──────── ∘°❉°∘ ────────

──────── ∘°❉°∘ ────────

❙ A.S.S.E HEADQUARTERS
❙ JANUARY 08, 12:47 JST

⊛

"Miss AKIRA TAKAHASHI to the boss' office, Miss AKIRA TAKAHASHI to the boss' office."

Looking up from the assortment of papers she had been organizing and filling out, AKIRA abandons them to stand nervously. Being called by the boss could mean one of two things - you did something good, and an award accompanied by praise awaited you at his office, or you did something bad, and you would be punished. With sweaty hands, AKIRA begins to walk to her destination, praying that the purpose of his summoning was anything but the latter.

The young spy arrives at the elevator that would take her to the office and swipes her watch on the access pad. As she watches the glass box slowly descend, AKIRA bites her nails anxiously - despite being trained to hide her expressions, the girl can't help but feel intimidated whenever it came to her boss. He was the leader of her whole organization, after all.

A loud 'ding!' startles AKIRA from her thoughts. The girl buries her embarrassment into her clenched fists, and gives a curt nod to the escort that awaited her inside before shaking her head to herself. 'God, I need to chill out.'

She didn't.

Now standing at the pristine, yet intimidating doors that lead to her administrator, AKIRA felt just as nervous as ever.

"Boss? You wanted to see me?" The young spy asks once they open at her arrival. Not having been given enough time to gather her thoughts, AKIRA hoped that her actions were able to mask her internal panicking.

The man smiles at her. "Yes, of course. You see AKI," He started, "There's this group of young heroes in Seoul - the ones you've been seeing on the news lately - and we've received an offer from their manager, per-se, for you to join their team."

AKIRA's eyes light up. "Really?!" She squeals excitedly, realizing seconds after that she was meeting with her boss, the leader of her agency, and coughs awkwardly before composing herself.

He nods, chuckling a bit. "You're their age, so you're the best fit. Additionally, the manager believes that you'd be a great asset, and being in that team would make you a great one for the organization, too."

Forgetting about keeping a cool front once again, AKIRA's lips stretch into a grin, the girl clapping excitedly; At last, something interesting - no more boring scouting missions and escorting celebrities. It was about time the young spy could have a little adventure.

Quieting down, AKIRA could barely contain her excitement as she says, "I'm in."

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

❙ MOUNT HALLA
❙ JANUARY 09, 10:32 KST

⊛

"So you're telling me that there's another person Doyun wants to add to our team?"

"For the one hundredth time, yes - another person has been added to the team, so please be nice when MARK returns with her,"

"Oho, now we're getting somewhere. Detective CHENLE has finally cracked the impenetrable DAYEON!"

"Yeah, no - never say that again. And by the way, that was all me."

Groaning at the endless storm of questions and bickering regarding the new addition to the team, DAYEON trudges towards the lounge to plop onto the sleek black couch in a sad attempt to hide herself. CHENLE, SUMMER, JENO, and JAEMIN, DAYEON's interrogators, follow suit, the group looking very similar to baby ducks as they gather around their leader's slumped form. The four of them poked at the girl until DAYEON removes her hand from her face to glare at the group.

"Look, that's all you're getting from me because I know just as much as you about the new member, okay? Now shoo."

As the blonde haired leader waves her comrades off, JIWOO observes in amusement.

"You don't have to be so mean to them," She giggles, ambling over to take a seat next to DAYEON. The usually quiet girl receives a pointed look.

"And you wouldn't be frustrated with them asking questions to you for an hour straight?"

As the two converse, the whirring of the transportation tubes catches the pair's attention. DAYEON and JIWOO stand eagerly, making their way over to the base's entrance where MARK and their new member stood.

"That's - that's her?"

The girls couldn't help but raise their brows and part their lips at the sight - their new teammate could've worked as a model, in all honesty. Standing at a lofty height, the girl had a long, lithe body paired with a cute face which still, somehow, gave off a fierce air.

Clearing his throat in the hopes that the girls' gawking would cease, MARK motions to the girl beside him.

"So, JIWOO, DAYEON, meet AKIRA, the new member that Doyun decided to add to our team. AKIRA, this is JIWOO and DAYEON," The doe eyed boy gestures to the girls when stating their respective names.

It took a few seconds for the duo to process the boy's words, but soon enough, the shyer of the two managed to let out a few words.

"A-ah, hello! Nice to meet you," JIWOO greets, lifting a hand. Everyone watched as the limb jerked up every so often until it came to a stop beside her head, and JIWOO, realizing how awkward the action had been, resorted to bowing to hide her blushing face. "I hope you will enjoy your time with us!"

"-As annoying as some of us can get," Someone adds.

ALEX walks over to the group, taking all the attention off JIWOO - much to the older girl's relief - and crosses her arms. "Oh, and just a heads up - DONGHYUCK and CHENLE are the ones you should be looking out for. Sometimes they just don't know when to shut their mouths."

SUMMER, who had tagged along with ALEX, elbows the foreign girl. Earning a yelp, as well as complaints about 'abuse', SUMMER turns to face AKIRA with a bright smile.

"Another heads up - don't listen to ALEX. There's nobody you need to be looking out for here!" SUMMER glares at her comrade. "Anyways, my name is SUMMER, and this one, right here, is ALEX."

Meanwhile, NARI, who had come along with ALEX and SUMMER, busied herself in grabbing JIWOO's shoulder to raise her upright.

The embarrassed girl now stared at MARK and AKIRA with a face much like a deer in the headlights, causing DAYEON to sigh when looking over to see her teammate's expression.

"Don't mind JIWOO, she gets a little awkward when seeing new faces." NARI explains when seeing the concerned look on MARK's features. DAYEON pushes the girl to the side feeling two eyes burning into her back as she speaks.

"Anyways, we'll go set up a room for you, and MARK can show you around, okay? Make yourself at home, AKIRA - oh, and welcome to the team." DAYEON smiles before taking ALEX and NARI by the ear and dragging them away. JIWOO, realizing she was being left, turns to chase after the trio, SUMMER not too far behind.

Once the girls disappear behind the doors that lead to their wing, MARK turns to AKIRA, peering up at the girl with a shy smile. His hand moved to scratch a spot behind his ear. "Sorry about them, wanna look around now?"

Receiving nothing but a nod, MARK coughs before turning and heading off, the new member trailing behind quietly.

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

Eventually, the two come across a male sitting casually at the base's dining table, his faded red hair tousled, but not to the point where it was overly messy. He had specs resting in the bridge of his nose that looked like they came right out of a tumblr aesthetic, and his face was hidden behind a book. Every so often, the guy would pause to jot something down on a worksheet in front of him before resuming his reading, and he was apparently so immersed with this activity that his head didn't even raise when hearing the sound of footsteps approaching him.

"DONGHYUCK, this is our new teammate that everyone was talking about."

The said boy's eyes lift to find MARK standing slightly off to the left of him, and a new face beside the leader. DONGHYUCK takes in her long, umber locks, triangle shaped face rounded by chubby cheeks, and finally, those piercing eyes.

There was something about those eyes, or maybe just the girl's quiet, reserved air that suddenly made the spectacle-wearing teen curious.

DONGHYUCK sits up, continuing to watch as the girl steps forward, bows down silently, and steps back, looking to MARK once she had stood upright again.

"Oh, uh," MARK looks between the two when noticing their eyes trained on him. His hand reaches up to scratch a spot behind his ear, "So, DONGHYUCK, this is AKIRA, AKIRA, DONGHYUCK."

The boy with the faded red hair nods. "Nice to meet you, AKIRA,"

"Likewise."

Coughing again at the awkward atmosphere, as well as the staring contest that started between his teammates, MARK points a thumb behind him. "So, I hope it's okay leaving AKIRA with you, DONGHYUCK? I already finished giving her a tour of the base and stuff, but I have a few things I need to take care of at the moment so-"

"Yeah, it's no problem."

At this, MARK's brows raise and his ear scratching stops. He knew DONGHYUCK would have said yes either way, but he never expected such a fast response from the usually sassy member, who was always ready to shoot witty remarks and roasts even at the most innapropriate of times.

"Oh - well, cool, thanks. See you guys in a bit."

Once the raven haired leader was out of sight, DONGHYUCK gestures for AKIRA to take a seat. He places his book down, leaning forward to stare at the girl in interest.

"So, AKIRA, right? Tell me a little something about yourself."

──────── ∘°❉°∘ ────────

──────── ∘°❉°∘ ────────

A/N:
hi, i just wanted to get this posted before my finals start but congrats to RENJAENO for getting the HERMES slot! your background will add an interesting twist to this story, so thank you for that! i seriously apologize to geebacon , though, especially since i know you stayed up late to work on the form. i hope it's okay if i modify and still use your character in the near future, though?

also, _vicky_dani_ made this a while ago and honestly, it made my day when i got it:

LIKE WHAT YOU'RE SUCH A GOOD ARTIST AND I HAD NO IDEA??  TYSM, NONETHELESS !

TAG:
L33_JEN0 , i noticed you had been active around the time HERO NO. 5 had been posted, but haven't voted or commented on the chapter! please inform me if you were or are currently on hiatus so it won't count against you!