Disclaimer: I don't own Familiar of Zero.
The people of Halkeginia have taken the phrase, "out of sight, out of mind," and made it their own. They had to. Inspired by the word 'Fnord'. Oneshot.
Shadow of Zero
Louise made her way back to her chambers, after another day of being unsuccessful at practical magic. Despite her depression, Louise kept her gaze held high, looking down never helped anybody.
Approaching her door, she gave it two swift knocks. Waited a moment. Then entered.
Louise removed her clothes, dropped them in the laundry basket, and put on her night gown. Flopping into bed, she began to think about what tomorrow would bring. Tomorrow, was the day of the summoning ritual, and Louise was of two minds about this. On one hand, this could be it. The day she finally performed magic, and got a familiar...or was expelled for failing. Failing wasn't an option...plus she had bragged to Kirche earlier in the day, about how she would summon a much better familiar than her.
On the other hand, the summoning ritual always gathered a lot of attention, so a great many eyes would be watching the proceedings.
Trying to put it out of her mind, Louise rolled over, and slowly drifted off to sleep.
(scene break)
Awakening with a yawn, Louise stretched out her arms, and blinked tiredly. Her eyes shot open with realization. Today was the day!
Hopping out of bed, she nearly lost her footing on the floor, due to stepping on her shirt from yesterday. "Phew," she said, "that was a close one."
Lousie picked up her scattered clothes from yesterday, and dumped it in the laundry basket, along with her night gown. She got dressed, and made her way to her door. Knocking twice she waited a moment, then proceeded to enter the hallway, and went to the dining hall to have breakfast.
(scene break)
*BOOM*
Explosions are normal. Well...at least when Louise is trying to do magic. Apparently this applies to summoning rituals too.
"Nice one Zero!" called out Kirche from the crowd, "I think that one was the biggest yet," she teased. 'What a pity. Maybe this is for the best? A sudden change never helped anybody,' she thought.
"Shut it Zerbst!" Louise retorted, staring into the smoke dejectedly. Louise started to turn away when a cough echoed from the rapidly clearing smoke.
"I summoned something?" Louise questioned.
"Hey! Who are you calling a something?" called out the thing in a guys voice. For that is what Louise, found the creature from the smoke to be. A boy. 'A-a human?' Louise thought disbelievingly, 'I summoned a person as a familiar?'
The newly summoned boy took a moment to observe his surroundings. There appeared to be a gathering of people his age all dressed in some form of uniform. Accompanying each person seemed to be an animal of some sort. These animals appeared to range from downright mundane, like the blond girl's frog, to outright weird like the floating eyeball, with the blood red slit pupil...that everyone but it's paired person,seemed to be standing as far away from as possible.
He further observed that he was standing in some sort of courtyard, and atop the surrounding walls were strange, monster statues that almost seemed to be watching over the proceedings. They sort of reminded the boy of gargoyles, except these seemed extremely realistic, and creepy. The sculptor must have had a real passion, to take the time to make them look so lifelike. 'Those things have too many eyes, and too many limbs and tentacles,' the boy thought.
"Proceed with the contract," said Professor Chevreuse, "we don't have all day dear."
"But...with that?" questioned Louise.
"Now. Miss Vallière."
Louise sighed, and then tapped the summoning circle at her feet with her wand. "Pentagon of the five Elements. Bless this humble being, and make it my Familiar." she incanted.
"Look, I won't say it again. Would you quit calling me an it? And also, tell me what's goin-arrgh!" The boys protests cut off, as the familiar runes came into being on the back of his hand. Unable to handle the pain, the boy fell unconscious.
(scene break)
The next day saw Louise, and the boy she summoned, walking back out into the same courtyard from yesterday. Apparently, this was a day to get to know your familiar, or at least, that is how the boy's new master had explained it to him. He was still a little embarrassed that he had passed out, and had to be levitated to Louise's room by the professor.
Sitting down at the tables provided for the occasion, the boy paused to think about the...oddness of this place. It wasn't so much the Magic, or the mythical creatures running about. No. It was something else. It was...all the weird little habits that everyone seemed to share. Like knocking before opening a door, every door, or weirder still, the fact that nobody seemed to observe their surroundings, almost like they couldn't see anything that wasn't a person or object. Or perhaps...they didn't want to see?
The boy just couldn't figure it out. There had to be a reason right?
Glancing about the courtyard, with its healthy, well cut grass, and pristine unadorned walls, the boy couldn't help but feel that something was off. 'Maybe it was-' the boy's thoughts cut off as a maid arrived with a pot of tea. 'What was I thinking about? Oh well. It can't have been that important.'
Sipping her tea, Louise's attention was caught by Montmorency's arrival in the courtyard. 'Montmorency looks like shes a kid playing tea party,' Louise thought, 'and, is her frog wearing a little top hat? Now that's just sad, that girl really needs to find herself a boyfriend or something.'
Louise and the boy passed the time with idle chitchat, and then it was finally time to head back to the dormitories. Just as they were about to pass through the doors to the academy, the boy glanced back at the tops of the walls and realized what was bothering him. "Hey Master?" called out the boy. "What happened to all the creepy statues from yesterday?" he asked.
"I didn't see anything." she replied.
"But they were definitely there yesterday, and today they're-"
"I. Didn't. See. Anything!" Louise cut him off, "and neither did you."
"But I-"
"You saw nothing!"
(scene break)
The boy waited patiently for his master to fall asleep. He had to figure out what was going on here. Hearing Louise's breathing even out, the boy swiftly, and quietly made his way to the door, and slipped into the hall.
Louise turned over in bed so she was facing her door, and opened her eyes.
Facing the door, the boy softly closed it, and turned to walk down the hall, only to spot something blocking the way. It looked like one of the statues. The boy wondered how it got up here. It's position was crouched, and clawed hands touched the floor almost as if the statue were preparing to pounce.
The statue had way too many limbs, as the boy had noticed before, but what he hadn't noticed, was that it also had far too many teeth. Far more then it could fit in its mouth, and they seemed impossibly sharp.
It was at this point that the boy made eye contact with the statue, and the statue...blinked?
'Wait...statues don't blink,' the boy realized, as the crouched monster tensed, then lunged.
(scene break)
"AAHHHHHH-!" a scream coming from the hallway, cut off sharply.
Louise turned over, and tried to go to sleep. 'Out of sight, out of mind,' Louise thought, 'I never summoned a familiar, but they let me stay at the academy anyway. I never summoned a familiar, but they let me stay at the academy anyway.'
(scene break)
Nobody investigated the scream. Nobody mentioned the boy.
End