Jin

The thought of thousands of people dying was not a pleasant thought for Jin to ponder about. Of course he would say "No" to such a statement. But when he heard such blunt words from the representative of Alexandria, he found it difficult to hide his emotions. He wasn't sure if he was noticed, but he was clearly angry at Kara for such a cold statement. It was the truth, he had to admit, but it left people surprised. It even left Alex in tears, something that Jin had trouble dealing with -seeing women cry-. But this wasn't the time for irrelevant thoughts. Apparently, there was someone who could help the group with this... focus.

If there's a chance for hope, then I'll take it. But...

As he composed the final words of a letter he was writing, his thoughts wandered through the events which lead to the fate that he must face. Sarcifice or destruction... either way, he'd lose. But before living his life on the edge of a knife called hope, there was something he felt like he had to do. "There's something I need to take care of." His words made Eden frown, but at this moment, he didn't care about it.

"If you're late, I'll kill you."

As usual, straight to the point. Yet Jin was already walking away as her words reached him. For now, no threats would affect him whatsoever.

WIth a cloak to cover his identity, he swiftly moved through the streets of the city. His eyes fixed at the direction of his destination as his hand gripped the words that he would never speak. It didn't took long to find the place he was looking for.

A stare at the second floor...

a stare at the door...

and a moment of silence...

all within seconds as he removed the neck of the cloak to see this place once more. Kneeling to slide the letter just under the door, he couldn't help but feel something tightening in his chest. Yet the only time he had left was to leave.

Making his way through the small steps, he looked back once more. Just one more glance would be enough. But what his eyes caught were not something he would enjoy...

"Hey you, hold it right there!"

He would normally cooperate... normally... but getting caught and being taken for questioning would take too much time and his teammates would not be very happy for him clumsy move. His legs began to move faster as his adrenaline was ordering him to lose the guards. He was a bit scared, but he has seen scarier things, so his determination to run from this one made his excitement brush off the fear of getting caught.

"Don't let that thief get away!"

It was a bad time to be confused for a thief, but he was not willing to let himself be caught by guards. His pulse was rising as his feet drove him through the alleys of the big city. Tumbling between the corners, his eyes didn't dare to look back as he was still hearing the voices of the guards pursuing him. The pressure was not tough, but he knew he had to think fast. If not, more guards would appear and this would definitely guarantee his capture.

Faster... if I could go faster His lungs were pumping the air in an out as his feet kept the pace. Trying to remember what he felt during his fight, he tried to channel his power once more. Jumping over a small ledge, he felt something covering his body... like some sort of protective barrier.

Crap... he didn't felt any change in his speed.

The pressure of the chase being prolonged was beginning to take effect. Jin was feeling like he was was running out of options; his breathing was getting heavy and his legs were beginning to give in to exhaustion. The voices he thought he had stopped hearing for a while made echo in his ears again. If they were drawing closer, it could only mean that his body was slowly but surely succumbing to tiredness. He looked back... big mistake...

"Quick, now's our chance!"

*pant, pant* persintent, aren't they...

He was about to look forward again, when, after taking a corner...

"Wh-mmph, mmph"

His arm signalled a bit of a strain as he felt himself being pulled along and stopped in his tracks. The mix of exhaustion and confusion drew his mind to a daze as his lungs were now gasping for air. His mouth tried to inhale that much needed dose of oxygen, yet was unable to, as his mind finaly recollected the fact that he was being held against a wall and his mouth covered by a hand.

___


"Damn... where did he go? Keep looking for him. Don't let him get away!" Looking between the people around, the guards seemed to have lost sight of the man they were chasing.

What!? So if the guards lost him, then who caught him off guard? Jin was still confused about what was going on. And yet, the confusion began to dissipate when he heard a familiar voice...

"Markus told me that you weren't the type to get into trouble." It was actually Yuki who was standing in front of him. Of all the people he could think of, he would never guess that Yuki might be the one to get him out of that tough spot. Picking up some much needed air, he was finally able to whisper an exhausted "thanks".

"But you know... with the way you're dressed, even I would think you're a thief."
Dropping on the floor while recovering his air, his voice, although tired, expressed his intentions: "I guess... but... I didn't want to be seen."

"Seen?" It was clear that the least he owed was an explanation. After all, she saved him.

"My parents."

"Oh?" He could sense her curiosity with that single expression.

"...They kicked me out, but... they're still my parents."

"Ah, so the letter was for them, right?"

She noticed... wow, she's sharp. And as he got lost again, a poke in his forehead snapped him back to reality. "Hey, don't get lost in your thoughts."

"Sorry. Just thought you were sharp to notice the letter."

"Oh..." She shrugged. Jin could've sworn that he saw a light blush, but maybe it was just his imagination. "Anyway, there isn't much time to waste. We have 15 minutes to catch a train. Let's go!" He was up and running again as he thought of what awaited him later. She was probably the one who sent Yuki after me He would probably find more than a punch in his face from Eden... but that's better than ending up in jail.

"By the way, sorry about earlier." Jin spoke as if he was trying to make a topic to talk about. "Hmm?" Yuki was wondering why the quiet guy was apologizing for.

"I kinda asked too many questions. In fact, I don't even know why I asked you about Kyte. I just... felt like I needed to ask."

"Oh! No worries." Yuki's expression made Jin be at ease.

"I'm still thinking about what Markus said, though." He was still wondering what he meant when he said "...Especially if he knows what’s good for him...


"Oh, that's because I usually defeated him when we trained together."

Jin was astonished. In his time with the Defence Core, he was never able to defeat Markus during his sparring sessions. That's probably why he was finding it hard to believe that someone as attractive as Yuki could actually defeat him.

"I know what you're thinking." Yuki didn't hesitate to prove Jin she was right. Before he could even blink, he was grabbed and smashed right down into the floor. Not only her attack was swift, but silent and effective. Barely any people from the crowd actually noticed that Jin was pinned down on the floor. "Whoa" It was the only thing that came out of Jin as he realized what just happened.

Yuki resumed the walk as Jin pulled himself together again. His vision Yuki definitely changed after what just happened and now, he knew that he would have a valuable teammate. Increasing his pace a bit, he managed to catch up to Yuki shortly after.

"Oh, yeah" Yuki turned around as they continued their march to the station. "You'll look more like a 'normal person' if you take that off." She was pointing at the cloak.

"Hmm... yeah" Oblivious to the light tone of the conversation, he took the cape off as they walked together. And as the two blended into the crowd, Jin's face showed a complete contrast to Yuki's smile while thinking one last time about his family, hoping that he never lays a hand on them nor to anyone.


________

I have to admit that this hasn't been a creative post on my part. I haven't felt too motivated to do anything... and I mean "anything" lately, not even play LoL nor Gran Turismo 4 nor Final Fantasy VIII (which I recently bought a copy of it). Handling Jin had also become tougher than I expected and at some point, I even considered killing him. Overall, I pretty much like a living zombie at the moment. Not an excuse, but thought I should let you guys know.

PS: Tag Yuki and since everyone will porbably meet at the train station, tag everyone in the process.