Weak, Nathan. You're making this far too complex. She's just a girl, our little Kitten. If the little one loses it, we deal with her and find another. Maybe that Roxy...we could wait until Dominic came to see her, take him down...make him watch...

He began to tremble almost unnoticeably. His head was starting to ache again, and he put his elbows on the table before him and pushed the fingertips of both hands against his closed eyes, trying desperately to think of something else.

There's still the Jayde to handle. Borrow Kat's knife for that one, Nathan, and we'll take him apart, cut him down from captain to cripple and make it so he can't ever hurt a girl that way again.

The rage was still there...but a gruesome swath of blackened skin crossed his vision and he felt ill. Sweat beaded on his brow. Was this all that was left? Was this all that he was? He thought of his mother holding him close before he'd left for BattleSchool, her kiss on his cheek. It would never have occured to him then that he might not be worthy of that affection. Everything had been simple then, had stayed simple until he'd met Dante, and all his complacence had been swept away in the shallow wave of first love.

Only it hadn't seemed shallow at the time. Dante had understood him...or so he'd thought, until she attacked him for the letter he hadn't written...but it had come in under his name. She had no reason to doubt who sent it, and he could have backed up, let her hit him, tried to reason with her between blows.

He didn't have to hit her back.

As if in some sort of ill-timed vision, he watched Dante walk out into the Commons only thirty feet from him. She looked sad, and resigned, and his self-hatred magnified ten-fold before a new kind of desperate control welled up inside him and took hold.

I love you, Anjel. Save me.

She should have done something then, and she knew it. Kept on walking, perhaps, walked or run away from him, back to safety and quiet where she could be alone. She might have stepped closer, said something, asked him to... to what? Stay away from her? Each time she saw him it was a painful and sad reminder of everything those two years between them had held. Ask him to do what? Leave her alone forever?

That only hurt more when she remembered how she used to wish they'd be together forever.

And so she too did nothing, just paused and stood in the center of the commons, shoulders squared and her never-forgotten commanding aura icing surrounding her. In a fiery waterfall her curls fell around her pale, resolute face, quicksilver eyes frozen but unfocused as she took in the sad lines of his features, the resigned desperateness in his gaze, and for a moment she imagined that battlebraid down his back, those gentle hands and quiet smile every time he kissed her in times long past.

Mon ange...

The space between them lessened, and it wasn't until he came close enough to see the terror and confusion behind the icy mask of her quicksilver eyes that he realized she was not suffering the same revelation that he was. His steps ground to a halt. No, no, she had to be. Anjel would not leave him to die, not like this.

"Nathan, don't..." Don't hurt me, her eyes pleaded. Don't use me and then say you love me ever again. Don't break what fragile control I have around you, before I act the fool and lose everything I have managed to rebuild just to follow and believe you again...

I'm just a weak-hearted fool with you, Angel, and this is going to hurt me more than you...

She didn't touch him, but her words made him retreat a step. There was no anger in him that reached the surface, save a momentary flicker in his eyes, but the resolution in her own made him cringe and look away, and his feet were moving him before he was aware of the motion as he backed away with a stricken look on his face.

It took a long moment of standing there passively, staring in the direction of his retreat, before Dante noticed that her shoulders were trembling slightly. From fear, perhaps? Anger? She couldn't categorize it, couldn't pinpoint exactly what it was, and quietly gave up trying as she clenched her hands into fists and turned swiftly, stalking from the commons. She needed peace and safety and comfort. She needed...

They entered the commons together, her hand falling from his as they paused and scanned. No sign of Gabe or Sol yet, and Kat sighed and shot Mode a wary glance, a concerned glance. She didn't know what this meeting was for. She wasn't quite sure what the situation might be. But if this was what she thought it was, she didn't want Mode nearby, not yet.

"Gabe..." she started to say, and then gave up. She didn't have the words. She was scared, but he knew that. She was worried for him, and he knew that too. Instead, she just pressed his hand and released his arm to let him go.

"...be careful."

Gabe took a seat across from Kat, and did not wait for her to speak.

"Listen very carefully, Quistin. We've come to make you a deal. A treaty of non-aggression. You and I are in no condition to fight right now, and neither you nor I want to leave this fight to our allies. I want Sol safe, and I've no doubt that you could not stand to let someone else do the killing for you. Therefore, the logical course of action would be to institute a temporary ceasefire, to remain in effect until such a time as we have healed sufficiently to carry on this fight.

"However," Gabe continued, "I know that you are a certifiable psychopath and am thus disinclined to agree to any such ceasefire, on the grounds that I severely doubt you would honor its terms. So let me make you another deal. If you, or your ally, should ever again attempt to harm Sol or myself, you will go back to the Institute. This is a promise. You may think that you covered your tracks when you retreived your knife. You may think you're safe now. But that dagger wasn't all the evidence you left behind. I will send you back, Kat -- you and your ally both. If they don't kill you, it's a sure thing that you won't ever see the light of day -- or each other -- again.

"And I know you understand what I said just then. You've found yourself a new Jax, haven't you, Quistin? I don't think I really need to wonder what happened to the old one. But I know you cared deeply for Jax, just as you'll care deeply for this boy when you slide that dagger between the eighth and nineth vertebrae and twist. I know that in your own sick, twisted way you are capable of love. It is tainted by hate and homicidal psychosis, but to you it is love nonetheless. Well, I am in love also, Quistin. Sol is my life. And I swear to you, if you harm her I will take away everything you have ever cared about and then make sure you go back to that hellhole you crawled out of, and this time you will stay there and rot. Take away my love, Quistin, and all that is left is the worst kind of hate you could possibly imagine. I will make you wish that you had died eight years ago when I put you on the tiles with that metal bar. I will never sleep. I will never stop. I will live and breathe vengeance.

"Look in my eyes and tell me I'm lying, Quistin. Take away my love and I promise you, I will take yours. He will die before your eyes if you dare touch her. Take Sol from me and you kill all that is virtuous and good and light and human in me, and leave all that is hateful and murderous. I will do whatever I have to to make you pay, no matter who else suffers.

"And let me promise you something else. You saw Sol after you put that dagger in my chest. You saw how she fought. I assure you, everything I have said can apply just as easily to her. If you attempt to kill me first, then she will kill him. If you're going to get your revenge, Quistin, then you had better get us both at the same time. And you had better be sure. You had better succeed. Because if you don't, I assure you, we will."

A non-aggression pact. So very interesting. Leave it to some ignorant little boy to dream up something so far-fetched and ridiculous that it might actually work. It was so unimaginable that Kat wasn't quite sure how to respond. She'd never been offered such terms before; in the battle between predator and prey, one didn't make treaties. It was kill or be killed. None of this ceasefire bullshit that disrupted her twisted sense of fair and made her examine her motives when she really didn't want to think of anything except Gabe and Sol gone, and she and Mode alone.

Mode. Gabe was also threatening Mode.

He was right on a few points. There was no way in hell she'd sit back and watch a duel between Mode and Sol. She wouldn't allow Sol another chance to mark what belonged to her. Jax had worn that scar for the bitch, and nothing would keep her from stopping the same brand on Mode. He was hers. And as much as she would have loved to see Mode take those two apart, that right belonged to her. They had sent her to Charybdis. She would see them dead.

That Gabe would bring Jax into this discussion made her pupils slit, dangerous fire dancing in her golden serpentine eyes. It eclipsed all incredulity she had felt at his mention of Jax's demise. The absurdity of this verbal sparring was not lost on her, but neither was his threat to kill her love should she break his little imagined pact. He was right, again. She did love Mode, but what he didn't know, and what she would never let Gabe discover, was how much. Jax was just a faded memory. This bond was more than anything she'd ever held before. If Gabe thought Sol was his life, he had no idea that her affection was so much more. Love and hate make a stronger tie together than love ever could alone.

Love? A tiny mocking voice sneered at her just as snidely at it sneered at Gabe and Sol. The little lovebirds. She could just mortally wound them both, leave them to watch one another die, and it would be so fitting for the pair to be killed together. The corners of her lips twitched in a vicious smirk, before she forced herself to focus once more on the situation at hand.

Gabe had stopped talking. Stalemate. But Kat wasn't about to concede that, not yet.

She rested her elbows on the edge of the table, flicking her razor-tipped fingers out to examine her nails nonchalantly. A long moment as she purred quietly to herself, then silence until she raised her eyes to meet Gabe's and smiled disarmingly, tone of voice a husky, silkily menacing lilt.

"Did you think of all that all by yourself, darling? Such words for a little boy with a stab wound through his chest, don't you agree?" A smirk, and then a mirthless laugh as she mocked his words in a falsely threatening tone. "I will never sleep. I will never stop. I will live and breathe vengeance..." Kat leaned closer and narrowed her eyes, lowering her voice to a whisper. "What do you think I've been doing for the past eight years, Hunter Gabriel?"

"You thought you'd gotten rid of me once. You know, I never would have killed you then, even after you ambushed me. I wasn't even going to kill Sol. It was all for sport, but now... I'm not so nice anymore, love. You can't destroy me. I made it through that hell to come back for you. Do you really think this little pact you've dreamed up is really going to stop me?"

Kat rested against the back of her chair, watching him again, before resuming her own threats. "Ahhh yes, and then you bring Jax into this. Such a shame, really. He certainly would have loved to see you here today, Gabriel, you and that girlfriend of yours. We could have had such fun. But don't you dare threaten me, merdana, because I'm not afraid of you. You can beat me and try to kill me all you want, but the moment you lay hands on Mode... oh, but now I'm sounding so unfriendly, aren't I? Excuse me for what I'm going to have to say now."

"One scratch on him, and I will assure you that you'll be begging for me to kill you once I'm finished with your bitch. I'm sure you don't want that."

She smiled broadly as she pushed herself standing, Mode moving to stand behind her. Such a good boy, her love, and renewed rage at Gabe's threats engulfed her. But Sol also approached, and with a hand on Mode's chest to indicate that she wished him to stay here, Kat sauntered closer to Sol, examining the girl through narrowed eyes. Gabe made a move to intervene, but Kat shot him a murderous glance and hissed "I accept," before turning to the girl once more and leaning to whisper quietly enough for only her to hear.

"Solenis... your Gabriel is so intent on keeping you safe. But listen, my friend... perhaps I'll go easy on him if you keep your little hands off of Mode. Don't think I've forgotten what you did to my J-Bear, Sol. He wore that scar you gave him up until the end... and you know what? It killed me every time I looked at his face. He told me everything, little fox... and he never wanted to hurt you. It killed me every time I remembered that, to think he valued your safety over mine. He told me once he wished he could apologize for what he did..."

Kat pulled away and gave Sol an almost sympathetic smile. "Such a shame he's no longer alive to honor that, don't you think?"

Then she turned and motioned to Mode, taking his arm and flashing him a knowing smirk as she glanced one last time at Gabe and Sol, eyes twinkling maliciously at the blank expressions on their faces. They'd have their peace, for now. It only gave her more time to scheme, and that was more an advantage than a disability. "Good day." With that she strolled casually from the commons with Mode beside her, and her nails dug a little deeper into the muscles of his arm as she thought of Gabe's threat. She'd never let him take this from her.

Katera was still speaking to him. "...sure you don't want that." The girl's tone was snide, and the wide predatory smile on her lips as she stood did nothing to calm her nerves, and she came abreast of Gabe and stopped just behind him and to the left as Mode came to a similar position behind Kat. She tensed in time with Gabe as Kat leaned forward towards her, but the girl turned towards Gabe and said, "I accept," before turning back to her and leaning even closer and beginning to whisper.

Her words, coupled with those as she pulled away, made Sol's heart freeze up.

Jax was dead. Katera's little rhetorical question erased all doubt. He was dead, and Kat had killed him. She was lying. She had to be lying. Jax was at the institute, Jax had iced and gone home, Jax wasn't dead...and if he was, what of it? He'd betrayed her. He deserved it. He stood aside and helped Kat beat Gabe into the ground, and then threatened to attack her at Kat's request after he'd promised to keep her safe. He wouldn't have apologized, not after she had kicked him into the sink and cut his cheek.

Katera was lying. Why couldn't she see it in her eyes?

Kat took Mode's arm and they turned to leave, and Sol, still hiding behind her Gabe mask, slowly turned her head to look at Gabe's copper-brown hair. All the questions she'd had about what he'd said to Kat were gone. All she wanted now was to take Gabe and run. She wanted to take his paranoia into herself and quadruple it and guard him. She didn't want to sleep or eat ever again.

She only wanted to keep him safe from Katera Quistin and her Asmodeus.

Mode. She didn't want to think about that particular tangle, not right now. Gabe couldn't help her with him, not yet, and even healthy, it would be a close thing. And then what about Katera?

Katera was still speaking to him. "...sure you don't want that." The girl's tone was snide, and the wide predatory smile on her lips as she stood did nothing to calm her nerves, and she came abreast of Gabe and stopped just behind him and to the left as Mode came to a similar position behind Kat. She tensed in time with Gabe as Kat leaned forward towards her, but the girl turned towards Gabe and said, "I accept," before turning back to her and leaning even closer and beginning to whisper.

Her words, coupled with those as she pulled away, made Sol's heart freeze up.

Jax was dead. Katera's little rhetorical question erased all doubt. He was dead, and Kat had killed him. She was lying. She had to be lying. Jax was at the institute, Jax had iced and gone home, Jax wasn't dead...and if he was, what of it? He'd betrayed her. He deserved it. He stood aside and helped Kat beat Gabe into the ground, and then threatened to attack her at Kat's request after he'd promised to keep her safe. He wouldn't have apologized, not after she had kicked him into the sink and cut his cheek.

Katera was lying. Why couldn't she see it in her eyes?

Kat took Mode's arm and they turned to leave, and Sol, still hiding behind her Gabe mask, slowly turned her head to look at Gabe's copper-brown hair. All the questions she'd had about what he'd said to Kat were gone. All she wanted now was to take Gabe and run. She wanted to take his paranoia into herself and quadruple it and guard him. She didn't want to sleep or eat ever again.

She only wanted to keep him safe from Katera Quistin and her Asmodeus.

Mode. She didn't want to think about that particular tangle, not right now. Gabe couldn't help her with him, not yet, and even healthy, it would be a close thing. And then what about Katera?

"It's alright, Sol," he said, reaching out his other hand and placing it atop hers, as the fingers of his first squeezed hers, gently. "We now have a treaty of non-aggression." He looked right into her eyes, so that she would be able to see that he was not afraid. Right now there was nothing to fear. "We've bought ourselves some time."

He grinned at her, and she felt her control slipping. She wanted to scream, or cry, or both, because Gabe was supposed to be the cautious one. He was supposed to be the one who saw danger miles away and told her so they could both prepare and keep each other safe, and that had somehow been compromised. If Katera hadn't mentioned Jax, she would have trusted in Gabe's judgement completely, and they would have been lost, and that scared her.

"I think we should go back to the barracks now," she said.

Gabe accepted her assistance in getting to his feet. As they headed for the Quad hallways, Gabe wondered why Sol was still so grim.

Because she still thought they were in danger? Well of course they were in danger. They were always in danger. The point here hadn't been to end the war. Kat would not ever let it end. The point had been to buy time. And in spite of Kat's words, he knew that he had reached her. He had made her compare her love with his own, made her think on behalf of her future happiness, instead of her thist for vengeance. It would not last. Another few days, and Kat would be after them again. But they had time now. To prepare. Or failing that, to live. If Kat was going to kill them, then every day was precious.

But Gabe didn't plan on dying. The doctor wanted to help them. Cas wanted to help them. And supposedly, so did their former commander. Perhaps that even extended to her lover, the twin from their cell. And from that, one could also assume that the other twin could be counted upon. The network just kept spreading. They all hated Mode, but that could be useful too, because Kat would not stand by and let them take away her love. That meant that in order to deal with Mode, they would also have to deal with Kat.

The war was coming. But the outcome was already decided. All Gabe and Sol needed to do was make sure it all went smoothly, and Kat and Mode would be eliminated for them.

But that could wait, at least a day or two. Right now, he had more pressing matters to attend to. First off, he needed a room big enough to host the Parade, and it didn't look like the Commons would answer. It was big, yes, but the pillars and tables and trees would get in the way. It was rather crowded as well; and he reasoned that it would create a logistical nightmare to close it off on such short notice. His face betrayed an instant of disgust - he was assaulted by the noise of the Commons; people gibbering away all around him; meaningless chatter, not military at all. Von Starnburg continued to be disgusted at the lax regulations and lack of discipline at the school. All this will have to change, he thought, not for the last time.

He strolled around the central plaza, listening to scraps of conversation, filing away any gossip that might prove useful. Here and there he heard people talking about the forthcoming inspection, usually accompanied by a worried grimace. That was what he wanted to see. Keep them on their toes; force them to adapt to changing situations, that was what he wanted to do, while at the same time forcing them to remain disciplined, tightly organized and under control.

Too agitated by the interrogator's offer and the promise of freedom to salute or give farewell, Asmodeus stood and left the office. He walked past the secretary and out into the Administrative wing before he was calm enough to think about what the man had said. An institute doctor? His jaw tightened. They were all cut from the same mold, faceless and cold, full of scientific curiousity and devoid of feeling.

His steps slowed and then came to a halt just inside the Commons. The IA officer had seemed...friendly enough, for one of his breed, but he'd said himself that the walls had ears. Perhaps he had been warning him that there was a doctor from Charybdis here watching his actions. His doctor? Dr. Reynolds was not a careless woman. If she felt an in-person opinion was important enough to rate a doctor's visit, who would she trust enough to send?

The answer was as easy as the question. Herself. Corrina Reynolds was here, on the station, and the interrogator had told him. Why? To warn him? That cold, empty smile on the man's face hadn't seemed at all concerned. It didn't really matter; knowing that she was here, breathing the same air he was, made him feel ill and cold and furious, all at once. It brought back a disturbing kaleidescope of images that he didn't want to remember.

Thus distracted, it took a few moments to think of the possibility that it wasn't just that he was once again within her reach. She was also within his. There were no twitchers here, no attendants, nothing but MPs under the control of his new best friend. His unease dissolved as a slow, wicked smile twisted his lips. Maybe he should take his friend's advice and pay her a friendly visit.

His stomach was beginning to throb with the now-familiar painful pulse, and that smile shrank. Not now...but he had to go back to the room for the pills, and that probably meant dealing with Katera. So be it. Let Nathan handle her until the next dose of pills kicked in, and then maybe they could have a little fun. Maybe, they could even have it together...Kitten had a lot of flaws, but the way she fought wasn't one of them.

Just homicidal rage.

It had taken all his effort to refrain from grabbing that brand from the IA interrogator, from giving him a burned mark of hate, like he'd given Wick upon her cheek. A hiss had escaped him, not from the injury, but from the nearly uncontrollable desire to break. But no. Not unless he wanted more of such honors.

He'd barely managed to make it half-way through the commons without being intercepted when some Hydra soldiers passed, Wick running to him, Rabin moving pass him. The man met his eyes, briefly, and Jor forgot whatever mutual animosity they had carried for one another before. Instead, it was that same flash of murderous comraderie. Whatever. He could care less right now. He needed to be alone, where at least he knew he wouldn't hurt anyone else until he regained his calm.

"Jor..." Wick's voice filtered to him, and she reached out to touch his arm. It wasn't a conscious decision, just an instinctive angry impulse that made him hit her hand away, giving her a blank serpentine stare before turning and walking again. She was insistent, following closely, but he ignored her and everyone else. She could follow him all she wanted, and he wouldn't say a word.

Back to the barracks. Maybe there he could learn to breathe and speak coherently again without the desire to beat anyone who dared talk to him to death.

At the ned, he decided he has better come to his senses, act the way they wanted him to... He realised they were not letting him off. Would not leave him alone. Was he that good? Or did they jsut invest too much money on him to give up now? Want to see some profit... is that it, my dear teachers? He asked himself every night, in bed, wondering whether he could go any worse.

So he decided to get better. Just to show them? Just to get out? He couldn't really understand what motivated him to start acting like... like a normal person. Again. But he did. Keeping his thoughts to himself, he smiled more. Talked more. Joked. Hung out with people "his age". Stopped being honest with his therapists, his teachers. They were so happy about the progress he made. They could never understand how easily they can be fooled by a child who lived all his life living up to expectations of strangers. And he was lonely. But he didn't let it show. Just to get out. At times, he thought he was freaking out. A small sarcastic smile would get on his lips. Yeah, that would also be a way to leave everything behind. Freak out. Go to a mad house... but that wuold be boring, too. After years of doing nothing and nothing, Dal understood he needed the challange. And so he went.

And now he was here. Again. He wasn't assigned yet to no cell, no rom, however they call it here. Coudln't be bothered to remember. So he just sat... And watched as another kid got in.

"No idea. Tell me, cause it won't be a secret with you anyway, Rox."

"Aww c'mon. At least guess. I think it's rather amusing." Rox poked Mik between the ribs, which only got her a slap on the hand and a dark scowl. Not one to be so easily brushed off, she continued to taunt her friend, making faces at her and looking fit to burst with her news. "I dare say old Sashy won't like it too much, 'specially if our friends decide to move in on his territory again. Come onnnnnnn..." she whined. "Guess!"

Mik sighed. Rox was a great companion, and they'd pulled their share of tricks together, but she wasn't quite in the mood this morning. Testing for her AIT's midterm yesterday had been rough, and all she wanted now was to knock back a few suicides in the cavern, take a nice, long nap, and spend some quality time in Sasha's bed. "I got no clue. And what the hell is that supposed to mean? No one's been movin' in since me an' Sash started shootin' together. So stop bouncing around and just spit it out, before I have to beat it outta you, Rox."

With a pout, Rox conceded sulkily. "Dal. And... and Jab!"

Dal. Christ. It had been years since she had seen him at Battleschool after he'd been taken away, and even when he reappeared in her cell two years ago, it had only been for a brief time. He'd left again, and Mik certainly thought she'd never see him... until now. He was back? She'd never heard of someone being shuttled back and forth between Earth and the schools so much, but there had to be some reason for it. She shrugged. It wasn't as if her and Dal had anything in common these days anyway.

But Jab-- the twinkle in Rox's wide chocolate eyes was enough to spark her own wickedness, and Mik's former bad mood was forgotten as she grinned back. Stupid Jab. She wondered if he'd be ignorant enough to try to mess with her now. Gods, how she hoped so, because he'd be in for a surprise. Back at Battleschool, after Dal had left, she and Rox had taken out their mischief on him and his army; hacking into their desks, destroying their files, doing everything they could to make his life absolutely miserable. It was fun, but then he'd left too, and they had to turn their tricks to other victims. But now...

"You're shittin' me. Jab?! He's here with Dal?"

"Oh my god, Ti, yes! Remember when we wiped out all his math homework the night before his exam, and he couldn't figure out who did it?! Now he's here and we can torment him again! Ooooh, I'm so excited. I haven't gotten to harrass anyone for so long."

"That's probably a good thing, Rox-- remember, we're trying to graduate. I'm sure Dom would just love it if you managed to get yourself iced months before they ship us off to Fleetcom." Mik smirked, but the gentle reminder was in her eyes. Dom was a sore subject with Rox, as was Donovan with Dante-- Rox, however, was a little less touchy about it, and could take the hint. "Yes, yes, I know. But please? It'll be fun. And you know you wanna."

"Touché. Count me in." Rox whooped, and her loud giggles drew the looks of several soldiers passing by them in the commons. She just smiled broadly at them and fluttered her eyelashes, too excited to be anything but coy, and her eyes widened as they focused on a pair of men across the room. With a snicker, she nudged Mik and pointed straight at them with the complete lack of tact and decorum that made Mik like her so much. "Dead ahead. Let's say we play?"

It was.. annoying. All his days as commander in Flame Army, he had to fight Mik and her gang. Always picking up on him and his army. Never letting go. He tried reaching to truce - Jab wasn't the person who loved grudges, who loved this sort of...lack of common sense! And his army was getting hurt. It wasn't jsut him - they were trying to put his army down. He didn't let them - his problems, magnified by his army's own attitude towards him, just caused him to insist ever harder on not failing. Never to give them that satisfaction. But the teachers noticed... and he was graduated sooner than he would have been otherwise. The entire army was, while still rated high, brought down by this. They just couldn't let 40 kids be ruined, because of three. His sarcasm kicked in. It wasn't as if the teachers liked his being there too much..... And now Mik, mentioning it again. Being iced on Earth. His pride wanted to say, "I was not iced". He wasn't!. Not this time. Just a different training method, god knows why. He stared at Mik blankly.

"Ho, Tiena." He always called her Tiena, back at Battle School. He knew how much she hated the name. "I see you got rather comfortable in here." He ignored Rox's presence. Hopefully, she would get the hint and go away. Both of them. And he and dal would have some peace and quiet again... they had a lot to cover up between the two of them.

Dal! He was thinner than Jab remembered. Paler. Looked... to be honest, Dal looked awful. What went over him? Jab wanted to ask. But before Dal had the chance of answering, these two came. And looking at Dal, he could see an expression on his face. Oh, no. Not again.

Dal and Mik... they probably didn't see each other, in years. Why was he still looking at her that way? Jab hoped the ugly, upsetting scene, Dal's last memory of Battle School, would not return itself. He was not going to lose Dal's friendship once more.

They were very differnet from each other, these three. But the Russian, Belgian and Australian kid always maaged to end up together - to their own satisfaction. Ever since their first army together, Tide, they always enjoyed each other's company, pulling pranks on the rest of the school, generally having fun. Even after they were all transfered from Tide into other armies, it was soon back together, because they woudln't have it any other way. The teachers always considered Mike to be a bad influence on the other two, but for the first time, they had nothing to do about it. It was sheer will of power from the three kids that let them get together, over and over again.

She continued to smile condescendingly at Jab, but her eyes hardened to obsidian, and the glare behind the thin friendly mask was unmistakeable. Didn't he know she wouldn't have forgotten about him,? He still sounded angry, even after all these years. It was all his fault, anyway; if he hadn't disrupted her entire game, she wouldn't have been forced to resort to the underhanded tactics that she and Rox so shamelessly abused. Then he and Dal wouldn't have fought, she would have had her little toy to play with until she got tired, and no one would have gotten hurt.

About to respond with a biting comment, she was interrupted by a quiet voice. "Hello." Dal. Dal was actually speaking to her. After their last, rather uncivil encounter in her barracks, she certainly wasn't expecting such a neutral greeting. Mik didn't appreciate being caught off guard. Two year with Sasha and she was content with and accustomed to arrogance, but Dal's expression and the look in his eyes was making her feel unnerved. She didn't answer vocally, but the acknowledgement was in her eyes as she gave him a fleeting glance and returned her attention to Rox and Jab, who at the moment were glaring at one another.

Insolent hiretsukane. There was nothing playful in Rox's manner as she surveyed him through veiled, lilting eyes, and the corner of her lip curled slightly. It wasn't usually in Rox to hate; it took too much effort, and it just wasn't as much fun as disliking people, because then at least she could tolerate them enough to play with. But there was just something about Jab. Maybe it was how he'd tried messed with her best friend, costing Mik some very valuable playtime and hard work. Maybe it was how he always seemed to be immune to her ploys, and he never got angry in return, even after all their tricks. Either way, she was feeling... out of sorts.

Rox did not like being ignored.

"Nice seeing you too, Jab," she said snidely, before she noticed how Dal was staring at Mik. Ridiculous, that. Did he really think she was gonna fall for that? Rox knew Mik more than anyone else on this damn asteroid-- better than Sasha knew her, even-- and she could tell by Mik's demeanor that her friend wanted an out of this entire conversation. Now.

With a smirk she rested an arm about Mik's shoulders and winked at Dal. "Sorry, sweets. You two will have to carry on your conversation later. I hafta get Mikster here to her boyfriend before he finds out you exist." Not true, but amusing. It would be pretty funny to see Dal and Sasha meet. What opposites.

Mik was thinking the exact same thing at that exact same moment. How different they were. How she ever thought she could like Dal was beyond her-- and that she still thought of him as more than an acquaintance was something she didn't care to admit. Why should she care about him, anyway? He was quiet and withdrawn and had no appreciation for anything she stood for. Sasha, at least, was exactly like her. That she could understand and enjoy.

Dal probably didn't even know how to shoot.

"Yes, we should get going." She gave Jab a smirk and managed to ignore Dal's gaze. Let the two feuding boys reunite. Rox would undoubtedly have some completely insane and utterly illegal idea soon, and she could go about reconciling herself to another uncomfortable year around Dal with some pranks on Jab.

Rox bit her lip and grinned. "Nice seeing you two boyos." It was too much for her, though, and she started to giggle as she shoved Mik toward the nearest clearing. Anything to get away from them and start scheming. Mik merely sighed and let herself be led away, and as they turned their steps toward the cavern, their eyes met and they shared a single knowing glance.

But it did good, his comment. It broke the weird magic the moment had on Dal, seeing Mik again. He laughed at himself. He didn't even know the girl! Why did he pay so much attention to her, every time he saw her? So they were roommates, for like two weeks. So they kissed once, when he was thirteen. That was 6 years ago. He didn't know her. Had no idea what kind of person she was. What she used to do. Why should he even think of her?

Instead, he diverted his attention to Jab. Wasn't the kid iced back on Battle School? He presented him the question, which earned a mysterious smile.
"Oh, yeah," Jab has answered. "I was iced alright. For two whole weeks! Before someone in IF decided they want me more than they want discipline about Silk!" He laughed. And then he got seriuos again. "To be honest? I don't know why. But someone high in IF apparently got involved and made Farrell and Graff take me back. That was... weird." It was weird in Dal's eyes too. He never heard of anyone who was iced and then brought back... except for Jab now. And when he thought about it... could he count himself in that category? Was he iced?..

He was never sure. He never did realise what the teachers wanted of him... But one day he will find out. In the meantime, Jab was telling him of his own command.
"Flame Army? Yeah they were ranked rather high, weren't they? I always wondered how.. that army was a mess!"

"You kidding me?" Jab answered. "If you thought it was originally a mess, you should have seen what these two did to it!"
It stopped Dal for a moment. He didn't know Mik and her friend were messing up with Jab's army. What did he ever find in this girl? But even as he thought so, he couldn't resist thinking other thoughts. Steal feelings for her, after all these years. When Rox mentioned she had a boyfriend.. he could not ignore the feelings he had then. But he kept talking to Jab. it felt good. After all these years... finally, they were together again, best friends.

But in the back of his mind, the thought remained. I will get Mik back.