Hello, readers-it's me again with a new story. I haven't written fanfiction in a while, but with my latest obsession with RD, I thought I'd give it a shot.
So, this story-it will be a continuing story, and I'm not sure what the ultimate pairing will be-Either Shinon/Gatrie or Shinon/Rhys. Vote if you like. It contains violence, so be forewarned if you're squeamish.
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Shinon drummed his fingers on the wooden tabletop, trying to tune out Gatrie's incessant praise of the newest woman he had found. The din of the mercenary's mess hall at mealtime was not enough to drown out the garrulous knight.
"And Shana's hair is longer than Soren's, and prettier too!" Gatrie crowed triumphantly.
Shinon raised a thin eyebrow at the idea that the dowdy mage's hair could be pretty, and replied in a bored drawl. "Oh really."
Gatrie did not pick up on the tone, or if he did he did not care one whit about it. "Yep! And her eyes are green like yours, Shinon, and she has the softest skin"-
Shinon cut him off there, deciding to take the direct approach. "Gatrie, have I ever given a shit about your goddessdamned women?" He realized he was letting his true anger show, and regretted it. Soren flashed him a glare from another table as Ike covered Mist's ears, and Shinon just rolled his eyes. Where had the mage been when Gatrie had been calling his hair pretty?
Gatrie kept his constant smile. "Aw, Shinon, but this one is special! She says she likes me, and she's from the town nearby!"
Shinon sighed. "You see, Gatrie," he began as though talking to a child, "whores say they like all sorts of men.."
"She's not a whore!" Gatrie yelled, his raised voice carrying well over the noise of the room. Boyd laughed, and Shinon distinctly heard Rolf ask "Oscar, what's a whore?" The sniper put his his head in his hands and hoped he didn't have to end up explaining that one.
"She's not!" Gatrie was oblivious to the awkward silence he had just created. "Why do you call all of my girls whores, Shinon?" He almost sounded hurt. Shinon didn't care at the moment.
The sniper looked up and gave his friend an incredulous look. "Gatrie, are you honestly that dense? Remember that girl during the war? The one who took all your money?"
"But this one is different!"
"Keep telling yourself that." Shinon replied, kicking back his chair as he stood up. He didn't want to deal with Gatrie any longer at the moment. How did a man this stupid worm his way into my esteem? Shinon thought to himself as he went outside into the archery range. And why do I want him so badly?
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Target practice was one of the best ways to work off frustration. Shinon had discovered this soon after meeting Gatrie, who had initially insisted on practicing without wearing his armor. Target shooting kept Shinon's focus straight ahead, and occupied his mind, distracting him from the sight of the sun shining off a certain man's well muscled biceps. Of course, they didn't practice together anymore. Not since Gatrie kept "discovering" loose women to run around with...
The arrow hit the target with a satisfying "thock." Dead center. As usual. Shinon wished Gatrie's woman were the target.
It grew dark as Shinon continued training, but the red haired man did not let up the intensity of his practice. He did not want to think about Gatrie. Not about his stupid infatuations, or his stupid blue eyes, or his strong arms, his sinewy thighs...
Desire flashed through the sniper suddenly, and he grit his teeth against it. Such fantasies had their time and place, but not now. He was not a pining woman, he didn't need Gatrie! In anger, he shot the target again, drawing the string back farther than he thought and twisting his elbow. The bow twanged, the arrow flew drunkenly off center into the grass, and the string snapped against the sniper's forearm. Sharp pain blossomed instantly from the impact, crawling up to his neck.
"Goddess DAMN it!" He swore, stifling the reflexive urge to rub his arm. He was thankful Rolf hadn't been there to see his master make such an amateurish mistake. And all for some knight who was too dumb to realize when he was being taken advantage of by a pair of tits...
Shinon heard hoofbeats, and turned to see Titania galloping toward the mercenary base. Her disheveled braid flew behind her, and her horse was lathered. Shinon frowned. Hadn't she had some assignment? Not that he paid close attention to little Ike's demands for others. Or for himself.
The paladin met his gaze, and continued riding up to the front door, dismounting quickly. Shinon raised his eyebrows. Something was obviously up.
"Could be work, for a change." He muttered to himself. He gathered up his things and headed inside, thoughts of Gatrie temporarily pushed to the back of his mind.
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He walked inside just in time to hear Titania screech. "Bandits! The town is overrun!" So there was work then.
The only two people in the mess were Boyd and Mia, and they both snapped to attention. "I'll get Ike!" Mia exclaimed. She had barely spoken when the blue haired boy appeared, Soren and Mist in tow.
"Bandits?" Ike asked.
"The town of Stonecart." Titania explained. "They've had raids before, but not like this one." As she spoke, Oscar, Rolf, and Gatrie came down the stairs.
"Bandits? In Shana's town?!" Gatrie yelled, worried.
Shinon practically snarled. Of course. "If they're overrun, how can we expect to get paid?" The sniper spoke coolly. "We're mercenaries, remember? Where's the money in this?" Shinon actually saw Soren nod, and mentally kicked himself for inadvertently taking the mage's side.
Titania rounded on him. "They've killed children!"
Shinon shut his mouth. He couldn't argue against that.
"A town in our debt could be beneficial." Soren said, obviously his way of agreeing with taking action. "How many are there?"
"It was hard to count them all. At least fifty." Titania was losing energy, and Mia grabbed the older woman a chair. She sat down thankfully. "If we leave tonight, we could give them aid by tomorrow morning."
"Won't that be too late?" Oscar asked. Shinon agreed. How long had it taken Titania to get here anyway?
"The bandits are holding back and holding children prisoners to see if the town will surrender without fighting. The villagers won't have it, of course. We have until the morning before they try to fight on their own." Shinon frowned. Of course it was something like this. What idiotic pride.
"Greil Mercenaries." Ike spoke up. "Tonight we are heading for the town of Stonecart. Tomorrow, we will defend it. Move!"
Shinon gave no outward sign he had heard the order. He simply headed up to collect his weapons, grimacing as the rest of the group cheered their commander's decision.
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The night lay heavy on the mercenaries as they moved towards Stonecart. The tall sniper had to alternate between rushing forward and ducking under low branches and waiting impatiently for his friend to catch up. The armored knight was slower than Rhys, for Goddessake!
"Hold!" Ike shouted over the sound of ten people pacing through the forest. "Rest for a few moments." Shinon immediately plopped down where he stood, quickly checking his bow and quiver. He gave a nod of acknowledgement to Rolf, who was doing the same. Oscar dismounted and began rubbing down his horse, fixing the armored plating on the horses's face.
A horrendous clang sounded in Shinon's ears, and he turned to see Gatrie, who wheezed next to him, leaning on his spear. "Hah...how long's it been, Shinon?"
"Almost five hours." The sniper returned curtly. "You're holding us up."
"Am not!" Gatrie protested. "I'm only ever a little bit behind, not enough to matter. It's the armor!"
"If you'd train the way you used to instead of going off after women, you wouldn't have that problem." Shinon let bitterness creep into his voice, and he regretted it as soon as he finished speaking. Why had he been losing control of himself lately?
"Hah ha! I do train, Shinon! Just not the same time you do." The sniper looked away from the knight, hoping Gatrie couldn't see his expression. "If you wore armor all the time, you'd get tired too, you know." Gatrie concluded proudly.
"I'm sure." Shinon answered tonelessly.
"Um, excuse me?" Rhys hovered over where the two men sat, holding out an item-a vulnerary. "You two should take these. You might need them." The healer's soft voice was barely audible.
"I'll take them!" Gatrie said, grinning. "Don't worry, Shinon, if you need any during the battle, just ask! I'm always there for you!"
Shinon narrowed his eyes. "I don't need your help!" He snapped, a little too nastily. Rhys nearly dropped the vulnerary in surprise.
"Sure, Shinon, I'm sorry. I know." Gatrie didn't miss a beat, seemingly unperturbed his friend's outburst.
Calm down! Shinon told himself. It was not a good idea to let his anger at his friend bleed into the battle. No matter how Goddessdamned oblivious he was. Shinon didn't know half the time whether he wanted to screw him or just kill him.
"So, here you go." Rhys handed the vulnerary to Gatrie, studying Shinon with concern. The sniper just glared back, daring the bishop to say something. Gatrie, meanwhile, happily stuffed the vulnerary into his pack.
"Alright, let's get going!" Ike shouted from afar, breaking the odd staring match. The sniper leapt to his feet, pointedly ignoring Rhys. What did that idiot Bishop want anyway? Did he look sick or something? Putting it out of his mind, Shinon began to jog forward, smiling to himself as he heard Gatrie clanking along behind him.
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"Do you think Shana will be all right?" Gatrie whispered in Shinon's ear as they surveyed the town in the dawn light. Goosebumps formed on Shinon's neck in response, and he waved Gatrie away.
"How should I know?"
"Well, you can see better, so I thought..."
"Ssh!" Soren practically hissed at them. "Listen..."
The mage outlined his plan. Oscar and Titania would ride ahead, drawing the bandit's attention. As they were pursued, Ike, Mia and Gatrie would move up in separate groups to attack. Rolf, Soren and Mist would accompany Ike, Shinon would accompany Gatrie, and Rhys would go with Mia. It sounded fine to Shinon, as long as he got paid.
Oscar and Titania galloped out, both paladins whooping and waving their weapons. Sure enough, a good number of the bandits abandoned the wall they had formed outside the town and began chasing the riders.
"Not smart, are they?" Shinon remarked.
"C'mon!" Gatrie twirled his spear and crashed through the bushes. Shinon exchanged glances with Rolf, who was hurriedly putting arrows in his spacer. Shinon nodded at the kid, hoping he would understand the message. Stay safe. Watch out for that idiot Ike. Well, maybe not so much the last part.
Shinon followed Gatrie, the nimble sniper moving far more silently than the charging knight. His soft leather shoes lent him stealth as he efficiently dispatched a bandit who had begun to swing at Gatrie. He didn't even see the man go down, falling into the battle mind that was so life saving in these situations. The scent of wet leaves and blood, and sound of screams in the distance, footsteps-
Shinon whirled and nocked the bow, barely seeing the man as his thin fingers let the arrow fly. A slight puff of wind by his ear told him that the arrow had flown true, and the wet crunch, so different from the sound of practice, told him that the bandit would not be following.
"Hurry, Shinon!" Gatrie's voice caught him, and the knight moved forward. He was so easy to follow, the clanking mixing with the snapping of twigs under his feet. Smashed leaves, red with autumn and blood, marked his passing. "Oof!"
An axe clanged on Gatrie's shield, and Gatrie did not even buckle. The knight lunged powerfully, and Shinon was treated to a flash of deliciously muscled thighs, as Gatrie drove his spear through the shoulder of the bandit. The enemy fell to his knees, still clutching his axe as blood rained from the wound. Shinon, far more accurate, took him down the rest of the way.
The battle went on, and Shinon's callused fingers hummed pleasantly from the repeated pulling of the bow string and the adrenaline running through his veins. Their path was littered with bodies, and neither of them had suffered from any more than fatigue. The battle was nearly won.
"Shinon!" Gatrie's panicked voice broke the sniper's concentration, and he lowered his bow, hurrying to the knights side.
"What?" The knight was obviously not wounded.
"It's Shana!" Gatrie pointed a gauntleted hand through the trees. Shinon could see a dark haired woman standing alone, next to an incredibly hairy man holding a swordbreaker. The man held her pressed close to him, but she didn't look overly concerned. "I have to help her!"
"Gatrie, I don't think needs any." Shinon growled. Whore indeed.
"No, I have to! Stay here, if you want, but I have to go!"
"Wait, you moron!" Too late. Gatrie continued his charge, veering in the direction of the scene. Shinon cursed, then cursed again.
"Fuck! Goddessdamned moron! He's going to get killed for some stupid woman!" Shinon hefted his bow, ready to follow, then paused as he heard the subtle sound of a crackling leaf.
He didn't turn in time to meet the axe as it slashed through his arm, opening a gash that exposed bone. His stomach flipped as he saw the two bandits, one with an axe, one with a lance. The pain hit him them, and he saw yellow lights until he remembered to breathe. Blood soaked his shirt and dripped through the cloth. They were too close.
The lanceman caught him in the chest, a jab that cut straight through his leather tunic and into his lung. Shinon coughed and crumpled to the ground, the pain so deep that it burned. Every breath brought agony, and a coughing fit that brought up warm liquid to stain his chin and shirt. He rolled onto his side, and his body convulsed, blood spraying the leaves.
Where was Rhys? He needed healing. Rhys always healed him before. A vulnerary! No, Gatrie had them...Gatrie. Gatrie had left. He had gone to Shana.
He tried to position himself to ease the pain, so he could think straight, and realized he was writhing. People did that when he shot them, before they died. He fell suddenly still, breath coming in shallow gasps. He stared straight ahead, at a tree trunk with dark marks at it's base. Someone had built a fire there before.
Darkness passed over him, and footsteps receded. Where was Gatrie? Why had he left him? Shinon hurt. He hurt so badly.
"Ga..." He coughed, and felt wet warmth on his lips. "Gatrie!" His voice was breathy, not loud enough. The world went dark.
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TBC
Review please.
