a/n How does nobody notice Fakir being awesome until the end? And how did those fangirls get those random wolves? I have no idea.
"The motto of chivalry is also the motto of wisdom; to serve all, but love only one." Honore de Balzac
Act 2: Fakir saves the day;
The adventures of an unnamed furry black creature, a leather wallet, a pack of wolves, and a drinking glass.
Where are we going?" Ahiru asked. She was thankful to see that Femio was dressed normally (by his standards, although the shades of purple and green he was wearing didn't seem to really go together, especially not with those oversized sunglasses).
"A small cafe. You shall enjoy it very much, I'm sure. Now, don't be shy, talk on. I know it is exceedingly difficult to utter so much as a sentence in my presence, so I shall forgive you if you feel faint or feel the need to step outside for a moment."
Incredulously Ahiru answered, "Don't worry. I...don't think that would happen." She would be sure to escape as soon as possible without being rude.
They arrived together at the outdoors cafe. Femio was right; it seemed to be a charming place, what with the slender flower vases, quaint aura, and abundance of fresh air. Femio chose a table which was separated from the street passing the cafe by a green hedge.
As soon as they sat down, Femio began to prattle on about how he knew that no one could understand him, and about how the world misjudged him and could not move before the face of his beauty, and so on.
"That's a unique viewpoint, Femio. Now, when do you think we'll start stage rehearsals?" Ahiru was desperate to get him to talk about something else. I am never going to dinner with him again. What possessed me to do that in the first place? Oh, right, Lillie and Pique.
Femio blinked. Obviously he was not used to being interrupted.
Fakir was careful to sit down where he would have a minimal chance of being recognized yet maximize his ability to observe. He watched Femio talk on and on as Ahiru's face became more and more annoyed until she cut in sharply.
However, he had also kept track of the cluster of girls. They had spread out to tables nearby. Fakir wondered just what they were planning.
Out of the corner of his vision, he saw a familiar looking girl pass by Ahiru and Femio's table. The trench-coated girl who bumped into Ahiru! She must be the chief strategist.
Of course, Ahiru didn't notice the 'coincidence'. Fakir squinted until he made out a black furry-looking thing, possibly a huge tarantula, in Ahiru's water glass. It seemed to be blocked from Femio's view by daisies in a vase on their table, and the girl probably had to have dropped it into the glass as Ahiru had turned the other way.
Fakir let out a huge breath. Now what was he supposed to do? For now Ahiru was too absorbed in her conversation as she tried to steer the subject away from Femio-related topics, but soon there would be a scene at their table. Maybe it was intended to cause a diversion. Or perhaps it was poisonous. Fakir felt a chill run down his spine at the thought.
The only way to perhaps avoid it could be...Fakir glanced around his table for something suitable. The throw would have to be clean enough to knock the glass clear off the table into the hedge next to Ahiru and Femio or the street outside. He couldn't break the water glass (that could only make matters worse) so he would have to aim at the base of it with enough momentum to make this work.
Something small and unnoticeable...what could he use? Not the flower vase, not the salt and pepper shakers, not the bottle of ketchup...definitely not the flowers...
It would have to be something he carried on himself...his watch, his beret...his red bow tie...nothing he could think of was suitable.
And then he reached into his back pocket for his leather wallet.
The more he looked at it, the more he had to acknowledge that it was the perfect size for the task. Small and compact as well as having the ideal surface friction to not make a sound as it collided with the drinking glass, the wallet was also the perfect weight to be hurled quickly yet have enough momentum to carry the glass off the table.
Fakir groaned inwardly. Well, this is just great.
Covertly, he quickly emptied everything in his wallet into his pockets, keeping a couple of coins in it to ensure it would be heavy enough to have considerable force when thrown.
Ahiru ducked under the table to adjust one of her shoes. It was now or never. Fakir looked around to make sure nobody was watching, and with a single swift movement lobbed the wallet directly towards the water glass.
His aim was perfect. The glass and Fakir's wallet flew off the table onto the street outside with a barely discernible clink. Fakir distinctly saw the large black furry creature crawl away towards the gutter.
He breathed a sigh of relief. Nobody seemed to have noticed; Femio had been too engrossed with his own talking skills and Ahiru now emerged from under the table. Later she would notice her water glass was missing, but it wouldn't be too suspicious.
Fakir was satisfied with himself. That should get me another stamp on my man-card. Check: save helpless girl from a hairy, possibly poisonous tarantula...or something...using nothing but a wallet...with perfect aim...and be so awesome that no one even notices.
What else do they have planned? If that was it, I'll be surprised. I need to be on the lookout.
It was then that he heard a girl at a nearby table as she blew a high, shrill whistle. Immediately, about a dozen hungry-looking wolf-like creatures flew from somewhere beyond the hedge towards the cafe. Fakir lowered his glasses, green eyes blazing above the rims.
Note to self: fangirls are crazy.
Fakir didn't know what the creatures were supposed to do, but to him they looked exceptionally savage and ready to pounce on their target. And they seemed to be heading straight for Ahiru. Perhaps when the girl had bumped into Ahiru while she was waiting for Femio, she had spritzed her with some kind of wild-animal-attracting perfume. Maybe she had previously obtained something of Ahiru's and had them sniff it; it was possible that when she blew the whistle another girl was supposed to let the creatures go.
Right now it didn't matter what the purpose of the plan was: it could have been intended to embarrass Ahiru, distract Femio, disrupt the date, cause general chaos in order to distract from another event, give Ahiru several cuts and scratches, wound her severely, send her to the Emergency Room, or even put her in mortal peril. What mattered was that Ahiru was in some amount of danger.
Instinctively, as the wolves bounded over the hedge, Fakir leapt in front of Ahiru with his hand on the hilt of his sword. His suspicions about the intended target were confirmed, and he did not hesitate to draw the sword and use its blunt edge as a tool to clobber the dogs away from Ahiru.
Fakir was careful not to kill any of them and so avoided using the tip of his sword and drawing blood. Although this made it made his job much more difficult, he still dispatched them with great efficiency. None of them could make so much as a scratch on Ahiru, who sat spellbound in her chair as Fakir's sword wove a silver net around her.
Within minutes, almost all of the wolf-like creatures were lying on the ground unconscious. The remaining few had decided that Fakir was not to be messed with and they skulked away.
Another stamp on my man-card. Check: saves helpless girl from pack of vicious wolves…without killing any of them out of respect for the sanctity of life…with such awesomeness that people have no choice but to watch.
Indeed, every eye in the restaurant had turned towards Fakir. He suddenly noticed that both his glasses and beret had flown off in the melee, leaving his identity exposed for all to see.
His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of clapping. Everywhere he looked, people were clapping…for him. Suprisingly, the waiters had put their trays in order to engage in the thunderous applause. He was even getting a standing ovation from people on the street.
Well, he might as well play along with all this attention. Turning to Ahiru, Fakir bowed grandly.
"Thank you, Fakir." Ahiru said gratefully, annoyed with how high her voice sounded in her ears.
"No problem." He answered, his faithful sword already sheathed.
Ahiru stood there with her lips slightly parted, and unconsciously Fakir leaned in towards her. They were close enough to each other to make Femio feel nervous. If there had been romantic music playing in the background, he wouldn't have been surprised.
"Well, that's that! So sorry you had to endure that, Ahiru. Next time I shall find a better spot." Femio yanked on Ahiru's arm until she was forced to follow him out the door, her blue eyes still locked on Fakir.
The entire crowd of spectators was silent with respect as Fakir laid down more than ample pay in exchange for his glass of water and glided away.