Chapter 7: Lilies of the Night

The city lights stretched before us, a kaleidoscope of color against the dark sky as we sat on the rooftop of our dormitory. It was late—far past curfew—but neither of us seemed to care.

Chou was lying on her back, arms folded behind her head, gazing at the stars. "Do you ever think about it?" she asked suddenly, her voice soft.

"Think about what?" I asked, sitting cross-legged beside her, my weapon disassembled in front of me for cleaning.

She tilted her head to look at me, a small smile playing on her lips. "What we're really doing here. Why we do it."

I paused, the cleaning cloth in my hand stilling over the metal barrel. "You're being awfully philosophical tonight."

Chou shrugged, her gaze drifting back to the sky. "It's the lilies."

I raised an eyebrow. "Lilies?"

She gestured toward the small potted plant she'd brought up with her—a cluster of pure white lilies that seemed to glow faintly under the moonlight.

"They're beautiful, aren't they?" she said. "But do you know what they mean?"

"Purity," I replied automatically. "Innocence. Peace."

She laughed—a soft, almost bitter sound. "Yeah, and death. Isn't that funny? Something so beautiful, tied to something so… final."

Her words stuck with me as we descended from the rooftop, the soft click of our boots against the metal staircase the only sound. We'd been given a new assignment earlier that evening: to retrieve a high-value target being smuggled out of the city by a rival faction.

"It's a simple job," Suzu had said when she briefed us. "In and out. No unnecessary risks."

But simple wasn't the word I'd use to describe what we walked into.

The rendezvous point was a derelict subway station on the city's outskirts, the tracks long since abandoned and rusted over.

"You sure this is the right place?" Chou asked, her voice echoing off the tiled walls.

I nodded, scanning the shadows. "Stay alert."

"Always."

We moved carefully through the station, the oppressive silence broken only by the distant drip of water. The air smelled damp, tinged with rust and mildew.

Then I saw it—a glint of metal in the darkness.

"Get down!" I hissed, grabbing Chou's arm and pulling her behind a crumbling pillar.

A bullet ricocheted off the wall behind us, sending shards of tile flying.

"Well, that's a warm welcome," Chou muttered, peeking out from cover.

I ignored her, my mind racing as I assessed the situation. There were at least three shooters, their positions spread out across the station.

"We need to flank them," I said, checking my weapon.

Chou grinned. "I love it when you get bossy."

The next few minutes were a blur of gunfire and chaos. Chou moved like a dancer, her every step calculated and fluid as she closed the distance between us and the shooters.

I covered her from a distance, picking off targets one by one with precise shots.

"Two down," I called out, reloading.

"Make that three," Chou replied, her voice breathless but triumphant.

When the last of the gunmen fell, we regrouped near the center of the station.

"That wasn't so bad," Chou said, brushing dust off her jacket.

I gave her a look. "You got grazed."

She glanced at the shallow cut on her arm and shrugged. "It's just a scratch. Nothing to worry about."

"Chou…"

Her expression softened, and she placed a hand on my shoulder. "I'm fine, Hana. Really."

We found the target in a storage room near the back of the station—a teenage boy, no older than fourteen, chained to a radiator.

"Help me," he whispered, his voice hoarse.

Chou moved to free him, her movements gentle as she picked the lock on his restraints.

"You're safe now," she said softly, her tone uncharacteristically tender.

The boy clung to her as we led him out of the station, his small frame trembling against her side.

Back at headquarters, Suzu met us with her usual calm demeanor, but I could see the relief in her eyes as she took the boy into custody.

"You did well," she said simply.

Chou flashed her a grin. "We always do."

Later that night, we found ourselves back on the rooftop, the lilies sitting between us.

"You're quiet," Chou said, breaking the silence.

I shrugged, staring at the city below. "Just thinking."

"About the boy?"

"About everything."

Chou reached out, her fingers brushing against mine. "We did good, Hana. We saved him."

I looked at her, my chest tightening at the sincerity in her eyes.

"Yeah," I said softly. "We did."

As the night stretched on, the lilies swayed gently in the breeze, their petals glowing faintly under the stars.