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It was the end of the world.
Or, at least, most of the members of the Future Foundation's 14th Division were drinking like it was.
It was the organization's 2nd Founding Anniversary, and the FF's leader, Kazuo Tengan, had authorized certain branches to take leave for a long-weekend retreat to Hokkaido as his way of thanking them for all their hard work. The anniversary just so happened to also fall on the same weekend that the Sapporo Snow Festival would begin, so it seemed that their vacation was very well meant to be.
Along with some of the higher-ups, The 14th Division was selected (naturally) without second thought to embark on the trip. Not only were they the branch that consisted of mostly Hope's Peak Alumni and few else, but also the six survivors of Enoshima's game (though Toko Fukawa was only taken on as a temp, much to the others' quiet outrage).
They were the Future Foundation's poster children, so to speak. They brought them good publicity and needed to be rewarded.
"Or groomed and kept from snuffing out less-than upstanding conduct," Kyoko Kirigiri had deadpanned on the train to Hokkaido the day before, suspicious that *they* specifically were being carted off for a reason.
Makoto Naegi, her best friend and subordinate, had tried to get her to relax.
"Come on, Kyoko. We all deserve a break, right? It's been a really long year, and I can't think of anyone who needs some serious time off more than you," he'd teased.
But Kyoko wasn't so sure.
"Be that as it may," she'd responded, lips pursed in thought as one gloved hand moved to support her chin, "I can't seem to shake the feeling that we're being sent away for some ulterior motive. It's especially strange that Tengan would spend so frivolously on what's just barely a paid vacation. And I have to say, I'm surprised that you're not more concerned about this." She'd cast him a sideways glance, believing better of his deductive skills by now.
Makoto merely shrugged. "Eh, call it burnout or whatever, but I'm just excited to get away for a change. Things have been crazy lately, and I'm looking forward to spending some time with you," his voice had dropped as he took a look around to be sure that no one was spying on them. "Ya know, outside of work."
Kyoko hadn't really been able to argue there. It *had* been far too long since they'd gotten to occupy their time with anything besides the staggering workload they were regularly faced with. And with the classified project they were currently at the helm of organizing...a rehabilitative program that scientists were calling the Neo World...
In short, all the sneaking around and going behind their superiors' backs to orchestrate such a project was certainly taking it's toll in wearing them out. So, Kyoko had made the decision then to try and let her hair down that weekend - to take advantage of their opportunity away from tireless shifts and research. Though her detective's instincts were as sharp as ever and functioned at high velocity whether she wanted them to or not, she was going to try her damnedest to take Makoto's advice and have *fun*. She resolved to deal with the consequences (if any) and play catch-up later, back home.
So here she was now, on a Saturday night at the club located in the lobby of their hotel in Hokkaido, nursing a cocktail as she hung towards the back with Makoto, Hina, Byakuya, Toko, and Hiro, observing with slight distaste (but mostly amusement) as their cohorts made fools of themselves.
No expense really had been spared for them when Tengan insisted on renting out an entire block of rooms and reserving certain areas of the hotel and grounds just for the Future Foundation's festivities. A well-known American DJ had even been hired to play an eclectic blend of old and current hits as everyone got drunk on free booze and toasted to their successes.
Kyoko was not a heavy drinker herself by any means, but the spirits she did prefer were as old as her Grandfather's taste. She never failed to raise the eyebrows of bartenders when she'd order old brandy like Hennessey.
"A detective's drink of choice," she told Byakuya while he looked on in approval.
"Classic. At the least, two of us can hold our liquor well," he snickered, glancing purposefully to Makoto and Hina. Hina was a loud and bubbly drunk, while Makoto was a classic lightweight; barely half a glass of champagne in and he was already buzzed and even easier than usual to make laugh. It was a...pleasant discovery for Kyoko to make that night.
"Hey! I don't know what you're talking about. I'm fiiiiiine!" Hina defended herself a little too loudly over the thrumming bass line and booming kick of the song currently playing. "Makoto is waaay worse than me," she continued, slinging an arm around said-boy. "He's barely had a few sips and he's already perkier than usual!"
Makoto laughed good-naturedly. "No argument there, heh. But I'm not really a fan of anything except champagne. And anyhow, I wouldn't wanna end up like poor Mitarai." He referenced Tengan's young intern, who'd been talked into doing shots with Koichi Kizakura, Gozu, and a few of their buddies earlier that night. Long story short, Mitarai was now paying the price for it in the club restroom.
Kyoko grimaced. "A rookie's mistake," she agreed with another glance around the room. Ruruka Ando and her boyfriend Sonosuke Izayoi were shamelessly making out in a booth while Seiko Kimura excused herself from their table. Chisa Yukizome was dragging their boss, Kyosuke Munakata, practically by his ear to the dance floor, while Juzo Sakakura hung back by himself in the shadows. It was an interesting change of pace to see everyone let loose and step out of their usually professional personas for once.
And it was something Kyoko had never had the luxury of as a detective. If she was playing a part for the sake of an investigation, then she played the part and played it well. But beneath the facade, what was required of her above all else was to remain level-headed and neutral. It made it very difficult to let loose at all, at any time, even when she wasn't working. There was always suspicious activity that she needed to keep an eye out for, always something to think about.
Suddenly she was called from her thoughts by the sound of something familiar, and Kyoko blinked as she noticed that the DJ had changed songs. Her heart skipped a beat when she recognized one of her favorites. Something she'd listened to with her iPod on repeat during her freshman year of high school, (before Hope's Peak), even memorizing all the lyrics by heart at one point. A genre of music and a type of song that no one would *ever* guess she'd listen to if they were to judge her just by her seriousness alone, but a song she still loved nonetheless. Just Dance by Lady Gaga. A party anthem of the 2000's.
A wave of nostalgia for her teen years pre-despair washed over her like the memory of an old friend. She didn't even notice as she began to sway in time with the beat, lyrics effortlessly returning to the forefront of her mind as she silently mouthed along to them.
She heard a gasp to her left and sharply turned her head to look for it's source, finding Makoto beaming at her in a way she'd never seen him smile before.
"What?" She asked, tucking a strand of her hair back behind her ear self consciously. Makoto's grin remained.
"Do you like this song?" He asked her, an excited pitch in his voice.
Kyoko blushed. No use in denying it. "Um, yes. I know it doesn't seem like my particular taste in music, but I like to listen to a lot of different things."
"No I agree, it's a *great* song! And you were just totally dancing to it!" He said, obviously very delighted by *something*. Kyoko cleared her throat, autopilot threatening to come back on.
"No I wasn't."
"Yes, yes you *were*. Kyoko," Makoto said then, drawing back his shoulders to appear all his height, which wasn't too much at 5"3, but still at least a few inches taller than her. He took her glass from her and passed it to Hina for safe keeping, then moved to face Kyoko with his hand extended.
"Come on. Dance with me." He said, low enough so only she could hear him. She noticed that it wasn't a question.
"Makoto, I can't dance. I don't know how."
"Neither do I! It's okay, really. You just let your body move to the music and have fun. I promise I'll do my best not to step on your toes," he chuckled, flexing the hand still offered to her.
Kyoko's heart leapt to her throat, some deeper part of her excited by the prospect of what he was offering. Should she?
"Well, I'm not sure I-"
She interrupted her own protest with a gasp as Makoto suddenly took her gloved hand in his without another word, pulling her carefully but confidently to him, out of the shadows and onto the dancefloor.
The reflective light of the mirror ball above them dazzled the room and flecked his hazel eyes with gold as the crowd around them was drowned out by the melody of her favorite song...and the touch of her favorite person.
Makoto's face was inches from her own as their hands stayed clasped together. She lost her breath as he smiled at her, tossing his head back as he began to move his body along to the rhythm of the music, encouraging her to do the same.
Fuck it all. She was going to allow this joy that was filling her up to the brim to take over for tonight.
Kyoko found herself following *his* lead for a change then, as she released the tension in her body and allowed herself to dance with Makoto. They bobbed their heads and shoulders. They moved their feet from side to side. He spun her around and she laughed, *laughed*, as though she were a young girl spinning alone in her room again before the weight of the world had crashed in. Except that she very much so *wasn't* alone in her room. She was dancing with Makoto.
She cherished his fingers lacing together with her own every time he led her away from someone they'd gotten too close to in their haphazard movement, and for the first time in a long time, she wished away her layer of leather so that she could revel in the feeling of his skin for herself. Her heart was hammering against her ribs, but it wasn't out of fear or anticipation for something bad to happen.
It was because she had feelings for him, she realized in a moment of astonished honesty. Makoto was the only person in the world she had ever felt this way about. She was breathless as she danced with him, captivated by the gold in his eyes and his brilliant smile and the dimple on his left cheek that only appeared when she made him laugh. She'd known for a long time, since the old days of their killing school life, and they'd shared moments between now and then, of course. But their work was involved and dangerous, and they both needed to focus on so many different things...
The DJ suddenly began to transition to the next song, which just so happened to be a down tempo number...a slow dance. Panting, both of them looked to each other with flushed cheeks, and there was a sheepish expression on Makoto's face.
He rubbed the back of his neck nervously before he offered his hand to her again. "I know I should be grateful for the last one, ya know, since you don't dance," he giggled. "But...may I please have this one, too?"
He didn't need to ask. Kyoko stepped closer into his space, hazily taking note of the hints of mint citrus and patchouli from his cologne, mixing with the natural scent of his skin as she wordlessly placed one hand on his shoulder, and used the other to guide his hand to her waist. "I'd love nothing more," she said, smiling at his stunned expression as she rested her cheek against his, shutting her eyes as they began to sway.
*
In a snow covered courtyard just outside of the club later, Kyoko was grateful for loud music and distracted co-workers and the fact that she'd discovered this private little clearing the night before on a detective's excursion around the hotel to ensure their safety.
Because their lips were pushing together and pulling apart, the smacking sound echoing in the night air and making her head swim with need. Because her back was pressed up against the wall of the hotel as Makoto's kisses left her mouth and traced her jawline before traveling down her neck to her collar bone. Because they were both hot despite the cold and panting and looked anything but professional as her bare fingers got tangled and lost in his hair, (gloves discarded to the ground for now), and his warm hands both served to hold her steady and send her reeling as they explored her.
In the back of her mind, the part that wasn't melting as she kissed the only man who'd ever made her feel this alive, Kyoko resolved to make more time to let go and allow hope into her life.
In more ways than one.