A/N: I don't own N'Sync's song, "Could it Be You?", or DM or Penfold. Just Shirakage Mouse.

Chapter 8: Cracking the Wall of Stone

It was getting close to dinner time when I decided to stop hiding out in Squawkencluck's lab. It also had been a few hours since I last had a nice chat with Penfold. Once my colleague locked up her lab and went home for the night, I took the lift back up to the sitting room of HQ.

It was at that moment when I started to hear a deep male voice singing upstairs from one of the closed bedroom doors. I also heard muffled music of an old song being played from the same location….


"🎵🎶Could it be you?
I've been searching so hard to find
Tell me how could I have been so blind
You were here all the time
(You were here all the time)
Could it be you?


"You never looked as good to me
As you look tonight oh yeah
It's like I've seen you for the first time
Through a lover's eyes
How could it be that I never knew?
It's always been you that I've been looking for
You were always right here by my side, oh yeah…🎶🎵"


I literally face palmed as I heard whose voice it was while playing a karaoke mix of "Could it Be You?" from the anthropomorphic animal incarnation of an old late 90's boy band, N'Sync.



"🎵🎶Could it be you?
I've been searching so hard to find
Tell me how could I have been so blind
You were here all the time, oh yeah
Could it be you?
The girl I've always had dreams about
The one I just can't live without
Is it so? Tell me now
(Please tell me)
Could it be you?🎶🎵"


Penfold appeared suddenly behind me. I turned to him, pointed towards DM's room and gave him a look that read, "He's not practicing to sing for me, is he!?" My expression was incredulous, but Penfold only shrugged a sheepish smile.

"He did see your little party on camera with the Professor earlier, Shirakage," he admitted kindly. "I think the Chief got so inspired by your invention that he figured he'd try something similar to impress you."

I scowled in aggravation as I heard Nezu-Chan sing the second verse of the song….


"🎵🎶Could you imagine what it's like?
To always live without love
I need to have you in my life
I think I know that now
My open heart will make you a part


"A part of this love I've been keeping
And I might just give it all to you, oh…🎶🎵"



Not wanting to stand around and listen to him sing the chorus again, I started to make my way up the stairs and catch him in the act. "I gotta see this," I commented sarcastically.

But Penfold squeaked. "Wait, Shirakage! DM's not quite ready to sing in front of you just yet."

I ignored him and continued towards the source of his senpai's karaoke lessons.



"🎵🎶Could it be you?
I've been searching so hard to find
Tell me how could I have been so blind
You were here all the time
Could it be you?
The girl I've always had dreams about
The one I just can't live without
Is it so? Tell me now…🎶🎵"


By the time he had started the bridge verse of the song, I was in his room. He had the karaoke song on his ipatch speakers pretty loud. I could hear the wireless signal amplify the song from the extra speakers on his shelves. And it seemed his singing was coming from his wardrobe closet.



"🎵🎶Every girl I meet
Though they might be sweet
They can't compare to you
So I search no more
Cause what I've been looking for
I know I've found in you…🎶🎵"



When I opened the closet doors, I found my male twin bodyguard jamming his body and soul to the song with a microphone in his hand. But as he twirled around while passionately repeating the chorus, his pumped up gaze fell onto my form.


"🎵🎶Could it be you?
I've been searching so hard to find
Tell me how could I have been so blind
You were here all the time
Could it be you?
The girl I've always had dreams about
The one I just can't live without
Is it so? Tell me-🎶🎵AUUGGHH!"


Danger Mouse's strong voice choked up and he went silent. He was sweating a bit with a red face, chewing his bottom lip as he saw my unsatisfied expression.

"Oh, I regret not having my camera phone on hand to capture that moment when you freaked out," I taunted with a sly smirk. "Maybe even better if it was a recorded Spamchops video."

"Sh-Sh-Shirakage…!" he spluttered. "I-I was…um…What are you doing in my room?" he demanded suddenly, attempting to divert his embarrassment.

"Nice try, Dangernova," I continued with a yawn. "It's going to take more than an old, teen boy band song to win me over. Penfold told me you spied on me and Squawkencluck."

I turned to leave; yet I could hear him quickly switching off the blue tooth controls on his ipatch, before his swift footsteps tried to follow me.

"Wait. Please just wait a moment," he begged not far behind my flat heels. "Shirakage-San!"

I stopped in my tracks…not only because he called my name in an honorific term in Japanese, but also due to the neatly set dinner table by the window of the HQ flat.

While a Giraffe Warriors franchised dish ware and utensils were set up on the main dining room counter table by the kitchen for Penfold, the smaller round table by the window was set for two people; decorated with a white table cloth with two romantic lit candles; while the sitting room's lights were dimly lit above the area.

Matte, nani!? Oh, God. Will this nightmare ever end? I hung my head in defeat as I heard Nezu-Chan enter after me.

I sighed wearily and turned to him. "What do you want, Stalker Mouse?" I folded my arms with a defiant glare.

His ears reared back and he looked at me in shameful shyness. "Ms. Shirakage, I understand that you don't think very highly of me since we've had a couple of mishaps between each other today."

He winced slightly and tenderly brushed his fingers around a dark bruise on his left cheek. "Believe me, I took more than just a hint from JM's brief visit earlier."

My glare dispersed as I glanced more closely at DM's injury. "Did she hurt you badly?" I asked softly out of concern.

His eye widened suddenly. My tone seemed to have boosted his ego again, and he smirked in self confidence. "Ha! Jeopardy Mouse will have to use a bit more force to keep me down and away from you. This is nothing."

I smiled wryly. "Of course it isn't."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Hunger soon won over stubbornness. Penfold was eating his dinner at the small counter while DM and I were having our own at the small table by the flat's window.

It was kind of hard not to roll my eyes as I saw the reflection of DM and Penfold hand signaling between each other, while they thought I was staring out at the view of London down below. No doubt their sign language was about how Mr. Desperate could show off and impress me better.

Without even asking me, my dinner selection was Yakisoba. Nezu-Chan got lucky with feeding me one of my favorite Japanese dishes. To my surprise, it tasted delicious. But I refused to admit that his credentials were starting to grow while I continued to look down at him.

My thoughts were interrupted when I caught his reflection staring sappy eyed at my own. I deadpanned at his love sick smile. "Well, I see that you have finished your sign language conversation with Pen-Chan right now," I noted in irritation.

Danger Mouse grimaced in shock. I turned to see him splutter incoherent gacks at the revelation.

"Don't bother trying to ask how I managed to use the window's reflection against you," I sighed as I returned to my meal. "I'm just keeping my eye on you so that you'll stay out of trouble with me."

A determined twinkle in his gaze suddenly deepened. "Come now, Ms. Shirakage. I saw you having fun with Prof. Squawkencluck earlier from our camera screens. Surely you can't be all work and no play like Jeopardy Mouse."

I didn't reply and instead munched on my noodles. My monocular twin's face frowned. "Hey, now! Didn't your father ever tell you that it's rude to ignore the person who's speaking to you!?"

I swallowed. "Yeah, he did. He is British, after all."

"Well then, why ignore your manners?"

I gave him a look as if he were ignorant. "It's called the 'stubborn silence of one's tsundere nature'." I replied while sweat dropping. "You should study more on the pop and social culture of Japan sometimes. It will give you a great personality."

DM's jaw dropped in disbelief. He turned to Penfold and silently expressed a look that read, "Are you hearing this!?"

"So which one of you cooked the Yakisoba?" I asked, trying to ease the mood again.

"I did," he said eagerly.

I smiled. "It's really good."

His face lit up. "Really!? Do you mean it!?"

I nodded and he grinned. "Thank you, Shirakage. I'm really glad to hear you say that. I was beginning to think that you would hate me forever."

My heart softened slightly. Danger Mouse was trying so hard to make amends for embarrassing me earlier. Still, I knew that he wasn't going to give up on his little crush either.

"I don't hate you, Danger Mouse," I admitted finally.

He perked his head up and gazed into my sapphire eyes.

"That doesn't mean I've particularly warmed up to you too," I added. "Don't get me wrong; I am truly thankful that you saved my life last night. However, you just don't seem to be the same mouse that I had been educated upon in school while growing up.

"I used to watch a lot of video archives of you with reporters and media coverage whenever it wasn't any secret business that you'd be revealing. And now, you look nothing like what I remembered. I guess what I'm trying to explain…is …that I'm still a bit stunned at the transformation you went through. Even though your new self isn't that unfamiliar to my past experience with cocky boys, it might take a while for me to get to know you better."

His eye sparkled with excitement. "Are you implying that I might be capable of wearing you down, Shirakage?"

I glanced over at Penfold, and he rolled his eyes as if to say, "Oh, no. His head's gonna swell up pretty big, for sure."

I smiled at the hamster's silent exasperation, then looked at my friend. "Yeah. It's within your power, Nezu-Chan."

I didn't think DM's happy grin could have gotten any wider as I admitted losing this battle to him. But he does look cute with that blush on his face.

"Marvelous!" he exclaimed before flashing me a sly smile. "I promise you, my Dear Shira-San, I will not fail to win your heart." He took my hand in his to kiss it.

My expression wilted again, as I neglected to remind myself that the knuckleheaded lover mouse had a long way to go.

"Oh, don't get so far ahead of yourself too quickly, Baka," I reprimanded him in a displeased tone. "Reason #1: I don't recall giving you permission of calling me by unannounced pet names yet."