Claret followed up on asking what he was nervous about, which isn't something he really expected. She was right though. Don't stress and just relax. She was the one who had every reason to stress rather than him, anyway. All of his nervousness stemmed from his own knowledge of her prior to this whole ordeal, but there was no way he ever wanted to make that apparent.

Not about the job, if that's what you're worried about.

I've actually never had a roommate before.

It's... new, I guess. Should be interesting.

It wasn't a lie, but wasn't the entire reason he was nervous. Five had no idea how to tell Claret she was the cause of his anxiety, not that she ever had to know that. He didn't want her to feel bad or uneasy for any reason... though he had a feeling he was the one who would end up feeling bad somehow.

Five would get off of his bed, setting his phone down momentarily on top of it while he finished getting out of his dress clothes. They were soon replaced with a plain black t-shirt and grey pajama pants. They contrasted the pure white of the room heavily, but it was the only sort of color he could really have in this room. He was always too scared to make it his own room, though he could never quite explain why.

The ground felt really cold against his bare feet, and as he made his way back onto his bed, he thought that maybe a break from the solitude he faced in here was very much a necessity.

Claret

Home...

The cars pulled into the Kenne Estate, a large, gated and walled in home spanning over 8,000 square feet of space. The massive building was made of white brick and a mixture of lignum vitae and purple heart wood. The complex was well lit, and a myriad of identical vehicles and men and women in black suits were all around. Heavily guarded, highly secure, the Kenne Estate was the closest thing to a military base one could get.

The car came to a halt, and Five would get out of the backseat. Almost immediately, he saw a young, shorter boy with black hair running towards him, a goofy smile on his face.

"Five, you're back!"
"Hey, Six!"

The two of them would start to walk towards the entrance, and Six began ranting about how his day was. Apparently, Three and Four refused to do anything with him, and One and Two were too busy as always, so Six spent his day wandering around the complex and practicing his gift. Five smiled and commended him on the practice, ruffling his hair as they made it to the door.

"I'm proud of you. But I need to go talk to Mother, let's put a pin in this conversation, alright?" He said, making his way indoors.

It lead to the entrance hall, an elaborate and large room with a massive staircase in the center that extended in two different directions much like a T shape. There were hallways on either side of the room, each seemingly filled with countless doors, and if one were to go around the staircase, they would see that there was another one heading down to a basement floor below. The center was covered in a dark red carpet, while ornate tile covered the rest of the floor.

As Five made his way towards the stairs, a larger man with longer, silver hair would step in front of him, red eyes staring down at him.

"Five. Mother is busy."
"I know, One. I'm just needing to report on today's mission."
"She's busy. You can report to me."
"Alright..."

Five sighed, letting One know that he met with his client, Claret. He proceeded to tell him the nature of his mission, and what he intended on doing. One remained quiet and unmoving, closing his eyes.

"Keeping her close at all times, quite literally. I suppose that's one way to do it... Just don't overstay your welcome, Five. Do your job and get out. We don't need you getting any attachments. Remember, one day she could be one of your targets."

One's words left him uneasy, and he remained silent as his older brother started walking away.

Five would allow himself to take a moment to remain calm before he made his way down the left hallway, heading past the multitude of doors before he turned right at the end of the hallway. Passing a few more doors, he'd come to a heavy door made of the same wood as the exterior, the number '5' embedded in the top center.

The door would let out an audible click as Five pushed it open, making his way inside before shutting it behind him. Taking a moment, he would finally flip the lights on.

What greeted him was a completely pearl white room, unnervingly so. All that was in there was a single bed and a table desk, on which a camera sat. A sliding closet was on the far end, practically blending in with the walls. In it were all of his clothes and the like. It wasn't much at all. It was mostly only used to sleep in, sometimes hide away from the rest of the world. He had never been in any of his siblings' rooms, not since Seven... but their's looked identical in how minimalist it was.

This was home. Or the sorry imitation of it.

He removed his suit jacket, walking over to hang it in the closet when his phone started vibrating. He quickly pulled it out of his pocket, smiling uncontrollably when he saw it was Claret. He would sit down on his bed, not even finished getting undressed, as he started to write a text back.

Hey, I'm glad you made it! That's good. Make sure all doors and windows are locked.

A mixture of elation and business. How he would've loved to just text her about anything at all instead.

Claret

Five nodded as she said she'll text him upon getting home, as well as send her address over. Just an hour ago, he never so much as dreamed about talking directly to her. Now he's going to be moving in with her for potentially months. This went from an average day he didn't want to deal with, to being both overwhelming and exciting all at once.

He sat and thought for a moment about if they needed to discuss anything else.

"I think that's it for now. I know it's probably quite burdensome, but I'd like for you to check in regularly until I get there too. Every couple of hours at a minimum, the exception being when you go to sleep." Because naturally, she couldn't text him while asleep.

"I won't be bringing over too many of my own personal effects, so don't worry about giving me too much space. Besides routine checks around the home, and with you, I'm going to do my best to stay out of your way. It's ultimately your home and your rules."

He couldn't really think of anything else vital at this time. Everything else would be when they were settled in together.

"For now, I believe that's it. Anything else would have to come after I see your place."

Claret

Little did she know, her business was a huge reason he was so bashful and weak in her presence. It was one thing to hear her talk so sweet and playfully through a screen, but to hear it in person-- directed at him no less-- made his heart want to combust into flames right in his chest. It was strange, nothing ever quite got to him like this. With any client, he would've been able to come off as aloof and stoic, but THE Claret Vauleaux was here flirting with him. This had to be some really elaborate prank.

He almost wished it was, anyway. The fact she was in danger was truly worrisome.

Five looked at Claret, seeing she was smiling. It was a really pretty smile, and he wished he was daring enough to compliment her on it. But that would be crossing the line on what was okay in a professional setting. He had a feeling she didn't quite mind though.

She asked when he could move in, and it helped the reality of everything set in even further. God, he wasn't sure if his heart would ever calm down at this rate.

"Whenever you're willing to have me." He said. "Right now, even." Wordplay?

In a case as serious as this, the sooner they acted the better. Every second they dawdled could have consequences. Right now, Claret had the element of surprise in suddenly having a new bodyguard, especially a trained leader of the Kenne family. He had dealt with cases that sounded far more extreme than this, but it didn't mean he wasn't going to take it any less serious. He'd put his everything into making sure everything ends up great for Claret in the end.

"I can have some of my things brought over overtime."

Gradually meant that it would look less suspicious to anyone watching in. His things could be disguised as deliveries for anything else too, so no one would be all the wiser. Protecting her public image was almost as important as protecting her life, even if the thought of the media thinking he was her boyfriend was... pleasant.

Claret

Claret seemed to agree to have him stay with her for a time. On one hand, part of him was finding the prospect extremely strange. An online model he supported and loved needing help, and he’s the one to help her, and he gets to move in with her for a while to help protect her. It was really weird, and his life was starting to sound like a really terrible fanfiction.

On the other hand, he was glad. Five got the chance to keep Claret safe, and being in the same home as her allowed him to protect her to the best of his ability. It was a lot preferable to staring down the sight of a sniper rifle 24 hours a day just in case he needed to protect her, but there was still only so much he could realistically watch at once. Being in the home with her, not more than several feet away at worst, meant he could protect her all hours of the day. He could be vigilant, keeping his eyes and ears open for anything that sounded even a little strange. Close quarters combat was what he excelled in anyway, and if this person was truly as scum of the earth as these actions made them out to be, Five would personally want to ensure they were down and out.

There was, of course, the one con he could think of to moving in with her. The stalker would likely snap photos of the two of them together at some point, which could either make them back off, or cause them to get more violent. If it brought them out into the open, they were liable to make a mistake and be caught off guard, but Five didn’t know how calculated this individual could be.

Five decided he would do his best to remain in the shadows and out of view, even when living with Claret. Maybe if the person took photos at her home, he could probably turn it on them and find them instead. He knew his way around a camera, and with enough analyzing, he felt he would be able to recreate the angles from where the photos were taken in the first place.

”I know it’s not the most ideal thing, but while I’m on the job, I’m treating your life as if it were my own.” He would say, emphasizing the fact that he was going to do whatever he could to keep her safe, but leaving out the fact that he’d put his own life on the line if it meant protecting her. That was the true depth of his job, and if she were to die, he was as good as dead anyway.

”And don’t worry, I know how to make myself sparse. Your sleep will be undisturbed.” He’d say, returning her smile a bit softly. ”The most I’d need to do in your room is make sure any windows or other entrances are completely secured and reinforced. If I do my job right, nothing short of a tank is getting in there.”

It was a bit exaggerated, yes, but it was a light joke with some truth to it. There were a few ideas he had in mind, but nothing concrete until he saw what he had to deal with. At the very least, he could make sure she was protected and also make sure she had ample privacy and didn’t have to worry about any sudden photos.

Five would look at Claret, genuine sincerity in his eyes.

”Things will be okay, Claret. Maybe soon enough, things will go back to normal and you won’t have to worry about me either.”

Claret

Claret pulled out an envelope, opened and stained with lipstick. She explained that she received it in the mail fairly recently, and as she dumped the contents onto the table before them, he would reach into his coat and pull out a pair of black gloves. They were to ensure that if he touched any of the objects to look at them that he might not tamper with any potential, necessary evidence... or leave his own prints behind.

The first thing she showed him was one of her earrings, and provided the identical one to match. It was pretty and made of gold, certainly the kind of jewelry that could've been pawned off for a hefty dollar. Yet it found its way back to her.

Next were some photos, and Five would take them into his hands carefully as he examined them. They were just Claret living candidly from day to day, going about her business without a care in the world or any idea she was being watched. He shuffled through them closely, seeing if there was any potential patterns the photographer might've given away. While there wasn't any consistency in the time of day, much to his chagrin, he opted to examine these in full later on to see if there were other, less obvious hints.

Claret then pulled up his lipstick, talking about how she wore it daily. Using a napkin to wipe some of what she was currently wearing off, she would place it on the table side by side with the envelope. It was easy enough to see the colors were a perfect match, and the more Claret went on, the uneasier this whole situation became.

She then lifted her panties up, and as surreal and unbelievable as this situation was, he felt sick to his stomach just thinking about this, rather than the usual awe or excitement he might've felt in much more normal circumstances. It was easy to see that this person had done... questionable things to them. Even with his gloves on, he was happy he wasn't touching them, and he was thankful he had no reason to pick them up and examine them closer.

Finally, Claret would pass the folded paper to Five, and he would take it and open it up carefully to read it. He'd read every last word carefully, but the further he went along, the more disgusted he felt himself feeling. It started out more akin to a really possessive love letter-- if he was to be nice about it-- but swiftly grew more and more deranged. To say it was dark was putting it lightly. It was absolutely a declaration of murder, and wanting to keep her lifeless body to... God, he didn't even want to think about it.

This was proof of love? No, this was complete bullshit. Even someone like Five could see how wrong this was.

He felt especially disgusted by all of this seeing as he too was something of a secret admirer of hers. But even putting that aside, he was mortified as a fellow human being. Claret was in serious danger, especially if this person could grab some of her personal effects like this and threaten her life when she had done nothing to deserve it.

"...Your mother was right to contact us." Five would say after a long silence, folding the paper and returning it to the rest of the objects across the table. His expression was grave and serious, but it was easy enough to tell he was angry that such a person existed and was doing this to her.

"Celebrities and other influential figures receive threats often, but nothing on this level..." He continued. "This is a lot, even for a stalker. And after the Dollmaker that once plagued these streets... these are threats to be taken seriously, I think."

He recalled a series of disappearances where the victims were later found to be in a doll-like trance, stuck as his playthings for all of eternity. They were anything but alive. And his heart sank at the thought of Claret running into anything nearly as close as that.

"Do you have any idea who this could be? Or are there any places where you think these belongings might have been taken from?"

He sincerely hoped they were all taken while she was at home.

Claret

Not excited to do it either? Could she really tell already? Or maybe she wasn't particularly excited about having a stranger shadow her 24 hours a day, seven days a week. He knew he wouldn't be very happy about that either. Even if he made himself very sparse, she'd know he was around and that could considerably put a damper on her day to day life.

And lord knew she was the last person he'd ever want to bring down.

"I... do a lot that I'm not particularly keen on." He'd reply, knowing that his Mother always gave him the more menial jobs that befit any other nameless lackey in their group. "I just want to make sure you're safe. Other than that, well... it doesn't have to be all business. If our respective mothers wish for us to be around each other for a while, then maybe we could become better acquainted."

Friends? Maybe it was too soon to say. It was the best possible outcome out of all of this, though. Especially considering that the two of them could be forced to be together for actual months. And that was a long time to be on his best behavior, acting professional and trying to maintain a sense of being a soulless machine whose only purpose was to protect her.

Well, he already failed that last part by letting his guard down a bit. Thankfully, she was a very chill person and seemed very easy to talk to from a first impression.

He just hoped he wasn't being overconfident in his ability to keep her safe. He didn't think of many things that could put him on edge, but when it was someone else's life at stake, things suddenly seemed a lot riskier.

Five had to wonder what kinds of threats she had to had received for her mother to contact a family like the Kenne. He was worried that asking that now would steer things back towards the professional, however, and maybe she would talk about it in her own time. It would be best to show her that he wasn't completely stern and mission-focused.

Claret