She couldn't even have said what it was that made her so happy, or why it seemed to important that Shinjiro should think of her as someone he could trust. Maybe why didn't matter. Buoyed by the reassurance of having him at her back, Minako flashed him a quick smile that lit up her face, and for a short distance along the dark hallway her steps had a bit of a spring to them that hadn't been there before.

Caution reasserted itself quickly, though. It didn't do to be careless in this place, especially with only the two of them and without the benefit of Fuuka's guiding voice. Pausing at a junction that branched off to either side into the darkness, Minako glanced back to Shinjiro again, and whatever she saw in his demeanor was enough to cause her to pitch her voice a little lower.

"What is it?" she asked him quietly. "Did you hear something?"