Kellen ran into not a single soul on his way back up to his apartment. He was beginning to worry no one else lived upstairs besides him and the Captain. Once in his apartment, he made quick work of cleaning himself. He did take a second to appreciate the water pressure of the shower, but only a second. He was never going to admit it was better than what he'd had at home. Deciding he couldn't wear sweatpants all the time outside of his uniform, he pulled on one of two pairs of jeans he owned, and pulled on a dark blue t-shirt that he owned.
Heading back downstairs, he ran into the two lieutenants just outside the front door of the gym like they had promised, only they had a joiner. Casper was chatting with the two other lieutenants, clearly catching up. From the two Esper's appearance it was clear they had also taken a shower, and were in casual civilian clothing as well. Hill was the first to notice him as he approached, and she waved wildly, her smile infectious.
"Kellen! Casper here wanted to join us. I'm sure you're fine with that?" She confirmed and Kellen smiled with ease.
"The more the merrier I say." Casper had seemed nervous at first, but relaxed at his easy agreeance.
"I clearly missed out on something yesterday, but I was worried I was inviting myself to your group." He said, and Hill wrapped her arm around his shoulders.
"Casper, Casper, Casper, you are just a cute little Guide! Who would ever think that of you?" Her eyes sparkled with mischief. "Say, Captain Thatcher's all paired up, and it would probably look good if two lieutenants paired up, so what say you about me and you getting together? I don't think our compatibility is bad, and I'll treat you well. You can do whatever you want." She winked at him, while Casper had a horrified look on his face. Kellen had to hide his laughter, knowing that Hill wasn't serious. Gunther swooped in for the save. He snorted.
"He's too good for you, Hill. From what I saw, your compatibility isn't even 55%. Why would a man who has seen what 90% and 70% looks like settle for less than that?" Casper seemed stunned that Gunther said that, while Hill had dropped her jaw. Kellen came in with the finisher, for both Espers.
"Of course he's too good for you. He's too good for everyone in this Guild. Have you seen Casper? He's the ideal Guide, and he's well spoken. Honestly, I could see him being poached away if we don't treat him well." Even Gunther had a stunned look on his face while Casper's ears were turning pink. Kellen smirked. "Besides all of Casper, I can't really see you settling down with anyone, Hill." Her face flushed at his teasing, and Gunther cleared his throat.
"Well, we can't have Cas leaving us. He's the glue that's held us together before Kellen arrived." Kellen watched as Gunther licked his lips nervously. "Is there...anyone you're interested in, Cas?" Casper almost choked, Hill gave Gunther a wide eyed look, and this time Kellen was the one to step in.
"Casper told me that he never wanted to get tested again, so I'm going to take it that as long as you make sure that doesn't happen, Casper belongs to the Guild. Right, Casper?" Kellen shot the man a smile, while Gunther seemed shocked, and Casper's whole face was bright red.
"Haha, yup. Kellen's right about that." Casper's voice seemed higher than normal, but Kellen just took it to mean he wasn't teased as often as the others were. Gunther chuckled nervously, while Kellen gave a nod.
"D-Did Kellen make you blush, Hill? We can't have Rhys finding out about that." Gunther tried to steer the conversation back, and it seemed everyone was willing to follow him. Kellen took great pleasure out of being able to get them so worked up, considering that they had a great time making fun of him.
"T-That's not fair! Kellen has background knowledge on me from the front lines." Kellen smirked at Hill's protests.
"I love to research things. You were the easiest to get information on out of all the lieutenants, especially because we were on the front lines and I had more access to you. I needed information on all of you way back in the day because I knew nothing about the Guilds at the time." Kellen told them as they all began to move towards the elevators. Gunther moved especially quickly, getting to the elevators first and pressing the button. Gunther cast a look back at him, raising an eyebrow.
"You looked into us before you started working with us?" Gunther's tone was slightly suspicious, and Kellen gave him a disbelieving look. The elevator opened right away and the four of them stepped inside.
"Of course. Didn't you guys look into me before you hired me?" Hill shook her head, pulling a lollipop out of thin air and shoving it into her mouth.
"Nope. Not at all. We didn't look into you until after you pulled off the damn near impossible." She told him cheerfully, already over her upset. It was one of her best traits.
"That surprises me. I would have thought you would have been more cautious." Especially after Gunther's reaction to the information that Kellen had looked into them. Casper coughed, glancing at the other Guide.
"Don't take this the wrong way, but you're a Guide Kelle, and you were just some random C Class Field Guide. What was the worst you could have done to us? Hurt their feelings?" He laughed, halting Kellen from protesting. Kellen knew of several worse things he could have done. "At least, that's how they thought at the time. Apparently, the real answer was ensnare our Captain in a seductive honey trap you wouldn't act upon until seven years later." Kellen's jaw dropped and Casper winked at him. But, instead of getting offended, or overly embarrassed, a fit of giggles overtook the Guide. They arrived at the cafeteria, and Kellen finally caught his breath enough to be able to respond.
"Oh, ah, of course. Like any great little Guide out there, I am capable of swinging my very thin hips but thick ass like the best of them." All three of them had wide eyes as Kellen's shoulder shook as he continued. "I can be coy and demure just like my Guide textbooks taught me." Casper couldn't contain himself and burst into laughter, taking his glasses off so they wouldn't fall off of his face. The two Espers were staring at them with wide eyes full of confusion. Casper grabbed Kellen's shoulder, giving it a squeeze as he wheezed.
"I never expected you of all people to say that." He muttered, his eyes dancing with laughter. You said something about me being a perfect Guide earlier, didn't you?" Kellen nodded at his question. Kellen took a moment to glance around, surprised by how many people were still here for dinner, but then again, this was a huge guild. Not everyone had a 9-5. "Wild. Did you read the textbooks front to back?" Kellen nodded again.
"Yeah. Do you think my father is someone who let me slack in my studies? Or Gwen? If we weren't doing our best, we were torn a new one. I also happen to like studying." Casper shook his head, putting his glasses back on.
"That...makes sense." His shoulders shook. "I don't think I can imagine you as a 'classic' Guide Kellen. You, sitting all prim and proper waiting for the right Esper to have a near perfect compatibility score with you. Then that same Esper sweeping you off of your feet and into the sunset where you sit at home in an apartment fully protected and docile. Not a thought in sight, not a wish or a dream. Just making your Esper happy." Kellen, gleeful he had someone to riff off of, let out a wistful sigh, cupping his face in his hands.
"Oh, but I do wish for that life Casper. If only I wasn't graced with these wide shoulders, thick thighs, and rippling muscles." Kellen made sure his voice was soft and wistful and Casper snorted.
"How tragic. What a crime that you weren't built like a delicate flower, with arms and legs that could snap in the wrong breeze. What a harsh, cruel hand the world has dealt you." Casper matched Kellen's tone exactly, and both Guides were giggling like children while the Espers around them seemed confused, if not concerned. Kellen playfully hit Casper's shoulder.
"And what a nightmare for you too, Casper. Being forced into a position of authority so you can't spend seven hours a day wistfully sighing out the window. I am so sorry for you. When will your big, bad Esper come and whisk you away from this life of utter hardship?" Casper placed his hand against his forehead, pretending to faint.
"You are so right Kellen. Why, I get faint at the thought of potentially never meeting them. I do hope they show up soon. I am so anxious to meet them." Casper was good at acting. When they made eye contact the two of them burst into laughter. The poor Espers were staring at them like they had two heads.
"That was so much fun. I haven't done something like that since my academy days." Kellen said as soon as he got his breath back. Casper's eyes were bright as he looked at the fellow Guide.
"Really? Don't your friends from your year group joke like that?" Kellen made a face at Casper's words. He covered it up quickly with a shoulder shrug and a small smile.
"Well, not really. They've all spread out among the other Guiding Centers and are too busy with their lives to hang out. Besides, they were so focused on getting good jobs that they didn't really want to joke around." Casper frowned, but Gunther interrupted his question.
"Okay, I am sure that Hill and I are missing something. What on earth are you two going on about?" He asked as Hill handed out trays to everyone, moving into the small line waiting to grab food.
"Yeah, it's actually very creepy that you two were able to do that." Hill added. Kellen started explaining.
"Of course it isn't anything you would understand. You two are Espers." They made faces at the plain way Kellen said that. "In the school we went to for Guides, they liked to show videos. There was a lady who filmed videos back in the day full of information for Guides. They are just horrific. Full of information that's super dated, but they continue to play them as a sign that Guides can be anything you want. They can want Espers to take care of them, never get a job, never do anything really. Her ideal Guide was someone who stayed at home and are at an Esper's beck and call. They're like a bird in a cage. That's not true for everyone anymore. Most, actually." Kellen told them and Casper sighed.
"Yeah. She also shamed body types like Kellen's because he wouldn't look like an injured baby bird even if he starved himself. She encouraged Guides to learn nothing but ways to keep Espers, and that was it. She really did a number on the image people had of Guides, and we're still dealing with it to this day. It's why some Espers think that Guides are their property." Hill and Gunther cleared their throats, and Casper and Kellen shared a look.
"Is Casper wrong about something you two? You're not saying anything." They continued to avoid answering the Guide as they reached the front of the line and began putting food on their trays. "Guys?" Kellen prompted even as they also put food on their trays. Kellen two three plates while Casper took two. Casper saw something that looked nutritious and added it to the other's plate.
"Well..." Gunther finally started once everyone had gathered their own food and they found a table. "I wouldn't say she's the one who started the problem. I am sure you two are aware how unstable some Espers are, correct?" Both Guide's nodded. "Well, some of that instability is that as much as Espers are important and do a lot for society, we don't have a lot we can call our own. Most of us lost our families in a horrific accident, or they disowned us. It doesn't always happen immediately, sometimes it happens after we get famous. So when we start to doing compatibility tests and get someone with a high match rate, that feels like a little gift."
"'Ah~, finally, someone who can understand me and who would never leave me. I can't let this person go.'" Hill added to Gunther's words before shoving a forkful of food into her mouth. Casper and Kellen nodded.
"Yeah, that makes sense. I've had several high scores with others and that was the feeling that I got from them after I said no to them." Casper said, and Kellen sighed.
"I guess in my case I had more of an Esper view on this, but that's because I've never had good scores with anyone until now. But I'd never tuck the Captain away from the outside world for my own selfish concerns. Plus, he's his own person." Gunther shook his head.
"Then you aren't thinking like an Esper, Kellen. You forgot the crazy gene all Espers have. The fanatical obsession and worry that someone else might take away what is yours. Honestly, I don't want a high compatibility score like you and Rhys. I'm worried I'd become a fucking monster once I found them. I don't get tested anymore because of that fear. There is a part of me that doesn't feel truly safe to be around Guides." Casper and Kellen stared at him, and Gunther mistook it for fear. He laughed and raised his hands in a placating way. "Of course, never around you two. Rhys is like a brother to me, so I wouldn't even dream of it. Casper has seen too many of my bad sides for me to even think about acting up." Kellen glanced at Casper, noticing a subtle shift in his person before he covered it up again.
"We're not looking at you because we're scared of you Gunther, we're looking at you because you should be talking to a therapist if these are thoughts you are having. Have you spoken to an Esper therapist before about these thoughts? We have a good one employed here." Casper said, and Gunther paled.
"I am not going to therapy. There isn't anything wrong with me you two. I was just joking, you know? Relating to the real crazy ones." No one was buying it. Even Hill was giving him a side eye. Kellen shoved a huge bite into his mouth before speaking, pointing his fork at the Esper.
"You should go to therapy. I did it for a while. It does help." The table seemed shocked at Kellen's easy admittance.
"Why the hell did you go to therapy?" Gunther demanded, and Kellen was a little offended by his tone. Kellen shrugged.
"Therapy isn't just for the crazies, Gunther. But in this case that was true. I had some issues I needed to work through." He didn't elaborate, and no one asked for further clarification. "Either way, I think you should look into it. Say you go to one session and you hate it. Great. At least you tried." Gunther narrowed his eyes at the two Guides who sat side by side.
"The two of you are an awful tag team. I feel like I can't say no to Kellen's smiling face and Casper's serious one." Kellen smiled at his words.
"Good. I'm glad all that training I did to become an absolute problem for difficult Espers worked. Wouldn't you agree, Casper?" He nodded very seriously.
"I'll have to make a journal update in the national Guide database that we are on the right track with the higher Class Espers." Kellen snorted with laughter at his serious tone. The confused looks on Gunther's and Hill's face were priceless.
"You two are joking, right? There isn't some secret document kept by all Guides that they use to keep track of Esper's behaviour, right?" Hill asked, and Kellen shrugged.
"Maybe not at an international level, but Guiding Centers keep track of all the Esper's that come through their doors so that they can treat them better." They both paled. "It's common practise. Casper probably has a similiar list for the Esper's in the Guild too. Honestly, I'm more surprised that you two never thought it was strange before how Guide's tend to know what you need the most. Even if some Guide's can read the room so to speak, not all of us can." Hill slammed her hand down on the table.
"I thought that was just some kind of Guide power, I never thought...that they were keeping tabs on us! Ugh! That means some of my exes have added to the database about what kind of person I am." She complained and Kellen patted the hand she slammed on the table comfortingly.
"We keep it professional Hill. Your exes wouldn't have said anything bad about your personality or anything else as long as it wasn't pertinent to the file." The smile Kellen gave her didn't seem to reassure her. Casper and Kellen finished their food while the Espers came to terms with something they had never considered. Gunther watched Casper in particular before speaking.
"Cas, would you have brought this up on you own without Kellen here?" He asked and Casper took a moment to consider before he responded.
"I don't think so. I haven't had too many friends who are Guides at the same Class as me. Not that the Guides in the division aren't nice, but there is a discrepancy in power between us. With Kellen here, it feels like I finally have someone who is my equal who understands where my perspective comes from. Even if he's only been an A Class for a few days, he doesn't give off that vibe. He's also so friendly that it's hard not to like him." Kellen could feel his face going red in embarrassment. A familiar shadow fell over him.
"Making friends again, are we Mr. Woods?"