KISMET ─ vento aureo.

☆ ⁺ « V2; THE BRICK PHONE

"Looks like Ris and his boys are here too," you said. It didn't take long for you to notice a man with long lavender hair beside him, and the various other distinguishable hairstyles of Risotto's crew. Risotto's crew and yours were on . . . amicable terms. You'd heard recently that Risotto had shifted the objectives of his crew from theft to more mercenary work. Assassin work, if you were privy to those kinds of rumours. With Risotto and his boys being as ruthless as they were, it wasn't too hard to imagine. It freed up the market for Passione and they'd always played too rough for your liking.

"Think Zero's going to have them kill someone?" Mista wondered idly.

[ CERTAINLY. YOU'RE AT THE TOP OF THE LIST. ]

"Say what?"

Coco let Mista flounder for a solid ten seconds before chirping, [ JUST KIDDING! ]

"I want to see if I can find Zero," Fugo said, peeling away from your group. "I'll be right back." He glared meaningfully at Mista. "Try not to embarrass yourself."

"Excuse you, Zipper Vest."

With a frown, Fugo's slicked-back blonde hair disappeared into the crowd. You silently wished him good luck.

"Cap, you see who I'm seeing?" Mista jutted his chin towards the entrance of the banquet hall. You thought it might be another thieving crew before catching sight of a white ponytail. Asswipe was here?

"Is he off-duty or something?" you said. "GA's are strictly prohibited from arresting anyone on the Hub. At least not on Zero's watch."

Abbacchio didn't seem like he was actively searching for anyone. He wasn't wearing his GA uniform and had arrived with a young woman on his arm. You narrowed your eyes in his direction. You wouldn't put it past him to try and melt into the partygoers to nab your ass.

"We'll just keep away," Mista said. He slung an arm over your shoulder and led you away from Asswipe. As the banquet wore on and you forced yourself to chat pleasantly with people, you wanted desperately to find Zero already. You wanted to disregard decorum and see if the bastard would give you a job. Fugo still hadn't returned, and you could only guess that he was still scoping out for Zero with Coco Jumbo's help to find the prime time to approach him. By your estimate, Narancia and Trish had to be close to the brick phone by now. When you'd searched up how much it was fetching, the number credits had made you positively giddy. It wouldn't be bad at all if you were only able to sell the phone after tonight.

The slow swing that had been playing melted into an airy waltz. You smirked behind your champagne glass, amused, as couples in semi-transparent skirts, towering hair spirals and rustly suits began pairing off to dance. As serving bots wove around them, it was almost like they were dancing to the music too.

You downed the last of your champagne. "Care to dance?" you asked Mista.

"I was waiting for you to ask, Captain." Mista accepted your hand, allowing you to pull him closer to the music. It seemed like second nature when your hand settled on his shoulder and his hand drifted to your waist. A stupid smile twisted his lips as the two of you swayed to the music.

"We're like an old married couple."

"An old couple dressed like idiots."

"You look wonderful, Captain."

You exhaled a laugh. For a few moments, the swirl of colour and the sweet notes made you forget where you were, what you were meant to do.

"What are you going to tell Zero when we meet him?"

"The truth."

"Think that'll be enough?"

"It's all we've got," you said, looking into Mista's face. "Plus, I don't think he takes kindly to liars."