School full time, two jobs, and ADHD. Yeah, two of those three were my own choice, but BAH, enjoy the chappy. Sorry for the long wait. Rest assured that I am never abandoning any of my works.
Late Night
Adlabert was up looking over a map that he'd stolen. It seemed to be a world map but he didn't recognize any of the land-mass formations. That single thing was driving him up the walls. As a former general, he thought he had the entire map memorized like the back of his hand.
"Hay." Someone called from the other side of the door, knocking once. "If you keep on stressing like that your hair will turn white early."
Adlabert went rigid, his head snapping to the door. "How did you know?" He looked to the window, which had the blinds pulled to make sure no one knew he was even awake.
Yuki walked in, closing the door behind her. She'd been given slightly more appropriate clothes by other women in the fortress. She now wore boots, grey pants, and a brown shirt. And, according to a woman that had helped her dress, over ten blades hidden underneath.
"Haki. An ability of my adopted world, amplified because of my past life being blind." Yuki stated. "Everyone has some degree of it, especially soldiers. You can sense something coming up behind you. A twin can tell something is wrong with the other twin. Harnessed, you can see an invisible enemy, locate people without any sort of trail… and sense when a friend is staying up all night pulling his hair out." She chuckled, sitting down beside him.
"You shouldn't be alone with a man." Adlabert stated.
"I'm terrified." Yuki chuckled. "If you're implying that you're stronger than me, I'd be happy to prove you wrong."
Adlabert stiffened. Julia said the same exact thing, word for word, when they first met and then several other times throughout their relationship.
"Says the girl with ten blades hidden throughout her body." Adlabert stated.
"I don't need a blade to take a man's ego down a couple pegs." Yuki chuckled. Again, something Julia often said. In fact, she didn't fight with swords. She was a master of hand-to-hand combat. With a single poke, she could paralyze half a man's body.
"Would you stop quoting her?" Adlabert sighed, running a hand down his face.
"Wha…oh." Yuki stated, suddenly sheepish. How often were one of her knee-jerk-phrases actually from her past life? "Sorry." She apologized.
"No, don't apologize." Adlabert stated. His arm wound around her, pulling her closer. Closer to him, where she belonged. "Not your fault."
Yuki sighed, looking away. "I know what it's like to have a constant reminder of what you've lost. It's alright. I'll…" She tried to get up but Adlabert wouldn't let her.
"Like this place is for you?" Adlabert asked her. When she looked like she was about to deny it, he added, "I saw that look in your eye when I was telling you all about this place. You can't hide from me. Neither could Julia." He stood up with her in his arms, sitting down on his bed. "Now why are you up?"
"That'd be my business." Yuki muttered, trying yet again to escape.
"I'm not going t hurt you, Yuki." Adlabert told her softly, petting her pure black hair. He blew out the candle, lying down while still petting her hair and whatever parts of her body that he wasn't afraid to touch. "I'll never hurt you."
"You shouldn't say that." She bit out, gripping his shirt and glaring at nothing.
"Why?" He asked softly, knowing she was close to sleep because she was starting to relax against him.
"Everyone that says that dies. Everyone." She stated. "Sabo, Thatch, Ace and even Pops. All stronger than you'll ever be and still dead." Her voice cracked. She curled into him. "It's like I'm cursed."
Only like that because Shinou cursed her to that life. Adlabert added inwardly, cursing the 'god' to hell. He held her tightly, whispering nothings in her ear. "I know it hurts. I know." He whispered in her hair.
Adlabert bolted awake to the sound of crashing and screams. He was out of bed in a flash and, remembering he'd fallen asleep with Yuki in his arms, turned to order her to stay put… only to turn around again to see her already running out the door.
"What the hell is that?" Yuri gasped as he, Wolfram, Adlabert, and Yuki all met up on the balcony.
"A monster?" Wolfram offered.
It was a huge glowing beast destroying the fortress.
"It looks like magic." Adlabert stated.
"Nonsense. Yuri is the only one who can use magic in human lands." Wolfram stated.
"Are you forgetting those puppets?" Adlabert huffed as he descended the stairs. "You stay here." He commanded Yuki.
"Not a chance." Yuki retorted, grabbing a pair of twin daggers from sheaths on either of her hips. She vaulted of his body, running ahead. "I'll save a couple for you guys." And then she doubled her speed, leaving them all in her dust as she bolted to the glowing beasts.
She got to work on the creatures as soon as she was close enough, launching into the air and infusing her blades with Armament Haki so they'd actually do damage to the ghost-like creatures. Quickly, she and Velma got into a contest of who could take out the most. They seemed to be the only ones able to defeat them with one shot. Everyone else seemed to merely delay them.
"There's still no end to them." Yuki groaned, out of breath and dripping with sweat. All around her, temporary comrades were being wounded, others collapsing with exhaustion. "Enough of this." She stood up straight and held out her hands, water dragons coming up from the ground.
Yuri walked up to her and took her hand, molding their power together in the massive water dragons that attacked the largest creature. But just as their power seemed to be having no effect and Yuri went for his sword, the creatures all suddenly disappeared. Both of them powered-down, each having instant effects of exhaustion. Yuri face-planted on the ground, out like a light. Yuki collapsed to her knees before falling over, though not quite unconscious.
"I've got you, Yuki." Adlabert stated, picking the girl up. "They're gone now. It's alright."
"They've…re…treated…" She gasped out, exhausted but too worried to let herself rest. "Where…? What were they?" They were out there somewhere. The enemy hadn't been defeated.
"I don't know." Adlabert sighed, standing with her in his arms. "But they're gone now. Rest."
"I'll rest when I'm dead." She muttered, trying to wiggle out of his grip before wincing and gripping her arm, the stitches having torn.
"Come on, be a good girl and copy your brother." Wolfram sighed, standing with Yuri in his arms.
"A soldier asking a pirate to be a 'good girl'. How ironic is that?" Yuki chuckled.
But she was out of it, halfway between asleep and awake. She had it in her head that the creatures were just waiting for an opportunity to come back so, naturally, she was instinctively clinging to the strongest conscious man… Adlabert was trapped. Finally, he ordered Keenan to oversee the recovery efforts. Eventually, she succumbed to sleep but Adlabert was too worried about her waking up in the same scared-child state to really leave her side.
"Don't think this changes anything, Adlabert." Wolfram bit out. "You're still nothing but a criminal, a traitor."
Adlabert ignored him, knowing the brat was twice as emotional because his fiancé was unwell. He sighed, paying more attention to the girl in the bed beside him. Her bandages had yet again been completely redone, her clothes having been shredded in the battle along with her bandages. She was now in a gown, a couple of her blades in arms reach so she'd be more comfortable.
"This happens often, right? The exhaustion, I mean." Velma walked up with some warm coco for all of them, her eyes falling upon Yuki. "She was just fine before. She was right next to me, even made a contest out of taking the monsters out."
"This is human land." Wolfram stated, not snapping at the criminal like he would have otherwise. "A demon shouldn't be able to use his or her magic here. It's not exactly uncommon for a demon to collapse when having gone past their limit. I don't know about Yuki, though. She just recently came to us."
Velma was confused, of course. "How? Isn't she King Yuri's sister? They look too similar for her to be adopted."
"I don't fully understand, myself." Wolfram admitted. "Apparently, they're soul-twins. Yuri is the Maou because he was destined, his soul chosen. But they're twins, soul-twins. So they'd both be rightful heirs to the throne."
"Two heirs to the same throne." Velma sighed, nodding. "Even I can see the possible implications of that. They're different. I just met her today and I can see that. Yuri is kind, nearly pacifistic. Yuki is more of a warrior, the sort of leader a war-hero would relate to and possibly even respect despite her being a woman. The civilians would adore Yuri while the soldiers would prefer someone with (forgive me but) more of a backbone."
Wolfram hated it, but he nodded in understanding. It was the truth. "One had to leave and Yuki apparently volunteered when they were young. She was thought to have died, which is why Yuri never told me or any others of his sister." He sighed, keeping his eyes on the peacefully sleeping king. He always hated that Yuri was stronger. In the end, Yuri was protecting everyone. He hated it. Every day, Wolfram trained. He wanted to be the one protecting his fiancé, not the other way around. He was the trained soldier. Yuri was the king.
Velma sighed, sparing one last glance at the girl she'd fought beside. Yuki was stronger than her in magic, body, and mind. But now she was on that bed, looking more helpless than a newborn baby. "The rubble has all been shifted through. Most of the women and children had gotten to the shelter in time and are fine. Nearly all the wounded have been treated and are now resting, and all those able are beginning to clear the debris." She reported to Adlabert.
Adlabert, having never taken his eyes off the girl's face, nodded. She looked so angelic and defenseless that one would never guess she was strong enough to fight with such wounds. "I see." He stated. "Good. Remind Keenan that the men need sleep, though, to do good work. Make sure guards are stationed all around, just in case."
"Got it." Velma stated, leaving. She relayed the message to Keenan, who merely nodded and went back to watching the efforts. With one look, she could tell that he was also in a foul mood.
Even a badass needs some hand-holding once in a while, right? Review! Should I make them romantic or a father-daughter thing?