They never did make it to Interpol headquarters that day. Instead, Tomo escorted Chiyo to her apartment on the Upper East Side, and gave the younger woman her cell phone number, telling her to call should something come up. Chiyo took the slip of paper and read it over, as if memorizing the number, then tucked it into a small pocket on the side of her bag.
       "You sure you gonna be okay?" Tomo asked, just as she was about to leave.
       "Y—yeah. I think so."
       Tomo gave Chiyo a wary glance. "All right, if you say so. But if anything happens—"
       "—I know, I know," Chiyo kindly interrupted. "Give you a call."
       "Right," Tomo said, nodding once for emphasis. "See you tomorrow?"
       "Sure thing!"
       Chiyo walked past the doorman on duty and entered her building, as Tomo walked back down the street, into the dimming light of the afternoon.

       Chiyo found that she couldn't sleep very well that night, though this discovery certainly came as no surprise. The day's events left her a nervous wreck, and due to her paranoia, she even slept with one lamp turned on. With men in black suits hunting her down in real life, and haunting her in her mind, she wasn't prepared to take any chances whatsoever. Not even with her building's entire contingent of night-shift security guards on duty, who had all been alerted and notified about her nearly being kidnapped. She felt very fortunate that Tomo, of all people, had shown up when she did.
       Because she wasn't able to sleep very well, Chiyo barely managed to pull herself out of bed the next morning. She was absolutely dead tired, yet despite her exhaustion, she dutifully began her morning routine and got ready for work. It was while she was brewing a pot of coffee that she heard a knock at her door.
       Chiyo shuddered. It was rare that she'd receive a knock without getting a call from the doorman first. Most any guests she received had to go through him. Had the person who had just knocked somehow bypassed security? Could it be another one of those men in black?
       She shook the nervousness out of her system and took a deep breath. This is ridiculous, she told herself. It's probably one of the security personnel, or maybe even one of my neighbors. I've got to stop being so paranoid, or I'll become a nervous wreck!
       As the knocks came again, she walked up to the door, gripped the handle, and took another deep breath. Well, here goes…
       Chiyo opened the door and came face to face with not merely one or two, but all four of the men in black that she had encountered the previous day. Trembling, Chiyo couldn't so much as yell as the men strode into the room, and she walked backwards from the door, trying to keep as much of a distance between her and them as she possibly could. Unfortunately, she couldn't keep this up for long, and she soon found herself backed up against the wall, sandwiched between two of the windows that offered her a magnificent view of Central Park.
       She stared up at the men, realizing that this was the first time she actually noted what they looked like. All four of them seemed to be of different races, maybe even different nationalities. There was a Japanese guy with short cropped black hair, a man who looked to be of Russian or Eastern European descent—and was a dead ringer for the man that she and Tomo had seen in the bar, an African American with a smoothly-shaved head, and a guy with brown skin whose exact race Chiyo found difficult to recognize. It was the Japanese guy who spoke to her first; talking in her native language, as he had done on that street corner yesterday.
       "Now, can we convince you to come with us? You don't have much of a choice."
       Chiyo trembled, and was barely able to whimper, "Wh—what do you want with me?"
       "Our boss will give you all the details later, I'm sure. In the meantime, don't worry about it. Now, we have to leave soon, so you better get ready. Don't worry, we aren't going to hurt you…"
       "No, but I'm going to be hurting you!"
       The four men turned their heads in the direction the voice had come from. In the meantime, Chiyo's fright had been replaced by a sense of relief, as she recognized the voice as belonging to her friend.
       "Tomo!" she cried. "Thank goodness you're here!"
       "Well, once I saw those knocked out security guards and doormen downstairs, I knew something was up," Tomo said with a wink. She approached the men in black with a confident stride, even as the men pulled out pistols and aimed them at her. Still, that wasn't enough to stop her in her tracks, and as she continued forward, the men's eyes boggled at her as if she was crazy. The guy Tomo nicknamed "Jigen" raised his gun to his eye level; his hands trembled.
       "Hey Jigen, didn't they ever tell you that you have to hold your gun steady when you aim it?" Tomo quipped, right before executing a swift upper kick that knocked the gun out of Jigen's hand, where it flipped in the air and crash-landed into a porcelain vase that sat on a small birch end-table.
       "My vase!" Chiyo cried.
       The Japanese guy started toward Tomo, but she countered him with another kick, sending him sprawling across the floor, blood trickling from his mouth onto the elaborately patterned carpet beneath him.
       "No! My rug! It was a housewarming gift from the Turkish Ambassador's secretary's husband!"
       Now it was the black guy's turn. Unlike the others, he had actually managed to let off a shot at the Interpol intern. Tomo quickly dodged the bullet by ducking, then swept her leg at her attacker's shins. He fell to the floor, and his gun went flying up in the air and through the glass window.
       "Aaaargh!" Chiyo yelled. "Make it stop!"
       "I'm trying, Chiyo, I'm trying!"
       "Tomo, I'm talking about you—aaack!" Chiyo suddenly felt an arm roughly encircle her neck, nearly choking her, as well as the barrel of a gun pressed against her temple. With not enough wiggle room left to tremble, she opted for tears instead.
       "Don't move, girlie," the final man in black said to Tomo, "or your little friend here gets her brains blown out!"
       "Ha!" Tomo replied, standing legs astride and with hands on hips. "You wouldn't dare!"
       The man gripped onto Chiyo even tighter. "And why wouldn't I, eh?"
       "Because it's obvious that your boss wants Chiyo alive. After all, why else would you only pull out your guns when I enter the room? If your goal was to kill her, wouldn't it have made sense to do so before I showed up?"
       The man looked at Tomo dumbfounded, then steeled his resolve and pulled the gun from Chiyo's head, only to clench his now-free arm around her waist. "Don't try and talk some sense into this, girlie! You aren't going to stop us from completing our mission!"
       Tomo grinned. "Which is…?"
       "To bring Ms. Mihama here back to Japan and—"
       The man was interrupted by a huge chunk of crystal flying through the air and smacking the man in the head. The man let go of Chiyo and collapsed to the floor, knocked out by what turned out to be a crystal sculpture of a panda. Chiyo, relieved to see that at least this piece of furnishing was neither scratched nor chipped, joined Tomo in looking over at the Japanese guy who had thrown the panda at his fellow man in black.
       "Shut up… you stupid… idiot," said the Japanese guy before passing out again. Tomo dusted her hands off.
       "Well, looks like I got here at a good time! And thanks to me, we know where this mysterious kidnapper of yours is located!"
       "Yeah, but…" Chiyo mumbled, looking around at the wreckage in her apartment with no small degree of annoyance, "did you really have to make such a mess?"

       Despite Tomo's protests, Chiyo called the local police. After they showed up, Chiyo gave them her full account of what happened. One of the cops looked over at Tomo, who was sulking in the kitchen, sitting on a bar stool and nursing a glass of water.
       "You mean, that girl in the kitchen knocked out all of these guys?"
       "Yeah," Chiyo replied, looking over at Tomo. "She's my friend, who works for—" She stopped short, noticing that Tomo was glaring at her, as if giving her a warning not to say too much.
       "Who does she work for?" the cop asked.
       Chiyo turned back to face the cop, fumbling for words. "Um… one of those New York Sports Clubs. You know, those fitness centers? She teaches martial arts courses twice a week." Just within earshot, Chiyo could've sworn she heard Tomo breathe a sigh of relief.
       "Hmm… maybe I'll have to take classes from her sometime. Well, if there's nothing else, we'll be on our way. If you don't hear from us about the arraignment within a few days, give us a call."
       "Will do, officer! Thanks for your time!"
       The cop tipped his hat at Chiyo as his fellow policemen escorted the last of the men in black out of Chiyo's apartment. "Not a problem, little lady. We're just doing our jobs."
       With the men in black in tow, the policemen left, and the apartment fell silent. Tomo lifted her head up and eased off of her stool.
       "You didn't have to bring the NYPD into this," Tomo muttered. "I could've handled this situation on my own."
       "I'm not sure about that, Tomo. All this seems to be a much bigger task than one person could handle," Chiyo replied, as she did her best to straighten her furniture and recreate at least some sense of normalcy. All of a sudden, a thought struck her, and she turned back to her friend. "Say, you haven't reported any of this to Interpol yet, have you?"
       "Of course not! Why would I do that?"
       "Well, once the cops find out that my would-be kidnappers have international origins…"
       Tomo walked into the living room and sank down on Chiyo's plush leather sofa. "Oh man, oh man, I didn't think of that!"
       "And then there was my boss, Ambassador Tadakichi. Didn't you tell him that you were an Interpol agent?"
       "That's it! I'll be kicked off the internship for sure. I mean, impersonating an agent is a serious offense, right?"
       Chiyo nodded. "I imagine it would be. So Tomo, before you get in any more trouble—"
       "—We have to book a flight to Tokyo!"
       "Right. We have to—NO! That's not it!"
       Tomo grinned and leaned back on the sofa, folding her legs. Despite the potential amount of trouble she was in, Tomo was as cool and casual as ever, which unnerved Chiyo to no end. "Of course that's it, Chiyo-chan! Think about it. Those guys who were after you—one of them said that he was told to bring you to Japan. Therefore, to get to the bottom of this mystery, we have to head there ourselves!"
       Shuddering, Chiyo replied, "B-but wouldn't that mean potentially putting us even closer to the source of all this danger? Do you really think that's the right thing to do?"
       "Damn betcha!" Tomo said with a wink. "We have to root out the danger to its very source, and stop this kidnapper before his nefarious plans come to pass!"
       "W-what nefarious plans?"
       "Well, whatever he wants to accomplish by kidnapping you, of course! Your family still has tons of money, right?"
       Chiyo sighed. "Yeah, but I didn't think it was so much that people would send men like those all the way to America to kidnap me, and bring me to Japan."
       "Hmm… good point," Tomo said, scratching the back of her head. She stood up. "Well, whatever it is, we're going to find out and put a stop to it! Now, pack your bags, while I go and book us a flight. See you in an hour?"
       "Y-yeah, sure… I guess…" Chiyo said, sinking into an armchair. There really was no point to arguing any more. Whatever plans Tomo would come up with by this point were going to be those she would stick to, no matter what. There would be no way to sway her in another direction.
       "Great! I'll be back soon, okay?"
       "Okay."
       Tomo left the apartment, slamming the door behind her with such force, that a picture frame—that contained an original Andy Warhol print—was shaken loose from its position on the wall and fell to the floor, where the glass cracked. Chiyo buried her face in her hands and breathed steadily, wondering what exactly she was going to tell the Ambassador regarding this new development in her currently way-too-exciting life.

*****

       Tomo came back to Chiyo-chan's, as she said she would, approximately one hour later. During that past hour, she went home and booked the first flight she could get, a one-way to Tokyo with a stopover in Los Angeles, on a fledgling carrier named Lo-Budget Airways. Then, after packing a suitcase with various articles of clothing, as well as other necessities, she left her apartment and took the next subway train out of Queens and back to the Upper East Side. After signing in with the man at the front desk—a guy that she hadn't seen this morning, probably a replacement for the previous desk manager who was knocked out by the men in black—she madder her way up to Chiyo's suite.
       Chiyo opened the door, and Tomo was at once curious and unnerved to see that she was talking on the phone as she did so. Who was she talking to? The Ambassador? One of her supervisors at Interpol? Whoever it was, it didn't matter—Chiyo had to get off the phone with them now, as their flight was leaving in a couple hours, and they still had to get to the airport. Tomo motioned to Chiyo that she ought to wrap it up, and let her impatience be known by alternately pacing about the living room, and drumming her fingers on a nearby side table.
       Finally, Chiyo hung up the phone, and came before Tomo with an irritated look on her face. "What was all that about? I was just letting the Ambassador know what was going on!"
       Tomo glared at Chiyo. "Oh, really? And just what did you tell our friend, Ambassador Tadakichi?"
       "I told him that I have a bit of a family emergency, and that I have to go back to Japan for a few days," Chiyo said brightly.
       Tomo was relieved that Chiyo-chan wasn't about to let on the whole truth, but there was still one thing that nagged at her. Obviously, with everything that was going on, she wasn't sure that the Ambassador would buy such a simple explanation. "How did you explain the men in black?"
       Chiyo shrugged. "I said that I wasn't sure who they were, but my dad did, and needed to discuss something important with me in person. He trusts me, so he didn't argue much."
       Tomo nodded, then paused. It was never like Chiyo to lie like this, not even little white lies. A grin crept across Tomo's face until the corners of her mouth nearly met the lobes of her ears. Chiyo stared at Tomo, one of her eyebrows raised.
       "What are you grinning at me like that for?"
       "Oh nothing," Tomo replied, patting Chiyo on the head. "I'm just really impressed with you, Chiyo-chan! I mean, in cooking up an excuse for us to head to Japan."
       "It's not like you gave me much of a choice," Chiyo groaned.
       "True, true." Tomo glanced at her watch, and nearly panicked. "We have to leave, now! You all ready?"
       "As ready as I can be," Chiyo replied, a hint of nervousness in her voice.
       "All right! Let's get out of here and thumb a cab. We need to get to Penn Station as soon as possible if we want to catch the next train!"
       "A train? What are you talking about? Can't we just take the subway to LaGuardia or JFK?"
       "Umm… we're flying out of Newark International."
       "Oh," was Chiyo's reply; it seemed she found Tomo's choice of airport odd for some reason. She picked up her bags and followed Tomo out into the hallway, pausing to lock up her apartment's front door. "Well, what airline are we taking? Continental? Japan Air? Does Japan Air even fly out of Newark?"
       "I don't know, and it doesn't really matter, because we're taking neither of those. The airline I booked our tickets on is Lo-Budget Airways."
       Chiyo paused for a moment, her key still in the deadbolt's lock, then she finished locking the door and walked to the bank of elevators. She seemed to be stunned—by what, Tomo wasn't sure. Maybe it was Tomo's good economic sense? After all, Lo-Budget Airways had the cheapest flights to Tokyo in the entire New York City metro area. Soon, the elevator came, and the two women were soon out of the apartment building and on a street corner, keeping an eye out for those telltale yellow cars that would whisk them away to Penn Station.

       The cab ride was fairly uneventful, as cab rides in New York City go. The driver was a Brooklyn native with a heavy accent to match, and despite his efforts to start up a friendly conversation with Chiyo and Tomo, neither of the two women were much in the mood for talking. All that was on their minds was catching that plane, and getting the hell out of the northeastern U.S.
       They got out of the cab on Seventh Avenue, right in front of Madison Square Garden. Beneath the Garden was Pennsylvania Station, one of the busiest train stations in the entire country. Tomo and Chiyo made a beeline for the New Jersey Transit concourse, where the former kindly asked the latter to purchase them some tickets.
       "Why can't you get them, Tomo?" Chiyo protested. "You're the one who wants us to fly to Japan so badly! We should just forget about all this and go straight to the proper authorities. They're better equipped to deal with this situation than either of us are!"
       Tomo rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "Chiyo-chan, the way I see it is this. I not only paid for a pair of one-way tickets to Tokyo—which were really expensive, by the way—but I'm also doing you a huge favor in helping you get to the bottom of this as soon as possible! Let's let the authorities deal with things their way—we both know that they're going to be tied up in tons of paperwork before they even start the investigation for real! C'mon, Chiyo! If anything, it'll be an adventure!"
       "Okay," Chiyo sighed, inserting her debit card in the machine and wondering how many more times she'd have this conversation with Tomo before their "adventure" was over. "Let's get our tickets and take the next train to the airport."
       Chiyo and Tomo took a Northeast Corridor local train to Newark International Airport, a ride that was even more uneventful than the one in the cab. After arriving at the airport, they got on board the AirTrain, a monorail system which connected the New Jersey Transit station with the airport's parking lots and terminals. After a couple of false alarms from Tomo, they managed to get off at the right terminal, and headed straight for ticketing. There were long lines everywhere, but the one in front of Lo-Budget Airways was fairly short. Tomo scratched the back of her head and wondered why this was, but she wasn't going to complain. The faster they could get through ticketing, the better.
       Finally, their turn came at the ticket window. Tomo hoisted her bag onto the scale and presented the Lo-Budget employee with her name and an ID card. The ticket agent squinted at it.
       "Hey, I can't read this," she complained. "It's in some kind of foreign language!"
       "It's Japanese. Don't worry, it's perfectly valid!"
       "Not only that, but the person in this photo looks a lot younger than you. I can see the resemblance, but…"
       "Oh—ha ha! That's because it's my high school ID! Didn't I look great in the prime of my youth? Almost like Fujiko from Lupin III."
       Chiyo's jaw became slack. After a moment, she closed her mouth again and said, a little slowly, "Tomo… you use… your high school ID… when you're traveling?"
       Tomo turned back to Chiyo and whispered harshly, "Of course not! But I can't use my work ID, can I? Definitely not under these circumstances!"
       "Yeah, I guess. What about your passport? Can't you use that?"
       Tomo stared at Chiyo, wondering why she hadn't thought of that. Good thing she had Chiyo-chan along, or this whole unraveling-an-international-kidnapping-conspiracy thing would be a hell of a lot harder than it was. Duitifully, Tomo unzipped the main pocket of her purse and began rooting around for her passport. All she could feel was all the usual junk that was in there—no passport. Tomo took a deep breath and, in a businesslike manner, quickly searched through the three other pockets. Nothing there either. Then, feeling the weight of the jaded yet impatient eyes of the ticketing clerk fall upon her, she kneeled in front of the scale and tore open her bag, sifting through the contents.
       "C'mon, c'mon, c'mon!" Tomo muttered to herself, gritting her teeth. "You've got to be around here somewhere!"
       The ticketing clerk leaned over her. "Um, can you please move to the side so that I can check other people in?"
       Tomo looked over her shoulder at the steadily growing line of passengers, and thought that there was no way she could give up her place in line now. Chiyo smiled and approached the desk, standing up on her toes and slapping her own passport onto the counter.
       "Um, you can check my ID if you want. I'm sure Tomo will find her passport soon." She looked down at Tomo, a pleading, yet hopeful, look on her face. "Right, Tomo?"
       Tomo nodded, then returned to her search as Chiyo dealt with the clerk. Finally, just as Chiyo was receiving her boarding passes, Tomo raised a small booklet out of her bag triumphantly.
       "Ah-hah! Got it!" She slammed the passport on the counter. "Now book me, baby!"
       The ticketing clerk sighed heavily and did as Tomo requested. Within minutes, Tomo and Chiyo were on their way out of ticketing, and heading toward the concourse where the plane that would take them to their first stopover, in Los Angeles, would be waiting.

*****

       Kaorin sat in the concourse in Los Angeles International Airport that the trans-Pacific flights left from, trying her best to focus on the newspaper she was reading; unfortunately, her mind was elsewhere. Though she was immaculately dressed in a suit jacket, skirt, and heels, her mind couldn't be more frazzled. This was the second day that she had spent in Los Angeles against her will; though her business trip was long over, for the life of her, she just couldn't get a flight back to Tokyo. Luck had not been on her side, as various weather delays, equipment problems, and other mishaps had gotten in the way of her actually getting on a plane for once. The folks at the airline she had booked the reservations with had been rather helpful thus far, but she was nearly at her wits' end. Despite the asinine refund policies of this airline, if something went wrong this time, she was going to take her business somewhere else.
       Flight number 2456 arrived from New York City only half an hour late, much to Kaorin's relief. It would be this plane that would, hopefully, take her back home. All she had to do now was to wait an hour or so for it to be serviced, then boarding would begin and she would be on her way.
       Now that the plane had arrived, she was both too anxious and too excited to keep reading the paper. She folded it and set it on her lap, then watched the stream of passengers as they came from the plane. They all seemed like your average, weary travelers, though there was nothing that could've prepared Kaorin for the sight that awaited her.
       Two particularly short women, both in their twenties, stepped off the plane. The shorter one had hair the color of cinnamon, and seemed particularly dazed; the taller one, whose slightly messy black hair spread out from her head, wasn't looking so hot herself, though a bit better than her companion. Kaorin stared at them, knowing that there was something rather familiar about them, but not being able to place it.
       Then, the taller one spoke.
       "Well, this is it, Chiyo-chan! Only one more flight, and we'll be home, sweet home Tokyo!"
       The shorter one, still trying to regain her sense of balance, could only whimper, "Please, Miss Yukari… watch out for the tree…"
       Kaorin gasped, then bolted up from her seat and waved. "Tomo! Chiyo-chan!"
       Tomo turned her head in Kaorin's direction and squinted at her. She placed a hand on Chiyo's shoulder in a protective manner. "Do we know you from somewhere?" Tomo asked suspiciously.
       "Don't you remember me? It's Kaorin, from our old high school!"
       Still wobbling a little, Chiyo managed to mumble, "Huh? Kaorin?" Fortunately, Tomo's response was more enthusiastic.
       "Kaorin! So it is you! Long time no see! What're you doing here in LA?"
       Kaorin smiled. "I'm just here on a business trip. I work for a talent management firm in Shibuya."
       By this time, Tomo and Chiyo had separated themselves from the streams of disembarking passengers, and had settled into seats next to Kaorin's. Kaorin herself was sitting back down, picking up the newspaper from the spot on the floor where it had fallen.
       "Talent management?" Chiyo said, finally coming out of her daze. "You mean like movie stars and stuff?"
       "Yeah, but also rock singers," Kaorin replied. "I was here representing a Japanese director who made a hit film a few years ago. One of the studios here wants to do an English-language remake for American audiences."
       Chiyo nodded, seemingly listening to her words, but Tomo's eyes had been glistening ever since Kaorin confirmed the nature of her job.
       "Muh—movie stars… I bet you know a lot of top actors!"
       Kaorin nodded. "Yeah, some of them. They're just like regular people, for the most part."
       "Oh come on! You mean there's nothing about them that makes them greater than us?"
       "Well, aside from their talent, and the fact that the paparazzi and their fans are always hounding them, they're pretty normal," Kaorin replied with a shrug. It was true. Though famous actors were a bit more outgoing than your average person, they were the same as everyone else—with hopes, dreams, fears, and problems. Though people called them "stars", they were only human, after all.
       Then, just as Kaorin was about to ask what Tomo and Chiyo were doing in Los Angeles, and where they were headed, Kaorin heard someone call out her name from across the concourse. She turned her head to see Tom Cruise, with a few people trailing behind him as an entourage of sorts, walking straight toward her. Sitting to Kaorin's right, Chiyo looked at the American film star curiously, while on the former's left, Tomo's eyes were boggling out of her head.
       Tom Cruise exchanged greetings with Kaorin, and then the latter introduced her friends.
       "These are old classmates of mine who I just happened to run into! This is Chiyo," Kaorin said, as Chiyo shook the actor's hand.
       "And this here is Tomo," Kaorin continued. Matt smiled at Tomo and offered her hand, which she cautiously took. Ordinary person or no, this guy was Tom Cruise for cryin' out loud, which meant that Tomo had a hard time from keeping from swooning. Man, he looked good in person!
       Tom Cruise bid the three farewell, and continued on his way, his entourage sticking close to him. Once he had gone, Tomo turned to Kaorin, her eyes still wide.
       "Kaorin! I couldn't believe what just happened! You mean you can just casually talk to Tom Cruise so casually like that?"
       "Of course," Kaorin replied, leaning back in her chair and crossing her legs. "I have to keep a cool composure when dealing with big-name stars. It's all part of the job."
       Chiyo wasn't quite as worked up as Tomo was, but nonetheless, her cheeks were a little flushed and she was staring idly at her hand, as if wondering if she was ever going to wash it again. She asked Kaorin, "What if it's a star that you personally like a lot? Surely you must feel something then!"
       "Yeah, I do, but I try to remain level-headed all the same. Professionalism is key in this business. I just consider it an honor to work with such greats."
       "Wow! What admirable humility!" Chiyo exclaimed.
       "Not to mention self-control!" Tomo added. "Man, if I was working with Tom Cruise, I'd be all over him, all the time. I'd make him forget about his wife, no sweat!"
       "Which is why you don't work in Hollywood," Chiyo deadpanned. Tomo glared at her.
       "Oh!" Kaorin said, covering her mouth with both hands. "How rude of me! I never asked what you guys were doing these days!"
       Chiyo smiled. "That's okay Kaorin. Well, I'm an assistant to Hiroshi Tadakichi, Japan's Ambassador to the United Nations."
       "Wow, that's awesome! I hope the job is as cool as it sounds, Chiyo-chan."
       "Yeah, it is! It's a lot of work, but it's also a lot of fun."
       "Glad to hear it," Kaorin replied, before turning to her left. "And Tomo, what are you doing?"
       Tomo crossed her own legs and folded her hands around her knee. With her chin high in the air, she proudly replied, "Well I have fulfilled my ambition and have joined the proud ranks of the International Police Force, also known as Interpol!"
       Chiyo leaned over and whispered, "Actually, she's just an intern."
       Tomo exclaimed, "Chiyo-chan!"
       "Well it's true, isn't it?"
       "Uhh… yeah… but you didn't have to say anything in the first place!"
       After shifing her head back and forth to take in this exchange, Kaorin, wanting to ease some of the mounting tension, said, "Well, intern or not, I'm sure you find working within Interpol to be fascinating."
       "It is a bit interesting… but they don't let me do any of the good stuff!"
       "Huh…" Chiyo pondered. "Is that why we're here, I wonder?"
       "What do you mean, Chiyo-chan?" Kaorin asked.
       "Well, Tomo saved me from kidnappers the other day, and the situation's just gotten a bit more intense."

       So Tomo and Chiyo alternately told Kaorin the story of how they ran into each other, and of the black-suited men who were after Chiyo for reasons currently unknown. Kaorin listened to the story, riveted, and was speechless for a little while after the duo from New York had finished telling their tale. When she finally spoke again, the first words out of her mouth were, "Tomo, have you reported any of this to Interpol?"
       Tomo leaned close to Kaorin and harshly whispered, "Of course not! They'd kick me out for sure if they knew! Right now I'm considering this to be merely a personal matter that I'm helping out Chiyo-chan with!"
       "Yeah," Chiyo added, "except that she's been the one making all the decisions, not me."
       "You'll thank me someday for all this," Tomo replied. "You know you will!"
       Chiyo shrugged. "If we find out who the men in black are and stop them, then maybe I will."
       Just then, a boarding announcement came over the airport's PA system.
       "Lo-Budget Airlines flight 315 en route to Tokyo is now boarding First Class ticket holders and passengers with small children."
       Kaorin started gathering her things and sighed as she saw people lining up in the queue. "It's a shame, isn't it? If I hadn't been stuck here for a couple of days and weren't so desperate to leave, I wouldn't have to resort to taking this cheap little airline."
       Tomo nodded. "Uh, yeah. We know exactly how you feel." Chiyo shot Tomo a glare after she said this.
       "I bet you do! Anyway, I have to get in line. You two aren't flying First Class, are you?"
       Chiyo shook her head. Tomo replied, "We're in Coach. You mean you're flying back to Tokyo in First Class? You must make some real good money!"
       Kaorin shrugged. "Well enough, I guess. But flying First Class is all part of the lifestyle, you know."
       After picking up her purse, newspaper, and carry-on luggage, Kaorin stood up to get in line and waved to her friends. "I'll see you when we touch down in Tokyo, okay? Maybe we can go out to lunch or something."
       "Sounds good!" Chiyo said brightly. "It was a nice surprise to see you again!"
       Tomo smiled herself. "Yeah, it was. Hey, you think maybe we can hunt down the rest of the gang after we arrive?"
       "That would be cool!" Kaorin replied. "I'm kept pretty busy with my job, but I'm sure we can arrange something! Let's talk about it once we get to Narita Airport, okay?"
       "Right! See you later!"

       By this time, there were just a few people in front of Kaorin waiting to get on board the plane. Tomo and Chiyo watched her board, then turned their eyes to the large Boeing 747 parked just outside the plate glass window of the terminal. Chiyo shuddered.
       "Well, I certainly hope that this flight isn't as turbulent as the last one! I've taken a lot of flights, but never one so nerve-wracking!"
       Tomo shrugged. "Eh, I didn't think it was that bad. I mean, sure, we hit a few pockets of wind here and there, but nothing to make me fear for my life, or anything."
       Chiyo crunched her shoulders and made herself really small. "Are you kidding, Tomo? That flight out of Newark was as bad as Miss Yukari's driving!"
       Tomo looked over at Chiyo's paled visage and gulped. She was right, when you think about it. It really was that bad.
       "Well, I'm sure it won't be so terrible this time around! After all, it's a trans-Pacific flight—the pilots they get for such routes have to be the best of the best!"
       "Somehow, I'm not so sure…"
       The woman at the boarding area picked up her microphone and made the next round of boarding announcements. Tomo drew out her ticket and glanced at her row number.
       "Looks like this is us. You ready?" Tomo said, placing a hand on Chiyo's quavering shoulder.
       "Not really… but if we have to…"
       "Of course we have to! We didn't cross the entire United States just to waste time in Los Angeles!" Tomo placed her other hand on Chiyo's other shoulder, then firmly pushed her forward, toward the line that was forming before the boarding area. Chiyo muttered something to herself that Tomo was unable to make out, then wrested herself free from her friend's grasp and took her place in line.
       "I really, really hope that you know what you're doing, Tomo," Chiyo said, with a hint of anger in her voice.
       Tomo smiled at Chiyo, unable to give her much more of an answer than that.

       Tomo and Chiyo waved to Kaorin as they passed her seat in First Class, then continued on to the very back of the plane, where they settled into two seats in a cramped center aisle. Once their carry-on bags were stowed away in the overhead compartments, Chiyo took her seat and unwrapped a stick of chewing gum, which she then promptly popped in her mouth. Tomo, who had also taken her seat, drew out her own pack of gum and followed Chiyo's lead. As she chewed, a random thought popped into her head.
       "Hey Chiyo, what do you suppose people who don't like gum, or are allergic to gum, do when the plane's taking off or landing? Do their ears explode?"
       Chiyo laughed. "I've never heard of anyone being allergic to gum, but I guess they just feel that weird popping in their ears, and that's that."
       "Huh. I've never been on a flight where I've not chewed gum. Have you?"
       "Only once—the first time I went to New York City, actually. I forgot to get some while I was in the airport, and my ears popped after the plane started flying. It feels weird, but it's not painful."
       "That's a relief," Tomo said. "Maybe I should try it sometime."
       "What," Chiyo replied, giving her an odd look. "You mean, flying on a plane without chewing gum?"
       "Yeah!"
       Chiyo shook her head. "…You're weird."
       Tomo just shrugged and adjusted her seat belt. First, she tried the clasp a few times. Then, she pulled at the belt material, to make sure it was firm. She then dragged the belt through the clasp a few times, to see how it would catch. She also pressed the square button on the clasp, listening for any troubling sounds. Then, she—
       Tomo felt the weight of Chiyo's stare on her person, and a look to her right confirmed her suspicions.
       "I'm just testing things out!" Tomo replied. "You never know when you might get a faulty seat belt."
       "I'd be more worried about things like the engine or the fuselage," Chiyo sighed, putting on her own seat belt in a couple of quick motions. Right afterward, she turned on the reading lamp built into the ceiling above her seat, and drew a thick paperback from her purse; obvious signs that Chiyo was through talking to—or being distracted by—Tomo for the time being, and wanted simply to retreat into whatever world her novel would take her. Of course, Tomo got the hints right away, and pulled the in-flight magazine from its place in the mesh pocket that hung at the back of the seat in front of her. She glanced at the cover of the magazine, which had the massively boring and generic title Journeys, and scanned it. It was a different issue than the one that she flipped through on their first flight from New York, but it looked just as mind-numbingly dull. Tomo shrugged, as she didn't have many other choices for entertainment at this point, and opened the magazine.

       Soon, the Tokyo-bound jet plane left the terminal and taxied toward the runway. The takeoff was rather smooth, much to Chiyo's relief, though that didn't stop her from chomping on her gum furiously until the plane was well within cruising altitude. They flew on for the rest of the day and into the night, in the meantime doing their best to enjoy the ride, despite the bland food, mediocre in-flight movies, and frequently dense flight attendants. Early that following afternoon, Tomo found herself drumming her fingers on her armrest and reading the Journeys article about fine dining in El Salvador for the umpteenth time. Something exciting needed to happen—and soon—or else she would go crazy.
       Fortunately for Tomo, her wish was about to come true; unfortunately, it did so in the worst possible way.
       As the plane flew toward the Australian Coast, three men—all in charcoal grey suits—rose from their separate, scattered seats and started walking down the left aisle, toward the back of the plane; Tomo happened to spot them just as she was about to get up to go to the lavatory. All three were wearing the same types of earpieces that Jigen and his buddies wore back in New York. Without taking her eyes off the approaching men, Tomo shook Chiyo's shoulder. Chiyo awoke from her nap and rubbed her eyes.
       "What's going on?" Chiyo asked.
       Tomo nudged her chin toward the approaching men. "They're in grey instead of black," she said in low tones, "but check out the earpieces. I think they're coming after us."
       Chiyo shrank down in her seat, while Tomo arose from her seat and tucked away all thoughts of hitting the bathroom. She didn't have to go that badly, anyway.
       "All right, you guys! I know you're coming for my friend Chiyo-chan, so I'll just let you know right now that you're going to have to get through me first! I suggest that you retreat now, unless you want me to do to you what I did to your friends back in New York!"
       "Damn it," one of the men said to another. "I knew charcoal would be too close to black, but would the boss listen?"
       The second man replied, "Don't worry about it. There's nothing we can do now. Let's just get the Mihama girl and get out of here."
       Tomo got into her fighting stance as Chiyo shrank down even further. All around them, curious passengers watched on with curious and frightened eyes as the confrontation unfolded.
       "I'll take care of her," said the third man, who was also the closest to Tomo and Chiyo. "You two carry out of the rest of the mission."
       The other two men nodded and walked back up the aisle, disappearing between the curtains that separated First Class from Coach. In the meantime, the third man got into a defensive position, right in front of Tomo.
       "Don't make me do this," the man said. "There's a lot of innocent people here—they shouldn't have to get hurt over a little thing like this."
       Grinning, Tomo raised an eyebrow and replied, "A thing like what? You know, we still have no idea why you guys are chasing Chiyo down."
       "You shouldn't have to worry about that. I will chase Miss Mihama to the ends of the earth, until she went bald from the stress."
       This comment caused Chiyo to rise up slightly and stare at her enemy as though he was simultaneously the strangest and scariest man on earth.
       "Is that so?" Tomo replied, holding her position. "Well, come and get 'er, if you want."
       The man narrowed his eyes at Tomo, who was smirking up a storm. Both of them knew that the other wasn't prepared to strike, but letting down their guard now would be disastrous. Unfortunately, Tomo's bladder was becoming more insistent as she held her position; sure, she didn't have to go all that badly before, but now…
       Suddenly, the plane lurched and rolled, causing both Chiyo and the man in the suit to lose their balance and stumble off to the side, nearly landing on their fellow passengers, who were also jolted by the sudden move. As Chiyo scrambled back into her seat and quickly fastened her seat belt, a voice came on over the PA.
       "This is your captain speaking! Nothing to worry about, folks. We're just experiencing a little turbulence right now."
       The plane lurched again, this time to the other side. Tomo and her target gripped the sides of their chairs as their feet slid across the floor, and Chiyo held onto the armrests to either side of her with sheer ferocity. Another voice came on the PA; however, this one was not the reassuring voice of the captain, but one that was far more demanding."
       "Ms. Chiyo Mihama! Agree to come with us, and no one on this plane will be hurt!"
       With marked displeasure, the grey-suited man before Tomo swung his head back toward the front of the plane, shouting, "What are those idiots doing?" This move on his part gave Tomo the opportunity to land a quick blow to his head, effectively knocking him out.
       "Whew! Now I can go to the bathroom! I'll be right back, okay, Chiyo-chan?"
       "Tomo!"
       "Don't worry," she winked. "I'll be back out in two shakes."
       "But—"
       Chiyo's plea came too late, as Tomo darted further back in the plane and into the lavatory, slamming the door behind her as loudly as was possible for a spring-loaded door.
       At that moment, the plane tilted, and started plunging downward. Over the PA, the passengers heard two men—including the one who demanded that Chiyo come with them—bickering with each other.
       "What the hell are you doing? I thought you had a pilot's license!"
       "I only know how to fly small planes, dammit! They didn't teach me how to pilot a commercial jumbo jet in flight school!"
       Those passengers who weren't screaming by now joined in the chorus as they heard this. Chiyo gripped her armrests even tighter and strained her ears to listen over the growing din.
       "Well you should've said something sooner, like while I was tying up the pilot!"
       "Untie him if you want—we could use all the help we could get right now!"
       At that moment, Tomo emerged from the lavatory. "Man," she exclaimed. "I can't go to the bathroom without things going haywire on me! Chiyo, I'll be right back!"
       "Tomo!"

       Once again, it was no use, as Tomo bolted forward down the aisle, jumping over the still passed-out grey-suited man she decked, and running past the hordes of screaming, shouting passengers, some of whom were trying to grab at her, cursing at her for her involvement in the current crisis.
       "Chill out, people! I'm only trying to help you!"
       "And how will you be able to stop a bunch of hijackers, huh?" one woman yelled. "You aren't exactly a professional, you know!"
       Tomo raised a finger and wagged it at the woman. "Don't be so sure about that! The International Police Force Interpol doesn't take such situations lightly!"
       The woman didn't have anything left to say, so Tomo continued on her way. She charged through the First Class cabin—where Kaorin was busy screaming her lungs out along with her fellow First Class ticket holders—and onward to the cockpit, where she swung open the door and was met with a fist swinging toward her jaw.
       With lightning agility, Tomo dodged the upper cut and whirled around her assailant, the second of the grey-suited men. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted the third one sitting in the pilot's chair. The pilot was bound and gagged in one corner of the cockpit, while the co-pilot was out cold, still sitting in his seat.
       Tomo unleashed her own assault, ducking down and sweeping at the second man's legs. The man fell, and Tomo took the opportunity to give him a swift kick in the one place it would be guaranteed to hurt most.
       "That's for trying to attack an innocent lady!"
       "Damn… bitch…!" the man managed to grunt at her. Tomo simply smiled and bent down over the man, who was curled up in a fetal position. With the edge of her hand, she struck a pressure point on his neck, and he collapsed, out cold. Tomo then disregarded him and started working on the pilot's bindings. Unfortunately, the rope was tied with such a knot that she'd never seen before. She heard footsteps behind her, and the plane lurched downward again.
       She whirled her head toward the pilot's chair, where the third grey-suited man was starting to get up. "What the hell are you doing, you idiot?" she barked over the cacophony of screaming passengers. "Do you want us all to get killed? Get in the damn seat and pilot the plane!"
       The grey suited man froze in place, splitting his stunned gaze between a furious Tomo, and his defeated partner sprawled on the floor.
       "Now, dammit!" Tomo screamed.
       "Y—yes ma'am!" the man stuttered, scrambling back into the pilot's chair and taking hold of the controls once more. The plane's nose lurched upward a little, but the aircraft was still descending.
       Satisfied that she'd managed to let her authority be known, Tomo continued pulling and prying at the knot that was holding the pilot's wrists together. After a great deal of trial and error, she finally managed to loosen the knot, and started working on the rope that kept his ankles bound.
       This knot was tied even tighter than the previous one, but with some persistence, Tomo managed to get it undone. The pilot scrambled to his feet, doing his best to keep his balance despite the plane's steep descent. Meanwhile, Tomo went over to the pilot's chair and decked the man in the grey suit with a swift sweep of her fist.
       "Get over here, Captain!" she yelled, addressing the pilot. "Hurry up before we crash!"
       The pilot did as he was told, glancing at his co-pilot, who was still unconscious. Tomo, having seen this, pushed the co-pilot out of his chair and pulled the grey-suited man she'd just punched from off of the floor.
       "You! Get in the chair! Help out the pilot, okay?"
       "Why should I do anything for you?" he snarled.
       "Do you want us all to die, moron?" she snapped back, before pushing him away from her, toward the co-pilot's chair. "I got plenty to live for, and I'm sure you do, too!"
       Though he grumbled, the man got into the chair and took the controls, looking over to the pilot for any cues as to what he should do. The pilot quickly gave him a set of instructions, and together, they managed to get the plane level, even though their altitude had dropped considerably. The pilot said, "We don't have enough altitude to keep going, ma'am. We're going to have to make an emergency landing."
       "But we're out in the middle of nowhere, aren't we?"
       The pilot nodded. "Yeah, over a large stretch of the Australian outback. Unfortunately, we don't have much of a choice right now. There should be a small airport somewhere close by…"
       "Will it be able to support a huge plane such as this one?"
       "Probably not, but like I said, we don't have many other options at the moment."
       "Okay," Tomo replied with a shrug. "You're the Captain! Take us down!"

*****

       Chiyo was still quivering in fear even as the plane leveled out, and cabin pressure returned to normal. With the oxygen mask still dangling in front of her face, she closed her eyes and took deep breaths, trying to calm herself down. It seems that Tomo had managed to do something about getting the situation under control, so perhaps things were going to be all right.
       Just then, an announcement came over the PA that caused Chiyo's eyes to pop open. Almost immediately, she recognized the voice as Tomo's.
       "Uhh… hi everyone! This is Tomo Takino. Umm, on behalf of the Captain of this airplane, I would like to announce that we have everything under control. However, we'll have to make an emergency landing at Charleville Airport in Queensland. Thanks for your patience, and… um… thank you for flying Lo-Budget Airlines!"
       Chiyo shook her head and sank back into her seat, where she promptly opened her purse and took out a stick of gum. So it looks like Tomo has saved her yet again, along with dozens of other people. Perhaps she had underestimated her; however, it was not unusual in the least that although her motives were seemingly more noble, her modus operandi was the same as all those years ago.

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Written November 2004 | Copyright 2004, Reeve.

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