Homecoming: part 1, by Lufia
Author's notes: I do not own Weiss Kreuz, I'm just borrowing certain assassins for a
while. Catherine Crawford is of my own creation. Just a quick PS also: I'm really stuck
on part two, so it might be a while. Perhaps if certain friends could help me figure out
where to go with this?
Bradley Crawford thanked the stout man behind the Alamo counter as he dropped the key
to a black StarQuest into Brad's open palm. He clenched his fist around the key and
turned, bending slightly to pick up his Samsonite briefcase, then strode out to the parking
lot.
"What'd you get?" Nagi asked, hefting his backpack from the ground.
"Something red and sporty, I hope," Schuldich smirked.
Brad shook his head. "We have to fit my sister's dorm room in here, as well as our own
luggage, and five people."
"Meaning you got a van," Farfarello said. "I call the front seat."
Schuldich twisted up his face. "A van? Bradley, come on."
"We're going for efficiency, not image, Schu. There's going to be quite a bit of stuff in
this van, and we all want places to sit, don't we?"
"How much stuff could she possibly have?"
"Schu, she's a college girl." Brad glared at the red-head as he opened his mouth. "Think
Nagi's old room times three." He smirked as Schuldich promptly shut his mouth.
"If Farfie's sitting up front, he'll need the directions," Nagi said, pulling a folded piece of
computer paper from the pocket of his school uniform.
Brad only nodded. "Let's get moving, everyone. It's getting late, and we want to get on
campus before the guard-post is manned. Explaining our little group would not be fun."
Catherine ran a hand over her sheets, smoothing the wrinkles from her bed with rapid
movements. She glanced over at her alarm clock and made a noise of exasperation. "I'm
never gonna get this done in time!"
Marilyn looked up from her British Political Systems textbook. "What are you spazzing
about?"
Catherine paused her frenetic cleaning, clasping her hands together. "Oh, yeah, I forgot
to tell you."
Marilyn raised an eyebrow. "Forgot to tell me…."
"Um, well," Catherine twisted her hands around, interlacing her fingers the opposite way.
"My brother and his friends are coming down for a visit."
The textbook slammed shut. "Now? In the middle of exam week?" Marilyn paused for
a moment. "You have a brother?"
Catherine nodded. "Bradley. He's nine years older than me. He's been…working
overseas for the past few years, and he's sorta coming home now. He's bringing a few
friends with him." She pulled a printed image down from her bulletin board and passed it
to her roommate. "Bradley's the one on the end, with the glasses."
"Who're these other people?" Marilyn asked, tucking a strand of carrot-colored hair
behind her ear. "His hair's more orange than mine!"
"Bradley says it's a dye," Catherine giggled. "That's Schuldich, his best friend. The
younger boy is Nagi, and the really pale guy is Farfarello. They're his friends that are
visiting too."
"When do they get here?" Marilyn asked. She passed the picture back to Catherine, who
tacked it back up beside her Two-Mix poster.
"Around five-thirty or so." Catherine glanced at the clock. "So, like, twenty minutes or
so. We don't have to be in here, though, if it'll bother you studying. I just wanted to
show them the room really quick, and then go to dinner and hang out somewhere."
Marilyn smiled, pushing herself up off her bed and reaching for her backpack. "It's okay.
I have some research for a paper to do at the library anyway." She rolled her eyes. "I
can't STAND my history professor! Really, a twenty-page research paper assigned two
days before the end of the semester? I think she's on crack."
"I'm sorry. Have fun."
"Thanks," Marilyn drawled sarcastically. "I'll see you later tonight. I should be done
hopefully around ten or so. Do you think your brother will still be here?"
"Do you want him to be?" Catherine asked, hoisting a stack of textbooks and lugging
them toward the bookshelf.
"I wouldn't mind saying hi, but I do want some study time in here later."
"They'll have to get checked in before midnight, so ten sounds fine for me to kick them
out. Besides, I need some study time as well. I've got that Greek final tomorrow
afternoon." She rolled her eyes, shoving book after book onto the shelf.
"You have my sympathy. See you later!" Marilyn shut the door carefully behind her.
"Greek-smeek," Catherine mumbled, reaching up a shelf to hit "play" on the CD player.
She sighed as the first track to her CD File began to play. "I can't wait to get out of that
fucking class. Never again." She shook her head, turning to face the mess of her room.
There wasn't much mess left, she decided, just the random school notes and study
packets cluttering up the floor. She bent down, scooping them all up into a huge pile and
turned to shove them into her desk drawer. "I'll sort you later," she said, slamming the
drawer shut. She plopped down in her desk chair, shutting her eyes. "I can't wait to go
home." Opening her eyes, she surveyed the room again. "I just don't want to pack."
The shrill ring of her telephone snapped Catherine out of her whining. She lunged across
the room, snatching up the receiver as she plunked herself down on the floor. "Hello?
Bradley! Yeah, no problem. I'll meet you outside the visitors' center. Bye-su-bye,
Bradley!" She slammed the receiver back down and snatched her keys from the table.
Turning, she surveyed her room one more time. "It'll have to do," she said.
Brad pulled up in front of the large brick building and parked the car. He leant over the
steering wheel, resting his chin on his arms.
"Bradley?" Schuldich asked from the passenger-seat behind him. He placed a hand on
the American's shoulder.
Brad smiled faintly. "I'm nervous," he said quietly. "I haven't seen her for close to
eleven years, Schu."
Nagi leant forward as well. "She can't wait to see you, though, right? I mean, that is
why we're here. So, what's the problem?"
"I just hope she doesn't think I abandoned her. What will she say when I tell her what
we've been doing? She's not going to be happy with the choices I've made."
"You're worrying about this now?" Farfarello asked. "It's a little late for that."
"If she's as wonderful as you've said, she'll accept it," Schuldich said. "You can't erase
what you've done."
"Nor would I want to." Brad turned his head, locking eyes with Schuldich. "I'm not
ashamed of my choices."
Schuldich smiled. "Then you have nothing to worry about."
Brad smiled faintly in return. He sat up, unbuckling his seatbelt. "Shall we go then,
gentlemen?"
Farfarello snorted. "You make us sound respectable, Crawford."
"Aren't we?" Schuldich smirked.
The parking lot to the visitors' center was almost completely empty, Catherine noticed as
she jogged up the pathway from the quad. Only a few cars were left in the lot. She
recognized the Mazda belonging to her Biology professor, and the Saab that the Dean of
Admissions drove on Fridays. A large black van was also parked in the lot, which she
didn't recognize. She held her breath, crossing her fingers. A smile spread across her
face as the doors on the van opened, and a group of men got out. The driver was tall,
with dark hair. The sinking sun caused a glare to flash off his glasses. She grinned,
breaking into a run.
"Bradley!"
The man with the glasses turned, his hazel eyes widening at the approaching girl. She
grinned, slamming headlong into him and wrapping his arms around his midsection
tightly. "Bradley! I'm so glad you got here okay!"
Brad put his arms around Catherine, smiling as well. "As am I, Cat. It's been far, far too
long." He disentangled himself from her, holding her back at arms-length. "Let me see,"
he said.
Catherine grinned, standing easy, clasping her hands in front of her. She wore a simple
pair of blue jeans and a purple, v-necked t-shirt. "I'm not as dressed up as you, but I'll
pass for civilized," she quipped. "What's with the suit? I thought you said you were
done with work."
"I am." Brad gestured to the three men who had come to stand by the hood of the van.
"We are. Old habits die hard, though, I suppose."
Catherine turned to the group of strangers. "These are your friends you told me about,
Bradley?"
Brad nodded. "This is Nagi, Farfarello, and Schuldich."
"I'm Catherine," she said, thrusting out her hand. Schuldich took it readily, pumping it in
a hearty handshake.
"Pleasure to meet you. You can call me Schu, I suppose. He does." Schuldich chucked
a thumb in Brad's direction, smirking.
"He doesn't seem the type for nicknames, does he?" Catherine said, smirking in return.
Schuldich's smirk slid into a grin as he released her hand.
"No, he doesn't."
Nagi stepped forward, bowing his head slightly. "Watakushi wa Naoe Nagi desu."
Catherine blinked. She glanced over at her brother. "Does he speak English?"
Brad nodded. "He's being cute, so he thinks." He folded his arms across his chest. "It's
not working."
"Hey," Nagi said, glaring at Brad. "That's not nice." He turned to Catherine, smiling.
"I'm Nagi. So, you like Japanese music?"
She nodded. "You should see my room. I'll take you all up there in a sec." When the
boy nodded she turned to Farfarello. "Hey," she said, again extending her hand.
Farfarello blinked at the hand with his one good eye, then snatched it up in one of his
own pale hands, gripping it tightly. "Can I cut you?" he asked.
"Farfarello," Brad snapped. "What did we discuss earlier?"
Catherine blinked. "Cut me?" she repeated. "Like, with a knife? Why would you want
to?"
"The contrast of red on peach looks pretty," Farfarello replied simply. He looked down
at their hands again. "Although red on eggshell is more striking. Do you want to see?"
Catherine smiled uneasily. "Maybe later, Farfarello." She pulled her hand away slowly,
tucking both hands into her pockets. "Anyway…you all want to see my room before we
go eat?"
Brad nodded quickly. "Lead the way, Cat." He glanced over at Farfarello sharply.
Farfarello dipped his chin slightly in acknowledgement. "You can give me a nickname
too," he said to Catherine.
She nodded, sidling closer to her brother. "I'll call you Farf, okay?" She seized her
brother's arm tightly. "What's with him?" she asked through clenched teeth.
"Later," Brad replied quietly. "Later, I promise, I'll tell you everything."
Catherine nodded, pulling away from her brother and heading back up the walkway.
"This way, come on! My dorm is up in the Quad."
"Will it be okay to just leave the van there?" Nagi asked.
"It shouldn't be a problem, for a while, at least. You might want to move it later."
"So when are you done with exams?" Schuldich asked, falling into step beside Catherine.
He draped an arm casually around her shoulders.
"Tomorrow afternoon. But, I haven't started packing yet, so I don't think we'll be ready
to leave until at least the day after tomorrow."
"And just how much stuff do you have?"
"Schuldich…." Brad warned.
Schuldich smirked at him. "What?" he asked innocently.
"Not too much," Catherine replied. "Clothes, books, computer, stuff. It shouldn't take
more than a day to pack it all up." She glanced at Schuldich. "Why, are you that anxious
to meet our folks?"
Schuldich pulled away, coughing slightly. Out of the corner of her eye, Catherine
noticed him slip his hand into Brad's discreetly. "Not overly anxious," Schuldich said.
"I just was curious."
"He was worried about space in the van," Nagi offered. "Brad said you had more stuff
than I did."
Catherine grinned. "He may be right. I always was a packrat."
Catherine led the group up through the Quad, taking a path between two of the dorm
buildings. "This is the U, where our dorms and offices are located," she said, gesturing
broadly with one arm. "Over there's the Admissions and Residence Life building.
Across the way's the Chapel, and just over there is my dorm."
Brad glanced behind them, pausing. "Farfarello…."
Catherine turned, raising an eyebrow. Farfarello had stopped walking, and was staring
intently at the steps leading up to the chapel. She watched his golden eye drink the
building in, starting from the marble steps, sliding up the wannabe-Ionic columns at the
front, and up the white concrete spire. His eye was wide, and he didn't blink.
"Farfarello," Brad said again.
"Can I go in?" Farfarello asked slowly, his gaze returning to the door. His hand slid into
his pocket.
"No, Farf," Schuldich said quietly. "Not here."
"I won't take long."
"Please don't start," Nagi said. "You promised you wouldn't do this."
"I didn't know they'd have a chapel."
Brad stepped toward the younger man, laying a firm hand on his shoulder. Farfarello
blinked, turning to look at him. "No," Brad said. "Let's keep walking."
Farfarello closed his eye, nodding. Brad removed his hand and continued walking
toward the dorms, Farfarello falling into step behind him.
Catherine turned to Schuldich and Nagi. "What the hell was that about?" she asked
quietly.
Schuldich shook his head. "Not now. Just act like nothing happened, okay? It's easier
for him that way." He smiled apologetically and turned to follow Brad.
"Nagi?"
The boy shrugged. "It's not something we talk about in public, or really at all. I'm sure
Brad'll fill you in, since you're putting up with us for a while."
Catherine sighed, clenching the air. "Someone better fill me in soon," she grumbled,
stalking ahead to catch up with her brother. She filed past him, turning toward a three-
story brick building. "Over this way," she said. She bounded up the three steps to the
ugly green doors and stabbed her key into the lock. "This is Beale Hall, my dorm."
"Cozy," Schuldich remarked. "Where's your room?"
"Third floor. Oh, and there's no elevator in this dorm."
Brad blinked. "We have to carry your things down two flights of stairs?"
"Just think of poor Dad. He carried it UP two flights of stairs." Catherine turned right in
the hallway, making for the stairs. "We can't be too loud right now. Since it's exam
week, we have 24-hour quiet hours."
"So we can't race you to your room screaming?" Nagi asked.
"Sorry," Catherine grinned. "Maybe if you help me move in next year we'll do that."
"Are you in this building again, Catherine?" Brad asked, following his sister up the stairs.
Catherine shook her head. "It's in Fromme Hall, across the Quad. They have an
elevator, luckily, because I'm on the top floor again. And, they have air conditioning."
"Is your roommate going to be bothered by us?" Schuldich asked.
"She's at the library doing research. She said she'd be back around ten." Catherine
stopped outside a wooden door, withdrawing her key again. "Welcome to my hellhole,"
she said, unlocking the door and shoving it open.
"Gee, which side is yours?" Brad asked, shaking his head at the sight of floor-to-ceiling
Japanese pop, rock, and anime posters on the right side of the room.
"Where did you find that?" Nagi asked, beelining for a full-sized poster of Gackt. "I
didn't know they made this!"
"I found it at a garage sale back home, if you can believe it. Some dude was getting rid
of a bunch of his son's posters and stuff, and this was in the pile. Ten cents."
Nagi turned to gape at her. "No! Baka!"
Catherine nodded. "I know."
Farfarello sat down on the bed, bouncing once. "Your mattress is dying," he remarked,
lying down on his stomach.
"The school's cheap," Catherine said, shrugging. She turned at the sound of a door
opening. "Schuldich?"
Schuldich was poking his head into her closet. "What the hell did you do, bring your
entire room from home?" he asked. "How are we going to fit all this shit in one car?"
"We fit it fine in Mom's Caravan at the beginning of the year."
"Yes," Brad said. "But, that was probably before you bought over half of this."
"Oh, yeah." Catherine shrugged. "You'd be amazed what I can cram into boxes."
Farfarello nodded sagely. "You can fit an average-sized human male in that storage
trunk," he rolled over and pointed to the blue trunk sitting beside Marilyn's dresser, "if
you fold him a certain way."
Catherine glanced at her brother. "Uh, yeah. Bradley, do you have something you want
to tell me?"
Brad shook his head. "Not now, Cat. You don't want to hear this before dinner, you'll
lose whatever appetite you have."
"You shouldn't tell her about me after dinner either," Farfarello remarked, folding his
arms behind his head and closing his eye.
Catherine glared at her brother, folding her arms across her chest. "Talk, Bradley."
"After dinner," Brad insisted, taking his sister by the shoulders and steering her toward
the door. "Let's go, everyone. It's getting on six, and we don't want to miss whatever
food they have, right?"
"It's got to be better than airplane food," Nagi conceded, extending an arm to Farfarello
to help him up. "Let's go, Farf."
The albino let himself be hauled to his feet. "Is it better than institution food?" he asked.
"I would assume so," Schuldich said flatly. He pulled the door open, making a sweeping
gesture with his hands.
Catherine allowed her brother to lead her out and down the stairs. Just what exactly had
she gotten herself into, she wondered. Who in the hell were these crazy people? Okay,
so Nagi and Schuldich seemed normal, but what was with that guy Farfarello? Was he
on crack? Was he certifiable?
"Yes," Schuldich said. "He is."
Catherine froze, causing Brad to bump into her from behind. Very slowly, she turned her
head, catching Schuldich's gaze from the corner of her eye. She held it steadily, her own
eyes wide.
Brad looked between his sister and Schuldich, his own eyes narrowing. "Not now," he
said sternly. "We are not getting into anything now. We are going to go down to her
cafeteria, and have a nice, pleasant, sane dinner. Is that understood?" He looked at each
of them in turn, glaring until each person nodded. Satisfied, he turned back to his sister.
"Which way to the cafeteria, Cat?"
Catherine blinked, refocusing her attention. "Um, that way. It's in the next dorm over."
She turned, striding quickly down the hall, dragging Brad along with her. She did not
slow her pace when she reached the door leading outside; she shoved her body into it,
slamming it open, and stalking outside and thundering down the steps to the ground level
of the next dorm.
"Through here," she said, pulling her brother through a set of double doors and into a
lobby area. She stopped short just inside the door, swallowing hard. She forced a smile
on her face as the two professors turned to her, smiling. "Hello Dr. Martin, Dr. Johnson."
Brad walked quickly to keep pace with his sister. He knew Cat was upset about being
left out of the loop for the moment, but she would surely understand once they sat down
and explained everything. It was not something he was looking forward too.
"Hello Dr. Martin, Dr. Johnson."
Brad came up behind his sister, making a slicing motion behind his back. Schu would
realize what he wanted. He looked over the two figures facing his sister carefully,
keeping his expression neutral. The one Cat had addressed as Dr. Martin nodded in
acknowledgement, smiling in a polite fashion. Dr. Johnson was more open in his
greeting. He smiled easily, which, oddly enough seemed to make Cat tense more. This
had to be Mr. Stick-Up-His-Ass.
"How is your studying coming along?" Dr. Johnson asked, causing Brad to groan
inwardly. Did the man not have any tact?
"Going well," Catherine replied. Brad winced as he felt her grip on his arm tighten, and
let himself be drawn forward into the group. "This is my brother, Bradley. I don't
believe you've met him."
Well, of course not, Brad thought. He dimly heard Schu's snicker at the back of his mind,
but ignored it as Catherine smiled up at him. Again, her fingers dug into his arm.
"Bradley, this is Dr. Martin, my advisor, and the department chair, and Dr. Johnson, my
Greek teacher."
::She's thinking death threats, Brad::
Brad nodded, acknowledging both the greeting and Schu's warning. "It's a pleasure to
meet you." Using the finesse he'd been forced to perfect while working with that bastard
Taketori, he smiled easily at them. "Catherine has told me quite a bit about you."
Dr. Martin shook his hand firmly. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Bradley. You're here to
bring her home, I take it?"
Well, at least this one was friendly. He nodded in reply. "My friends and I were in the
area on business, and we thought we'd give her a hand." He shifted his body slightly,
allowing Schuldich, Farfarello, and Nagi to be seen and acknowledged. ::BEHAVE::
Dr. Johnson smiled broadly. "Do any of you know Greek or Latin?"
::This guy deserves what she's thinking:: Schuldich thought at Brad. Aloud, he said,
"Our line of work requires fluency in modern languages."
::Don't do it, Schu:: "Schu…." Brad warned the German aloud for effect. "Forgive my
associate. I think he had a bad experience with Latin in his secondary education."
"It's not for everyone," Dr. Martin said. "You said you work with modern languages?"
"We're fluent in English and Japanese, and know enough German to get by," Nagi said,
also stepping forward, keeping close to Catherine.
Brad shook his head. "Forgive me, I haven't introduced my associates. This is
Schuldich, Nagi, and Farfarello."
Farfarello stepped forward, opening his mouth. ::Don't, Farfarello:: Brad warned.
Farfarello paused, shutting his mouth again. Brad could feel Catherine's hold on his arm
tighten as the Irishman came up to stand beside them.
"Well, we'd better get to dinner before all of the good stuff's gone. I'll see you both next
semester. Have a good summer!" Catherine said quickly. Brad barely had time to nod
politely at the two professors before she yanked him toward the cafeteria.
"Remember, Greek!" Dr. Johnson called after the group.
Once they were in the cafeteria proper, double doors between the group and the
professors, Catherine glared at them. "What in the hell were you all doing?" she hissed.
"Are you trying to start something? Those are my professors! I have to deal with them
on a regular basis, you don't."
Brad looked down at his sister apologetically. "I'm sorry, Cat."
Catherine smiled at her brother. "You weren't the problem, Bradley. These jokers here,"
she gestured at the three men, "about killed me from embarrassment."
Brad glanced over to the cafeteria staff, who were looking at the group with raised brows
and scowls. "Discussion is tabled until later. This is not the place for a scene." He
turned back to his group. "Nagi, stop staring at people. We're going to go into dinner
and eat, understood?"
Dinner had fortunately passed in a semi-normal manner. Catherine had steered the group
into the auxiliary dining room, away from the crowds of people, and to a table in the back
corner. She left empty tables between her group and some of the tables her friends sat at,
hoping they would all understand the message and keep away for the meal. Conversation
had consisted largely of Brad asking her about college and about their parents. Whenever
Catherine had asked about the line of work Brad and his friends were in, the men would
glance at each other, and Brad would say that he'd tell her later. It grated on her nerves,
made her want to smack him, but she understood. Whatever it was, it wasn't something
they wanted the general public to have knowledge of.
The only real incident at dinner had been Farfarello's fascination with the dinner knives.
As he cut into his steak strips, he commented that they were rather blunt, and therefore
useless as knives. He then proceeded to stab the steak, trying to bring it to his mouth
using only the knife, and failed miserably, which he said was proof they were inferior to
his own. He had then raised the decidedly useless knife to his lips and licked it, running
the razor edge across his tongue as further proof, since it didn't make him bleed. He was
about to demonstrate on the underside of his wrist when Schuldich gripped his hand
firmly and glared. Farfarello had blinked, then put the knife down slowly, glaring at Brad
and Schuldich.
Catherine let the men walk in front of her on the way back to the dorm; that way, she
could keep an eye on them. Brad and Schuldich walked close together, ahead of
Farfarello, who was flipping one of the dinner knives back and forth in his right hand.
Nagi walked behind Farfarello, just ahead of her. He kept glancing back, then forward,
as if he wanted to say something. She smiled at him, noting the light in his eyes as he
smiled back. He glanced ahead again, then slowed his pace, his step falling even with
hers.
::Can you hear me?::
Catherine blinked hard. She turned her head, staring with wide eyes at the boy walking
beside her. He smiled, flicking his gaze up ahead at the others. ::You can hear me, can't
you? Nod if you can, or think back at me::
Catherine nodded dumbly, not having any clue how in the hell to think at a person. She
glanced ahead as well, noting that her brother and Schuldich had slowed their pace.
Schuldich was glancing over his shoulder at her, and tugging on Brad's sleeve.
Nagi stiffened suddenly, stopping mid-pace. He dropped his head, closing his eyes.
Catherine placed a hand on his shoulder and looked up at her brother, focusing
completely on him. ::Back off, Bradley.::
Brad's eyes widened in shock, but that was the only outward sign that he'd heard her. He
glanced over at Schuldich, who whistled. ::You're a fast learner, girl::
Catherine scowled at Schuldich's mental comment. "Shall we continue this conversation
upstairs?" she asked. She snatched up Nagi's hand in her own and dragged him past the
group and up to the entrance to the dorm. She was fumbling for her key, when she heard
her brother's voice in her mind. ::Let Nagi get the door::
Catherine turned to Brad, staring at him like he'd said Farfarello was going to suddenly
dance the Nutcracker. Schuldich snickered. Brad only sighed. ::watch::
Glaring, Catherine turned back to Nagi, who was suddenly grinning. "Watch this," he
said quietly, splaying his fingers before the lock. His eyes narrowed, and he stared
intently at the door. Catherine raised an eyebrow at the behavior, but felt her jaw slowly
drop as a creak could be heard from the door, and it swung inward slowly.
Nagi blinked hard, pushing against the door with his body as it began to fall closed again.
"See?" he said. ::This is what I do as part of Schwarz::
"Bradley…."
Brad looked at his sister innocently. "Yes, Catherine?"
"Is there something you want to tell me?"
Bradley Crawford sank onto the stiff hotel bed, pressing his fingers to his temples. He
closed his eyes, letting himself tip backward and sprawl across the disgustingly cheery
floral comforter.
"Tired, Bradley?" Schuldich asked, looking up from the phone book. "Did you know
that everything around here closes at ten? What kind of lame-ass place is this?"
"She did say it was hicksville, remember?" Brad sighed. "I can't believe she took it that
well."
Schuldich tossed the phone book back onto the nighttable/desk and sat down on the bed
beside Brad. "Did you want her to be more upset?"
Brad let out a long, heavy sigh, stretching his arms up and folding them under his head.
"I don't know." He laughed hollowly. "I certainly didn't expect her to go on about how
cool she thought it all was."
Schuldich nodded absently. He reached down, drawing the glasses from Brad's face.
The American opened his eyes. "Schu?"
Schuldich smiled. "You need to rest. It's been a long day."
Brad smiled faintly in return, letting his eyes slide shut again. Schuldich shook his head,
standing and pulling the covers out from under the half-asleep man and draping them
over him. Brad shifted, turning on his side and sighing. "Sankyu…" he murmured
sleepily.
Catherine looked up from her evil, dreaded, demon-spawned Greek book as Marilyn
slipped into the room, her arms laden with papers. "You were productive, I see."
Marilyn rolled her eyes. "I can't wait until this paper's done. Hey, did your brother
leave already?"
Catherine nodded. "He insisted I study my Greek. He wants me to take the exam during
the early period, so we can pack and leave tomorrow evening. He's anxious to get
home."
Marilyn dropped her papers unceremoniously onto her bed, then began to sort through
them. "I don't blame him. I can't wait to go home. Were his friends nice?"
Catherine smirked. "They were interesting." Marilyn seemed to accept that as the end of
the conversation, and turned back to her mass of papers. Catherine flipped the page in
her Greek book, trying to force her mind to concentrate on the verb tenses she had to
memorize. It was no good. She sighed, letting her thoughts go where they wanted.
Bradley's story of the past nine years had been interesting, to say the least. And, oddly
enough, it made sense. She'd accepted it easily when he told her, which she knew was
not the reaction he had been expecting. He had probably expected her to get angry, to
yell, and to throw them all out on their asses. Bradley was always the pessimist. Didn't
his far-sight let him know that she'd be okay with it? Maybe he hadn't wanted to know
the answer ahead of time.
The only thing that had unnerved her about Schwarz, as Bradley had dubbed his little
group, was Farfarello, and his complete lack of pain sensation. He'd been all too happy
to demonstrate, by jabbing her scissors into his leg, repeatedly. She was rather proud of
herself for not throwing up or gagging at the sight. Fortunately, Brad and Schuldich had
pried the scissors away before he decided to gouge out his other eye.
Sighing heavily, Catherine closed her Greek book. Studying was simply not a viable
option at the moment. "What time are you thinking of getting to sleep?" she asked
Marilyn.
Marilyn looked up from her now-organized papers and glanced at the clock. "Maybe
another half-hour?"
"Sounds good. Do you mind if I use the phone?"
"No, go ahead."
Catherine settled herself down on the floor and picked up the phone. She held her breath
as she dialed, hoping it wasn't too late to call. She felt it only fair to give them a little
more of a heads up. The phone on the other end clicked, and a bleary voice asked who it
was. "Hey Mom…."
The next morning it rained. Catherine thought it was ironic, seeing as it fit her mood
perfectly. "I hate Greek," she muttered as she unlocked the door to the dorm and trudged
toward the stairs. "Greek sucks, it sucks, it sucks. I feel like bashing Dr. Johnson's head
in with the damn book."
::Can I help you?::
Catherine's head snapped up. ::Farfarello?:: They couldn't be here already. Her room
was a disaster, and her roommate was working on a paper. She'd told Brad three. It was
only eleven. She pushed the door to her room open, wincing at the sight.
Farfarello was laying across her bed again, flipping a rather sharp-looking knife up into
the air and catching it over and over again in his gloved hands. Nagi was hunched over
in front of her computer, staring intently at the screen and typing something on the
keyboard. Schuldich was hovering around Brad, who was talking rather calmly with
Marilyn, who kept her eyes fixed on the glint from the knife-blade.
"You said three was fine, Bradley," she said, stepping in and shutting the door. "It's
11:14."
"We decided to leave a little earlier," Brad said, turning and embracing her lightly.
"That's not going to be a problem, is it?"
Catherine shook her head. "It shouldn't. I just finished my Greek final, so I'm all done."
"So can I?" Farfarello asked.
"No, not today," Catherine replied, affecting a bored tone. Her brother had the right idea
about dealing with Fafarello. Be direct, and don't freak out, and the boy listens to you.
Farfarello grunted in reply, and continued to toss the knife.
"Do you have enough boxes?" Schuldich asked. "We can get you some from the store, if
you need some."
Catherine smirked at the flame-haired man. "You're so quick to pack me up, aren't you."
"It's going to take all damn day to pack your room!"
"Oh ye of little faith," Catherine teased, flinging open her closet door and proceeding to
drag suitcases and boxes down from the top shelf.
"Um, I'm gonna go over to the library, actually," Marilyn said. "I don't want to be in
your way while you're packing. If you're not here when I get back, have a great
summer!"
Catherine grinned. "You too." She flung her suitcase atop Farfarello, who only sighed,
and hugged her roommate tightly. "Sorry about them. They're certifiable."
"You're the one who's going to live with them. I feel sorry for you," Marilyn replied.
She waved good bye to the group and slipped through the door.
"Can I—"
"No," Catherine said quickly. "You cannot stab anything, maim anything, cause harm to
anything, Farfarello. I need to pack it all up."
"I was only going to ask if I could have a can of Dr. Pepper."
Catherine fought very hard not to strangle Schuldich as he burst out laughing.
Author's notes: I do not own Weiss Kreuz, I'm just borrowing certain assassins for a
while. Catherine Crawford is of my own creation. Just a quick PS also: I'm really stuck
on part two, so it might be a while. Perhaps if certain friends could help me figure out
where to go with this?
Bradley Crawford thanked the stout man behind the Alamo counter as he dropped the key
to a black StarQuest into Brad's open palm. He clenched his fist around the key and
turned, bending slightly to pick up his Samsonite briefcase, then strode out to the parking
lot.
"What'd you get?" Nagi asked, hefting his backpack from the ground.
"Something red and sporty, I hope," Schuldich smirked.
Brad shook his head. "We have to fit my sister's dorm room in here, as well as our own
luggage, and five people."
"Meaning you got a van," Farfarello said. "I call the front seat."
Schuldich twisted up his face. "A van? Bradley, come on."
"We're going for efficiency, not image, Schu. There's going to be quite a bit of stuff in
this van, and we all want places to sit, don't we?"
"How much stuff could she possibly have?"
"Schu, she's a college girl." Brad glared at the red-head as he opened his mouth. "Think
Nagi's old room times three." He smirked as Schuldich promptly shut his mouth.
"If Farfie's sitting up front, he'll need the directions," Nagi said, pulling a folded piece of
computer paper from the pocket of his school uniform.
Brad only nodded. "Let's get moving, everyone. It's getting late, and we want to get on
campus before the guard-post is manned. Explaining our little group would not be fun."
Catherine ran a hand over her sheets, smoothing the wrinkles from her bed with rapid
movements. She glanced over at her alarm clock and made a noise of exasperation. "I'm
never gonna get this done in time!"
Marilyn looked up from her British Political Systems textbook. "What are you spazzing
about?"
Catherine paused her frenetic cleaning, clasping her hands together. "Oh, yeah, I forgot
to tell you."
Marilyn raised an eyebrow. "Forgot to tell me…."
"Um, well," Catherine twisted her hands around, interlacing her fingers the opposite way.
"My brother and his friends are coming down for a visit."
The textbook slammed shut. "Now? In the middle of exam week?" Marilyn paused for
a moment. "You have a brother?"
Catherine nodded. "Bradley. He's nine years older than me. He's been…working
overseas for the past few years, and he's sorta coming home now. He's bringing a few
friends with him." She pulled a printed image down from her bulletin board and passed it
to her roommate. "Bradley's the one on the end, with the glasses."
"Who're these other people?" Marilyn asked, tucking a strand of carrot-colored hair
behind her ear. "His hair's more orange than mine!"
"Bradley says it's a dye," Catherine giggled. "That's Schuldich, his best friend. The
younger boy is Nagi, and the really pale guy is Farfarello. They're his friends that are
visiting too."
"When do they get here?" Marilyn asked. She passed the picture back to Catherine, who
tacked it back up beside her Two-Mix poster.
"Around five-thirty or so." Catherine glanced at the clock. "So, like, twenty minutes or
so. We don't have to be in here, though, if it'll bother you studying. I just wanted to
show them the room really quick, and then go to dinner and hang out somewhere."
Marilyn smiled, pushing herself up off her bed and reaching for her backpack. "It's okay.
I have some research for a paper to do at the library anyway." She rolled her eyes. "I
can't STAND my history professor! Really, a twenty-page research paper assigned two
days before the end of the semester? I think she's on crack."
"I'm sorry. Have fun."
"Thanks," Marilyn drawled sarcastically. "I'll see you later tonight. I should be done
hopefully around ten or so. Do you think your brother will still be here?"
"Do you want him to be?" Catherine asked, hoisting a stack of textbooks and lugging
them toward the bookshelf.
"I wouldn't mind saying hi, but I do want some study time in here later."
"They'll have to get checked in before midnight, so ten sounds fine for me to kick them
out. Besides, I need some study time as well. I've got that Greek final tomorrow
afternoon." She rolled her eyes, shoving book after book onto the shelf.
"You have my sympathy. See you later!" Marilyn shut the door carefully behind her.
"Greek-smeek," Catherine mumbled, reaching up a shelf to hit "play" on the CD player.
She sighed as the first track to her CD File began to play. "I can't wait to get out of that
fucking class. Never again." She shook her head, turning to face the mess of her room.
There wasn't much mess left, she decided, just the random school notes and study
packets cluttering up the floor. She bent down, scooping them all up into a huge pile and
turned to shove them into her desk drawer. "I'll sort you later," she said, slamming the
drawer shut. She plopped down in her desk chair, shutting her eyes. "I can't wait to go
home." Opening her eyes, she surveyed the room again. "I just don't want to pack."
The shrill ring of her telephone snapped Catherine out of her whining. She lunged across
the room, snatching up the receiver as she plunked herself down on the floor. "Hello?
Bradley! Yeah, no problem. I'll meet you outside the visitors' center. Bye-su-bye,
Bradley!" She slammed the receiver back down and snatched her keys from the table.
Turning, she surveyed her room one more time. "It'll have to do," she said.
Brad pulled up in front of the large brick building and parked the car. He leant over the
steering wheel, resting his chin on his arms.
"Bradley?" Schuldich asked from the passenger-seat behind him. He placed a hand on
the American's shoulder.
Brad smiled faintly. "I'm nervous," he said quietly. "I haven't seen her for close to
eleven years, Schu."
Nagi leant forward as well. "She can't wait to see you, though, right? I mean, that is
why we're here. So, what's the problem?"
"I just hope she doesn't think I abandoned her. What will she say when I tell her what
we've been doing? She's not going to be happy with the choices I've made."
"You're worrying about this now?" Farfarello asked. "It's a little late for that."
"If she's as wonderful as you've said, she'll accept it," Schuldich said. "You can't erase
what you've done."
"Nor would I want to." Brad turned his head, locking eyes with Schuldich. "I'm not
ashamed of my choices."
Schuldich smiled. "Then you have nothing to worry about."
Brad smiled faintly in return. He sat up, unbuckling his seatbelt. "Shall we go then,
gentlemen?"
Farfarello snorted. "You make us sound respectable, Crawford."
"Aren't we?" Schuldich smirked.
The parking lot to the visitors' center was almost completely empty, Catherine noticed as
she jogged up the pathway from the quad. Only a few cars were left in the lot. She
recognized the Mazda belonging to her Biology professor, and the Saab that the Dean of
Admissions drove on Fridays. A large black van was also parked in the lot, which she
didn't recognize. She held her breath, crossing her fingers. A smile spread across her
face as the doors on the van opened, and a group of men got out. The driver was tall,
with dark hair. The sinking sun caused a glare to flash off his glasses. She grinned,
breaking into a run.
"Bradley!"
The man with the glasses turned, his hazel eyes widening at the approaching girl. She
grinned, slamming headlong into him and wrapping his arms around his midsection
tightly. "Bradley! I'm so glad you got here okay!"
Brad put his arms around Catherine, smiling as well. "As am I, Cat. It's been far, far too
long." He disentangled himself from her, holding her back at arms-length. "Let me see,"
he said.
Catherine grinned, standing easy, clasping her hands in front of her. She wore a simple
pair of blue jeans and a purple, v-necked t-shirt. "I'm not as dressed up as you, but I'll
pass for civilized," she quipped. "What's with the suit? I thought you said you were
done with work."
"I am." Brad gestured to the three men who had come to stand by the hood of the van.
"We are. Old habits die hard, though, I suppose."
Catherine turned to the group of strangers. "These are your friends you told me about,
Bradley?"
Brad nodded. "This is Nagi, Farfarello, and Schuldich."
"I'm Catherine," she said, thrusting out her hand. Schuldich took it readily, pumping it in
a hearty handshake.
"Pleasure to meet you. You can call me Schu, I suppose. He does." Schuldich chucked
a thumb in Brad's direction, smirking.
"He doesn't seem the type for nicknames, does he?" Catherine said, smirking in return.
Schuldich's smirk slid into a grin as he released her hand.
"No, he doesn't."
Nagi stepped forward, bowing his head slightly. "Watakushi wa Naoe Nagi desu."
Catherine blinked. She glanced over at her brother. "Does he speak English?"
Brad nodded. "He's being cute, so he thinks." He folded his arms across his chest. "It's
not working."
"Hey," Nagi said, glaring at Brad. "That's not nice." He turned to Catherine, smiling.
"I'm Nagi. So, you like Japanese music?"
She nodded. "You should see my room. I'll take you all up there in a sec." When the
boy nodded she turned to Farfarello. "Hey," she said, again extending her hand.
Farfarello blinked at the hand with his one good eye, then snatched it up in one of his
own pale hands, gripping it tightly. "Can I cut you?" he asked.
"Farfarello," Brad snapped. "What did we discuss earlier?"
Catherine blinked. "Cut me?" she repeated. "Like, with a knife? Why would you want
to?"
"The contrast of red on peach looks pretty," Farfarello replied simply. He looked down
at their hands again. "Although red on eggshell is more striking. Do you want to see?"
Catherine smiled uneasily. "Maybe later, Farfarello." She pulled her hand away slowly,
tucking both hands into her pockets. "Anyway…you all want to see my room before we
go eat?"
Brad nodded quickly. "Lead the way, Cat." He glanced over at Farfarello sharply.
Farfarello dipped his chin slightly in acknowledgement. "You can give me a nickname
too," he said to Catherine.
She nodded, sidling closer to her brother. "I'll call you Farf, okay?" She seized her
brother's arm tightly. "What's with him?" she asked through clenched teeth.
"Later," Brad replied quietly. "Later, I promise, I'll tell you everything."
Catherine nodded, pulling away from her brother and heading back up the walkway.
"This way, come on! My dorm is up in the Quad."
"Will it be okay to just leave the van there?" Nagi asked.
"It shouldn't be a problem, for a while, at least. You might want to move it later."
"So when are you done with exams?" Schuldich asked, falling into step beside Catherine.
He draped an arm casually around her shoulders.
"Tomorrow afternoon. But, I haven't started packing yet, so I don't think we'll be ready
to leave until at least the day after tomorrow."
"And just how much stuff do you have?"
"Schuldich…." Brad warned.
Schuldich smirked at him. "What?" he asked innocently.
"Not too much," Catherine replied. "Clothes, books, computer, stuff. It shouldn't take
more than a day to pack it all up." She glanced at Schuldich. "Why, are you that anxious
to meet our folks?"
Schuldich pulled away, coughing slightly. Out of the corner of her eye, Catherine
noticed him slip his hand into Brad's discreetly. "Not overly anxious," Schuldich said.
"I just was curious."
"He was worried about space in the van," Nagi offered. "Brad said you had more stuff
than I did."
Catherine grinned. "He may be right. I always was a packrat."
Catherine led the group up through the Quad, taking a path between two of the dorm
buildings. "This is the U, where our dorms and offices are located," she said, gesturing
broadly with one arm. "Over there's the Admissions and Residence Life building.
Across the way's the Chapel, and just over there is my dorm."
Brad glanced behind them, pausing. "Farfarello…."
Catherine turned, raising an eyebrow. Farfarello had stopped walking, and was staring
intently at the steps leading up to the chapel. She watched his golden eye drink the
building in, starting from the marble steps, sliding up the wannabe-Ionic columns at the
front, and up the white concrete spire. His eye was wide, and he didn't blink.
"Farfarello," Brad said again.
"Can I go in?" Farfarello asked slowly, his gaze returning to the door. His hand slid into
his pocket.
"No, Farf," Schuldich said quietly. "Not here."
"I won't take long."
"Please don't start," Nagi said. "You promised you wouldn't do this."
"I didn't know they'd have a chapel."
Brad stepped toward the younger man, laying a firm hand on his shoulder. Farfarello
blinked, turning to look at him. "No," Brad said. "Let's keep walking."
Farfarello closed his eye, nodding. Brad removed his hand and continued walking
toward the dorms, Farfarello falling into step behind him.
Catherine turned to Schuldich and Nagi. "What the hell was that about?" she asked
quietly.
Schuldich shook his head. "Not now. Just act like nothing happened, okay? It's easier
for him that way." He smiled apologetically and turned to follow Brad.
"Nagi?"
The boy shrugged. "It's not something we talk about in public, or really at all. I'm sure
Brad'll fill you in, since you're putting up with us for a while."
Catherine sighed, clenching the air. "Someone better fill me in soon," she grumbled,
stalking ahead to catch up with her brother. She filed past him, turning toward a three-
story brick building. "Over this way," she said. She bounded up the three steps to the
ugly green doors and stabbed her key into the lock. "This is Beale Hall, my dorm."
"Cozy," Schuldich remarked. "Where's your room?"
"Third floor. Oh, and there's no elevator in this dorm."
Brad blinked. "We have to carry your things down two flights of stairs?"
"Just think of poor Dad. He carried it UP two flights of stairs." Catherine turned right in
the hallway, making for the stairs. "We can't be too loud right now. Since it's exam
week, we have 24-hour quiet hours."
"So we can't race you to your room screaming?" Nagi asked.
"Sorry," Catherine grinned. "Maybe if you help me move in next year we'll do that."
"Are you in this building again, Catherine?" Brad asked, following his sister up the stairs.
Catherine shook her head. "It's in Fromme Hall, across the Quad. They have an
elevator, luckily, because I'm on the top floor again. And, they have air conditioning."
"Is your roommate going to be bothered by us?" Schuldich asked.
"She's at the library doing research. She said she'd be back around ten." Catherine
stopped outside a wooden door, withdrawing her key again. "Welcome to my hellhole,"
she said, unlocking the door and shoving it open.
"Gee, which side is yours?" Brad asked, shaking his head at the sight of floor-to-ceiling
Japanese pop, rock, and anime posters on the right side of the room.
"Where did you find that?" Nagi asked, beelining for a full-sized poster of Gackt. "I
didn't know they made this!"
"I found it at a garage sale back home, if you can believe it. Some dude was getting rid
of a bunch of his son's posters and stuff, and this was in the pile. Ten cents."
Nagi turned to gape at her. "No! Baka!"
Catherine nodded. "I know."
Farfarello sat down on the bed, bouncing once. "Your mattress is dying," he remarked,
lying down on his stomach.
"The school's cheap," Catherine said, shrugging. She turned at the sound of a door
opening. "Schuldich?"
Schuldich was poking his head into her closet. "What the hell did you do, bring your
entire room from home?" he asked. "How are we going to fit all this shit in one car?"
"We fit it fine in Mom's Caravan at the beginning of the year."
"Yes," Brad said. "But, that was probably before you bought over half of this."
"Oh, yeah." Catherine shrugged. "You'd be amazed what I can cram into boxes."
Farfarello nodded sagely. "You can fit an average-sized human male in that storage
trunk," he rolled over and pointed to the blue trunk sitting beside Marilyn's dresser, "if
you fold him a certain way."
Catherine glanced at her brother. "Uh, yeah. Bradley, do you have something you want
to tell me?"
Brad shook his head. "Not now, Cat. You don't want to hear this before dinner, you'll
lose whatever appetite you have."
"You shouldn't tell her about me after dinner either," Farfarello remarked, folding his
arms behind his head and closing his eye.
Catherine glared at her brother, folding her arms across her chest. "Talk, Bradley."
"After dinner," Brad insisted, taking his sister by the shoulders and steering her toward
the door. "Let's go, everyone. It's getting on six, and we don't want to miss whatever
food they have, right?"
"It's got to be better than airplane food," Nagi conceded, extending an arm to Farfarello
to help him up. "Let's go, Farf."
The albino let himself be hauled to his feet. "Is it better than institution food?" he asked.
"I would assume so," Schuldich said flatly. He pulled the door open, making a sweeping
gesture with his hands.
Catherine allowed her brother to lead her out and down the stairs. Just what exactly had
she gotten herself into, she wondered. Who in the hell were these crazy people? Okay,
so Nagi and Schuldich seemed normal, but what was with that guy Farfarello? Was he
on crack? Was he certifiable?
"Yes," Schuldich said. "He is."
Catherine froze, causing Brad to bump into her from behind. Very slowly, she turned her
head, catching Schuldich's gaze from the corner of her eye. She held it steadily, her own
eyes wide.
Brad looked between his sister and Schuldich, his own eyes narrowing. "Not now," he
said sternly. "We are not getting into anything now. We are going to go down to her
cafeteria, and have a nice, pleasant, sane dinner. Is that understood?" He looked at each
of them in turn, glaring until each person nodded. Satisfied, he turned back to his sister.
"Which way to the cafeteria, Cat?"
Catherine blinked, refocusing her attention. "Um, that way. It's in the next dorm over."
She turned, striding quickly down the hall, dragging Brad along with her. She did not
slow her pace when she reached the door leading outside; she shoved her body into it,
slamming it open, and stalking outside and thundering down the steps to the ground level
of the next dorm.
"Through here," she said, pulling her brother through a set of double doors and into a
lobby area. She stopped short just inside the door, swallowing hard. She forced a smile
on her face as the two professors turned to her, smiling. "Hello Dr. Martin, Dr. Johnson."
Brad walked quickly to keep pace with his sister. He knew Cat was upset about being
left out of the loop for the moment, but she would surely understand once they sat down
and explained everything. It was not something he was looking forward too.
"Hello Dr. Martin, Dr. Johnson."
Brad came up behind his sister, making a slicing motion behind his back. Schu would
realize what he wanted. He looked over the two figures facing his sister carefully,
keeping his expression neutral. The one Cat had addressed as Dr. Martin nodded in
acknowledgement, smiling in a polite fashion. Dr. Johnson was more open in his
greeting. He smiled easily, which, oddly enough seemed to make Cat tense more. This
had to be Mr. Stick-Up-His-Ass.
"How is your studying coming along?" Dr. Johnson asked, causing Brad to groan
inwardly. Did the man not have any tact?
"Going well," Catherine replied. Brad winced as he felt her grip on his arm tighten, and
let himself be drawn forward into the group. "This is my brother, Bradley. I don't
believe you've met him."
Well, of course not, Brad thought. He dimly heard Schu's snicker at the back of his mind,
but ignored it as Catherine smiled up at him. Again, her fingers dug into his arm.
"Bradley, this is Dr. Martin, my advisor, and the department chair, and Dr. Johnson, my
Greek teacher."
::She's thinking death threats, Brad::
Brad nodded, acknowledging both the greeting and Schu's warning. "It's a pleasure to
meet you." Using the finesse he'd been forced to perfect while working with that bastard
Taketori, he smiled easily at them. "Catherine has told me quite a bit about you."
Dr. Martin shook his hand firmly. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Bradley. You're here to
bring her home, I take it?"
Well, at least this one was friendly. He nodded in reply. "My friends and I were in the
area on business, and we thought we'd give her a hand." He shifted his body slightly,
allowing Schuldich, Farfarello, and Nagi to be seen and acknowledged. ::BEHAVE::
Dr. Johnson smiled broadly. "Do any of you know Greek or Latin?"
::This guy deserves what she's thinking:: Schuldich thought at Brad. Aloud, he said,
"Our line of work requires fluency in modern languages."
::Don't do it, Schu:: "Schu…." Brad warned the German aloud for effect. "Forgive my
associate. I think he had a bad experience with Latin in his secondary education."
"It's not for everyone," Dr. Martin said. "You said you work with modern languages?"
"We're fluent in English and Japanese, and know enough German to get by," Nagi said,
also stepping forward, keeping close to Catherine.
Brad shook his head. "Forgive me, I haven't introduced my associates. This is
Schuldich, Nagi, and Farfarello."
Farfarello stepped forward, opening his mouth. ::Don't, Farfarello:: Brad warned.
Farfarello paused, shutting his mouth again. Brad could feel Catherine's hold on his arm
tighten as the Irishman came up to stand beside them.
"Well, we'd better get to dinner before all of the good stuff's gone. I'll see you both next
semester. Have a good summer!" Catherine said quickly. Brad barely had time to nod
politely at the two professors before she yanked him toward the cafeteria.
"Remember, Greek!" Dr. Johnson called after the group.
Once they were in the cafeteria proper, double doors between the group and the
professors, Catherine glared at them. "What in the hell were you all doing?" she hissed.
"Are you trying to start something? Those are my professors! I have to deal with them
on a regular basis, you don't."
Brad looked down at his sister apologetically. "I'm sorry, Cat."
Catherine smiled at her brother. "You weren't the problem, Bradley. These jokers here,"
she gestured at the three men, "about killed me from embarrassment."
Brad glanced over to the cafeteria staff, who were looking at the group with raised brows
and scowls. "Discussion is tabled until later. This is not the place for a scene." He
turned back to his group. "Nagi, stop staring at people. We're going to go into dinner
and eat, understood?"
Dinner had fortunately passed in a semi-normal manner. Catherine had steered the group
into the auxiliary dining room, away from the crowds of people, and to a table in the back
corner. She left empty tables between her group and some of the tables her friends sat at,
hoping they would all understand the message and keep away for the meal. Conversation
had consisted largely of Brad asking her about college and about their parents. Whenever
Catherine had asked about the line of work Brad and his friends were in, the men would
glance at each other, and Brad would say that he'd tell her later. It grated on her nerves,
made her want to smack him, but she understood. Whatever it was, it wasn't something
they wanted the general public to have knowledge of.
The only real incident at dinner had been Farfarello's fascination with the dinner knives.
As he cut into his steak strips, he commented that they were rather blunt, and therefore
useless as knives. He then proceeded to stab the steak, trying to bring it to his mouth
using only the knife, and failed miserably, which he said was proof they were inferior to
his own. He had then raised the decidedly useless knife to his lips and licked it, running
the razor edge across his tongue as further proof, since it didn't make him bleed. He was
about to demonstrate on the underside of his wrist when Schuldich gripped his hand
firmly and glared. Farfarello had blinked, then put the knife down slowly, glaring at Brad
and Schuldich.
Catherine let the men walk in front of her on the way back to the dorm; that way, she
could keep an eye on them. Brad and Schuldich walked close together, ahead of
Farfarello, who was flipping one of the dinner knives back and forth in his right hand.
Nagi walked behind Farfarello, just ahead of her. He kept glancing back, then forward,
as if he wanted to say something. She smiled at him, noting the light in his eyes as he
smiled back. He glanced ahead again, then slowed his pace, his step falling even with
hers.
::Can you hear me?::
Catherine blinked hard. She turned her head, staring with wide eyes at the boy walking
beside her. He smiled, flicking his gaze up ahead at the others. ::You can hear me, can't
you? Nod if you can, or think back at me::
Catherine nodded dumbly, not having any clue how in the hell to think at a person. She
glanced ahead as well, noting that her brother and Schuldich had slowed their pace.
Schuldich was glancing over his shoulder at her, and tugging on Brad's sleeve.
Nagi stiffened suddenly, stopping mid-pace. He dropped his head, closing his eyes.
Catherine placed a hand on his shoulder and looked up at her brother, focusing
completely on him. ::Back off, Bradley.::
Brad's eyes widened in shock, but that was the only outward sign that he'd heard her. He
glanced over at Schuldich, who whistled. ::You're a fast learner, girl::
Catherine scowled at Schuldich's mental comment. "Shall we continue this conversation
upstairs?" she asked. She snatched up Nagi's hand in her own and dragged him past the
group and up to the entrance to the dorm. She was fumbling for her key, when she heard
her brother's voice in her mind. ::Let Nagi get the door::
Catherine turned to Brad, staring at him like he'd said Farfarello was going to suddenly
dance the Nutcracker. Schuldich snickered. Brad only sighed. ::watch::
Glaring, Catherine turned back to Nagi, who was suddenly grinning. "Watch this," he
said quietly, splaying his fingers before the lock. His eyes narrowed, and he stared
intently at the door. Catherine raised an eyebrow at the behavior, but felt her jaw slowly
drop as a creak could be heard from the door, and it swung inward slowly.
Nagi blinked hard, pushing against the door with his body as it began to fall closed again.
"See?" he said. ::This is what I do as part of Schwarz::
"Bradley…."
Brad looked at his sister innocently. "Yes, Catherine?"
"Is there something you want to tell me?"
Bradley Crawford sank onto the stiff hotel bed, pressing his fingers to his temples. He
closed his eyes, letting himself tip backward and sprawl across the disgustingly cheery
floral comforter.
"Tired, Bradley?" Schuldich asked, looking up from the phone book. "Did you know
that everything around here closes at ten? What kind of lame-ass place is this?"
"She did say it was hicksville, remember?" Brad sighed. "I can't believe she took it that
well."
Schuldich tossed the phone book back onto the nighttable/desk and sat down on the bed
beside Brad. "Did you want her to be more upset?"
Brad let out a long, heavy sigh, stretching his arms up and folding them under his head.
"I don't know." He laughed hollowly. "I certainly didn't expect her to go on about how
cool she thought it all was."
Schuldich nodded absently. He reached down, drawing the glasses from Brad's face.
The American opened his eyes. "Schu?"
Schuldich smiled. "You need to rest. It's been a long day."
Brad smiled faintly in return, letting his eyes slide shut again. Schuldich shook his head,
standing and pulling the covers out from under the half-asleep man and draping them
over him. Brad shifted, turning on his side and sighing. "Sankyu…" he murmured
sleepily.
Catherine looked up from her evil, dreaded, demon-spawned Greek book as Marilyn
slipped into the room, her arms laden with papers. "You were productive, I see."
Marilyn rolled her eyes. "I can't wait until this paper's done. Hey, did your brother
leave already?"
Catherine nodded. "He insisted I study my Greek. He wants me to take the exam during
the early period, so we can pack and leave tomorrow evening. He's anxious to get
home."
Marilyn dropped her papers unceremoniously onto her bed, then began to sort through
them. "I don't blame him. I can't wait to go home. Were his friends nice?"
Catherine smirked. "They were interesting." Marilyn seemed to accept that as the end of
the conversation, and turned back to her mass of papers. Catherine flipped the page in
her Greek book, trying to force her mind to concentrate on the verb tenses she had to
memorize. It was no good. She sighed, letting her thoughts go where they wanted.
Bradley's story of the past nine years had been interesting, to say the least. And, oddly
enough, it made sense. She'd accepted it easily when he told her, which she knew was
not the reaction he had been expecting. He had probably expected her to get angry, to
yell, and to throw them all out on their asses. Bradley was always the pessimist. Didn't
his far-sight let him know that she'd be okay with it? Maybe he hadn't wanted to know
the answer ahead of time.
The only thing that had unnerved her about Schwarz, as Bradley had dubbed his little
group, was Farfarello, and his complete lack of pain sensation. He'd been all too happy
to demonstrate, by jabbing her scissors into his leg, repeatedly. She was rather proud of
herself for not throwing up or gagging at the sight. Fortunately, Brad and Schuldich had
pried the scissors away before he decided to gouge out his other eye.
Sighing heavily, Catherine closed her Greek book. Studying was simply not a viable
option at the moment. "What time are you thinking of getting to sleep?" she asked
Marilyn.
Marilyn looked up from her now-organized papers and glanced at the clock. "Maybe
another half-hour?"
"Sounds good. Do you mind if I use the phone?"
"No, go ahead."
Catherine settled herself down on the floor and picked up the phone. She held her breath
as she dialed, hoping it wasn't too late to call. She felt it only fair to give them a little
more of a heads up. The phone on the other end clicked, and a bleary voice asked who it
was. "Hey Mom…."
The next morning it rained. Catherine thought it was ironic, seeing as it fit her mood
perfectly. "I hate Greek," she muttered as she unlocked the door to the dorm and trudged
toward the stairs. "Greek sucks, it sucks, it sucks. I feel like bashing Dr. Johnson's head
in with the damn book."
::Can I help you?::
Catherine's head snapped up. ::Farfarello?:: They couldn't be here already. Her room
was a disaster, and her roommate was working on a paper. She'd told Brad three. It was
only eleven. She pushed the door to her room open, wincing at the sight.
Farfarello was laying across her bed again, flipping a rather sharp-looking knife up into
the air and catching it over and over again in his gloved hands. Nagi was hunched over
in front of her computer, staring intently at the screen and typing something on the
keyboard. Schuldich was hovering around Brad, who was talking rather calmly with
Marilyn, who kept her eyes fixed on the glint from the knife-blade.
"You said three was fine, Bradley," she said, stepping in and shutting the door. "It's
11:14."
"We decided to leave a little earlier," Brad said, turning and embracing her lightly.
"That's not going to be a problem, is it?"
Catherine shook her head. "It shouldn't. I just finished my Greek final, so I'm all done."
"So can I?" Farfarello asked.
"No, not today," Catherine replied, affecting a bored tone. Her brother had the right idea
about dealing with Fafarello. Be direct, and don't freak out, and the boy listens to you.
Farfarello grunted in reply, and continued to toss the knife.
"Do you have enough boxes?" Schuldich asked. "We can get you some from the store, if
you need some."
Catherine smirked at the flame-haired man. "You're so quick to pack me up, aren't you."
"It's going to take all damn day to pack your room!"
"Oh ye of little faith," Catherine teased, flinging open her closet door and proceeding to
drag suitcases and boxes down from the top shelf.
"Um, I'm gonna go over to the library, actually," Marilyn said. "I don't want to be in
your way while you're packing. If you're not here when I get back, have a great
summer!"
Catherine grinned. "You too." She flung her suitcase atop Farfarello, who only sighed,
and hugged her roommate tightly. "Sorry about them. They're certifiable."
"You're the one who's going to live with them. I feel sorry for you," Marilyn replied.
She waved good bye to the group and slipped through the door.
"Can I—"
"No," Catherine said quickly. "You cannot stab anything, maim anything, cause harm to
anything, Farfarello. I need to pack it all up."
"I was only going to ask if I could have a can of Dr. Pepper."
Catherine fought very hard not to strangle Schuldich as he burst out laughing.
