"I told you," Kyouko told Miku as they all walked downstairs to the first floor of Mistilteinn. "Make the dining area a neutral zone."

"It's too late now," Miku replied. "Anyway, I've never really come down here a lot." As she, Ichigo, Ikuno, and Kyouko rounded a corner, they came across two rooms. The odd thing was, both rooms had been taped off for seemingly no reason. "Taped off?"

"Yeah," Ichigo remarked. "That's odd."

"These must have been rooms used by whichever incarnation of Squad 13 came before us," Kyouko noted to the group. "But I'm confused as to why they made them off-limits." She then inspected the door of one of the rooms, seeing if anything odd or suspicious was on it. "Even I'm stumped. Surely they didn't do something that would warrant such drastic measures."

Ichigo then pondered to the group, "How long will this fight go on?"

"To be honest," Ikuno then oddly noted to the group, which raised the ears of Kyouko. "I wouldn't mind staying like this forever." Something about the way she said it just seemed to heighten Kyouko's suspicions for whatever reason. Before she could ask her anything, however, Ikuno yelped and jumped forward to the surprise of everyone around her.

"I smell a secret," whispered Zero Two to Ikuno as they saw the reason for Ikuno's fright.

"That reminds me," Miku asked Zero Two rather sternly. "We gotta talk to you, now."

"While you girls talk to her," Kyouko said to them as she turned around and walked away. "I'll go to the utility shed. I need to grab something for the flower nursery."

"Catch you later," Zero Two uncharacteristically called out to her in a rather friendly tone.

"If anything," she thought to herself as she rounded the corner. "I just needed an excuse to get away from them."

At the utility shed, Kyouko performed a check of her Damage Control gear with a clipboard. As she looked over the thick coat that came with it, Kokoro walked in, surprising her. As she turned around, she told her, "Miku wants us to meet with Zero Two."

"I know," Kyouko replied. "And they know I'm out here." She then checked off several boxes on her clipboard. "You know, you don't have to always go with the crowd, Kokoro. I can tell you're pretty uncomfortable with this stupid conflict. If you don't wanna go, you can stay here with me. I'll say you were helping me."

Kokoro then closed her eyes and sighed, realizing Kyouko was 100% right. "You're right, I am. I mean, sure, the boys did something stupid, but this doesn't warrant a war. I'm sure Nana and Hachi will say it eventually if they have to step in, but if we got dispatched at this very moment to fight a Klaxosaur, we'd be..." She then became hesitant to finish her sentence, realizing what she was implying. "Yeah... We'd be killed. We're not ready at all."

Kyouko then chuckled. "It's about fucking time someone got the memo. Look, I like Miku, but she needs to chill." She then began inspecting her boots, slipping them on and pulling them up. "Kokoro, do me a favor and look over my hip boots, okay?"

"Sure," Kokoro replied as Kyouko bent her legs one at a time so she could see all around them. "I don't see any holes or marks."

"Good," she replied as she checked off more boxes on the clipboard. "And with that, my check is complete." As she rolled her boots down, she had an idea. "Hey, wanna try my gear on? I saw how interested you looked."

Kokoro shrugged. "I mean, I don't know if I could handle fires like you and your partner, but-"

"It'll be fun," Kyouko assured her as she handed her her gear. "I'll help you get it on." As Kokoro slowly slipped on the boots first, she also began to put on the heavy long coat, zipping and buckling it up with ease. "I just pull these rubber flaps on the boots up, right?"

"Exactly," Kyouko replied as she also pulled out the heavy air pack and handed it to Kokoro. "My mask should fit you. I gotta say, you look good in that tan and orange coat."

"Wow," Kokoro replied as she put on the air pack. "This isn't as heavy as it looks. I just pull these straps down and hook in this waist strap, right?"

"Yep," the older pilot replied, feeling like a mother teaching her child something new to an extent. "The weight is distributed across the body, making it feel a lot less heavy. Make sure your hair goes under your coat." She then helped her put the mask on. "Okay, now, this mask has a giant hole where the mouth is where the regulator goes." As she held up the regulator, she continued her explanation. "I'll turn the pack on for you. Once it's on, when you're ready, put this regulator in, and turn it so the red knob is to the side. That red knob is your purge valve. Keep it off purge unless you want to waste air." She then walked around back of her and turned her air pack on, resulting in it producing several short beeps. "Those beeps means the PASS alarm is on. The PASS alarm triggers if you stand still for half a minute, or manually with the push of the giant red button where the air gauge is. To stop it from beeping, press the yellow button twice or shake around a bit."

"It's a lot to take in," Kokoro noted as she put on gloves next.

"I got an even better idea," Kyouko replied as she went to grab Yasuto's gear. "Yasuto's gear's a bit big on me, but we have the same mask size. I can take you through a little maze APE Security's Fire Suppression staff use in Cerasus. Take the mask off and follow me." As she finished putting on Yasuto's gear and Kokoro took the mask off, clipping it to the regulator and letting it hand from the side, the two of them walked out of the utility shed.

"A maze? What for?" Kokoro was curious as she put on Kyouko's helmet and Kyouko put on Yasuto's.

"It's a cramped one," she explained to her. "You're supposed to get down and crawl your way through it. It's also dark. In short, it's done to simulate crawling through a fire."

As they walked past the flower nursery, a dumbfounded Mitsuru saw them. "Kokoro? Kyouko?"

"Oh, hey," Kokoro replied with a slight blush. "Kyouko's gonna take me to a training maze for a bit. We'll be fine."

Mitsuru looked them both over and sighed. "Fine. Just don't get hurt."

About 20 minutes later, Kokoro and Kyouko both stood at the start of the wooden maze, a large labyrinth of tight corners, crawlspaces, and obstacles in a dark room. They were the only people in the room, as any firefighters with APE were off elsewhere. As Kokoro and Kyouko put their masks and helmets on, Kyouko said to her, "Now, I'm gonna flick this light switch on the side, only this isn't a light switch. This goes to a fog machine that fills the entire maze with smoke. This isn't toxic like actual smoke, but it's still a good way to reduce visibility further." She then flicked the aforementioned switch.

Kokoro was a bit worried, but was less so with the older parasite by her side. "How long do we wait?"

"Not long," Kyouko replied as she turned her pack on. "Turn your pack on now." Kokoro nodded and reached around to turn her pack on as Kyouko pointed out to her in the darkness the maze. "We got parts simulating a first-floor bailout, a confined space, hanging electrical wires, a collapsing floor, and so on here. All Adults who are firefighters and all Children who are Damage Controlmen have to go through this course." She then bent down towards a half-door that led to the course. "When I open this door, we need to mask up immediately before we go in. Once we're in, you gotta stick with me, okay?"

"Yeah," Kokoro replied. "I'm ready."

"Opening the door," Kyouko declared as she opened the half-door, letting out the fake smoke inside. "Mask up, Kokoro!" She and her then both took their helmets off to put their masks on. Once they were done and began breathing pack air, the two crawled in, Kyouko going in first.

Kokoro found herself in a confined space to start, being forced down on her stomach in a cramped wooden tunnel painted black with zero visibility. She had to crawl her way through several feet before she got to an opening above her. After Kyouko crawled up and out, Kokoro followed suit, awkwardly pushing herself up and out of the tunnel, only to find herself in another tunnel, albeit slightly taller and allowing her to crawl on her knees. "You still ahead of me?"

"Yeah," Kyouko replied back to her. Due to their masks, they had to yell to each other despite being in close proximity of each other. "This tunnel leads to stairs! I'm gonna show you how to go down stairs!" Once the two crawled to the top of the stairs, Kyouko turned herself around and faced downwards towards the floor. "You need to sound each step with a tool before you step down, or in this case, your feet! Don't ever go up or down stairs without sounding them! If you do, you could fall through a hole in the stairs!" Kyouko crawled down the stairs, followed by Kokoro, into another tunnel that was almost tall enough for them both to stand up crouched down. However, before them was a maze of old disconnected electrical wires.

"How do we get through that?" Kokoro was now worried she was gonna get tangled.

"Get down low," Kyouko explained. "Push your back up against the corner of the floor and the wall, and use your feet and arms to swim through the hallway!" She then demonstrated just that, using her hands and arms to push wires away from her in the thick smoke. Kokoro got the idea immediately, and followed suit. Soon, both were at their next obstacle, a sharp corner that led to another set of stairs up. "This is the fun part!" Kyouko remained vague to her to keep her on her feet.

Once they were both up the steps, Kyouko went forward in a seemingly normal smoke-filled hallway. However, a few steps in, the floor gave way, and she disappeared from sight. Kokoro, thinking something had gone wrong, screamed, "Oh my God! Kyouko-oneesama!"

"Mayday Mayday Mayday," Kyouko let out. "I am Damage Controlman Code 099 of Plantation 13, Cerasus! I fell from the second floor to the first in a floor collapse! I have about three-quarters of a tank of air left! I have no tools with me at this time! I am requesting assistance in evacuating from the structure!" She then paused for a few seconds. "Kokoro, I'm fine! That was a simulated floor collapse! You're gonna do the same thing I just did, okay?"

The floor before her then lowered back down, revealing it was basically a see-saw. "Thank God! You had me worried there for a sec!" Kokoro then crawled out onto the floor, and sure enough, after a few steps, it tipped and sent her sliding into what was essentially a ball-pit with cushions. "Mayday Mayday Mayday! I'm Code 556 of Plantation 13, Cerasus! I've fallen from the second floor to the first! I have, uh... I have about two-thirds I think of a tank of air left! I have no tools or whatever! I need help getting out of here!" Kokoro then got up and crawled out of the ball pit into another tunnel, where Kyouko was waiting for her.

"Excellent job calling the Mayday," Kyouko complimented her with a pat on the shoulder. "Follow me! This is just like the tunnel at the start, but it's the opposite!" Sure enough, at the end was a hole down to another tunnel below. The two managed to crawl their way into the tunnel below, and easily navigated it together. At the end was a small but large enough room where they could both sit up on their knees. Once they got there, Kyouko instructed her, "Here's one of the most dangerous things you could ever do in this line of work: A full escape! This is where you take your air pack off while staying on air and push yourself through! This is done because you may have to go through somewhere where you cannot physically fit wearing an air pack! This can only be done for emergencies, and if you have to do this, you need to call a Mayday if you haven't already, which you did!"

"Got it," Kokoro replied as Kyouko demonstrated the full escape procedure to her. Once she was partway through the tunnel, Kokoro copied her and put her air pack forward of her to crawl through the tunnel, the tightest of them all. Once they were both out, they put their air packs back on their backs and tightened the straps. Now before them was a structure with two small columns and three wide open spaces to simulate a wall breach.

"Here, we're gonna simulate how to go through a wall breach!" Kyouko then sat backwards and reached her right hand through the breach in the wall. "Just like with the wires, you need to use your feet and hands to swim through!" She then pushed herself through as Kokoro readied herself to do the same, which she did with ease due to her slightly smaller figure. After that was another tight corner leading down a long hallway. Once they reached the end, they found a window leading to the start of the course. "Hold on a sec," Kyouko told Kokoro as she reached up and opened the window from a latch. "Okay, now, we're gonna simulate a first-floor bailout! You're gonna climb up, hook your one leg over the windowsill on the other side, and use your one hand on the same side to hold yourself in place for a little bit! Then, you just roll out onto the ground!" She then demonstrated to Kokoro with ease.

"I got this," Kokoro told herself as she copied Kyouko, crawling up and over the windowsill and doing exactly as she told. Within seconds, she was safely out of the course and back at the start of it. Once she was out, she stood up and took her mask and helmet off, sweat pouring down her face and her hair frazzled. She took several deep breaths as she regained her composure. "Holy shit, that's tiring as hell!"

"It still is," Kyouko replied as she took her mask and helmet off. "Even after about three years of doing it." She then patted Kokoro on the back. "You were awesome in here, Kokoro!"

The younger girl blushed slightly as she replied, "Thank you, Kyouko-oneesama."

The response threw Kyouko off, as she replied in shock, "Ehh? Oneesama?!" She thought to herself, "Am I really that revered by the other pistils in Squad 13?! Holy shit, slow down a bit, Kokoro!"

"Oh," Kokoro replied, thinking she did something wrong. "I, uhh..."

"It's fine," Kyouko hurriedly reassured her as she flicked the smoke machine off and turned the lights on, revealing the room in full. "It's fine. I was just a bit surprised. I mean... I'm not used to being held in such high regard by other pilots."

"Well," Kokoro replied as she wiped sweat off her forehead. "You are by us. Same with your partner, Yasuto-oniisama." She and Kyouko then shared a laugh together, their bond strengthened by the events of today.

An hour later, the two made their way back to the utility shed, still tired out, but not covered in sweat, and still lugging their gear around. They had refilled each of their air bottles before coming back. As they took their gear off, Miku caught up to them. As she ran up to them, Kokoro asked her, "Miku, what's up?"

"Where the hell were you guys?!" Miku was not happy to see they had missed their meeting with Zero Two. "You missed the meeting!"

Kyouko sighed in annoyance. "I showed her around a training course the Children Damage Controlmen and Adult Firefighters go through. What did you discuss with Zero Two?"

"She's on our side now," Miku assured them. "All we needed to do was sit her down. It was a lot easier than I thought." She then shrugged. "Maybe she isn't half-bad."

"Easier than you thought, huh?" Kyouko knew something was up, and thought to herself, "Zero Two is planning something, and if it's a prank of some kind, I want in."

As Zero Two, Yasuto, and Kyouko walked up to the door to the bathing area, they quietly discussed a plan among themselves. "Once this flyer is off the doors," Zero Two told them as she ripped the "NO BOYS ALLOWED" sign off the door. "The plan is going into action. Yasuto, tell the boys that the girls let them use the bathing and changing area for a day. Kyouko, tell the girls you can't join them for their bath, and then stay in the changing area to pretend to fix a broken light."

Yasuto devilishly smiled and gave a small chuckle. "This is gonna be awesome." He and Kyouko then save a silent hi-five to each other and then to Zero Two.

As the boys walked into the changing area of the baths, they found Kyouko fixing a broken lightbulb from a step ladder with a tool bag below her feet on the floor, as planned. Zorome, surprised to see her, asked her, "Hey, uh, Kyouko..."

"I know," she replied as part of the prank. "It's fine. I've seen my partner fully undressed many times. Anyway, can one of you hand me a screwdriver from the tool bag?"

"Sure," Futoshi replied, grabbing one from the side and handing it to Kyouko. "Are you really okay with this?"

"Yeah," she replied. "We figured we'd let the boys bathe here for a day. Yasuto's out in the garden fixing something, so he'll join you guys later."

"That works," Goro replied as he began to get undressed with the rest of the guys.

"Once they open that door," Kyouko thought to herself. "All hell will break loose."

"I bet that soon," Zorome told the gang, now all fully undressed with towels around their necks, as he walked to the door to the baths themselves. "The girls will throw in the towel."

"You're gonna regret saying that," Kyouko thought to herself again, now barely able to contain her laughter as she climbed down from the step ladder and awaited the fireworks. Sure enough, as soon as Zorome slid open the door, the entire gang was met with all the girls, fully nude, in the baths, all taken by surprise and shock.

As the initial surprise turned to anger on the girls' part, Kyouko could no longer hold her laughter and let out a loud cackle of laughter. Miku shouted to the boys, "WHAT THE FUCK?!"

Goro tried and utterly failed to defuse the tension with, "Girls, hold on, it's not what it-!" He was then interrupted by the girls tossing pots, pans, and towels at the boys as they yelled at them to leave. Kokoro noticed Kyouko behind them and gasped, freezing in place as she tried to piece together what was going on.

Meanwhile, Kyouko had continued her laughter as Hiro turned around and saw that Zero Two had begun stealing all their clothes and placing it in a bin. "Zero Two! Our clothes!"

"Come and get 'em, Darling," Zero Two playfully replied as she dashed out of the room at full speed, Hiro chasing after her without ever bothering to wrap anything around himself. "Catch me if you can!"

As the two ran out of the room, Kyouko cheered her on, telling her, "Run, Zero Two, run!" She then turned to the rest of the boys, a smug look on her face as Yasuto emerged from a closed closet in the changing room. "So, what did you think? You guys just got pranked!"

"You guys and Zero Two set us up," Zorome angrily yelled as he dodged another pot. "What the hell?!"

"That's not all," Yasuto comically pointed out. "Zero Two took your clothes, too. I'm kinda ashamed you guys never stopped to think maybe this was just too good to be true."

Kyouko then walked out into the baths through the crossfire, surprising the girls and making them all cease their throwing. "Okay, okay, okay, enough of the throwing shit around, boys and girls."

Miku asked her in a harsh tone, "What the hell is going on?!"

"This pointless boys versus girls bullshit needs to end now," Kyouko told both sides as Yasuto stepped out as well and her tone shifted to something far more serious. "When all the fun and laughs from this prank subsides, it's an unfortunate fact that if we got attacked right now, we'd be completely unprepared. There's no way in fucking hell any of you would be able to respond in a proper capacity as pilots! I don't know why Nana and Hachi haven't intervened just yet, but me, Zero Two, and Yasuto agreed that we needed to."

Yasuto then spoke to the groups. "Infighting like this gets pilots killed. Me and my partner know this because we've seen it. Far too many of your brothers and sisters in the Franxx piloting service die in the line of duty because of a lack of communication and cooperation."

They all then heard a voice from behind them in the changing room. "Everyone, to the foyer, now!" The shrill voice belonged to Nana, indicating she and Hachi were now stepping in.

"I suggest you listen to her," Kyouko told everyone with a stern tone. "Since Zero Two took your clothes, wear your pajamas."