EDIT: 9/3/2015
Author's Corner!
~ La Storia della Arcana Famiglia ~ I just like LSDAF. It's good. And cute. And Tarot cards! Well, read on!
R&R and don't forget to check out the character page on my profile's last section~
Enjoy, my little Arcana
Legend: ' ' are thoughts, " " are characters speaking, *bold* are actions done by characters and sfx, italics represent past events, memories, emphasis and foreign language, and bold italics time skips.
WARNING: May contain OOC, various point-of-view, and possible lemons!
I : Regalo
At the Ports of Regalo
The sea.
That was what the young lady standing on the dock was looking at.
"I've finally come back..." she trailed off, still looking at the shining blue sea before her.
"Oi, Chibi! Mou ikuze, osoku naru yo!" a voice called from behind her. "Chibi" huffed and looked over her shoulder. She yelled back, "Paatii ha ato de yuugata ni-"
"Ii kara, kocchi koi yo!" he began to walk away with their belongings, as the rest were being hauled onto a cart. Looking back to the ocean, a calm sea breeze passed by
*sigh* "Mattaku..." she muttered softly, turning on her heel and following her companion.
As she was walking down the port, she passed by two men who were taking crates off one of the docked ships. One bald and one blonde. Taking a short glance at the blonde, she thought 'Hm? He looks...familiar. I wonder...' Shaking it off, she quickened her pace to catch up to her friend, who was walking backwards slowly while waiting for her to catch up to him.
Meanwhile...In Town
Crimes.
That's what often happened in Regalo. And today happened to be one of the days a crime occurred. A crowd had formed around the supposed crime scene as two groups of men faced each other. A blue-haired teen stepped forward, unsheathing his katana.
"You've been caught red-handed for smuggling. The goods will be confiscated, and you will be taken into custody."
A man from the opposing forces lit a bomb, throwing it at them. Sounds of swords clashing could be heard as men began to battle. The blue-haired teen struck down a few opponents before he got "overpowered" by one of them.
"I'm gonna lend a hand!" someone yelled. The blue-haired teen glanced to the side to see the blonde running into battle with a cutlass in hand. "Tch." As his opponent let his guard down, the blue-haired teen quickly recovered, "There's no need for that!"
"You should learn to accept the generosity of others!" the blonde yelled at him as he ran into battle.
"What you're offering is called an unwelcome favor!"
The two were basically arguing whilst fighting the group of thieves as they come back-to-back, surrounded by them.
"You're not cute." "I'd prefer you not call me "cute"."
*a car screeches* Their attention turns towards the car that came right at them. All men moving out of the way, the car spins and stops, letting in two of their "bosses" and driving off.
"I'm not letting you get away!" But before he could go after them, the blonde takes hold of his arm. "If ther're only certain routes they can take. We can catch up by using the back roads, right?" The younger of the two looks at the older one incredulously. "W-What?" Running past the blonde, he complies and says, "Hurry up."
"Hah? I know!" the blonde yells back and runs after him.
"It seems there's some trouble at the harbour."
The dealer with silver locks and an eye-patch looked up from the deck of cards.
"Trouble?"
A young man grinned happily as a lasagna was placed before him. "Haaa~ Lasagna, I've been waiting for you! Thank you for the meaaaa-" he was cut off by a car zooming past the area.
"Ah," he blurted then looked back at his delicious lasagna. His face said 'What should I do? Should I go? But I want to eat my lasagna!'
Quite the struggle if you ask me.
"Milady."
"Milady" turned around, seemingly annoyed. "What is it now, Luca?" Her subordinates also turned to Luca, their faces screaming annoyance and intimidation.
"Geh..." recovering from surprise, he continued. "Th-The party tonight is a very special one. We should start heading back to the mansion." Her only response to his pestering was, "There'll be plenty of time for that after we finish our patrol." She and her team turned back to continue their patrol of Regalo.
"Yes, but... You will also need time to change."
The sound of a speeding car could be heard from where they were, coming closer to their position. "Oh!" a voice came from above. "Milady" looked towards the source and saw-
"Found you!" a blonde teen jump down from the roof of one of the buildings and onto the car.
"Libertà?"
The blue-haired teen comes out from the path he took. "That idiot. How reckless can he be?"
"Nova." Nova looks back to the person who said his name. "Felicità."
Libertà looked towards the thieves, who were now pointing guns at him. "Don't move, Libertà," a voice called out to him from behind. "Debito!"
He looked over his shoulder to see a young man with an eye-patch take out his own guns from their holsters. He crossed his arms, gun still in his hands, and shot the guns out of the thieves hands. The one driving the vehicle did a sharp turn, dropping his companions in the process.
"Jump, Libertà!" another voice called out.
The two on the car looked to the source to see...a bald man carrying a bazooka?! "Are you serious?!" The bald man shoots at the car, destroying it completely. "That's dangerous, Dante!"
"No need to worry," was Dante's reply to his course of action.
As Libertà flew in the air, he landed in the arms of another. "Eh?"
"See?" the person who caught him said, food lingering on his face. "Pace."
"Kyaaaa!" "Move it!"
The boss of thieves attempted escape, but stopped as Luca stepped forward, knives in hand. He looked around for an escape route, but was surrounded by men (and woman), all clad in black suits. The boss, now knowing there was no escape, ran at the woman, fists in the air. One of her men was ready to take out his weapon when she stopped him and took hold of her knives. Before she could strike, Nova came in front of her and sliced the clothes of the thief completely without harming his body.
"I-I surrender..." The thief fell to the ground and cheers from the surrounding crowd could be heard.
"That settles that," Dante says. Felicità looks to him and asks, "Dante, what are we going to do about the car?"
"I was about to die!" Libertà says, walking up to the two along with Pace. "Your actions are too bold!"
"Well, I am bald," he replies and laughs haughtily. "Just kidding!" The four, Nova standing off to the side, looked at Dante with disbelief. Libertà claps his hands once and says, "Well, let's go," and walked towards Luca and Debito.
"Who are those people?" a young man within the crowd asks. "That was intense," his companion adds. "Is this your first time here, boys?" a woman asks them. "Eh?" they blurt out. "I'm curious if this is the first time you've been to the trade island of Regalo."
"Y-Yes."
"Then, let me tell you. Clean out your ears and listen well! They are the vigilante organization that protects Regalo Island, the Arcana Famiglia."
A young male and female were off to the side, listening to their conversation. "Arcana Famiglia, huh?" the female muttered quietly. "Let's go, Shorty." She simply nodded and continued to walk with him.
At the Mansion
"Milady, you musn't!" "This isn't just some ordinary party."
*knock*knock* "Milady. Everyone is waiting for you." The door to Felicità's room opened, as she stepped out, Luca was shocked.
"Milady..."
"What's the matter, Luca?" she asked him. Recovering, he asks, "You're not attending the party in those clothes, are you?"
"Yeah," she deadpanned.
"You musn't! Today is-" "Papa's birthday, right? Let's go, Fukulota," she called her pet owl. Leaving a depressed Luca behind, the two run (and fly) to the main hall. "She used to be much more obedient," he says sadly.
"Maybe there's a problem with how you raised her," the eldest maid, Mariella, suggests. "Huh?"
"Indeed, you were Milady's attendant since she was little, after all," the youngest, Isabella, adds. "It's all Luca's fault," the former princess turned maid, Donatella, tells him.
"Luca, we'll be late!" Felicità calls out to him from down the hall.
Once again recovering, he replies. "Right away, Milady!" Luca then runs off to catch up with his beloved mistress, leaving the three maids to sigh.
All members of the Arcana Famiglia were gathered to celebrate Papa's birthday. At one side of the room, Pace was happily eating whilst Debito just stood there with him. "Mm? What's wrong?" Pace asks, noticing Debito looking at something.
More like someone.
His attention turns towards the now attending Felicità and a, once again, depressed Luca.
"What are you wearing, Bambina?" Debito asks her. (A/N: Bambina means "little girl" in Italian or however you wish to translate it)
"We were all looking forward to seeing you in a dress," Pace comments. Confused, Felicità tilts her head a bit and asks, "Is what I'm wearing not good enough?"
"Luca! Do you job as her attendant, would 'ya?" "Yeah! It's bad enough that we're constantly surrounded by guys!" they complained.
"But I...But I wanted Milady to wear a dress, too!" Luca cries.
"However," a voice starts. The three look to see Nova walking towards them. "If something were to happen, it's probably better for her to be wearing something less restrictive than a dress."
"Ah, I see," Debito says and walks towards Nova. "It's easier to admire Bambina's long, beautiful legs with what she's got on now. Do you have a leg fetish, shorty?" he asks him whilst placing his arm on Nova's shoulder. "We may agree on something." Brushing his arm off, Nova says, "Nonsense."
Nova looks towards Felicità, who flinched a bit as if seeing something. Her Arcana powers accidentally activated. She looked into Nova's heart and saw herself wearing a beautiful Japanese kimono. Flustered at his thoughts, she looks away. Noticing, Nova looks at her confused.
"Huh?" Libertà walked towards them. "You're not wearing a dress, Ojou?"
Once more, her Arcana powers activate and she looks into Libertà's heart to see herself in undergarments whilst holding a pink dress. Even more flustered, and angered, at the indecent thoughts these boys had, she turns away from him and looks down. Libertà walks up to her side and bends down. "What's wrong? Ojou? You're face is red."
She glares at him and gives him a nice, painful kick. Everyone began to look at them. "Ouch...What the hell was that for?" He looks up to see a deadly Felicità holding knives in her hands ready to kill. "Ah- Wh-What the hell did I do, Ojou?!"
A man chuckles as he walks towards the teens. "Jolly."
"It's because you were thinking bad things."
Felicità looked irritated as she put away her knives whilst Libertà got to his feet and asked, "What do you mean, 'bad things'?"
"This shouldn't need explaining again, but, we have all made a deal with Tarocco to gain our Arcana powers. For example, you, Libertà, have the first card (A/N: technically the card number is 0 or 22 in major arcana, but eh), Il Matto: the Fool." "R-Right," Libertà nods.
"Nova, just like you have the 13th card, La Morte: Death," Jolly continues. "You don't have to explain all of this now," was his reply.
"Milady made a deal with the sixth card, Gli Amanti: the Lovers." Felicità gives him a silent nod in reply. "Her power, by that I mean her Arcana power, is the power to see into others' hearts," he explains to them.
"Then..." Libertà trails off then looks towards Felicità, who looks away from him.
"But, I just saw it by chance," she tells them. "Yes. Arcana powers use emotions as their foundation. The reason you don't have control over your powers yet, Milady, is because you're still a child," he tells as her, fingers on her chin to lift her face as he closes in.
"Please do not touch Milady," Luca interrupts, grabbing Jolly's hand and gripping it tightly. He gives Jolly a hard look as he walks away then realizes.
"Hm? She read Libertà's heart..." he trails off then points at Libertà in outbursts. "Does that mean you were thinking of Milady in unbecoming ways?!" he questions. The questioned's face turns to a bright red as he replies with, "The hell do you mean by "unbecoming ways"?!"
"W-Well..." Luca's face now the color of a bright tomato as steam poofs out of his ears. Pervert. His face slams into a column by a well-deserved kick from Felicità. "My apologies, Milady..." he manages to make out.
"My condolences," Debito comments.
"Hey! Dante's going to give his greeting," Pace tells them.
"Gentlemen. I would live to thank everyone for showing up despite your busy schedules, for the sake of our Arcana Famiglia's "Papa", Mondo. We would like to start with a word from Papa," he addresses. Papa, two beautiful ladies wearing kimonos, and a young man walk down the stairs.
'Huh? Who are they?' Felicità, Nova and Libertà thought.
"The head of our family!" "Glory to Arcana!" the men cheered.
"Gentlemen. Thank you for gathering today. Today, I am celebrating my 59th birthday. The reason I have gotten this far is because of all of you. Our Regalo Island has overcome many hardships. Raids from smugglers, occupation from foreign countries, lack of goods, oppression from a tyrant, epidemics... Once you start counting, there's no end. But we were able to overcome all of this with our familial bond and with the Arcana powers. However, I've already gotten to that age. I'm starting to think about retirement."
"Papa?"
"Therefore, I am considering choosing someone to take my place. In two months, we will be holding the Arcana Duello."
"Arcana...Duello?"
"It will be a fight where all those with Arcana powers will participate to determine who has the strongest Arcana powers. I, the 21st card, Il Mondo: the World, hereby swear to give the victor the title of "Papa" and grant their wish." The room fills with cheers from the members of the famiglia.
"And one more thing. The winner will marry my daughter, Felicità." "Huh?"
"Marry Ojou?" Libertà asks.
"Papa, just what are you thinking?" Nova questions.
"What? What does that mean?" a slightly confused Pace wonders.
"Well, this will be interesting," Debito comments.
Felicità steps forward. "What is it, Felicità?" Papa asks his daughter. "Do you have any concerns?"
"I don't want to get married," she tells him.
"You chose with your own free will to join the Arcana Famiglia. This is the rule of the family. Meaning, you have to do as I say. Am I wrong?" She grits her teeth in response. "You will become the new Mama and support the family.
"Papa, what's the reason for this?" Nova asks. "There is a reason. However, I need not explain myself."
At that moment, a knife was thrown at his face, but was caught in between two fingers of a young lady's hand. "Hoh?" Papa blurts out, barely surprised. The young female hands the knife to Papa as he says, "If you don't want to follow orders, challenge me here and win."
"Papa!"
"That's impossible!"
"Just shut up," Debito tells his childhood friends.
Papa drops the knife as they prepare for battle. "This seems interesting." The young lady that stood in front of Papa looks at him. He gives her a curt nod in reply. Understanding that he was serious, she steps back and stands beside Mama.
Felicità makes the first move, sending a seemingly powerful kick to the head, only for it to be blocked easily. "Is that all your kick has to offer?" Mondo asks his daughter, obviously looking down on her abilities. Stepping back, she charges forward again. Multiple head kicks were made, only to be dodged or blocked in return.
"I will choose...my own path!" she yells at him in the midst of battle.
Blocking another kick, he tells her, "You haven't the right to choose your own path..." he grabs her ankle before finishing, "...in your current state!" Gripping her ankle tightly, he picks up her entire body and drops her to the floor on her backside.
"Ojou!" "Milady!" Luca shouts as he runs to her side. Felicità sits up and glares at her father.
"If you're just going to sit there and glare...a little child can do that, too," Mondo tells her as his wife fixes his jacket. "Why not try shedding a tear or two, as well? You may be able to earn the pity of the men who are going to participate in the Duello."
"You're robbing Ojou of her freedom. How can you still call yourself her father?!" Libertà yells at him. "What are you doing, Libertà?"
"As expected of Libertà the fool!" Debito says. "Your careless, no regard outbursts are fantastic!" "Don't instigate him, Debito!" Luca tells his friend.
"Are you saying you can't follow orders either, Libertà?" Mondo asks the young lad. "That's right!" he replies. "Then defeat me. Right here, right now." Libertà's eyes widen. "What's the matter? Are you scared of making a fool of yourself like Felicità?" he asks him.
"There's no guarantee..." he starts as he takes out his cutlass. "...that I'm going to make a fool of myself!" The two younglings standing behind Mondo take into a defending stance beside him, ready to take out their weapons if need be. Libertà charges at Mondo. "Libertà!"
Before he could strike, Nova stood in front of him, blocking his path. The two standing beside Mondo relax and stand step back once more. "Nova!"
"Papa is the father of our family. I won't condone any harm toward our father," Nova tells him, narrowing his eyes and unsheathing his katana. The two hard-headed teens charge at each other. Before they got a chance to strike, Pace holds Libertà back while Nova...
...trips...
...over air?
His katana flies out of his hands, only to be picked up by an 'invisible' force known as Debito. "Debito?"
"Very perceptive. I made a deal with the ninth card, L'eremita: the Hermit," Debito explains. "So your powers are to make yourself invisible," Nova states in understanding.
"Let me go! Let me go! Would let me go already, you musclehead!" Libertà struggles in Pace's iron grip.
"I understand how you feel, but...it's not good if you go against Papa," Pace tells him, his Arcana stigmata glowing on his hand. "Pace has a deal with the 11th card, La Forza: Stength," Nova states. "His strength is overwhelming. No one can oppose it." (A/N: Pfft, no one he says. Libertà's a badass.)
"Let go..." Libertà mutters. "Huh?"
"Let go!" he shouts, his Arcana stigmata glowing on his forehead. A bright light appears out of nowhere as Pace suddenly loses hold on Libertà. "What?"
Libertà stumbles forward, now taking a kneeling position. Mondo walks up to him, looking down on the young lad. "How pitiful."
Before Libertà could stand up, Mondo gets up in his facial area. "If you want to free my daughter, then you need to win the Arcana Duello." Libertà lets out his breath as Papa moves away from his face. "I told you. I will grant any wish," he tells him and turns to walk away.
As the four walk towards the staircase, Mama stops and looks to her daughter. "Felicità."
"Ah, Mama."
"There is a way for you to win as well. You're going to choose your own path, right?" she smiles at her daughter before walking away. The other two simply linger, staring at Felicità before catching up to Mama. As they reach the top of the staircase, Mondo stops, causing the other three to stop as well.
"Ah, before I forget," he began, causing everyone's attention to focus on him. "These two are the family's two newest additions, Arianna and Kousuke. Arianna is my younger sister's daughter, and they've come from Japan to help our famiglia. Do treat them well."
"Yes, Papa!" came the replies of the men in the room. Arianna and Kousuke simply bowed to them slightly before turning to walk with Papa and Mama. They had much to discuss.
'Arianna...' Nova thought. She had changed so much since the last time they've seen each other. What does Felicità think?
"The Wheel of Fortune has started turning...opposing the guidance of the Tarocco," Mondo says.
"Yes, Papa," came Arianna's and Kousuke's curt replies.
Outside at the Fountain
I sat down at the fountain, thinking about the Arcana Duello and what Papa said. 'Am I really still just a child? And those two...that was Arianna and Kousuke. Do they have Arcana powers, too?' My thoughts wandered until I heard footsteps coming closer. I looked to where they came from and saw, "Libertà."
"Don't worry, Ojou!"
"Eh?" I became confused. 'Worry about what?' I thought. "I'm going to win this and take the title of 'Papa'. Then..."
"I'll be your bride?" I finish for him.
"Eh? Ah- No! That's not what I meant! Um... Anyway, it means you'll regain your freedom! Right?" he explains to me. I look up at him and smile, nodding in reply. That made me happier. He was going to help me. "I see..." I heard him mutter.
"Eh?" I blurt out, confused. "You may end up being my bride... Even so, it's kind of hard to understand," he says and laughs.
"You're so oblivious."
"What do you mean by "oblivious", you chickpea," he says. "Don't call me a chickpea!" Nova yells back, walking towards us.
"You can barely control your Arcana powers, yet you're foolish enough to say you'll win the Arcana Duello. If that's not oblivious, then what is?" he asks. I'm starting to get worried. The two of them always fight like this...
"I made the decision to live by this sword. So I have no need for Arcana powers," Libertà tells him.
Nova let out a big sigh and said, "You truly are oblivious."
"But you can't use your Arcana powers either. I've never once seen you use your Arcana powers," Libertà states.
"Don't compare me with you!" he outbursts. I jumped a little. 'That surprised me...' I thought while looking at Nova. "Don't worry, Felicità," he tells me, a shadow cast over his eyes. "Eh?"
"If I were to win, I'll wish not to marry you." I nod. "That means if either of us wins, then Ojou will be free, right?"
"The likelihood of you winning is rather slim if you ask me," Nova tells him. "The hell did you say, you damn chickpea?!"
"The truth," he says, turning to walk back inside the mansion. "And don't call me a chickpea."
Meanwhile...
"...do you understand, Arianna? Kousuke?" Mama asks the two.
"Yes, Mama. I will see to any uprising within the family myself as well as partake in the Arcana Duello," Kousuke replies.
"How about you, Arianna? Do you wish to take part in the Duello?" Mondo asks his niece. Said girl drinks from her teacup before placing it back onto the table.
"I...have no desire to win such a tournament, for the rewards are not what I seek."
"Hoh..."
"Moreover...I do not wish to become Papa of the family."
"Then will you be the new Mama?" he asks. She looks up at Mondo, her emerald eyes as serious as his own. Noticing this, she closes her eyes and takes her teacup back into her hands.
"Well, that all depends on the results of the Duello. For all we know, my dear cousin, Felicità, could be victorious." Smirking at her answer, he leans back in his chair. "Well now...
...that all depends on the results of the Duello."
What is your Tarocco?
The Arcana Duello has been announced! And two newcomers have come into play. What will become of the relations among all these people by the time the Duello comes? Stay tuned!
R&R? Tell me what you think? Contribute your ideas! I'll take 'em all ~ Well?
Enjoy your stay at Regalo Island.
ffxshilayt aka Shila -