Disclaimer: I do not own Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha.
Nanoha POV
After Yuuno walked me home, I couldn't help but think about Fate. I blushed, still feeling her breath against my ear. Walking behind the counter to greet my parents, I got a, "Nanoha! Why are you blushing? Don't tell me a boy captured your heart," from my dad, who had a terrified expression.
"Now, now dear," my mother playfully hit him in the back of his head, "she would tell us. Right?" She smiled the same smile as this morning.
"O-of course I would," I rapidly nodded my head and headed upstairs, "I'll help out with the café after I change."
I went back downstairs wearing black jeans and a white blouse. I grabbed an apron and a note pad with a pen to take the orders of the customers coming in. After a few hours my parents called me to the back for dinner. "So Nanoha, how was school?" My mother asked.
"Mmm, I met a very interesting girl. Her name is Fate Harlaown a very charming person." I blushed at the though of her carrying me, "she saved me from falling down the stairs."
"Charming," my father mumbled, "do you like her?"
"Uh...what?"
"Do you like her? Because if you do, I will treat her the same way I would with a boy you would like," a dangerous glint appeared in his eyes.
"Now, now dear," my mom genuinely smiled, "it's Nanoha we are talking about. If she has someone she likes, she'll tell us."
"Don't you dare bring a boy home," my dad glared at me.
"O-okay," I put away my dishes and looked at the clock reading seven thirty. "I'm going to take a walk."
"Eh? But Nanoha, it'll be dark soon," my dad whined.
"I'm not going far, just to the park and back."
"Go Nanoha, be back before nine," my mom waved.
"What but Nanoha will be alo-" my dad started as I closed the door behind me.
I breathed in the cool spring air on the way to the park. Laughter of kids and adults were heard throughout the streets from their houses. "Ruff ruff! Arf arf!" I turned around to see a blur of red-orange fluff run after me.
"Uwahhh! ARF!" A familiar voice shouted out after the blur. I looked up to see a flash of gold and black fall from the sky and landed on the fluff's back. She wrapped her arm around its puffy neck, causing her face to be buried in the puff, and stomped her feet on the floor, effectively halting the animal right before it hit me. "Eh? Nanoha?" she looked up at me with confused burgundy eyes.
"F-fate-chan?" I stared at the blond on the...dog? She's so cute~
"H-hey Nanoha," her voice was nervous as she got off the animal. "Why did you lead me to her, Arf?" she asked the beast.
"Ruff!"
"But that doesn't- Gah!" she smacked her forehead and sighed, "what's the point, it just looks like I'm talking to myself."
"Ruff!"
"Oh shut up." She regain her posture and gave me an apologetic look, "sorry about, this here is Arf, my wolf companion."
"Arf arf!" The wolf happily barked and wagged its tail.
"She says hi."
"You understand what she's saying?" I curiously asked the blond.
"Yeah, we practically grew up together," her eyes soften as she pet the wolf's head.
"Ruff, arf arf."
"She wants you to pet he," Fate translated. I was a bit hesitant. "Don't worry, she won't bite, just hold out your hand," Fate encouraged.
I held out my hand like I was told, the wolf then walked closer to me and nuzzled her head against my hand. "Uwah so soft~"
"Heh, I could tell she likes you," she broadly smiled.
Her teeth aren't sharp...did I see wrong earlier? "Uh, y-yeah," I was taken aback of how different she was around that wolf. She's less...clingy. "Was that all an act?"
"What was?" She tilted her head.
"Umm, uh, that stuff at school, you know, with all the closeness and uh, y-yeah." I couldn't shake off this lonely feeling from her not holding me close.
The wolf let out a questionable whimper. "Gah- don't say anything Arf, I already know," she shifted her eyes around. "Umm, do you want to go sit at the park first?"
I nodded my head and followed her to the park with Arf in tow. "So, was it all an act?" I asked as I sat down on one of the swings next to her.
"Umm, not really," she started to rock back and forth while looking at her feet. "You remind me of someone, that all," she looked up at the moon with a nostalgic expression.
"Eh?" I was startled by her answer, but the way the moonlight hit her was astonishing. It was as if I could never touch her, she seemed so far away. I reached my hand out to her, but stopped half-way and drew my hand back, not wanting to disturb her thoughts, afraid of breaking the peaceful air around her. I gazed at the moon with Arf sitting at our feet, staring at the moon. So she only did those things because of someone else? That kind of hurts.
"Hey Nanoha," she said in a soft voice, I turned to her. "Do you want me to walk you home?" The golden haired girl lifted her cellphone showing me the time, "it's eight forty-five."
I gasped, how did an hour and fifteen minutes pass by so quickly. I nodded my head, "y-yes, if I'm not being a bother." I got off the swing.
She chuckled, "not problem, I was the one who asked." She got up and stood next to me, "come on Arf, let's so." The wolf made a cute yawn and obediently followed her master.
A thought enter my mind, "can we exchange numbers?"
"Sure," her expression was filled with happiness. "I was planning on asking for yours earlier, but the sight of you made me forget."
"Is that a bad or good thing?"
"Good, you're just too beautiful that I forgot." I blushed at her comment as we exchanged numbers. I led her to my place in silence, feeling her eyes on me. It's cold. As if she read my mind, the golden haired beauty closed the space between us, wrapping her arms across my stomach. The warmth of her front pushed against my back, "better?" she asked.
I nodded my head, trying to suppress the heat rising to my cheeks. "T-thanks," I mumbled as I unconsciously snuggled my back against her. I didn't notice it before, but her scent was of sweet lilacs. I must've been too distracted by how close she was to notice. I inhaled the sweet warm air that emitted from Fate.
"Good," I felt her grin against my head. Lost in the warmth that surrounded me, Fate spoke up, "Is this where you live?"
I looked up to see the entrance of the café surprised. "H-how?" That was a short walk.
She pointed to the wolf, "I didn't want to interrupt your thoughts, so I got Arf to track down your scent to here." The feeling of her warm body left me, "I'll see you tomorrow."
It's cold again. I wish that walk lasted longer. "Yeah, see you tomorrow," I smiled at her before entering my home. As the door shut behind me, I heard hurried footsteps getting further away. Turning around I saw a storm of dust, wow, she must be in a hurry.
"Nanoha," I jumped a little and turned to face my dad. "Who was she, holding you so passionately?"
"That was Fate, the one who saved me from falling down the stairs," I felt pressured by the look he gave me.
"Momoko!" He shouted up the stairs, "our Nanoha was dropped off by her savior! What would we do if she- OW!"
"Sweetie, I told you to leave it alone," my mother descended down the stairs and picked up the slipper she threw. She turned to me, "I don't get to see her?"
"She seemed to be in a hurry, maybe next time" I looked at mom nervously. "I'm going to bed now. Good night."
"Good night Nanoha," she smiled.
I headed up to my room to change into my pajamas and set the alarm on my phone. I laid in bed thinking about the events that happened today. The scent of lilacs still lingered around me. Fate Harlaown why can't I get you out of my mind? I pulled my comforter closer to my body, trying to regain the warmth I lost from when she let go.
Fate POV
"I'm back," I called out through the empty living room. I glanced at the clock, it was eight fifty-nine. Yes, just in time.
"Welcome back!" I head my brother yell from the kitchen.
"You are making tea?" I asked as I wandered into the kitchen.
"Yeah, knowing okaa-san, she would want us to make some for her friend."
"Ah."
I heard the door open, "I'm back!" our mother shouted.
"Welcome back!" We shouted.
"We'll wait in the living room, bring tea."
"See, what I'd tell you," Chrono snickered as he poured the piping hot green tea into two tea cups on a serving tray.
"Pshh, whatever," I went to the counter to get the sugar cubes.
We walked over to the living room and set down the items in our hands onto the coffee table. The woman next to mother gasped a bit but quickly hid it. It was her scent that I noticed while I was cleaning the place earlier.
Chrono and I sat together on the couch across from mom and her friend. "Ah, thank you, you two. Chrono, Fate," my mother started, "this is Precia Testarossa. Actually, scratch that, this is Precia Testarossa Harlaown, my wife." She took five sugar cubes and dumped them in her drink and sipped it as if her announcement was nothing out of the ordinary. "Delicious," she sighed in content.
"..." Chrono and I blinked and looked at each other. We both pointed at the adults with our jaws dropped and simultaneously stuttered, "d-did w-we just he-hear right?" Our heads turned to Precia who face-palmed herself, and our mother who had a sunny smile plastered on her face.
"I thought you were just going to introduce us as girlfriends first," the charcoal haired woman mumbled against her palm then slide it down to her side.
"Yeah but," mother placed her hands on her own cheeks and rocked from sided to side, "I wanted to see their reactions."
I stood dumbfounded while Chrono shouted, "since when? Why haven't we heard about it? Why weren't we invited to the wedding?"
"Well, it all started on that fateful day," she tenderly stared into Precia's plum colored eyes with her green ones.
Oh my gah, I can feel the love.
"It was that day when I was walking back from a meeting," mother closed her eyes, "it was a dark, cold and windy night. My stuff were practically blown all over the place and some landed in the ocean nearby. Since I needed look over the materials for the next day, I ran to the shore and waddled in the ice cold water."
She turned to the other woman to continue, "I was on my evening walk when I spotted her just as she was about to completely go in," Precia shook her head as she let out a light laugh, "I did a full on sprint towards your mother and tackled her onto the sand."
"You were screaming, 'what the hell do you think you're doing! You'll catch a cold or even worse, pneumonia!' at me." Mother chuckled as she recalled the memory.
"O-okaa-san," my brother and I stared at her, "that's not a laughing matter."
"Well anyways, after I told her that it was important material for a case I was working, Precia here," she clung onto the woman's arm, "she gallantly jumped in the water and swam to get my stuff before it drifted further away. Apparently she's used to swimming in cold waters."
"She helped me back to my place after I told her where it was. Kept insisting to help me with every little thing," Precia shook her head, "it was very sweet of her."
"I then noticed a picture of her and," mother looked at me, "a girl who looked exactly like you did when you were five years old. I showed her your picture to compare."
Precia nodded her head, "Her name was Alica. I swear, if she were your age, I wouldn't be able to tell the difference between you two." Her eyes fell when she met my questionable ones, "she died fifteen years ago during an accident. She was only five, if only I could have protected her from that fall, she'd still be here," she whispered the last part. After a few minutes of silence, she looked back up at us, "well anyways, shortly after that we frequently met up and got married."
"Mmhm!" Our mother nodded her head, "it was sudden, but it just felt right."
"So, when did this all happen?" Chrono asked slowly.
"While I was on that business trip in Italy," our mother snapped her fingers and made a thumbs-up.
"..." Chrono and I stared at each other again. Slowly turning to the adults, we shouted, "but that was two weeks ago! And you just got back two days ago!"
"Yup!" Our mom's smile became even brighter.
I leaned back and rubbed my temples, my brother mimicked my actions. "This is all too much, and you didn't bother to tell us about it until now?"
"It was because we were in Italy the whole time. By the time we got back it was midnight and you two were asleep. We wanted to get married right away, so we did it on the night we came back. We decided to wait until you went to school for Precia to move her stuff in and break the news to you two."
"Wow, we weren't even invited to our own mother's wedding," my brother rolled off the couch, causing him to face plant the carpeted ground.
"Actually, it was her that wanted to get married so soon. Sorry, I tried to stop her, but in the end she tempted me into doing what she wanted," Precia apologized.
"Sorry Chrono," our mother said, "I know how much you wanted to be my bridesmaid." She turned to me, "and how much you wanted to be the best man."
"Why are our rolls switch?" Chrono shouted out, sobbing.
"Oh my," Precia started, "you were right Lindy. I'm definitely going to enjoy my life here."
I pointed to Chrono and grinned, "have fun torturing him. Too bad I don't get to see him in a dress."
"You're mean Fate," my brother mumbled into the carpet.
"Sucks to be you. Right Arf?"
"Ruff!"
"See, even Arf agrees." I turned to Precia and my mother, "what should we call you since you're both our mothers now?"
"Lindy-kaasan!" Mother replied.
"Precia is fine," the charcoal haired woman replied, "I understand that it will take a lot of time to get used to me."
"Nooo," mother objected, "you were suppose to say Precia-kaasan," she wined.
Precia sighed, "your kids and I just met, I don't want them to be uncomfortable."
I shook my head, "nah, it's okay, we're family now. We were just shocked that you two got married without us knowing." I turned to Chrono, who sat back down on the couch, "right onii-chan?"
"Yeah," he deeply sighed, "I'm still trying to get over that fact."
"Ohoho," mother laughed, "get used to it soon, or else." A glint appeared in her eyes, "you will wear this." She then pulled out a deep blue dress with a frilly white collar from underneath the couch. It had two white stripes along the side from the waist down, and the hem was frilly black. A black waist length, long sleeved jacket accompanied it.
He twitched and ran upstairs yelling, "good night!"
"Ah, such a good child," mother laughed with her hand against her cheek.
"I hope you can take good care of her. She can get crazy at times," I gave Precia a lopsided smile.
"I will, and I already knew she would be crazy from the moment I met her."
I lightly laughed, "good night. Come on Arf, let go to sleep." The wolf stretched and followed me up the stairs. "She's her mother, isn't she?" I asked Arf after we entered my room and closed the door.
"Ruff."
"Should I tell her?" Arf shook her head. I sighed, "yeah, you're right, I wouldn't want to give her false hope. Onee-chan, I wonder how you are doing," I whispered softly.
I laid on my bed thinking about the events that happened today, the image of the chestnut haired girl kept appearing in my mind. Nanoha Takamachi, why can't I get you out of my mind? I pulled my comforter closer to my body, trying to regain the warmth I lost when I let her go.
A/N: Thanks to those who read/alerted/favorited/reviewed. 8D
