait for us to join them."

Outside Camilla's home, Twilight and Yor drive off in the Forger family van, which now has a spiderweb crack in the passenger side of the windshield and a broken headlight on the same side.

"I-I'm so sorry I said I was your husband." Twilight sends a quick look to Yor before focusing on the road again.

"Oh, it's all right." The assassin doesn't return the look, and her cheeks are lit up in red.

"I'm not sure what to tell your brother if he hears of this."

Focusing on Yor's side profile, she stares at the dashboard in silence for a couple seconds before turning to the spy. "Um, Loid... I have a suggestion."

Twilight sits quietly at first, before suddenly looking out his side of the van. A muscle car swerves at the van from the left, slamming into it violently. "What..." Remnants of the smuggling ring? "Hang on, Yor!"

"Huh?"

Twilight swings the heavy body of the van against the smaller car, forcing them into a lane that splits off from the one Twilight drives in. How did they know where I was? Did they... leave a tracking device in the art pieces? Looking into the back of the vehicle, he stares at the large collection of incredibly valuable items. Gritting his teeth, he returns his focus to the road. You've definitely let your guard down, Twilight.

Yor leans forward into his peripheral vision. "Who are those people?"

The WISE agent taps his fingers against the steering wheel as he thinks. Um, uh... "I-It appears some of my patients still haven't recovered from their psychotic episodes."

Thorn Princess tilts her head slightly as she absorbs this information. "Being a doctor must be very taxing."

She actually believed it! The man glances at her in surprise. "In the meantime... We're making a break for it."

Franky sighs. "Man, your family just can't catch a break, huh? Every five seconds, something else is getting in your way."

The scene changes to deep within an industrial area as the camera pans down from the sky to focus on the van, parked and empty. "They've abandoned the van."

Two of the smugglers investigate the scene from behind partial cover, leaving the other two of their group out of sight. "They're probably hiding nearby. Split up and find them." The four head in different directions, with two of them sticking together.

As they pass by an alley, Twilight slams a box down on the head of one before striking the second across the face with it. As he and Yor leave the alley, he drops the box. The woman stares at the unconscious men with surprise. Twilight rips a pipe from the wall of the building they're next to. "Yor, this way. Hurry!"

The pair begin jogging away from the scene, though Yor looks confused. "Um... Are you sure it's alright for you to hit your patients like that?"

"Um, well... The concussive recovery method is the latest in modern medical practices." He flashes Yor a reassuring smile as he leads the way.

"I see."

While they keep moving, large words appear on the screen. 'This is FICTION.'

Returning the focus onto the spy and assassin, Twilight looks at Yor from the corner of his eye. I can't tell if she's actually bright or dumb.

"HEY!" Yuri stands up, pointing an angry finger at Twilight. "Sis can be a little naive at times, but she's not dumb! Considering the fact that-" The righteously indignant defense is stopped by a censorship bar, and Yuri scowls, falling back into his seat and crossing his arms.

I know I'm not the best at helping Anya with her homework, but am I really that bad?! Thorn Princess pouts as she stares at the screen. This night was a good memory for me. Now, seeing it again with extra context... I don't know what to think.

Behind the couple, one smuggler runs out from an alley. "Look out, Yor!" Twilight whips the pipe piece back at the man, clocking him in the head. As the camera follows the pipe's flight, it reveals another smuggler standing atop a set of stairs next to Twilight and Yor. As he jumps over the railing, the perspective returns to Twilight as he looks up at the man brandishing a knife as he falls, and attempts to jump out of the way. Another one! I can't dodge it!

Unable to escape the assailant, just before the blade can sink into Twilight's back, Yor's heel connects with the bad guy's face, sending him flying. Dropping his knife when he hits the ground, he rolls all the way down the path until slamming hard into the side of a building a good distance away. The spy stares in shock at the unconscious man, while Yor panics. "Oh, no! I'm so sorry an amateur like me helped with the recovery! I happen to be an expert in self-defense. My brother was kind enough to teach me..."

Twilight turns to the assassin, his head held low at first. He chuckles before raising his head, a bright smile on his face. "Thank you, Yor." Standing up, the man laughs again. "That was quite impressive. Did you see how far he went?"

"I'm sorry. I guess I did send him flying." Relieved that Twilight wasn't suspicious of her, Yor returns his smile and giggles.

"There he is!" The spy and assassin turn to look at a fifth man, and quickly notice the assault rifle in his hands.

"This way!" Twilight pulls Yor behind the staircase as the bullets begin to fly, and the industrial steel protects them as they escape yet again.

"Do whatever you need to do! Make sure they're dead!" As the camera pans across the roofs of the buildings, a few men can be heard making pained sounds, presumably taken out by the dynamic duo. This is quickly confirmed as the midnight street view returns. Yor lowers her leg from the face of one man while Twilight stands over the other, holding another pipe. He tosses it aside as they continue running.

While at first behind him, Yor stares at Twilight curiously. She raises her speed, coming up beside him. "Um, Loid... This may not be the best moment to ask, but why don't we get married?"

Taken completely off-guard by the suddenness of her question, Twilight freezes up mid-stride and falls on his face. Picking himself up onto his knees, he looks at her, completely perplexed. "I'm sorry?!"

"Er, well, it would extend our agreement..." Yor twiddles her thumbs as she speaks. "I mean... Apparently, I'm considered suspicious just for being single, so it'd be nice camouflage..." For me to continue my job as an assassin, too. "Um, basically, if it's all right with you, maybe we could just stay together, and not just for the interview..." Yor keeps her eyes turned to the side as sweat rolls down her flushed cheeks. When she finishes speaking, she finally returns her focus onto the man. "For both our sakes." He's probably the only person who could accept me for who I am right now.

But does he still accept me, now that he knows what I am? Yor glances down at her husband, worrying about what could possibly be going through his head right now.

Twilight stands up fully, dusting off his pants as he speaks. "Then let's stop by city hall on our way back to fill out the paperwork."

"Huh? Right now?!"

Twilight holds out his hand to her. "They do say no time like the present." He pauses, turning away. "Oh, that's right." He reaches into his pocket, only to find a hole in the bottom.

"You LOST it?!" Franky glares at Twilight. "The MOST expensive ring in that box, and you LOST IT!"

"What kind of excuse do you expect me to have? She's never worn the ring, so you could have already figured it out yourself." Twilight fixes his blank expression onto Franky, as if daring him to say more. The informant huffs, turning away from his friend.

Where did I drop it? Twilight turns back towards the two goons he and Yor dispatched.

"You bastard!" Glancing quickly at the group of approaching gunmen, Twilight leads the assassin back towards the unconscious individuals. "We have 'em cornered!" As Yor ducks behind a large reinforced container, Twilight quickly swipes a grenade that was dropped earlier before following. "Fill 'em full of lead!"

"Yor..." Twilight hooks is finger through the pin of the grenade and pulls it out, sparks striking as he tosses the explosive over the crate. "Even in sickness, or in sadness..." The four smugglers look up in horror as the grenade falls. Behind the box, Twilight slips the pin of the grenade over Yor's ring finger before clasping her hands within his own. As they stare one another in the eye, the grenade detonates, sending a rush of wind and dust past them. "No matter what hardships await us, let us be there for one another."

"All right."

Until my mission... The screen focuses on Twilight's soft smile as he stares at Yor.

Until my killing... The perspective shifts to show Yor's awestruck expression as she takes in the man before her.

...do us part. As the newlyweds think in tandem, the camera slowly pans up over the rooftops, revealing the brightly shining crescent moon overhead.

Becky can feel her eyes watering as the screen turns black. "...That was beautiful. It's so different from any scene like it in the shows I watch, but it's beautiful in how special it is." She wipes her eyes, turning to Anya. "Please tell me that as you all live together, they actually find themselves falling in love."

"You know I can't spoil anything, Becky."

Twilight turns around in his seat to look up at Yuri. "As I was trying to say earlier in this viewing, our marriage was mutually beneficial."

The undercover cop meets Twilight's gaze. "...Fine. I can see that it's a rather fair agreement... BUT!" He glares at the spy. "THAT DOESN'T MEAN I ACCEPT IT! I SEE NO LOVE HERE! UNLESS YOU BOTH ARE WILLING TO GO AND RENEW YOUR VOWS ONCE WE'RE OUT OF HERE, I'M NOT GOING TO ACCEPT THIS MARRIAGE!"

Here we go again... That first attempt to act like a loving couple ended with Yuri stumbling out the door, bleeding a frightening amount of blood. Renewal of vows will typically include a kiss, and I'm not sure if everyone will survive trying that again.

Would Loid even want to renew our vows, now that he knows? Yor glances over at Anya, before looking back at Twilight. ...Do I even want to renew them, now that I know?

Once again, the black screen is filled with big, white text reading 'NEXT x MISSION', and once again, spy music begins playing as a variety of scenes pass by quickly. First, an image of Yor standing on the sidewalk with a pile of boxes next to her. It focuses on her face as she begins speaking, though no words are heard. Next, Twilight lowers a clipboard, revealing he has his hair styled differently, and a pair of glasses on. Changing view, Yor seems unsure about something and averts her eyes. An image of Anya looking horrified while looking up at someone holding her hand, with the twinkling in the background clearly showing that she's reading their mind. Inversely, the next scene is the girl looking quite happy while holding a marker and facing a wall in an unknown location. A third scene of Anya is shown, this time she climbs onto the couch in the apartment while holding a mug, while at the same time Yor walks around the table with a mug on a tray. A side profile of Twilight is shown. He looks exasperated. The words 'PREPARE FOR THE INTERVIEW' appear on screen this time. Finally, an image of Twilight carrying Anya while she points at something unseen. Her face portrays a level of seriousness to this scene.

Damian rests his head atop his fist, analyzing the images displayed. "That's a pretty normal-looking set of scenes compared to last time."

"Doesn't Forger look like she's being kidnapped, though?" Emile's worried tone makes his friends look at him.

"Not really. She had that same face when she first read Mrs. Forger's mind, and whoever's holding her hand isn't doing it tightly. I'd bet that's what that one was about." Ewen hopes his words are able to reassure Emile. ...I'm not sure why he cares so much about her safety though. She's right there, perfectly fine, probably reading my mind, GET OUT OF MY HEAD!

Anya flinches at the sudden volume before turning to the Keeper. "Excuse me, Miss Keeper! How much longer until we get a break?"

The woman looks up from the projector to face the child. "Well... I'd be willing to let you guys have a break after one more ep- One more mission! I'd hoped we could go a little further, but that can be a good point to break things up too. So, once you all have seen the next mission, feel free to stand up and go somewhere else. There's gonna be public rooms and private rooms, so whatever you need, you'll have. Anyway, I'm gonna get this thing set up for the third mission, feel free to talk amongst yourselves until we're ready to go again!"

Chapter Text

"Twilight." The spy turns to his associate, Fiona. "We need to talk."

He nods, watching her sit down next to him. The rest of the seats were vacant, Franky off talking to that SSS Lieutenant in the corner again, Chloe left to chat with Yuri along one of the walls, Mr. Henderson and Martha were doing their best to chaperone the students, despite the physical barrier in the way. Twilight never saw Yor stand up, and he has no idea where she's gone, either. The thought unsettles him, but there are more important things to think about. "What's on your mind?"

Fiona looks around the room with her eyes, her head staying mostly still as she leans it back to point towards the ceiling. "I was in the middle of a mission when we were all taken. Gun smugglers supplying heavy ordinance to insurrectionists. I had a partner with me onsite at the time, and our kidnapping means that he's been left completely alone in the middle of a dangerous operation. He should be able to abort the mission and get back to headquarters, but with the mission a failure, something's going to happen."

The WISE agent nods his head, thinking. "I was taken mere moments after being given a new assignment from Handler. A weapons research lab has been developing a new chemical weapon, and my job was to infiltrate, destroy all the research on it, and destroy the lab so they can't do it again." A frown crosses his face. "I'd like to think that the flash of light before we were taken would have drawn Handler's attention, but for all we know, the transported people are the only ones who can see it."

Fiona's immutable expression cracks slightly as her brow creases a small amount. "You know that we're the best in our field. WISE will be even more shorthanded now that we're stuck here. The Keeper said that this will likely be several days straight of us being isolated here, and I pray that she keeps her word."

"As do I." Twilight turns his head to watch the teenager struggle with the projector. "A lot can change in just a couple days... A lot has changed for us, and we haven't been in this theater for longer than two hours, if my watch still works properly."

"...That's an interesting sentence." She brings her head forward again, glancing at her senior. "Are you expecting something to be wrong with your watch?"

"No, I just..." Twilight sighs. "I'm just being paranoid. Having to hear Anya watching cartoons so much has me imagining things that have no reason to happen."

"I thought you'd be sticking close to your sister." Chloe raises a brow at Yuri, leaning against the wall by himself.

He scowls at her before turning his head away. "I thought I'd taught you to mind your own business."

Chloe smirks, ignoring the jab as she moves to Yuri's side and slides down the wall, sitting down on the floor. "So, what's got you lurking over here like some hunting predator... or kicked puppy?"

"Am I not allowed to have time to think about all this shit?" His voice is low, almost growling at her. Chloe raises her hands and leans away from him, like she's trying to handle a dangerous beast. Seeing her reaction, Yuri takes a deep breath before continuing. "...I'm trying to figure out how I feel about what we've seen before the break comes, because I feel like I'll have too many things to do during the break to handle this at that point..."

Chloe watches the man take a heaving breath, his eyes lowering to the floor in front of him. "...But- But what am I supposed to think? Loidy's Twilight! I had a feeling after we fought in the sewer! I wasn't able to prove it at the time, but still! I was right! My sister is married to a man I'm supposed to hunt down! And-" He turns to Chloe, a strange look in his eyes. "And he- He wants the same thing I do! Peace! Safety for our people! He's supposed to be THE ENEMY! A-And- And the marriage! I've thought something was wrong with their marriage from the beginning! And again! I! WAS! RIGHT! But not the way I thought I was right! I was worried Yor was being manipulated, and I guess she kind of has been manipulated! But she's been manipulating him too! Because my sister kills people..."

Chloe watches her superior drag a hand down his face, groaning. "...And... how do you feel about that? The fact that your sister's an assassin?"

He glares into the carpet of the theater, his crimson eyes boring into whatever's beyond this place. "...I don't know... I got this job to help keep Yor safe, but- she clearly doesn't need that... Whatever, I'll figure it out later. Let's talk about her daughter, my niece, Chihuahua girl. She can read minds." He barks out a laugh. It sounds devoid of any comedy. "I'd think I was crazy if I said that yesterday. But she can! She's responded to things I've thought while we've been here! And I don't know how to feel about that!" His eyes flick to the telepath on the far side of the room, and after a few seconds, Chloe watches the girl glance over at them suddenly, with no exterior prompting. "She's... a victim. Yeah. I feel sick thinking about what she might have been through. I feel angry, like I've personally failed Ostania by allowing her to become what she is now, even though I know I didn't have this job when she was created. And yet..."

Yuri flexes his fingers a few times, straightening them before tightening them into fists, rinse and repeat. "She's..." Yuri sighs, his brow furrowing as he turns away. "Forget it. Why am I even telling you all this anyway?" Pushing himself off of the wall, he walks away from Chloe.

"Anya? It's your turn." The girl turns away from her uncle and back to the seated circle she was part of. Looking around at the hands of the players, she assesses what changed since she started listening to Yuri's mind.

Damian's holding out four fingers on his left hand, and one on his right.

Ewen has his right hand behind his back, and holds out two fingers on the other.

Bill has three fingers extended from both hands.

Becky has both of her hands behind her back.

Emile has stood up from the circle, and looking around, she spots him walking back from where the Keeper sits, a few bottles of water in his hands.

Anya lowers her eyes to her own hands, staring at the three fingers on her left hand, and the two on her right.

I gotta figure out what hands to take out so I can survive! I can remove either one of Bill's hands with either of mine, but he's gonna be able to strike back! If Ewen isn't taken out before his turn, he's gonna split, and he'll have one on each hand again! Sy-on Boy's in danger, since he goes before Emile, Emile goes before me, and Emile's dead!

Hesitantly, Anya reaches out her left hand and taps it against Ewen's. "Two plus three is five. You're dead."

Putting his second hand behind his back, Ewen scowls. "I'll get you next round, Forger! Mark my words!"

Bill adjusts his glasses before tapping the telepath's right hand with his left. "Two plus three. You're down a hand." Anya closes her hand into a fist and tucks it behind her back, looking down at her remaining hand.

Damian immediately leans over and taps Bill's left hand with his own left hand. "Three plus four makes seven. You're down a hand, now." His smirk radiates a smug calmness, like he knows he's going to win already. Bill tucks his left arm away and his gaze falls back onto Anya.

The girl gulps, bringing her right hand back in front of her as she taps her hands together and extends one finger on her right hand while lowering one on her left.

Bill does the same thing, returning his left hand to the battle.

Damian turns to Anya and taps his left hand against her right. "One plus four. You're down a hand again." Anya pouts as her freshly-revived hand returns to the grave again.

Looking down at her remaining left hand, she surveys her options carefully. I've got two fingers. I can split again, but if I keep doing that, Damian's gonna wipe me out with his four! Bill has a one and a two, so... She reaches out and taps Damian's left hand. "Four plus two is six. You lose that hand." Seeing the smug look wiped off his face makes Anya feel satisfied with her work. Damian grits his teeth and places his left hand behind his back, leaving only a single finger.

Bill looks back and forth between Anya and Damian, sitting very still. As the three size one another up, they all seem to come to a resolution. No more playing around, it's time to win. Sweat runs down Anya's cheek. Bill's glasses glare as they catch the lighting just right. Damian clenches his jaw and leans forward. Eventually, Bill taps Damian's remaining hand with his right. "One plus two." Damian extends two finger's making three.

Immediately the boy taps Bill's right hand. "Two plus three. Lose the hand." Bill puts it behind his back, leaving a single finger on his left hand.

I can kill Sy-on Boy now! ...Wait, if I do that, then Bill's gonna tap me with one, and I'll get three! That three won't kill Bill, he'll only get to four, and then I'm out! But if I tap Bill now, he's gonna have three, and be able to eliminate either of us! I'm gonna lose! If I tap Bill, he's can't win, but he'll make sure I won't either! If I tap Sy-on, then Bill's gonna win! I have to pick who wins the game, but it can't be me! Her eyes fall onto Damian, who isn't smirking, but doesn't look as tense as before. ...Sy-on Boy put me here! I'm being made to pick between the person I told my secret to, and the person who thinks I might use my powers for bad things! Sy-on Boy set me up to make a choice that I have a clear bias in! Glaring at Damian, Anya taps Bill's remaining hand. "One plus two is three."

As she predicted, she barely has the opportunity to pull her hand away before Bill returns the attack. "Two plus three. You're out, Forger." Sighing, Anya leans back, resting her weight on the palms of her hands.

With an air of finality, Damian taps Bill's hand. "Three plus three. Thank you for the victory."

"Well done, Bossman!" Ewen applauds his friend. "You played that amazingly!"

"You guys sure got intense at the end... But now that you guys aren't using your hands, here." Emile walks around the circle, handing everyone a water bottle.

"Alright, we're all set and ready to continue! Everyone, please return to your seats!" At the Keeper's call, everyone begins finding their places in the theater.

The Lieutenant twirls his pencil in between his fingers, waiting for the viewing to begin. He glances back towards the third row, and spots Yor returning to her seat on the end. "Hey, you vanished earlier. Where'd you go?"

The assassin turns to face him as she makes herself comfortable. "Oh, I needed to use the bathroom and asked the Keeper if she could open one up for me."

His eyes drift to the children in the section to Yor's left, and the drinks they were holding. "...She's rather lax with her own rules, isn't she? When she first appeared, she outright said that she technically isn't supposed to be directly interacting with us."

"I've noticed that discrepancy as well." Both Yor and the Lieutenant turn to see Mr. Henderson speaking. He pauses for a moment when the pair's eyes fall on him. "...Pardon my intrusion in the discussion, but it seems that the Keeper, based on her own words and actions, is a novice at doing all of this. I suspect that she does not have a proper grasp on the importance of all her job's rules."

The Lieutenant frowns, flipping open his notebook to take note of that. "I pray that her disregard for procedure doesn't put us at risk." As sound begins to play through the speakers of the theater, the three face the screen once more.

Fading in from white nothing, the background becomes a honeyed gold, and an image of Twilight's friendly grin appears as the narrator starts talking. "Everyone has a side they don't show anyone else." As the spy vanishes, Anya takes shape in his place, a cup in her hands and a curious expression on her face. "To their friends, their significant others, or even their families." Dissolving into nothing, Yor appears on the screen herself, a welcoming smile adorning her features. "They hide what they're truly feeling through fake smiles or bravado, and keep their true identities secret."

All three members of the family are shown sitting at their kitchen table happily, before the scene pans downwards to reveal piles of bodies surrounding them. Yor's stiletto is embedded in the skull of one corpse, while on the other side of the table, Twilight tosses a pistol behind him. "This is how the world keeps up the appearance of its temporary peace.

"This... doesn't look like anything I remember." Twilight turns around to face the Keeper, a frown on his face. "What are we looking at right now?"

"Oh, this is a recap! For those of you who don't know what a recap is, it recites information that we've learned from previous missions, to help make sure that nothing important gets forgotten!" The girl smiles at him, giving her answer with a loud, clear voice so everyone can hear and understand her properly.

"Hold on." Franky levels a questioning gaze on the girl. "I thought these viewings showed the events of our lives, and everything else has held true to that. But you can't honestly tell me that a scene like this actually happened! There are actual corpses surrounding their dining table!"

"You've done something similar yourself, Franky." The Keeper turns her attention to the informant, still maintaining her smile. "I know for a fact that you-" The Keeper falls silent as a censorship bar covers her mouth. Shrugging her shoulders she waits for it to vanish before continuing. "Apparently I've said enough, Scruffy. You're smart, you can figure out what I was gonna say."

She's not immune to her own abilities? She's clearly not all powerful. From all the evidence I've witnessed since coming here, I have to say that this place is almost definitive proof of magic existing... Twilight glances over at Franky, watching his associate as the gears turn in his head. What has Franky done before that can be considered similar to what we've seen on the screen?

After several seconds, Franky's eyes light up. "OH! You- Oh god, that's tedious!" When he doesn't say anything more, the spy nudges him impatiently. "What? If she can't say it, what makes you think I can?"

The scene shifts, showing the highway that was looked upon at the very beginning of things. Similarly, the diplomat's car can be seen ramming through the sidewall of the highway. Changing scenes again, Edgar stands in his headquarters as his transmission interceptor relays Anya's message. "In an era in which the nations of the world were waging a fierce war of information just out of sight, two countries were at odds with each other." The view falls upon the map of Ostania and Westalis, divided by a wine glass. "Ostania, in the east, was secretly plotting to start a war. Westalis, in the west, wanted to put a stop to those plans."

"Hang on, doesn't that just confirm things for Twilight? It clearly stated that Ostania's been planning a war!" Fiona turns to face the Lieutenant. "When we're out of here, you should be getting your subordinates and storming the Desmond estate immediately!"

The man looks over at the silver-haired lady, his expression stern. "You shouldn't rush things and make assumptions. Yes, it did say that Ostania's been planning a war. However, it hasn't mentioned Desmond being related to these plots at all."

Damian breathes a sigh of relief as he hears the Lieutenant's response. It's not for sure that Father's not involved yet, but for now, he's all clear... Noticing a flash of emerald, his eyes flick to meet Anya's. What? I can't be worried for Father's safety? I think you should be more worried about yours.

Turning around in her seat, Anya ponders the words of the adults, as well as the thoughts that Damian sent her way. The evil super-boss isn't bad? But Papa's mission and world peace hang in the balance! And Sy-on Boy thinks that Papa might be in danger, and I should worry? She glances over at Bond, lying on the floor in the larger section. If Papa's in danger, then Bond can tell me!

The camera shows Donovan Desmond's photo in the newspaper as the narrator continues. "In order to keep an eye on the actions of a leading figure in Ostania's government, Westalis set Operation Strix in motion." The WISE symbol is seen, followed by the council of Westalian individuals surrounding the long table with the man seated at the head obscured in shadow. Twilight can be seen driving the black car away from Edgar's informant. He rips the mask off his face and tosses it into the backseat. Multiple family portraits float onto the screen. "The one tasked with this operation is the skilled agent, Twilight. The mission given to the master of disguise with a hundred faces was... to start a family."

Anya is shown, turning the crossword in the newspaper towards the camera. Then, she's shown opening Twilight's mobile transmission kit, followed by Twilight standing over Mr. Chimera laying on the floor of the apartment, and then Twilight disguised as Nguyen sending her away from the dilapidated supermarket. In contrast to the previous image, it shows Anya running up to Twilight after he leaves, hugging his leg. He pats her on the head while the camera shows her tear-filled eyes.

Next, Twilight, Anya, and Yor can be seen standing outside the tailor's, where Yor agrees to act as Twilight's wife. The two adults are shown sitting in the dark van at night after Camilla's party, and then the muscle car ramming them. Switching to the industrial sector, Twilight rips a pipe from the wall of a building and whips it at an armed pursuer, followed by Yor kicking away the man jumping onto Twilight with a knife. The pair run away from gunfire, Twilight grabbing the grenade and pulling the pin before slipping it around Yor's finger. The two clasp hands behind the storage container as the grenade explodes on the other side. It shows their faces as they stare at one another before finally shifting to a perspective above the sector. Throughout this entire segment, spy music has been playing, with no other sound being heard.

"Wow." Becky mutters under her breath to Anya. "For how short that was, it really did cover almost everything important from the last two missions. It sure did gloss over the fact that you got kidnapped, though!"

Anya nods her head in agreement. "It gives you the info you need! It shows that I'm safe in the end, and that's what matters!" It didn't show anything of my past, though. Is that not important to know?

The moon reflects in a puddle between cracked purple cobblestones.

"Skipping this again! It's still a bit early for you guys to see this!" The Keeper covers the projector light and presses a few buttons.

Ewen turns to Damian and Emile. "What do you guys think that was? We saw it at the beginning of the last mission too!"

"Ooh, maybe it's a view of some other group with different plans than everyone we've seen so far?" Emile's excited voice responds. "Like the people who made Forger! They might be looking for her, and that part will show their view on the things that are happening!"

"That's... not a bad guess. It could be. Still, I'm curious about why it's being kept secret? Maybe it reveals who's involved in that group?" The Desmond boy muses his thoughts out loud while they wait. "If that's the case though, then that means that we're going to actually see some action from them. Which means that they already have their eyes on her."

Bill leans over Damian's seat, butting into the discussion. "I don't think that's the case. We saw that Edgar guy almost at the very start of the first mission, and then later on, we got to see that he's still involved in Twilight's life, even before he sent his men to their old apartment. If that's the case, why show us doctors from Forger's memories, but then hide them in the present? It's not consistent."

Becky watches Anya turn around in her seat to add her own opinions on the brief glimpses they've witnessed of this hidden segment. She herself stays out of it, instead delving into her own mind. This feels strangely familiar to see. Not like I've seen that scene before, but... more like the format? Her gaze flicks over to where Martha sits, and as if the mere sight of her caretaker opened a floodgate, she makes a connection. ...It's a theme song. An opening. She goes through the opening theme of Berlint in Love in her mind. Glancing at Anya, who was still locked deeply in the discussion with the boys, she thinks of the Spy Wars opening theme that she saw once with Anya. ...I can think about this later. Anya's got enough on her plate, she doesn't need to be weighed down by my thoughts on this.

"Alright, we're good to continue! Quiet down, please!" The Keeper's announcement cuts the discussions in the room short as she uncovers the light again.

A van can be seen idling outside the Forger's apartment building. When it pulls away, Yor is revealed to be standing on the sidewalk, a pile of cardboard boxes next to her. Words appear on the screen. '128 Park Avenue, West District. Capital City of Berlint, Ostania.'

With the sound of the vehicle's engine fading into the distance, Yor turns her head towards the building, taking in the architecture. The sound of the door opening drags her from her thoughts, and Twilight is shown walking outside. Descending the steps to the sidewalk, he smiles as he speaks. "Is this everything you own?"

"Yes." Yor returns the smile as she responds, and the camera drifts from her face over to the pile of boxes. Her features grow blurry at the change in focus.

"It's not very much."

Shifting scenes, a box labeled 'Bedroom 1' is placed on the wood floor and opened up. Yor pulls out a pillow and a thick blanket, standing up and turning to face Twilight, a blush on her cheeks. "Um, Loid... about the sleeping arrangements..." Her voice is muffled by the pillow pressed against her face.

The spy steps into frame holding another box, this one labeled 'KoMoNo'. "We'll be sleeping in separate rooms, of course. We'll share one for appearances anytime we have guests over."

Yuri trembles in his seat. Every single time I've gone to their home, I've been forcing Sis to sleep with Loidy? His grip on his armrest tightens, and he glances towards Yor. "Sorry for forcing you to keep up appearances so many times."

"Don't worry about it, Yuri. We haven't needed to actually sleep together, so you haven't caused any real harm." She smiles softly at her brother before turning back to the screen.

Maybe so, but I'm still putting Yor through the hard work of keeping up this facade... Then again, she's shown herself capable, so... Yuri shakes his head, glaring at the screen. That doesn't matter. I'm still inconveniencing her. No matter how capable she is, I shouldn't be making her life harder!

"R-Right." Pulling her mouth away from her pillow, Yor's voice is clearly heard this time.

Anya walks up to the assassin, raising her hands above her head with a happy smile. "Welcome to Anya's house!"

"Thank you for the lovely welcome, Miss Anya." The perspective changes, showing the inside of the living room from a perspective sitting several feet above the television. Twilight can be seen carrying two boxes into the kitchen, and the front door is blocked by several more. The narrator continues speaking once again.

"This house is home to a rather unusual family." A still image of Twilight in his green suit fades onto the screen, his coat billowing as he points a pistol. "The father, Loid Forger, is a psychiatrist. His true identity: a spy. Code name: Twilight." Vanishing from view, a still image of Thorn Princess appears, wielding her stilettos as her dress catches an unseen wind. "The mother, Yor Forger, is a civil servant who works at city hall. Her true identity: an assassin. Code name: Thorn Princess." Finally, a still image of Anya replaces Thorn Princess, one of Mr. Chimera's arms clutched within her hand. "The daughter, Anya Forger. Her true identity: A telepath."

"I'm so happy to have a Mama now!" Twilight steps out of the kitchen, watching his daughter interact with his new wife.

Yor blushes at the words of the child. "Mama..."

Bending down out of view, Anya rises back up with a tiny cardboard box in her hands. "I'm gonna help."

"Oh right. By the way..." Yor turns to Twilight as he speaks, and the perspective shifts to a marriage certificate sitting on the table. "I had a friend of mine who's a judge make it so we got married a year ago." An image of Franky giving a thumbs-up appears. By that, I mean he forged the certificate. The view changes again, looking upon the family from the peephole in the door. "We can figure out why we lived separately and what to tell your brother later."

"All right."

A close-up of Twilight's face is shown, the background green. His gaze is directed to his right, and his expression is neutral. It would make the school suspicious if we got married just before the interview. The view slowly pans outwards, with the spy falling to the left side of the screen.

Next, a close-up of Yor's face is shown, the background red. Her gaze is directed to her left, and she has a content smile. I got permission from the Shopkeeper, so I feel much better. The view slowly pans outwards, with the assassin falling to the right side of the screen. Twilight and his green background are still shown on the left side.

Finally, a close-up of Anya's face is shown, the background yellow. Her gaze is directed upwards and to her left, and she has an amazed look on her face. So exciting... The view quickly pans outwards, Anya falling into place in the lower center of the screen. Twilight and Yor both remain where they were before, and notably, Anya's eyes are directed towards the assassin.

"Father, mother, daughter... These three created this pretend family to further their own ends, and are living under the same roof as they hide their true identities from each other." While the narrator speaks, the screen cuts to black, with words displayed. 'MISSION:3. PREPARE FOR THE INTERVIEW'.

Mr. Henderson directs his gaze towards Twilight. "Every family prepares for the interview, good preparation is an important trait to have, after all. I'm curious about how your preparations are going to span the length of one of these missions."

The spy's shoulders seem to sag as he responds. "It was... an ordeal. I think that's about all that this theater will allow me to say."

While the housemaster nods his head in agreement, Fiona looks at Yor out of the corner of her eye. I'm sure that the trouble's are all her fault. Without properly teaching that child how to act, and without being capable of proper acting herself, she probably only made Twilight's mission harder.

"Please stop staring at me. It makes me uncomfortable." Fiona twitches when Yor looks her directly in the eye, and quickly turns away. "Thank you."

Martha watches the interaction, a small frown on her face. That woman is clearly jealous of Mrs. Forger. She may keep a straight face, but her actions speak volumes. She's been taking Mr. Forger's side on everything, she got between the couple when the Thorn Princess identity was revealed. To step in front of an assassin, you have to be doing it for something you care a lot about. I also spotted her chatting with Mr. Forger in between the missions, so the two are clearly acquainted... As distasteful as she's being, at least it makes some romantic drama that the Madam will enjoy.

She glances over towards the children, only to see Becky with a surprisingly serious expression on her face as she stares at the screen. Martha watches Anya poke Becky's shoulder, and the Blackbell heir adopts a more lighthearted expression immediately as she begins talking to her. ...Is she trying to hide something from the other kids?

"Now that the mission's name has finally been shown, hopefully we can avoid hearing things we already know and start seeing new stuff!" Emile's impatience is easily seen as he rocks back and forth in his seat slightly.

"Calm down! There's obviously a reason why it repeats things we already know." Ewen crosses his arms, tapping a finger against his elbow as he thinks. ...Maybe we're supposed to see events in our lives, and then it'll remind us of the true nature behind people, so we can get a better understanding of why people did what they did at the time...

The scene inside the apartment returns, this time Twilight is holding Yor's pillow and blanket. Anya points a finger away from herself and in the direction of the kitchen as she speaks with Yor. "I'm going to show Mama around!"

While Anya turns and begins walking, with Yor following behind her, Twilight comments. "Once we get settled in, we'll practice the interview."

"This is the kitchen!" Anya runs over to the refrigerator, hopping and spinning around in place to face her mother as she spreads her arms wide. "Papa is good at cooking!"

"Oh, I see." Yor clasps her hands together beside her head.

The next scene is dark, but when the door opens a beam of illumination is cast inside, revealing the bathroom as Anya reaches up to flick on the lights. Yor stands in the hallway behind the child, following the tour happily. "This is the toilet. And that's the bathtub!" She points to each object as she calls them out.

Yor leans forward, inspecting the bathroom. "Everything's so clean."

Anya runs over to the sink, pulling out a step-stool from beneath it and climbing up. She gestures to the sink with an open hand. "I can wash my face all by myself!"

"You're such a big girl, Miss Anya."

"Your house is really small, Forger." Ewen leans forward in his seat, glancing down at the girl.

Anya forces herself to keep a straight face as she responds. "I know. Becky's told me. Her dog's doghouse is bigger than my bedroom."

She really shows her true age in the way she acts here. Bill decides to take the moment to remove his glasses and wipe the lenses with a cleaning cloth, Nothing important is happening right now, so there's no reason for me to watch the full scene... Still though, she acts like a toddler. I thought that those doctors were making her study?

"It's true! I was surprised by how small the houses of normal people are when I first came over!" Becky chimes into the conversation with a sheepish smile. "Of course, I know better now. We've actually got really big houses compared to most people. Anya's house is very average in size."

The next view is a top-down perspective of Anya's bedroom, the compact space being used very efficiently. Her lavender bed dominates the bottom left of the screen, while her desk sits in the top left. Beside it, her dresser with a toy chest beneath it, and beside that, her bookshelf. A radiator stands close to the door, on the side opposite to the hinges. The little girl can be seen running to the center, without needing to turn on any lights, since the large 'window' between her bed and her desk illuminates the room quite nicely. She turns around on her carpet to face the door, and lifts her arms over her head again. "This is Anya's room!" The camera changes to a view from the doorway, slowly panning across the room, revealing pink wallpaper, a balcony behind misty teal curtains and glass double-doors, and triangular shelves on the wall, as well as many other small details. It is of note that a sign hangs on her door, spelling 'ANIA'. The third letter looks like the number '1' upside-down. "Welcome!"

"Speaking of, there it is. And yeah, that is much smaller than the dormroom we have at Eden." Damian observes the space, noting how warm and cozy it looks. Despite how pink it is, it doesn't look bad. The pale cyan curtains and headboard of her bed certainly compliment the colors of the room. The warm shade of the wooden floor and desk also lend comfort to it. His gaze lowers a little as his thoughts compare this image with something more familiar. ...Her bedroom looks more lived-in than mine does.

Mr. Henderson stares at the image, squinting at a detail. "...Mr. Forger, I do hope that your daughter is not allowed on that balcony. The balustrade looks quite short, and she could fall."

"Don't worry, I made it very clear that she's not to go out there." Damian glances at the two conversing adults, his own eyes falling back on the scene to stare at the balcony.

The Housemaster has good eyes. I was so focused on all the vibrant colors that I missed the dangers that are literally at the center of this scene. I need to do better if I want to be a politician!

Becky leans over to Anya whispering. "The sign on your bedroom door doesn't spell your name properly, Anya."

The telepath nods her head, her cheeks flushing slightly. "I've fixed it. It's correct now."

"Thank you for inviting me in. My, what an adorable room." While Yor looks back and forth at the room, Anya climbs onto her bed, grabbing her doll.

"I'll introduce you to Mr. Chimera." Placing it on her lap, Anya starts making a voice, pretending the doll is speaking before raising it over her head. "I am Chimera. It is a pweasure to meet your acquaintenance."

Smiling at the childish display, Yor bows slightly. "It's very nice to meet you, Mr. Chimera. I am Miss Anya's mama."

Changing scenes again, a door opens into a dark bedroom, and Anya holds out an arm to present the room. "This is Papa's room!"

"So this is Loid's room..." Yor leans in slightly, curious.

Anya quickly closes the door again, before walking to a doorway right between her and Loid's bedrooms, pointing at the door. "This is your room, Mama." Reaching up, she twists the knob, opening the door a crack before turning back to the assassin. "Come in, Mama."

"Why, thank you." Walking into the room, she looks around curiously. "So this is my..." Though mostly barren at the moment, the room does have several of Yor's boxes sitting in it, and her pillow and blanket sit on the mattress. "What a lovely room."

"I'm glad you like it." Twilight walks through the doorway carrying another two boxes, one labeled 'Bedroom 3'. He crouches down beside Anya, setting down the boxes. "This should be everything. Is the furniture arranged to your liking? I also cleaned a bit."

Yor faces the father and daughter with a large smile on her face. "Yes, everything is wonderful."

The telepath hops and raises her arms over her head. "I helped clean, too!"

"Really? Thank you so much."

"Am I a good girl?" Anya turns to her father excitedly.

While Anya smiles at the praise from Yor, Twilight glances at her, recalling the earlier events. A flashback is shown of the two cleaning Yor's room. Twilight sweeps the floor while Anya wipes a window with a cloth. In two quick changes of frozen images, it clearly displays Anya losing her balance and falling over, knocking over a bucket full of water and spilling it everywhere. Back in the present, Twilight responds. "All you did was tip over a bucket of water."

"Shock!" The cheerful face on the girl swiftly changes to disbelief.

Emile can't stop the snort of laughter from escaping him. Ewen, on the other hand, doesn't even try. "HAH! Nice going, Stubby Legs! Maybe if you were taller, you might be able to reach properly, and that wouldn't have happened!"

Becky turns around in her seat, drawing back a fist. "Cut it out! She's younger than us! I'll hit you with the punch taught to me by Master Yor!"

"C-Come on, Ewen. Cut it out." Anya glances back at the boys, and finds that despite Damian trying to make his henchman stop, the Desmond himself has a smirk on his lips.

"Shock!" Hearing Anya vocalize the same thing she said on the screen, Damian meets her eye, and has to quickly disguise a laugh as a cough.

Sorry, Forger! It is a little funny, seeing how you react to things you don't expect!

"Mister Egeburg." Mr. Henderson's voice cuts through the children's tomfoolery like a guillotine. "Treat your peers with respect." The child nods his head, struck silent by the unspoken threat of a Tonitrus. "As for you, Miss Forger. Try to be more aware of your limits and your surroundings. Yes, we try to push past our limits at Eden College. However, we should also do so in a way that will not inconvenience those around us. Understood?"

"Yes, Housemaster."

Yor giggles at the sight of the father/daughter antics before turning her attention back to the lodgings she's been given. "This is such a lovely room. I don't know what to do with myself."

Twilight looks up at Yor, a friendly smile on his face. "What do you mean? Please make yourself at home. Actually, this is your home now, so make yourself comfortable."

"Thank you."

Back outside of the assassin's bedroom, Twilight walks towards the living room while Anya stares through the open doorway. "I'll come get your boxes once they're empty."

With each step that the spy takes, another empty, folded up box is placed against the door frame, and Anya's surprise grows. Twilight doesn't even reach the end of the hall before Yor peeks her head out of her room. "Loid, I've got everything put away."

The man turns back to her, speaking with an impressed tone. "You're quite efficient." Returning to her room, he spots a framed picture standing on the headboard of Yor's bed. "Ah, this must be your younger brother."

"Th-That fast?!" Franky turns in his seat to stare at the Garden Employee with wide eyes. She's way too fast! It's impossible to even hope to compete with a killer like that! I really need to stay on her good side! The informant forces out a chuckle, trying to make a joke out of his fear. "H-Heh! With speed like that, y-your victims probably don't even realize they've d-died for a few seconds!"

Yor looks at him, her brow furrowing slightly. Is Franky really this afraid of me? I can see him trembling from all the way up here! I didn't even do anything special, I just unpacked boxes! Loid didn't seem to think it was anything too impressive... After a few seconds of stifling silence as they stare at one another, Yor gives a fake laugh in response. "Heh, hahah. Y-Yes, I've sometimes w-watched bodyguards point out the l-lethal injuries of o-one another before they c-collapse!"

Franky's laugh sounds like he's choking as he turns away from her, and the assassin is acutely aware of how the entire room stiffened at her comment. ...I hate this... I really, REALLY hate this... How is this the better option compared to letting our secrets out naturally?

While he leans down slightly to get a better look, Anya walks past the two adults further into the room. Yor turns to the photo as well, keeping the polite smile that she's had almost since entering the apartment. "Oh, yes."

"You said he's also a civil servant?" Satisfied with what he sees, the WISE agent turns to his new wife again.

"Yes. He seems quite busy lately, so I've only spoken to him on the phone."

"It seems you two are quite similar. I should properly introduce myself once Anya's entrance exam is over."

Hearing this, Yor's smile drops and she turns to face Twilight again. "Um, Loid. About that... I don't have anything suitable to wear to this interview..."

"Then let's go to the tailor today."

"Thank you very much." While Twilight and Yor talk, Anya looks around the newly-decorated room with awe, before her attention is caught by a box labeled 'Bedroom 1'.

The girl quickly marches over to it, bending down to grab it. "Helping, helping..."

Hearing the jostling of the contents of the box, Yor turns to look at Anya crouched over her still-sealed belongings. "M-Miss Anya, I'll take care of that!" She quickly rushes over to the child and the box. The telepath stops and turns to her mother, dipping into her thoughts to find a better understanding. I have my work weapons and poison powerful enough to kill an elephant in there. Anya squeaks in fright from the close call.

The already tense atmosphere doesn't make this information any less horrifying to hear. Martha coughs lightly to break the silence before speaking. "Er, Mrs. Forger. I don't think you should leave your... equipment... where a child can reach."

"O-Oh, don't worry!" Yor quickly attempts to reassure the audience. "That's the only time Anya's ever gotten her hands on my things, I promise! I keep my things out of reach!"

Anya slowly turns away from the adults, thinking about the events on the cruise ship. ...Sorry Mama. I don't think I can stop your lie right now.

What's with the slow turn, Forger? The girl forces herself to face forward and not respond to Damian's thoughts.

Bill stares at the screen, frowning. "Strong enough to kill elephants? Why does she need something that powerful?"

Surprisingly, the answer comes from Becky. "Oh, I've heard an explanation from an episode of a show I watched! Different people's bodies will react to poisons with small differences naturally, and people with larger builds can survive poisons that would kill smaller folks. If I were to give an example, if you, Ewen, Emile, and Anya were all given the same dose of a lethal poison, at a dose sized to kill someone around Anya's build, all of you would experience it differently. Anya would probably die really quickly because she's quite small! Ewen would also probably die rather quickly because he's only slightly bigger than Anya is. He would take longer to go though. Emile, on the other hand, has a fairly larger build than Ewen, so he would take much longer to die from the same dose, and could even survive if rushed to the hospital! It would be a long, super painful time, though! Finally, I don't think you'd even have a high risk of dying, Bill. I think you'd feel awful for a very long time, but you're likely to survive! However, if all of you were given a dose of a poison that would kill an elephant, all of you would die really quickly! It's a way of making sure your target actually dies, while also making sure they don't suffer too much in the process!"

Yuri, overhearing this conversation, rises from his seat and walks to the barrier between the seating areas. "Hey, kid. That's a pretty big oversimplification of how poison works. A person's survival rate can be dependent on a lot of different factors, like dietary habits, physical fitness, blood type, blood pressure, prior exposure, age, poison application, temperature, and so many other things! Plus, some people's bodies just decide not to react to certain poisons at all! Not to mention that some poisons might kill an elephant, but be harmless to humans, like how chocolate will kill dogs!"

The Eden students stare at the man as he finishes his lesson, wide-eyed and confused. Ewen manages to respond first, giving Yuri a distrusting glare. "...Okay. But why are you telling us this?"

The undercover cop, realizing how strange his actions are, scrambles for an excuse. "I- Well- You kids are the elite of the nation! You're high-value targets for attacks like this! You should be educated on how these things work, to help you handle bad situations better! So, you're welcome!" Turning on a heel, he marches back to his seat and falls into it, glaring at the screen. How the hell are my nerves getting to me already?! We haven't even been in this theater for half a day, what's wrong with me?!

The children, alone once again, absorb the things they've heard so far. Emile glances at Becky, raising a brow. "So... What kinda shows did you say you watch, again?"

"Soap operas, why?"

"Just checking." Emile returns his eyes to the screen, avoiding the confused expression on Becky. Maybe Blackbell's right to be worried about turning into an assassin without realizing it, because I can't imagine any soap opera that makes poison a plot point.

The scene changes, showing the folded up cardboard boxes as a kettle whistles. Yor's voice can be heard. "Can I get you something, Loid?"

"Some coffee, please. Black." Shifting to show the kitchen of the apartment, Yor can be seen pouring hot water into a coffee pot while Twilight crouches down, opening the oven and allowing steam to drift out.

Anya barely steps into frame, announcing her own request for a drink. "I want hot cocoa!" Yor looks over her shoulder at the child as she stops the flow from the kettle.

Turning away from the oven, Twilight smiles at his child. "With sugar and milk."

"That's the stuff!"

A plate of cookies is placed onto the coffee table, three drinks of different colors surrounding it. The focus shifts to show Twilight taking a seat in one of the armchairs, with Yor already sitting on the couch, delighted at the sight of the sweets. "They look amazing. Are those cookies homemade?"

Twilight answers with a smile, while Anya begins helping herself to the cookies. "It's actually my first time making cookies. I just followed a recipe from a cookbook, so they should be decent. I hope you like them."

"Thank you." Yor bends down, grabbing one of the cookies and popping the entire thing into her mouth in one bite. By this time, Anya's already grabbing her third. "They're wonderful! You really are an amazing cook!"

"It's not that impressive, really."

While Twilight deflects Yor's compliment, Anya leans in, raising a hand happily. "I helped with the cookies, too!"

"Oh, I see."

A flashback is shown, featuring Anya stirring a mixing bowl with a spoon. A little flour is kicked up by her motions, which tickles her nose and causes her to sneeze directly into the bowl, enveloping her in a large cloud of the white powder. When the dust settles, her face, shirt, and hand are all painted white by the flour, with a very unimpressed Twilight watching in the background.

Back in the present, the spy picks up his coffee with a blank expression. "After you got covered in flour and got in my way, you just snacked on some peanuts." He takes a sip while Anya gives him another expression of shock. The view changes to behind Anya's chair. Yor giggles at the comedy duo as Twilight places his mug back onto the saucer. "Once we're settled in, let's begin."

Mr. Henderson sighs at the display on screen. "Showing initiative to help out is quite respectable, but I hope that you have learned what you can and cannot manage after these events, Miss Forger."

Anya straightens her posture, saluting the old gentleman. "Yes, housemaster! I have been working to grow my skills, and find my strengths!"

Not quite what I asked, but I'm glad to hear it.

Jumping forward, the screen shows Twilight holding a clipboard. Lowering it, his hair is revealed to be in a different style, and he's wearing a pair of glasses now, as well as his green suit. "Eden College is one of the most prestigious schools in the country. During the interview, not only will the child be evaluated, but so will the parents. They will be evaluated on their social standing as well as how cultured they are. Understood?"

Seated on the couch opposite him, Yor and Anya face him with curious expressions. The spy turns to the child first. "Now, let's start the questions. First, please state your name and address."

Anya puts on a determined expression as she struggles through the question. "Anya Fo... Fo... Horger. Address?"

"The place we're at right now."

"This is Anya's house!" She smiles confidently at Twilight.

"That's not what I meant." Twilight takes a moment to collect himself before continuing. "Er, so, Miss Anya... How do you spend your days off?"

The girl answers, still smiling. "Papa orders me to stay home, so I have to watch TV all alone."

"Now, wait a second. That makes a terrible impression." The back of Twilight's head is shown, shadows cast over half of his upper body. He turns to Yor, who looks concerned by the attention. "Madam?"

"Yes?"

"Why did you choose Eden College, and how do you plan to pass this exam?"

"How do people usually pass?" Yor casts her gaze to the side as she stumbles over the phrase, perplexed. "Um, pass, passing..." While Twilight glances at his clipboard, his wife seems to find her answer. "Perhaps because of cardiac arrest, or excessive bleeding?" Twilight lowers the clipboard to stare at her. On the other side of the couch, Anya listens to the assassin ramble with horror on her face. "Or compound fractures throughout the body? Oh! Maybe their skull was caved in?"

The Lieutenant turns to Twilight, unimpressed. "That never seemed like a red flag? You asked her how to pass an exam, and she started listing off ways to die."

The spy returns the look. "I had more important things to worry about at the time, as you are well aware. Some of her actions over our time together have raised questions, but by that time I was in too deep to consider that she might be more than she seems. I certainly didn't have the option to risk a divorce that would threaten my mission, so I left her quirks alone." He glances at Yor, his gaze sharpening. "Clearly, I was mistaken."

"Kill me now. Next question. Could you describe your parenting methods?"

Once again, the assassin is left unsure how to answer properly. "Huh? U-Um... Strike first to be victorious?"

I'm amazed her brother turned out to be a decent human being.

"I'm amazed that you think you have room to criticize Sis on being normal." Yuri glares at the WISE agent. "At least she manages to form natural bonds with her coworkers, instead of manipulating everyone she meets."

Yor gives her brother a disapproving look. "Yuri, please. That wasn't necessary." Looking at things, I can understand his amazement...

"Did he need to voice his displeasure about your answers by asking for death?" Yuri keeps his eyes locked onto Twilight as he crosses his legs and plants an elbow on his knee, lowering his head onto his fist. "He could have been more gentle with his critique like he was with Chihuahua." ...Not that he's being very gentle with her anyway.

Fiona counters Yuri in a harsh tone, her icy eyes digging into him. "His critique is completely valid. That child is learning how the world works. Your sister should have already figured it out a long time ago. She's a grown woman and shouldn't need to have her hand held to be able to learn about the world around her."

"That's a harsh judgement when you have no idea how her upbringing might have influenced her thinking." Chloe turns to the hospital worker, frowning. "Certain upbringings will change how people think on a fundamental level. We know that her parents died when she was young, we know that she had to raise her brother by herself, and we know that she's an assassin now. If you mix all of that together, how do you think it will affect a young girl's mind?"

Fiona levels Chloe with her piercing gaze. "She's not the only person out there who lost their family while still a child. She's certainly not the only person out there who had to raise a sibling. The only difference between her and those other people is that she kills people for money. I think it should be an expectation for contract killers to be able to get their minds out of the gutter and act like functioning members of society instead of psychopath serial killers. Yor Briar has displayed a complete inability to integrate with normal life. She can't do anything but clean and kill by her own admission, she has remarkably little comprehension of how the world around her operates, she thinks of mass murder as a solution to minor problems, she le-"

"SHUT UP, LADY!" Ewen stands on his seat, shouting at the arguing adults. As their eyes fall on him, he continues. "What's your problem?! You've clearly got something against Forger's mom beyond the fact that she kills people! I hate it too! It's terrifying being in the same room as her, even behind this magic wall! The second we're allowed out of this room I wanna hide somewhere with locked doors, but you're the only person being a jerk about it!"

The still-hidden spy opens her mouth to retort, but stops. ...I'm going too far with my actions. My clear bias is going to give me away as a WISE agent if I keep this up. Still fuming, she closes her mouth with a clack of her teeth and turns back to the screen.

Ewen drops back into his seat, letting out a frustrated huff. Glancing at his friends, he finds Damian and Emile staring at him in surprise. "...What? She's been getting really annoying. An assassin's scary, but we watched her kill a traitor to the nation. She's obviously on our side, no matter how horrifying her actions are."

Mr. Henderson turns away from his students. A surprisingly mature opinion, Mister Egeburg. The ability to recognize bias and set it aside to think impartially has great merits.

Twilight lowers his clipboard further, and the sunlight catches the lenses of his glasses, making them light up and obscure his eyes. I've been a spy for over a decade. He sets down the plank entirely and removes the glasses before standing up and turning away from Yor and Anya. I've completed countless missions, yet only now do I find myself losing heart. "This is pointless. There's no way we'll survive the interview at this rate. Let's give up on getting her into that school."

"Loid! Please remember your late wife's wishes!"

Reaching a hand up to destroy the hairstyle he adopted for the test, Twilight continues thinking. Clearly, we weren't ready for this mock interview yet. He turns back to face his family, speaking in a somewhat more-determined voice than before. "All right, let's go out for a bit. Let's broaden our horizons, become versed in what is normal for an upper-class family, and make sure that we're all on the same page."

Following a display of the Berlint rooftops, the Forger family is shown walking down the sidewalk together, Anya marching in her own weird way while chanting. "We're on an ooting, an ooting, la, la, la, lah!"

Twilight glances down at her. "You mean 'outing.'"

Anya suddenly stops, holding out a hand to Yor with a smile. "Wanna hold hands, Mama?"

The woman is delighted, a rosy tint coloring her cheeks as she accepts the child's hand in her own. "I-If you don't mind."

Behind them, the spy observes the interaction. Thank goodness Anya's taken a liking to her. The plan is set. After today, we'll seem like a normal... no. We'll be seen as an upper-crust family.

Oh... This reminds me of when my little brother was still small and adorable. Anya smiles at Yor as she hears that in her mother's mind, the rest of the world fading behind a purple haze and darkness. The camera focuses on their joined hands as Yor continues to think. And that one time I hugged him too hard and ended up breaking two of his ribs. I must be careful. The focus drifts to Anya's terrified expression when that thought is broadcast.

Back in normal reality, Anya suddenly pulls her hand from Yor's grip, running behind a row of hedges to crouch down and hide while Yor reaches for the child that abandoned her so unexpectedly. Twilight continues to observe. Wait... what? Maybe not...

Twilight walks forward to stand next to Yor as she sobs, a tear running down her cheek.

"Oh, so that's why..." Yor nods her head, understanding what went wrong that day now. "I'm glad she didn't hate me..."

Yuri frowns at the sight of his sister in emotional distress. I don't like seeing Yor sad, but... with context, I think I can forgive you for this one, Chihuahua. You barely knew Yor at the time, and just heard her think about accidentally hurting me. Of course you'd be frightened...

Noticing her approaching husband, Yor turns to him, still grappling with the heartbreak she's suffering. "B-By the way, where are we headed?"

"I've acquired a variety of tickets through my connections at work." Reaching inside his jacket, Twilight retrieves said tickets, showing them to Yor.

Opera music can be heard in the background as the scene changes to display an opera house. Inside, as the singer begins, Twilight watches with a smile on his face. Tradition and status are everything at Eden College. We'll have to experience and get accustomed to the best that life has to offer, and make sure we don't slip up if we let our guard down. Glancing to his side, Twilight observes his snoring daughter, and then his wife, whose confusion is very visible on her face, to the point that steam can literally be seen rising from her head as she struggles to comprehend the opera. The camera focuses on Twilight again, who no longer smiles. All right, next.

Changing scenes, the bright white walls of an art gallery cause the paintings to pop out from the scenery. The camera pans down from the ceiling to show the crowds of people viewing the exhibits. "Anya, no yelling while we're here."

"'Kay."

Twilight's face is shown, a small smile upon his features as he observes the decorations. In the background, Anya is staring up at a large portrait. We've experienced first class music, so now for some first class art... and you know the rest.

The small child turns around and points to the art piece. "Papa! I can see her boobies!" Twilight's smile immediately fades at the sound of his child yelling (despite being told not to). He turns around to see what she's talking about, and the painting is brought to focus. The art depicts a nude woman laying upon a bed. In the next scene, Twilight observes as Anya points to a statue of a woman with no lower arms or head, and then a statue that is only a woman's head. "Head's been choppy-chopped! Body's been choppy-chopped!"

"What did I just say about yelling?" As the spy scolds Anya, he hears the sound of Yor marveling at something. Turning to her, he finds the woman staring at a painting depicting an execution by guillotine. "Yor?" The assassin completely disregards Twilight, continuing to stare with a large blush on her face. "Y-Yor...?"

Chloe crosses her arms and leans back in her seat, unimpressed by the scene. "You people are bad at seeming normal."

Martha nods her head in agreement. "It does seem that way, doesn't it? From our perspective, Mr. Forger is the only one who can manage to play the part required of him. However, keep in mind that most people will not see all the things we are seeing. Is it so strange to see a child fall asleep during an opera, or a woman who seems engrossed in a piece of art? Because we have context, we notice all the things that make it obvious."

Yuri's coworker rolls her eyes. "Yeah, sure. But people have been reported to the SSS for less blatant stuff than this. We were literally told that someone was arrested for being unable to find a boyfriend."

Switching to a different part of the building, a children's area is shown, featuring large whiteboards for them to draw and make art of their own. Anya runs ahead of Twilight and Yor, pointing to the play area. "I wanna do that!"

"Drawing? Sure." While Anya turns and rushes to the children's area, Twilight turns to his wife. "Yor, why don't we sit down for a bit?"

"All right."

At the drawing boards, Anya scribbles away happily, narrating her own efforts. "Anya's house is a big castle. The boss of the secret organization is Director Chimera. Papa is a spy! Pew, pew! Mama is an assassin! Stabby, stabby, sploosh!"

Both Twilight and Yor's faces pale upon hearing Anya's words. The WISE agent takes a deep breath to calm himself down. I suppose I should be grateful that Anya's such a bad artist. If she were talented, this drawing could have compromised the entire mission.

The Garden employee's fingers tap against her knees, using the rhythm to soothe herself. I'm so glad that nobody can understand Anya's art right now! I really wouldn't want to have to massacre all those parents and children!

Fiona glares at the child, fuming. Of course she would be endangering Twilight's mission like this already! This is only more proof that she can't be trusted with these secrets, and needs to be disciplined!

Yuri looks at Anya out of the corner of his eye, nervous. Hey, Chihuahua. You've probably made a bunch more drawings featuring all the secrets of your family and I, right? His veins feel like lead when he watches the telepath give a small nod. ...You haven't SHOWN them to anyone, have you? The subtle shake of her head releases most of the tension from his body, and he turns his attention back to the screen. Good. You need to keep those hidden where people won't find them.

Anya pulls her legs up onto her seat as she keeps watching. Everyone's mad at me.

While Anya works away, Twilight and Yor are shown sitting together. The assassin has a drink in her hands, while the spy is checking his watch. After reading the time, he turns to his wife with a small smile. "We should probably get going."

"Yes." The two stand up from their seats and start walking over to where Anya draws.

"All done!" Anya steps back from her masterpiece in satisfaction, taking in the large display.

Her father is shown approaching, and he calls out to her. "Anya, we're going to our next stop." The girl jumps at the sound of his voice.

The camera shifts to show the anxious expression on Anya, her hand holding a marker trembling with fright. If Papa and Mama see this, they'll find out about my powers! Dropping the marker on the floor, Anya raises up her arms, trying her best to cover up the evidence she made. However, she was too ambitious in the creative process, and the drawings are too large for her small body to conceal.

Twilight and Yor finally get to an angle where they can see what Anya has drawn, and it's shown that her creation covers the entire whiteboard. The spy smiles at the sight. "Wow, that's quite a masterpiece. There seems to be a pig in a forest."

"That's Mr. Chimera, and he lives in a castle!" Despite trying to hide her work from her parents, Anya still corrects Twilight on his misinterpretation.

"I see. I definitely see Bondman there, though. I'm right, aren't I?"

"Yep..."

"It's that spy cartoon you were watching last week. So this witch-looking one must be the princess." Twilight pauses at the sight of all the red marker scribbled around the drawing of Yor. "That part seems rather graphic. Oh, but that cat is cute."

The telepath indignantly corrects the misconception about the yellow creature. "That's a doggy!"

"I see. Then I apologize." With Twilight finished observing her art, Anya steps back and wipes her forehead, sighing with relief as her father continues. "We're going to the tailor next."

"You really don't think ahead, do you, Anya?" Becky nudges her friend's side, her lips twisted into a small smile.

"Planning is very hard, Becky. Things never go the way I expect them to go." Anya sighs dramatically, sinking lower into her seat while her friend giggles.

"Like when you tried to invite yourself and your Pops to my house after the bus incident?" The telepath can feel Damian's smug grin without even turning to look at him.

She sinks even deeper into her seat, glaring at the screen. "It was for world peace, Sy-on Boy."

Mr. Henderson turns to face Anya. "You know, that certainly wasn't a bad drawing for a four-year-old. I think you should continue to pursue this artistic interest. I'm sure it will bear fruit in the future."

The girl nods her head slowly. "...Okay, Housemaster. I'll keep drawing."

Back at the tailor shop, Yor's voice is heard while the camera focuses on the storefront. "Sorry to have you do this on your day off."

Inside, the two parents stand face-to-face in front of a wall with many family photos on it. "It's quite all right. This is something we need to do."

"My going-out clothes are so cute!" At the sound of Anya's voice, Twilight and Yor turn to see the young girl talking to the tailorshop owner. "They fit perfectly! This shop is great! I love it!"

"Why, thank you." The woman smiles as she watches Anya spin in place.

When she finishes her twirl, Anya clasps her hands together with a smile and rosy cheeks. "This is my first ooting in my going-out clothes."

The tailor crouches down beside the child. "Then it must be a day of celebration."

"A day to celebrate this ooting!" With a shine in her eyes and her arms swept wide, Anya calls to her parents.

Twilight and Yor watch Anya with smiles on their faces. The spy makes a suggestion. "In that case, we can stop by a photography studio next."

"Yor, dear. Right this way." The voice of the elderly clerk is heard from off-screen, and Yor turns and steps out of sight.

"Coming." Twilight waits a few seconds before following behind the assassin.

The owner of the store unfolds a sheet of royal blue cloth on a table while the clerk stands beside her. "If you're looking for a semi-formal dress, I think this color would do nicely. What do you think?"

"I'd honestly prefer a black or red dress." Despite rejecting the lovely color, Yor does have a smile on her face as she speaks to the owner.

"Really? I think this would look nice on you, Yor." The clerk's surprise and slight disappointment are easily heard within her tone.

On the other hand, the owner is more than happy to work with the request. "Then how about this?"

The entire time, Twilight observes with a smile. Judging from her lack of luggage, I thought she had no interest in clothes. He turns to his wife, speaking aloud. "I see you're particular about matching colors."

"No... I wouldn't say that." Yor, on the other hand, is surprised by his observation. As she starts thinking, Anya can be seen sitting on the couch behind the adults, and the trademark twinkle can be heard. This color's lovely, but I'm worried that blood splatters would be too noticeable. The child twitches violently upon hearing that, as if she had just been struck.

"And your coat?" Several people turn to the Lieutenant as he speaks, questioning the assassin.

"I'm sorry?"

"Your coat. It's a creamy beige. Why are you worried about that shade of blue when your coat would show off bloodstains to a far more noticeable extent?"

Yor pauses, thinking about the question for a moment before answering. "...Because I don't wear my coat when I'm doing my job? It's too bulky and would make it more difficult to move properly."

"But it-" As Anya begins to speak, she's cut off by censorship. Pouting, the girl crosses her arms and glares at the screen. How is it spoilers to say that Mama moves in her coat just the same?

The Garden Employee's brow furrows in concern. What was she about to say, and why was it censored?

The Keeper looks between the two, frowning to herself. ...I should try to fine-tune the censorship during the break. I have no idea why it's been letting the kids talk about the bus hijacking, but censoring stuff like this.

As the Forgers walk away from the tailor, the owner and clerk watch them depart. The old lady comments on the visit. "Looks like Yor finally found someone nice."

"Hopefully they last. Having a child already is an instant no for me, though." The owner shrugs lightly with a smile on her face. She turns to step back inside her store, and the clerk follows.

The scene refocuses on the Forgers again, with Anya's silly marching the center of the camera while her parents are only shown up to the midriff. "Looks like the extra outfits will be ready by the interview, too." As Twilight speaks, the view pans upwards to show only the adults, Anya completely out of sight.

"I'm so sorry to have you get so many." Yor has a flustered expression on her face, while Twilight seems perfectly content.

Ah, those outfits. Mr. Henderson thinks back to the interview day, and how the family on the screen seemed to have a never-ending stash of clothes hidden away somewhere. Muna & Monacca does do exemplary work without wasting any time.

Ewen turns to Twilight and calls out. "Hey, how many outfits did you get anyway? Why's she look so guilty?"

The spy opens his mouth to answer before pausing. I probably won't be able to actually say. It seems like the interview process will be shown, and saying how many outfits I bought would absolutely be a spoiler for that... He settles for smiling apologetically. "Sorry, but I don't think I can answer that."

"Well, you look nice in colors besides red and black. We'll be going out more often, too."

"Ootings! Ootings!"

Ignoring Anya's off-screen outburst, Twilight continues. "You're a regular at that shop, aren't you? I'm sure we'll continue to shop there, so next time, we should tell them we're married."

"Oh, right."

A brief view of the photography studio sign is shown, and inside the building, the Forgers are seen from behind, getting into position for their photo to be taken. With the flash of the camera, the image is displayed on the screen. Twilight has an easy smile on his face and one hand behind both his wife and daughter. To his left, Yor sits in a chair with a pink dress on, a somewhat perplexed expression on her face. Finally, on Twilight's right, Anya stands ramrod straight with a serious expression on her face, indicative that she's trying too hard to look proper for the camera. The screen fades to black on the picture, staying dark for a second.

Bill stares at the family photo, confused. Only Forger's dad looks happy to be there. Forger herself is standing like she's at a military ceremony.

Emile snorts at the sight. "Heh. You look silly, Forger. When you're taking photos, just act like you would normally."

Chloe glances over at the children, a nagging thought in her mind. That... would be normal for her though, wouldn't it? She spent most of her life locked up as a science experiment.

Fading back in from black, a political speech is shown being made in the street, a large crowd surrounding the podium where a man speaks. "We, the Nationalist Party, believe that there is a road to peace with the West."

Among the crowd, the Forgers observe and listen to the speech. Twilight stands with crossed arms as he listens, his mind still calculating. Patriotism is also important within Eden. I'll need to make sure she's knowledgeable of politics and history as well.

You moron!

Kill all the bastards in the West!

"Continuing to treat Westalis as the enemy will do us no good." The speaker continues his speech unaware of the thoughts of many onlookers.

The camera pans down beside Twilight, focusing on Anya. Twinkling lights surround her as she picks up the thoughts of the other audience members.

Piss off, traitor!

Gimme money, gimme money, gimme money...

Those bastards killed my family!

Get lost with the pleasantries!

With all the many voices compounding inside Anya's head, her expression shifts to one of discomfort, and she begins swaying on her feet before grabbing Twilight's pant leg and burying her face against him. "What's the matter?"

First I lost my job, then my home!

The child responds to her father quietly, subdued with physical ailment. "I don't like places like this..."

Kill all the shitheads in the West!

"Sorry. Maybe this was a little scary for you." The spy bends down, picking up his daughter.

Yor also lowers herself to check up on Anya. "Let's go rest somewhere."

The East did nothing wrong!

The family turns and begins walking away from the rally. In Twilight's arms, Anya grips his shirt tightly, a pained expression on her face.

Go back to your Western masters!

Damn it!

You pig!

You stupid baldy!

Your feet smell, too!

The Lieutenant watches the scene with confusion. He turns to Anya. "You look uncomfortable on the screen. Why not just stop listening?"

The telepath looks back at the officer, wincing. "...I-I can't. It's hard to not hear thoughts when people are near me, and even harder when they're angry or scared or something." She shifts in her seat, anxiously. I still hate talking about my power... "It hurts if I'm hearing t-too many people for too long."

"Noted." The scarred man scribbles in his book for a few seconds before looking back up at Anya. "So it's safe to assume that you've been hearing a lot of our thoughts since we got here?"

The child nods her head. "It's been very loud in here. Even louder whenever secrets come out..."

So that's what happened that day. No wonder she seems so under the weather in large groups. And based on this, I can imagine what happened with the thief... Twilight glances at his daughter, already connecting the puzzle pieces.

As Twilight gets away from the crowd, Anya visibly relaxes in his arms. Enough so for her to make demands. "Papa, I'm hungry."

"Huh? Are you all right or not?"

"Do you think with your stomach or something?" Damian smirks at the screen, amused by the sight.

Yuri peeks at the children out of the corner of his eye, agreeing with the boy mentally. That's what I was thinking! First, she instantly cheered up from threat of abandonment, and now this!

The scene changes to inside of a restaurant, showing a plate of what looks like a very tasty meal. However, Anya starts picking peanuts out of the food to eat by themselves. Across the table from her, Twilight watches with disappointment. "No, Anya. Don't just pick the nuts off the top, and no eating with your hands." Glancing to his left, the spy watches as his wife drags her finger across the blade of her knife, a blush on her face. "And Yor, uh... Hmm..." The perspective shifts, showing Twilight's clasped hands on the table and slowly panning upwards to his weary face. I've been a spy for over a decade. I've completed countless missions, yet once again I find myself losing heart.

"S'all good, Papa." The camera moves back to behind the WISE agent, focusing on Anya as she now holds her fork and knife in her hands.

"What is?" Twilight pinches the bridge of his nose, exasperated. Yeah, I definitely picked the wrong child. Anya flinches at the thought, though Twilight doesn't notice due to his eyes being closed. A side profile of the man is shown, his body cloaked in shade despite sitting next to a window on a bright, sunny day. No, this is all because I was expected to rely on others. I shouldn't have put the key to success in the hands of others, let alone civilians. Twilight's other side is shown, his body lit up by the sunlight, but when he opens his eyes, they're still in the shadows because of his hand. Predicting every possible situation, preparing for it, and acting from a carefully laid-out plan. Those are the ironclad rules of being a spy. Which means that I need to list every possible question the interviewer can ask, then have these two memorize the perfect answers to go with them. Twilight places his elbows on the table and clasps his fingers together before bending forward, resting his forehead against his hands as he starts muttering. "If all else fails, make sure I can back them up-"

"Um..." Interrupted from his mental death spiral, the spy looks at Yor. "Why don't we go get some fresh air?"

Twilight bites his lip with frustration. During just this meal, both of them showed signs of their true natures. I even responded to Anya with confusion. All of the clues have been right in front of me the whole time... How have I been this blind?

"U-Um..." The man glances over at Anya, watching her fidget with her hands nervously. "You're not blind, P-Papa. You-" The deafening silence of censorship fills the air, and Twilight finds himself more irritated than before.

I don't need pity from you, Anya. He turns back to the screen, crossing his arms.

A view of the beautiful blue sky over Berlint is shown, followed by the new family in a park. Twilight and Anya look over a railing with amazement and excitement, while Yor stands beside them, a smile on her face. Shifting perspective to behind the family, it's revealed that the view is the same as the one that was just shown, high above the rooftops of the city. Twilight has an arm around Anya while she sits on the railing, ready to catch her if she falls.

"The people look like bits of trash from up here." Anya's voice draws the attention of both her parents, and they look at her with confusion.

"Where did you get that from?"

"My cartoons."

"Ah..." Despite how crude the statement was, Twilight doesn't reprimand the girl, instead returning to enjoying the view. "I had no idea there was a park like this on the outskirts of town."

Yor responds to the man as the camera moves to show the park, a rectangle of grass with a fountain in the center. A small number of other pedestrians mill about nearby. "I don't come here that often either, but I wander over here when I'm exhausted from work." Yor's gaze falls to the streets below, and the camera follows her perspective for a few seconds, trailing the pedestrian paths through the genuinely beautiful city. "Thinking about how the work I do helps everyone in this city out encourages me to work harder." A second of silence passes before the focus falls back onto the family again, with the assassin suddenly turning to Twilight and Anya in a panic. "Oh, this place must be awfully boring! I'm terribly sorry!"

Anya swings her legs over the dangling edge one at a time as she smiles. "I like this place better than crowded places!"

"Oh, that's wonderful!" While Yor is relieved by the small girl, the camera gives a close-up of Twilight's side-profile, his hair swaying gently in the soft breeze of the day while he continues looking over the city.

"You three do look like a lovely family when there's nothing of importance happening." Martha smiles at the sight of the Forgers being able to relax on a day off. "Even though you've barely been together by this point in Operation Strix, you already look like you're perfectly comfortable around one another. Many families would envy that."

Franky snorts a laugh. "Hah! You're not wrong! They do look like quite the happily married couple, huh?" He elbows Twilight in the side, smirking. "You've never looked that happy while on a mission before!"

The spy raises a brow. "I'm not even smiling on the screen. What are you talking about?"

"You don't even see it?" Franky looks genuinely shocked. "Your posture has been much more relaxed since you got your family, Twilight. You feel at ease around Anya and Yor!"

He is? Yor glances between the screen and her husband a few times, studying the differences. ...His muscles are far tenser here in the theater. I suppose that would make sense, he has learned about... Thorn Princess. "I'm happy to know that I was able to help you feel safe, Loid."

"...Yeah." It hurts Yor to watch him tense up even further when she speaks, but the fact that he seems less afraid of her and more distrustful is something, at least.

At least I can manage to earn his trust back. It's harder to convince someone that they don't need to be afraid after they've watched you kill people.

The perspective shows the streets of Berlint once again, focusing on a group of people living life. Four children sit on the steps to a house alongside a white cat. A man and woman walk in opposite directions down the road. An old lady pushes a rolling basket down the street. A young man walks down the road with an odd gait. The camera gives a close-up of the four kids, happily chatting away. One of them has a soccer ball in his hands. Twilight's face is shown again, still in the usual neutral expression he maintains. However, his eyes widen as his attention is caught.

The man with the unique walk runs up beside the old lady before suddenly opening her basket, grabbing something, and sprinting down the road, knocking over the poor elderly woman in the process before ducking into an alley. "Thief! Someone help!"

Becky gasps at the sight. "Oh no! That poor lady! I hope she's alright!"

"Scoundrel! Villain!" Yuri jeers at the screen, his glare showcasing his fury over the sight. "Absolute coward! How dare he assault that woman?! As if stealing wasn't bad enough!"

Mr. Henderson raises a brow at the sudden hostility from the man. Such a strong moral compass. Mr. Briar has been quite outspoken about most of the injustices we have been shown thus far. He reminds me of Martha when we were children. I just hope that he doesn't sign away his life to the nation because of his sense of justice.

Up above, Twilight pulls Anya a little closer to his body. "That old lady should've been more careful."

Suddenly, Yor jumps up onto the railing beside Anya, before launching herself over the edge. With bounding leaps she descends the tall hill, each step dropping her a distance equivalent to two floors in a building. She has an angry look on her face as she shouts. "You won't get away with this! Hold it right there!"

"Oh, damn it." Picking up Anya, Twilight steps away from the railing, beginning to pursue Yor along the paths.

The alley is shown, long and empty, with intermittent beams of sunlight cast into it through the spaces between buildings. Yor skids into the alley from the closest one, stopping and looking around for the criminal. However, the alley is completely empty, and with each passing second Yor's expression becomes more frustrated. She quickly accepts the reality of the situation. I lost track of him. Running back out of the alley, she calls out to the old lady and approaches her. "Are you all right, ma'am? Are you hurt?"

Damian's fist slams into his armrest, causing Ewen and Emile to flinch at being startled. "He got away!" He grits his teeth angrily, trying to remember the features on the man. "We never even got a good look at his face! How are we supposed to find him again?!"

Boss-man sure is mad about this! Emile quickly places his hand on Damian's arm. "Hey, relax! They'll catch him! I don't think Forger's gonna let that go, what with her 'world peace' thing..."

Damian scowls, but takes a deep breath, loosening his fist. Releasing the breath with a frustrated huff, he focuses back onto the screen. "Yeah... You're right. Forger and her Pops are gonna be able to find him."

The old woman smiles at Yor when the assassin gets close. "I'm fine. Just a few scratches."

Yor clenches her fists tightly with a determined look on her face. "I promise I'll catch him for you! And I'll take you to the hospital later!"

"Why, thank you."

Yor pauses for a second, turning to look at the hill she just descended from. I left Loid and Anya behind.

Up above, Twilight runs along the paths on the hill, one hand holding his hat to his head while the other holds Anya. The camera shows that the streets below this part of the hill are much busier than the ones where the crime happened. The spy's gloved hand grips the railing tightly. He blended in with the crowd. Twilight's stony face is shown, while Anya looks up at her father with a worried expression. I'm very sorry, Yor, but you probably won't be able to find him now.

The child in his arms stares at him for a moment, concerned from hearing that. She turns to look down on the street below, and her signature twinkling is heard as she begins to listen in.

Man, I'm starving.

So expensive...

Aw, this is so cute.

Crap, I'm gonna piss my pants.

That shopworker is so cool.

My feet hurt.

I wonder if there's a million dalc lying around somewhere.

Anya's brow lowers a little, and suddenly the frequency of thoughts received spikes.

Oh, I forgot to pay my rent.
Man, he's late.
Honestly, this child...
That bastard. I'm gonna murder him.
What am I going to do? I failed my test again.
Maybe I'll say hi...

A trail of blood begins running from Anya's nose and she grips her father's shirt tightly again, closing her eyes as her face turns pale.

"ANYA!" Becky grabs her friend's hand, looking at her with concern. "What happened?! Why'd you start bleeding?!"

Anya places her free hand against her temple, wincing. My nosebleed made a lot of people panic a little... "I'm okay, Becky! My power can just be a bit much sometimes, and it can hurt if I strain myself! Stop thinking so loud!"

"S-Sorry! I'll try to stop thinking!" Becky releases the telepath's hand as she closes her eyes and screws up her face, trying to force herself not to think anything.

The Lieutenant speaks up. "Your telepathy seems to act like a muscle in your body. If you work too hard, you can hurt yourself. Hopefully, that also means that if you use it regularly it will develop, and in the future, maybe you will have better control without getting hurt."

Fiona raises a brow at the sight. She forced herself to listen until she got hurt... The girl definitely has some of the dedication required to become a spy. She also has an interest in spies, so it shouldn't be very hard to recruit her into WISE.

Twilight's brow furrows as his brain begins running in overdrive. She hurt herself for the sake of finding that thief. And considering what happens next, Anya continued listening even after she started bleeding. That's... really concerning, actually. She knows what kind of world I want to build but still pushes herself this far. Children aren't supposed to bear the weight of responsibility, and considering how much she resists doing anything involving her actual schoolwork, I'd say that Anya agrees with that sentiment. But it looks like her sense of justice is the thing that matters to her the most. This marks the first time Anya hurt herself to help someone else, and I know she's done it at least one more time. After all, she nearly drowned trying to save that boy in the pool, and she doesn't even know how to swim. I might be wrong, but from just these two events and watching how she acts on a daily basis, Anya's holding onto her purpose of existence as strongly as she can. The doctors said that she was created for world peace, and she has made it an obsessive part of her personality. Of course, it's quite difficult to understand how that would affect someone, because most people don't HAVE a purpose in life. Anya does. If more people were like Anya, would they all act similarly, and cling to that purpose? Or-

"PAPA! STOP THINKING!" The spy turns to his daughter and notices her expression of pain.

"I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to." Have I been hurting her every time that I plan for a mission? I always try to think of every possibility and then prepare for it. But if thinking too much causes Anya pain, the-

"PAPA!"

Anya falls limp in Twilight's arms, and he looks at her with shock. "Hey, this again?" He quickly pulls out a handkerchief and wipes away the blood spilling from his daughter's head.

While the blood is being wiped away, a laugh echoes through Anya's head. Man, that old crone was loaded. The telepath's eyes widen in surprise, and she quickly turns her head to look down into the street again. The perspective shifts to down in the street, showing the thief dressed in a different outfit than before as he looks through all the bills in the purse.

Anya turns back to the spy suddenly, surprising him. "Papa!"

"Whoa, what?"

Anya raises an arm into the air before pointing it down into the street at one of the storefronts. "I wanna eat cake!"

"What?!"

"Hah!" Chloe grins at the exchange happening on the screen. "You're quite the little manipulator, aren't you?"

"Huh?" Anya puts a finger to her chin as she puzzles over the word. "Me-nip-you-lay-tur?"

"It means that you are good at making other people do what you want them to do, Miss Anya." Martha smiles at the child, watching her eyes light up.

"Oh! Yes, I-" Whatever Anya was about to say is censored. Instead the girl just nods her head and relaxes back into her seat.

Bill raises a brow at the sight. "Most people think being manipulative is bad, Forger."

"Shock!"

"We just left the restaurant..." As Twilight voices his disbelief in what he's hearing, something catches his eye near the cake store that Anya pointed out. His eyes fall onto the disguised thief. He's... He changed his clothes, but it's not so easy to change the way you walk. While he thinks, Twilight's eyes narrow more and more, becoming dangerous slits of aggression. Don't think you'll get away from me.

"Loid!" The sound of his cover name draws the attention of the father and daughter.

"Mama's here."

Twilight quickly places Anya down on the ground beside him. "Yor, look after Anya for me." He takes off his hat and puts it onto the telepath before turning and sprinting down the path.

The perspective shifts, focusing on the purse being held by the thief as he smirks. I'll be able to have plenty of fun for a while with this much. First, I'm gonna treat myself to the finest meal and- Overhead, Twilight leaps off of a raised walkway.

The WISE agent lands on the back of the criminal and forces his head to the ground with one hand. "A filthy swine like you deserves nothing more than the foulest meal."

"YES!" All the children in the theater cheer at the sight of the bad guy getting caught. Surprisingly, Yuri is also cheering. "GET HIM, LOIDY!"

"The foulest meal!" Anya laughs happily at seeing her first takedown. "Me and Papa are a super-cool team!"

She really is proud of herself for helping out with finding that man. Yor smiles at her daughter, happy to see that she's enjoying herself despite the situation.

Twilight sighs heavily. "I can't believe that I somehow said something that perfectly countered what he was thinking. That's embarrassing..."

"What's going on?" As Twilight stands up again, people start to gather around the scene, interested.

"A guy just dropped from the sky." The WISE agent calmly adjusts his suit and tie, ignoring the crowd's murmuring.

The camera swaps to a raised angle, looking down on the street to show the large collection of onlookers to the apprehending. A spy must not bring attention to himself.

"Did he fall?"

Twilight bends down, grabbing the purse from the hand of the thief before turning to the crowd. "Pardon me. This fellow is a purse snatcher, so please call the police and hand him over."

"A purse snatcher?"

With that, he turns and runs away from the scene. Overhead, Yor and Anya watch the action.

Ewen chuckles at the sight of Twilight's actions contradicting his thoughts. "I think we need to start keeping track of how many times each member of this family does something weird. It's gotta be a lot!"

"Too much effort, if you ask me." Franky puts his arms behind his head with a smirk. "We'd run outta paper in the officer's notebook before we finished up in this place!"

Yuri frowns at the comments. "Rude..." He glances towards his sister and notices that she has a similar expression on her face. "Ignore them."

The scenery transitions to show the sign of the Berlint Central Hospital, and the sunlight paints the time as early evening, with the warm, orange light casting across the brickwork. Slowly, the camera pans down onto the group of four standing outside the building. "Thank you for escorting me all the way here. I had money to get my grandchild a gift in my purse." The old lady shakes Yor's entire arm up and down repeatedly in a very exaggerated handshake. "Thank you so much. You were a big help."

"Oh, actually..." Yor withdraws her arm once the woman stops pulling her up and down. "The one who got it back was my, um, husband." The view shifts as Yor holds her hand out to gesture towards Twilight, with Anya still in his arms.

The spy smiles, looking down. "No, if you weren't there, Yor, I wouldn't have even gone after him."

The old woman slowly walks over to the man, and grabs onto his hand. "Thank you so much. What a fine gentleman you are." The lady repeats the forceful handshake, this time with Twilight as the one being held onto.

"Er, again..."

The scene suddenly changes to a nearly pitch-black room, only illuminated by several monitors. Someone sits in a chair in front of them, obscured by the darkness. The WISE symbol slowly appears on the screen. Hero who casts no shadow, the great deeds you and your fellow agents do shall never see the light of day.

"Again with that awful saying..." Becky shudders at the cold tone of the unseen speaker.

"Thank you." Back in the present, as Twilight's arm is released again, he brings the closed hand up to cover his mouth as his cheeks turn slightly pink.

I guess... receiving thanks every once in a while wouldn't hurt.

Anya stares at the man, observing him. Papa is a softie.

"I am not." Twilight gives his daughter an exasperated look, while she simply smiles guiltily at him.

The perspective changes, and the woman is once again swinging Yor's arm around. Twilight takes a step forward. "Thank you, Yor." When his wife turns to look at him, it's revealed that Twilight has a nice smile on his lips, and a happy shine in his eyes. "Today was a nice change of pace. Now I'll be able to work hard again."

"You are a softie!" Franky smiles at the sight of his friend looking so happy. "Just look at how happy you are to have saved the day and been recognized for it!"

"I am not a softie!"

Seeing the happy smile on Twilight's face, Yor's cheeks turn rosy. While the two blushing adults stare one another in the eyes, Anya looks back and forth between them, curiously. "Papa and Mama are flirting." The reaction is instantaneous. Both of them gasp before glaring at their daughter and responding in unison.

"We are not!"
"We are not!"

"Does Anya get a thank you, too?" While the telepath asks this, the old woman smiles at the sight of the family.

"Well... I guess we did find the thief because you were hungry again. Good girl."

The elderly lady begins to softly chuckle, drawing the eyes of the Forgers. "My, what a lovely family you are." She approaches Twilight and Anya, holding out a sweet for the young girl. "Here's some candy for you, dear."

"Candy!"

As Anya takes her reward from the woman, Twilight speaks to her. "Make sure you say "thank you.""

"Aww... Honestly, I can see what that woman's talking about. You guys act like you've been around one another for years." Chloe grins at the scene, enjoying the happy ending to the day.

"It's like an episode of Berlint in Love!" Becky cheers at the screen, highly entertained by the nice conversation that just happened.

"We do?" Yor's cheeks burn bright as she stares at Chloe.

"Is it?" Twilight glances at the hopeless romantic in the children's area, a dusting of pink on his face.

Late in the evening as the streetlights are just flickering on, the Forgers return to their apartment building. Twilight carries Anya in his arms still, walking up the steps to the front door of the building. "The ooting is over!"

"What a long day."

Yor stops walking, watching the father and daughter go, and her cheeks light up a deep rose while a smile breaks across her face. "Mama!" Her eyes are drawn to Anya when the girl calls out. Anya tries to look back at Yor around Twilight's shoulder, a big smile on her face. "I want some hot cocoa, please!"

"As you wish." The mother of the family continues walking behind Twilight and Anya, and they all enter the building.

Sis looks quite happy to be there... Yuri glances between the three Forgers in the theater, thinking to himself. ...I'm still not convinced that Loidy's good enough for her. He's an enemy spy after all, damn it! Chihuahua's not... terrible, from what I'm seeing. But I'll need more evidence than this to be convinced.

"It seems that you're already enjoying being a part of this household." Fiona turns to look up at Yor in the third row, her tone not exactly questioning the assassin. More of a statement.

"Yes, I enjoyed that day very much. It set a good tone for how my life in the Forger household would go." Yor smiles happily at the undercover agent. "I would like to think that I'll be able to see many more days like it while watching Anya grow up."

Fiona's eyes narrow. How assertive. Implying that she'll be playing the part of Twilight's wife for years to come.

Yeah, Mama! Anya listens to the conversation with a smug smile on her face as she hears Fiona's thoughts.

The light in the Forger living room turns on, illuminating the front windows. Inside, Anya watches Yor while her hot cocoa is being made. Twilight sits in one of the chairs, looking through sheets of paper on his clipboard. "Hey, more importantly, we need to retry this mock interview." In a quick cut, Anya's sitting on the couch while Twilight stands nearby, the glasses on his face again. "So, Miss Anya, how do you spend your days off?"

The girl leans forward as she gives her answer. "We go to the opera, the museum, and eat at restaurants."

The spy points a finger at Anya, smiling. "Yes! Exactly! If you're asked this question, make sure you talk about today! Okay, next question." He turns back to his clipboard, still smiling at the progress made. "You've seen your friend do something naughty. What will you do?"

Anya stares at her father for a few seconds, thinking over the question. Eventually, she gathers her thoughts and provides her answer. "I'd jump on top of them, beat them up, and make them eat the foulest meal."

Twilight slumps in his seat slightly, before leaning back and covering his face with the papers in his hand. "Hmm... Pretend you never saw that, okay?" Yup, this is hopeless. I'm done.

While Twilight laments his fate, Yor walks over with a tray holding three mugs. Meanwhile, Anya stands up and approaches her father, smiling. "Papa, you were so cool!"

"Yes, he was." Yor starts setting the mugs around the coffee table, one at a time.

"Ka-bam! It's the foulest meal for you!" While Anya goofs around, Twilight sits up again. His face is completely red in embarrassment as he scowls. Thankfully, Anya soon returns to her seat with her mug in hand, while Yor sits down beside her. Taking a drink from the mug, a satisfied smile covers the telepath's face. "Hot cocoa is the best."

My, what a lovely family you are. The old lady's words echo in Twilight's head. He takes a deep breath before leaning forward to pick up his own mug.

I guess if she saw us that way... About one percent of my preparations are complete. The camera slowly pans out from the saucer his mug came with, bringing the saucers of Anya and Yor's mugs into view as well. Slowly, the screen fades to black.

"Well, that was quite a pleasant day to watch." Mr. Henderson smiles at the black screen, thinking about the events of the mission. "...Yes, it certainly does a wonderfully elegant job demonstrating the fact that despite the secrets each member of the family keeps, they are still the same people in the end."

"It was definitely a much happier change of pace compared to the last two, I'll say that!" Chloe shivers a bit. "Human experimentation, child endangerment, theft, assassination, and execution... Yeah, I'd rather watch an almost-normal day on the town."

The screen lights up to show Anya's face, with the image dyed a slight pink tone.

"Agh, more spoilers... Hang on, I'll get you guys your preview of the next mission, just a minute..." The Keeper covers up the projector light and starts pressing a few buttons, a light frown on her face.

Hmm... Start and finish spoilers, huh? That's... Wait, not yet! Becky shakes her head, forcing the thoughts from her mind. Instead, she turns to Anya, curiously. "So, any guesses on what might be in the next mission?"

The telepath turns her eyes upwards to the ceiling as she thinks. "Um... I don't think I'd even be allowed to answer you, Becky."

The Lieutenant turns around in his seat to stare at the Keeper as she messes with the projector. That girl is... not very familiar with the machine she's making use of. He stands up, and walks over to the overseer of the viewings. "Excuse me, but do you need any help with that? You seem unfamiliar with the technology."

She glances up at the man, shifting one hand to cover a small screen. "Uh, I think I'll be fine, thanks for offering though." The girl sighs as she continues messing with the projector. "This thing's old tech compared to what I'm used to..."

"Very well. Good luck with that." The Lieutenant turns and walks back to his seat, his mind pondering the short glimpse he got of that screen. A white room, Anya Forger sitting on a colorful bench, a plant in a very strange pot, and Second-Lieutenant Briar standing outside the window in uniform... I can only assume that Briar's job is the 'spoiler' that the Keeper is trying to keep secret. Sitting down, the man bounces one leg on the ball of his foot. Hopefully she gets us to that preview soon enough, though. I really need to stretch my legs and have a smoke break.

It takes several minutes, but eventually the Keeper uncovers the projector light, allowing the screen to light up again. "Okay, let's get this over with."

The screen is black with white letters, spelling out "NEXTxMISSION". The image distorts like there's connection issues, and another set of words appears for a fraction of a second, and in a dull gray that makes them barely stand out from the black.

"SPYxFAMILY"? Damian raises a brow at the words that almost went unseen. That's... interesting. But I can think about that later. We're almost at the break! He files away the information for later and refocuses on the screen.

A series of images rapidly flash past, giving just enough time to absorb the contents of them. First, an image of Twilight is shown, with him standing inside the Forger residence just inside the kitchen. He's wearing a blue suit and has his hair combed differently than usual. His expression is quite serious. This is followed with the Forger family standing just outside of Eden College, surrounded by a crowd of parents and children. The next scene is an image of Henry Henderson, with several members of the school faculty bowing to him in the background. Then, Twilight, Yor, and Anya are shown in the courtyard, looking up at something. The adults both have a hand on their chests, and Anya has a serious expression. A short flash shows an Eden College student flailing and covered in filth. Following that is a charging bull. Next, Yor stands with her head turned down, her eyes narrowed as her hair flutters in a rush of wind. An image of Anya looking suspicious is shown. A quick view of Mr. Henderson rubbing his hands on his cheeks, absolutely losing his marbles is shown. After that, a single tear is shown rolling down Anya's cheek. Finally, Twilight with a raised fist and a wild look in his eyes. A set of words appears on the screen in smaller font over the image. "MISSION:4. THE PRESTIGIOUS SCHOOL'S INTERVIEW".

"And that's that. The first session of viewings is over! You all can have a break now! Feel free to do whatever you need or want to do! Just head through those doors and you'll be able to figure out the rest! I'll make an announcement when it's time to return to the theater again!" Turning off the projector, the Keeper stands up and points a thumb over her shoulder towards a set of double-doors before stretching. "Hnng... Personally, I'm gonna be doing my own thing. But if any of you need anything, I'm only a call away!" The teen then turns to one of the walls and places a hand against it. A doorway materializes out of the solid wall, and she steps through it, turning around only to wave. "Bye for now! Try not to get lost, and be nice, 'kay?" With that, the wall returns to normal.

Ewen stands up, walking over to where the invisible wall once was and holding out an arm. Slowly, he walks forward, until he's eventually completely past the threshold of the barrier. "The wall's gone now. We're able to leave now."

As the rest of the children stand up and follow behind him, Twilight rises from his seat and walks over to his daughter, scooping her up into his arms and ignoring her protests. "The first thing that you're going to do during this break, Anya, is join Yor and I. Because I think we're going to need a family discussion."

Anya freezes up at the words, and she watches Yor leave her seat to join her husband. The child gives a slow, nervous nod. Uh oh.

Chapter Text

"No alcohol at all?" Franky frowns as he looks through the beverages available in the dining area. "After what we've already seen, I'd think letting us have a shot or two is reasonable!" Water, milk, chocolate milk, all kinds of fruit juices, carbonated drinks, hot cocoa, coffee, tea... How are those last three even hot? Shouldn't they be room temperature by now? Sighing, he pours himself a cup of coffee and leaves the room, returning to the main nexus of the theater exterior.

Glancing around the room, the informant is rather pleased to note that he's alone here. He walks to a seat by one of the walls, placing his cup on the window counter and sitting down. This whole place is weird. He turns around in his seat to look at the room he's in. The floor is made of hardwood, and the massive room could be described as having 'sections' in it. Some parts of it are dominated by couches and chairs, with soft carpets and coffee tables in the center of the seats. Some parts have actual tables ringed by individual chairs. There's the section he's currently sitting at, which feels like a mix between a lounge and a cafe (his seat being at one of those cafe window counters). And lastly, there's a section of the room with no seats, allowing people to just stand where they want and chat.

At first glance, this place doesn't seem unusual. It almost feels cozy. It's the details that make you ask questions. Franky's eyes are drawn to a display cabinet in the empty section, containing a small number of objects. A few figurines I don't recognize and a deed to a property. The rest of the cabinet is completely empty. Turning his attention to the walls and ceiling, a few decorations are hung up around the room that leave the informant perplexed. A hanging model of a solar system on the roof, complete with asteroid belts and space debris... A framed sheet of paper with what looks like the scribbles of a child on it. There's a plaque that labels it as 'Baby's first magic circle' and has a written warning to not attempt to copy any of the symbols on the page... A spaceship in a bottle on an otherwise empty shelf... And a bunch of empty shelves, frames, and other things, as if the designer never finished decorating.

Taking a sip from his coffee, Franky turns around to face the window again, his brow lowering into a scowl. And then there's these windows. The landscape on the other side of the glass changes every few minutes. At the moment, the scenery shows a wagon being drawn down a dirt road by a large reptile, surrounded by green fields and a blue sky. When I last passed through this room I thought that these were the walls of an aquarium, because it showed a shallow ocean floor teeming with life. But even from a glance I only saw fish that don't exist! This place is absolute nonsense!

Sighing, the man glances at the double-doors on one wall of the room. Those lead back to the theater. Shifting, he turns to the opposite wall, glaring at two doorways. One of those leads to the dining room, while the other leads to some kind of entertainment room. And the space that those rooms take up should be overlapping with one another. Gritting his teeth, Franky looks at three sets of doors connected to the room. on the last wall that isn't made of glass. Two of those lead to bathrooms. Apparently, every time that the door on the left is opened, it leads to a different bathroom. The door on the right only opens from the inside, and it's where you leave the bathroom. But on the inside of the bathroom, there's only one door! So from out here, people enter one door and leave the other, but from inside there, they enter and leave with the same door!

Finally, there's the hotel. Franky turns away from the last door, staring out into the great plains through the windows again. The hotel is, as far as I can tell, an endless sprawl. Long hallways lined with doors, each one leading into rather comfortable hotel rooms. Every once in a while, the hallways have intersections leading to more hallways, just as long, and just as full of doors. None of the doors have any significant labels other than listing how many beds are in the room, and the only method of navigating that infinite space is the occasional sign on the wall that points the way back to here. He sighs heavily at the thought of trying to find someone who doesn't want to be found. "...Twilight's gonna have all the privacy he wants for as long as he wants, because there's no chance of anybody figuring out where he took his family and eavesdropping on the conversation."

"Of course. He's capable of vanishing like that anywhere he goes, informant." An unpleasant voice hits Franky, and he reluctantly turns around to see Fiona entering the room and walking towards him. In her hand is her own cup of coffee. She quickly approaches the window counter and sits in the seat next to him. "So, what are your thoughts?"

"Why are you asking me, grumpy lady?" The informant scowls as he takes another sip from his cup. "You hate hearing what I have to say, and I hate talking to you. The only reason you contact me is for my services, and nothing more... And what specifically do you want my thoughts on, anyway?"

Fiona's eyes remain on him as she allows her cup to cool down. Franky squirms slightly under her intense gaze. "You're an information-gatherer. Surely you know some more things about all of this than anyone else. You'd have different thoughts than anyone else because of that. So, I want to hear your thoughts." She pauses for a moment, her eyes flickering towards the wisps of steam rising out of her drink, then up at the carriage in the window. "To start, what are your thoughts on this building?"

Franky groans, placing an elbow on the counter and holding his head in his hand. "That's still pretty open-ended. Is there any part of this place in specific you want to hear about first, or should I just say whatever I want?"

"...Start with the theater. You've had more time to learn about it."

"Okay..." Taking a deep breath, the informant gets started. "Well, the theater itself is the most normal part of this building. It's literally just a movie theater. The projector that the Keeper's been using is far more advanced than any I've seen, though. It doesn't use film, it just has the entire missions inside of it. And for how small it is, it's a much more advanced piece of tech than you'd think. The amount of storage required for that much data is absurd, and based on her own words, we're barely started into all these viewings." He takes a sip from his coffee, thinking over something. "By common standards, that thing would be state-of-the-art."

Fiona quickly catches the implication. "However...?"

"However, based on the Keeper's words with that SSS guy, it's 'old tech' to her. Old enough that she's unfamiliar with the operation of it... Or so she says." He runs his fingers through his hair, taking another breath. "It's too advanced for me to think that's true though. Especially with all that the Keeper's said. She's new to this... job. Right at the beginning, she said she's been given a gift from a 'colleague' to help her control the theater. She mentioned something about how she shouldn't have been showing herself to us, citing her 'job description'. Even her name, Keeper, is a placeholder. She herself said so!"

"Get to the point." Fiona narrows her eyes at him, and Franky begins to sweat.

"H-Hey, this is important context! With all that said, how many civilians do you think know how to operate a film projector?" At Fiona's blank look, the informant continues. "Almost nobody! Following that logic, why would someone new to this know how to operate that projector? It can't be a piece of tech that sees a lot of use outside the theater industry! So, I don't actually think it's very old where she's from. She's just not used to it."

Fiona tilts her head slightly, pondering the conclusion he'd arrived at. "...That makes sense. What about the rest of the room though? She was able to expand the theater with a simple hand gesture, and she both arrived and departed from the room through hidden doors. And that invisible barrier that she kept between the two sections. It's a very strange room, to have features like that."

Franky turns his eyes away from the undercover agent. "Yeah... I'm pretty sure those things aren't a part of the theater. I think all of that is the Keeper's influence."

Fiona scoffs. "I'm not sure what you're implying, but it's pretty foolish to say that doors aren't part of the room."

"Hey! I'm being serious!" Franky glares at her, indignant. "During the periods between the mission viewings, I checked out one of those 'hidden doors' you mentioned! It's a solid wall! There isn't even a crack to allow a door to swing open without grinding against the frame! Those doors can't exist by default! Besides, with the context of the other rooms here, I think it can be said that there are differences in the nature of the unusual things each have."

"Oh?" Fiona raises a brow. "How so?"

"The difference between them is that the weird stuff outside the theater is constant. Everything inside the theater is temporary, and always triggered by the Keeper. I don't know how any of it works, but I can make observations. She's the reason behind all the weird stuff in the theater, while the weird stuff outside the theater is present even without her."

"You're implying that the kid has actual magic."

Franky scowls, watching the spy take a drink. "I literally said that I don't know how it works. That doesn't mean that it's magic, I just don't understand it yet."

Fiona gives the informant a pointed look. "And how would you guess it might work? Since you're so sure of it not being part of the room."

"I said I don't know! Ask me something else!" Franky takes a moment to reel in his frustration, turning away from Fiona. He begins tapping one of his fingers on the counter, trying to work out whatever anxiety the interrogation was giving him.

"Fine..." Fiona's attention is drawn to the windows as the view changes. They cut to black for a fraction of a second before lighting up again. This time, the windows display a large planet in space, painted blue and green. Two moons orbit it, one with a thick red cloud covering the terrain, while the other one is barren white. Hanging in space around the celestial body are several space stations and several hundred spaceships, all with designs far different from the ones that Ostania or Westalis had managed to get into space. "...What's the deal with these screens? I can't imagine a purpose for having such large televisions, with the sole purpose of giving outlandish scenery."

"They're not screens." At the WISE agent's confused look, Franky reaches into his pocket and pulls out a magnet. Leaning forward, he presses it up against the glass window. "See how the image doesn't distort from the magnet? Whatever the deal is with these windows, they're definitely not screens."

Fiona's gaze flickers between Franky, the magnet, and the view again. "...Strange." She watches the twinkling of distant stars in the background, and the lazy flight paths of the many different ships on the screen. Each one moves independently from every other. I can't imagine how hard it would be to animate something this well. "It looks... real. Impossible by all accounts, but still. Real."

The tobacco stand owner raises a brow at that, his own eyes following the path of one ship slowly drifting close to the view. "Yeah, well the damn bathroom is also impossible by all accounts. But it's still real... I'll sound insane for saying something like this, but I'm already starting to think that the Keeper may not even be human, or at least from our planet."

"...You're right. You do sound insane." Fiona raises her cup to her lips, ignoring the offended grumbling from the man beside her.

After carrying Anya for fifteen minutes, Twilight finally stops in front of one door among an unknown number. Anya resists looking up at him as she hears his thoughts drift through her head. The 751st door we've passed, after taking four turns down different halls. This should be private enough. It has three separate beds, which also fits our needs. "Alright, this one should do the trick." The spy opens the door, and holds it for his wife to enter first, followed by Bond, and then Twilight holding Anya.

Locking the door behind them, Twilight sets Anya down on one of the beds of the hotel room before sitting down at a desk along one of the walls. The old dog sits down on the floor next to Anya, turning his gaze to follow the movements of the adults. Yor stands by another bed hesitantly, looking between her daughter and the bed she's already next to. From what I've seen in the theater so far, I scare Anya sometimes. I don't want to make this talk more stressful for her than it already is, so...

"It's fine, Mama. You can sit with me." Anya's voice fills the silent room, making the assassin pause in the process of sitting down on the separate bed. Her tone is full of lead, low and flat from a weight of negativity. Twilight tenses up at the desk for a moment before taking a deep breath in and out. Nodding her head, Yor slowly shuffles over to Anya's bed and sits down beside the telepath, still leaving a wide space between the two of them.

Seeing the two seated and prepared, Twilight takes a moment to get himself in order, mentally preparing for the talk. This is going to be exhausting. I said I wasn't going to judge Yor for being an assassin unfairly, but all things considered, I'm lucky to be alive right now. If Yor ever learned about me being a spy without the context behind it, she probably wouldn't hesitate to kill me for the sake of Ostania... I suppose that's what the Keeper meant when she explained why she's making us all watch this. But how to even begin this conversation in the first place? It needs to happen, the Forgers need to remain a happy, upper-class family, peace between our nations depends on it. But with how awkward things are for us right now, it'll be impossible for us to keep up the illusion. And with all the people in this theater who know the truth about us, a slip of information to the wrong people would be easy. It doesn't even have to be intentional, one misstep, one wrong word, and Operation Strix is over. I have to fix this, which means continuing to fulfill my role as a father and husband, but until this talk is over, I- His eyes flick to Anya who had begun to sway dizzily. "Anya. Stop reading my mind."

"S-Sorry, Papa..." The child pulls her legs up to her chest and rests her forehead upon her knees, placing her hands on the sides of her head. "I can't..."

Twilight pauses at the response, frowning slightly. "You can't-" He stops, remembering the exchange that occurred between Anya and the Lieutenant back in the theater. "...Right. I suppose that's a good place to begin this talk. As good as any other, at least." The spy glances at Yor as he continues. "Feel free to add in whatever you'd like to say, alright?" Seeing her nod, he moves on, marking the beginning of the discussion properly. "You've never told anyone about either of our real jobs, have you?"

"No. My secret is the only one that I've shared..." Anya keeps her eyes on her curled legs, trying not to break down into tears already.

"Understood. I'm going to assume that you already know all of our coworkers for what they really are, correct?" The WISE agent watches his daughter nod her head and sighs. "Great... At this point, I don't think I have any choice but to make you into a spy like I am. I doubt that WISE will just let someone with this much information roam freely in public." The mind reading will certainly be helpful for that job, but otherwise, I doubt Anya's abilities will cut it. I don't want to see her dragged into our training program at such a young age, but it's not like I can expect Nightfall to keep all of this a secret.

"Um..." Seeing how downcast Anya's become, Yor speaks up. "Are you sure? Anya's done a very good job at keeping our secrets. Is it so impossible for things to continue as they are?"

Twilight sighs again, his focus falling onto Yor and his train of thought switching rails for a moment. "That's a very good question. I've got some questions to ask you that I hadn't gotten to ask back in the theater." Yor stiffens slightly, but nods her head nonetheless. "Very well. I have to ask, what do you think of me, now that you know I'm an enemy spy? And Anya, I want you to make sure neither of us lie to each other right now."

"...Okay Papa. I can do that." Anya perks up slightly, still unhappy, but seeing a hope. Papa is relying on me to help out him and Mama. He trusts me still, at least.

"I..." Yor takes a second, thinking over her words. It hasn't even been that long, but I already forgot that he's technically an enemy... But that's not true though, is it? The assassin meets the spy's gaze. "Loid. You're not an enemy spy. Ostania and Westalis are not at war, and your mission to help avoid a war. I'd consider you an ally, if anything." I'm not sure of everything Loid has needed to do for his job, but he's still doing his best. He wants to make a better world, and that's a wonderful mission, but I'm worried about him. He might get hurt, right? I don't want to see him doing it, but... I do want to see him do it at the same time? That doesn't make sense, though... "It's... a bit difficult to align my thoughts of you and figure things out, but I'm going to try my best. In the end, you are still Anya's father and my husband, even if it's only in name." She pauses, taking a deep breath to build her resolve. "...I'd like to ask you some questions as well, while we're doing this."

Twilight glances down at Anya, watching her nod her head before responding. "That's... fair. I suppose I'm technically not an enemy. Still... We can take turns asking questions. Go ahead."

"Good. I'd like to ask you a similar question. Now that you know I'm an assassin, what do you think of me?"

The WISE agent closes his eyes, allowing his mind to flow, but forcing himself to think slowly. What DO I think of it? I've killed people plenty of times in my own line of work, so why does the idea of an assassin cause me to recoil? It's not because of the killing act itself, so there must be some other reason behind my distaste for it. Is it her lack of hesitation? Hardly. In a life-or-death situation, one is expected to make split-second choices without stopping. Is it how deadly she is? ...Probably not. I have noticed several times that Yor is dangerous in the past. She could have killed me in the castle if she didn't fall, and I've experienced a couple more playful blows from her that would still put less sturdy people into the hospital. I didn't see anything wrong with it back then, so why would new context make me displeased with the idea that she's dangerous? Twilight's finger taps slowly against the desk he sits at, methodically marking the passing seconds as he takes his time for once.

My pride as a spy is... bruised, but that's equally Anya's fault, and I don't feel the same distaste towards her, so that's not it either... Anya. The father opens one eye a crack, glancing at his daughter's face and thinking about the viewings so far. ...I felt something similar when I learned that Anya likes Spy Wars. So I just have to figure out what the common ground between these events is... I learned something new about both of them. Both of them involve hidden lives. Both of them involve dangerous jobs... Learning things is my job, and I've learned things about countless people throughout my job. I haven't felt like this in those situations. I have a hidden life as well, so it's not that. Dangerous jobs... Of course I'd want to keep Anya out of danger, she's a child. Yor's an adult though. She's able to make her own decisions...

Anya looks back and forth between her parents as she listens to the inner monologue, watching Yor's expression grow more worried with every silent second that passes, while Twilight's brow furrows slightly more with every thought that passes by without answering his question. Papa's having a hard time. Normally, he's able to look at problems and fix them super fast... What's the problem with this problem? Papa's trying to figure out how he feels about Mama killing people, but can't. He's thought a lot of things that make sense, but they don't give him an answer... Mama's also been having some trouble. Her thoughts don't make any sense to me, but she feels afraid for Papa. The child pauses, thinking about the two again. ...Papa thinks with his head. Mama thinks with her heart. "...It's a little scary."

"Hmm?" Twilight glances at Anya, raising a brow. "Sorry, what was that?"

"It's a little scary, knowing Papa's a spy, and Mama's an assassin." The telepath speaks a bit louder, making sure both her parents are listening. "Even though you both are amazing, I'm scared that you won't come home. Papa's super smart and can figure out anything, and Mama's super strong and can survive anything, but I... I..." She pauses, her voice wobbling as tears begin to fill her eyes. "I don't wanna lose P-Papa or Mama! You can't d-die! I-I love you b-both, a-a-and I w-wanna be ha-happy with yo-you!" By the end of her sentence, Anya's completely broken down, sobbing loudly. She shuffles over on the bed so she can wrap her arms around Yor.

Reciprocating the hug, Yor sinks into thought. She feels the same way I do. I'd hate to see anything awful happen to either of them... She looks up from the wailing child towards Twilight, watching his eyes flick back and forth between his daughter and her. It's like I can see the gears turning in his head...

Anya just described irrational fear, which is fair for her. We both have jobs that could lead to our deaths... Is that what I'm feeling right now? No, it's not fear. But it is something close. I'm worried for Yor's safety... Have I gotten... attached? The spy's hand runs across the surface of the desk slowly, his finger tracing the grain of the wood. Franky will never let me hear the end of this if that's true... Sighing lightly, Twilight finally makes a decision on what to say. "Well. Returning to your question, I think... While assassination is a rather awful occupation, I don't think it's enough of a reason for me to call an end to our agreement. Not until I've made sure Donovan Desmond isn't going to start a war, at least. Just..." He looks down at Anya, watching as Yor's fingers run soothingly through her hair. "...Nevermind. I would say to keep the subject away from Anya, but considering her own nature, that's rather impossible."

The Thorn Princess gives him a small smile. "I'm glad to hear that you want to continue our lives the same as always."

"I didn't say that." Twilight's gaze returns to Yor, and his usual straight face falls into place. "Yes, I'd like to continue living as a family, but there will definitely need to be some changes to our lives now. For one, Anya did bring up a good point. Our jobs are dangerous, and it would be bad if either of us were to be killed. So, we need to set up some system to alert one another of when we are in over our heads, and need help."

Wiping her eyes, Anya listens to her father. Papa's slipped into serious mode again.

Yor nods her head, quickly matching the energy of Twilight. "Right. I'm sure that you've got something that would be useful for staying in contact somewhere within all your spy equipment. We also need to make sure nobody will be able to follow us home, or else Anya might be endangered by them."

"I might have some things that work over short ranges, but most of my long-range communication equipment is quite bulky." The WISE agent puts a hand to his chin for a moment, before the answer comes to him almost instantly. "Franky. We can ask him to make us something compact that will be able to transmit all over Berlint and maybe slightly beyond. He's creative enough to figure it out. As for avoiding any tails, I can't imagine that being very likely to happen. I always take care to avoid being caught anyway, and, well... There aren't exactly many people left to follow you home, are there?" Seeing Yor nod her head, Twilight's focus falls onto Anya. "It wouldn't hurt to come up with something to help with staying safe, but it all hinges on you staying out of trouble. Can you promise that you'll avoid putting yourself in harm's way like you did with Edgar?"

The telepath opens her mouth to respond, but freezes. If I never got involved, Papa and Mama would be dead! Her brow furrows, concerned. Hopping off the bed, Anya begins to pet Bond to reassure herself. "...Sorry Papa, but I can't promise that. If I do, then-" A black bar covers Anya's mouth, and she's never been more upset at the censoring of the theater, stomping her foot several times angrily.

She refused? There was always a chance for that to happen, but I didn't expect her to also have a reason to refuse that would be censored... Twilight glances over to Yor, and sees her face twisted into worry. "...I see. There must be an important reason why you refused, so I'll have to accept that. However, this means that you're going to need some training from both of us, on top of your school studies. Do you think you can keep up with that, Anya?"

Anya looks up at Twilight, pausing in her attempt to teach the building a lesson. "If it means Papa and Mama stay with me, then I'll do it. I'll become super awesome like you both, and get all the stars at school at once!"

"Right... Like I said earlier, I'm pretty sure I'll have to make you a member of WISE in the end... I wish I didn't have to drag you into this, but it's the only solution to our problems that I can think of that guarantees you aren't silenced by anyone." Seeing how pale Yor and Anya had both become at those words, Twilight continues. "I'm not just thinking about WISE here, either. I'm sure that Yor's organization has forced some mouths shut, right?" Slowly, the Thorn Princess nods her head. Her husband watches as she bounces one of her legs, probably to help with nerves. "That's already two organizations that would want Anya silenced. The SSS are also a problem, considering the Lieutenant out there. With the trend that these viewings are following, at some point the SSS will have some secrets revealed as well. At that point, everyone here is in danger, but Anya especially. Because not only does she know their secrets, but she knows the secrets of WISE and Garden as well. The Lieutenant seems... decent. But once we are out of here, I imagine that he will be interrogated on his disappearance, and then he will either attempt to lie for the sake of everyone, or tell the truth for the sake of himself."

"Scary..." Anya wilts a little under the pressure being placed on her shoulders. "Didn't the Keeper lady say that we all should try to keep this stuff secret though? Maybe the loo-ten-ant will agree?"

"...We're getting nowhere with this." Chloe grumbles as she follows behind the Lieutenant. "It's been almost an hour, and we're no closer to finding Yuri than when we started. Why haven't we called for the Keeper already?"

The uniformed man glances back towards Chloe, pulling the cigarette from his mouth and letting a puff of smoke into the air of the hotel halls before he answers. "Because she has her own things to be doing right now. Based on the way she acts, she would rather continue socializing with all of us. That means that she has an actual reason to not be around right now. So, we should leave her to fulfill her duties."

"Yeah, but..." Chloe gestures towards one of the doors they were passing. "Do you see any way to determine if Yuri's inside any of these? Because I have my doubts about finding him by just walking down the hallway and trying all the doorknobs. I mean, it could take hours, and we don't even know if we have that long before we'll be called back to the theater!"

Sighing, the scarred man tries another door, finding it open with the same ease as every other. Peeking inside, he's met with the absurdity of six queen-size beds in one massive hotel room. "...Another room that overlaps with the previous." Closing the door again, the Lieutenant takes a drag of his cigarette while he thinks. The further we walk, the bigger and more impossible these hotel rooms become. It's like we're walking away from common sense... Turning back to Chloe again, he stops walking and leans against the wall. "Alright. I suppose we can talk with just the two of us. Tell me, what do you think about all of this?"

Seeing her superior finally stop hunting, Chloe takes a seat on the floor, leaning against the opposite wall. "Well, I can absolutely say that I don't like any of it. The Keeper is too young to have this level of power. I mean, she was able to simultaneously kidnap a dozen people from all over Berlint, right? But she's clearly just a teenager! That's the age range where people tend to do stupid stuff, trying to make a name for themselves, and here she is, revealing the secrets of a spy, an assassin, and a human experiment!"

"Yes, that is an issue... But I'm more curious on your thoughts about the viewings. What do you think about what we've seen, and why do you think this teenager decided it was important to show us?" The Lieutenant watches as the smoke from the smoldering stick of tobacco trails up towards the ceiling. "...Personally, I think she chose to give us this break right now for a reason. The 'Missions' we've seen so far have gotten us acquainted with the Forgers, revealed their secrets, and then... showed us how they act as a family. It's been intentionally set up to make us view them in a more positive light, because our most recent memory is of them helping an old woman with a purse thief."

Chloe listens to him speak, propping her head up on one fist. "...That's fair. I guess we've been made to ignore the horrible parts of them. I certainly remember that look in Twilight's eye when he held that man at gunpoint, as well as the bloodstained nature of Mrs. Forger's mind. She just casually thinks about murder as a solution to a lot of things, I guess... As for the kid..." She pulls the hat off her head, dragging her fingers through her hair to fix anything being messed up by the hat. "I guess the kid seems pretty alright. She's manipulative, but I don't think she's been taught not to act that way. In the end, she's more a victim than anything."

"And your thoughts? You've only responded to mine."

"I think that the Keeper is trying to do good for all of us. Emphasis on the trying. I don't think she's fully aware of the consequences that her actions will have, she just wants to help avoid a war between the East and West." Looking down at the hat in her hands, Chloe closes her eyes and recalls the reason she had it on in the first place. "...Where do you think those smugglers are now?"

The Lieutenant pauses, looking between his nearly-spent smoke and the subordinate across the hall. Taking a last drag on the stub, he drops it to the floor and smothers the embers with his boot. Savoring the last of the soothing drug in his system, he slowly releases his breath before responding. "The ones you were in the middle of busting? I'm pretty sure you and Second-Lieutenant Briar were standing right in front of them when we were taken, so I'd bet that they're in a church right now. Or an insane asylum. Especially if they started talking about your disappearance to other people."

Chloe chuckles at the idea, opening her eyes again to look up at the Lieutenant. "Well, it's better than them continuing their business, isn't it? Still though... I wonder who they were selling to?"

"Good question. There were a lot of chemical compounds on the list that have medical applications, so I can't help but wonder if maybe that was a potential lead to finding the lab that created Anya Forger... No sense in worrying about it though. We're a long way off from being released from this place, and there are more immediate things to worry about. Like which of our secrets will be revealed." Seeing Chloe's confused expression, the man elaborates. "While I was offering help to the Keeper, I caught a glimpse of what she's been trying to hide from us. I saw Second-Lieutenant Briar in his uniform, which means that is most likely going to be revealed in the theater at least. However, I'm curious about why the Keeper thought bringing you and I along for the ride was the right choice. Perhaps we also have secrets that she wants to reveal. But I can't imagine that any of mine would hold any significance over everyone. So why are we here?"

"Why'd she bring all those other kids? The Forger kid, Anya? She's probably the only one with any serious secrets out of those children. So why are the rest of them here?" Chloe pauses for dramatic effect, wilting slightly under the deadpan expression from the Lieutenant. "Jeez, lighten up a little... She said that the secrets being kept were being revealed before they would come up naturally because if it took too long, then some connections would be irreversibly damaged, right? So obviously some people are here because they're a part of those friend groups that would be hurt by these secrets. Obviously, if you learned that your best friend of six or so years has been reading your mind since you met and never told you, then that would probably be pretty unforgivable. So that explains why the kids are here. Maybe there's something similar with us that might come up in the future?"

"Wouldn't that mean that Second-Lieutenant Briar is keeping a secret from us?"

"I dunno. Maybe there's something else for us to learn that's important? I mean, you did take those mugshots of the scientists on the screen, so maybe different people are here for different reasons? You might be here so you can learn what you need to bust those labs and save any human experiments that are still there!" Standing up from the floor, Chloe turns and begins walking back the way they had come from.

"Hey." The Lieutenant pushes off from the wall and calls out to the other officer. She pauses, looking back at him. "First off, what about you? What reason is there for you to be here, if that was mine? Second, where are you going?"

"I haven't figured that out yet. But I am a public servant, and there are a bunch of civilians trapped here with us who might be feeling pretty rough right now. That relates to answering your second question, actually. I'm going to see if anyone needs someone to talk to, and be there for them. It's the least I can do. So... later."

The scarred man sighs as he watches Chloe's retreating back. "...Not that it matters, but I'll say you're dismissed." Turning away from her, he continues down the hall, trying more doors. He pauses when one of the doorknobs he grabs doesn't turn. "Hmm?"

"Henry, your tea is going to get cold."

The housemaster turns his attention back to Martha, glancing down at the table where their cups were sitting. "My apologies. I'm just thinking about the students. Especially Miss Blackbell and Mister Desmond." Picking up his teacup, Henry takes a sip, feeling the taste roll over his tongue. "...It's rather thought-provoking, the fact that the Keeper knows my personal tea blend... But there are more important things to discuss."

"That's true. We do have important things to discuss." Martha's eyes flick over to the table in the entertainment room where three of the children were playing a card game. "I would like to hear your thoughts on how your three absent students are feeling right now, since you're already thinking about them. I don't know enough about Mister Desmond, but I am worried about how the Forgers are doing, and I can't figure out why Madam Becky ran off, or where she went. Do you have any ideas?"

"Well..." The gentleman places his cup back onto the plate, his thoughts drifting over the three students. "I would expect that Miss Forger is doing fine with her family. I'm sure the discussion is probably rather tense, but that is to be expected of a situation such as this... Mister Desmond is likely taking some time to properly absorb the information we have been presented with. I've noticed that he has quite the soft spot for Miss Forger, so it's likely that she is what is on his mind the most. As for Miss Blackbell... It's hard for me to say. Of the three, she's normally the most well-behaved, but she has occasionally worked herself up over one silly thing or another. She has a very creative mind, and I think that right now, that is working against her. She is likely thinking up problems that do not exist. I wish we knew where she's hiding, but without that knowledge, we can't exactly help her with whatever is on her mind."

"It's unfortunate, but you're probably right." Draining her own cup, Martha turns her attention back onto the housemaster's words. "...However, I suppose that wallowing in negativity is the wrong way to spend these breaks, so I will simply hope for the best. In the meantime until we see any of them again, I must ask. Does Mister Desmond really hold such affections for Miss Forger? I had thought that it was the other way around, based on Madam's words."

"I have been watching them for quite a while, I am sure of it." Henry closes his eyes, recalling the many scenes he's witnessed. "Yes, Miss Forger was the first one to reach out towards him, but Mister Damian has completely fallen for her. He gives her a surprising amount of attention compared to their other classmates, and although her attempts to reach out to him seem like just crude imitations of the other girls in the class, Mister Desmond tends to dismiss interactions with nearly any other student."

"Are you sure that his attention is positive attention for her? I have been told that he does not speak very nicely to Miss Forger." Martha's brow furrows as she thinks over the information she's been given.

"Martha, please. The boy offered to take her bomb collar, and once gifted her tea cakes. He is just embarrassed about his feelings, and lashes out to hide them. Now, Miss Forger on the other hand..."

"What, is she not interested in Mister Desmond?"

Henry takes another drink from his tea, enjoying the flavor. "On the contrary. She is absolutely interested in him, but I don't think it is romantic. Or at least, she may not understand her own feelings if that is the case. At first, she reached out to the boy for friendship. However, somewhere along the line, she decided that she doesn't get along with him, but would keep trying. Ever since Mister Desmond attempted to take Miss Forger's collar, I think she has started to actually notice his good qualities, and recognize that she can trust him. After all, why else would she have shared her secret with him during the gala? I do not think she knows how he feels about her, however."

"I suppose that is true... I'm rather worried about the mental health of the children."

"I understand what you mean." The housemaster stares at the small amount of tea left in his cup. "These viewings have shown some rather gruesome things to us, the kinds of things children should not have to see. I do not think they are mature enough to handle the sights on that screen... Although even without such awful sights, this situation will be a formative part of the lives of the children. I just hope they come out the other side mentally sound."

Martha looks up at a large, flat screen hanging from one of the walls, displaying a news channel from Ostania. ...It hasn't been more than a couple hours since we got here, so not seeing anything on the news about us would be rather normal... I think. Clearing her throat, the servant calls out. "Excuse me, Miss Keeper?"

Several seconds of silence pass, before the wall below the screen opens up, and out steps the teenager, her clothes tinted black with soot. "Sorry for the delay, I was doing something when you called! Was there something you needed from me?"

But you showed up in a matter of seconds... "Sorry, I was just curious." Martha gestures towards the screen above the Keeper while Henry finishes his tea, watching the exchange with interest. "Is that screen playing live television, or is this a recording?"

"That's a pretty smart question." The girl runs her hands across her clothes, wiping off some of the soot onto the floor. "Well, it's... complicated? It's technically a live feed, but there is a delay between when the original program airs, and when it displays up there. It takes a while for things to get from Berlint to here."

"And... How long of a delay is that?" The housemaster chimes in, suddenly rather worried.

"Oh, I'm not sure of the specifics. It is somewhere between one and two days, though." The Keeper gives an apologetic smile to the pair. "Don't worry about your own health, you guys are perfectly healthy, even though you spent at least a full day arriving here! I would make the transit faster, but if I tried to speed things up further, it might cause some big problems! I'm not exactly experienced at doing this, you know..."

"I see..." Martha meets her old friend's gaze, and they share a concerned look. "Then, I have one more thing to ask you. Could you perhaps check up on the Madam? I haven't been able to find her, and I'm worried about her."

"Oh, of course!" The teen smiles wide at Martha. "I can do that, no problem! I can't guarantee that I'll do anything, but I'll at least check up on Becky! Some people think best when they're alone, and the break IS kinda so you guys can think about things. But if she's having too hard a time, I can step in and offer some companionship to her!" Turning to the wall again, she steps back through the opening again, muttering quietly to herself. "I'm gonna be in so much trouble when the higher-ups find out how much I'm talking with you guys..."

"That..." Henry looks back towards Martha after watching the Keeper go. "That sounds like something we should be concerned about, doesn't it?"

Damian paces in the dimly-lit theater alone, slowly walking idle laps around the room. With every lap he takes, his eyes fall upon the projector in the back, as well as the seats he and the other students were using. Slowly, his face twists from a scowl into a full glare as his fists clench. "...What is wrong with me?! It doesn't matter!" Kicking one of the walls, he turns around and begins marching the other direction around the room. It's been proven already that Forger's just trying to use me! Why the hell am I not just ignoring her like all the others?!

Changing course again, the second son begins hopping across the seats, standing on the armrests to challenge himself. Who cares if she told me her secret during our dance? Why'd I even dance with her in the first place?! Wobbling a little bit and waving his arms around trying to regain his balance before the next jump, Damian thinks back on the event. ...Right. Ewen and Emile decided to ignore the fact that I didn't want to dance with anyone, and forced a competition to earn the right to it. And Forger won. And for the sake of fairness, I agreed to dance with her. Even though both Ewen and Emile had been calling for a redo of the competition so my partner wouldn't be Forger.

"Woah!" The boy's arms pinwheel as he loses balance, falling off the armrest onto the floor, landing on his side. "Ow!" Pushing himself off the carpet floor, he winces as he puts his weight on his left leg, feeling a dull pain in his hip. I suppose I'm lucky that these floors are soft... Damian limps to the seat he had fallen off the armrest of, sitting down and letting the pressure off of his leg. Relieved, he allows his mind to drift back to the subject he had been thinking of before. ...She told me she could read minds because I asked the question jokingly. Forger had managed to say the answer about Max knocking me into the pond, and that was weird at the time... I suppose she really did read my mind for that one.

Looking up at the dark screen, he considers all the other questions that were asked. Did she read my mind for all of them? She didn't sound very sure of herself on the question about my breakfast, so that could have just been a guess... But what about the very last one? Who do I love most? Damian recalls what Anya's face looked like at the time, before his own turns pink and he clears his mind of the image. Why does she bug me so much?! "Aaarghhh! She does NOT bug me!" Physically swiping his arm through the air at the very thought, Damian takes a deep breath. ...Right. The quiz. For every other question on the quiz, Forger looked like she was trying too hard or something. But on that last one... It was like the answer came naturally to her. She spoke so calmly, and looked so sincere... He shakes his head to clear his mind before her face can appear again. "Well... I guess she wasn't reading my mind for that one..."

Damian jumps as he hears the doors to the theater creak open, and he turns around to see one of the adults he doesn't recognize step into the room and look around. "...Oh. Hey there, kid." She walks over, standing next to where he sits with a polite smile on her face. "Are you doing alright?"

"O-Of course!" The Desmond boy hastily answers with a glare. "Who are you anyway, and why do you care?"

"Right, introductions... My name's Chloe. I'm asking because... I don't think it's normal to be all alone in the dark if you're okay?" Chloe moves to the seat next to his, falling into it roughly. "So, if you're doing alright, then you wouldn't mind me asking what you're thinking about in here, would you? ...Also, I'd like to know your name as well."

"I- The room's not even dark!" Scoffing, Damian turns away from Chloe for a few seconds, gritting his teeth. God, how do I get out of this without the situation becoming embarrassing?! Heaving a sigh, the boy turns his head just enough to look at the woman out of the corner of his eye. "...Ugh, I'm Damian, I guess. If you're not going to leave me alone until I tell you what I'm thinking, then I'm thinking about Forger's mind reading powers."

"Yeah? I've been thinking about that a bit myself." Chloe leans back in her seat, glancing at the screen before returning her attention to the boy. "Of course, my thoughts on the subject are probably a bit less personal than yours, considering I don't actually know the kid myself... What do you think of her power, Damian?"

"I dunno! I'm trying to figure that out myself!" This is a good subject! It'll be believable for me to be conflicted about it, so she won't dig any deeper!

"Oh?" The adult raises a brow, curious. "You seemed like you got along pretty well when her secret came out. She grabbed you and pulled you to the wall alongside her, and you actually tried to protect her. Has something changed since then?"

"I mean... Kind of?" Damian sighs, waving one hand as he speaks to help articulate his words. "After watching how she acts with her family on the screen, I'm starting to notice how often she just says things randomly, and seems to always know at least something to say to help her get along with people... I'm wondering how much of her personality is real, and how much is just her trying to act the way she thinks will make us friends."

"Ah... That's fair." Chloe's mouth quirks up slightly at the side as she watches Damian's hand move through the air. "It must be a little bit unsettling. I'd probably be pretty freaked out if I learned that one of my friends could hear my thoughts. Everyone thinks the occasional thought that they'd rather keep to themselves, so it's a little invasive, isn't it?"

"That's... not exactly what I'm concerned about. Or at least, it's a smaller piece of the problem." The student pauses, unsure how to word his thoughts exactly. "...I'm more worried by the idea that my classmate just... doesn't exist, I guess? If a person's always acting when they talk to you, is that person... real?" He sighs, frustrated. "God, this is hard to explain."

"Oh... Gotcha." Chloe nods her head in understanding. "You're worried because the idea that she's always acting makes you feel like she's never been a friend-"

"WE'RE NOT FRIENDS!"

"Okay, okay." Chloe holds up her arms in mock surrender. "You're not friends. But you're worried, because you feel like it'll mean she never actually cared about you or anyone else. You're afraid that in the blink of an eye, someone you've known for a while is just going to vanish and never return, or something. Am I close?"

"Yes? No? Agh..." Groaning, Damian drags a hand down his face. "It's so hard to explain!" He taps the fingers of his other hand on the armrest one at a time, struggling with properly communicating his thoughts. "I- She- She told me she can read minds before we came here, you know?" Seeing the woman nod, he continues. "I just- I don't know why! We both annoy each other all the time! So WHY did she tell me?! Does she trust me more than her own parents, or does she have some other reason for telling me? What did I do to make Forger trust me? Is there some hint that I should have picked up on to explain what I did, or is the reason something she keeps secret?"

Chloe watches quietly as the boy slowly begins to ramble, his expression shifting into something between irritation, confusion, embarrassment, and wide-eyed panic. ...Does this kid have anxiety or something? Seeing that Damian wasn't continuing, she clears her throat to get his focus back before she speaks. "Hey. Do you have any guilty pleasures?"

"Huh?" Damian stares at Chloe, stunned by the sudden question.

"You know, any hobbies you like, but you wouldn't tell your friends about? I do." She stops to let the words sink into the child before continuing. "If the subject of a conversation becomes the hobby I secretly enjoy, I'll pretend I don't care about it. Does that make me less real of a person to the people I'm talking to?" Chloe watches Damian sit silently for a long time. Eventually, he slowly shakes his head, and Chloe keeps going. "If I have a friend who hates something I like, I'm not going to mention that thing around them. Does that make me less real of a friend to that person?" Again, she stops to allow the boy to think. When he shakes his head again, she smiles. "Both of those situations are me putting up an act for someone. But if those don't make me less real, then why would your telepathic classmate be less real? Everyone changes how they act in small ways around certain people. You probably don't talk the same way to your friends as you talk to your dad, because they're different people, and you know that you should act differently between the two. Anya does the exact same thing, as far as I can tell. So really, her mind reading doesn't actually change anything."

"...It doesn't?" Furrowing his brows, Damian rolls over the concept in his head a few times before falling back to the other question he had. "And... what about her telling me about her power? Any idea why she did that?"

"Nope." Chloe pops the P when she says it, giving Damian a big grin. "But it's not really worth worrying about, because you can always just ask her the reason yourself! I don't see why you need to freak out over it when she's able to answer you just fine... Make sure to keep your head clear of any wayward thoughts though. Wouldn't want her to catch a stray and get confused, would you?"

"R-Right... I hope her family finishes talking soon. She owes me a conversation anyway." Damian sighs, but the corners of his mouth pull upwards slightly. ...Wait, did that talk actually help somewhat? Mildly surprised, but not unhappy with the result, Damian tests standing up again, and is pleased to find that his leg no longer hurts. "Okay, I'm gonna go get a drink now, while I wait for Forger to be free to talk. Thanks for the chat though. You give good advice."

"No problem! If you're looking to pass the time, try watching the windows in the nexus! The scenery's pretty interesting!"

Ewen grins as he claims the pairing three to his own, leaving him with no cards. "Looks like you lose, Emile! You're stuck with the old maid!" The other boy sighs, placing his remaining card into the pile without fanfare. Bill watches the two with a small smile, entertained by the antics on display. Leaning forward in his seat at the table, he picks up the deck and starts to reshuffle it in preparation of another round.

"...You know," Emile turns in his seat, looking at the doorway leading to the Nexus. "I'm surprised you didn't run out there to look out those weird windows earlier, Ewen. When I went to the place with all the food and drinks, I saw a bunch of spaceships through the windows on my way past, but when I told you, you didn't seem very interested."

The aspiring cosmonaut's smile slowly drifts off his face, replaced by a furrowed brow. "That's... I just have a lot on my mind." Placing an elbow on the table, he leans his head onto his hand. "It's almost too much to take in, isn't it? An enemy spy, a friendly assassin, and a wildcard mind reader. I feel like I've had the rug pulled out from under me!"

"You're not wrong. I've had quite a few thoughts cluttering my head since we started the break." Bill looks up from the deck of cards, his hands slowing down slightly. "One of the biggest questions I've had so far has been confusion over how Forger managed to get to an orphanage in the first place." When he receives nothing but confused looks from the other two kids, the oversized child elaborates. "We all saw that flashback of the lab Forger was kept in, didn't we? A secret lab probably has good security, so how'd she get out? And then after that, the lab is probably hidden somewhere in the woods to avoid being seen by anyone. So how'd Forger find her way out of the woods too? She lived her whole life indoors up to that point, and then a four-year-old managed to escape a high-security lab, find her way to Berlint from the middle of nowhere, and then find an orphanage to take her in. How did that happen?"

"...Huh." He's right, I don't think it's possible for Forger to have survived an escape that went like that. There must be some detail to the story we don't have. Ewen pushes himself off the table, his attention captured by the question. "Maybe she followed the road leading to the lab? The doctors working there must have gotten there and back by driving, so there would be a path to follow, right?"

"I don't think she would know to follow that path..." Emile snaps his fingers, an idea coming to him. "Maybe one of the doctors helped her escape? They could have smuggled her out and driven her to Berlint!"

"I have a feeling that the time she escaped is rather late for one of the doctors to have started feeling bad about what they were doing. Remember, her subject number was 007. Six people came before her." Bill places the half-shuffled deck of cards back onto the table, leaving it to be forgotten due to the conversation. "If I were to start feeling guilty for human experimentation, it would probably be after the first person."

"Emile, you forgot something!" Ewen smacks one of his hands on the table to draw the focus back onto himself. "Who cares if she's never been outside that building before, when someone near her has? She could have read the mind of a doctor to find out how to escape the lab, and the path to Berlint!" The boy smirks as the other two nod their heads, recognizing the logic.

"That makes sense. She read someone's mind, and used what she learned to break free!" Emile closes his eyes, envisioning the escape in his mind. However, something else pops into his head when he's done. "...Speaking of Forger's mind reading, you two have been kinda mean to her since we got here. That's because of her power, right?"

Bill's brow furrows slightly at the accusation. "I-I haven't meant to be mean! It's just a really strange situation, and that threw me off!" Worried, he glances over to the doorway. "Should I try to find her and apologize?"

"Eh..." Ewen, on the other hand, scowls. "I just don't like the idea of her reading my mind. A lot of secrets are secrets for a reason, and she's able to learn them whenever she wants! I mean, just look at her family!" The boy waves a hand to the side, agitation evident. "Her parents didn't choose her. SHE chose THEM! And she did it because she was bored! That narrator voice said so! Besides!" Ewen leans forward, drawing his face closer to the other boys. "Everyone has thoughts they don't like. Everyone thinks things they'd never say to anyone! But she gets to know about the thoughts that we're ashamed of having!"

"So?" Emile frowns at the hostility Ewen is radiating. "She's a victim. Forger can't control her power very well, as we saw in the last mission! It hurts her to have it, and she didn't ask for this power! Why are you getting mad at her for something out of her control? I don't see what the big deal is with her hearing what I'm thinking, because that's mostly going to be meaningless chatter that I'll forget about in five minutes!" He turns to Bill, pointing at the Wald Hall student. "You agree with me, right?"

"Just because I know she's a victim does not immediately make my own discomfort pointless, Elman." Bill adjusts the placement of his glasses before looking at the older folks talking in the same room nearby. "As your own housemaster would probably point out, me not liking Forger's mind reading doesn't give me the right to treat her unfairly. I don't hate the girl herself, but the discovery has left me uncomfortable. I'm not going to be unkind to her because of her power, but I will assert the fact that I am not comfortable with it, and hopefully we can find some compromise or solution."

"I... I guess that's a good way to go about it." Ewen slowly sits back in his seat again, sighing. "I just hope she figures out how to control herself soon, because I don't think I'll be able to ignore her reading my mind every time I'm near her, and sooner or later I'm gonna say something about it... How does it even work, anyway?" Crossing his arms, Ewen looks between Emile and Bill. "I don't understand why she started bleeding when she got overwhelmed. How does that work?"

"I dunno. Our noses don't lead to our brains. If anything, I'd have expected Forger to start crying blood instead!" Emile drags two fingers down his face from his tear ducts to emphasize his point.

"I don't think we would manage to get anywhere if we tried to figure out what they did to Forger by ourselves." Turning back to Damian's followers, Bill raises a brow at Emile's gesticulation. "Don't be gross."

Yuri leans against the bathroom counter, looking down at the photo of Yor he keeps in his wallet. He grits his teeth in frustration at himself. What the hell am I doing here? What kind of failure of a brother am I? Yor's had a massive secret revealed, her family's a giant lie, and I'm HIDING in a damn bathroom instead of comforting her! Raising his gaze to look around the fancy bathroom, he finds the angry knot in his stomach tightening further.

By all standards, it is a nice bathroom. Pristine tile floor, lacquered wood for the stalls, warm light shining down from a light fixture that can only be described as a work of art, marble countertops, large mirrors... Nothing about the bathroom can be considered offensive. Rather, the Second Lieutenant finds himself offended by how perfect and clean it is, when his own mind is a disorganized mess. The Forgers... Loidy, the guy I shot, and have spent months trying to convince Yor to break up with. Chihuahua, the annoying kid I helped tutor once. Yor, my wonderful sister...

Ducking under the counter, his eyes fall upon the pipe attached to one of the sinks, and he wraps his fingers around it, starting to pull. The Forgers... Twilight, the Westalian spy, the guy I should be trying to get executed. 007, the human experiment, the child that can read minds. Yor, my sister... With a final heave, Yuri manages to wrench the pipe from where it should be, falling onto his back on the tiles. Furiously, he scrambles back onto his feet, still holding the length of pipe.

Loid Forger, the lie, the one who said he would do anything for Sis. Anya Forger, the manipulator, the one who made Twiloid and Yor get together. Yor... Raising the pipe over his head, Yuri takes a deep breath before swinging it down against the marble countertop, the impact ringing through the bathroom as cracks lace the stone, and the pipe dents. The Thorn Princess, the assassin I watched massacre a small fighting force without any hesitation... My sister.

The pipe rises and falls again, a large chunk of the marble breaking off of the counter. LOIDY, the Westalian who thought about returning a child to the orphanage after just a few hours. Another chunk of stone separates. CHIHUAHUA, the five-year-old carrying the weight of a war on her shoulders. Yuri misses the counter, accidentally striking one of the faucets, causing water to begin spraying. SIS, the assassin who had an inconvenient social party and considered mass murder as a potential solution...

The cop raises his eyes from the counter towards the mirrors, where he sees his own disheveled state. He winds up the dented pipe, rage smouldering in his eyes. "TWILIGHT! THE MAN WHO DISGUISED AS ME! THE MAN WHO COULD HAVE KILLED ME! THE MAN WHO CHOSE NOT TO!" Swinging the pipe, his reflection explodes into a shower of broken glass, bouncing off the destroyed marble and scattering across the wet floor.

Turning away from the sinks, Yuri's ire falls upon the wooden stalls, and he raises his weapon. "ANYA! FORGER! THE! VICTIM! TAKEN! APART! AND REBUILT! WRONG! DESPERATELY! TRYING! TO PLEASE! HER FATHER! SO SHE ISN'T ABANDONED!" The metal smashes into the lacquered wood, inflicting large dents with every impact. Eventually, the wood gives, and the pipe crashes through the weaker material, splintering and splitting apart in the wake of the Second Lieutenant.

Grabbing the remains of the wood in his hand, Yuri tears it from the mounts, casting it aside in favor of new targets. Ignoring the porcelain throne exposed by his violence, Yuri turns back to the sinks, and marches up to one of the unbroken mirrors, stopping a few feet away. "Yor Briar Forger. My sister, who Chihuahua said to protect. My sister, who struggles in social interactions. My sister, the ASSASSIN." With his fury roaring, the State Security Service Officer winds up his arm.

"HOW DOES LEARNING MORE MAKE ME UNDERSTAND LESS?! THE ONLY ONE OF THE THREE I UNDERSTAND BETTER NOW IS THE KID!" Swinging forward, Yuri throws the pipe at the mirror with as much force as he can. As the glass shatters, the pipe rebounds off the wall behind it, bouncing back and smashing Yuri in the face. Staggered by the blow, he slips in the steadily-growing puddle on the floor while trying to regain his balance, and falls backwards onto the shards from the broken mirrors.

Pain blooming across his back, Yuri stares up at the ceiling light, wincing from both the brightness, and the blow from the pipe. ...Why do I feel uncomfortable at the thought of my sister?

"OH SHIT!" The Lieutenant tenses up at the sudden exclamation, turning to see the Keeper stumbling out of a wall with a panicked expression on her face. "Hey, Mr. Lieutenant! I need you to do something for me! There's someone in that room that could use some company, and I was gonna give her some, but something just happened and now I REALLY gotta run because someone's bleeding a lot and I didn't expectanyonetobegettinghurtlikethatrightnowIgottagogoodluck!" Stunned by the cascade of words being thrown at him, the man watches the Keeper snap her fingers at the door before sprinting off down the corridor.

...Someone's bleeding? Turning back to the door in front of him, the Lieutenant places a hand on the door handle and tries it again. This time, the handle gives, and he hears the latch move inside the door. Well, I suppose that doing what she asked would probably be a good idea... Pushing open the door, the Lieutenant steps inside, his eyes falling upon a very stressed-looking child sitting on a very large bed. "Oh, hello. I hope I didn't startle you."

"H-How did you get in? The door was locked..."

"The Keeper sent me. She said you could... use some company? She was going to do it herself, but apparently something came up, so she had to go handle it." I don't think this kid needs more stress from hearing that someone's bleeding... The only reason I'm taking her place is because I was nearby at the time." Walking further into the room, the man takes a seat on one of the neighboring beds, keeping himself in view of the child. "I think I heard people call you... Becky? Is that your name?" Watching Becky nod her head, the Lieutenant continues. "From the looks of things, as well as what the Keeper said, you've got something pretty heavy on your mind. Do you want to talk about it?"

The Eden student shakes her head, pulling her knees up to her chin as she curls up. "I-I'd rather not, sir... I just want to sit here and think..." Turning her head away from the man in uniform, Becky sighs heavily. Understanding, the Lieutenant stands up from his own position, walking over to the door and closing it, putting the lock back in place. Turning around, he moves back to the other bed, sitting down again. He notices that his movement brought the child to look in his direction again. "What are you doing?"

Kicking his boots up so that he can lay down on his chosen bed, the Lieutenant looks at Becky from the corner of his eye. "You're not the only one with a lot to think about, and it seems like a nice room for thinking in peace, since you haven't had any issues with it. It's far away from everyone else, so nobody's going to find us, which leaves us with all the time in the world to think." Becky gives him an unconvinced look, but quickly turns away from him again. Content with being in his own mind as well, the SSS officer stares up at the ceiling, allowing the scenes from the viewings to replay in his head. ...I wonder how I'm going to explain this to the chief? My team just vanishes in the middle of an operation, and when we get back, we have a lead on human experimentation? I don't think there's anything I could say about this situation to make him believe me. This is just too out of this world. And then there's Yuri...

The man releases a sigh, thinking about his troublesome subordinate. He always jumps headfirst into trouble. That's a good trait to have sometimes, but in this situation, it's made him run off somewhere, and I don't know what he's doing right now. He works best with someone always beside him, otherwise he gets himself in too deep. Working until he collapsed, insisting on helping with the Red Circus attack, running into the sewer after Twilight all alone, and trying to take down an organization all by himself... He's going to get himself seriously injured one day if he doesn't slow down.

Somewhere to his side, the Lieutenant can hear the shifting of fabric on fabric, and he turns his head slightly to see Becky lying down on her back as well, completely dwarfed by the bed she's on. Lying in silence for several minutes, the man drifts back into his own thoughts. Twilight's informant plans to help me apprehend the doctors responsible for Anya Forger's existence, and help out the victims of their actions. I hope I can get the higher-ups to help as well, but if I can't even explain how I got this information, then I might have to do it with just Chloe and Yuri, or even alone, and unlike a certain family in our group of captives, I am not someone with superhuman capabilities. If I try to take down a lab all by myself, I'm going to die, and leave all those victims at the whims of the doctors. So, I'm going to need to somehow assemble a fighting force competent enough to handle this. But without actual proof, then-

"Why did you come here?"

The man in uniform pauses, brought out of his thoughts abruptly by the Eden student. "...I'm sorry, I don't know what you mean by that."

Becky rolls onto her side, facing the Lieutenant once more. "You said that the Keeper asked you to come in here because you were nearby. But this room is really far away from the entrance. So why did you come here?"

The Lieutenant stares at Becky for a few seconds before he answers. "I was looking for a friend of mine."

The Blackbell heir sits silently for a moment, then asks another question. "Why? Did something happen?"

"No, he just has a habit of working himself up." The SSS officer turns his head, looking back up at the ceiling. "I'm sure he has a lot of things to think about as well, but he always closes himself off from others and uses work as an outlet for things. I don't think that's what he needs right now, though."

"Oh..." Becky pushes herself up again, shifting to sit on the edge of the bed. The Lieutenant watches her for a few seconds, seeing her expression and body language shift slightly. Starting somewhere around closed-off anxiety, and slowly turning to barely-vulnerable stress. "...Are you worried about him?"

The scarred man nods his head in response. "He's a good kid. But he gets himself into trouble a lot. Always wearing himself out and getting hurt. I wish he was more careful sometimes..." Falling quiet for a moment, he turns his head to Becky once more. "Are you open to talking about what's on your mind now?"

The girl's eyes drift away from the Lieutenant, falling to the floor in front of her. "...It all feels just... ridiculous, doesn't it?"

"Hm?" Sitting up to give the child his full attention, the man raises a brow. "I'm not sure what you mean."

"It's just-..." Becky takes a deep breath, clenching her fists tight. "My best friend is a human experiment. She can read minds. Her dad is a spy from Westalis. Her mom is an assassin. Her dad's main target in his mission is Damian's father. Anya and Damian definitely have crushes on each other. It just... sounds too crazy to be real, right?"

"Ah... I guess you have a point. It's quite the absurd situation, isn't it?" I'm DEFINITELY not letting her know that her friend's uncle is a member of the SSS. That only makes things even more absurd... "But that's not the only reason you're stressed out, right? They do say that the truth is stranger than fiction, after all."

Nodding her head, Becky continues. "Well... You know how the Keeper has been skipping parts of the missions close to the beginning? And how those portions were identical? It... reminds me of the openings to shows on the television."

"Oh, really?" The Lieutenant brings a hand to his chin, thinking about the small amounts of those segments he's seen. "...I guess you're not wrong. Heck, I think I saw a segment when she was skipping at the end of the last mission, and it could have been part of a closing... Plus, the last mission had that family meal scene that the family themselves said never happened, with all those bodies lying all over the place... But I'm not really surprised by that, honestly. There's been background music playing through a lot of the scenes in these missions."

The Eden student stares at the man with wide eyes. "Isn't that... terrifying? How are you so calm?"

"Eh. I work for the government. We're all already being watched anyway. What does it change to know that some hyper-advanced group of people are making entertainment of our lives?" Shrugging his shoulders, the Lieutenant watches Becky's expression, noticing her brows furrowing slightly.

"I-I think it's a little more complicated than that, right? I mean-" She reaches forward with one hand, locking up for several seconds as she struggles to find the right gesture to emphasize her point. "...How did they make that scene? The dinner with the bodies? I've seen what video looks like when you mess with it, and that didn't look like it! How did whoever made these videos make it so realistic?!"

"Hey." The adult snaps his fingers to get Becky's attention. "Hyper-advanced group, remember? You're freaking out over what was on the screen, but you're forgetting the fact that she just walks through walls, extends rooms, and grabbed all of us from Berlint without any problems. I think there are more concerning things we've seen."

"...Fair..." The Eden student curls up again, averting her eyes from the Lieutenant.

Oh, she's putting up walls again. Did I say something wrong? The Lieutenant sighs, grinding his teeth together slightly. I've gotta lay off the cigarettes, I just finished my last one... "...Alright. I think we've both been hiding away long enough." Standing from the bed, he looks down at Becky expectantly. "I've got someone to find, and I'll bet that your friends are probably trying to find you too. I get that you're still not feeling very good about all of this, but you have people who care about you, and the longer you stay missing, the more you're going to worry them."

"What?!" Becky's face contorts into slight panic. "But- But I don't think I'm ready to talk to them yet!"

"Tough luck, kid. Sometimes, we just can't be fully prepared for life." Walking over to the door, the Lieutenant looks back at the child with a hard expression. "This break isn't going to last forever. You might not have enough time to get through whatever you're dealing with, but you still have to make the most of this time. So, are you going to spend the entire break hiding in here, scared that you're being watched? Or are you going to go back to your friends and talk to them?"

"So, this is your dog?" Bond stares at the Desmond boy sitting next to his owner on the couch in the Nexus. "What did you say his name was, again?"

Anya smiles at the boy happily. "His name is Bond! He's helped me a lot, and he's very smart!" Leaning forward, the girl uses one arm to keep her balance in her unusual posture, while she pets the dog with the other.

Borfing at the children, Bond turns his head towards the window seats in the room, observing Franky, Fiona, and Twilight as they sit together and talk in subdued voices. He hears Damian sigh behind him. "I wish Max was here. He's always been a good boy." Turning back to the children, the dog watches Damian finish off his drink, putting it on the coffee table. Something sour, if his nose is telling the truth. The scion turns to Anya, watching her take a big gulp of her own drink (hot cocoa) before speaking. "...How much longer do you think Blackbell's going to take? The break's probably going to end soon, right?"

"I dunno... Becky's normally pretty quick." The telepath glances down at her dog, watching expectantly for his ears to flick up. After a few moments, Bond gives her a dejected borf and lays down on the carpet. Anya's brow furrows as she looks around the room, watching her mother return from the recreational room with a worried look on her face. Sniffing the air in the hopes of picking up the familiar scent of Anya's friend, Bond slowly shifts his head to face the bathroom doors.

Blood's a familiar scent in the Forger household, even if he's the only one who can smell it.

Fiona turns in her seat as Yor Briar approaches the window seats. "Still no sign of your brother?" Seeing the assassin shake her head in response to Twilight's question, Fiona's eyes drift across the room, absorbing everything she can see while she thinks.

That man has demonstrated up to this point an unwavering loyalty to his sister. If he continues to be missing, even with her actively looking for him, then something must be wrong. Glancing back out the window, she watches a man strumming a guitar next to a campfire in the middle of a dark desert night.

Franky picks up the slack in the conversation. "Well, Twilight always described Yuri as being 'inconveniently present.' From what I've heard, he just shows up on his own, normally when it makes Twilight's job harder. He should show up soon enough."

"H-Hey, I never used those words!" Judging from the hurried tone to his words, Fiona's pretty sure that Thorn Princess just frowned at Twilight. "Yes, he has a habit of appearing out of nowhere, but I never described him as inconvenient."

Several tense seconds of silence pass, during which Fiona notices that the windows don't carry the reflections of what's inside the room at the moment. Then, finally, Yor Briar sighs lightly, and the sound of her footsteps walking away leaves the three pawns of WISE alone at the windows again. Fiona looks at her superior agent out of the corner of her eye. "I'm still surprised that you've decided to keep living under the same roof as an assassin, Twilight. Isn't it too much of a risk?"

"Agreed." Franky shudders from Fiona's other side. "It's terrifying to think of how easily she could eviscerate all three of us. How the hell have you managed to agree to keep living with Thorn Princess, and still feel safe?"

Twilight gives his associates an impassive look. "I never said that I still feel safe. My wife is absolutely a potential danger to my life, and I'm not sure how Anya manages to sleep at night with the knowledge she has. But whether or not I'm afraid is irrelevant. Operation Strix is still active, and that means we have to stay together for the sake of the world. Yor has agreed that my mission is important enough that we will at least try to keep living as the Forgers."

"Good luck with that, Twilight." The informant releases a shaky breath, turning in his seat to watch as Yor Briar meets up with the Lieutenant as he returns from the hotel section, probably to ask him about her brother. "If you two can't figure out how to get rid of all the tension between you, then people are going to notice something's wrong with the Forgers real quick."

Personally, I'd be fine with that coming to pass. Of course, I won't call it out myself. That would only endanger Twilight in the end. The conversation is interrupted by the sound of several alarmed shouts, and Fiona turns around again to investigate. The sight, however, catches her by surprise. "Oh. There's Yuri Briar... covered in bandages and blood."

Slowly, Becky creeps through the hallway, forcing her legs to move. Drawing near the Nexus, she jumps as an explosion of noise erupts from it. A shudder runs through her body, and she stops moving. ...Do I really want to go in there right now? It sounds like something's happening, and I'd rather just stay here... The girl listens to the chaos for several moments, gritting her teeth in frustration. ...No, I have to investigate! What if Anya's involved? If I choose to not be there to support her, then what kind of friend am I? Clenching her fists, Becky forces herself to run the last short distance, before she gets cold feet and runs away.

Crossing the threshold, the Eden student is met with the sight of Anya's uncle, clearly seriously injured. However, the only ones who seem to be genuinely worried for his health in the room are Yor and Damian. In fact, Yor's the only one actively fretting over him, Damian's just sitting on a couch with Anya, a stricken expression on his face. "Yuri, just tell me what happened! Please!" Glancing at the other adults, she's surprised to see that the Lieutenant stands nearby, looking exasperated. On the other side of the room, Twilight, Franky, and Fiona approach with very little urgency in their body language.

"Nothing happened, I just slipped and fell! Calm down, Sis!" Becky turns away from the tense brother and panicked sister, and her eyes meet Anya's. The telepath tugs on Damian's sleeve before pointing at Becky, and the pair quickly approach her.

"There you are! We've been waiting for you, Blackbell!" Despite the aggression to his words, there's considerably less bite in the scion's tone than usual, and he keeps glancing back at the Briars.

Becky follows his own glances, finding the commotion quite distracting. "S-Sorry for being late... What happened here, exactly?" At Damian's shrug, she turns her gaze to Anya, who seems entirely unconcerned by the situation.

"Unkie Yuri hurt himself by accident." Anya looks around the room at the others, and once confirming that all the attention is on her uncle, grabs both of her friends. "Let's go find a private room to have the talk I promised you guys!"

BERLINT, 2 DAYS AFTER THE DISAPPEARANCES...

Sylvia Sherwood collapses into her seat, looking over the many documents on her desk, and adding the newspaper she brought onto the pile. Her eyes trace the headlines of all the papers she'd managed to collect in the last day.

'EDEN STUDENTS & FACULTY MISSING'
'MYSTERIOUS SYNCHRONIZED DISAPPEARANCES'
'RAPTURE UPON US'
'WESTALIS SECRET WEAPON?'

Sighing, she turns her attention to the official reports that her rather elderly agent had assembled. Missing Persons: Loid Forger, AKA Twilight, Fiona Frost, AKA Nightfall, Yor Forger, Anya Forger, Damian Desmond, Becky Blackbell, Ewen Egeburg, Emile Elman, Bill Watkins, Henry Henderson, Martha Marriott, Franky Franklin, Yuri Briar, two other SSS officers, and the Forger family's dog, Bond, a Project APPLE test subject. Her eyes drift down the page, skipping the formalities to study the important parts. All of the missing persons who disappeared with witnesses vanished at the same time. It is unknown if Yor Forger, Becky Blackbell, Martha Marriott, or Fiona Frost vanished at the same time, due to a lack of witnesses to their disappearances. Yor Forger's last reported location was inside the Forger residence. Becky Blackbell and Martha Marriott were last seen inside the Blackbell estate. Fiona Frost's last public location was the Berlint General Hospital. Nightfall's disappearance is estimated to have occurred in the middle of her last mission, as her body was never recovered from the location, unlike her partner on the operation.

The woman finds her gaze slowly falling off the page, and shakes herself back to awareness. I haven't slept in two days because of the workload this has caused, and with two of my best agents missing, everyone's had to pick up the slack... I need more coffee. She pauses for a moment, then shakes her head harder, putting the papers back down. No. I need sleep. Because of Twilight's disappearance, I've taken over his upcoming mission, and I've only got two days before the mission happens. I have to be in top condition for it, we can't fail another mission. Taking a deep breath, Sylvia stands up once again, and begins walking towards the exit. "I'm headed home to start preparing for my upcoming assignment. I hope there will be some answers to our dilemma soon."

Taking the elevator back up to the surface, the Fullmetal Lady forces her face into a neutral expression, hiding the scowl she'd had on previously. I didn't even get to sit down for a full five minutes. Twilight, Nightfall, where are you? World peace is dependent on the both of you...

"A fine day to you, Director Wilker." The Shopkeeper watches as his guest looks around the room idly for a few moments, nodding to himself and taking his seat.

"Nice place you've got here..."

"The emperor built it for his mother back in the 16th century." The Shopkeeper narrows his eyes as the Director when the man pulls out a cigar, along with a lighter. The SSS Chief quickly finds a kitchen knife pointed in his face. "I'll request that you do not smoke in here. If you need to indulge, we have wine."

"Right, sorry." Director Wilker quickly stows the cigar and lighter back inside his jacket, sighing heavily. "I'll take some wine, thanks."

Watching the Director pour himself a glass, the Shopkeeper raises a brow, noting the lack of a smile on his guest's face. "...You seem quiet today, Director."

"And you seem quicker to anger. I've got a feeling we have the same thing on our minds, too." Director Wilker pulls out a briefcase, opening it to retrieve a dossier and hand it across the table to the Shopkeeper. "The disappearances, right?" Seeing the mysterious man wordlessly skim through the pages in the file, Wilker nods his head. "I thought so. Three of my subordinates were taken. Can I assume you've had some of yours vanish too?"

"...Just one, but yes." Scanning over the pages, the Shopkeeper raises his eyes to look at Wilker again. "It's concerning. Garden helps protect Ostania, but with a threat like this, I struggle to see what we can do to help."

"It's the same for me. A whole lot of good the investigation so far has been. We still only know the victims, and the rough time it all happened." Draining his wine glass in a single go, Director Wilker stares at the documents on display with a dark expression. "We don't know if we'll ever see any of those people again. We don't know what caused it. We don't know how they were taken..."

Narrowing his eyes, the Shopkeeper sizes up Wilker. "So why are you bringing this to Garden? Do you think we can do something about it?"

"Well, I know your folks are pretty good at being sneaky, so I figured it was worth a try to see if you can think of whether or not it's even possible for someone to get in and out of these places without being seen by anyone but the victims..."

Melinda Desmond sits in the dark of her room, the windows covered and the door barricaded. Outside, she can hear Nora begging for her to come out. But I know better. If I go out there, then he'll be able to get me. The former first lady feels the grain of the wooden picture frame in her hands, and looks down at the image trapped behind the glass once again. Damian, my sweet boy, how could he take you from me?

She feels the shivers of fear running across her body, the tears of grief flowing from her eyes onto the sheets of her bed. And not just you. The aliens took your friends, Yor, and her family too. They took my friend, my family, and everyone associated with both of you. Only Jeeves and Demetrius are left. I think. They might be aliens too. I don't know anymore...