[FIN]Kimblee & Co. play Secret Squirrel

[aspiredeathe]

Jean looked back at Barry with a look that asked if he was serious.
"If I'm on holiday, this would be the last place I'd come to." He said pretty definetly, his eyes drifting to Kimblee as he picked up the phone.
It was interesting to watch as, in just a second, the man's entire composure had changed form it's usual laid back to tense. It wasn't a frightened stand, more anxious, surprised even.

His first thought was that he was now receiving the message that Frank had been killed. Or worse, although everything would be worse than the passing of Archer, he'd just found out that this mission was no longer necessary and that they could just go home.
Sure, he'd like to head home, be back on the 9 to 5 shifts. He just didn't agree with the whole idea that they dressed up for nothing.
He was going to do something mildly important in this dress or he'd throw a fit!

Well, maybe not, he thought, not wanting to act like a 5 year old. Even if it was his damn right.
"What's wrong?" He went for asking, not wanting to give his imagination any more chances of riling himself up for no good reason.

[Zolf J Kimblee]

He ran his fingers through his hair as if she were standing there in front of him and he was doing a last minute grooming.

"Huh? Oh!...Well I....um...." he stammered, "Lt. Colonel Zolf Kimblee here....reporting in to Colonel Archer." he frantically rummaged around his brain for something to say to her, to keep her on the phone a moment longer before asking for Frank. He couldn't think of anything, much to his annoyance.

"Is ol' pasty face there right now?" was all he could some up with.

Damn! he thought. Some way to impress a girl!

He glanced around self-consciously to see if anyone noticed his sudden case of nerves. Havoc was, indeed looking at him with a raised brow. He smiled weakly and shook his head, silently mouthing the word 'nothing' and waving his hand dismissively.

[amouri]

Barry raised his eyebrows in defense.
"allright allright, can't help misunderstanding stuff, now can I? Taking the fact into consideration that I don't technically have a BRAIN."

Barry shifted his gaze to Kimblee as he picked up the phone.
He noticed with slight interest the sudden change in the alchemist's composure, and bursting with curiosity, he sidled over beside 2nd Lieutenant Havoc to hear what Kimblee was saying.
He stifled his amusement as he watched Kimblee slowly showing more and more signs of nervousness, and he had a slight suspicion what was causing it.

He chuckled silently, nudging Havoc in the side with an elbow.
"I think I know what's going on." He muttered.
He knew enough about the subject to recognize the symptoms, and after all, he had experienced it himself.

[rizahawkeye]

Sheska's eyes widened as the man on the other side of the phone.
"Um... hold on for a second..." she said.
SHe put her hand over the phone.
"Sir, it's Lt. Colonel Kimblee..." She said, glancing back at her superior, "Do you want to speak with him?"

[aspiredeathe]

Jean still stared, even when Kimblee silently said everything was fine.
It was interesting to see, the way he became more fidgety by the second.
He could also just make out a faint voice coming from the phone, a woman's voice.
And front he looks of things, what with the nudge he received, Barry had caught onto the same thing.

He'd always figured the man to be a smooth talker when around the ladies, not that he ever really thought about it.
"Maybe we should offer the man some love advvce afterwards?" He whispered to Barry, still watching Kimblee fret and fuss.

[amouri]

Barry's hearing barely intecepted the vaguely female voice.
Ha. Knew it.

As Havoc turned to him he stiffened.
"What?! Geez, don't look at me. You saw how it went with-er-I mean-I think you know how unlucky I've been with lady companions in the past...with my wife and all."
He'd rather not bring attention to Hawkeye, not after the incident at the train.

[aspiredeathe]

Jean scratched his chin with a grin "If thought you were doing pretty well. Till the whole hostage thing anyway."
He'd heard about the man's wife, a victim of the ruthless killer psycho butcher. Or Barry for short.
"Hey, you had to do something to get married." That and he doubted Kimblee had the urge to blowing people up. Though, if the woman was annoying, he wouldn't put it past him.

[Zolf J Kimblee]

Zolf sat there, waiting for Frank to answer the phone. Silence. It wouldn't surprise him if Frank were sitting right there, signing papers and taking his sweet time, making him wait on purpose. He fidgeted impatiently. He wanted to just tell Sheska to take the Inn phone number and call him back when he could pull his ass out of his paperwork. He'd give it another minute or so, then that was exactly what he was going to do.

[amouri]

((I sent Archer a pm just in case he didn't know ))

Barry sent the second lieutenant a look that clearly signaled that he was wondering about his sanity.
"Pretty well? Where the hell have you got the ideas of proper flirting? You must be even worse than me."
He sniggered slightly.
"Come to think of it...didn't you and Kimblee have a conversation lately about your bad luck with the gals? What was his name-that guy who keeps swiping them from under your nose..."
Barry held his chin in mock thoughtfulness. Jean was so easy to throw of guard, so easy to taunt.
Not that Barry meant it seriously, he was just a trickster by heart and couldn't help an opportunity to tease people.

He thought slightly over Havoc's remark about his wife.
Huh. I hardly did anything, it was her old man that talked me into it... He sighed slightly and pushed the memory away. He had stopped recalling such as those a long time ago, and he wasn't going to start again now.

[archer]

With a sigh, Frank took the phone from the girl. "Yes, I'll speak to him." If Kimblee was calling, it meant something had come up. Hopefully he hasn't brought attention to himself... The man was not called the Crimson Alchemist for nothing. He raised the phone to his ear, leaning backward on his chair.

"This is Archer." The Lieutenant Colonel replied without particular emotion.

[aspiredeathe]

Jean frowned, deeply, at Barry's comment.
"Women just happen to like my boss more than me. He's a charmer." He said with a bitter tone.
He respected Mustang, in pretty much most ways, but he would always hold a grudge against how all his potential relationships got stolen by a spark of the Flame Alchemist's gloves.

"In my own defence, I don't do so bad when it comes to flirting. I just haven't really had the time lately." the blonde scratched his chin, being in a different town than Roy did give him an advantage of getting a girl, even if it did become a long distance thing, or that she'd eventually fall for Mustang when she'd come to Central.
Although, he was on a mission now. He doubted he'd get any chance, what with Kimblee and Hawkeye here.
He let out a long sigh, laying on his bed, facing the ceiling "Ah, man, I hope this mission don't take long."

[rizahawkeye]

Hawkeye checked the clock once she roused from her nap.
"I should go check on the others..." she thought to herself, "Perhaps get this mission started, then get back to Central and check on the Colonel..."
A small smile graced her lips as she thought about him for a split second, but she shook the feeling off.
There was work to be done... and after she straightened out her clothing, she went to knock on the boys' room.

Sheska stood watching her commanding officer speak on the phone... she didn't know what to do... but she always felt like she'd get in trouble if she stayed around to listen for too long... then again, she felt like she'd get in trouble for leaving without being dismissed...
THe military was so confusing sometimes.

[Zolf J Kimblee]

Did the room suddenly get chillier? No...must be the esteemed Colonel Archer on the other end. Yeah..that had to be it, he thought sarcastically.

"Lieutenant Colenel Zolf J. Kimblee reporting in, sir., he said and gritted his teeth. "Havoc and I are checked into the inn, as ordered, in our disguises, per your request. he added a bit testy. Frank had one coming and he had a pretty good idea what he'd do once he stood face to face with the man.

"Shall we officially report to you in person?" he asked. Please let him say yes, please let him say yes.. he thought, with his fingers crossed. He shot a wicked grin at Barry and Havoc and winked. Hopefully he'd be able to kill two birds with one stone this way: get back at Frank and.....should he get roses, tulips or daisies? Daisies, he thought, definitely daisies. She's a cute little daisy. Not only that, but roses seemed a bit too....serious and overwhelming to give someone you don't know well...but would like to get to know better.

[archer]

Somewhat impatient, the Lieutenant Colonel tapped his finger against the phone, a frown set upon his face. Of course its you... He thought, resisting the urge to sigh. Instead, he smiled to himself as he waited for him to continue. Ignoring Zolf's tone, he considered the question. Kimblee was a delicate man- Perhaps not in the sense of being fragile, but certainly unstable. Keeping him content was of importance- But neither did that mean Archer would bow to his simple desires. An easily tipped balance... Frank shook his head.

"No, that will not be necessary. I have faith in your words." The intelligence held up one of his fingers, examining it. "However..." The situation called for an amount of secrecy, more of a precaution then anything. While he doubted that being connected to the operation anymore then someone else would matter, it was best to play it safe. Even contact is unsafe. A direct call... If someone was trying to track then, listening on a phone call was hardly a difficulty.

"A moment." He spoke calmly into the phone. Turning to the girl, he pondered for a moment, then smiled. "Sheska."

[rizahawkeye]

The mousy ex-librarian looked up.
"Y-yes, sir?" she piped up looking at him with her usual wide-eyes behind her thick glasses, "What do you need?"

[archer]

Frank's lips curved into a soft but devil-like smile. "I'd like to reassign you." He had little need for Sheska, the girl having brought the materials he had requested long already. At the moment, her duty was at best that of a secretary. However, she was one of the few aware of the situation, at least to a degree. While he wouldn't go as far to say she could be trusted without a doubt, Sheska was certainly not a threat. "I'd like for you to find out more about this church and the people response to them. Figure out what this Priest's words have done. See if they're are some local records, biased or not. You're smart a girl, so I'm sure you'll know what to look for."

There were a number of reasons for this decision. The first was to break a pattern. If someone was watching their operations, Sheska could easily become a target. By keeping her from being to open, it diminished her apparent value. The second, of course, was the need for information. Something about this Cornello business irked him. Lab five was only the beginning... The trail would lead on, but to where exactly. "I'll also be sending Kimblee with you." Archer spoke at last. "No one expects trouble of course..." He explained, giving her another of his unnerving smiles. "But I'd rather you not be bothered by some man who has had too much to drink."

Not expecting her to voice any complaints, he returned to the phone and spoke into the receiver. "Kimblee...?" Asked Frank.

[rizahawkeye]

"A-a mission?" Sheska breathed, unsure of what she had done to deserve a mission of her own... in fact, it baffled her to the core, "O-of course, sir..."
She bowed respectfully, nearly dropping an armful of books, but she regathered them quickly, giving her usual, sheepish smile.

She heard the mention of Kimblee's name, and she nearly froze... the name was familiar... but the face was a bit blurred... but she remembered a lot of things about him... such as rank... and what he had accomplished during the Ishbal Rebellion... but he had come to visit her time to time in the library... in fact, she remembered that he was one of the only people that had actually seen her, and not dismissed her as part of the bookshelf.
She smiled at the thought of seeing her friend again... and on a mission... of all things.

Hawkeye knocked at the door.
"Are you there?" she called, standing outside of the hotel room impatiently.
She didn't like waiting around when there was work to be done... it always made her feel like she was going to get in trouble with the higher-ups...

[amouri]

Barry chuckled silently in response to Havoc's indignation.
"Whatever you say pal."
He listened intently to the phone call, trying to pick up snippets. Not for any particular reason, he was just bored and curious.
And as curiosity and boredom tended to be a very unstable mix in his own case, he figured he'd just have to control himself before he got into mischief.

He narrowed his eyes slightly in concern as a thought suddenly struck him.
That Archer guy doesn't know about me...
And from what he could hear of the conversation, he didn't sound like an understanding fellow.
Buh. I guess I'll just have to take it as it is when the time comes. IF the time comes.

He jerked his head up in surprise as someone knocking on the door.
He was just about to surge up and flee into the bathroom in case it was someone they didn't know, but when he heard the voice calling from the other side he nearly leapt up in joy.

"I'll gettit I'll gettit!" He yelled, crashing through the room, ignoring the creaking protests from the floorboards, and ás he reached the door he nearly wrenched it off its hinges to open it to Hawkeye.
"Missy! Did you have a pleasurable nap?" He said joyfully, gathering so much by the slightly frizzled look of her hair.
"Come in come in! Kimblees on the phone to that Archer dude, he won't be long."
He invited her in happily, completely oblivious to the fact that Havoc was still lounging on the bed, and that Kimblee was standing in nothing but his colorful boxers.

[Zolf J Kimblee]

Kimblee pressed the receiver to his ear as hard as he could, as if it would actually help him hear better. Fortunately, he heard almost every word without too much strain. He plopped back down on the bed like a dead weight, mouth agape. How could a guy get so lucky! he thought to himself. He gave a weak smile and absent wave to Hawkeye as she came into the room. For the moment, he had completely forgotten his barely dressed state. DRESS!!

His heart went from merely flapping in his chest like a wild caged bird, to banging and hammering like a now bloody and beaten wild caged bird. A bead of sweat dripped down his face, from nerves and heat. Never mind whether he'd get her roses or daisies. The question now was, How the hell am I gonna explain handing her a bouquet when I'm dressed in drag? Well, that's okay, he'd simply determine whether Frank simply got sucker punched or throttled across the desk till he choked half to death, on the outcome of the given situation. Hell..if things worked out well, maybe ol' pasty face would get a bouquet too! Ha! That would sure keep him on his toes! Sucker punch him and hand him flowers, and walk off laughing. That should shake up the stodgy, tea-sipping, hob-knobbing, blue blooded bastard!

He chuckled in satisfaction, "Yeah, Archer. What's the buzz?"

[You can tell how fond I am of Archer. ^__^ I does luv the pasty-faced, snobby warmonger.]

[amouri]

((xD you always make me Lol.))