Shion's eyes crack open, a groan escaping her lips. She turns her head, spotting Patience's head laid out on her bed. Her gaze drifts to the roof.
"I failed the mission, huh..." A low chuckle rumbles. "Life's full of surprises."
Patience raises her head. Yawning. "Oh! You're awake."
Shion cracks a smile. "Thank you."
"What the. I'm the one to thank you instead. Lady.."
"Don't worry.. just call me Shion."
"Seriously? You'll let me call you by your name?"
"Yeah, only the boss gets to hit me with 'Shion'... but these other fools in the crew still drop it anyway. You good, go ahead and call me that too, no cap."
Patience let out a sigh. "Thank goodness, I'm glad you're okay."
Shion's countenance shines. Somehow the smile on her face still plays. "You know.. I had a sister too, her name is Mary."
"Ohh!!," Patience's eyes pop wide. "Really?"
"Yes. There is this innocence I felt from you, that I've never felt before.." her hand scrubs Patience cheek. "I'm sorry for punching you.."
"No please stop. You took a knife because of me. You almost died, but the other woman saved you. And now you're apologizing for punching me..? No you don't have to."
Patience eyebrow furrows. "What happened to your sister Mary?"
Shion's eyelids drop, recalling. "She died of a disease. I was only 11 by then. I left home, hated her for leaving me, hated myself for not dying with her, I put myself in excessive situations. But somehow I didn't die.
I got the title C-Smile at 17," she says, eyes narrowing slightly.
Patience's curiosity piques, "What does that mean?"
Shion's lips curve, a cold, calculated smile spreading across her face. "Means Crocodile's Smile."
Patience's brow furrows. "Crocodile's Smile?"
Shion's gaze drifts, lost in memories. She closes her eyes, the lids shielding a storm brewing within.
"Back in the far south where I grew up, nobody knew me – just a street girl with a sick sister, scavin' for scraps. I joined a gang of male cultists, fought like a beast, till I grew fangs of my own. Guns followed, 'til I mastered 'em too."
Her eyes snap open, glinting like steel. "I walked into a ring fight in Aizwatch. Used just my fists, killed a bunch of contestants. Got bored, left."
Patience's voice is barely a whisper, "You did all that at 17?"
Shion nods, a hint of a smirk playing on her lips. "Had to leave the South, I became too popular. People called me the Crocodile. Said I ruled the waters, fangs out. Beautiful but cruel. The smile's the beauty... you might judge me by looks, but end up getting' eaten."
"Wow, brutal. What about that man at the fortress, why's he so bent on killing you?"
Shion sighs, amusement dancing in her gaze. "That's Venus. The first boss to offer me ranks... I challenged him to a duel, he accepted." Her smirk deepens. "Kicked his butt. Deemed him not worthy of my services"
Night descends, shadows creeping in. Nina returns, eyes widening as she spots Shion dressed, sitting on the waiting area, holding Patience's hands.
"Nina's back!" Patience says.
Nina's gaze sweeps over Shion. "You're standing already?"
A facade of calmness plays on Shion's face. "Yeah, I'm better now."
"Oh my goodness... that's good then. We leave, the boss awaits. You've got answers to give." Nina turns, leaving. Shion stands, following. Patience tags along.
As they walk through the streets, heading for the hideout, Patience asks, "Nina... tell me, where are you from?"
Nina's gasp cuts through the air. "I was born in the North, but I never grew up there. I have lived my whole life in different towns."
Patience's eyes are narrow, curiosity etched on her face. "How'd you become so strong?"
Nina's smile is like a fleeting, bitter thing. "Interesting question. I got my powers from my boyfriend, Johnny. He taught me how to use guns... although I mastered the sniper on my own." Her voice drops to a whisper. "But this sniper... was the reason I lost him."
"Why?" Patience asks.
Nina's gaze drifts, pain etched on her face. "He trained me, yeah... but the moment I trained myself and became a top-class mercenary, he said, 'The Nina I know is the lovely medic, that stays a woman. Not a warrior.' He left.. and I've never seen him since."
Silence descends like a shroud, the air thick with unspoken emotions. The wind howls, whipping dust around them. Nina stops dead in her tracks, her head bowed.
"Shion... What are your intentions about this girl?" Her voice is barely audible.
Shion nods smiling. "If possible, I'll request for her to join us."
Nina's head snaps up, her voice menacing. "Enough of that crappy talk." Her finger tightens on the trigger, a cold glint in her eye. "An order from Master Jacob... the girl dies..."
Patience's eyes lock onto the sniper pointed at her. Her heart racing. Shion's expression changes, her eyes narrowing as she reads the tension and panic in Patience's face.
In a twinkle of momentum. Shion steps forward, her voice low and deadly. "Nina, stand down."
Nina flicks her eyes to Shion. Her finger still tight on the trigger.