[EDIT 20/01/17]
Hey everyone,
I'm really sorry to say that I'm going to be putting this story on a hiatus for a month or two. Recently a lot of stuff has been happening in my life and while I really love to write, I've been struggling a lot to find the time. And I'm really really sorry about this situation, but it can't be helped. I've been really struggling with stress and other things this month and I just can't really take anymore pressure to get something done. So I'm really sorry.
I will definitely be continuing Minna's Mistake as I have no intention of stopping, but right now the timing is wrong and there's not a lot I can do. Sorry for disappointing you all.
I appreciate all the support you've offered so far and I promise not to let you down further.
Thank you for everything
[EDIT OVER]
Heyoooooo... Well I hope you've all had a nice Christmas! I had the best Christmas I have had in a good few years and it was bloody fantastic, despite my Great Nan dying just a few days earlier. But it's here, and on time (depending what timezone you're in), chapter 20! As I've said previously these few chapter have been kinda shit, but I've actually been able to get into writing them a little more and actually getting excited about it so that's fun. There may be more chapters left to is story than I originally thought though... Anyways, enjoy!
[CHAPTER 20]
Mio has listened to the story with wide, curiosity filled eyes that occasionally brimmed with tears. Although the tears never escaped because Mio was partially good at holding her emotions, there were times where Galland thought Mio's mask would break. By the end of her story, Galland herself was weeping in the most dignified manner possible. The story Galland had told, was very new to Mio, and she hadn't heard of an experience like that happening to the controlling Air Marshal.
But of course, Adolfine Galland's personal life was kept personal. Although she was well known all over the world for her excellent Commanding skills, very little was known of what she did behind closed doors.
Which was fine. Nobody needed to know.
"Now do you see? This is for your sake. Commander Wilcke understands, so why don't you?"
"Minna doesn't understand. She's ill." Mio bit back, harsher than intended.
"After everything I've told you, Major, you still want to defy me?" Galland's eyes bore straight into Mio.
The black haired witch hesitated. But Galland laughed.
"You've always been a stubborn one, even since you were this tall, and I bet since you were a pup too." Galland smiled to herself and guestured to the heights she meant.
Mio tied to keep the straight look on her face.
"Either way, Air Marshal, I can't let you disband the wing this soon. There is much for us to accomplish." Mio maintained the eye contact with the superior witch. But Galland shook her head.
"It's already been decided. I don't want you going through the same thing I had to go through."
"Don't be stupid. Minna has a brain, she wouldn't let that happen." Mio clung to her faith in Minna.
But Galland shook her head and said softly,
"She already tried..."
Realisation struck Mio and the Fuso witch retaliated immediately.
"How did you find out about that?"
"I know everything, Major Sakamoto. I have strong connections all over the world, and I have an army at my beck and call. It's not hard to find out that your pregnant partner attempted flight."
Mio bit her lip.
"Fine. You win. But can you at least give us two weeks more? I want us to have the strongest bonds of any wing."
Galland hesitated.
"Okay, I'll give you two weeks- I'll even do you the favour of telling everyone." She said eventually. "That's fair, I think."
"With all due respect, ma'am, I simply want to know why this wing is being disbanded." Mio had gained back some of the respect she had lost for Galland.
"Your job is done here. There have been no neuroi sightings in this immediate area for a good few months now, and there's different hives that need tending to. The other wings need your witches."
"I see." Mio sighed.
"We have a resolution at least." Galland said, before jumping to her feet. "I must be off."
"What about Juutilianen?" Mio mumbled in surprise, not expecting to leave the matter untouched.
"What about her? Write an official report on the incident, and perhaps request for a mental examination. That kind of behaviour is abnormal." Galland finished and strode past Mio to the door. Mio nodded and gave her a salute.
Although, Mio didn't have time to stand around, it was almost time for her appointment with Perrine.
[LINEBREAK]
On the journey to meet her precious Hartmann in their shared bedroom, Gertrud Barkhorn had no expected to be assaulted along the way. Least of all by her innocent lover that she was going to meet.
Trude completely had her guard down. First something grabbed her roughly by the arm and dragged her into the doorway sideways. The brunette solider let out a slight grunt among her protests as her elbow smacked the edge of the doorframe with a muffled thud. Gertrud immediately panicked when there was a hand on her butt and another body pressed against hers. Just as she was about to yell out loud, a hand slid into her mouth. In horror the captive bit down with all her might and she was freed.
She was pushed away from her violent captor.
Gertrud spun round to confront her attacker and was blatantly surprised.
"Erica?!"
"Ow! Trudie!" Erica yelped, and shook her finger about after examining the bite marks left.
"What do you think your doing? Pouncing on me out of nowhere? I was going to y-"
Erica thrust her hand over her new lovers mouth and shushed her.
"Minna is sleeping!" She whispered.
"Then why did you assault me?!" Trude whispered loudly.
"Because you would've gone back to the bedroom without me..." Erica retorted and continued to examine her finger.
Trude sighed and face palmed.
"You could've just gone back to our bedroom..."
"No I couldn't... The Major wanted me to watch Minna... She's sleeping deeply though..." Erica winked suggestively and closed the door behind Trude. Trude's eyes widened.
"Erica are you serious? We can't do that here!" Trude exclaimed in shock.
The blonde grinned mischievously.
"Hmmm? Do what Trude?"
Gertrud blushed and looked away, realising that she'd dropped herself in it.
"Hmm? Well Trude?" Erica leaned in close to Trude and smiled seductively. The brunette pushed her away, the angry blush on her face was growing.
"It's nothing Hartmann!"
Erica's grin became wider as she teased her lover. After Trude's blush had died down, the two sat down opposite Minna and watched the rise and fall of her chest. Erica's proximity to Trude grew closer with every minute, and the brunette's blush thus increased.
But after a while, Erica held herself back, and stopped moving inwards.
"What's wrong Erica?" Trude questioned, turning to look at the blonde.
Erica shook her head and pointed at the redhead opposite them.
"I don't think Minna's well at all..."
Gertrud followed Erica's pointed finger and rested her gaze on her commander. At first she couldn't find a fault with her, but after a close examination, Gertrud realised that Minna's breathing was uneven, her face was flushed red, there was twitching and other small things that were showing Minna was unwell.
Even after noticing these things, Getrud was in denial.
"Maybe it's just her hormones? You know... They're always off when-"
Erica shook her head and tugged at Trude's arm.
"No Trude. I think she's ill... She's been so stressed out recently, and look at deeply she's sleeping... It's not normal..."
Gertrud went quiet, and seemingly in slow motion, she rose from the couch and walked across to the other one. She stared down at Minna, watching every little movement that she made. Even from afar, it was fairly prominent that there was something wrong with Minna, but up close, it was even clearer that the redhead was unwell.
Gertrud lifted her hand and gently grazed it over Minna's hot forehead with a sigh.
"What should we do Trude?" Erica whispered in worry. "Should we leave her here and go and fetch the Major?"
Gertrud hesitated.
"I think we should carry her to her room... At least then she'll be comfortable..."
Erica nodded.
"Good idea... I'll go for the Major... Because I wouldn't be any use carrying her anyway..." Erica grinned grimly and jumped up from her seat as Getrud gathered the sleeping Minna in her arms carefully. Erica held the door open for Gertrud and Minna and then took off down the halls.
[LINEBREAK]
Perrine couldn't find it in herself to scowl at the Major as she patiently sat on the edge of the bed with her usual smile. Perrine could sense there wasn't something quite right about her aura today, but she couldn't out her finger on it. But she could tell. She had only been seeing the Nurse, the Major and occasionally Minna over the course of the last few weeks, and it was driving her crazy.
Of course Miyafuji and Lynne had visited her daily, but they never stayed long. Not long enough anyway, like the Major did.
Perrine pulled her knees up to her chest and smoothed her nightgown down and watched Mio with interest. The dark haired solider seemed distant today. Eventually, Mio looked round, and eye contact was initiated between the two.
"What have you eaten today?" Mio asked right off the bat, no hesitation or tact in her voice at all. Her eyes swept the room for hidden leftovers and uneaten meals, there didn't seem to be anything out of place.
Perrine paused before she gave her answer, and Mio brought in a new question.
"Did you eat breakfast?" Mio said softly.
"O-only a little... I wasn't hungry..." Perrine lied. Of course she was hungry. Inside her, it felt like there was a constant battle raging between hunger and the desire to be slim. It was incredibly painful, and there was nothing she could do to help it. Each time she raised a delicious looking food item to her lips, her brain would retaliate and screech at her and tell her she was fat. Even when Perrine ignored the first voices that appeared, more would follow; telling her how awful she is.
The voices were driving Perrine up the wall. She hadn't said anything about them, because she assumed the doctors would already know about them. The blonde had kept the voices entirely to herself.
But over the last two weeks, she had hardly improved in her condition at all. She had eaten as little as possible over that timespan, but it wasn't enough. Perrine still felt disgusting; fat. She still didn't feel as if the Major would've loved her.
"There's some tea on the way up here, so we can have a early afternoon snack..." Mio smiled softly. "And some Gallian cakes that looked nice..."
Perrine simply nodded. The thought of food from her homeland didn't even tempt her and the blonde continued to build up the wall between her and anything could she could've possibly eaten.
"Say, Perrine, you've been offered the opportunity to serve under the 506th, Noble Witches, when this wing is disbanded... Are you going to take the chance? Or do you want to return to Gallia?"
Perrine thought for a moment.
While it would be nice to continue earning and fighting for her country, it had been long she since had seen her own bedroom at home. Her family had plenty of money anyway, but that wasn't the point. The money wouldn't last forever, so perhaps the best choice would be to stay on and continue to serve as a witch.
Truthfully, Mio didn't know if the higher ups would let Perrine continue her active role in the war as a witch, for a mental illness such as one she had were not usually supported by the military and would put Perrine at an extreme disadvantage. Without getting the proper nutrition that she needed, Perrine's Magic would be unable to perform to its full extent which could result in a weak shield, and an even weaker stamina.
"I don't know..." Perrine said eventually, reflecting on her behaviour and mental state. It would be nice to go home, she thought. It would be nice to see faces she had long forgotten; Amelie, her butler, the rest of the staff, the children she rescued, the villagers... All the people she had missed.
Perrine couldn't think about it for long though, as there was a knock at the door and it slowly swung open. In stepped a member of the kitchen staff, holding a tray filled with large white teacups, a scalding hot teapot with steam pouring off it, and a few snacks which were no doubt extremely fattening snacks. The cook beamed at the two witches sat on the bed and placed the tray down don't the bedside table. She was a large, older woman with short curly hair and a cheery face.
Although neither of the witches were feeling the joy and cheer that the cook was, they each attempted a soft smile to welcome her.
"Perrine~ The cook called playfully. "We have some Gallian food for you~" she held up a plate towards Perrine and the blonde's eyes softened slightly.
It was always the same cook that brought the food up to Perrine, she seemed to like the young witch.
The cook carefully placed the plate in front of Perrine. The plate was small, but the portion size was smaller. After a discussion with the doctors, the cooks had agreed that it would be best to keep to portions and plate size down, so that Perrine didn't feel like she was eating a lot; which she wasn't but it would be better to introduce food slowly to the sick witch.
Perrine didn't look twice at the food placed in front of her, and instead focuses on making eye contact with one of the two other people in the room.
Mio, on the other hand, expressed much more than Perrine's lack of interest and eyed the food hungrily. The black haired witch had been eating with Perrine a lot recently, and she had taken quite a liking to the type of foods that were prepared for the blonde witch.
The cook continued to dance around the the room and handing the warm plates to the two witches.
"Thank you," Mio dipped her head respectfully as her plateful was given to her with a smile. The cook nodded and continued.
Just as Mio was about to tuck into her lunchtime extra, the door once again burst open and for the second time that day, Mio was faced with an out of breath Officer Hartmann.
The blonde had struggled to locate the Major, and had done a full lap of the base in her desperate search. Since the black haired witch had not been found, Erica decided that the best bet would be to go to the infirmary because there were doctors there.
"Major!" Erica called out. Mio put down her plate.
"Hartmann?" She tilted her head slightly, but she could sense something was wrong by the urgency in Erica's voice. "Where's Minna?"
Erica shook her head.
"She's with Trude! We don't think she's well..."
Mio stood up immediately and turned to the cook, who had been stood nearby with the rest of the food.
"Stay here." The major ordered, then followed Erica out of the room. The two withes broke into a jog as they proceeded to travel the corridor.
"What's wrong with her?" Mio asked.
"She's just... Not normal... Her breathing is off and she's hot..." Erica stammered.
Mio nodded.
"I'm coming now... It's going to be okay, Minna..." Mio whispered in reassurance to herself.
[LINEBREAK]
Sanya gently stroked Eila's sweaty forehead as the two lay in Eila's shared bed. The blonde had fallen fast asleep as soon as her head had touched the pillow and now lay breathing heavily. Sanya hummed softly under her breath, hoping that the reassuring tone in her gentle voice would calm and assist her girlfriend in sleeping.
Sanya's gaze dropped to Eila's now-bandaged wrists. The cotton had be wound tightly, but of course not too tightly, around the limbs of the teenager to ensure that the correct amount of pressure had been applied to the injuries. Sanya moved her other hand down and touched the material tenderly. Eila didn't twitch or flinch; she was in too deep of a sleep to even realise her girlfriend was next to her. The silver haired girl gently caressed Eila's sore arms and smiled gently at her sleeping face
"You are so cute Eila..." Sanya broke her hum to say those words, and leaned forward to leave a sweet kiss on the blonde's pale cheek. The mattered dipped up again as Sanya slip off the bed to plant her feet firmly on the floor. Slowly and quietly, the clothes on the floor were picked up and placed in a tidy pile on the small table, out of the way of anyone in or entering the room.
[LINEBREAK]
Sticky and sweaty, the commander of the 501st JFW lay shivering in her bed. Dampness from her body flooded the sheets and made it incredibly uncomfortable to be lay there, but it couldn't be helped. Pressed against Minna's heated forehead, was a damp face towel. This would at least help to cool the red head, although it wasn't helping much.
Mio couldn't sit still, and instead paced nervously beside the bed. At the foot of the bed, Trude was sat, keeping her watchful gaze cast over her friend while the doctors poked and prodded around her body. Next to Minna, Erica sat, the wrong way, in a chair, her chin resting softly atop of her hand.
With steady hands, the doctor moved and checked many parts of Minna's weakened body, before looking up with a grim expression. It appeared that Mio had sensed the lack of movement, as she turned around to look the doctor in the eyes. Her steady gaze was held.
"Thankfully, it isn't too serious. She just seems to have a slight fever, so perhaps a cold... But she is overworking herself, it's not healthy to be working this hard if you are carrying a child."
Darkening her gaze, Mio nodded reluctantly. Three sets of eyes lay themselves on the sleeping witch. Mio didn't want to admit it.
Minna needed to stop work, it was getting too much for her. Even if that would mean that she, Mio Sakamoto, had to retire, and finally give up her dream that she had protected thus far.
"For you, I will do anything, Minna." Muttering under her breath, the Fuso witch stepped in towards the bed. A light kiss was placed on Minna's forehead, before Mio stepped away and removed herself from the room.
Erica and Trude shared a knowing look between them briefly. This was going to be difficult.
"So she just needs plenty of rest?" Gertrud asked. The doctor nodded and began to explain different changes Minna should make to her diet to help herself. Erica yawned widely and decided to let Gertrud handle the boring stuff. Instead, Erica decided to be of some comfort to Minna, and dumped herself on one side of Minna's bed.
At first, Trude didn't noticed the blonde curled up in the crook of Minna, much like a cat in contrast to her dog familiar. However, once the brunette noticed the blonde mess sticking out a little, she let out a strangled screech and lunged towards the smaller girl.
"Erica! Get off Minna!"
"But Trudie-!"
"Get off!"
The doctor let out a cough, to attract the attention of the arguing witches. Turning to face him, Trude released her grip on Erica slightly.
"It would be beneficial for someone close to her to stay here with her, just to reassure her when she wakes up and to check if she needs something." Eyeing the two, he continued. "At least one of you should sleep in here with her, and sharing the bed is ok, although you risk catching her sickness."
With a smug grin directed at Gertrud, Erica snuggled into Minna further.
"You heard him Trude, she needs someone..." Erica grinned and stuck out her small pink tongue.
Trude trembled with slight anger, yet she attempted to brush it off.
"I see..." She simply muttered, and strode towards the bed, unbuttoning her jacket as she did so. The jacket was carefully draped over the back of a chair, closely followed by a white shirt.
"I'm staying too." Gertrud announced that fact with a puffed chest, as if she was telling the three people in the room she had just been awarded another medal or something. Erica just shrugged and ignored her long term companion. Trude winced at her action for a brief second, before shrugging it off and taking a place on the other side of Minna.
"Just watch her temperature, and occasionally wipe down her body. I'll see what medication I can offer her; but I have to be careful..." A slight tail flaring behind him in the breeze, the doctor turned and left. The three witches had their privacy.
"I hope Major Sakamoto doesn't do anything rash... Gertrud muttered to Erica.
[NOTES]
Seeya next month, and please if you have any suggestions or feedback for me I would very much appreciate a DM or a review!