It’s late at night, and your body thrums with nerves. Your first real mission is a big milestone - but you just have to remind yourself that that’s the reason the DSO sent a senior officer with you. You know he can tell how nervous you are; it’d be kind of hard not to see. However, he refrains from saying anything - at least, he refrained until you were standing outside the grand double doors to the ballroom.

“You’ll be alright,” he reassures with a hand on your lower back. “It’s nothing you haven’t trained for. It's just playing pretend.” He’s right, of course. However, training to infiltrate a masquerade gala and auction while pretending to be married is a very different thing than actually doing it.

He adjusts the mask that sits across your face, concealing your identity with a tender touch. “Just remember,” he starts, voice low and conspiratorial. “We’re madly in love, and we’re looking to buy bioweapons discreetly.” He wraps an arm around your waist, pulling you close to him as he pastes a faint smile on his face.