Full Summary: Scarlett is not simply a mercenary, she is a member of the Shadow Guild, a group of elite warriors dedicated only to themselves and to fulfilling the jobs they take. But when she takes a job to kill Cross Marian and is found to have Innocence in the process, what will become of her?
A/N: Aah, I'm insane. I already have, what, seven or eight other stories going on right now? Stories that all together take up a considerable chunk of my life. I'm talking hours upon hours, here. And what do I do? Start another story. * sighs * There's something wrong with me, there really is. I'm a masochist, creating more work for myself like this.
But! I was reading other D. Grayman fics the other day, and somehow I ended up getting inspiration for another fic of my own. :) Plus, I was feeling encouraged by the positive feedback for my other fic, Belief.
Anyhow, enjoy the first chapter of Heart of Ice. The view point switches back and forth once or twice, but you can tell when from the lines and who from the context.
Review when you're done reading please! I live for feedback of any kind. :D
Chapter 1
The slim figure darted across the rooftops, her mind on one purpose only.
Kill Cross Marian.
As a mercenary, her only concern was fulfilling her given mission. She would kill this Marian person, and return to Guild headquarters. She'd collect her pay from the Task Master and return to her personal quarters.
The assassination request had been anonymous, brought it by a handsome man with dark skin who said that the mission's benefactor would prefer to remain unknown. He had assured the Guild's Screeners (whose job is was to go over all requests to ensure that the Guild and its members were never double-crossed) that the person in question would not fail to pay, despite the insistence for anonymity. He'd even given them a hundred gold coins (the Guild only ever accepted gold as payment; the money of individual countries was, in their eyes, worthless) as a gesture of good faith on behalf of the mysterious benefactor.
Scarlett, though only nineteen, was one of the best assassins in the Guild, and the Guild Council had personally requested her for the job. The anonymous requester was offering them a substantial sum for the job, and as a Guild member she was obligated to give them a third of everything she made from her assignments. Since they would get a considerable chunk of shiny gold change if the mission was completed satisfactorily, they wanted to send the best person.
Which was how she ended up leaping across the tops of buildings. According to the information she'd collected, the man known as Cross Marian was going to make an appearance at an opera house that night, accompanied by the city's Mistress of Pleasure a.k.a. the woman in charge of the city's brothels.
She sighed. Didn't people realize that frivolous things like that were risky? While she personally had never done so, she knew of other Guild members who had disguised themselves as brothel girls in order to get close to a mark and then kill or threaten them.
It's dangerous, she thought, looking down at the courtyard in front of the opera house as she crouched behind a gargoyle. Trusting another person. Feeling safe, with your life in their hands. She could quite proudly say she'd never once done something so stupid. She'd never trusted anyone. Even her fellow Guildmembers she regarded with a certain wariness. Despite their mutual allegiance to the Guild itself, she would never dream of trusting one of them. She wouldn't risk her life in that way.
The first priority of a mercenary is always your own existence. Put no one's life before your own.
She sat there on the roof for nearly an hour. A normal person would catch a chill, or get leg cramps, or something similar that. But she'd practically grown up in the Guild, and had trained extensively; she could effectively ignore any sort of discomfort, 'turning off' her reaction, so to speak. She could even turn off pain, to a certain extent.
Ah, she thought suddenly, spotting her target. There he is.
Long red hair, half his face covered by some sort of mask...not to mention the distinctive hat. You can spot him a league off, she mused with a smirk.
The tall red-haired man was walking arm in arm with Madame Luxury, whose real name was Bethany something-or-other. She was wearing a pale lavender dress with satin gloves.
"I'll be right back," Madame Luxury was saying. "I just want to say hello to Angelique before we go in. You know those stodgy opera bouncers; they won't let anyone even whisper inside that place!"
Cross chuckled. "You go ahead. I'll wait here."
She dashed off towards a small cluster of women while Cross wandered over to look at the courtyard's fountain. After a few minutes he wandered over to the mouth of a dark alley and pulled out a cigarette.
She watched in disbelief as he stepped into the shadowed alley, lighting up his cigarette as he went.
Seriously? He's going to a dark alley of his own free will? She snorted. He's practically saying 'Come kill me!'. Her smirk widened. Might as well oblige him. That is what I'm here for, after all.
She slipped away from the gargoyle and across the roof, hopping to the building next to the alley. As she went, she took her scarf from around her neck and wrapped it around her face.
Blood-red like her eyes, the scarf was not typically something a mercenary would wear. For one, it was
quite distinctive, and a mercenary was supposed to aim for being unrecognizable, with no remarkable characteristics. But her scarf was practically a part of her. In fact, she couldn't think of a time when she hadn't had it.
Of course, it helped that it was also her weapon of choice.
She didn't even remotely understand the mechanics of it, but her scarf had some considerably strange properties. It could split apart into ribbons and bind someone if she wished for it to do so, and the edges could also become sharp as blades if she desired it. On top of that, it seemed virtually indestructible; it seemed impervious to all harm, whether it was fire, knives, or a sledgehammer.
She had absolutely no idea how her scarf could do these things. She'd long ago attributed it to some sort of magic and left it at that.
She leaned over the edge of the roof, and spotted the man, facing away in the complete opposite direction from where she was kneeling on the roof. She smirked, slipping a knife out of her boot. Too easy.
She leapt down, sure of her victory. Her blade was positioned at the right angle even as she fell down upon her victim; it would hit true, burying into Marian Cross' heart.
She thoroughly caught off guard when her would-be victim easily dodged to the side and followed up with a swift kick to her ribs. She went sprawling onto the ground, and before she had to a chance to get up, she heard a metallic click. Slanting her gaze up a bit, she saw that a large gun was now aimed at her forehead. She dimly noted that it was some type of auto-revolver.
Whoever that anonymous benefactor is, she thought angrily, clearly lied his ass off. And that handsome bastard as well. The Screeners had been told, and had told her in turn, that the target was virtually defenseless. "He won't be hard to take out", the handsome man had assured them. "Not for someone of the legendary Shadow Guild." Like hell.
"Who are you?" Cross asked, pressing the gun against her head. "Why were you trying to kill me?"
She remained silent, just looked up at him coldly. You don't scare me.
"Hmph." He exhaled a cloud of smoke and regarded her seriously. "Tough kid, huh? Well, I hate to break it to you, but whoever sent you after me was either overestimating you or underestimating me. Given my reputation, my money's on the first one. Either way, you don't owe them any allegiance. Tell me who it was who sent you."
She turned to gaze at wall, essentially ignoring him. She had no attachment to the Guild or the benefactor of this assignment, but spilling the beans violated her (admittedly flawed) code of honor.
"Fine. Have it your way, then." He pressed his finger down on the trigger.
Slice, she ordered in her mind, and her scarf obeyed, splitting into razor sharp ribbons and lashing out at the red-haired man. He jumped back, avoiding the attacks, but looked at her with faint surprise.
Cross stared at her, startled. Is that an Innocence? Is this girl an Accomadator?
He looked at her more closely. She was lithe and strong, and seemed to be around 5'7". Looking at her, he doubted she was any older than twenty; she looked mature, with her high cheekbones and full lips (not to mention an ample bosom), but she had an aura of youthfulness about her.
The most striking feature was her eyes. Blood-red, almost the exact same shade as the shapeshifting scarf that wrapped around her neck and draped across her shoulders. Both the scarf and her eyes contrasted sharply with her jet black hair, which was cropped short; the longest portion of it looked like grown out bangs, covering the right side of her face.
She was dressed simply, all in black. She wore a black form-fitting tank top, and black pants tucked into knee-high lace-up boots. What a pain in the ass those must be to put on, he thought. She also wore black fingerless gloves and cloth elbows protectors running from two inches above her elbows to two inches below; they too were black. Fitting garb for an assassin. Ignoring the bright red, anyway.
Even as he watched the red cloth changed, splitting apart again and reaching out to twist around his arms. Trying to catch me, huh? He jumped back and fired a warning shot past the girl's head. She flinched slightly as it went past, but otherwise betrayed no reaction. Hmm. Impressive.
"Don't try that again," he advised the girl, leveling Judgment at her once more. "The next shot won't go past your head, but through it. Got it?"
She glared at him. "...Fine."
"Ah, so you can talk." He smirked. "I was beginning to wonder."
She sneered at him. "Of course I can talk."
To her surprise he laughed. "Glad to hear it." He looked her over. "What's your name?"
"Why should I tell you?" she demanded.
"Well, let's see. I have a gun aimed at your head. Isn't that a good enough reason?"
"Not really." Her gaze flickered over the gun. "It is a nice weapon, though," she offered.
He grinned. "Thanks. Yours, too." He nodded to her scarf. "Do you know what that is?"
She raised her eyebrows. "I was under the impression that it's a scarf."
Hmph. Cheeky brat. "A magic scarf?" he asked, voice mocking.
She shrugged. "Whatever works."
Huh. So she really has no idea. "Want me to tell you what it really is?"
She opened her mouth to say something, but before she could something grotesque lunged out at them from a nearby doorway. To her shock, the man called Cross Marian shoved her out of the way and fired off several shots in rapid succession. The monster was blasted into pieces as she stared.
"What...what the hell was that?" she whispered.
Cross ignored her, and spun around to shout in the direction of the rooftops. "Hurry up and come out! I haven't got all night."
To her horror, more freakish monsters emerged, leaping down from the buildings to surround them. They looked like bloated ragdolls. Well, massive bloated ragdolls with shark-teeth.
What the hell is going on here? she wondered, looking at the creatures in fear. Her heart was pounding in her chest, and realized that she was afraid. It was something of a surprise; she hadn't felt fear in a long time.
"These," Cross Marian said in a conversational tone, "are called Akuma."
She nodded jerkily. "Akuma," she repeated. As she said it, she felt her scarf stir around her. What...?
"And your magic scarf?" Cross continued. "Is what we call 'Innocence'."
Innocence? "Who's 'we'?" she demanded, trying to ignore the fact that the monstrous human-sized ragdolls were coming closer.
"Do you really want to know?" the red-haired man asked. "Because once I start telling you this shit there's no going back."
"Tell me what the hell's going on!" she snapped, leaping backwards as one of the Akuma charged at her. She could feel her scarf shifting again; it almost felt...agitated. What's happening?It's never acted like this before. "Why is my scarf going mental?"
"It's reacting to the Akuma," he answered, blasting away the Akuma that was trying to devour her. "As I said before, your scarf is actually Innocence."
"Which is?" she demanded.
"Innocence is the only power that can truly defeat Akuma. And Innocence can only be wielded by the Exorcists of the Black Order."
Black Order?...Shit. She knew of the Order. All guild members did, in a vague sort of way. Their interactions basically amounted to a large-scale version of 'stay out of my way and I'll stay out of yours'. "You're telling me the Exorcists are real? I always thought you bunch were just tavern rumors."
And she'd never paid much attention to those sorts of stories. Fairytales of human-eating monsters and magic powers of goodness had never been something she felt the need to bother with; she did, after all, deal in the dark side of the human world. There was enough horror there already without adding monsters to the mix.
"Yeah, we're real."
"Great," she drawled. "Just super."
"You may want to start fighting sometime soon," Cross remarked. "Don't expect me to save your ass again."
She glared at him. "Isn't saving people your job?"
He shrugged, the very picture of indifference. "If you're too stupid to defend yourself, that's not really my problem, is it?"
Well, isn't he Mr. Compassion. She looked at the Akuma. Fight, huh? Her scarf stirred again, and she smirked. All right, then. Let's see how this turns out.
She bounded forward, moving from where she'd been crouching to a spot in front of an Akuma in the blink of an eye. Slice.
Her scarf lashed out eagerly, splitting apart into a dozen different ribbons that darted towards the Akuma. The razor-sharp edges sliced apart the Akuma, cutting it into pieces. The other ragdoll monsters eyed her warily.
"Impressive," Cross said with a smirk as he blasted four other Akuma in rapid succession. "At that rate you may beat this batch by the end of the month."
"Shove it," she snapped. "Unlike you, this is my first time fighting monsters."
"It's unlikely to be the last," he informed her.
"What's that supposed to mean?" she demanded, finishing the off the last Akuma by beheading it with a ribbon-blade slash. Some back part of her mind wondered if her scarf could tranform into an actual weapon, like a sword or a knife; it would certainly give her a chance for more direct fighting.
Then again, she thought, looking at the jagged teeth the Akuma had, maybe close quarters fighting isn't the best idea.
"Weren't you listening, brat? You have Innocence. The only thing that can destroy Akuma. You think they're just gonna let you be?"
She looked at him warily.
"They'll keep coming after you," he continued. "You're not safe on your own."
She bristled at that. "I can look after myself."
He snorted. "Please. You may be a good mercenary, but against Akuma you'll be dead within a week."
She threw a dagger at him. "Care to repeat that?"
He arched an eyebrow. "Got a bit of a temper, don't you?"
"Just when assholes doubt my abilities," she growled.
He waved a hand dismissively. "I don't doubt that you're one of the best by human standards. But against Akuma..." He shrugged. "You need more training."
She eyed him mistrustfully. "You offering?"
He snorted. "Hell no. I already have one stupid pupil. I don't need another."
She crossed her arms, her scarf wrapping itself around her neck. "Then what?"
He shrugged. "It's up to you. But if I were you I'd book it for the European headquarters as soon as possible."
"And why's that?"
"Do I need to repeat myself again? You'll end up dead if you don't join us." He indicated the Rose Cross on his jacket. "You'll only be safe with the Exorcists." He shrugged. "Not like I care. But it'd be shame to loose another Accommodator. Our odds of our side winning this war are already shitty."
She frowned slightly. Should I agree? Should I join the Order?
She looked at the Akuma corpses, and then back at Cross. He'd technically both spared and saved her life. She still didn't trust him, of course; she didn't trust anyone. But she couldn't deny the obvious truth in front of her. Akuma were real, Exorcists were real, and she had to make a decision about how to deal with her sudden involvement.
"What about the Guild?" she asked.
"What about them?"
"Do I have to retract my membership?"
He shrugged. "The Order will want you to, but what you actually do is up to you."
"How do you mean?"
"Well, let's say you were to join the Order."
"I haven't agreed yet," she warned.
"Hypothetically speaking, then. Say you were to join the Order. You would be commanded to sever all ties with your old life."
"Okay."
"But what if you were to remain a Guild member?"
"I'd be disobeying orders," she said flatly.
"Well, I suppose so. But what they don't know won't hurt 'em. Besides, who knows? Having connections to the Guild may actually benefit the Order someday." He shrugged.
She thought it over. On one hand, she was comfortable in the Guild. On the other hand...The first priority of a mercenary is always your own existence. If what this man said was true, her life was in danger from these Akuma if she tried to go it alone.
Ah, what the hell. "Sure. I'll join you guys."
Cross grinned. "Good. Because otherwise I'd have to drag you to headquarters and that would be awkward."
She snorted. "No kidding." She rubbed her arms. "So...now what?"
"The opera's about to start," he said matter-of-factly.
She blinked. "What?"
"The opera," he said patiently. "It's about to start."
"And?" she asked flatly.
"Come on." He started off towards the entrance of the alleyway.
"Wait, hold on." She jogged after him. "Where are you going?"
"You really don't listen, do you?" He smirked at her. "We're going to the opera."
She stared at him.
He chuckled. "Let's go," he said, stepping out into the courtyard. "Oh, yeah," he said, calling over his shoulder. "I almost forgot. What's your name? It's not fair for you to know my name without me knowing yours."
My name? She smiled. "Call me Scarlett."
A/N: And that's the end of the first chapter. :) For anyone who's wondering, I was originally planning for this to be another LavixOC fic, but now I'm not so sure...it'll be an OCxSomeone fic, definitely (though with heapings of plot and action, of course, like all my other OC fics). I just haven't decided who Scarlett should be paired up with yet. Anyone got any ideas? If so, please say who you'd like for Scarlett to be with in your review. :D