Zero's Dog
Chapter 4
A Mutual Understanding
"Are you ready to talk about it?" Kotaro asked the petite pinkette.
They were back in Louise's room. It had been several hours since her spectacular failed transmutation and the sun already mostly disappeared beyond the horizon. Kotaro had been thinking hard ever since that event had devastated the room and his new master. Right afterwards, he had sent a small group of the other students to take the unconscious Chevreuse to the infirmary and shoo-ed the rest out. There had been a few issues from some of the students but Kotaro had long since learned how to be persuasive. After everyone had left, save for himself and Louise, he set about fixing the room with the eight doppelgangers he created while he tried to comfort the saddened girl. He had two reasons for shooing the others out. First he didn't want the others to know how many clones he could create. Second, he felt the need to comfort the distressed girl and didn't want anyone to see his awkwardness at attempting to console a crying girl or sabotage his efforts with cutting remarks. Within fifteen minutes the room was neat and orderly again, much to the surprise of the student who arrived with a message, from the headmaster, that Louise's punishment was to repair the room she had destroyed.
After that, Kotaro followed Louise back to her room but had underestimated her determination to avoid social activity of any kind. When the sun reached the horizon and Louise still hadn't moved from where she pouted, Kotaro left for the kitchen to bring some food for his sulking mistress.
(Scene break)
When he arrived, Siesta greeted him with a mix warmth and anxiety. "Apparently, she's not quite past the whole 'violent dog spirit' yet." Another person present however was a lot less nervous about Kotaro's presence, and greeted him with great mirth.
"Well, if it isn't the 'Beast of Justice' and 'Our Champion,' the chef declared proudly, clapping Kotaro on the back. Marteau was his name and Kotaro had first met him during breakfast the first day when a stale loaf of bread and some thin broth were all that Louise provided. The beefy man hand sympathized at first and voiced his contempt for nobility hanging magic over the heads of those who were beneath them. With Guiche's defeat, sympathy was replaced with hero worship that was more than a little uncomfortable. "What brings you to my humble kitchen, don't tell me you're being put off of food as punishment for something?" he asked with a measure of concern.
"Not exactly. While I haven't eaten much today, I'm more concerned for Louise who has been holed up in her room since her attempt at magic literally 'blew up in her face' in front of her peers, and hasn't eaten since."
"That's surprising," Siesta suddenly spoke up. "Usually when a spell fails, she brushes it off as something minor without so much as a sigh, at least judging by how the other students talk about her. Did something else happen today?"
He thought back. "Well, I told a story to the other students, asked the teacher about how Earth magic worked, and had a stern talk with pudgy boy in front of the class, Malicorne, I think, was his name. The teacher looked like her heart stopped when I directly addressed the boy. Then Louise blew up the room." Kotaro said, summing the day's events before Louise began her sulk.
"What did you talk to him about?" Siesta and Marteau eagerly asked.
"I first shot down the rumor that I'm just an actor or mercenary Louise hired to appear at the ritual and serve her, as a way to cover for her magic skill."
"Wait! You mean you're not? " Marteau, who had also assumed Kotaro was merely hired help, broke through. "Damn. I was hoping to know where she found a guy like you."
"No, where I come from, only one moon can be seen in the night sky," Kotaro replied, rubbing his temples at needing to explain to someone else his situation. "Anyway, I also told Malicorne that I didn't like how his use of 'Louise the Zero' upset her and impressed upon him how that nickname should fall out of use. The whole class saw and heard my stiff discussion with him so they no doubt caught my point, too.
"Ah," Siesta responded, "I think it was her failure after you boldly stood up for her in front of her classmates. You must have done it without her knowing you planned on doing that. From what I've heard she's always been called Louise the Zero and regarded as a failure as a mage, someone to be pitied or ridiculed. Your sudden defense of her without her asking, combined with your unique traits and defeat of another noble must have given the boost to her pride that she's not had before, only to have her hope completely crushed by another failure," Siesta summarized.
"Oh, I hadn't thought of that. I'm not used to dealing with a girl's emotions beyond what can be easily simplified. Most girls I've known were older than me and involved with something bigger than themselves. I've not been personally involved with lonely girl with something to prove before."
"Glad to be of service," Siesta beamed.
"I just remembered why I came down here, food!" Kotaro smacked himself for falling off track.
"Well, we got plenty of leftovers, what'll ya take?" Marteau cheerfully asked.
"Just give me a loaf, a knife and some meat," Kotaro replied, struggling to keep the panic out of his voice that had grown from knowing how long he'd been keeping Louise waiting.
"Are you sure that's enough?"
"I'll manage." Kotaro grabbed the tray and a wineskin and rushed off. When he was sure that no one was watching him, he allowed himself to sink into his shadow.
(scene break)
"I'm back," he declared while rising from a shadow in Louise's room.
Louise turned over, giving him the cold shoulder. "You sure took your time."
"Sorry, I got up in someone's explanation. So do want to talk about your feelings yet?"
"NO! And what is THAT?" Louise pointed at the strange pile of food on the tray Kotaro had set on her table.
"That," he proudly declared, "is a sandwich. I didn't know what you like so I simply asked for the meat and bread. It's something from where I'm from. I think you'll like it."
"Do not assume to know what I like with regards to my food, dog. As punishment, you are to sleep in the hall tonight."
"Of course I am, because you can't accept the compassion I've graciously supplied. No wonder you have few, if any friends." Kotaro wordlessly turned towards the door and left. He sat against the wall next to Louise's room beginning to brood over what he knew about her. But before he could think too deeply though, the stresses of the day caught up to him and he fell asleep.
(scene break)
He awoke with a start as he was pushed over. He opened his eyes to gauge where he was met with a surprise. He'd been somehow moved in his sleep to the coliseum in Ostia. As he looked for who pushed him over, his eyes found two familiar figures. The first was a massive man with long spiky, blond hair, a red headband encircling his brow, a dark complexion, and muscles so well-defined that they almost looked chiseled from stone. He was garbed in a red vest with sleeves torn off at the shoulders and opened in the front, exposing many of the muscles and scars he'd received in his 44 years of being a warrior. "Oi," the legendary swordsman called, "What're you sleeping here for? We need to continue your training."
Kotaro's eyes fell to the other figure, a girl who looked very young but whose eyes of emerald were laced with coldness. She wore a simple black dress that went to her knees. Her skin was pale to the point that it appeared to glow and her long blond tresses extended nearly to her ankles. Compared to the experienced gladiator, she looked downright dainty but she cast an ominous presence that could stifle the grandest of celebrations and usually made children spontaneously cry. A look of impatience covered her face.
"Jack, Evangeline, what's going on? Why—" Kotaro started to ask but was interrupted when Eva grabbed one of the cuffs of his pants and proceeded to drag him down one of the entry corridors. About halfway down, she crossed and knocked on the door of what seemed to be a closet.
When it opened, the smell of perfume graced Kotaro's nostrils as he saw that inside was an impressive ballroom with many people dancing. Eva dragged him over to a chair and delicately placed him in it. "You clothes don't quite fit," she finally spoke, "you'll wear this."
"Why did Eva drag me here only to wait on me hand and foot? More importantly why am I in Mundus Magicus?" He thought to himself as he felt cloth being moved against his skin. He looked down to find himself wearing a bright orange tuxedo. "Well, I guess it works," he thought to himself.
He then realized that there were others at the table he was sitting at, but most striking was the person opposite him, with a concealed face under a large billowing cloak, with a large coffee mug that said 'World's Best Parent.'
"LIFEMAKER?"
(Scene break)
Kotaro jumped out where he sat, prepared to fight, only to find the scenery had changed again. He was now in a dimly lit room that was slightly cramped. It was spacious but had been filled with furniture and other personal effects. The scent of perfume and something else hung in the air but he couldn't quite tell what it was. "It was a dream" Kotaro sighed with relief and he touched his chest.
"Wait," he realized, "Where's my shirt?" He spotted it hanging over a chair and went to retrieve it, when a voice called out behind him
"Do you have to leave so soon?"
Kotaro turned to see Kirche sitting on a bed, bathed in moonlight from the window behind her. He blushed. She was dressed, in the loosest possible meaning of the term, in a lacy bra and panties that concealed just enough for the imagination to take over. Her face was also flushed but not from embarrassment but, as her eyes suggested, passion.
"I wondered if you were going to wake up. I'm surprised that you continued to sleep after Flame dragged you all the way down the hall. Ever since I saw you yesterday at the dual, I could only think of your manliness. I can't wait anymore." She leapt at him. "Set my body aflame!"
At that moment several things happened: Kotaro tripped and fell over backwards, the door was kicked open, and three boys popped up at the window, all them saying "KIRCHE!"
"Kirche, who is that man and who are these other two," one of the boys at the window asked, pointing at the two boys beside him. "I thought you said that—, "but it was lost as an explosion knocked all three away from the window.
"KIRCHE!" Louise shouted from the doorway, wand in hand, "just what do you think you're doing with my familiar?"
"Butt out, Valliere. I'm busy." She had landed on the fallen Kotaro and was currently pulling his face into her cleavage.
"This feels so familiar. Shapely girl holding my face to her chest, lacey undergarments, second girl present, aggression and fear in the air, Dear Lord, it's just like when I first arrived at Mahora," Kotaro thought. Knowing how breathing became difficult in a position like this, he flailed his arms for a few moments then let himself go limp.
"I will not allow you to act lewdly with my familiar, Von Zerbst," Louise asserted.
"But what does HE have to say about this?" Kirche nodded to the boy trapped in a narrow mountain pass. When he remained motionless she quickly released him.
"(GASP) Finally, I can breathe again," he said, breathing heavily.
"Is that it?" the flirtatious girl asked, almost speechless.
"I think so. Can I go now?" the boy responded easily.
Kirche removed herself from the boy, in a state of shock. Louise had a similar expression on her face as Kotaro rose to his feet and turned to her. "Is he even human?" they both thought, "No one has ever spurned my/Kirche's passionate advances so casually."
"Shall we go now?" Kotaro asked his dumbfounded master.
She nodded distantly and he followed her out, closing the door behind him.
(Scene break)
"Why didn't you use your magic on her?" Louise yelled as soon as the door to her own room closed behind them. "It shouldn't have mattered that you didn't have a wand!"
"Nice to see you so full of energy, too. Was the sandwich good?"
"Yeah it – wait a second, we're talking about your private meeting with that woman! Why was she still upright? You can use magic without using a wand; you couldn't at least make her a little uncomfortable? Why weren't you affected by her?"
"While her attempt to seduce me was flattering, she went about doing it wrong. I've mentioned before that my best friend was a school teacher in an all-girls school and his class had 30 girls in it, each one unique (except the twins). Well strangely enough, reality seemed to take pleasure in removing their clothes from them while in his presence. I probably missed a lot of it but I got used to seeing girls in various states of undress. Kirche should have probably tried being more subtle."
"And about casting without a wand? Actually I don't carry a wand because trying to fight while clutching a small stick when I fight would be impractical. Same with a staff like Tabitha has. I use this," he pointed at the ring on his left index finger, "to channel magic."
"So your great feats of magic you produced were really tricks for us to overestimate you and think you didn't need a wand?"
"I never claimed such a thing. Speaking of magic, was there something else you wanted to talk about?"
Louise's eyes turned down. "I'm a failure as a mage. Every time I try to cast a spell it explodes. I'm completely inept with magic. Not once have I succeeded in casting magic." She said it all with monotony.
"Well maybe you just need some extra refinement. You're obviously casting magic with those explosions. Or you're manipulating probability into making the explosions happen for you. Either way, you're doing something and it's powerful"
"You're just trying to flatter me," she sounded a little irritated.
"No I'm not. In fact, I have an idea that might be –," he cut himself short before talking himself into a corner from which there was little hope for escape.
"What was that, Dog-boy?"
"Great. The one time I don't want her to listen to me, and she's paying complete attention. Maybe I can make her give up on it. Why does she have a whip?"
During Kotaro's attempt to shut himself up, Louise had pulled out a riding crop. "Finish the thought: 'might be' what?"
"Damn it. She's onto me. If I have to do a pactio here, I swear when I get home Chamo is going to get it." Kotaro continued his thoughts about murdering a certain lecherous ermine before remembering the rhetoric that convinced him into that first pactio, about becoming a Magister Magus and being a protector. "Can't really be a Magister Magus here, with all the social differences but I suppose she'll be easier to protect. And maybe an artifact will help her with using magic. I could cancel it at any time. Maybe it won't hurt to tell her. No it will hurt less to tell her now."
"Okay, okay I give in, but you must give your word on your family's name that you will never, EVER, let anyone else know about this unless I permit that person to know."
"Why should I have to do that?" Louise growled.
"Because I need insurance that you will not be careless with this knowledge I'm about to give you. It's magic from my world so I have some doubts as to if it works here, but if it does and word gets out, every kingdom will want me locked up in their dungeon while I perform it continuously for their armies, because of the potential. I'd sooner assassinate the entire royal family in each country than become a prisoner of their avarice."
"If you do that I'll personally carve out your eyes and make you eat them" Louise told him coldly.
"Do I have your word as a noble and a Valliere?" Kotaro asked, ignoring her statement.
"Fine. 'I, Louise Françoise le Blanc de la Vallière, swear as a noble that I will keep this knowledge and all that pertains to it a secret from everyone not given your express permission to know, under the expectation that if don't keep it secret I will sever all ties with my family and relinquish the title of noble.' There, happy now?"
"I'm getting there," said Kotaro, irked at how flippant she had been about it, but glad that she did swear an oath, "now draw the curtains, I'll block the door."
"WHY!"
"I want no one to bear witness to this knowledge, now just do it but check for eavesdroppers first!"
"And if there is one?"
"We'll give them the choice of death or have their tongue ripped out and fingers torn off. Or maybe just death."
"Isn't that a little harsh?"
"No, I'll make it swift. Harsh is when someone is just kept barely alive for years because they are the only one with knowledge about how to make potentially powerful and unique magical weapons. Sub-par living conditions, chained to a wall, fed just enough to prevent starvation, never ill but never healthy, likely crippled to prevent escape attempts, do any of those sound appealing to you?"
"No."
"I didn't think so." And after confirming that no one else could eavesdrop, Kotaro began his explanation.
"Now it's called a pactio. It's a magical contract between two beings, similar to how you contracted me," he pointed to the runes. "There's a master and a servant but subservience isn't usually a part of it. The magister or magistra is the master and is usually a mage that needs to be defended while chanting spells. The minister magi or ministra magi is the servant who defends the master and fights in the front. The master can provide power to the servant through the contract to strengthen them. Also if the master is strong enough the servant will receive an artifact that is a reflection of their inner power. There are two types of contracts: probationary and full. We'll be trying a probationary contract. Understand?"
"Yes but I fail to see how this helps me with magic by sending MY power to you and granting you an artifact."
"That's because YOU will be the ministra with the artifact and the power boost."
"But were already master and servant, we can't change that order!"
"We won't! It's not a traditional master-servant relationship, I just used those terms to better distinguish the two! So should we try it or not?"
"Uhmmm."
"If it fails it'll be my fault." "Damn you, Chamo, now I've actually been proactive in following your ideas!"
"Okay, we'll try it once."
Kotaro set about preparing the circle. Having seen one drawn so many times before it was easy for him but it still took him nearly ten minutes because of his lack of experience.
He made a doppelganger to moderate and called Louise over to the circle. When both were within it, the doppelganger called out "Pactio!" The circle glowed and great power surrounded the two. Louise looked like the sensation was bothering her. Feeling somewhat guilty, Kotaro leaned down and kissed her, much like she had at the summoning ritual. She was surprised to say the least but a moment later the contract completed and Kotaro was all too eager to break the physical contact. She started to rant about how he should have warned her that there would've been a kiss but he ignored her to look at the card that had appeared.
He first made the duplicate for Louise's use and hand her the copy. He then began to look over the card 'stats' starting with the tonus: prisma (rainbow), "That's rare," he thought. The other characteristics of the card were: virtus (virtue) – spes (hope), directio (direction) – centrum (center), astralitas (astrological alignment) –Mars. The number was V (5) and the name was Puellum Fato Electi. He then looked at the picture. "What the hell?" It was Louise, which was clear, in her school uniform but the scepter she cradled was what took his attention. "It couldn't be, could it?" He looked up at Louise who was scrutinizing the card she held.
"Um, Louise?"
She looked up. "Yes?"
"Could you summon your artifact for me? The command is 'Adeat' and to dismiss it the command is 'Abeat.'" He was trying very hard to not panic, to deny what her card showed.
"Adeat?" and there was a flash of light and Louise was revealed to be carrying a large black scepter with a globe at one end.
"Dismiss it! NOW!" his panic broke.
"A-A-Abeat" she managed to get out, and she was merely holding the card again. She was awed by what had happened and a little annoyed that it was cut short but she could tell by the fear in Kotaro's voice that he not only recognized the strange scepter, but was terrified by it, which unnerved her more than anything. She had only known him a few days but knew he wasn't a coward or even cautious on most occasions, so for something to rattle him so quickly must be serious.
"Um, Louise," Kotaro asked again.
"Y-Yes?"
"Please . . . please, promise me that you will never call that out except in the direst of circumstances or I allow otherwise, I'll tell you what it is tomorrow." His tone wasn't the stern bark it had been before the pactio; it was more of a whimpering plea.
"I promise" Louise swore with the most sincerity she'd voiced all night.
"Thank you," Kotaro gave as he let out the breath he had been holding. And he moved back to his corner and laid his head on the pillow he'd made from hay. His thoughts went from preventing Louise from using her artifact carelessly to what the familiar staff was and that it was somehow linked to Louise.
He brought a clenched fist to the floor "SON OF A BITCH!"
Authors Notes
So ends another chapter. I had fun with this one because I got to add so much more to the story. I liked doing this as a whole because I can start with a few vague ideas for what'll happen in the chapter and fill in the details as I go along. The dream sequence was planned and so was the Lifemaker's appearance and the coffee mug but I added Eva and the ballroom at the last minute, Eva's hand dragging Kotaro closer to Flame's height than Jack Rakan.
I really like doing the references and the internal one that Kotaro had when Kirche was subjecting him to Marshmallow Hell was among my favorites this chapter. And talking about negima, I originally was going to leave out pactios from this fan fiction but realized the potential uses for it besides merely the artifact. Some negima fans might be able to guess what Louise got.
Sorry about the wait, but I had some tests and then I focused more on writing than posting, which I have to start over for chapters 5, 6, & 7 because the flash drive I saved most everything to said "hey, retro is in, everything new in the last two months is out." I was lucky enough to save this chapter, 1-3, and chapter eight, which is currently unfinished but thankfully it's not an extra 15+ pages to type in addition to the nearly 30 I lost with the disappearance of five, six, and seven, which I will have to re-type. I may consolidate parts of chapters this time or even lump five and six together so chapter eight may be moved to the seven slot, I'm not sure yet.
As always, if you have any thoughts, questions, suggestions, theories, opinions, etc. about this story, go ahead and write a review. I'll appreciate the feedback.