Hellooooo! :) I'm sorry I couldn't post this any sooner! Had an assignment to do, and... I'm having difficulty writing it. " Here's my reply to the reviews:
Yes, "accident"s will come sooooon. Someone most of you will probably find annoying is going to show up soon (Next chapter!), can you guess? XD As for the ball... I honestly don't know how far can one actually throw a ball. I know tennis balls can really fly and bounce pretty far. I once threw it, and... Could never find it. So... Yeah. Again, thanks for the reviews, keep them coming! :D
Chapter 9, here we go! Enjoy!
The lady turned to look at her daughter, who was taking orders from the customer. As Nanoha confirmed the customer's order with a smile, she sighed and smiled as well.
"Well, so you see…"
10 years ago…
Lights in the living room flickered to life at the touch of the switch by the door.
"Thank you for helping out again today, kids."
Momoko and her two elder children entered the house after a long, hard day at work. Ever since Shirou had been hospitalized, the two of them dropped out of school to help the family out. Every morning, Miyuki would help Momoko opening the café, while Kyouya would head down to the dojo to train the adults.
Despite their young age, the both of them were not to be taken lightly. Aged seventeen, he was already a eighth dan of the Fuwa style martial art, and had won in countless tournaments, attaining the title "Godly Twin Short Sword Master- Unbreakable Godly Style". Miyuki, however, was not as strong, but not so far off either. Adopted at the age of six, currently fifteen, just received her first dan, and was titled "Godly Twin Kodachi Style Swordswoman".
"No problem, kaa-san," the two young teens replied as they helped their mother move their leftover ingredients to the kitchen, while the matriarch dropped herself onto the sofa to take a break. Having to bake and serve customers all day long, there was no time for her to take a break, yes, not even the off-peak hours. Even then, she had to cook for her children.
Her break did not last long though, just as she was about to lay her body on the soft, warm and inviting sofa, with a cushion as a pillow to boost, she heard something.
"Oh my gosh!" A girl squealed.
"Nanoha, what are you doing?" Came a male's.
Immediately Momoko stood up and rushed over to the kitchen as well.
"What's happening? Nano… ha? "In the kitchen, she was greeted by her seven year old daughter standing on a stool, stirring a pot of what seemed like curry. She did not know whether to be furious at her daughter for doing something so dangerous alone at home, or proud her daughter was able to actually cook curry. And it actually smelled good! Even with the stool, she was barely tall enough to see the contents of the pot, for Christ's sake! But the curry smelled heavenly!
"Kaa-san, welcome home!" Nanoha smiled. The sight of her tired mother leaning by the kitchen door worried her though. The little girl slanted her head and looked at her elder siblings and mother, tiny sapphire-gems looking at them one by one, still stirring the curry. "Kaa-san? Nii-chan? Nee-chan? Is something wrong?"
The three who just came home could only stand there, speechless.
Without thinking, Miyuki made the first move. She ran around the table, snatched the ladle from her sister's hands and hugged her tightly.
"My sister is seven and knows how to cook!" She squealed.
"W-what? And you're proud of it? She's seven and she's cooking! You know how dangerous that is?" Kyouya, who had finally taken in what was before him, retorted.
"I know, but I can't help it, it was a cute sight to be welcomed home to!" She hugged Nanoha even tighter now, squeezing the air out of her.
"Can't breathe, onee-chan!" Nanoha struggled to speak in the swordswoman's grasp, which she was then released from.
"Though, I agree with Kyouya, that was dangerous, Nanoha."
"B-but, onee-chan, nobody's home and I'm hungry… And I wanted to cook something for all of you when you get back…" The little brunette looked up with those irresistible puppy eyes and tears on the verge of falling due to her lack of breath.
Momoko remained speechless. My daughter. Seven years old. Was cooking dinner. For the family. She looked around the house. She even cleaned up the house. Not a speck of dust. She inspected the shelves.
"Nanoha, did you clean up the house as well?" She asked.
"Mm! I finished homework too! Sensei said I was a good girl today!" She said proudly and continued to ramble on about her day.
Present:
"She was seven. Cleaning the house and cooking for the family was not something a seven year old should be doing. A-A- A seven year old should be at the playground after school, playing with her friends, getting scolded for not doing homework, crying after falling and getting injured. But Nanoha had none of that." Momoko shook her head. "And… That was when I realized the impact of Shirou's injury on her… Neglect."
"What's all that got to do with Nanoha and dancing?" Fate asked, taking a bite out of her cinna-sin bun, or so they called it.
"Well, after that I realized what went wrong, and Shirou and I decided to give her more attention. As soon as he was discharged, Shirou would spend more time with Nanoha at home for his rehabilitation…"
10 years ago…
Shirou slowly made his way to the sofa. Ever since he was discharged, the stubborn man refused to use his crutches and was bent on walking on his own. When he was finally able to sit, he placed a hand on the armrest and another on the seat while Nanoha gently helped him down. Once he was finally comfortably seated, the brunette ran over to the television before them and grabbed the remote control to hand over to him.
"Hurry, hurry, otou-san! Your favorite show's about to start!" the brunette said enthusiastically as she hopped onto her father's uninjured left leg. Those pair of sapphire eyes that reminded him of his dear wife looked at him, full of anticipation. He couldn't resist the urge to hug her. Just how lucky was he to have such a daughter that looked so much like his beloved. And despite not fulfilling his responsibilities as a father due to his absence, she still loved him unconditionally.
When he turned on the television, luckily, the show had yet to start, still screening a certain drama series. The man sighed. Seriously? I've been hospitalized for a year already and THIS is still on? It's been three years since the show was screened! And it's on three hours every darn day!
He planned to surf the channels for the next few minutes while waiting for his favorite show to start, but was stopped when he noticed how engrossed his daughter was in the show. He smiled. Why not? It's not every day my little girl finds something she likes.
Two hours later…
The television was switched off, and Shirou, seeing as his daughter seemed to be in a daze after the show, made his way to the kitchen.
"Anything you'd like to have for dinner, Nanoha?" He asked from the kitchen as he struggled to put on his apron.
After a few seconds, he realized Nanoha didn't hear his question and asked again.
"Mm-mm, otou-san. Anything's fine!" Nanoha replied. She seemed to still be in a daze.
Was the show today THAT interesting? I thought it was boring, actually. Shirou merely shrugged and went on to cook dinner. Mah, maybe she still doesn't fully understand the story. Alright, dinner dinner, curry chicken it is then!
Soon enough, little Nanoha came into the kitchen to help out chopping the vegetables. After much reluctance, Shirou decided to teach Nanoha a little basic culinary skill so that she wouldn't think of learning on her own. After he left the girl on her own, Nanoha asked him.
"Otou-san, remember that show right before your favorite one?"
Shirou merely hummed in response as he washed the plates.
"What were the girls doing?"
"Mmm…" Shirou thought for a while to recall what was going on in that show he hated so much. "Dancing, dear. It's a form of dance called ballet."
"They looked really pretty…" Nanoha whispered to herself.
"What is it, Nanoha?" Shirou was wiping the plates now. With a towel and plate in his hand, he turned to his daughter who was still carefully chopping the carrots and making sure not to cut herself.
It seemed that Nanoha did not realize she had spoken out her thoughts as she did not expect the question.
"Oh, uh… I said they looked really pretty." She said, whispering the last part again, before resuming her chopping with great difficulty.
The brunette frowned as she watched herself chop the carrots. It was just carrots, what was taking her so long? She's seen her mother chop them before, she was so fast! Frustration began to show on her face. Shirou chuckled to the little girl's annoyance.
"Come here, let me do it." He took the knife from her and started chopping. "You liked how pretty they looked while dancing, Nanoha?"
"Yes, otou-san! She was spinning so fast, so fast! And it seemed like she would never stop! And they all jumped so high, like fairies!" Nanoha exclaimed, imitating the actors. "And then, and then, their hands looked like wings!" She waved her arms around.
"Back then, Nanoha was still so young and innocent. We thought she was actually just a curious little girl exploring the world. So we took her to an introductory ballet lesson."
"And… She actually enjoyed it?" Fate asked.
"Enjoy?" Momoko laughed. "That's an understatement. She seemed to love it! We thought it was just a phase and she'd grow tired of it, but no. That television show lit a flame of passion, and those ballet lessons merely fueled it. And that flame became so big we couldn't simply quell it anymore."
"When Nanoha turned ten, we thought it was time for her to get serious with her studies. Her grades were slightly above average, but we knew that wasn't enough to get her anywhere. So we stopped her ballet lessons. She was upset at first, but understood and listened to us. So we thought everything was alright. We were so wrong… Little did we know that our little Nanoha joined the ballet club in school."
"By the time we found out that Nanoha had still been dancing instead of studying, it was much too late…"
2 years ago…
Nanoha had just gotten home to see her whole family sitting in the living room. The atmosphere was rather tense. The television was turned off, nobody was speaking. The whole room was silent. Momoko, Miyuki and Kyouya looked at Nanoha worriedly, while Shirou merely crossed his arms.
"Nanoha." The patriarch called out.
"H-hai, otou-san?"
"Sit down, we need to have a talk."
Nanoha hurriedly walked over to the sofa and before she sat down, a certain something on the table caught her eyes. Letters! She picked up the letters and looked through the pile, as if looking for one addressed to her. When she had found one, she placed the rest down to see it had already been opened. She picked out the letter and sat down to read it. Her enrollment to TSAB had been accepted! But wait, if the letters has been opened, that means…
The auburn haired teenager scanned her surroundings to see four pairs of eyes, one furious and three worried ones, watching her. The angry one spoke up.
"What is the meaning of this, Nanoha?" His voice was monotonous, with a hint of anger.
"I-I-" Nanoha was scared out of her wits. Shirou had never been like this with her before.
"Explain to us. I thought we told you to stop dancing to start studying? Why have we received such a letter?" He raised his voice. He stared at Nanoha, who was still taken aback by the abrupt change in mood. Just moments ago, she was happily chatting with her friends on the bus, and now she was in… Deep shit.
But as expected, as a daughter of his, Nanoha steeled herself and returned the stare. Blue eyes shined with determination, she replied.
"I want to dance, otou-san."
"What?" Everyone asked. Nobody expected such a reply from her. Their little girl who always held back her wants and needs to not be a bother, was now claiming something she always wanted.
"I want to dance."
"You DO realize how much is at stake here, don't you?"
"Yes but-"
"Do you know how much you're risking? Going to an Arts School limits your future! The only possible career you will then be able to apply for is dance related! And if you want to make it big, you've got to be at the top. You know how hard is that? All we wanted for you was to go to a normal school and study. Get good grades. And get a decent job. Why was that so hard, Nanoha, why?" Shirou stood up and threw the letters on the table. He was shouting now. He couldn't take it anymore. Before he continued, Momoko pulled him down to his seat and soothed his anger, but that didn't help. Before he started again, Nanoha interrupted him.
"Yes, but I want to dance! I LOVE dancing! I know the risks, and I'm willing to take them. I know the consequences, I've thought it through. But no matter what, I just CAN'T imagine my life without dancing, otou-san!" Tears were forming at the side of Nanoha's eyes now. But even those tears seemed to reflect the girl's determination.
"Nanoha, we know you love dancing, but are you sure you want to dance for the rest of your life? People grow old, they can't dance forever. You know that. And when you no longer can, how are you going to provide for yourself?" Momoko asked, her face clearly full of concern. All she wanted was her daughter to be successful and happy. But making a career out of dancing was not easy and she knew that.
"Yes, kaa-san, I know… I know. But I want to give it a shot anyways."
"After that night, Shirou and Nanoha never spoke to each other for days. Not even during dinner. Eventually, Shirou gave in. He made a deal with Nanoha that given a year after her graduation from TSAB, and she wasn't hired by a well known company with a pay sufficient to provide her for a life time, she was to quit dancing."
Fate's jaw dropped at the last sentence. Her last bit of her cinna-sin bun fell out of her mouth, which was caught by Arf. She pouted at the loss.
"Nyahaha, Fate-chan. If you like it so much, you can have another one." Nanoha walked by. Her customer had just left and it was her turn to take a break now, while Shirou took care of the café before the dinner rush.
"No no no, I can't." Fate immediately shook her head and hands. It was tempting, but it wasn't right. Their family was running a business here. "Oh, and I MUST pay for the first bun and drink as well." She looked around herself to find herself… Without her wallet.
"… I'm sorry. Can I pay another day?" the blonde asked shyly.
Momoko laughed.
"It's alright, dear. Really. You've been a big help, it's on the house. Nanoha, could you bring another cinna-sin bun? And pack a few back for Fate and her family as well?"
"No no no, I can't, really!"
Nanoha quickly walked off singing "A bunch of cinna-sin buns coming right up~"
Fate turned back to the older lady and pouted. "Momoko-san…"
"So anyways, Fate. Although Nanoha knew I didn't like the idea of her dancing, she'd still talk to me. More than she would to Shirou, at least. And I know recently she's been struggling with her recital so I decided to give her a bit of support. But in the past few days, she seems to be… I don't know, happier. And relaxed. Just look at her."
The two of them turned to the girl picking up cinna-sin buns. Even though it was just a simple and boring task, she was smiling and humming to herself without a care in the world. As if able to sense people watching her, she turned back to look at them and laughed. "Nyahaha."
"Yeah, she looks really happy."
"Exactly. And I'm guessing it's because of you. So I'd like to thank you for helping us so much. Our Nanoha hasn't smiled like this in front of us for so long. It means a lot to us. Thank you."
Fate was on the verge of tears. She blinked them dry and sat up straight.
"Don't worry, Momoko-san. I'll take care of Nanoha. I will always be there for her, through thick and thin!" She said with pride.
That promise made Momoko sigh in relief, relieving all the tense muscles in her body. It was as if a huge burden had been lifted off of her.
A plate of cinna-sin bun and bag of them was placed before her.
"Why?" A voice came from beside her.
"Huh?" Fate turned to Nanoha, who had just brought the cinna-sin buns.
"Why are you doing so much for me?" Nanoha asked.
Even though her eyes were looking at her, Fate felt as if she wasn't. Those pair of lively blue eyes she always knew seemed so different all of a sudden. They looked… Confused. Ignoring it, the blonde simply replied.
"I like you, you're cute," She said with a smile. "I'll always take care of you, princess." She continued with a wink.
Nanoha blushed… Fate had always called her princess, but this time, it was different. This time, her heart skipped a beat. Unable to resist the urge, she tackled the blonde on her seat and hugged her.
"Thank you, Fate-chan. Thank you." I don't know why, but what you just said meant a lot to me…
The blonde merely stood there confused over what happened in the past few seconds. What… Just happened..?
She turned to the brunette across the table from her and gave a curious look. Momoko smiled knowingly and shook her head, but didn't say a word. Kids these days… So innocent.