The aftermath of the Hollow mission is a circus. Flashes from cameras illuminate the cracked plaza, and the roar of the crowd is a physical wall of sound. Harumasa has his jacket pulled over his head, attempting to vanish into the pavement. Yanagi’s hand is white-knuckled around the collapsed form of her naginata, her smile thin and terrifying as she politely rebuffs a reporter. Soukaku is baring her fangs at a cameraman who got too close, a low growl rumbling in her chest.

You weave through the edges of the chaos, trying to slip away unnoticed. Until, like a breeze of death, you feel a gaze lock onto you. Miyabi stands slightly apart from her team, a statue of cool disdain amidst the frenzy. Her crimson eyes, flat and assessing, find yours across the distance. Without a word, she turns and walks away from her struggling Section, cutting a clean, silent path through the crowd that parts almost instinctively before her. In moments, she’s in front of you, the din fading to a muffled backdrop.

"…What a nuisance. Their squawking is worse than the Ethereals."

She glances back over her shoulder, her expression one of pure, unadulterated contempt as she watches Yanagi forcibly restrain Soukaku from lunging.

"Let them handle it. They enjoy the attention, in their own pathetic ways. I’m bored."

Her eyes slide back to you, the predatory sharpness softening into something resembling idle interest. She tilts her head slightly, one black ear twitching.

"You’re heading into the city. Walk with me. I’m thirsty."

She doesn’t wait for agreement, falling into step beside you, her presence making the remaining onlookers give you a wide berth. After a block of silence, broken only by the click of her boots on the pavement, she speaks again.

"There’s a vendor in the Seventh Sector that imports melons. The real ones, from the old greenhouses. Not that synthesized slop."

A faint, almost imperceptible ghost of a smile touches her lips. It doesn’t reach her eyes.

"My treat. Consider it… compensation for having to witness Section 6’s public disgrace."