Stolen Hearts: Chapter 13

Arun was a really good cook.

It was the next morning and the entire house was gathered around the kitchen table, eating a filling breakfast of filled omelets with bacon and juice. A fantastic way to start the day.

It seemed everyone else agreed with the sentiment as well, as we all tucked into the delicious meal, various noises of enjoyment being passed between us.

Well, most of us were anyway. There was a certain child who had finished her food rather quickly, and was more looking towards the nearest subject of intrigue. Me.

“How do you know Daddy and Misa? Are you their friend?” Hazel asked me as she looked up imploringly, kicking her feet in her adorable footed pajamas.

I looked over at Arun, wondering if it was alright to tell this little girl what I did for a living. He just shrugged, which I took to mean it was fine.

“I'm a thief who works for the same person they do. I only met Arun a few days ago but I've known Misa for a while now.” I told her. She looked confused.

“What's a thief?”

I hummed as I thought of the easiest way to explain my profession to a child, “Well, I guess one way to put it would be that I get stuff for my boss without people seeing me. I sneak into places I'm not supposed to be and take things I'm not supposed to take, all without anyone ever knowing I was there.” I paused, “Well, usually at least.”

The little girl's eyes went wide, “Wow! So you're like a super spy or-or something!? Do you do the thing with the lasers and stuff!?”

I snorted as I speared another bite of my omelet, “Sure, why not? Sliding under red lasers is just part of the job.”

That sent the girl into a barrage of questions that I was hard pressed to keep up with. I could hardly answer one before another was on the tip of her tongue, again and again.

As I floundered to answer, I looked around the room to find everyone watching us with amusement, smiles on each of their faces. Even Misa seemed a bit amused with that upward tilt of her lip.

This girl was just that endearing it seemed. Though I will admit I was just as taken with her as everyone else, the little munchkin.

“...and hanging on a wire upside down is actually pretty hard so I usually just do it normally. And while I do have claws, they aren't sharp enough to cut through glass I'm afraid.” I answered Hazel's latest question, eying my uneaten omelet with a great deal of hunger.

She made a disappointed sound at that, before she opened her mouth to ask yet another question. Luckily for me though, she was interrupted.

“That's enough, Hazel. Let Rei eat, she's barely touched her food.” Arun chastised his daughter, “You've finished your breakfast, go brush your hair and teeth and get dressed for school.”

Awww.” Hazel whined but obeyed her father, pushing away from the table and plopping on the floor, “Okay. But I'm gonna use the bubblegum toothpaste!”

“That's fine sweetie, just make sure you floss after. You don't want any nasty stuff stuck in your teeth.” The man called after her

She padded away and I let out a silent sigh of relief, shooting Arun a thankful look as I tucked into my omelet. I practically moaned at the incredible flavor that danced along my tongue, a wonderful mix of savory and slightly spicy that filled my entire mouth.

I was absolutely going to have to get some of whatever this spice was to take home with me, this stuff was incredible.

Arun noticed my enjoyment and smiled, “Enjoying you food, Rei?”

I let out a happy moan, “Gods yes! Arun you are a maestro in the kitchen. First the chili last night and now this! If every meal is like this, I'm not sure I'd ever want to leave.”

He grinned at my compliment, beard moving with his pleased expression, “I'll write you a recipe so you can make it a home. A warning though, these spices are pretty expensive in Vale. They come from the other side of Vacuo.”

“I don't care.” I said seriously as I swallowed another delicious bite, “Food this good is worth it.”

“Ha! Alright then! I'll go grab a pen and paper and write up the ingredients-.”

“Daddy! I can’t find my toothbrush!”

“Just as soon as I give my daughter a hand.” He finished with a slight sigh.

~~~

Later that day, while Hazel was away at school for the next several hours, it was time to get to why we had come here in the first place.

We were all rested and well-fed, full of energy for the upcoming task as we gathered around the kitchen table where a detailed map of the area was unfurled.

We were all kitted up in combat/heist attire, weapons included. Arun's shield and trident were leaning up against the fridge beside Buck's rifle, ready to be grabbed at a moment's notice, while Misa and I already had ours strapped to our backs.

The man himself was leaning over the table, writing on the map with a black pen as the rest of us gathered around. I couldn’t see what he was writing around his massive shoulders, but soon enough he pulled back to let the rest of us see what he had been working on.

“Alright, so here's what we're working with.” The man jabbed a finger at a section of forest, the same one that he had shown them in Gerard's office. On the map he had drawn several black boxes and it only took me a moment to realize that they indicated the Grimm presence in the area.

Misa frowned as she took in the map, “That's a rather large Grimm presence. Has it grown since you left?”

Arun nodded seriously, “It has. According to several of the people who I asked to keep an eye on it, the number of Grimm in the forest has at least doubled since I left. They're prowling the forest and rarely enter the cave itself.”

“They're forming a perimeter. Making sure that nobody can leave the cave. “ Misa said seriously, and Arun nodded.

“Wait, how old are these Grimm?” I spoke up, confused, “How are they smart enough to know how to do that? And why would they?”

Arun chuckled lightly, “Kid, stay in this line of work for a while and you'll quickly find out that when it comes to Grimm, you can't bet on anything.

“As for the why, there have been some reports of seismic activity in the area since the researchers were trapped.” He said, “It's possible that one of them has a semblance or some sort of equipment that would allow them to break rock in the cave. It's probably spooking the beasts.”

“That also means we're on a time limit.” Misa concluded, “If they manage to tunnel out and escape, they'll bring the dust with them and we'll lose this opportunity.”

“We'll do this fast and loud on our part.” Arun said, “Misa and I will go and rile up the Grimm and do our best to kite them back towards Buck so he can take them out with his rifle.”

“Are you guys going to be alright handling that many Grimm at once?” I asked in concern.

“We'll be fine, Rei.” Misa assured, “Arun and I have fought more Grimm than this without the cover of a sniper. With Buck it should go even smoother than before.”

“And if not, we've always got my semblance!” Buck thumped his chest armor and the warmth my semblance had been feeling from him pulsed proudly, “My semblance, Hearth, creates a barrier of positive energy that invigorates anyone around me. The Grimm absolutely hate it and won't get near unless they're really riled up!”

I raised a brow, that was an impressive semblance. One of the more impressive ones I'd seen actually, and just as I thought it fit the man perfectly.

“After we've got them occupied, Rei'll sneak past and get into the cave. If there's any stragglers I'm you shouldn't have too much trouble taking them out or sneaking past them.”

I nodded at his silent question and he grinned, “Alright, great. Here, here's a blueprint of the base. It's standardized all across Vale so this one should work for the base we're working on.”

He handed me a rolled sheet of paper which I grabbed and unfurled, “Study that while we make our way there and work your magic. Oh, and here.”

He held out a laminated card, “It's a key card. It should let you get through most of not all of the security checkpoints in the base. Hopefully.”

“Woah,” I said, taking it and turning it over in my hands, “How'd you get this?”

Arun gave me a smirk, “Let’s just say that I’ve got some friends who just so happen to be on the same side of the underworld that you are. They managed to swipe a card from a particularly drunk researcher the other day and made a copy before slipping it back to her. It should hold up to the base’s security systems if they did it right.”

I looked down at the card, Kin Hua, Level Four Access. I didn't know anything about how these cards worked but four sounded pretty high. Hopefully Arun’s friends copied it right.

I stowed it away in my satchel for later and Arun continued, “While you're inside, Rei, sneakiness is key. The researchers and guards will probably be extremely on edge and defensive so you need to get in and out as fast as possible. Preferably without being seen.”

I nodded, “Got it. I'll do my best.”

“That's all we can ask.”

I looked back down at the blueprint in my hands, scrutinizing it intently as I searched for optimal entry points. It looked like they had an extremely open ventilation system, likely because of the base’s location. That might work if just to get inside of the base.

“Wait, what are we going to do about the researchers trapped inside the base?” Buck spoke up, staring down at the map.

“Nothing.” Misa replied succinctly, “It's not our concern. Dealing with the Grimm menacing the facility will be more than enough to make it safe for them to escape. It will take a while for them to figure it out though, time we will use to leave the area before anyone is the wiser.”

I frowned but conceded her point. While I wished that we could at least bring some peace of mind to the people trapped inside of the base, the only thing that actually mattered was their safety and getting the dust. It wouldn't hurt them to think they were in danger a few more hours than they actually were.

Buck also looked a bit disappointed but didn’t say anything further. Arun looked around at all of us, “Alright, does everyone know their role? If we do this right, we should be in and out in just a few hours at most.”

We all nodded seriously and he gave us a big grin, rolling up the map and putting it away before turning to grab his weapons.

“Alright! Then let's roll out! Between the four of us we can have this done before I have to pick up Hazel from school! And when we get back, I'll make a feast to celebrate!” He laughed happily, slapping Buck on the back as he made his way out of the kitchen, causing the teen to nearly stumble into the table.

I put a steadying hand on his shoulder, receiving a thankful grin in return. Misa sighed in exasperation as she followed the massive man out

“I hope nothing goes wrong. This is the most important mission I've been on.” Buck said as he slung his rifle over his back. The barrel poked over his shoulder like some sort of greatsword and once again I was impressed by the sheer size of the thing.

I slung an arm around the other teen’s shoulder, leading him out of the house, “Eh, it’ll be fine. Misa’s strong as hell and Arun looks just as strong. Between the four of us we shouldn’t have any issues.” I chuckled as I realized something, “Heh. Four people with different combat specializations fighting against a horde of Grimm, it’s almost like we’re a huntsmen team!”

That caused a smile to form on the other team’s face, “I suppose it is, isn’t it?”

“Now we just need a name! Hmm…RABM?” Wait, weren't they named after colors? I don't think that was a color.

He raised an eyebrow, “Does that make you the leader since your name is at the front? I'm sure Misa or Arun may have something to say about that.”

I placed slightly at the woman’s name, “Oh crap, you're right. She'd make me run laps for even suggesting it. Umm, let's just forget about the name, okay?”

Buck gave a smirk that was eerily similar to my own, “If you insist.”