False Friendship

I stood over a young blonde woman, only a year younger than me, prepared to arrest her as the prime suspect in the Mariage serial murder case- the case we had both investigated together.

Only a few months ago, that same woman was standing before me, saluting and introducing herself to me as my junior partner. At the same time, she was meeting her primary opponent in her quest to avoid being identified as the killer.

Neither of us had expected this outcome. There was a time when I did not think she was capable of killing so many without remorse, and when she thought that I did not suspect her of doing such a thing. And even in this moment, I was unaware that there were still things about her that I did not know; I knew the essential facts about her guilt, but my knowledge about her was still far from complete. Over our months of working together, our perceptions of each other changed, in a journey of gentle turns and sharp swerves, we gradually came to this result. What follows is the story of this process.

Chapter 1: Breaking The Ice

The stories behind many murder cases begin well in advance of the actual killings, through circumstances that put the killer on the path to the victim. But in my case, I, an intended victim of the killer in this case, had the fortune to make the first move. What follows is my process of coming to realize the killer's identity, arresting her, and then trying to make sense of what I had learned.

My name is Teana Lanster, and I am an Enforcer for the Time Space Administration Bureau. My primary responsibilities are dealing with atrocious crimes and finding the criminals responsible. Often, the culprits I hunt are closer to me than I think, whether people I met briefly on certain occasions, or even people I worked alongside in one context or another. I have also realized that the criminals are not always entirely different from me.

A little less than a year and a half after my promotion, I received something of a surprise; I would become the partner of another enforcer who was working on a series of mysterious killings, but this time, as the senior partner. This was in stark contrast to my previous workings with my Enforcer mentor, Fate Testarossa-Harlaown, most of the other Enforcers with whom I investigated cases. Even Shari-san, Fate-san's assistant, despite lacking the desire and some of the necessary talents to become an Enforcer, was older and more experienced, and I found myself asking her questions even after I had surpassed her in rank.

Some of my worries were put to rest when my superiors ensured me that my partner was entirely competent, and did not need any on-the-job training. Still, there were questions that remained. How would her talents complement mine, in battle and in investigation? How would our personalities mesh? Most of the responsibility of finding the answers to these questions and making our partnership work lay on my shoulders.

I then became introduced to Runessa Magnus, a relatively new Enforcer who first attained the position of Enforcer not long before the Mariage killings began. What follows is how I sought to learn more about her, came to the painful realization of her true nature, and in the end, learned that even that was not the whole of who she was.

"Enforcer Runessa Magnus, reporting!" the young enforcer clad in a black uniform said, standing at attention and saluting me, as we met in the lobby of a Bureau office in Clanagan.

"Enforcer Teana Lanster," I responded, returning the salute. "It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Enforcer Magnus."

By the time our superiors left us to speak alone, I realized that Rune had not told me anything about herself except for what I could find in her personnel file. At the time, I credited all this to mere professional courtesy; just as we wear uniforms every day on duty, we also play our parts as members of the Bureau, and professional relationships take precedence over personal ones. As such, Major Nakajima and Ginga-san, father and daughter otherwise, are merely superior and subordinate while on duty.

But while Ginga-san starts calling Major Nakajima "Dad" again when they're alone or when they get off work, he's always been "Major Nakajima" to me, as some relationships are purely professional. And while Rune bore a striking resemblance to my former superior Fate-san with her red eyes and blonde (if short, compared to Fate-san's very long) hair, she lacked the friendly and motherly demeanor Fate often had.

"So, Enforcer Lanster, are there any questions you would like to ask me?" Rune asked.

I was at a loss for how to proceed from there. Subaru had taken the initiative in becoming friends with me, and had also taken the first steps to get the introverted and socially inexperienced Erio and Caro to see us as friends rather than merely fellow Bureau members. I thus had little idea what to do except do what Subaru did, and failing that, imagine what she might do.

"Yes," I replied. "Enforcer Magnus, you said you had a gun as a device?"

"Yes, ma'am. The official name is Silver Dagger, and it is a revolver."

"What sort of spells do you have armed for it?"

Rune paused while considering my question. Before she spoke again, she looked somewhat surprised, as if she had only just understood why I asked about the spells.

"I apologize for not being precise enough," she said. "To clarify, it is a revolver, an actual gun with bullets." I looked on, shocked, as such weapons were difficult to obtain certification for, and often found only in the hands of private security by those unable to use magic. "I have certification, though," she said, producing a card with her name and the registration for her weapon. Out of habit, I inspected the card and her gun before returning them to her.

"Interesting," I said. "I have a gun device, which is why I was asking. Its name is Cross Mirage, and it's less suited to bombardment spells, but it makes effective precision attacks. I can generally shoot down projectiles in mid-flight, and typically, a head shot can incapacitate a target. It even has a laser blade for close-quarters combat."

Of course, Cross Mirage was good for more than that, something that few people were aware of and something that took me a long time to realize. But keeping it a secret was an important part of retaining the element of surprise, and I did not tell just anyone about it. The only people to know of this technique were my trusted friends, those I faced in battle, or those who needed to know as part of my battle plans. As our first conversation outside of work was solely about our magic, I realized it would be a while before Rune qualified for the former.

Rune listened with rapt attention, which was not quite as present when we discussed our professional histories, such as where we were posted. At the time, I took it as a sign that Rune took her work seriously, was dedicated to improving herself, and even possibly enjoyed honing her skills in combat. All these seemed to be promising traits for a partner, although I cautioned myself that I needed to ensure that she did not recklessly thrust herself into danger or stubbornly put her efforts toward less than ideal outlets, as I once had.

I walked away with most of the information I needed. Despite being younger and earlier in her Enforcer and Bureau careers than I was, Rune would be able to fulfill her duties. I had obtained the basic facts of the case and her progress on it, and thus would have time to deal with other matters later.

After a few conversations in our off-hours, I hoped to start getting to know her better.

"So, Enforcer Magnus, do you have any relatives in the bureau?" I asked.

"Not to my knowledge, ma'am," she said. "I am an orphan without any siblings, and joined the Bureau as an individual decision."

"I'm sorry to hear that." I said, then after a brief pause, continued. "I noticed there's quite a few Magnuses in the Bureau; I once worked with a Sergeant Mercedes Magnus on a case."

"Really?" Rune said. "Then perhaps you could call me by my first name if you would like to distinguish between us."

"Certainly," I said. "The invitation is also open on my end, Enforcer Runessa."

After a brief pause, Rune responded.

"I'm sorry, but I'm afraid I must decline… Enforcer Lanster," she said somberly. "I suppose it's easier for me to get used to a superior's familiarity to me than to show familiarity to one myself."

Rune's serious demeanor was highly reminiscent of myself in the past. I found myself wondering; was this what Subaru went through when reaching out to me? Back then, I had once told Cadet Nakajima in no uncertain terms that I considered our association temporary and purely professional, and had no desire to go beyond it. Of course, I gradually became closer to her, and while I still thought we would be separated upon our graduation, we remained together for about five years, until opportunities to reach our desired positions presented themselves to us. We had known that day would come, and worked hard so that it would, but it was still difficult for Subaru and I to part ways, even with the promise that we would keep in contact and meet each other again.

Perhaps Rune was considerably more serious than I was. Then again, perhaps it was a sign of just how much I had changed since meeting Subaru and everyone else, a process of change I hoped she too would undergo. I suspected that her similarities with me were possible indications that that there was hope; it took time for me to warm up to Subaru, and I hoped time would help her find more in common with me. There was certainly some evidence to support my hopes, as she was willing to talk about subjects besides work, and eventually accepted more familiarity, first "Runessa" then "Rune" for short.

But things can often change in the course of a few months; . At the time, I never knew that she was the criminal I was searching for on the Mariage case.

Author's Note:

This fic, the first draft of which I wrote quite some time before "Perfection Is Overrated" and "Changing Perception," is intended to explore Teana and Runessa's relationships; it's rare that a friend in the Nanohaverse turns out to be an enemy, rather than an enemy turning into a friend. She has also committed crimes too great and too willingly to qualify for the typical rehabilitation, but she doesn't seem to be purely evil, nor does her regard for Teana seem entirely false.

One thing that made me curious is how Teana is fairly informal with Runessa "Rune" Magnus, but Runessa is still quite formal with Teana "Enforcer Lanster" Lanster. I personally interpreted it to Runessa not wanting to get close to Teana, but her response to being offered a position as Teana's partner indicated that she started to like Teana, anyway.

This also draws from the StrikerS manga, which details how Subaru and Teana became friends; the summary is that Teana was initially reluctant to be friends with Subaru (and judging by her tone, was not at all acting in a Tsundere way), but as she got to know her better, became friends with her. Teana seems considerably more relaxed and open to others than she was back then- Erio noted that she was hard to get close to at the time- so it's interesting to see her trying to get closer to someone, only to be shut out, and how it reminds her of herself.

On a minor note, it's a bit odd that Runessa doesn't have a character entry in Fanfifction's list of characters; immediately after Rio, there's Schach.