Woo! A Suikoden fic…wow!
Hah…lo and behold! A ThomasxCecile ficcie! XD I don't know, they're just too adorable to pass up…I really had to! …you understand me, don't you? Haha, anyway, on to business! The title came from a song by Stephen Speaks…I don't know, I just kind typed it and…there. The details will be read at the later part of this text, so be sure to read! …er, that didn't sound right…ah, anywho! Enjoy reading!
Out of my League
Dawn had gone, thus a day comes anew.
Most of the hustle-bustle had pretty much began as the sun rose, revealing its bright yet blinding superiority throughout the prolific land. Individuals of different races can be seen here and there, busying over their daily activities in the most jovial manner. Budehuc Castle couldn't be livelier.
"Good morning!"
"Same to you!"
The lord however, with all the recent on-goings, wasn't at all that shaken from his deep slumber. Eyes lightly shut though permanently fast asleep; he lay unruly on his bed unaware of mostly anything around him. But the solitude surrounding the entirety of his sleeping chamber broke abruptly as a voice started saying;
"Master Thomas, it's morning."
Something he certainly had not expected a moment that early. "W…what…?"
"Yes master Thomas, morning. Up, up."
After a night of signing a pile of documents, the boy could only groan. Surely enough, he had anticipated something close to a loud and cheery 'awakening', but never had he imagined of such a sullen greeting…the source being Sebastian. With his eyes still closed, he started getting up…
"You'll have to run to Brass Castle today, sir. The shops around the premises are emerging quite massively, and you still need approval about the matter…you also need to sign the documents regarding the beauty shop that's going to be built near the lake…oh yes, there are Dunan guests that you'll have to meet…"
And so went on…typical Sebastian. He definitely had a way of starting a morning.
"…the tickets for sir Nadir's ever growing—
"Sebastian."
"Yes sir?"
"Er…good morning…?"
"Oh yes. A fair morning to you as well, young sir."
The lad uneasily scratched his head. "Busy day…"
………
"I have to get to my post now…"
"I'll hear none of that, Cecile. You have to rest here."
"But doctor—
"No."
The armor-clad girl slumped hopelessly on the clinic couch, pouting almost too cutely to be resisted. "I've been here since yesterday…"
"I know what you feel, but health comes first of all."
"Yes doctor Tuta."
"I'm glad we understand each other then."
"…who took my place?" She asked in concern.
Mio laughed lightheartedly before answering. "Don't worry, I'm pretty sure the one who replaced you is just as strong and capable."
"…I'm worried…"
Tuta couldn't help but chuckle at the girl before him. "Married to your job, aren't you?"
"That's not…"
She was cut-off in mid sentence as the healer's large hand patted her head…helmet rather, as he laughed heartily with his nurse.
"…w-what?"
"You're a kid."
"Eh?" Was all she could muster in return.
"Sleep. You'll need it." Tuta ordered.
"But I'm not…"
"Sleep." Mio repeated, in a less stern conduct.
Cecile lied down defeated, all her persuasion was unsuccessful. She hid her face under a pillow.
"I suggest you remove that helmet and armor of yours too."
"No." A muffled reply from beneath the pillow answered him.
………
He started sighing. Unquestionably, this day is going to be a long one…and somehow, he missed the times wherein he did nothing but walk around and talk to people…ah, those were the old times…at present, he felt so accomplished. Although it was tiring, the manor had lived up to what he had pictured. To be quite honest, he never envisioned Budehuc to go this far…particularly in his leadership. Even after the Second Fire Bringer war, everything was still intact; he didn't have to trouble himself on advertising leases anymore. With a little exception from the others he worked with, most of everyone was still there, either back from their journeys or visiting people. From just a run-down fort, the castle was considered home…a beautiful one at that.
"Morning, Thomas!" Arthur greeted animatedly.
"Yeah, likewise." He answered back.
"Anything new with you? I need more scoops for my paper."
"Haha, it's been pretty usual lately."
"I heard there are guests from Dunan that arrived…d'you think I'll check'em out?"
"I don't see any problem with it…why don't you?"
"Alright! See you around then, Thomas!"
The castle master watched the reporter dash away, sweat dropping at how eager he was to gather information for a newspaper. It's actually the same with another guy, Kidd. The sleuth had just returned from his case about some occult group…however, he still sniffs for cases like a hound, never satisfied with what he has hunted. Pity both boys never got along, they were like Cream and Coffee in terms of blending together, but they never were the ones to be involved in a joint venture.
"Hey Thomas,"
The person addressed to was rather startled, nevertheless, he responded to whomever it was that called him. "Uh, yeah?"
"Can I inquire you about something…someone?"
"Er…who?"
"Your girl…"
"M-my girl?!"
"Yeah, the Commander of the Guards…Cecile, was it?"
Though he won't admit it, he felt himself heat up. Kidd has colorful vocabulary, he told himself.
"She…she's not…my…girl…"
"Oh? Great then…on with the questions…" He murmured while pulling out a notebook from his pocket.
"Uh, if I may ask, why are you asking about her?"
"Hm? It's my job…a lot of these requests have been cramming up my quarters…"
"Requests?"
"Yeah, they want me to find out more about Cecile…who better to ask than you?"
"Um…why do they want to know?"
"That's beyond me, I'm just doing what I have to do…so, do you know her chest size?"
His eyes almost bulged out; the detective's question was just too blunt for his liking.
"…no…"
"Vital statistics? Like arms, legs, hips, uh…waist…?"
"…no."
"Hobbies?"
"…guarding the castle?"
"Anything I don't know?"
"What do you know?"
"Let's see…" Kidd started shuffling things through his notes. "Here, take a look."
She's a good cook. She likes hot food (Thomas fainted when he ate her food once). She likes armor, and she's proud that she doesn't take it off. She's beautiful, though she would've looked better without the helmet (I haven't seen that yet). She practices her spear skills at night, and takes a bath right after. She rarely sleeps. Her breastplate weighs half a ton. Someone says she runs real fast without the armor, she's an animal lover…
"…where'd you get all this?" Thomas asked, quite astounded.
"Tsk, tsk, I'm a detective. Finding those out is my specialty!" He proclaimed proudly.
"…you know her better than me."
"…huh…? Uh, w-well, there's a matter of my personal remarks…are those true too?"
"At least I think so…"
"Know anything beyond it?"
"Uh, no…I think."
"…ugh…thanks anyway. I'll be off now, I wanna finish this one fast, I've got other cases…"
"Uh, right."
As soon as the lad left, a sigh came, a heavy one. The whole thing was suddenly so diverse, and he can't determine how or why…he felt indulged, useless and stupid all at the same time. A lot has happened in a span of five years, and it almost looked like he missed most of it. Absently, he strolled off, walking wordlessly around the hallways as he contemplated…
But actually, there was nothing to think about. So what if Kidd knows Cecile a lot better than he does? It can't be helped, he investigates, and he signs papers…of course it's obvious that he gets the upper hand on knowing her more. But the point there is that he can't accept that reality, he felt annoyed, frustrated and discouraged…and for some unknown reason, he didn't know why it was like that.
"Hey there."
He had once again jumped in astonishment; people kept popping out more quickly before him.
"Oh, sorry for surprising you." A lady in her mid-late adulthood spoke.
"I-it's nothing."
"You're the Castle Lord…am I correct?"
"Uh…yes."
"Haha I win!" She exclaimed, making a face at her companions.
"...aww, no…" One of them uttered.
"…huh?"
"Ah, I apologize for that. We were having a bet you see, if you are the Castle Master or not."
"…I…I see…"
"Oh yes, we haven't introduced ourselves yet. My name is Nanami, over there is my brother Riou, and the last one is…"
"Jowy. Pleasure to meet you." He introduced, extending a hand.
"Uh, yes…nice to meet you too." Thomas replied, taking the hand and shook it.
"We're travelers from Dunan Republic. And we happen to end up in the Grasslands…" Jowy explained.
"…word of your castle has been spread widely around the area…" Nanami added.
"…so we came to check it out." Riou concluded.
"Is that so? Then, welcome to Budehuc. Please feel free to look around."
"Sure will!" Nanami said excitedly.
"Don't get too thrilled, you might break something here." Jowy jokingly told her.
"I won't! Right, Riou?"
The boy merely shrugged.
"Well then, Thomas, see you in a while."
"Uh, yes, enjoy yourselves."
"Bai-bai, Mr. Thomas!"
He watched the familiar bunch walk through the blurb of people. They were relatively youthful, he observed. "Dunan huh…I feel old…"
………
"Achoo!"
"Oh dear, it's worsening."
"Th-this is nothing!"
"I'm not so sure about that."
"But really! This is nothing! I can even go back to the gates now!"
"No you won't."
"…why not?"
"Your flu is worse than before, you need to rest."
"A few medicines ought to do it! I swear!"
"…for once, think of yourself and follow your doctor…"
"But…"
"Cecile, there's nothing to worry about. The castle's safe, you needn't fret."
"Hmph," She sprawled back to her bed. "Stupid flu…stupid body…"
"You'll recover faster if you took off your armor. The cold steel plates are aggravating your cold." Mio supplied.
"Is that true?"
"Yes, I'm the doctor here. I should know."
A second later, Cecile was taking off her helmet, and then her armor, leaving the black shirt and the skirt that goes with it. Her straight but slightly tangled hair flowed gracefully along her shoulders down to her lower back…it was shiny and vigorous. Both of the doctors can't help but stare in awe at her sudden transformation; she hid in that armor pretty well.
"I feel naked." The lass blurted out.
"Nonsense, hop onto bed." Tuta ordered.
"Yessir…"
"Use the blankets to satisfy yourself if you want to." Mio supplemented further.
"Haii…"
"Now, try getting some sleep. It's be—
A loud knock on the door interrupted the doctor.
"Yes?"
The door opened and a head popped out. "Is Lady Cecile in here?"
"Yes."
In a fraction of a millisecond, a horde of young men had swarmed the entire clinic.
"Cecile-chan! We heard you're sick!"
"Here! Have some fruit!"
"I've brought you some cookies!"
"Here! Flowers to make you feel better!"
"Are you okay now?"
"Do you want me to play a song for you?"
"Get better soon!"
Just then, she felt awfully dizzy. They were all talking at the same time, and it was so noisy. What's worse, Tuta and Mio were too shocked to even talk them out.
"We were so worried about you!"
"I didn't see you yesterday!"
"You removed your armor getup!"
"Youaresobeautifulandcuteandsexyand…"
Cecile blinked a few times before interrupting; "Um…what?"
………
He was almost done with all the tasks he was set out to do, the only thing left was his going to Brass Castle.
"I'll ask Cecile to come with me…"
It's not that he needed someone to protect him; in fact, he's been trained through a lot by Cecile and Emily in the past…making him reasonably competent in terms of venturing monster-inhabited areas. But then he thought, it would be nice to have someone to go with you, especially in this cold weather. Jolly as a flying squirrel, Cecile was the best choice of company. Thomas walked his way to the spot where she always stood on…but someone else was there, and he was wondering how in the world that came to be.
"Excuse me…"
The armored man lazily turned sideways at Thomas. "Huh?!"
"Er…where is…Cecile?"
"Oh! It's you, Master Thomas," The chap said straightening up. "You're looking for Ms. Cecile?"
"Uh…yeah…"
"She's in the Clinic now, sir."
"Why?"
"She's sick."
"What? How'd that happen?"
"That, I don't know of, sir. She just collapsed suddenly yesterday and…"
"Yesterday? She's been sick since yesterday?"
"Yes sir."
"Why didn't anyone tell me that?!" He muttered as he sprinted towards the castle infirmary.
……
It was a dire scene, a cluster of different males flocked around her. And the two doctors just stared at them like it was some stage play. "Wh-what's all this?"
"Uh…Master Thomas…we were…making Lady Cecile feel better…"
He scanned the whole place. There were numerous offerings on the table; some were on the floor. The boys that gathered around her bed were too close for comfort; he assumed they're blocking air since Cecile nearly looked like fainting. He could see her concealing a sour face beneath the smile…probably for the purpose of not letting them all worry about her. It looked wearisome…and it was painstakingly unbearable, even for him.
"She needs sleep. You guys are not helping her…"
"But sir…"
"Can you people leave? Now!?" He sounded influentially firm.
Soon after that, all the guys that were there started heading out; with unusual haste. Some looked guilty, others appeared frightened. Did he really look that demanding? Even Tuta and Mio snapped out just to comment on how well he pulled off the act. But that doesn't matter; all he wanted to do was to see how Cecile's been doing anyways.
"…how are you feeling?"
The girl smiled weakly. "I'll be fine by tomorrow…"
Thomas raised a brow in worry. "Are you sure?"
She nodded, looking real apologetic. "Listen…I'm sorry about this…"
"What? You didn't do anything."
"…because of this I can't guard our castle…"
"Stop."
"Thomas…"
"Even the greatest heroes get sick, why not you? It's normal, Cecile. No need for remorse."
"Okay…but I promise! I won't be—achoo!"
"Hm…" He leaned forward to feel her forehead. "Fever…"
"It's nothing!"
"You must be joking."
"Really Thomas! It's nothing, it's just…the weather!"
"You want to be better by tomorrow?"
"I'm fine!"
"Commander Cecile."
"S-sir!"
"Do you want to be better by tomorrow?"
"But I'm really fi—
"Do you?"
"…Ye…yes…"
"You should sleep. I'll watch over you."
"N-no! That's not necessary! I'll be fine! …and, and…you still have things to take care of!"
"I can do it another time…so I'll stay."
"But…!"
"Don't worry. What's important is you get better."
"Thomas…"
"Now, close your eyes."
She did as told, despite all the protests; he had managed to make his hard-headed Commander obey him. He smiled at the girl's sleeping form and draped a blanket on her body, pulling it up to her chin. Amazingly, just after a couple of minutes, she was already in deep sleep…looking peacefully harmless.
"Finally, she slept." Mio whispered.
"Mm. The girl's too stubborn to admit that she needs it." Tuta said back.
Thomas grinned in spite of himself, Cecile was always like that…and it was no surprise. He sat on a chair near her bed and began brushing away strands of her hair that was scattered all over her face…This was something Kidd hadn't done yet, and he was quite proud to be the one to feel how soft it was.
"…protect…castle…"
He managed a quiet laughter, she looked so risk-free…still, somehow, he noticed that there was something a little different about her…he couldn't quite situate what it was, but he knew it made him feel good. His hands started to wander, from her hair; it went down to her face. It felt so warm, it calmed his soul… He initiated to touch her cheek, feeling her silky yet pale skin…it was simply majestic. Then he paused, it was only now that he realized the oddity of his ways.
"What…what am I doing?"
He breathed in and out inwardly, what he did was the strangest thing he ever did all these twenty years…
"Well, what was that just now?" Tuta decided to break his disordered sanity.
"…that…that…I don't…know…" The boy couldn't find the words to explain it.
"You don't know?"
"…P…pretend you didn't see that…o-okay?"
"I understand."
One could tell that he's stumbling upon turmoil of emotions, and he wasn't at all that keen to verify it…he looked helpless.
"You said you'll watch over her…do we leave you here or do you want to—
"I…I'll leave…"
"Are you sure?"
"Yes…thank you, Dr. Tuta, Ms. Mio. See you tomorrow."
He left the room silently, trying to sound and look unfazed to veneer his original sentiment to anything or anyone. It didn't mind him before, he was like an open book when looked at by others…but now was different, and he wouldn't allow it anymore. It isn't the time for someone to discern his inner bafflement.
"I'm okay…I didn't do anything bad…"
Setting it aside was probably the best solution. After all, it was just one of the wonders that occur once in a blue moon in this lifetime. That was probably it, Thomas convinced himself.
"I just lack sleep, that's all."
Tsuzuku
Haha, this is so wacky. Did you guys find it hard to understand? Please let me know…; Cheesy, no? Haha, it kinda looked like that…XD XD XD
Feel free to criticize the story and my writing if necessary…I always needed improvement…haha…
Well then, I guess I'm off. Thank you for reading! Hope you enjoyed it!