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 Posted: Fri Jun 20, 2008 12:10 am
Jamie rolled over and stared at the door a moment, unsure if he had slept at all. He heard footsteps approaching him, but he figured they would walk right past. No one could be wanting his attention, not in this place. He had shed his hoodie, and was in a faded grey concert shirt, it had been black at one point in time, from a New York Nirvana show years and years past, and his faded dark blue jeans. But the footfalls stopped right outside his door, and Jamie sat up, waited for them to knock. They did. He dragged himself to the door, and opened it to find Nori, already better put together and more alive than himself. Jamie didn't even want to think about what he looked like, but he didn't want to think to care, either. Still, he put on a pleasant smile, brushed a hand through his black and brown hair self-consciously. "G'morning Nori, He looked down at Nori's hand, to the small cat. "And good morning to you as well, little one." Unsteadily, he had never had the best of relationships with creatures other than human, or the human ones, for that matter, he reached his hand out, allowed the cat to smell it, before scratching it's head.
"What's brought you here this morning?" He inquired, to the both of them, but mostly Nori.
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Posted: Fri Jun 20, 2008 3:11 pm
 Slowly growing more uncertain of the Mr. Miles character, Molly was relieved when Ky made her way down the hall. Molly had heard of Ky during her brief interview/respite at Han’s business center. She was suppose to be a talented , strong willed and beautiful halfbreed. Molly could agree on two counts, but was skeptical of the first. Ky’s dress, though clean and neat, made her seem like more of a childish wannabe gangster to Molly. Who wears a trench coat around inside a building. And for god sakes, button up your blouse woman, you’ll never catch anything good with that net.
Taking Ky’s hand, Molly put on the warmest smile she had and spoke with the nicest voice. ”Malika Al-kohen, but you can call me Molly.” pretending to look uncertain she added ”Atleast, that’s what my friends do.” She added another warm smile at the end for good measure, leaving Ky to speak with the Jun.
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Posted: Fri Jun 20, 2008 3:24 pm
Kitten totted around Ky’s room for almost ten minutes, not understanding that she wouldn’t be coming back. Becoming bored with this activity, Kitten wandered into Nori’s room and was not disappointed to find him just waking. ”Meow!” Nori responded to Kitten with his soft voice and Kitten was content with following him about the room as he had done with Ky. After a few minutes, Kitten had another conversation with Nori, ”Meow”, before Nori picked him up and wisked him down the hall way to another door.
When the door opened Kitten saw another man, much larger than Nori. The man seemed nice, and Kitten enjoyed how the man smelled. It makes my nose tickle. Not wanting to seem impolite, Kitten responded to the man. ”Meow!”
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Posted: Sat Jun 21, 2008 10:46 am
Jun began listening to the conversation the other two were having when Miles first said his name, but felt no inclination to include himself. They seemed to be having such a pleasant conversation without him anyways.
Seeing the woman walking down the hallway, hair swishing too and fro, Jun found himself far from disappointed. She walked with a purpose that suggested confidence, and yet her partially open blouse showed a subtle need for attention. That I can provide. Taking her hand, Jun swooped into a deep bow. "I am Jun'ichi Kato, it is a pleasure to make the acquaintance of such a beautiful woman." Raising his head only long enough to lightly kiss her hand, Jun held a very extended bow, feeling almost embarrassed with himself. Ah, what the hell! Standing back up Jun was wearing a very bright smile, almost boyish in nature.
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Posted: Sat Jun 21, 2008 7:32 pm
 Kyrin smiled back at Molly when the woman introduced herself and said, ”Its nice to meet you Molly. You can call me Ky.” Kyrin wondered for a moment at her politeness. Growing up all her life with people who were nice when they needed to be, Kyrin was generally suspicious of those who appeared nice right off the bat. Kyrin would likely be working with this woman and for now she would remain suspicious, though pleasant. Kyrin smiled at the praise that she had received from Jun, but was thrown off by the fact that he kissed her hand. I’ve been away from Japan a long time, She thought, keeping her distaste from her face, I don’t remember the people being so… forward. Kyrin thought that perhaps he was a man who said hello in this fashion, but she also reminded herself to keep her hand out of kissing range in the future. The look he gave her when he stood from his bow made her think that perhaps she should button the button she’d left undone, she wasn’t revealing much, but she certainly didn’t want to be giving any ideas. “The pleasure is mine, Mr. Kato.”
While Kyrin wasn’t fond of being awake at such an early time, or playing tour guide for that matter, she took her assignment seriously enough. ”Shall we begin?” Kyrin asked, speaking in English for Molly and Miles and then relaying the same in Japanese to Jun.
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Posted: Sat Jun 21, 2008 11:04 pm
Charles awoke to his alarm clock flaring to life. He lifted his hand quickly to turn it off and opened his eyes to the darkness of his room. The soft comforter shifted against his bare chest and he rolled over to his left. He was disappointed not to see his wife’s sleeping form next to him and he realized that he hadn’t gotten to see her in days. But that is work. He hadn’t seen his kids either, but of course he was up to date on their lives. The littlest always asked for him and of course he would have to call her today. Looking at his clock now, which read shortly after six, he rose from his bed. Charles moved to flip on his light, becoming more awake with every step he took. He then went about his morning ritual. He made his bed, showered, brushed his teeth, and spent no less then fifteen minutes searching his closet and getting dressed. Dressed in a black suit pants and a lavender, long sleeved, button up shirt, Charles lifted his matching black suit jacket from it hanger and put his arms through it. Selecting a pair of shoes, he turned off the light in the walk in closet and returned to his bed. Sitting, he put the shoes on and tied them up. Examining his reflection in the mirror, Charles’ stomach grumbled at him.
He lifted a set of keys from his bedside table, slipped his cell phone in his pocket, and grabbed a file from his desk before leaving the room. Moving down a few halls, he found his way to the kitchen. No one was in it, but he was very sure that there were at least a few people from this floor awake. Charles knew Miles was awake, but he never really knew Miles as someone to hang out in the kitchen. Nori was the kitchen boy, always cooking something delicious, or cleaning until the place shined, but he wasn’t in sight either. With the kitchen to himself, Charles looked through the cabinets until he found a box of healthy cereal and a bowl to put it in. Settling at the table he ate his cereal and milk as he looked over the papers that he’d brought in his file. He was startled slightly when his phone began to ring. He looked at the caller ID and answered it immediately. ”Good morning baby. What are you doing up so early? I heard you went to bed late. No. I went to bed late too, but Daddy has work to do. Well, I‘m not sure, ask Mommy later. Okay? No, no. I will call later. Behave Miss Madelyn. Go watch some TV or something, don‘t wake anyone else up. Goodbye.” After hanging up the phone, Charles finished his breakfast. The call from his older daughter had put him in a good mood that morning. Placing his bowl and spoon away in dishwasher, Charles grabbed his files and headed for the elevator. Charles found one of his men already in the office when he got there. He said a hello to the other man before beginning his day’s work. In a few hours he would take his first report of the day to Jaydn. That happened at about ten o‘clock and then when he returned, four more of his team would be in the office working. At that point, Charles would ask Jaydn to take his leave to see his family.
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Posted: Sun Jun 22, 2008 6:48 pm
 "What's brought you here this morning?"
Actually, Nori thought that was a good question. He could have gone to charles or Levi or anyone else on the floor, but he had decided to drop by Jamie's room.
"Uhm, That is..." Nori didnt really need help with the kitten, so what was it? "Oh! uhm, I guess I'm here to introduce you to kätzchen!" He picked the kitten up and rubbed the side of it's soft fur against his cheek and gave a broad smile. He was a sucker for cute animals, especially cats, and he wasn't going to waste anytime without smothering it with love. "Do you want to hold it?" Because it was impossible, in Nori's mind, to be anything but in love with a kitten.
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Posted: Sun Jun 22, 2008 7:20 pm
 Miles moved his attention over to Kyrin as soon as the elevator door opened. He watched her walk all the way up to the group and nodded to her. "Kyrin." He said in hello as she greeted him as well. Miles watched Kyrin give her welcomes and the interactions between herself and the newcomers. When Jun gave Ky a grand introduction, he cocked an eyebrow beneath his dark hair. It was somewhat over-the-top, but perhaps that was just his character. Playful even. He follwed alongside Kyrin as she moved towards the elevator, letting the others trail behind, and smoking quietly.
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Posted: Sun Jun 22, 2008 11:18 pm
" Ah. Hello Katzchen." Jamie smiled and let Nori hand him the kitten. He wasn't overly fond of animals, especially when he had to pick up after him. He was much happier to see Nori, seeking him out. "Can I invite you in?" He held the door, cat still in one hand, for Nori to enter. He was suddenly and strikingly embarrassed of his appearance, he didn't rightly know how long he had been wearing the same clothes, and he was sure he was in need of a shower. The fact that Nori saw behind all this and smiled anyway meant something, it had to.
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Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2008 10:23 am
Now that the door was being held open for him, Nori agreed to come inside. "Sure!" It wasn't until after he had already stepped inside that he realized (that besides Katzchen) he was very alone with Jamie and it made him a bit nervous. After being raised almost exclusively with only immediate family around, Nori was still trying to develop adequate conversational skills. Considering Jamie had just moved in, the room was still somewhat empty. He promptly went to the window, which he tended to do in every room, to observe the view.
He was a little sad that they didn't have a garden anymore, but the cityscape seemed to have it's own interesting aesthetic. Nori turned around again to see Jamie and Katzchen, grinning a little at how Jamie looked slightly uncomfortable with it . "You can let it wander around if you'd like. It won't do anything."
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Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2008 9:30 pm
Jamie set the small cat down on the floor to let it wander, explore the its new surroundings. He stood behind Nori and watched the business people, the scattered university students mulling about the city streets. It was still early morning, people with average, nine to five jobs had places to be. Jamie couldn't imagine not living in a city, he had been born in a city, and, one day or another, he would die in one. In a city, no one cared where you were going, no one wanted to listen to the story. And that suited Jamie more than well.
From his proximity to Nori, the instinct was to bury his face in the other man's hair, hold him, but he didn't, he withheld, let his closeness suffice. "Miss the garden?" He thought Nori might, he seemed to love the garden, when they had it, and the greenery suited the other boy.
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Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2008 12:42 pm
Molly was mildly amused at Jun's forward approach, and allowed herself a small smile. She followed the mismatched couple down the hallway. Seems to be no love lost between these two. Smiling to Jun very politely, Molly took to walking at his side. Now that they were down to business, Molly went into memorization mode, taking mental notes about everything around her. The number of offices down each hallway, the placement of the elevators and the placement and quantity of guards. When the group made it into the elevator, Molly inquired of Ky. "Where to first?"
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Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2008 2:13 pm
Jun let his eyes continue to rest on Kyrin's body as they walked down the hall, only looking away long enough to return Molly's smile. Jun was mildly jealous of the Miles guy, getting to walk around with Kyrin and spend time with her on a daily basis. But if he hadn't made a move with her yet, then... Oh well, his loss. When they entered the elevator, Jun purposefully stood next to Kyrin. He felt excited just being that close to her. And he caught the faint scent of strawberries which made his knees feel weak. Shes better than I could have hoped for. A dopey smile slipped across his face as elevator doors closed.
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Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2008 9:30 pm
Maddox had watched the brief meeting with very little he had to say for himself. He was still amazed at seeing his brother again so soon. He’s not eighteen yet… It was a wonder that their mother allowed Xavier out early. Last Maddox had heard, she was against having to let go of her last son any sooner than she could help it. But Maddox did feel a bit happier knowing that he would be seeing Xavier again. The three of them could hopefully catch up and really bond now. However, it seemed at the moment that the moment of bonding that Maddox hoped for was still a long shot away. After hanging up with Kyrin and all but the brothers left the room, minutes ticked by in strained silence. Jaydn glowered at Xavier, his grey eyes issuing the identical hue of his brother’s a warning. Xavier, on the other hand, stared back with an amused smile playing on his face. Feeling the awkwardness of the situation, Maddox attempted at creating peace. Giving a smile to his little brother, he said, ”Welcome home.”
Jaydn snapped at Maddox’s comment, ”This isn’t his home. Japan is. What are you doing here, Xavier?”
Xavier gave Jaydn a hurt look, ignoring his anger, “What’s that supposed to mean? I missed my brothers so I came to visit…” He paused, “Forever.”
Maddox nodded. “Don’t get us wrong, Xavier. We missed you too.” He was momentarily interrupted by a scoff from Jaydn. Pressing on to hopefully void the meaning behind their oldest brothers reaction, Maddox said, “We just would appreciate it if you had given us some warning that you were coming.”
Crossing his arms in front of him, Jaydn gave a pout, speaking as if to a small child, “I thought Mother didn’t wan to let her baby boy go. Did you do something to make her angry at you?”
Xavier narrowed his eyes, “No.” He retorted. Jaydn’s words had completely overpowered Maddox’s, causing Xavier not to reply to what he’s said.
Feeling rather vindictive, Jaydn continues to pester his brother. “Oh, of course not. Mother’s never angry at cute little Xavier.”
Before he could continue, Xavier shot back, “Well at least she’s never disappointed in me.”
Without hesitation, Jaydn countered, “That’s because she doesn’t expect anything from you.” Jaydn gave a smirk.
Xavier narrowed his eyes, and spoke without jest in his voice, “Well at least I don’t follow a woman as a mother who is a disgrace to the Matsui name.”
When the argument began, Maddox stood on the balls of his feet, prepared for something to happen. He kept the hope that he wouldn’t have to interfere and that the two would resolve the issue amongst themselves. Xavier’s last comment, however, destroyed that possibility. Slightly less timid than usual, Maddox scolded both of his brothers, “Stop it. That’s enough. This isn’t the least bit productive.”
Jaydn, ignoring Maddox’s admonishments, allowed his anger to take over his thoughts. Eyes bright, he scowled, “Anyone who thought that isn’t worth-”
His words were interrupted by Maddox, “I said enough! You’re both being ridiculous. We have work to do so let’s put this behind us.” This was perhaps the only time when Maddox was stern with his brothers, when they reached the point in an argument where only more than just punching the other would satisfy them.
Mumbling under his breath as he continued to glare at Xavier, Jaydn asked, “Where’s a large body of water when you need it?”
“Jaydn!” Maddox frowned.
Xavier grabbed the nearest object to him, a black stapler, and hurled it at Jaydn. Thanks to Xavier’s bad aim, the stapler missed by a little over an inch. Even still, Xavier muttered, “You’ll be the one in it.”
Maddox turned to the teen, “Xavier!”
Jaydn, having been almost injured, made a move towards Xavier, but stopped when Maddox, catching the movement from the corner of his eyes, gave him a look. Jaydn had never really seen Maddox truly angry and so was not sure what to expect if the usually timid brother was pushed over the edge. Xavier smirked at the interaction between the two and was glad for the glare Maddox had given Jaydn.
Maddox, finding that his brothers had finally quieted, pressed on with business. “Now Xavier, how did you get in this office?”
In a matter of fact tone, Xavier said, “The door.”
Maddox nodded, “Yes but the door was locked.”
“And then it was unlocked and I came in, what does it matter?”
“It matters because , if our security is so lax that anyone just come in and pick a lock into one of our rooms, then we need to fix that before someone more dangerous finds their way in.” Jaydn answered, irritably.
“You security? Lax?” Xavier laughed aloud, “Jaydn. I am your security.” He paused, “And honestly, don’t either of you do research? The locks in this building can’t be picked.”
Jaydn rolled his eyes, “Yes, and Maddox is a French poodle.”
Xavier eyed Jaydn for a moment before turning and looking Maddox over, “I always knew there was something gay about him.” Xavier smiled at the middle brother.
Giving a scoff, Jaydn said in a throw away manner, “Don’t say things like that.”
Maddox, his brow furrowed, agreed, “Yes, please don’t.”
Going back to the task at hand, Jaydn informed his youngest brother, “I have a team of men who control my security and your name is nowhere on the roster.”
“Jaydn dear, have you ever asked those men who they answer to? Does the name ‘Alexander Jacobs’ ring a bell?” Xavier paused and then pointed at himself, “I go by ‘Alex’ to them.”
Jaydn gave no sign of knowing the name but Maddox’s eyes lit up with recognition. He, however, said nothing aloud. But I met the man. He had dark blonde hair and was quite tall. He realized though that his brother most have gotten someone else to play the part so that he could remain in the shadows.
Still unbelieving, Jaydn asked Xavier, humoring the notion, “And if that was the case, how is it that you’ve been able to keep track and order the men about on their duties if you’ve been in Japan? And I know for a fact that you have been in Japan for the past four months.”
Talking down to Jaydn as one might do to a small child who doesn’t understand, Xavier pulled out his cell phone, “Well you see. Some years ago, they came out with an invention called a phone.”
Jaydn gave a glare, immediately showing his distaste for the tone the teen was giving him, “The location and the form of access into my office is not something your men could have given you over the phone.”
Xavier rolled his eyes, “Let’s go back to the ’I am your security’ thing.”
“Elaborate.”
“Felix and I designed all security in this building. Everything from the codes to the locks. We just aren’t architects so we didn’t make the layout. But we did do the training floor as well.” Xavier said, trying not to show how proud he was.
Trying to ignore the sense of dread that filled his gut as he realized just how incredibly likely that situation was, Jaydn made a transition onto the next topic, “And now you’ve come to ’visit’ because you’re tired of working across the world?”
Xavier simply looked at Jaydn, thinking the answer to that question to be rather obvious.
Maddox, contemplating the matter, still seemed puzzled concerning one aspect. “But Xavier, that still doesn’t explain how you got in.”
“Well keys generally unlock things so…”
Jaydn narrowed his eyes and then held out his hand, demanding, “Give them to me.” Xavier simply scoffed.
“Maddox,” Jaydn gestured to the quiet man, who startled slightly at hearing his name pronounced in such a way, “doesn’t even have a key to my office. You sure as hell don’t get to have one.”
“Well it sucks to be Maddox.” There was no way Xavier was giving up his set of master keys to Jaydn.
Giving his opinion, Maddox offered genuinely, “I don’t mind not having a key.”
“Not the point.” Jaydn remained insistent of the keys in Xavier’s possession, “You’re either going to give me the key or I’m changing all the locks.”
“No you won’t.” Xavier said flatly. “That would be stupid and a huge waste of money. I don’t think you understand exactly how much pick proof, explosive resistant locks cost.”
“And you apparently don’t understand how to respect my privacy. So what do you propose we do to solve this?”
Xavier pretended to think on this, “I propose that you stop being such a whiner. I’m your brother for crying out loud. What am I going to do? Sell your art on the street?”
Jaydn frowned, “Sometimes I wonder.”
“Well Xavier does have a point.” Maddox interjected. “It really can’t do any harm to let him have a copy.”
Still not completely convinced but not having a solid reason to argue otherwise, Jaydn jumped topics once again. “When am I getting the files on the newcomers?”
Maddox raised a hand holding a few papers, “I have Ms. Al-Kohen’s.”
Jaydn seem to only just realized that Maddox had received such papers. Returning his focus to Xavier, he prompted, “Then Jun’ichi Kato’s?”
Xavier got on his phone and said, “Yes, I’d like the file now. Thank you. Oh, and my equipment? Very good.” And he hung up. Turning to Jaydn he said, “Five minutes.”
“Alright then. I’ll start with Ms. Al-Kohen’s.” Jaydn took the papers offered by Maddox and shifted through them briefly, waiting to be left alone.
Maddox smiled at Xavier, wanting to give him a proper welcome back. “Are you hungry, Xavier? Would you like to join me for breakfast?”
Not wanting to be rude, Xavier nodded to Maddox and said, “Sure.”
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Posted: Wed Jun 25, 2008 10:12 pm
Kyrin walked the same pace as Miles, and when they entered the elevator Kyrin replied to Molly, "We will start on the bottom floor and work our way up until Jaydn summons us back." While they were waiting for the elevator to make its way to the bottom floor, Kyrin noticed Jun standing next to her. He didn't seem to making any move to to be sly about his intentions. Kyrin decided to pretend that she didn't notice. When the doors opened Kyrin led the way out. She turned to Miles, "Would you like to give the tour? I will translate for Mr. Kato."
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