Overly Inquisitive Minds [Asami, Julian]

It was already late into the night by the time Asami made it to the 1st Division archives, having spent the best part of the day working. She had debated with herself internally about whether this was the right way to go about things or not, but her curiosity had eventually won out over her sense of self-preservation. So here she was. Dressed in her typical office attire, with a folder tucked neatly inside her jacket that contained the list of names from Kyo's report and whatever details pertaining to this secretive mission that she had deemed pertinent to her investigation.

The matter had been weighing heavy on her mind ever since it had first come to her attention. Shady business involving both the 1st and 7th Divisions, dredging up records that predated the fourth world war and then some. Who were the players, and what was their actual objective? If it were something mundane then surely it would have been easier to just consult with the 5th Division, so there was definitely something untoward at stake. Furthermore, the fact that the Stealth Force were also the ones being left out of a clandestine operation only further solidified her suspicions.

Her only clue to start from was that approval had come from the 1st Division, if she was lucky then they might keep some internal records containing additional information when such a thing was issued. Failing in that, perhaps she might strike it lucky on pulling one of the other names out of a file and piecing something together.

So, with that in mind, she had negotiated access on the tentative premise of studying their filing system for potential cross-referencing with her own Division. She certainly looked the part, she hoped, though she would still have to stick her neck out a bit to pull anything actually useful out of them. That was how she found herself in that instant, thumbing through personnel records at a frightening pace with one eye on the names and another on her surroundings.

Julian was outright frustrated with his current situation. Not at the assignment itself, though admittedly that was entirely the reason for his state. Rather, he was simply frustrated that he was so thoroughly exhausted, and that a great deal of his work was proving rather impressively fruitless. All that he could do was continue his search, and his mind was focused overwhelmingly on the data he had already chosen to work around.

That was, frankly, the only reason that it did not occur to him to demand answers of a woman thumbing through records he had come to access himself.

"Ah, apologies. I was not aware someone else had come to access this particular section of the archives."

It was not so much that Julian had completely failed to understand the situation, naturally. He knew exactly how important this assignment was, and how much he needed to establish his own position as inherently valid. However, it did slip his mind that he, frankly, could simply have pulled rank on this matter.

The sight of someone else moving through the archives was not in itself something to be concerned with, but, as he made his way over to her, Asami slowed the speed at which she was sifting through files down to a steadier pace. The last thing she wanted to do was draw any more attention to herself than she was already doing. She didn't know why he would still be working at such an hour but there had to be some workaholics still in the Gotei.

She avoided turning to face him yet, content with the narrowest of views she could steal from the corner of her eye.

"Oh, it's alright. Glad I am not the only one burning the midnight oil. Was there a record you were after? I might have just gone past it."

Though she attempted to give off the impression of nonchalance, he had all of her attention in that moment. Not that she wanted him here, rather she wanted to expedite his exit with all haste so that she could get back to the task at hand. Were he persistent she would probably need an exit strategy, but that was a problem for future Asami.

"Several, actually. I won't bother trying to pronounce a handful of these names."

Simply showing Asami the list in question, Julian was admittedly a bit thankful for his own exhaustion. It was rather easy to mask one's capacity for subterfuge when one was so visibly exhausted. Of course, he had worked in far less pleasurable circumstances than this, but that was information very few were privy to.

"I'm quite surprised to come across anyone else at this hour. Doing a bit of bookkeeping?"

To Asami's benefit, Julian did not keep such impressive personal surveillance of the Gotei that he immediately recognized her as not being part of the 1st Division's army of bureaucrats. He had no reason to assume otherwise, either. At least, not yet.

"Sure, shouldn't be a prob.. lem."

There was a notable pause as he showed her the list of names. Perhaps it was because they were indeed a challenging set of names to pronounce and commit to memory, or perhaps it was because that same exact list was clutched tightly to her chest at this very moment. But he didn't know that, did he?

"Oh, you know, I just had some data to cross-reference with information from other divisions. Figured it would be easier to just handle it tonight when things were quiet rather than wait till morning."

She threw up a shy smile and stopped sifting long enough to begin twirling a strand of hair around her finger. An innocently airheaded distraction whilst her mind raced to process the fact that the Vice-Captain of the 3rd Division was looking into the exact same matter she was. Had he also been informed about this potential plot as she had been? Or was he in on it? Should she tell him or perhaps try to play it off as a fellow conspirator, regardless, bolting wasn't exactly an option after she'd just talked herself into a corner.

"Funny. I haven't seen any of those names yet, but perhaps their files are probably just buried a little deeper in."

Laughing nervously to herself, she got back to work picking through the records with one eye on the names and another on the man at her side.

Julian had been given no reason to assume that this woman had any reason for being here besides doing her job. Now, however, his mind had completely shifted gears. Her cool and professional demeanor had suddenly taken on a vapid tone, and even if such a change was quite minor, Julian was the sort for whom suspicion came exceptionally naturally.

"It's certainly much easier to work when not bothered by others, yes. If you wouldn't mind picking those files out for me, it'd be much appreciated."

For now, there was nothing more he could do but simply pay the closest attention to her words and her mannerisms. If this was indeed someone prying into their assignment, he would not hesitate to remove her from the equation.

It was too much of a coincidence, him being here at the same time as she was and looking for the same thing she was, Asami eventually concluded. Perhaps she was already under surveillance and this was an elaborate sting? Certainly a possibility, though it was still unlikely that she had made it this far without being alerted, or was she also losing her touch? It had been a hot minute since her last reconnaissance mission.

"Yeah, it's often better to work alone. No distractions. I can pick them out and bring them to you first thing tomorrow morning, if you'd prefer? Saves both of us having to stay here while I pick through this mess."

That might at least discern his intentions for the names. If he was truly involved then he would not want anyone even possibly looking at them, otherwise, this was all a hilarious coincidence and even had an actual reason for taking those files out for her perusal.

"No, thank you. I actually need those as soon as possible, so I'm perfectly glad to help you find them myself. Call it a time sensitive matter."

That was honestly entirely truthful, and if this weren't a matter of more or less utmost secrecy, he would have simply ordered her to get out of the way and told her directly how crucial this was. However, that was simply not an option, and so instead he had to apply the sort of tactics he hadn't needed to use in quite a while. It was almost nice.

"Besides, I don't have anything else I need to do right now that would take precedence over this, so it would be a waste for me to try and do something else."

There it was. That little bit of insistence revealed a fragment of the truth amidst the secrecy, so the dance began again in earnest. How was she meant to get a look at those files if he was right here with her? If he left with them, she might never see them again. Or maybe he even intended to destroy them so that the paper trail dried up.

"Of course, I would not turn down the extra hands. Besides, if you start at the other end then we can meet in the middle. Cuts down the waiting time a mite."

Asami shuffled to the side somewhat to give Julian more access to the documents, inviting him to join her. It was not like she could feasibly sneak a look at one of the files without being outed now anyway. Might as well push her luck a little further, see if there was anything of value left to be said.

"Those names must be a big deal if a Vice-Captain like you is pulling them up. Makes a girl wonder what the third division is cooking up?"

Her tone was more hushed on that last question. Not quite quiet enough that Julian wouldn't be able to hear it, but enough that it was intended to appear as her own thought and perhaps throw him off the scent.

"Ah, you're correct. Good thinking."

Julian could only assume that either she already had everything she needed, or that she simply didn't wish to contest him further on the matter. Either way, he moved to look through each file, thumbing through them one by one as he sought out a small few. Of course, at this point he wasn't even necessarily sure this would be too critical a job, given Elyss and Makoto were in the field already, but he wouldn't dream of failing to do his job.

"Our division is always up to a great deal. I don't mind your asking, but I would be careful with those sorts of questions. Captain Kurotsuchi is a bit of a wild card."

Of course that was a threat, but it was quite expertly worded to simply sound like earnest advice. Julian knew a thing or two about that.

"Hopefully we can find these relatively quickly. My wife is probably hoping to see me home before I'm too late to say goodnight to the children."