Recovery
By: Kasumi H. (Generation-A)
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To anybody who knew of the existence known as Lost Property Riot Force Six, they would no doubt also know of the dark period that descended upon the squad only months after its formation. It had been a period characterized by great pain, disappointment, anger, fear, and frustration. If anyone were to try and attach a description to that period, it would have been: The air at Headquarters had been so crowded with negative emotions that any outsider would have suffocated within minutes of contact.
That period was a part of an episode that later came to be labeled as: The J.S. Incident.
No member belonging to Riot Force Six ever spoke willingly about those days. Talking lightly of it would be offending to all those who were wounded deeply, whether physically or emotionally. Serious discussions would require the members to relive the memories of sorrow, risking the possibility of reopening old wounds.
But if one absolutely had to ask about 'The Darkest Period of RF6,' there were a handful of members who would answer with a smile that was a cross between sorrow and fondness; they would reply in sentences that seemingly made no sense.
After all, how could "gentle smiles that radiated warmth," "firm reassurance that did not waver," and "strength that could not be found on the physical battlefield" compute with a squad that was supposedly teetering above a well of despair?
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Shario Finieno – Communications Operator and Device Mechanic – Long Arch member
Shario Finieno knew very clearly that it was the feeling of frustration she felt when she first awoke on a hospital bed after the attack on Riot Force Six. She had been powerless; unable to fight, unable to protect. Left in charge of the base, yet had to bear witness to its fall. She recalled the fire that engulfed her surroundings, the amount of unconscious bodies that lay around her, and the scene of Vivio forcefully being taken away. She had cursed her own inability then.
And when the Captain of the Lightning Squad, Fate T. Harlaown, showed up to visit her later on in the day, with eyes overflowing with concern, she cried. Oh how she cried; repeating apologies to the enforcer and letting loose all the emotions she had built up since hospitalization.
It was her fault. She didn't deserve the kindness and worry that were being directed at her. She had failed. Her superiors trusted her, left her in charge, but everything was a disaster. It all ended in destruction. And it was all her fault.
"It's not Shari's fault."
The words were spoken firmly, without hesitation, and it momentarily interrupted her string of apologies. It did little to stop the crying though.
Because it was her fault, or so she had convinced herself. She should have done more, retaliated more, prepared herself more… Anything that could have prevented the tragedy that had befallen them.
"It's not your fault," the blonde enforcer repeated, resting her hands on each side of her elbows.
Shari paused just long enough to look up at her superior and long-time friend. There was a small, gentle smile on her lips and her burgundy eyes were filled with compassion. Shari let out a loud sob, and leaned forward, crying into the enforcer's shoulder.
"This isn't the end of Riot Force Six. We're stronger than that. We'll regain everything we lost… I promise."
Fate's voice was gentle, soothing, but the words were spoken with conviction. In that instant, Shari was reminded of the faith she held in the young captain of the Lightning Squad. She believed in Fate. She always did. After all, she had been working with the enforcer for several years, and never once, did Enforcer Fate T. Harlaown fail to pull through.
Shari felt a considerable weight lift off her shoulders, but for some reason, it only served to make her cry even harder.
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Alto Krauetta – Communications Staff – Long Arch member
Alto Krauetta watched mutely on the adjacent hospital bed as Fate carefully lay the sleeping Shari back onto the hospital bed. The Communications Operator seemed to have exhausted herself by crying for an extended period of time. Alto, too, had wanted to cry and ask forgiveness along with Shari, but she knew full well that crying would solve nothing in their situation now. Besides, the captain already had her hands full with one weeping girl, it would not do to add to that burden.
For a while afterwards, the room became silent, with Fate making sure Shari would not break out into tears in her sleep.
Alto did not know what had propelled her to speak suddenly, but she did, only to wince at the way her own voice sounded, "I couldn't protect Vivio… How am I going to explain this to Nanoha-san…?"
The enforcer stayed silent, expression unreadable, as she regarded the other member of the Communications staff. Alto moved her gaze to the ground, certain that Fate was disappointed – perhaps even angry – at her for failure in protecting Vivio. She gripped her hospital gown tightly.
To her surprise, the enforcer placed a hand lightly on top her tightly clenched ones. Hesitantly, Alto raised her head to meet Fate's gaze.
"You did your best under those circumstances… If you didn't, you wouldn't be here with those wounds," Fate's expression was serious, one that was seldom seen outside of mission briefings. "So stop blaming yourself, no one is at fault here. The only one at fault is that man, Jail Scaglietti, and we'll stop him. No matter what. We have to."
Alto swallowed the lump that formed in her throat. She detected no trace of falsity in the enforcer's tone. It was not an attempt to console her with fake words. Fate T. Harlaown really did not blame her in the least for all that has happened.
"And I'm sure Nanoha doesn't blame you either. You should know her better than that."
Alto could only nod, and with a shaky voice, uttered out a reply of "Yes" as Fate moved away from her.
"I'll leave you to get some rest," Fate glanced over at the still sleeping form of Shari, "Look after her for me? Make sure she doesn't push herself too hard."
Again, she nodded, "I will."
Fate silently made her way towards the door, and when she reached for the door knob, Alto spoke again, "We can put an end to this, right?"
The captain looked back and gave her a smile, "Of course we will. We're Riot Force Six after all."
With that, she left.
Those words were more than simple motivational words. To speak in a way that can influence people, one must first believe wholeheartedly in what is being said. At that moment, Alto was glad to have met Enforcer Fate T. Harlaown, because she felt she was able to stand again; because she could believe in those words; and because Alto Krauetta was a member of Riot Force Six.
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The J.S. Incident was indeed a period of grief in the history of Riot Force Six; a time that few ever spoke about. But in the darkness of it all, two Communications staff belonging to Long Arch remembers coming in contact with a light that never faded, never dimmed, regardless of the situation.
Neither Shario Fenieno or Alto Krauetta would ever forget the warm radiant smiles and the firm reassuring words that had saved them from themselves during their stay in the hospital.
Fate T. Harlaown's strength lay in more than physical prowess; much like Instructor Takamachi Nanoha, Fate held the ability to touch and heal people's hearts.
--END--
Author's Note: Thank you so much for reading! This fic has been written and posted on AS for a couple of months now, but I never got around to posting it here. After much prompting from Enraptured (a fellow MSLN author on ffnet), I finally stopped being lazy.
For those who noticed, yes, this was inspired by episode 19 of StrikerS where Fate was consoling a crying Shari. Minor characters deserve love too.
Hope you enjoyed reading!
And reviews make me happy. nudges readers towards the review button