Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of the Abyss in any way, shape or form.
7. Unauthorized Access
Creeping into Jade's office in the middle of the night was a new experience for Guy. He had gotten a few odd looks on the way in from the military personnel patrolling the corridors, but they were used to his presence and let him pass without challenge. Guy just hoped they didn't tell Jade about it the next day…
He couldn't worry about it now. Shaking his head, he twisted the door open and entered. The hinges creaked, and Guy paused. When no guards came rushing to arrest him, he quickly shut it behind him and straightened up.
His heart was pounding, all of his senses on alert in the gloom of Jade's office. Only a little light filtered in from the moon outside, casting long shadows over everything.
Guy cursed as he stumbled into something and rubbed his sore toe through his boot, belatedly standing still to allow his eyes time to adjust.
He was going to spar with Jade first thing in the morning, just outside of the city. But earlier in the day, Guy had taken off his sword belt while helping Jade organize things around his office. It didn't occur to Guy to retrieve it… not until he was home, just about to go to bed and attempting to take off a sword belt that wasn't there.
Where did I leave it? He wanted to leave Jade's office as soon as possible. It was uncomfortable creeping through like a thief, but he didn't have a choice if he wanted to be on time to meet Jade.
His eyes were adjusting. Slowly, the shapes of things became apparent. The table was just to the left, Jade's desk and chair to the right, the bookcases against the back wall... and there, propped against the side of the bookcase, he could make out his sword. Heaving a sigh of relief, he started carefully across the room.
The feel of something sharp poking into his back stopped him in his tracks. Suddenly sweating, he didn't dare turn his head to see who it was.
"Really, was such subterfuge necessary? You could have retrieved it in the morning."
Guy let the breath he'd been holding escape and turned around to face the uniformed person standing in the doorway, holding a spear towards him. "Jade…" He blushed and rubbed the back of his head. "I felt silly forgetting my sword here. It seemed easier to come back and get it myself."
"Next time, please have a little consideration for these old bones and wait. The guards notified me of your presence here, and I was obliged to investigate." The spear lowered.
Guy grimaced. "Sorry. I didn't mean to cause trouble."
"Well, you may as well get what you came for," Jade said, sighing in a very put-upon way.
Nodding, Guy started again across the room, moving carefully in the dim light. He reached blindly for the bookcase and was relieved when his fingers bumped it. He was less relieved when the jostling caused a precariously placed book to fall and hit him on the head.
Cursing – that had hurt – he picked up the book. It was at least two inches thick and quite heavy. He placed it on a lower bookshelf, so it couldn't hit his head again, and finally felt his hands close over the sword sheath.
Jade was still standing in the doorway when he returned. "Got it," Guy said, smiling.
"Indeed."
Guy found himself being pushed into a chair he didn't know was there, and Jade's hands running through his scalp. He couldn't help but wince as Jade's fingers found the quickly developing bump.
"Hmm… so it hit here," Jade murmured.
"I'm fine," Guy said, embarrassed. It felt odd in a way he didn't want to explore to have Jade's ungloved hands running through his hair.
Jade ignored him and continued his careful examination for several more minutes. Guy resisted the urge to squirm as fingers lightly, expertly ran along his skull. Finally, the colonel pulled away. "You don't appear to have a concussion. Still, perhaps we should cancel tomorrow's training session so you may recover."
Guy quickly shook his head, strangely eager to get away from Jade. "I'm okay, really."
Jade didn't have time to respond before a guard rounded the corner and stopped short, eyeing them warily through the doorway of Jade's office. "Colonel Curtiss, sir, is everything alright?"
"Mm. He was just on his way out."
Guy knew that was his cue. "Yeah, I'm sorry to cause so much trouble. See you tomorrow morning, Jade."
"Tomorrow," Jade said simply, a small, amused smirk curling his lips as he watched Guy swiftly walk back down the hallway.