Title: Relic Knight 2: A Tale of Knights and Nuns
Pairing: Michel Previn/Sydney Fox
Characters: Sydney Fox, Michel Previn, Nigel Bailey, Sister Mary
Tags: Romance, Adventure, Nuns, Celibacy, Episode: s01e03 The Headless Nun, Alternate Universe
Summary: Michel has barely settled into Sydney's home when they are called on a relic hunt. Nuns, guns and celibacy ensue.
Alternate Universe: Imagine a world of technology combined with medieval knights and weaponry in the streets.
Templars: A worldwide police-like organization.
Notes: This website didn't list "Michel Previn" as a character in the drop down list, so I used "OC" instead.
BETA: TheSupernova
As one of the Knights Templar, Michel could appreciate the people who dedicated themselves to a life in the convent. Michel had a belief in God and he was glad Sydney did as well.
However, seeing Sydney in a convent, dressed in a habit. worried him (and Nigel). He felt slightly better knowing that she had only worn it because her clothes were being washed, but it didn't stop Michel from worrying she might actually join them.
He hadn't been with Sydney long. Michel had barely settled into her house, when they were called on a relic hunt. It was successful, but during the flight home, their plane crashed. Luckily some nuns happened to be nearby and offered help.
At first, Michel had been suspicious. Sydney was injured and unconscious and he was naturally extremely protective of her. Nun or no nun, he needed to make sure they only wanted to help. What if they were imposters?
It was the first time Michel had seen Sydney in such a state, and he would admit to panicking and suffering from slight paranoia. Nigel wasn't here, so he didn't have anyone to turn to. It wasn't like life or death situations happened very often. The occasional sword fight usually resulted in an easy win, as Michel had been learning the art of sword fighting since he was a child.
Michel would give his life to protect Sydney and that's exactly what he was going to do.
As the women approached him, Michel withdrew his sword and fell into a fighting stance.
"Stay back!" Michel said. "State your intentions! Tell me why you happened by so quickly."
One of the nuns held her hands up in the air, and moved to the front of the group.
"Do not be afraid," she said calmly. "We mean no harm. We were simply going for a walk when we noticed the plane crash. All we want to do is help the injured any way we can."
She seemed to be genuine in her words, but Michel was still hesitant. At the same time, he knew Sydney needed help.
Suddenly, he noticed something warm and wet dripping down his cheek. Michel reached up and blood appeared on his fingers. His temple was beginning to throb in pain—he must have been hurt as well. The adrenaline probably kept him going, but once the nun helped lower his guard…
Michel dropped to one knee, his sword propping him up. The nun came closer, but Michel was adamant they stay back. His consciousness was fading, but Michel still had a job to do: protect Sydney at all costs.
The determination must have shown on his face, because the nun knelt down before him, attitude calm and steady.
"I won't hurt you or your charge," she promised. "You can trust me."
Finally, Michel let go. He nodded. A moment later, he was falling forward and into the nun's arms. Hers were the last words he heard.
"It'll be okay," she said.
It was then that Michel knew God meant for her to find them. They were in good hands.
The moment Michel woke up, he immediately reached for sword of Jacques de Molay. Normally he kept it sheathed, just under his bed. It wasn't there, and when he noticed his surroundings, neither was Sydney.
He was in a small, simple room. One twin bed, with a side table which held a lamp and an alarm clock. On the far wall was a standing cabinet.
A knock at the door startled him, and he jumped up into a fighting stance. Hand to hand combat wasn't his specialty, but he was advanced enough to get the jump on most people. Assuming he was in the convent the nuns belonged to, he probably had the advantage. Michel didn't know for sure, so just in case, he wanted to be on guard.
A nun in a habit walked in the door, and immediately jumped back. She held or hands up and Michel recognized her from the field near the plane crash.
He stood down, and sat back on the bed.
"I'm Sister Mary," the nun said, relaxing her posture. "You just had a slight abrasion on the side of your forehead. The local nurse bandaged it up. You'll be fine."
Michel nodded. He was extremely lucky but Sydney…
"Where is she?" Michel demanded, staring her down. "Is Sydney okay?"
"She is. Just a slight concussion." Mary replied, "I assume you'll be wanting your sword?"
She walked over to the cabinet and opened the doors. Inside was his sword, sheathed and safe. He could tell it was his by the handle.
"It's quite the sword. The others didn't recognize it, but I knew. I've seen a picture in an ancient manuscript, which is kept hidden in our library." she said. "I hid it for you."
This nun was worthy of his trust after all, though Michel was surprised a drawing existed. The most he had seen were stories. While he was mildly interested, since Michel already carried the sword, he wasn't as keen to see it. Chances were, it didn't contain anything new and he should know. Michel had made it his life's work to find the sword.
"Would you like to see her now?" she asked. "Sydney is right next door."
Michel nodded. He walked towards the door, and the sister followed behind.
"Oh, that's right, I almost forgot. I hope you don't mind, I went through your things looking for some identification," she said. "It's in the side table."
Michel hadn't realized it was missing. He ran over to the table and placed the thin wallet back in his front pocket.
He followed Sister Mary, heading towards Sydney in the next room.
Michel's clothes had, miraculously enough, gotten through the crash in decent condition. Sydney had been less lucky and Sister Mary had her change into a habit while the clothes were in the wash.
They were sitting outside on a bench when Sydney finally confronted him.
"Stop worrying," she said, placing a comforting hand over his. "I'm not going to join the convent. This is just until my clothes are clean, you know that."
He did, but that didn't stop his unfounded fears. Michel laid his head on Sydney's shoulder, and she unconsciously ran her fingers through his hair.
"I like you, and living a life of celibacy is not on my list of things to do," Sydney promised. "My curiosity over the habit does not extend that far."
Back home, when he was unpacking his things, Michel had only slept with her, and they had yet to go further. Sydney was busy at school and between that and the unpacking, was exhausted by the time night rolled around.
Their relationship had started almost overnight, but they had just known it was right. They were inexorably linked by the sword, a feeling so deep it was impossible to ignore.
Though the convent was no place to further their relationship, Michel was still her protector and he didn't care if they were in a convent or elsewhere. He needed to be close by at night. Even if that meant sleeping outside her door.
For now, he was content to simply sit beside her.
Surprisingly, it only took Nigel a bit over an hour to reach the convent. Michel expected it to take longer, though he also expected Sydney's clothes to have been cleaned and dried by now. Michel hoped they hadn't lost them.
Nigel was an intriguing man, an interesting mix between capable archeologist and awkwardly, socially inept. At least, that's what Michael had noticed from what time he was able to spend with him while at the college. He had been waiting in Sydney's office.
After Nigel embarrassingly ran his mouth off about Sydney possibly joining the convent and becoming a nun, she had told her assistant the same thing as Michel: no, she wasn't, her clothes simply needed washing and she had nothing else to wear.
That settled Nigel's fears, but Michel had only been mildly reassured. He would be happiest when they left the convent altogether.
Sister Mary showed up soon after, and led them back into the building. They had many questions for her and hopefully she could provide the answers they sought.
The nun had been particularly down-to-Earth and very connected to the modern age, within reason. She didn't have use for cellphones, TV's or comic books, but did see the use in encouraging the others to get a degree in computer database. It was well paid, and helped the convent immensely. More than relying on charity, which had been slightly waning in the recent years. All in all, a very forward thinker, something Michel found admirable.
Sydney was told a man named Derek had arranged a loan for the convent, enough to get them started with their computer endeavor in a newly built wing off the main building.
Their meeting ended in the search for the body of Sister Evangeline, a murdered nun who had been missing for over 300 years.
Well, time for Michel to retrieve his sword from the room. He had left it there for the sake of the other nuns. On their own, it was doubtful they posed a threat. However, being involved in a relic hunt was an entirely different story. Sydney had told Michel stories of her past exploits and many involved dangerous situations and bad guys who wanted to harm or otherwise kill her.
Michel had to be prepared for whatever would come.
Nigel was a coward. Climbing down a rockface into a large cave on the cliffside wasn't that bad. Michel hadn't rock climbed before, but he trusted Sydney. If she could do it, and wasn't worried about Michel's safety, then it went to say that she knew he could do it.
And he could. Nigel… eventually made his way down. He had to stifle a laugh when the man landed. Her assistant's natural aptitude towards fear made Michel laugh sometimes. Of course, he wouldn't say it to Nigel's face, after all, the man had his uses.
Michel couldn't believe what they found. Not only had they found Sister Evangeline's body, but also a wealth of money enough to last a few hundred years.
Behind them, a slow clapping greeted them.
"Congratulations, you found the treasure. It's too bad they won't get a chance to use it," Derek said. "You're way too clever for your own good."
"Not really," Sydney said. "I've just had more experience with guys like you. You were just waiting for a chance to destroy the wing, weren't you?"
"It's just good business," he replied stoically. "And the convent's sitting on the best real estate in town."
Sydney shook her head.
"And you know they wouldn't dream of selling it, so you were going to 'help' them along." she said. "Say a fire, perhaps? It would be sold at a sale price."
The man stepped closer.
"There are ways to make people sell when they are… resistant to do business with you," he replied.
"No matter who it hurts, right?" she asked.
He nodded.
"Well," he said, stopping a few feet in front of her, pulling his gun. "I know the tide will be coming in soon and its time to get you down into the cave, when it does. I just need to make sure you won't be around when I come back for the treasure."
Michel hated guns. Despite the revolutions in technology around the world, guns were still extremely rare, and very expensive. He had only seen one up close, and that was at a museum. However, he heard about them and knew that when it came to gun fights, swords were useless.
It seemed the man knew that as well. He eyed the sword casually.
"I know about you, always hanging out with Sydney. You even got special permission from the nuns to stay in her room," he said to Michel. "Hands in the air. One wrong move, and I kill her."
Michel raised his hands in the air.
"Don't kill her," Michel said.
The man waved the gun at them, and he watched as they walked to the door and down into the main cave.
"Sister Evangeline's not going to be happy," Sydney said, hoping to distract him. "You're making a big mistake."
He laughed.
"Right. Like I'm supposed to be scared of a ghost. They don't exist." He replied, keeping his gun steady.
Michel stepped in.
"There are things you don't mess with," Michel added.
"I told you, I'm not afraid of a nun that's been dead for over 300 years," Derek said. "Now, just a few more minutes and you'll all be underwater."
Of course, the man was planning to escape at the last second, but Michel knew he couldn't let that happen. Sydney was set on helping the nuns, and they could use the money.
"We sure could use a miracle right about now," Nigel interrupted.
As if on cue, an unnatural howling echoed through the cave. Michel felt a shiver run down his spine.
The man jumped, and turned away for a moment, looking for the source of the eerie noise. Sydney jumped back, in time for Michel to pull forward and unsheathe his sword, pointing it at Derek.
"You'll never defeat me," Michael said, a sly grin spreading across his face. "By the power of the Templars, you are under arrest."
This time, it was the man's turn to raise his hands in the air. He sighed.
"Good choice," Sydney said. "Looks like you might not die today after all."
Mission now over, Michel was glad to have departed the convent. Sydney hadn't joined the order, the nuns buried Sister Evangeline's body with her head and Nigel ended up with some kind of spiritual awakening. Nigel didn't really explain and Michel didn't care enough to ask for further details.
It wasn't until after nightfall that Sydney and Michel arrived home. He had spent the day at Sydney's college, sitting in on some of her classes. Michel was waiting for his comic collection to arrive so he didn't have much to do in the meantime. Sydney suggested setting up an online comic shop, so he could work from home. It was a good idea, since there was no telling when they would be called off on another relic hunt.
Michel flopped down on Sydney's queen-sized bed. He was tired and judging from Sydney's behavior, so was she.
When she came in, Michel smirked. He sat up.
"You have time for one last adventure?" Michel asked, stripping his shirt and throwing it on the floor.
Sydney smiled. She threw her shirt to the floor, and it landed next to his. Closing the door behind her, she unhooked her bra and growled teasingly.
"Of course. I'm not that tired," she said.
She jumped towards the bed and landed in Michel's arms. After so much pent up sexual energy, he knew he would be more than a match for his lover.