All characters are owned by Yuki Amemiya and Yukino Ichihara, except for Suzume Jager and Caelus (although the idea of the Fyulong is theirs).
llll-llll-llll-llll-llll-llll
Looks like I might've pushed it a bit too far again.
More and more bandits are heading in my direction and I will be a lot happier if I can come out unscathed. Unfortunately, the only exit that I can find at the moment is the unopened window coming up in front of me. So, I have a decision to make.
Well, I think I'm going to go with falling to my death.
I drop my shoulder and listen to the musical sound of the shattering glass as I plummet towards the ground below. I make sure the small pouch is still attached to my belt and then I take both of my index fingers and let out a screeching whistle. All I have to do now is wait for my ride to pick me up. As I wait, I enjoy the breeze whipping past me as I continue to gain speed.
SCREEEEEEEEE!
I flip over in mid-air and I immediately feel the soles of my boots brush against something soft as I begin to rise higher into the sky. I drop into a crouch on my friend's back and grab on to his fur. In exhilaration, I shout, "Yeeeeeaaahhhh! Ha ha!"
I catch a glimpse of the broken window and see the bandits cursing and growling at me. To make a point, I wink at them and give a small wave of good-bye as the tower shrinks. Once it's gone in the distance, I turn to my friend and settle myself comfortably on his fluffy pink back.
Suzume Jager, I told you not to call too late, my friend reprimands me. What would you have done if I wasn't fast enough? You were falling from thirty stories high!
"Caelus, I'm okay," I scratch him behind his hare-like ear and I feel him purring beneath me. "The only reason I'm as reckless as I am is because I have an awesome partner-in-crime. I could've also used my zaiphon to break my fall if worse came to worst. You know me better than that."
The adolescent Fyulong dragon only sighs and flaps his powerful wings once, shooting off into the clouds and sending shots of adrenaline crashing through my veins. I let out a whoop of excitement and I can feel Caelus humming beneath me, putting me into an even better mood. I whistle the Raggs Requiem to myself and enjoy the ride.
I understand that my dragon companion cares about me, but I'm strong enough to take care of myself. I've been through enough that a little fall like that couldn't hurt me too much. Absentmindedly, my hand travels up my arm and traces the tiny little scars that I brought with me from my last profession. Then, my knuckle hits the goggles hanging around my neck and my thoughts turn to him, to my violet-eyed hero and his beautiful flowers. I smile to myself and Caelus feels the change in my mood. He shifts questioningly and I tickle him behind his ear again as we descend into the Barsburg Church.
-x~*=~*=~*=~*=~*=~*=~*x-
Labrador's been my best friend since forever. I know about his past and his strange little quirks. The first day I met him, I was still a naive preteen who wanted to know if he was a girl or a boy. Being the kind man he is, he told me fairly bluntly and then I was reprimanded by being hung upside down with a plant tendril. Afterward, he kindly gave me a silver rose and told me to be careful. He still hangs me when he thinks I'm not listening. Days after, he found me crying in a corner and asked me why. When I told him about Frau picking on me because of my history as a battle sklave, he promptly stood up and walked off. I quickly brushed off my tears and followed him to see what he was going to do and found him telling off the bishop who didn't say a word about it afterward until I finally got over my past. A few years later, when I was about 14 years old, I wanted to help him with his roses after training with Frau and he let me. I guess I was fairly exhausted because, when I woke up the next morning, Lab had his arms around me and we were under a tree. And Castor had found us first. You can probably tell how awkward it was trying to explain what happened. We'd been through a lot together, and I knew that he was a ghost but that didn't bug me as much as his habit of sleeping in the most random of places.
After Caelus had left to hunt in the area, I was given a lot of time to myself. I wasn't quite sure what I was going to do, but I soon found myself in Labrador's favourite place drinking tea and chatting casually with him. This is where I currently am, a cookie in my hand and laughing at his stories of the other bishops and the strange predicaments that they found themselves in. After a short silence, however, the air grows tense and I know what's coming.
"Suzume, I have to tell you something before things get serious," Profe's reincarnation clasps his hands in front of his mouth and stares at me intently. I can only sigh and slouch in my chair as I wait for him to butcher my happiness into tiny edible pieces. "You have to stop going out on heists like the one today. You know how dangerous it is for you to be going out on your own, especially since they're out there looking everywhere for their prize sklave."
"You're overreacting, Lab. I'm stronger than the ten year old that first set foot inside the Church and it's been years. They probably forgot about me." I try to comfort him and change his mind about my way of trying to avert imminent boredom but he holds onto my hands and shakes his head. He may not seem the type, but he can hold his own in an argument and he can bring up points that are nearly impossible to argue with.
I know that I have to be careful of what I'm doing now that I'm branded as an escapee and the mark on my back only acts as more of a spotlight on me. Although I did say that they forgot, I know that the traffickers wouldn't. Being their best fighter, they put me into some underground fights and I never lost. It served as training and a source of income, but my sanity was slowly being exhausted because they were always anything-goes death matches and I saw more than I should've at that age. One day, I decided that I was through with them and fled here. Since then, I've been dropping into several of their hideouts and ransacking them for revenge. On one of my excursions last year, I was almost recaptured. Luckily, Teito Klein was there to help and we ended up returning with dozens of bruises and scratches. You have no idea how much Lab fussed over me that day. It was embarrassing to say the least.
"I know, but I'm still worried about the nineteen-year-old who's still as reckless as the little girl from that day." He squeezes my hands tighter and I blush slightly while looking down. He must have mistaken the gesture as impatience because I'm plucked out of my chair by one of his silver rose bushes and hanging by my arms in an instant. I feel more branches slither around my legs, presumably so that I wouldn't be able to run from him.
Labrador stands up and gracefully walks over to where I'm being held. His usually calm face is now slightly tainted by impatience and irritation which is most likely the mirror image of mine. I hate it when he does this to me to make sure I'm paying attention. My thoughts are almost always about him, whether I like it or not.
"Suzume, you have to listen to me. As much as I hate to restrain you from what you want to do my first priority is keeping you safe and that's final."
"Quit treating me like I'm incapable of handling myself! You know full well that I can take care of anything that comes my way, whether it's a Kor or not!"
"Well you certainly look like you're incapable of any action at the moment! You're too full of pride, Jager, and one day it will be your downfall."
I growl at him and my golden eyes bore into his violet orbs. I'm stuck here because Labrador knows I won't cut down the roses. They're as important to me as they are to him and I would probably cry harder over them than he would. However, he's slowly starting to creep across the undrawn line and I do stupid things when I get angry.
"You know how unpredictable I am when you piss me off, Lab. Don't do it." I try to wriggle free of my bonds, but they only contract even more and the thorns are beginning to draw blood. I can practically feel Lab's annoyance through the vines on my wrists.
"I know, but that doesn't mean I won't try to do it anyway. I'll do whatever it takes to keep you from causing trouble," he says, his rage blatantly obvious in every word.
"Excuse me? I'm the one causing trouble?" I spit at him and he narrows his eyes.
He gently takes me by the chin and tilts it up ever so slightly. His voice drops dangerously low and menacing as he whispers into my ear, "You have no idea, little girl."
That is it! I'm done with the parenting act. He can't put all the blame on me without expecting a backlash.
The hidden blades on my wrists unsheathe themselves and cut my hands free. The blades on the heels of my boots shoot out, and in a flurry of blades and petals I'm free of my bonds. On an ordinary day, I would've found the glimmering petals fluttering above our heads a very romantic scene, but this isn't just an average day.
"Don't try to find me, Ilyusha," I say, using the name from his past. Before I leap away, I catch a glimpse of the bishop cringing and reaching out for me. He's merely a blink of an eye too late, but by then I'm halfway out of the western greenhouse and sprinting with the tears in my eyes blinding me.
I charge out of the doors and away from the Church before anyone can stop me. I don't stop until I lose myself within an area of the district that I've never been to and I whistle for Caelus. A short moment later, he arrives and the moment he sees my face he understands. I hop on his back, lie down, and cry as he takes off into the air and takes me away. Where to I'm not sure yet, but all I need is to get as far away from him as I can.
Suzume, Caelus speaks softly as if he doesn't want to startle the wild animal riding upon his back. Will you be okay?
I don't have the strength to reply, nor do I want to. I only tap his back with my fist once, and he nods. He goes into a swooping dive to gain speed and I begin to cry harder as I realize that I'm leaving behind the only home I ever knew.
The three most horrific things I have ever done had happened within less than ten minutes. Number three was having a massive argument with someone who was once my best friend. Two was cutting our beloved silver roses. At the top of my list is hurting him. In my heart, I know that he will forgive me.
But that doesn't mean that I can forgive myself.