Disclaimer: I do not own the characters from or the Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha anime, nor any other movie, actor, song, or character referenced or stated in this story.


THE SABERS OF IL SANTI

by : ~Nissanity~

Chapter 3 – The Tangled Web We Weave


Fate POV

"What happened to her?" my mother asked, staring down at Ginga as she kicked the side of the couch. Ginga was laying on it unconscious, still healing from her wounds after we arrived home that evening. I had managed to grab a quick shower and changed out of Nanoha's clothes before my mother had found me in the living room.

"We were attacked by a couple of Jail's Crown Princes at the bar," I responded, rubbing the spot on my head where one of them had hit me with a beer bottle earlier.

"Which ones?" my mother asked, crossing her arms and turning towards me.

"Due and Tre," I responded.

"Hmmm," she said, looking back at Ginga. "Lucky it wasn't Uno or Quattro..." she mused.

We both continued to look down at the couch as Ginga grimaced and moaned, and I waited for the inevitable question to come from my mother.

"Any reason why?" she finally asked slowly.

I shrugged. "We protected a human child after Jail summonsed his demons, and they didn't like it," I tried to answer simply. My mother looked at me disbelievingly.

"Subaru!" she suddenly yelled. "Get your ass in here right now!"

I heard Subaru jog down the hallway from her bedroom, and she entered into the living room hurriedly where we were standing. "Yes, ma'am?" she said as she stood before my mother.

"Who was the child you protected?" my mother asked her.

"Who, Vivio? Nanoha's girl?" Subaru replied innocently.

I glared at her from beside my mother, trying to convey to her not to say anything more. She was too busy staring in fear at my mother to notice my expression.

"And who is this 'Nanoha'?" she pressed.

Subaru paused, now not sure how to answer the question. My mother took a step towards her menacingly, and I decided to intervene on her behalf.

"It's Lindy's new angel, Mother," I conceded, and braced myself as I waited for her angry response. When one did not come, I opened an eye cautiously to glance at her, and was surprised to find her lost in thought instead.

"So Lindy's angel has a girl that has caught their attention, huh?" she pondered.

"Mother...?" I ventured after a moment.

"No child could survive if they are the target of all their wrath," she replied. "It's only a matter of time until they get her. And then, perhaps... Lindy's new angel will fall with her."

My body tensed and I balled my hand into a fist tightly, my fingernails digging into my palm and drawing blood a little. I remained silent, disgusted with my mother's desire for Nanoha to become a fallen angel.

"Anything else to report?" she asked me casually.

"No," I said through gritted teeth. Before I could walk away, my mother received a call on her cellphone.

"Yes...? I see. Where at...? What, one of the Japanese is already there?! I told you to... Fine, I'll send her," she growled. My mother hung up the phone and looked at me.

"That was dispatch. Rein said there is a new possession. You need to get there before Jail summons the demons," she informed me.

"What?! I can't go without Ginga!" I protested, pointing down to her on the couch. "Besides, you said one of Lindy's crew is already there. It's probably Chrono, so it's pointless to go." I thought of Nanoha's unconscious form in her bed, willing myself not to show any reaction to what I knew of her current state.

My mother grabbed me harshly by the face and stared in my eyes closely. "You will go there, and you will save that fucking soul first!" she informed me darkly. "Take Subaru if you're so worried about it."

My mother glared at me for a few seconds more, before letting my face go and turning away from me. She walked down the hallway and slammed her bedroom door shut behind her.

I rubbed my face as I stared down the hallway at the path she had just taken. "Let's go, Subaru," I finally mumbled.

oOOOo

I pressed the buttons on the car radio a few times as I drove, trying to find something worth listening to. I finally gave up when I realized I actually wasn't interested in listening to music at the moment, and pressed the power button to shut it off.

"So, what happened at Nanoha's?" Subaru asked me, breaking the silence in the car.

I narrowed my eyes a little as I stared out of the front windshield. "I don't know," I replied honestly. "Nanoha healed me, apparently."

I saw Subaru look over to me quickly from the corner of my eye. "Healed you?" she asked.

"Yeah, she... touched me and it helped me heal faster than I ever had before."

Subaru hummed a little. "Never heard of that sort of thing before. She really is unique for an angel."

"It took a toll on her though," I added. "She gave a lot of her energy to me, to the point she passed out."

"That's not good. You'll have to find a way to thank her somehow," Subaru mentioned. I looked over at her and smiled, finding her innocent train of thought a little amusing.

"We're here," I said as we pulled up to the address we were given by dispatch.

"Is that Tea?" Subaru asked, leaning forward in her seat to get a better look.

"It is. Huh, I wonder what she's doing here...?" I murmured as I exited my side of the car.

"Tea! Hey, how's it going?" Subaru asked cheerfully as she jogged towards Teana.

"Hey," Teana responded evenly.

"Where's Chrono?" I asked as I approached her as well on the sidewalk.

Teana unholstered her two weapons, both Glock 19's. "He was transferred to the American branch a few days ago. Carim was down to just Amy as her only angel." She began checking over the guns as she spoke.

"Oh yeah?" I said casually, trying not to show that I was too interested in the affairs of the Japanese branch.

"The Commissioner's said that our team was too strong with Nanoha now," she replied. "They said if Chrono stayed, we could become a monopoly and that's not allowed."

"So what are you doing here then?" I inquired further.

Teana didn't look up at me. "I can learn from all different types of angels, so I came to observe you. If that's okay with you, of course?" she added. I shrugged, even though I knew she could be helpful without Ginga to assist me.

"I guess you'll be trying to earn your wings even faster then?" Subaru mentioned to her. I noticed a hint of sadness in her voice, and I assumed she was worried that Teana would somehow be leaving her behind if that were the case.

Teana checked her ammunition quickly, before she spun the guns expertly and holstered them on her hips again. "It'll happen when it does," she responded non-chalantly.

"You sure you don't want to join our branch instead?" I asked her, impressed with her abilities to handle the weapons.

She smiled a little as she looked towards the house we were needed at. "Yeah, right. Precia scares me more than any demon or Crown Prince out there," she scoffed.

As we were all heading up the front walkway, a girl with purple hair about our age opened the front door. "Are you all the... priests?" she asked, confusion and desperation in her voice.

"Sure," I responded. "Someone here is possessed, you believe?"

"Yes, I know she is." The girl opened the front door widely. "Please come in. Hurry! Alisa has been sick for days, but it has only gotten this bad in the past hour!"

"What's your name?" Teana asked her, as the group began walking through the living room to the back bedrooms. We stopped in front of a plain white door, which led to the bedroom farthest to the back of the house.

"Suzuka," she replied. "Alisa is my roommate. Please... I can't handle seeing her like that," she said, her voice shaking.

I placed my hand on the handle of the door, but paused as I turned my head toward the girl. "You have to stay out here," I informed Suzuka over my shoulder.

"But - ? " she began.

"No," I told her firmly. "If you want us to save her, you have to stay out until we tell you to come in."

Suzuka began to sob, but she nodded her head in compliance. I cracked the door open, immediately spotting a blond-haired girl in the upper corner of the bedroom, her body crouched up against the two walls. Her head spun around unnaturally when she heard the door to the room open, and she growled at us from deep within her chest. It was the demonic sound I was all to familiar with.

I shut the door again. "Teana, Subaru. I'll need you go back me up, okay? I won't be able to hold the barrier and perform the exorcism if I am being attacked by extra demons at the same time."

The two girls agreed, and Teana began to attach short silencers to her guns. "Sorry, just a second," she told us. Suzuka stared at Teana, her face horrified before it crumbled again.

"Alisa will be safe, don't worry," I assured her, although there was no real way to predict that outcome. "Come on, guys. It's time."

I pushed open the door wide enough to enter, sliding into it with Teana and Subaru following close behind. Alisa crawled from the corner of the bedroom across the ceiling, eventually ending up on the opposite side of the room.

Teana immediately ran to the window at the back of the bedroom and looked outside. "It leads out to the street," she informed me. I grimaced at the news, never taking my eyes off of Alisa as I assessed her possession and created a barrier.

"Teana, you be ready by the window. Subaru, you help me tie her down to the bed. We'll grab the girl and perform the exorcism there," I instructed. "Hurry up."

Subaru grabbed an armchair from the other side of the room, and placed it in the corner below the possessed girl, trying to position herself so that Alisa couldn't cross the ceiling again. I stood up on the bed, ready to intercept her if she crossed in front of me.

The possessed girl took the route I had been hoping, narrowly avoiding capture before I grabbed one of her legs. She turned around and scratched at me across the arm as she screamed wildly. She drew blood as her claws dug deep into my skin.

"Fuck! That hurts!" I yelled as I pulled her away from the wall and towards the bed. Subaru was right beside me, grabbing a hold of her shoulders to pin her down. I threw the pillow away from under her head and straddled her waist, removing the rosary from under my shirt and kissing it once.

"We beseech You to make powerless, banish, and drive out every diabolic power, presence, and machination..." I began reciting, pressing the cross to the girl's forehead. I pushed her head back under her chin with my free hand, and the cross burned her skin when it made contact. Her legs started trashing below me as she screamed, the sounds and smells of sizzling flesh filling my senses.

Subaru retrieved the straps from her sweater pocket to tie the girl down, attempting to secure the girls arms to the bed, as I continued reciting the exorcism prayer. Subaru accidentally let one of her arms get too close to the possessed girl's mouth, and she clamped down on it hard at the opportunity.

"Ah, cut it out!" Subaru shouted in pain. I pushed the girl's head into the bed harder as Subaru freed her arm. Blood dripped down from her wound, but Subaru did not stop trying to secure her arms.

"...every evil influence, malefice, or evil eye, and all evil actions aimed against your servant Alisa," I continued.

"We've got company!" Teana warned from behind me. I saw Alisa's possessed eyes flash as she maneuvered her head out of my grasp, and looked up past me towards the window excitedly. I pushed her head back down against the bed and pressed the cross down on her forehead again.

"Where there is evil and malice, give us an abundance of goodness, endurance, victory, and charity." I turned around to look at the window. "How much time?!" I yelled to Teana. Alisa gave a blood-curdling scream beneath me.

"Five seconds," Teana replied, standing at the edge of the bed and pointing her gun at window. "Get ready!"

Subaru finished securing the girl's arms. "Done!" she shouted, and then drew her 9mm from her holster under her arm. She stood on the other side of the bed with her weapon pointed at the window.

"O Lord, You who love mankind, we beg You to reach out Your powerful hands and Your most - " I was interrupted when I heard the window break behind me, the sounds of demons trying to enter through it startling me. There was the immediate sounds of Teana's and Subaru's silenced guns firing at the intruders after.

"...Your most high and mighty arms and come to our aid ! Help us - " I shouted down at the girl, who was violently thrashing about under me. I retrieved a bottle of holy water from my back pocket and splashed some on her face and body. It burned where it landed on her, and I watched her body begin to relax, her eyes starting to return to normal.

"Fate, watch out!" I heard Teana yell suddenly. I immediate ducked down, and felt a bullet whiz above my head. Teana took out a demon that had gotten past Subaru, and was about to land on me. It disappeared as soon as the bullet hit it in the head.

I looked back down at the possessed girl, who appeared to be normal again. "Yeah, right..." I muttered to myself. "Help us, who are made in Your image, send the angel of peace over us, to protect us body and soul!" Alisa reared up again, the demon seemingly giving it's last effort to remain in possession of the girl.

I felt the weight of the bed shift behind me. "I'm taking this position!" Teana yelled to Subaru, and I glanced back to see her now standing on the bed over our legs. She continued to expertly take out demons still flooding into the window.

Suddenly, the roar from behind me stopped completely, and Alisa's body went limp underneath me. I recognized the calm that came after a particularly bad possession like that, and I exited off the bed and stood by the edge of it. I released the barrier and replaced the rosary around my neck, kissing it once more before tucking it under my shirt.

"You guys ready?" I asked Subaru and Teana.

Teana was already removing her silencers. "Ow, hot!" she commented as she touched them with her bare fingers, before pocketing them. She then returned her weapons to her hips.

Subaru wiped some sweat from her brow and nodded as she holstered her weapon again. She then looked down at her arm where it had been bitten, wincing in pain. "Maybe I should go see a doctor?" she mentioned.

"I'll go with you," Teana told her. "I just have to drop off the Glocks first."

"Thanks, Tea," Subaru replied. I didn't say anything about Teana accompanying Subaru to the hospital, as I instead checked the girl on the bed one last time for signs of possession. My mother had never paid much attention to the friendship between Teana and Subaru, so I knew it was safe for her to be accompanied by Lindy's trainee to the hospital.

Alisa was starting to regain normal consciousness, so I figured it best to leave her with her roommate. As we exited the bedroom, Suzuka rushed in and hugged Alisa around the neck. She was crying and trying to thank us, but we were already halfway through the living room at that point.

"You sure you'll be alright?" I asked Subaru as we entered onto the front lawn. I retrieved another cigarette from my pack, and began searching my pockets for my lighter.

Before I could light it, I noticed Teana's dark orange aura starting to glow a little outside of her body. She lifted off the ground a few feet before her back arched suddenly. She closed her eyes, and a white burst of light emitted from her back. It then began to glow softly behind her, her aura growing brighter as her wings began to form.

"Whoa..." Subaru said as she smiled up at her friend, now floating above us.

"God damnit," I muttered, thinking of how pissed my mother would be with this new development.

"Don't use the Lord's name in vain," Teana scolded playfully, opening one eye to look down at me.

I placed the unlit cigarette behind my ear, remembering that Ginga didn't want me to smoke in her car as I opened the driver's side door.

"I'll see you when you get home, Subaru," I told her as I got in. "Although I'll probably be asleep by the time you get back."

As I shut the door and drove away, I watched Teana float back down to the ground in my rear view mirror. Subaru gave her a hug as I turned the corner, and I left that new problem behind me for the moment. I drove back to my house, taking the longest route I could think of before I arrived at home. The sun was beginning to rise as I pulled into the driveway of my house.

I opened the front door softly, just in case I was fortunate enough for my mother to be in her bedroom and not in the living room. To my surprise, the living room was completely empty, including the couch where Ginga had been. I walked softly down the hallway and opened her bedroom door, finding that she had made her way to her bed and was asleep.

Exhausted after the long night I had just been through, I turned to my own bedroom door and opened it quietly. I didn't bother to undress before I crawled into bed, and was asleep the second my head hit the pillow.

oOOOo

"So are you going to sleep all evening too, or what?" I heard a voice from above me. My eyes flew open, and I saw Ginga peering down at me.

"Ginga!" I exclaimed, sitting up slowly in the bed. "You're okay now?"

"No, I'm stressed out," she responded. "There is a double possession and your mother is flipping out. She wants us to get over there right away."

I groaned as I sat up completely. "Anyone else there yet?" I replied, reaching for my shoes.

"Nanoha and Teana are already on their way, and Subaru is with them. I'm not sure what the Germans are up to," she told me.

"And the Americans?" I asked as I grabbed my jacket.

"Who fucking knows?! Let's just get going." She was already heading out my bedroom door.

We quickly exited through the front door and made our way to the driveway. I entered into the passenger seat of Ginga's car, now really resenting that I couldn't smoke in her vehicle. I tapped my leg nervously on the floorboard.

"I'm gonna get you some of that gum," she mentioned, noticing the vibrations of my foot.

"Just drive," I said grumpily.

We made it to our destination within ten minutes, which was a back alleyway downtown. As we walked towards the center of it, I observed Subaru and Teana subduing what looked to be a homeless person on the ground. Signum was standing over them, reciting an exorcism prayer. Nanoha was standing beside Signum, her arm raised as she held a barrier around them. There was already an unconscious person laying next to still possessed human.

"Looks like we're too late again," I informed Ginga as we got closer. She moaned dejectedly in response.

The homeless person went limp underneath Teana and Subaru's grasp, signaling the end of the demon's possession. Nanoha quickly released the barrier afterward.

"Sorry, we just happened to be in the area," Teana told us.

I pulled out a cigarette and lit it. "Don't apologize," I told her. "It's what you are supposed to do."

"Hey, Fate-chan," Nanoha said as she raised up, looking at me cautiously.

"Nanoha," I greeted in return. "I'm glad to see you are doing well."

Nanoha narrowed her eyes at me. "Was that sincere? What you just said?"

I frowned at her. "Why wouldn't it be?"

"I don't know, maybe because you left last night without seeing if I was okay?" she replied, her voice starting to sound heated.

"What?! You were passed out!" I responded loudly. "What was I supposed to do?!"

Nanoha yanked the cigarette out of my mouth, dropped it on the ground and stomped it out with her foot. "Do you think it was easy for me to explain all that blood to my parents? Your help with that would have been appreciated!"

"You and your parents are not my problem!" I shouted. "I don't even know them!"

"But it was your blood!" she countered.

"You didn't have to come get me. That was your choice."

"Fine then, maybe I won't next time!" She pushed me a little bit on the shoulder, and I stepped closer to her.

"Okay, I think this has gone on long enough," Ginga said, stepping between us. "Maybe you two can hash it out some other time?"

"It won't be necessary," I replied, looking directly at Nanoha. She glared at me in return, although there was a hint of rejection in her eyes that I could detect.

Both of our heads shot up quickly as we heard a demonic scream from the roof above us. I looked back down at Nanoha. "Didn't you guys get them all?!" I shouted at her.

"Rein said there were only two!" she yelled back.

Teana immediately created a barrier around the area. "Shut up and get it already!" she ordered us.

Nanoha and I both jumped and flew to the rooftops, going in separate directions to begin our search. I ran quickly, all my senses tuned to finding the possessed human. I saw Ginga and Signum join us to search other rooftops as well.

"Any sign of it?" I shouted towards Ginga.

"Only for a second! It's more powerful than usual though, I think!" she responded.

I turned the corner near a rooftop door enclosure, and was immediately sent flying backwards into the air. The sudden impact had stunned me, and when I regained my senses I realized I had been thrown off the roof of the building and was about to hit the pavement below face-first. I braced for impact, knowing the damage to my body would be severe from that height.

I felt my body collide with something before I hit the ground, and the pain that I was expecting to experience did not occur. I had my eyes squeezed shut, and when I opened them slowly I found Nanoha underneath me.

"What the...?" I began as I leaned back and hovered over her on the ground.

"Ouch, ouch, ouch!" she cried, wincing and putting a hand to her head.

"Are you okay?" I asked her, quickly putting my hand over hers where she felt pain.

She smiled. "Yeah, I think so," she replied, her eyes now dancing a little as she looked up at me. She reached up and tucked some of my hair behind my ear, and I smiled down at her in response.

"You didn't have to - " I began.

"Demon!" Teana yelled suddenly from behind us. "Look out, you fucking idiots!"

Nanoha looked past me quickly, and rolled us out of the way just in time to avoid getting nailed by the possessed human. It had just jumped from the rooftop, and it slammed into the pavement a little as it missed us. It began running away, trying to scale the walls of the alley.

Nanoha had ended up on top of me after we rolled, and she was immediately back up and chasing the demon. She jumped up and tackled it mid air before I could even get to my feet. I heard Nanoha scream out in pain a moment later.

"Nanoha!" I shouted in a panic as I flew over to her. The demon had managed to twist her arm at an odd angle, and I feared it had been broken. My vision flashed red, and I grabbed it by the throat, picking it up a few feet before slamming it into the ground. I then began punching it as hard as I could as it laughed maniacally back at me.

"Shit, Fate! Cut it out!" Ginga yelled as she pushed me off of it. I felt Signum's wrap her arms under mine, pulling me off. I attempted to break her grasp for a few seconds before I calmed down. She let me go and began to assist Ginga with the exorcism she had just started, and Subaru joined in to hold the possessed human's body down shortly after.

I turned my attention to Nanoha, who was still laying on the ground, grimacing in pain as she held her arm. "Hey, are you okay? Nanoha?" I asked as I leaned over her.

Nanoha only nodded, her eyes still tightly shut. Ginga and Signum finished the exorcism and the human went limp. Teana dropped the barrier and ran over to us, kneeling next to Nanoha.

"Is she okay?" Teana asked me.

Nanoha opened her eyes and sat up, although I could tell it pained her to do so. "I'm okay," she tried to assure everyone.

"Teana, can you assist Nanoha home? She needs to tend to that arm," Signum requested.

"No. I'll do it," I offered before Teana could respond. Nanoha looked at me surprised for a moment, before she smiled a little and looked down. I thought I could even see her blush a little in the darkness.

Ginga stood up and handed me the keys to her car. "You owe me," she told me quietly as she smiled a little.

"At least you are in a better mood now," I responded.

"Yep! I'm gonna get paid pretty well for that one!" she replied happily, pointing down to the unconscious human.

"Well, you're welcome then," I told her before I turned my attention back to Nanoha.

"Can you walk?" I asked her.

"Yes," she replied and attempted to stand up. She immediately fell back down as she grabbed her ribs in pain.

"It got you there too, huh? Okay, up we go," I warned her as I put my arms underneath to cradle her bridal style. I stood up, and I began walking us over to where Ginga had parked her car at the end of the alley. Nanoha rested her head against my shoulder and stared down at her hands, her face now more relaxed.

"Do you want to sit in the backseat or front?" I asked her as we approached the car.

"Front," she told me. I pressed the button on the key remote to unlock the car doors, pulling it open with my closest hand. I then set her in the seat gently and buckled her in. She looked up at me with skepticism.

"Are you really the same person?" she asked me, scowling a little.

"I'm returning the favor is all," I told her as I shut the car door. I crossed over to the other side of the car, opening the driver's side door and entering it. I started the engine and began to turn towards the Midoriya Cafe.

"I live the other way," she informed me.

"Oh...?" I responded in confusion as I turned the opposite direction. "Was that not your room we were in?"

"No, you bled all over my parents' guest bedroom last night," she informed me.

"Why did you take me there then?" I inquired.

"You weren't in the best shape to go too far as it was, you know?"

"So, your parents were pretty upset when they found you?" I ventured.

"No, just... concerned," she replied. "Especially since I missed all my classes today at school. They came to find me when I was late for my shift at work this afternoon."

I didn't say anything in response, already knowing the all too familiar story of a new angel's old life beginning to fall apart around them. It had never been possible for anyone involved in our line of work to maintain a normal life outside of it. We rode in silence for a while, and occasionally Nanoha would shift uncomfortably in the seat next to me.

"And how's Vivio?" I finally asked.

I saw Nanoha visibly tense out of the corner of my eye at the subject of the little girl. "Vivio is fine. Don't worry about it," she replied.

"What kind of answer is that?" I asked, glancing over at her.

"The kind of answer I give to people who indicated they wanted nothing to do with us," she said coldly. "Turn here. Second building on the right," she suddenly instructed, pointing to an apartment complex coming up.

I turned the car and followed her instructions, pulling into one of the available spots in front of the building. Nanoha opened her car door quickly and attempted to get out, but grimaced and fell back into her seat.

I exited my side and crossed in front of the car to stand next to her open door. "What's with the sudden mood swings with you?" I asked angrily.

"I don't know!" she replied. "I can't read you at all, and it really pisses me off, okay?"

I helped her out of the car, which seemed to make her more angry, and she pushed me away from her.

"What do you want me to do?!" I yelled.

"I don't know!" she said again. "Just... stop doing conflicting things. Either hate me, or don't. But pick one and stop confusing me."

"I can't do that. Don't pretend like you don't understand."

"Then I will make the decision for you." She turned away from me and started heading up the stairs to her apartment, struggling with each step as she leaned against the railing.

I rounded the corner of the car door and opened the driver's side roughly in frustration. I then stopped and watched her struggle momentarily, before I raised my hand to check her aura. She immediately stopped when she felt me do it.

"You can't even conceal yourself right now, you are so weak," I told her. I slammed the car door shut and starting climbing up the stairs behind her.

"Just because I can't give you some black and white answer to all this," I continued, "doesn't mean I can't help you now. So stop pushing me away, okay?"

When I reached Nanoha, I looked at her face and realized that she was now crying silently. I took the set of house keys from her hand and climbed the rest of the stairs, unlocking the door to her apartment. I then returned to where she was still standing against the rail.

"Hold still," I instructed as I picked her up the same way I had before in the alley. I slowly climbed the stairs with her in my arms as she continued to cry a little into my shoulder. We entered into her barely lit apartment. and I debated on where to set her down when she spoke up.

"It feels good when you touch me, Fate-chan," she mentioned quietly.

I paused for a moment as I looked down at her. Her statement had taken me by surprise, considering the argument we had just had a few moments prior. I spotted a space on the floor at the base of the couch that looked ideal, and I walked us over to it.

I sat down on the floor with my back against the side of the couch, and then positioned Nanoha to come to rest in between my bent legs. She leaned back against my chest and placed her head on my shoulder. I reached up and took the blanket that was sitting above us on the arm of the couch, draping it over us.

"There. Now I can be touching you and there won't pressure on any of your injuries," I told her. She nodded her head against my shoulder, and she turned her head to cuddle into my neck a little.

"You're not healing as fast as you should be," I continued. "And that demon shouldn't have been able to overpower you like that. It's because you used up so much energy on me yesterday, isn't it?"

"It doesn't matter," she replied, her eyes still closed.

"But it does. Promise me you won't do that again. No matter what, okay? You can't sacrifice your own health for others. Well, at least not for other angels."

"Hmmm," she replied. "Okay, I promise," she responded.

"Good," I said, and began to rub her arm gently where it had been injured earlier. It seemed to be healing a bit faster now. "Does that feel good?" I asked.

"Um-hmm. Touch me more, Fate-chan..." Nanoha requested.

I ran my hands along her shoulders and upper arms slowly. "Like this?"

Nanoha nodded, and then shifted against me a little. "That feels good. Keep going."

I continued to run my hands along her shoulders and then down the full lengths of her arms, until I reached her hands. I began to intertwine our fingers and release them, and ran my thumbs along her palms underneath.

"Nyahaha, that tickles," she told me, now smiling.

"Sorry," I apologized, even though I had done it on purpose. I moved my hands down to her legs, beginning to rub along them as well.

"Fate...cha..." Nanoha said a little breathlessly in surprise, as my hands began to move back and forth along her upper thighs slowly under the blanket. Nanoha's breathing began to quicken the more I rubbed along her legs. I pressed my thumbs along her inner thighs, my hands continuing to move back and forth steadily. I felt Nanoha's body begin to move in rhythm in response to the pressure of my thumbs against the sensitive areas.

I trailed my hands up her waist for a moment, before moving them underneath her shirt to her stomach. The feel of her smooth, quivering skin against my hands was nearly intoxicating.

"More..." Nanoha insisted, as her right hand clenched my pants in anticipation. She took my left hand and moved it up onto her breast, above her bra under her shirt.

"Mmmm," she moaned when I began to massage her breast in my hand, her breathing now becoming more ragged and unsteady.

I pulled Nanoha closer into me with my other arm now wrapped around her abdomen, setting my eyes on her neck that was now fully exposed in front of me.

"Nanoha..." I breathed into her ear, and I felt her body melt more into me as I said her name. I trailed small kisses along her neckline, eventually sucking on her earlobe after I had made my way back up her neck.

"Ah!...Yessss..." she moaned as my fingertips finally moved to her nipple under the cloth, and I began pulling and rolling it gently. I watched her lick her lips a little with her eyes closed as she relished the stimulation.

I moved my hands away from where they were focused to slide her shirt above her head, exposing the creamy skin of her back to me. I moved to kiss along the sensitive area of her shoulder blades, and a wave of goosebumps was left in the wake of my lips on her skin.

Before I could explore her back any further, Nanoha crawled away from her current position, throwing the blanket to the side. She turned and straddled my hips and was now facing me fully, wrapping her forearms around my neck. I reached behind her to unclasp her bra and tossed it away, my eyes never leaving hers.

"Fate-chan, please... keep touching me?" she requested. She took my hands in hers, and then moved them up to her now exposed breasts.

I was mesmerized as I watched her throw her head back to the ceiling and her body tremble in front of me. I kneaded her breasts, as I continued to rolled and gently pinch her nipples with my fingertips. I could no longer hold back as I leaned forward and took one into my mouth, sucking and rolling my tongue around it.

"Oh... God... Ummm!" she whimpered as my wet tongue glided around, now sucking and nibbling hungrily at her peak. She clenched her hands in my hair and pushed my face into her breast more, and I moved an arm across her back to pull her closer to me.

I began to pay attention to her other breast, her nipple now hardening in my mouth as well, as Nanoha panted and moaned above me more.

"Fate...cha... it feels, so..." She then gasped when I bit down on her nipple, her hands pulling and digging into my hair in response.

"Nanoha..." I whispered breathlessly between the nibbles and licks, and her back arched with the sound my raspy voice calling her name again. I pulled my mouth away to begin kissing along the valley of her breasts, returning a hand to her continue fondling her as I moved my lips further up her body.

With her hands still entangled in my hair, she guided me to her neck and I hungrily kissed at her pulse point, before I bit down on it hard. Nanoha pulled my head away and brought her forehead to rest against mine, her mouth open and her eyes closed as she panted in front of me.

I was staring at her lips when I realized I had yet to actually kiss her, but I made no motion to cross that level of intimacy with her. I instead began to trail my hand down across her stomach slowly, but when I reached the button of her jeans, she removed her hand from my hair and guided my hand away.

"Wait. It's too soon for that," she told me softly as she locked our fingers together.

I pulled back to look up at her directly as we both breathed heavily, our eyes searching each others. I nodded my head in agreement after a moment, and she bent down and kissed my cheek before leaning against me. I wrapped my arms around her and embraced her in return.

"Sorry..." she began, turning her face towards my neck.

"Don't ever apologize, Nanoha," I responded. "You're right, we need to slow down. We hardly know each other."

I felt her nod as I drew her in tighter to me. It wasn't long before I felt her breathing become deeper, and I realized she had fallen asleep. Knowing we couldn't stay in that position for too long, I gently shook her awake.

"Nanoha, I'm going to lay you on the couch okay?" I asked her.

"Um-hmmm," she hummed sleepily. "Are you staying, Fate-chan?"

I paused. "For a little while longer," I finally assured her.

"That's good," she murmured as I picked her up and made our way to the couch with the blanket. I laid her down first, and crawled in next to her as I draped the blanket over us.

"I can't stay here," I repeated to myself a few times as a warning, before I eventually succumbed to my own exhaustion and fell asleep next to her.


A/N: I'm enjoying writing this story a lot. It's nice to have more freedom to write what I wish, without the T-rating holding me back like in my other stories. Hope you all are still enjoying it too! Well, until next time, ~Nissanity~