A Visit [Oswald]

Fed and somewhat well-rested, Touko was almost ready to call it a night. But, somewhere in the back of her mind, there might be another service that was active in Endymion. She just couldn't quite remember what it was called, but it was certainly located somewhere in the Backlight. The night hours were waning, but it couldn't hurt to take a visit.

And soon she finally arrived in front of what seems to be called the "Dragon's Den" according to their sign. She wondered what kind of excuse she'd have to come to them so early. Perhaps they don't mind having a small chat? Then again, this was a mercenary business. The worse that could happen was that she was going to be kicked out. But, she wasn't going to find out by just standing around.

With footsteps drawing her closer to its entrance, she knocked on the door.

It looked like no one was home. There was no answer to her knocking, not even as she waited for a few moments before knocking again, hoping so that this time someone might answer. Yet, there was no response. Either they were doing this on purpose from their lack of interest or they simply just weren't here. Touko pouted in disappointment and then sighed. It was disappointing, but this was a common occurrence. Perhaps it would be wise to come back at a later period. Still, she had hoped that this day would end with a small chat.


She decided to leave the place, until there were two people that caught her attention. Perhaps they were siblings, but Touko couldn't quite tell at first glance yet. However, they felt rather familiar... She blinked again, realizing who the boy was. The redhead had to make sure.

"Me? Well I was hoping I could stop by to chat with the owners of this shop," she explained while gesturing towards the Dragon's Den, "I suppose they're closed tonight?"

Touko was pleased, evidently seen with her growing smile. She wasn't going to leave empty-handed, which was something to be pleased about. The woman had an itch for a cigarette, but she held it in. It wasn't going to be for much longer anyway. With the sibling's consent, she entered the establishment. She let out a whistle as Oswald illuminated the area. The redhead surveyed her new surroundings and judged it was a nice place. In one hand, the interior was nice, and the other hand, the insignia on the mirrors were interesting.

"What do they represent?" she asked while pointing at it.

"Hm... I see," she uttered with her eyes still glued on the mirrors. But look as she may, there wasn't going to be any more information Touko could garner. She smiled towards Belle's direction for bringing up a seat for her and gratefully took it. The woman crossed her left leg over the other as she made herself comfortable on the seat.

"I'm afraid that I'll have to abstain. I'd like to be able to head to sleep after this," Touko apologetically said to Belle. She really did love to have a mug of coffee in her hands, warming them up while enjoying the bitter taste. Yet, she wasn't exactly interested in staying up late again.

"Mercenary? So you're approved by the government despite the Cadets running around?" Touko asked curiously, "I suppose you're right. Fear is the name of the game, it seems."

After last night's broadcast, it definitely had an effect on the people. But there must be something more to it. "So. Have you seen the demons in your work?"

She adopted a thoughtful look as she pondered more. The topic of Psycho-terrorists kept coming up. Demons aren't too much of an issue since the government seemed to do well enough to keep them back. Indeed, her investigation should focus on these people. Perhaps, it would be wise to do so.

"We've met before. I don't believe we introduced ourselves. I'm Touko Aono," she idly spoke while drawing out her business card which had the Reflective Grotto as the title and the necessary information to help locate where it was.

"Oh it's doing alright. Some marring of the skin. I don't mind it," she nonchalantly replied as she lifted it up her pants sleeve. It was a slight pink, nothing too serious. The woman never had any issues with it. It was funny that how a certain adage applied here literally, "If you play with fire, you get burned" or something along those lines. It's something she always expected when dealing with these unnatural matters.

"A pleasure to meet you too, my dear," she flashed her teeth at Belle in a smile, who finally returned with refreshments.

Taking the water and a slice of the red velvet cake that she brought, the redhead took a bite and her smile grew deeper. She was always some kind of sweet tooth. But, it was nice, even though they were leftovers anyway.

"Pretty good. Did you make it?" she asked the girl, "How long have you been running this business? Ever since the demons came?"

"Oh, very nice. You'll have to teach me one day, dear," Touko replied looking impressed as she took a sip of water.

The lady didn't exactly do all that much as far as office work went. At best she was busy working on her own puppets and did what she could to look into the city's secrets despite her non-existent ability to defend herself against the supernatural. Lately, she had been taking a very small hobby sampling coffees and doing some basic cooking on her own other than reviewing her knowledge.


She dutifully took another bite of her cake to enjoy its spongy texture and sweet taste.

After swallowing, she continued, "I wonder... would you like to keep each other updated in the happenings around this city?"

Touko needed to expand her information network which was dismally small. But perhaps even someone like Oswald would know the importance of having something like this, especially with the kind of work he's doing.