Dan Heng was experiencing a lot of emotions at once when he returned only to find both y/n and Sampo gone.

Yet that stoic expression of his just didn't change.

At all.

He only let out a sigh and left the clinic to go track them down. They couldn't have gone far anyways.

Standing outside, taking in the less than desirable air, Dan Heng got to thinking. If he were y/n, where would he willingly go without two thoughts?

He simply stood there and listened, the sound of cheering reaching his ears from down the street to his left.

Dan Heng headed on over to investigate, and...

Of course. A Fight Club.

'I should've known. Now really isn't the time.' Dan Heng thought in exasperation before entering.

Upon entry, the first thing he saw was a massive crowd. Then sparks flying as two combatants battled it out within the fenced in ring which everyone was gathering around.

Dan Heng approached and there y/n was, cracking her knuckles as she stood before a rather tall robot that had a 🚚ing chainsaw for an arm.

Was she insane??? Now of all times?

It seemed as though the match had already begun.

"So far, One Hit K.O. has defeated all of her opponents in one strike! But will she be able to keep up her impressive winning streak against Bonecrusher?!!"

Dan Heng raised a brow, 'One Hit K.O.? Bonecrusher? What even are these names?'

"The wait is over, brothers and sisters! Let the match beginnn!!!" the announcer exclaimed and the crowd went berserk, shouting and screeching as the robot charge at y/n.

She braved herself, watching as the metal beast charged for her. Wait... wait... and...!

The robot swung, chainsaw ready to cut into her only for her to swerve past it. The blades just barely sliced into her clothing as she grabbed the arm, bringing her own arm up under it to strike the robot square in the head and send its head flying right off.

The automaton jolted and quaked as it began to malfunction before crumbling to the ground, shutting off after the removal of very important pieces.

"AND SHE DOES IT AGAIN! ONE HIT K.O. TAKES OUT BONECRUSHER IN ONE STRIKE!"

'Is this really all that impressive to them?' y/n wondered with a curious expression as the crowd cheered for her, 'I'm flattered, honestly, but isn't it getting boring to them?'

In the crowd, she spotted a familiar unsmiling face. Blank as usual, but he didn't look too happy.

It was completely understandable, y/n kept his 🍑 up all evening to comfort her, cut him first thing after waking up at Natasha's clinic, then had the audacity to disappear when she was supposed to be resting.

Y/n exited the ring, immediately going to greet Dan Heng with a, "Listen, I know this was a bad idea, but-! I'm feeling better now."

"Oh, really? Is that so?" Dan Heng questioned as he took a single step closer while y/n nodded eagerly.

"Yep! Sure am—Ah... AHHH! OW!!!"

Y/n cringed away when Dan Heng turned her around and gave her back a single poke. She gave him an angry look to which he returned it with a little eyebrow raise.

"You were saying?"

"Hnngh..."

"Hey, hey, One Hit K.O.! Nice work out there!" Sampo exclaimed as he was strolling over towards the duo, "A nice fellow offered us a sweet deal if you can beat this next guy, what do you say? Up for one more round?"

Dan Heng immediately turned to give Sampo as sharp look as y/n was cringing, clearly in pain from that single poke to the back, "You're the one behind this, aren't you? Using y/n for money from the looks of it."

Sampo paused, looked down at the earnings from the last few rounds y/n had fought in, before hiding it behind his back with a nervous look.

"I wasn't using her, we just came to a mutual agreement!" he reasoned, "I enter y/n here into the fighting competition and we get to enjoy the earnings together! That's not using her—"

"I never agreed to that." y/n stated in a flat tone, "I just wanted to check out the Fight Club, then I ended up in the ring because you signed me up for the competition."

Sampo gave her a look of disbelief, "You're kidding."

Dan Heng didn't say a word, just pulled out Cloud-Piercer. The fact that he didn't attack immediately was a clear sign: he was giving Sampo the opportunity to run, apologize or clear up any possible misunderstanding.

Sampo chose the first option and scampered away into the crowd, leaving the duo alone together once more.

"Honestly, dude, I'm fine." y/n grumbled, "Not injured, not tired, I'm honestly feeling better than before!"

"Everytime you say that, you only get worse." Dan Heng reminded her, "Do you need me to list the 71 other times you said those exact words only for your condition to worsen less than 24 hours later?"

Y/n visibly began to sweat, "You don't need to do all that, Dan-Dan, it's not that serious... I get it, okay?"

"Come on, March and Caelus are probably up by now." Dan Heng instructed, turning away to leave only to get blocked by Dr. Dig *the announcer*

"Hold on now, you've still got a match to do!" the man interjected and y/n tilted her head with a frown.

"A match? But Dan Heng isn't a participant?" y/n pointed out before pausing, "Remind me who signed him up!"

"Tall, Blue, and Handsome!"

"What—?"

"Nobody else was brave enough to face Team Robonatic, so your friend generously recommended you to fight them!" Dr. Dig explained, "You've gotta go now! Unless... you're backing out and agreeing to pay the small fee of 200 shield...?"

Y/n blinked, "200... what?"

Dan Heng only crossed his arms, "Whatever."

Dr. Dug was just as confused as y/n, "Is that a whatever meaning you'll pay, or a whatever as in you'll fight."

It was the latter.

She wanted to stay and watch him fight, but Sampo grabbed her by the back of her clothing and dragged her off, "Weee should probably get going-"

"But I wanna watch!"

Her and Sampo did have a bit of a deal.

It was simple.

Y/n made him some extra money fighting in the Fight Club, and he would show her the way back to the Overworld.

Sure, it wasn't a good idea, and lying to Dan Heng was probably one of the worst thing she could do considering how well he treated her, but Mimi was far more important.

Y/n couldn't remember why exactly, but she felt it!

They hurried to the Furnace Core where Sampo directed her to the stairs. There were a 💩 ton of stairs...

"You sure about this one? If you get caught, I won't be able to help ya." Sampo reminded her and y/n only smiled.

"I'll be alright!" she assured him, "I'll be back an about... mm, I'll say less than a couple of hours. Until then, please don't let my friends know where I went. And take good care of them!"

"As much as I'd love to help out a dear friend, you're asking for quite a bit of—" y/n offered him a bag of Shield, a little something she'd found sitting in a trash can outside the Fight Club, "...not a problem, little miss! I'll take good care of your buddies, leave it to me!"

Y/n chuckled quietly before disappearing into the Furnace Core, beginning her long long trek back up to the surface.

It was quiet, aside from the sound of her footsteps.

She didn't like silence.

Oh no, she should've brought someone with her.

Maybe Sampo, surely he would've been happy to come along? Dan Heng might've been opposed to the idea, but he'd come along regardless. Y/n hadn't known Caelus for long, but she did know he'd never leave someone he cared for to go off on their own. Hell, even March would've tagged along!

Y/n's footsteps began to hasten a bit as she picked up the pace, desperate to flee from the silence that seemed to close in on her from all sides.

'There can't be that many stairs.'

There could.

And there were.

. 　。　　⋆　　•　 　ﾟ　　。 .　.　.　。 .　。
⋆　　　。　　 ⋆。　 ඞ 。　 . • .  .   ⁎ 。　. 　。　.　　⋆. 　　。 .　 .　　 .  ⋆.   。.   ⁎ 。•　 　ﾟ　　。

Infiltrators?

Planning to Incite Rebellion?

As Cocolia had been issuing an order to arrest the group of supposed "imposters" who had made their way into Belobog the previous day, Gepard found himself feeling perplexed.

He'd never doubted the Supreme Guardian, and trusted her word wholeheartedly, but it didn't make much sense...

Dan Heng was oddly quiet, sure.

Caelus was a peculiar young man, and his strange obsession was definitely a little concerning.

March 7th seemed normal enough.

And y/n was clearly a dangerous individual, Commander Bronya had gone missing when pursuing her after all, but she seemed very unwell. The chances of her actually doing much of anything close to causing chaos in Belobog were highly unlikely.

"Captain Gepard? You've been staring at that poster for a while now... a-are you going to hang it up?" one of the guards inquired nervously, "Or should we perhaps redraw it?"

Gepard cleared his throat, "N-No, no, I'm going to hang it up." he said quickly, "I was just thinking, that's all."

The guard shuffled awkwardly, looking towards his more fortunate comrades who were helping each other hang up Wanted Posters instead of helping the Captain who... seemed to be a little distracted.

He looked back down at the stack of posters he held, carefully observing the crudely drawn one of a h/c haired woman. Compared to the others that look... messy, the ones of this particular woman were a little neater, a bit easier to identify, and a bit more pleasing on the eyes.

Gepard was by no means a good artist, but his drawing skills seemed to have improved drastically when drawing the posters of this y/n lady.

Maybe it was because he'd gotten a good look at her, that was the reason why he'd been assigned to draw up the Wanted Posters, or maybe...

'Could it be?'

"Captain?" the guard spoke up but his words didn't seem to reach Gepard as the blond young man scrutinized the poster he'd hung up, "Oh boy, he's spacing out again... C-Captain Gepard, are you sick? Maybe you should take the rest of the day off—"

"Huh? Take the day... no, no I'm fine!"

As Gepard fumbled to hang up the posters of the other suspects, the guard tilted his head a little bit, 'Maybe... could it be that-?'

"Captain Gepard is in love???"

A bunch of the Silvermane Guards were gathered during their lunch break in the Restricted Zone, crowding around the guard who'd initally been helping the Captain hang up posters.

After insisting that Gepard take the rest of the day off, and seeing to it that he did go and get permission to do so, the curly haired Silvermane Guard returned to the Restricted Zone where he did his job and pondered over the events from earlier.

He removed his helmet so he could eat, setting it down beside him and brushing some of his dark curls from his face, "I think so. When he was hanging up posters, he kept staring at this one in particular."

He held up the poster of the poorly drawn y/n.

"Ooo..." all the guards murmured.

"But isn't she some kind of criminal?" one guard inquired, "Won't it be forbidden for them to be together her or something?"

"A forbidden romance..!" one gasped.

"How scandalous..." another agreed.

"Doesn't it kinda sound like something from a romance novel, though?" another guard chimed in.

They all murmured their agreements.

"The diligent, gentleman of a Captain falls hopelessly in love with the cunning yet charming Criminal." one guard declared, "Will their love prevail? Or will the authority of the cold hearted Supreme Guardian tear them apart?"

All the guards applauded their comrade while he bowed, the one curly haired guard sitting there with a pensive look.

'I really hope that's not the case... if Captain Gepard truly does have feelings for that woman...'

E/c eyes blinked once, then twice.

Surprised blue eyes stared back.

Y/n was hanging halfway out a dumpster while staring at the man with an owlish look, while Captain— no, he was off duty, just Gepard stared back at her with a look of disbelief.

'Things might get really complicated...'

"Miss Y/n." Gepard began.

"Ah, Captain Gepa—!" y/n broke off into a fit of coughing, cursing in between as Gepard hurried over to haul her out of the dumpster.

"You... what are you, I'm—"

"Take your time, Captain."

"I'm... off duty, right now, just call me Gepard..."

Y/n dusted herself off as Gepard collected himself, piecing his thoughts together as the woman's coughing fit subsided.

"I know I'm a Wanted Criminal and all, even though I haven't done 💩 in the first place, but I'm not here to cause trouble." y/n assured him, "I'm just looking for something, that's all."

"Looking for something?" Gepard echoed, before frowning, "What exactly do you mean..."

"Nothing confidential or whatever." y/n said with a shake of her head, "Just a little lion plush. It's white, looks like it's been stitched up a couple of times, and it's missing an ear."

A plush. A lion plush.

This supposed infiltrator who allegedly intended to start a rebellion and overthrow the Architects... was looking for a lion plush she'd left behind.

"I left it in Goethe Hotel, but I can't exactly get there without getting caught." y/n explained, "If you could help me find it, that'd be great! I'll be gone right after, and I won't cause you any trouble! I promise!"

This could go wrong in a number of ways, none of which had any foreseeable good outcomes, and Gepard was at a loss of what to do.

He knew what he had to do as the Captain of the Silvermane Guards, it wasn't rocket science. So why hadn't he just arrested her and turned her in already?

That question bounced around in his brain as he agreed to help her, guided her to Goethe Hotel while shielding her from curious eyes, and even as he awkwardly stood by the door of the hotel room as y/n made a beeline for the little lion plush on the table.

As she picked it up and checked it for any new damage, Gepard wondered, 'Does she have ulterior motives? Was this her way of luring me away so her accomplices could cause harm to the Architects or take Qlipoth Fort?'

The look of pure relief and joy in y/n's eyes was his answer as she turned back towards him, Mimi held gently yet firmly in her grasp as she grinned.

"Hehe, got it!" she exclaimed.

"You... really were here for that stuffed animal, huh?" Gepard murmured as her approached to get a better look at it, "It must be very important to you."

"I suppose it is." y/n mumbled and laughed when Gepard gave her a curious look, "I have difficulty remembering anything before boarding the Astral Express, but I've had this with me from the moment I was saved by my friends there. I may not remember its significance, but it seems as though I do subconsciously, so I don't intend to lose it! Ever again, I mean."

"Is that so?" Gepard spoke in a quiet tone before his gaze met y/n's, "Miss Y/n, I need you to be entirely honest with me."

"Hm? Of course!" y/n chirped.

"You and your friends claim you're not from this world, but the Supreme Guardian told us that you aren't who you say you are." Gepard began carefully, "I'd like to believe that you and your friends aren't lying, but..."

"You need proof. Solid, undeniable evidence that we haven't been lying to you." y/n finished for him before a thoughtful look crossed her face, "Ah, but if I did that, you'd know your Supreme Guardian was lying. I'd rather not. You seem like a very loyal, respectable soldier. People like you practically have their entire world crumble around them when you learn that the one you take orders from is a liar."

Gepard grimaced a little bit, "I'm going to pretend like you didn't just call Madam Cocolia a liar—"

"Even though she is?" y/n questioned.

The blond man took a deep breath, "I'm sure that's not the case. I trust Madam Cocolia's word, and I'm sure there might be some kind of misunderstanding, but I need you to prove your identity to me first." Gepard insisted.

Y/n crossed her arms, "Well—"

She was rudely interrupted at the sound of footsteps thudding down the hall, multiple Silvermane Guards from the sound of it.

"💩." y/n hissed under her breath, "Did somebody recognize me? We've got company headed our way."

Gepard frowned, "Seriously?"

They cracked open the door to the room and peeked out into the hall, spotting a bunch of guards headed their way. Accompanying them was Pelageya Sergeyevna... or just Pela, a Silvermane Guard Intelligence Officer.

They were looking through the rooms, a nervous looking room service server accompanying them to unlock each other rooms they investigated.

"Oh boy, it definitely won't be good if they see you with me." y/n mumbled as she closed the door back, a pensive look on her face, "Any ideas on how to get out of this one, dear Captain?"

Gepard's cheeks flushed pink a little, but he quickly pulled himself together, "I... erm, I have one..."

Y/n took one look at his face and frowned.

"It's not something weird, is it?"

"Of course not!" Gepard blurted before paused and trying again with an awkward, "Erm... are you a good actor?"

Y/n raised her brows and crossed her arms.
"Good enough, only if the person I'm performing with doesn't completely 🚚 up the entire act. Just give me the scene and I'll make it happen."

Gepard grimaced before whispering something in y/n's ear, her neutral expression immediately dropping as look of disbelief crossed her face.

"You're joking."

"..." Gepard's expression said everything

"Alrighty then," y/n sighed heavily before giving him her best confident smile, "Let's give it a go!"

(Good lord 😮‍💨)

[Revision Complete]